Academic Program Prioritization Phase Two

ITHACA COLLEGE MOVES FORWARD WITH SECOND STAGE OF ACADEMIC PROGRAM PRIORITIZATION PROCESS

BY CAITLIN HOLTZMAN

Ithaca College is beginning to move into the second phase of the Academic Program Prioritization (APP) process, which involves the restructuring of some academic programs.

The APP process began in 2020 when President La Jerne Cornish, provost and senior vice president of academic affairs at the time, convened the Academic Program Prioritization Implementation Committee (APPIC) to develop recommendations regarding the future shape of the college’s programs and provided them with their tasks.

As part of the strategic plan, Ithaca Forever, Cornish has said that the APP was supposed to take place over a period of four years but had to be accelerated because of the COVID-19 pandemic’s impacts on the college’s fnances. The college released the draft of the “Shape of the College” document Jan. 13, 2021, which drew criticism from many members of the campus community.

The document was written by the APPIC and it detailed the entire APP process. The frst phase of the APP included the ongoing elimination of 116 full-time equivalent faculty and 26 majors, departments and programs.

Cornish said the second phase will focus on reorganization and restructuring with the idea of creating connections across schools in mind.

“I am pleased that this important work is progressing under the able leadership of Provost Melanie Stein, with the assistance of multiple partners from across campus,” she said via email.

Phase One

The frst phase was focused on realigning the size of the faculty to ft the size of the student body, according to the “Shape of the College” document. The college is trying to achieve a student-to-faculty ratio of 11.5:1 or 12:1 with a projected enrollment size of 4,500 undergraduate students and 500 graduate students. In Fall 2020, there were 4,957 undergraduate and 397 graduate students. In Fall 2019, there were 5,852 undergraduate and 414 graduate students. The college’s acceptance rate was 75.7% in Fall 2020, the highest it had been since Fall 2009. The frst phase received backlash from many members of the campus community throughout the 2020–21 academic year. Multiple groups were formed, like a chapter of the American Association of University Professors, the Open the Books (OTB) coalition and IC Alumni Against Austerity (ICAAA), in opposition to the cuts.

OTB and ICAAA held multiple protests and forums throughout the last academic year, gatherings that were focused on educating the campus community members about the cuts, as well as expressing their disagreements regarding the cuts. Most recently, ICAAA created a portal to allow current and former students, faculty and staff to submit anonymous complaints against the Senior Leadership Team and the Ithaca College Board of Trustees.

Phase Two

Stein said the second phase has begun and work is being done by specifc committees.

She said changes in the second phase include admission application process, curricular revision process, the formation of a committee focused on what faculty positions need to be searched for, conducting an inventory of reassigned time for faculty across schools at the college, reorganizing programs and centralizing the oversight of graduate programs overseen by Christina Moylan, associate provost for graduate and professional studies.

Stein also said the general timeline for the second and third phases to be completed is in the next three years.

“Having said that, these phases include a broad range of projects, each with their own timeline,” Stein said via email. “For example, the Physician Assistant program, which was just launched, is a perfect example of growth.”

The Physician Assistant program was launched in Spring 2021 and welcomed its frst class in Fall 2021 with 30 students. The program will continue to grow until it hits its full capacity of 50 students per cohort.

Stein said the Department of Theatre Arts is a part of the reorganizing of the second phase. The Department of Theatre Arts has been combined with the School of Music to form the new School of Music, Theatre and Dance. This along with other structural changes are part of this second phase.

At an All-Faculty and Staff meeting in May 2021, Cornish said the department moving would be a good way to explore the relationship between theater arts and music. Stein said via email that faculty and staff are involved in conversations surrounding the move and how it can strengthen student experiences. Stein said that fguring out how to proceed with the theater arts department needed to be decided before resuming the dean searches. The college currently has three interim deans: Jack Powers in the Roy H. Park School of Communications, Alka Bramhandkar in the School of Business and Ivy Walz in the School of Music. Claire Gleitman served as interim dean in the School of Humanities and Sciences from August 2021 to March 2022 when Stein named her the offcial dean of the School of Humanities and Sciences.

Anna McCracken/The Ithacan Members of the Ithaca College Senior Leadership team clap during the All-College Gathering Aug. 31, 2021 in the Emerson suites. Ana Maniaci McGough/The Ithacan.