University of Nebraska Kearney

UNK submission to UN Central Administration, not yet approved.

Programs of Excellence
Requests for New Allocations
Reallocation of Existing Funding
University of Nebraska at Kearney
March 30, 2006

University of Nebraska at Kearney
Request for Programs of Excellence Funds
March 30, 2006

UNK is requesting new allocations of Excellence Funds to specifically further enhance several of our strongest priority programs with personnel support and with facilities and equipment.  In addition, we plan to reallocate a portion of the Excellence Funds we have been provided previously to new uses.

Request for New Allocations ($389,035):

• Personnel (in priority order, $195,515):
  • Twelve Graduate Assistant Stipends for Programs of Excellence ($98,400).  Program of Excellence funding allocated last year provided seven GA positions for Programs of Excellence.  This was a real asset to our Programs of Excellence, and we would like to extend this support with 12 additional stipends so that more POE program graduate students, and the programs can benefit.  As we stated last year, and our arguments are still relevant, our need for graduate assistants to assist in laboratory instruction has increased along with the increase in undergraduate enrollments.  Lack of sufficient graduate assistant stipends has made it difficult to recruit graduate students to serve as teaching assistants.  The challenge we face is two-fold: the number of assistantships is low, and the stipend amount is low.  The requested funding will increase both the number and value of assistantships offered in priority graduate programs and thereby enhance the quality of the programs of excellence.  
    
  • Enhancement of Salary for a New Social Work Tenure-Track Faculty Member in the Social Work Program:  $24,904 (salary plus benefits).  The Social Work Program is an accredited, growing program.  Last year, with POE funding we hired an ABD faculty member, but we must now convert this position to tenure-track, and to do so in a very competitive market, we must enhance the salary.  We are requesting funds to make this conversion.  
    
  • Academic Advisor for College of Business Undergraduate Students: $42,511 (salary plus benefits).  The student advising function can be separated into academic advising and career advising.  This proposal leaves career advising as a faculty function complementing the UNK Career Services, and assigns academic advising responsibility to a professional advisor.  Professional academic advisors are able to give consistent, accurate information regarding university, college and majors regulations since they deal with these on a full time basis.  Academic advisors will assist undergraduate business students with: policy/procedure advising, course selection, evaluation/validation of course transfer credits, advice concerning additional support resources, services and options for at-risk students.

    UNL and UNO both have centralized academic advising for their business undergraduates which is a common feature in AACSB accredited business schools, and this request will make this a uniform practice among the University of Nebraska Colleges of Business.

  • Department of Chemistry Stockroom coordinator, 0.75 FTE ($29,700 salary and benefits).  The position relieves faculty members of a huge workload in setting up and tearing down labs, and maintaining the stockroom.  The time saved is devoted to teaching and research.  It is unusual for a department of this size not to have a stockroom staff member.  
    
• Facilities and Equipment  (in priority order, $193,520):   
  • North End Zone Athletic Training Classroom and Lab in the Department of  Health Physical Education and Leisure Studies ($10,000).  As we begin our move into the new Athletic Training classroom and lab facility, it will be necessary to purchase a number of items so that we can provide full didactic and clinical experiences. A large number of Physical Education courses will be taught in the new north end zone building lab.  We need to purchase instructional software and technology for didactic and clinical instruction, and instructional equipment for lab components for many of the courses.  
    
  • Human Performance Lab Equipment in the Department of Health Physical Education and Leisure Studies ($33,700).   This request is to enhance the quality of our Human Performance Laboratory with the addition of a significant upgrade in instrumentation by acquiring a metabolic cart for the measurement of the quantity and composition of the gases moving through the lungs during breathing allowing for a metabolic measurement of maximal and submaximal oxygen consumption. By comparing oxygen consumption and fuel use during exercise, it is then possible to establish a person’s level of health and fitness.  It will be used in both teaching and research.

    In addition, the request will enable purchase of Polar Heart Rate Monitors.  Accurate measurement of heart rate during exercise is one of the most important skills a student in Exercise Science can develop. These skills are necessary to ensure that it is safe for a client to participate in exercise, and to recommend appropriate intensities of exercise for health related benefits while minimizing the risk for trauma or injury. By using heart rate monitors the students can receive instant feedback on the accuracy of their measurements. Another benefit of the use of automatic heart rate monitors is that the data collected can be downloaded to a computer, allowing the students to analyze the heart rate response to exercise over a wide range of different experimental conditions (e.g. after ingesting caffeine, running in various environmental conditions, exercising at different intensities, etc).

    Finally, this request will permit us to provide a Millipore Water Milli‑DI System for the Human Performance Laboratory.

