Building Scholarship to Support College Baccalaureates… MacEwan’s Experience Community College Baccalaureate Association 2007 Annual Conference – New Orleans Mike HenrySusan May Associate Dean of BusinessAssociate VP, Academic Grant MacEwan College Edmonton, Alberta, Canada March 2007

Baccalaureates at MacEwan  Alberta’s first public college to offer baccalaureates -  Bachelor of Arts (2006)  Bachelor of Child and Youth Care (2006)  Bachelor of Science (Nursing) (2007)  Bachelor of Commerce (2007)

Post-Secondary Organizational Paradigms (Nemetz and Cameron, 2006)  Research  Focuses on pure research and publication records (e.g. traditional universities)  Clinical  Focuses on best practices, performance, initiative and creativity (e.g. medical schools)  Teaching  Focuses on knowledge and skill, teaching and assessment materials, pedagogical tools and research (e.g. community colleges)

Scholarly Activity  Shift from traditional research to scholarly activity  Research is only one type of scholarly activity  Scholarly Activities must extend beyond the classroom and contribute to or advance the individual’s discipline  Examples:  organizing conferences & workshops, writing case studies, consulting, writing/publishing books and articles, producing literary and artistic works

Strengths of College Scholarship  Responds to real needs/observations  Uses several core competencies of faculty members, not just traditional research competency  Provides best practices in discipline and pedagogy  Encourages “comprehensive excellence” over pure research exclusively  Emphasis is on dissemination rather than publication

“Made in MacEwan” Approach  To encourage a Culture of Research / Scholarly Activity / Artistic Creation  Create this culture through Grassroots Interventions, not corporate model  Structures  Policies  Pragmatic Strategies

Examples of Structures:  Research Council  Research Officer  Research Grants  Faculty Commons  Strategic Plan

Impacts of Structures:  “Enabling”  Grass roots, early adapters approach  Faculty leadership with peer review  Linking research/faculty development/teaching  Concrete help to faculty to get started

Examples of Academic Policies:  Research and Scholarly Activity  Code of Conduct for Integrity in Research  Ethical Review of Research with Human Subjects  Animal Care and Ethics  Academic Freedom  Faculty Evaluation  Endowed Chairs and Scholars

Impacts of Academic Policies:  Demonstrate compliance with national standards  Create eligibility to administer external grants  Educate College about opportunities / responsibilities  Situate research/scholarly activity into faculty role and performance  Demonstrate principle-based approach

Examples of Strategies:  Broad and inclusive definitions of research / scholarly activity  Web page information and resources  Annual Reports  Research Showcase  Publication of Abstracts  Town Halls

Impacts of Strategies:  Raise profile  Create “buy in” and acceptance  Provide concrete assistance to faculty members  Highlight achievements (grants, publications)

Impact of Strategies (con’t)  Celebrate successes  Demonstrate relevance/links to teaching & students  Document links/benefits to communities  Engage faculty in strategic planning centrally and in faculties/schools

Building Scholarship… Challenges and Decision-Points (Hazenlkorn)

Building Scholarship at MacEwan’s School of Business  Establishing a Faculty Development Fund & Policy to support faculty members  Formal education, attending conferences, research projects  Recruiting new faculty who have research interests and experience that align with our vision.  Establishing collaborative relationships with research institutions and external advisors  Creating a “Visiting Scholar” position

Challenges to Cultural Change  Providing sufficient resources  scholarly activity must be supported with time (course releases and sabbaticals) and direct funding (research grants)  Establishing frameworks and structures (e.g. peer review process, grant administration)  Determining which activities are eligible for support

Strategies for Facilitating a Cultural Shift  Build on existing strengths first  Encourage faculty to use their personal interests as a springboard to scholarly activity  Encourage faculty to make connections with other academics  Ensure institution, department, and program support  Think long-term, big-picture, future-orientated

Thank you! Questions?