Zeppos

by Skip Anderson

The University's chief academic officer circulated to faculty last week a preliminary outline for the future of education at Vanderbilt: "The Draft Academic Strategic Plan."

A 90-page document, "The Draft Academic Strategic Plan" is the culmination of almost three years of work undertaken by the Strategic Academic Planning Group. Nicholas Zeppos, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs, sent an e-mail to all faculty members, directing them to the Internet where they could review the document. In his e-mail, he encouraged input from all full- and part-time faculty members.

"The debate and discussion on this draft must be unfettered and open," said Zeppos in the e-mail message to the University's faculty. "I would like to work with faculty and deans to develop a meaningful and continuous process for debate and engagement."

The authors of the report divided its contents into six sections: 1) Overview of the University's "mission, uniqueness and sense of institutional identity for the future," 2) student recruitment and "building a unique educational experience," 3) faculty recruitment and retention 4) establishing "distinctive and distinguished" trans-institutional programs and bridging disciplines and schools, 5) transforming graduate education, and 6) reorganizing business models and "doing things differently."

The report describes part one -- identifying Vanderbilt's mission and institutional identity -- as most important.

"Without defining our mission, identifying what is unique about Vanderbilt, and what is its future, our plan would lack a soul, and chart us without a compass," wrote Zeppos in the introduction to "The Draft Academic Strategic Plan."

In addition to the University's "great faculty," the report identified attributes unique to Vanderbilt that will help it compete for tomorrow's top students and faculty, including the "unusually civil and collegial culture" of campus.

"Students and faculty choose to come to Vanderbilt because of the unusual sense of community and civility in which sharp intellectual disagreements and differences are tolerated and indeed encouraged," wrote the authors.

Other aspects that draw students and faculty alike to Vanderbilt include "a unique collection of schools clustered closely on a beautiful campus" and the collection of professional schools.

"The breadth and diversity of intellectual inquiry and teaching is virtually unparalleled," wrote the authors.

Keeping faculty at Vanderbilt was identified as key to the University's future success.

"We believe that an aggressive and new strategy for retaining faculty must be explored," wrote the authors.

The report recommends the University make the securing of endowed chairs -- and establishing new research chairs to recognize junior faculty -- a priority. Excluding the schools of medicine and nursing, the University currently has only 64 endowed chairs, "far fewer than our competitors such as Washington University, Stanford and Emory." The group also recommended the University adopt a proactive strategy of retaining faculty, rather than responding to an offer made by a competing school, as well as establishing flexibility in tenure contracts.

"We fear that the one-size-fits-all tenure contract has often limited the creativity of universities such as Vanderbilt," wrote the authors. "Instead, it may be appropriate for Vanderbilt to explore and experiment with 'contracts within contracts' where incentives are created with faculty on an ad hoc basis to create the incentive for them to remain at Vanderbilt."

The report also stressed the importance of diversity.

"In many different arenas, including the media, judicial opinions, research journals and books, arguments proliferate about the backgrounds," wrote the authors. "We think it's clear that the mission of a great educational institution is linked to this diversity of backgrounds, perspectives and viewpoints."

The authors regarded bridging disciplines through trans-institutional programs as key in helping the University reach its potential.

"Too many ideas and much of the knowledge created at Vanderbilt has been allowed to remain inert and locked only in the disciplines of individual schools and departments," wrote the authors. "Vanderbilt has not exploited its unique strengths to create an intellectually vibrant community, a community that would attract and retain the most talented faculty and students who would form powerful relationships."

The report, which is available in its entirety on the Internet, proposes the pursuit of specific initiatives to build upon the University's strengths within the social sciences and hard sciences, as well as economics, law and political science.

In his first Faculty Assembly address, Chancellor Gordon Gee stressed the importance of transforming graduate education at Vanderbilt. The Strategic Academic Planning Group echoed this sentiment in its report.

"For Vanderbilt to claim an even broader leadership role in higher education and society at large, there must be dramatic improvements in graduate education at Vanderbilt," wrote the authors.

Recommendations include recognizing and rewarding great graduate teaching, drawing the best students and strategically choosing which graduate programs to offer.

"The vast array of schools, programs and departments found at Vanderbilt offers a richness of intellectual range," wrote the authors. "However, it is essential that Vanderbilt makes strategic choices among these departments and disciplines and invests wisely to build distinction in those areas where strength currently resides or where strategic opportunities present themselves."

In order to enact the recommendations -- which remain in draft form pending input from the faculty at large and review by the Board of Trust -- the SAPG recommends the University reinvent its way of conducting day-to-day business.

"It has become increasingly apparent that over the years, some of our current practices have not been adapted to changing realities in both competitive education markets and the changing nature of institutional research," wrote the authors. "Faced with this challenge during the planning process, Chancellor Gee and the Board of Trust ... approved a new initiative -- the Academic Venture Fund."

In its report, the SAPG indicated this fund would encourage inter-departmental and inter-school initiatives in a way impractical in the current budgetary system, commonly referred to as "Every Tub on its Own Bottom" or ETOB. The AVF, considered revolutionary by its supporters, would help align philanthropic efforts -- such as the current capital campaign [see Nov. 6, 2000, Register] -- to specific academic initiatives.

The report also touted the better utilization of technology as being critical to the success of the University.

"The draft plan sets out an ambitious and bold future for Vanderbilt," wrote Zeppos in the document's conclusion. "Our past, present and future greatness will in large part be based upon the extraordinary students and faculty we bring to Vanderbilt. ... At all stages of decision and implementation we must have an open, transparent and rigorous process for debate and discussion. ... The success of our plan will in all likelihood be based on the ... willingness of the Vanderbilt community -- especially the faculty -- to work together in all stages of the important work ahead."

Members of the Strategic Academic Planning Committee

Dr. R. Daniel Beauchamp, John Clinton Foshee Distinguished Chair in Surgery Camilla Benbow, Dean of Peabody College Dr. Randy D. Blakely, Allan D. Bass Chair in Pharmacology Prof. J. Patout Burns, Edward A. Malloy Professor of Catholic Studies Dr. David P. Carbone, Ingram Professor of Cancer Research; Daniel B. Cornfield, Chair of the Department of Sociology Dr. Raymond N. Dubois Jr., Mina Cobb Wallace Chair in Gastroenterology and Cancer Prevention David J. Ernst, Professor of Physics Dr. Alfred L. George Jr., Grant W. Liddle Professor of Medicine Dr. Daryl K. Granner, Joe C. Davis Chair in Biomedical Science Dr. Brigid Hogan, Hortense B. Ingram Chair in Molecular Oncology Dr. Jacek Hawiger, Oswald T. Avery Professor of Microbiology and Immunology Dr. Nancy M. Lorenzi, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs Dr. Robert L. MacDonald, Professor of Neurology Beverly I. Moran, Professor of Law Dr. Linda D. Norman, Senior Associate Dean of Academics at the School of Nursing Ronald D. Schrimpf, Professor of Electrical Engineering Charles K. Singleton, Professor of Biological Sciences Dr. Arnold W. Strauss, James C. Overall Professor of Pediatrics Cecelia Tichi, William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of English Dr. Michael Waterman, Natalie Overall Warren Distinguished Chair in Biochemistry Source: Office of the Provost

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