  • Speech Laboratory Equipment for the Department of Communication Disorders ($35,000).  This request will provide for the purchase of a Kay-Pentax Nasometer II, Computerized Speech Lab (CSL) software, and a digital swallowing upgrade for our Kay swallowing station. Nasometer II and CSL software will be new purchases which can be added to our current equipment.  Our swallowing station was purchased in 1998.  This upgrade will make our system current. All of this equipment can be used by students and with speech clinic clients in therapy.  Additionally, the equipment will be utilized by several faculty members in their research efforts.  The purchase of this equipment will significantly expand our clinical and research capabilities in the areas of assessment and treatment of articulation, voice, fluency, motor speech, and swallowing disorders.  The equipment will also be instrumental in the retention of current faculty and the recruitment of new faculty.  
    
  • Startup funds for new faculty in Priority Programs (Biology, Computer Science and Information Systems, Social Work, and Criminal Justice: $47,000 total).  Due to the latest set of budget reductions, during this year, we are unable to provide but token amounts for new faculty.  This will hurt the ability of the newest faculty in these departments to get their research programs up and running.  We are fortunate in that the specialties of this particular set of faculty require reasonably modest investments.  Nevertheless, the cumulative amount needed exceeds our current means.  
    
  • Enhanced capacity and upgrades for equipment for the Visual Communication and Design Priority Program in the Department of Art and Art History ($37,820).  This request is for a set of new equipment and enhancements to existing equipment for the Visual Communication and Design Program, which relies heavily upon technology.  The particular needs are for enhanced Server Storage Equipment, Image Capture Equipment, Network Equipment for the four computer labs in this program and for those in the Multimedia Program, and digital video cameras.  This set of current technology equipment will significantly enhance the Visual Communication and Multimedia Priority Programs for students and faculty.  
    
  • Political Science/Criminal Justice: Space expansion and modification ($30,000).  Founders Hall 2122 (currently a conference room) will be converted into the Criminal Justice Laboratory for criminal investigation courses.  This will allow adequate room for full use of some $20,000 in laboratory equipment already purchased with POE funding.  Room 2147 (now a break room) will become a conference room for Academic Affairs.  The Lincoln Conference Room will become a conference room for Political Science and space for the Center for Active Citizenship.  Laboratory and meeting room furniture, cabinetry, network connections, smart classroom equipment, and power upgrades will be included.

Reallocations of existing funds for FY 07 ($133,311):

• Personnel (in priority order,  $119,458):   
  • Enhancement of Salary for a New Computer Science Tenure-Track Faculty Member:  $23,200 (salary plus benefits).  Continuing funding is sought to bridge the gap between the salary of the current temporary occupant of the position ($45,000) and the anticipated cost of a new assistant professor in a highly competitive market.  
    
  • Entry level clerical support (receptionist) for the MBA Program, and the Student Internship Program: $31,700 (salary plus benefits).  Our MBA program and Internship Program are operating without clerical support. Due to prior budget reductions, it has not been possible to address the need for full-day office coverage for these programs.  
    
  • Enhancement of Salary for a New Speech-language Pathology Tenure-track Faculty Member in the Department of Communication Disorders:  $40,500 (salary plus benefits).  This faculty position is a tenure-track position and has been filled with a master’s level instructor for the past 35 years.  The faculty member will be completing her final year of phased retirement at the end of the current academic year. There is a shortage of Ph.D. candidates in speech-language pathology and positions often go unfilled for very long periods.  Therefore, the salary must be enhanced for the position be competitive.  
    
  • Enhancement of Salary for a New Educational Media/Instructional Technology Tenure-Track Faculty Member in the Department of Teacher Education:  $24,058 (salary plus benefits).   An acute need within the Department is to hire a tenure-track faculty member with a terminal degree in the area of Educational Media/Instructional Technology.  We are currently operating a thriving program in this area that is projected to grow rapidly.  All courses are being taught by a very competent adjunct educator who works in the Grand Island Public Schools.  We need a tenure-track faculty member to bolster this program, and we must have salary enhancement to create the tenure-track position.  
    
• Facilities and Equipment  (in priority order, $13,853):   
  • Replacement of Choral Risers Including Safety Back/Side Rails, Department of Music. ($12,602).  Equipment essential to choral performance includes four-step Concert Risers.  The department currently owns ten risers, eight of which are more than 15 years old, lack safety guard rails, and are irreparable due to broken or missing parts that are no longer manufactured.  
    
  • Reference Materials and Department Publications, Health Sciences Department.  ($1,251).  These funds will update reference materials for students (e.g., MCAT test preparation books and practice tests), and allow departmental publications (brochure, fact sheet, etc.) to be revised, updated, and printed.