Mission

Vision

• Be recognized for innovative, constructive and highly effective undergraduate and graduate instruction;
• Extend our standing as advanced scholars of politics by establishing a new Doctoral Degree Program in Political Science which will be recognized as the program of choice among our peer institutions;
• Consolidate our position as the premier center for scholarship in the field of Fire and Emergency Management Administration by creating the nation’s first Doctoral Degree in Fire and Emergency Management; and
• Be comprised of faculty identified as national and international leaders in their respective areas of expertise.

Core Values

Diversity – We respect others and value diversity of opinions, freedom of expression, and other ethnic and cultural backgrounds. We are committed to promoting greater diversity in the College.

Integrity – We are committed to the principles of truth and honesty, and we will be equitable, ethical, and professional.

Service – We believe that serving others is a noble and worthy endeavor.

Intellectual Freedom – We believe in ethical and scholarly questioning in an environment that respects the rights of all to freely pursue knowledge. We are committed to academic freedom.

Excellence – We seek excellence in all our endeavors, and we are committed to continuous improvement. We are committed to outstanding research, scholarly activity, and effective high-quality teaching.

Stewardship of Resources – We are dedicated to the efficient and effective use of resources. We accept the responsibility of the public’s trust and are accountable for our actions.

Professional Development – We are committed to the continuous improvement of proficiency in our faculty and staff.

Goals, Critical Success Factors, Objectives, and Strategies

Goal 1: Enhance departmental environment for the support of research, scholarship and professional activity.

Critical Success Factors:

• Increase extramural funding applications.
• Publish 8 or more research projects each year.
• Publish research in major national and international outlets.
• Expand Visiting Scholar program to 2 Visitors per year.
• Achieve peer institution salary parity.
• Provide professional development support funds sufficient to support realistic levels of participation in national and international venues.
• Provide one research assistant to each faculty member.
• Restore office staff to 2 full time employees.
• Retain, promote and reward outstanding faculty members.

Objectives:

• Encourage attendance at national meetings.
• Increase travel funding for grant related consultation with colleagues by 100%.
• Increase weight assigned to grant writing efforts through Appraisal and Development process.

• Utilize existing sources of salary savings to maintain at least 1Visiting Scholar in residence at all times.
• Require 2 research presentations by Visiting Scholar each year.
• Encourage research collaborations with Visiting Scholars by providing release time for promising projects.

• When possible schedule instructional and outreach activity to avoid conflicts with research activity.
• Encourage the inclusion of graduate assistance in grant applications to support research activity.

• Increase number of extramural research grants submitted to minimum of 3 per year.
• Develop auxiliary funds derived from instructional activities.

• Increase clerical staff by 0.25 – FTE, thus restoring 2 full time staff.
• Utilize work-study students to supplement clerical support for grant preparation.

• Strengthen climate of collegiality and intellectual respect.
• Use new hires to reinforce departmental research strengths.
• Achieve peer institution salary parity.

• Direct faculty recruitment efforts toward consolidating areas of departmental strength.
• Generate 2 new faculty lines in support of program expansion.
• Use enhanced professional development monies to increase research productivity of all faculty.
• Recruit high quality graduate students.
• Merge graduate student activity into research efforts of faculty.
• Develop and submit plan through university channels to create Doctoral Program.

• Fill 2 vacant Public administration faculty lines with highly qualified scholars of Emergency Management.
• Raise funds to establish Endowed Chair of Fire Service Management.
• Coordinate instructional efforts with faculty in other administrative units of Oklahoma State University with interests in Emergency and Disaster Management.
• Develop and submit plan through university channels to create Doctoral Program.

Goal 2: Increase the quality, diversity, and proficiency of our graduate students.

Critical Success Factors:

• Increase enrollment of Political Science Master’s students.
• Enroll Political Science Doctoral students.
• Increase enrollment of Fire and Emergency Master’s students.
• Enroll Fire and Emergency Management Doctoral Students.
• Increase the number of faculty who receive teaching awards each year.
• Maintain excellence in graduate student advisement.
• Increase proportion of minority students in all programs.
• $140,000 for Graduate Assistantships.
• $1,000 for graduate student travel to professional conferences.

Objectives:

• Aggressively participate in Graduate College sponsored recruiting efforts.
• Identify and participate in minority venue recruiting opportunities.
• Develop new recruiting brochures.
• Develop new University Catalog and website descriptions for reformed graduate program.
• Purchase upgraded placement in Peterson’s on-line University referral system.
• Submit 2 applications for extramural graduate student fellowships per year (US Department of State, Freedom Support, etc.).
• Use expanded research base to support graduate student participation in faculty research.
• Expand student participation in undergraduate instructional activities.
• Increase graduate stipend levels to $7,000 per 9 months.
• Renovate graduate student office areas to include telephones and study facilities.
• Upgrade and network graduate student computing facilities to support Internet and SPSS program use.

• Adopt graduate program reform to create more focused program building on two primary tracks: International Relations/Comparative Politics, and Public Administration/Public Policy.
• Develop new Special Topics courses to incorporate Visiting Scholar expertise and strengthen core fields.
• Increase the number of required courses to more fully standardize curriculum and improve quality of graduates.
• Eliminate 3 graduate sub-fields for which student demand is low.
• Participate in International Studies and Environmental Sciences interdisciplinary Graduate Programs.

