Visiting Committees to Academic Departments

Overarching Goals
Visiting committees provide an opportunity for reflection and discussion aimed at strengthening our academic program. Departments will benefit from multiple perspectives and receive informed feedback about their curricular objectives. The visiting committee process is very much partnership between the department and the members of the committee.

The spirit of the visits should be lively and informal—a shared concern for the work of the department will animate the discussions and create a collaborative environment within which the visit can take place.

to provide a regular opportunity for self-assessment combined with the fresh perspective of an external review;
to examine the objectives of the department and the effectiveness with which the department’s program is meeting those objectives;
to articulate the department’s strengths and challenges;
to provide a written report following the visit that includes recommendations for departmental development and progress.

Composition
Visiting committees are usually composed of two to three members of the Board of Observers and one to two faculty members from other liberal arts colleges. The faculty members are selected by the Provost in consultation with the department. The President will select a committee member to serve as the chair.

The Campus Visit
The committee prepares for its visit by reviewing a briefing book prepared by the department in consultation with the Provost. During the committee’s visit to campus, committee members meet with the President, the Provost, all department members, as well as with other faculty and staff connected to the department, representative students, and additional administrators if appropriate. These meetings are intended to be collaborative and conversational in tone and format.

Day Two
Breakfast: committee meets to plan day, review questions
Morning: meetings with all departmental faculty; review of additional material
Lunch time: working lunch with representative students
Afternoon: meetings with other faculty and staff directly involved with the program
Dinner: informal dinner and discussion with department members

Day Three
8:00 breakfast with President
9:30-12:00 Committee working session to review and outline the committee’s findings and recommendations. Drafting assignments are determined and the basic content and structure of the report are agreed upon.
12:00 Lunch with Provost, review of preliminary report

After the visit concludes, the visiting committee Chair, in cooperation with the other members of the committee, prepares a report addressing the questions described in the guidelines below. Normally this report is submitted to the President within six weeks of the visit. The President and Provost will share the report with the department. The department then prepares a brief response to the report.

The report and response are then submitted to the Educational Policies and Faculty Affairs Committee (EPFAC) of the Board of Trustees for its comments. Copies are also sent to all Trustees. The Observers who were members of the visiting committee, and the department head, join EPFAC for a discussion of the report.

The visiting committee’s report will normally address the following kinds of questions:

What are the department’s current objectives? Are these objectives appropriate given the overall mission of the college?
What curricular obligations must the department meet beyond serving its majors and minors?
Are the department’s courses and curriculum designed to achieve its objectives and meet its additional obligations? Are these objectives and obligations being fulfilled?
Does the major (and minor) have an appropriate structure? Do courses lead students towards in-depth understanding? Is there an introductory experience, and if so, is it appropriate? Is there a capstone experience, and if so, is it appropriate?
Is student participation in the department’s offerings growing, shrinking, or remaining stable? Why?
How does the department manage its responsibilities for student advising?
What are the future ambitions of the department and what future direction is desirable and manageable?
Do resources match needs? If there is underutilized space, equipment, or staff time, how might it be redeployed? If there is insufficient space, equipment, or staff time, which resource needs are most pressing?
What goals should the department aim to achieve prior to the next visit?

The department should prepare a briefing book for the visiting committee that will give the committee information to help it respond to the kinds of questions posed in the guidelines above. The department should feel free to include material that will highlight issues the department believes it will be useful to discuss with the visiting committee.

A department self-study that includes:
- The department’s overall objectives in the context of Muhlenberg’s mission and curriculum
- A specific description of the strengths of the current program in terms of meeting the needs of majors, minors, and students taking courses to meet perspectives and/or skill requirements
- A specific description of the department’s contribution to other college initiatives (e.g., FYS program, interdisciplinary programs)
- An assessment of how well the department’s objectives are being met
- An description of the extent and quality of departmental resources (e.g., facilities, equipment, faculty time, support staff time, library resources)
- A description of how departmental advising is managed
- The goals of the department for the next six years
- A list of any special concerns or issues the department wants the visiting committee to address
A current C.V. for each faculty member and a list of each faculty member’s teaching and research interests
Other material the department wishes to include (e.g., departmental budget, examples of student work, sample syllabi, guidelines for the major developed by the relevant professional organization). Material that cannot fit into a single binder can be made available to the committee when it arrives.

The Provost’s office will gather the following information and have it compiled with the material submitted by the department: