The West Virginia University Office of the Provost has announced its final appeal decisions regarding the Academic Transformation process. The decisions were made after a series of hearings and are aimed at improving efficiency and maintaining academic excellence at the university.
In the Department of English, the Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing will continue to be offered. However, the number of faculty will be reduced to 28 in order to streamline operations. Additionally, the MA in English will be merged with the MA in Professional Writing to improve efficiency.
Similarly, the School of Music has been granted an appeal to amend the faculty reduction in the College of Creative Arts. The decision will result in 34 faculty members being retained in order to support programs in BM Music Composition, BM Music Performance, MM Performance, and DMA Performance. The retention of certain expertise is also necessary to maintain accreditation and deliver DMA programs.
Several programs in the School of Education have also undergone appeal processes. While the MA Special Education program will be continued due to increased enrollment and cost-effectiveness, the appeals to save the MA Higher Education Administration and PhD Higher Education Programs were unsuccessful. The number of faculty in the School of Education will be reduced to 18, taking into account factors such as student credit hour production and student-to-faculty ratios.
The Department of Communication Studies in the Eberly College did not succeed in its appeal, resulting in a reduction of faculty to 11. The appeal was denied due to a decrease in enrollment and student credit hour production, as well as the department’s tendency to offer a large number of elective courses for non-majors.
The Department of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering was also unsuccessful in its appeal to reduce faculty. The committee has maintained its preliminary recommendation to reduce the faculty to five, considering factors such as enrollment declines, student credit hour production, low student-to-faculty ratios, and the failure to align faculty positions with enrollment trends.
These decisions are part of West Virginia University’s efforts to enhance operational efficiency and respond to changing academic needs. The final recommendations will be presented to the WVU Board of Governors in September for further consideration.
The Board of Governors will be accepting public comments on these recommendations before making the final decisions. This period allows stakeholders and interested parties to provide feedback on the proposed changes to ensure transparency and inclusivity in the decision-making process. The final decisions will be made during the regular meeting of the Board of Governors on September 15th.
Overall, these decisions demonstrate WVU’s commitment to maintaining academic excellence while adapting to evolving needs and optimizing resources. Through careful evaluation and consideration, the university aims to ensure that its programs continue to meet the highest standards of quality and provide valuable education opportunities to students.