• Market Political Science in regional, national, and international universities with diverse student groups and organizations.
• Create new section of departmental website which emphasizes diversity experience and politics.
• Continue to actively diversify faculty and expand mentoring activities.

Goal 3: Increase the quality, diversity, and academic excellence of our undergraduate students.

Critical Success Factors:

• Increase the number of faculty who receive teaching awards.
• Maintain excellence in undergraduate student advisement.
• Increase proportion of minority students at all levels.
• Improve academic performance among Undergraduate Political Science Majors.
• Increase undergraduate internship opportunities by 100%.
• $100,000 Endowment for Undergraduate Scholarship Fund.

Objectives:

• Expand use of standardized, electronic, instructional-support protocols (Blackboard).
• Increase number of students exposed to instruction by senior faculty experienced in American Government instruction.
• Integrate senior, graduate-student instructors more fully into classroom by expanding the department’s Instructional Mentorship Program.
• Reintroduce program of undergraduate Student Instructional Assistants to staff a tutorial assistance program.

• Increase student exposure to and participation in faculty research programs.
• Deepen student understanding of discipline through participation in Student Instructional Assistants program.
• Expand participation in extracurricular learning environments (OIL, internships, etc.)
• Stimulate contact with government officials and policy leaders through participation in and sponsorship of guest speaker venues.
• Incorporate Educational Testing Services Major Field Tests into student assessment protocol.

• Coordinate fund raising efforts with appropriate OSU Foundation personnel.
• Increase contact levels with potential donors among alumni and other sources.

• Coordinate with Careers Services to establish Career Liaison Service for students.
• Develop and maintain internship data base.
• Initiate application and cover letter workshop.
• Provide board of volunteer students to mentor others through process of locating internships.
• Initiate and maintain internship bulletin board on departmental website.

• Increase number of courses offered in support of American Studies Program.
• Hire 2 new faculty to support American Studies on Tulsa Campus.

• Market Political Science in area High Schools and Junior Colleges with diverse student groups and organizations.
• Create new section of departmental website which emphasizes diversity experience and politics.
• Continue to actively diversify faculty and expand mentoring activities.

Goal 4: Increase participation in, and support of, interdisciplinary programs within OSU system.

Critical Success Factors:

• Establish Political Science as major degree program with 100 majors on OSU-Tulsa Campus.
• Increase number of Environmental Science graduate students advised in department.
• Expand number of faculty actively participating in School of International Studies.
• Increase number of International Studies Master’s students advised in department.
• Establish new interdisciplinary Center for Central Asian Studies.
• Support the expansion of undergraduate Women’s Studies Program.
• Increase interdisciplinary faculty participation in Department’s Applied Politics undergraduate degree option.

Objectives:

• Offer 4 additional American Studies approved courses per Academic Year in Tulsa.
• Continue to expand course offerings available to support majors and enhance General Education on Tulsa campus.
• Establish foundation courses for Political Science and International Studies Master’s Degree.
• Develop departmental website to increase exposure of OSU-Tulsa activities.
• Apply for extramural funding to support OSU-Tulsa based research.
• Hire at least 3 additional faculty to support OSU-Tulsa instruction.

• Recognize faculty contributions to General Education curriculum which provide distribution credits for other majors.
• Recognize and reward faculty advisement of graduate students based in other academic units.

• Initiate and facilitate development of extramural support applications to establish Central Asian Research Center on OSU campus.
• Establish interdisciplinary Emergency Management Institute.

• Encourage faculty contact and collaborative research projects between Applied Politics faculty and other related departments.

Goal 5: Utilize available financial and human resources to create an environment which honors and supports the achievements of the department and its service to the community.

Critical Success Factors:

• Enhance professional development opportunities for staff.
• Increase publicity for faculty who receive teaching awards.
• Increase publicity for research achievements of faculty and students.
• Increase publicity for outstanding staff employees.
• Faculty and students participate in at least 3 public educational programs per year.
• Increase interaction with public constituencies.
• Facilitate public presentations sponsored by Political Science Student Association.
• Develop and maintain alumni tracking protocol.
• Renovate graduate student office areas to include telephones and study facilities.
• Upgrade and network graduate student computing facilities to support Internet.
• Upgrade and network graduate student computing facilities to support SPSS program.

Objectives:

• Improve mentorship of junior staff personnel.
• Utilize release time and Appraisal and Development process to encourage participation in Human Resources staff development programs.
• Provide superior merit pay increases for outstanding staff personnel.

• Utilize annual Appraisal and Development process to collect data on faculty achievements.
• Utilize annual Appraisal and Development process to collect data on staff achievements.
• Utilize student advising structures to improve data collection on student achievement.
• Incorporate Educational Testing Services Major Field Examinations into undergraduate assessment program.

• Maintain annual awards program to present scholarship and merit awards for faculty and students.
• Actively coordinate with Public Information Office to extend recognition of achievements of department personnel.
• Create new award recognizing outstanding staff contributions.
• Create award for persons who generate ideas for more effective utilization of resources.
• Authorize release time to reward persons who generate ideas for more effective utilization of resources.

• Update departmental website to publicize achievements of faculty, staff, and students.
• Present faculty and student research in local, regional, national, and international venues.
• Increase collaborative projects between governmental agencies and faculty.
• Provide funding for annual public forum organized by Political Science Student Association.

• Increase faculty participation in Oklahoma-based research programs.