Chancellor Loftin charged the Graduate School Restructuring Task Force to make recommendations in relation to allocating the functions of the Graduate School between the academic units (colleges and schools) and the newly formed Office of Graduate/Professional Studies within the Division of Research and Graduate/Professional Studies. Specifically, this task force was expected to inventory all Graduate School functions to determine which curricular functions should shift to the academic units and which “collective” functions should remain within the Office of Graduate/Professional Studies. In addition, the task force was asked to consider which resources (human and fiscal) associated with particular functions should be reassigned.

The Task Force met weekly throughout the Spring 2014 semester to address the charge. The pages below reflect the meeting notes, working recommendations and supporting materials for each meeting. At the conclusion of our work, the task force will generate a final report for the Chancellor and Provost to reflect the overall distribution of functions and our assessment of the functional efficiencies of the newly formed Office of Graduate/Professional Studies.

Task Force Members

Kathryn Chval
Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
College of Education

Samuel Cohen
Department of English, Director of Graduate Studies
College of Arts and Sciences

Jeni Hart
ELPA, Graduate Faculty Senate
College of Education

Jessica Hosey
Program Coordinator
Master in Public Health Program

Tracy Kitchel
Ag Ed/Leadership, Graduate Faculty Senate
CAFNR

Kirsten Malinee
Project Specialist
Provost Office

Michael O’Brien
Dean
College of Arts and Sciences

Maxwell Philbrook
2014-15 GSA President
Department of English, College of Arts & Sciences

Martha Pickens
Graduate Academic Advisory and Fiscal Manager
Journalism

James (Sandy) Rikoon
Associate Dean for Research & Graduate Studies
Curators Professor of Rural Sociology
College of Human and Environmental Studies

Leona Rubin
Associate Vice Chancellor for Graduate Studies
Office of Research and Graduate Studies

Barbara Schneider
Director of Admissions and Recruitment, Crosby MBA Program
Trulaske College of Business

James Schoelz
Plant Sciences, Director of Graduate Studies
CAFNR

Chi-Ren Shyu
Interdisciplinary Programs, Director MO Informatics Institute
College of Engineering

Angela Speck
Professor of Physics and Astronomy
Faculty Council Representative

Nancy Taube
Graduate Contact, Administrative Assistant, Department of History
College of Arts and Sciences

Deidre Wipke-Tevis
Director of Graduate Studies
School of Nursing

Jake Wright
2013-14 GPC President
Department of Philosophy, College of Arts & Sciences