Improvement of the Undergraduate Student Experience: Setting a Course for the Future

A Decennial Self-Study prepared for the Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools by the University of Pittsburgh

Preface

Introduction

Chapter I: Institutional Overview
  A. General Overview
    1. History
    2. Mission and Strategies
    3. Academic Programs
    4. Health System
    5. Governance and Organization
    6. Faculty and Staff
    7. Finances
    8. Facilities
    9. Library and Learning Support
    10. Computing Support
  B. The Decade of the 1990's
    1. External Trends
    2. Internal Trends
    3. Changes in Planning and Budgeting
    4. Major Academic Achievements
    5. Board of Trustees Leadership
    6. The Self-Study Focus on the Student Experience

Chapter II: The Student Experience - Academic Programs
  A. Major Academic Initiatives
    1. New Academic Programs
      New undergraduate college
      New undergraduate majors
      New undergraduate certificates
      Minors and areas of concentration: new options
      Other undergraduate offerings
      New graduate doctoral degrees and reorganizations
      New graduate master's degrees and majors
      Other new graduate offerings
    2. Curricular Evolution
      Basic skills
      College of Arts and Sciences
      University Honors College
      College of General Studies
      School of Engineering
      School of Social Work
      School of Information Sciences
      School of Nursing
      School of Pharmacy
      School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
      University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown
      University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg
      University of Pittsburgh at Bradford
  B. Teaching and Learning
    1. Advances In the Classroom
      Center for Instructional Development and Distance Education
      Faculty development
      Instructional development
      Instructional support
      Active learning applications
      Advisory Council on Instructional Excellence
      Evaluation of teaching
      Recognition of undergraduate teaching in the Arts and Sciences
      Creative and enhanced approaches to Engineering education
      Other initiatives
    2. Advances Outside the Classroom
      Undergraduate research activities
      University-wide web site for undergraduate research
      Experiential education
      Academic internship fair
      Pitt Arts
      Student Volunteer Outreach -- Service Learning Alliance
      Study abroad
      Other unit-level initiatives
    3. Integration of Technology
      Classroom renovations
      University technology plan
      Language Learning Resource Center
      Engineering enhanced learning classrooms and laboratories
      Communication inside and outside the classroom
      Distance learning

Chapter III: The Student Experience - Student Life
  A. Campus Environment
    1. Physical Environment on University Campuses
      New and renovated student residences
      Living learning centers
      Examples of living learning communities
      New recreational facilities
      Student athletics
      Safety and security
      Transportation
      Food service
    2. Academic and Social Integration into the Campus Community
      Student integration funded initiatives
      PITTIP
      Pitt Pride
      The Pitt Promise
  B. Student Services
    1. Improvement of Pittsburgh Campus Student Services
      Student service improvements
      Administrative changes to the Division of Student Affairs
      Office of Student Activities
      Disability Resources and Services
      Office of International Services
      University Student Judicial System
      Learning Skills Center
      New Student Programs
      Placement and Career Services
      The Pitt Pathway
      Residence Life
      Special Projects
      Student Health Service
      University Counseling Center
      Sexual Assault Services
      Emerging Leaders Program
    2. Student Life at the Regional Campuses
      Johnstown Campus
      Greensburg Campus
      Titusville Campus
      Bradford Campus
    3. Graduate Student Life
  C. Diversity Issues
    1. Minority Student Issues
    2. Gender Diversity
    3. Faculty Diversity Seminar
    4. Creating an Integrated and Vibrant Student Community

Chapter IV: The Student Experience - Success/Satisfaction Initiatives
  A. Enrollment Management Committee
    1. Evolution of the Enrollment Management Committee
    2. Accomplishments of the Enrollment Management Committee
  B. Recruitment and Admissions
    1. Improving the Likelihood of Student Success
      Effective management of undergraduate enrollment cohorts
      Expanded Honors College offerings
      Improved marketing of the University image
      Admissions programming and communication
      Student financial aid
      Alumni involvement in recruiting
      Transfer students
      College Transition Program
      Enhancement of quality of Pittsburgh Campus freshmen
      Nontraditional student recruitment
    2. Enhancing the Freshman Year
      Pittsburgh Campus Freshman Year Leadership Team
      Freshman Studies
      Freshman Honors in Engineering Program
      Freshman Engineering seminar/mentor experience
      Freshman initiatives at the Johnstown Campus
  C. Retention and Enrollment Management
    1. Retention Successes and Challenges
      College of Arts and Sciences student retention programs
      Center for Nontraditional Student Success and Development
      Student leadership development
      Learning Skills Center -- Supplemental Instruction
      Comprehensive Undergraduate Bulletin
      School of Engineering retention activities
      School of Social Work retention activities
      School of Nursing retention activities
      School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences retention activities
      Johnstown Campus retention activities
      Greensburg Campus retention activities
      Bradford Campus retention efforts
    2. Unit-Level Enrollment Management Activities
      College of Arts and Sciences
      College of Business Administration
      College of General Studies
      School of Engineering
      School of Social Work
      School of Information Sciences
      School of Nursing
      School of Pharmacy
      School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
      University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown
      University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg
      University of Pittsburgh at Titusville
      University of Pittsburgh at Bradford

Chapter V: Management Initiatives Supporting Academic Goals
  A. Board of Trustees Leadership
  B. Academic Planning and Budgeting Process
    1. Long-Range Planning and Budgeting Parameters
    2. Annual Planning and Budgeting Process
    3. Setting Target Faculty Sizes and Enrollment/Production Figures
  C. Facilities Planning
    1. University Facilities Plan
      Deferred maintenance and renovation
      Academic facilities
      Housing
      Recreational and athletic facilities
      Regional campuses
    2. Other Major Capital Projects
      New capital projects
      Classroom renovation initiative
    3. Capital Project Funding
      Commonwealth funding
      Capital campaign
  D. Technology Planning
    1. Information Technology Steering Committee Efforts
    2. New Information Systems
      PRISM
      Human Resources
      Institutional Advancement
      Student information system
    3. New Computer Services and Initiatives
      Reorganization of computing services
      Distributed student registration
      Student information web site
      Internet2
      Participation in national advanced networking projects
      Accounts management and central directory services
      Residential Networking (ResNet)
      Email kiosks
      Technology help desk and Knowledgebase
      Internet service provider, virtual private network, and modem pool
      Information technology development in the University Libraries
      Development of the University's web site
  E. Financial Planning and Operational Management
    1. Financial Planning Issues
      Ongoing impacts of faculty retirement plan
      Goals of University's capital campaign
      Revenue and Cost Attribution Methodology and Study
      Commonwealth funding of special initiatives
    2. Strategic Partnerships
      Management partnerships
      Partnerships with local communities
    3. Service Culture
      Service skills
      Integrated Student Service Project
      Process improvement
      Performance management system
      Improvement of management skills of academic administrators
      Council of Deans working groups

Chapter VI: Assessment at the University of Pittsburgh
  A. General Overview of Assessment
    1. Assessment Philosophy at the University
    2. Institutional evaluation efforts
    3. University Assessment Plan
  B. Samples of Institutional Assessment
    1. Studies of Freshman Cohorts
    2. Alumni Survey
    3. Planning and Budgeting System Review
    4. Example of Unit-Level Critical Success Factors
  C. The Future of Assessment at the University

Summary and Conclusion

Preface

The first goal listed in the mission statement of the University of Pittsburgh is to provide high-quality undergraduate programs. The University has always been committed to this goal. The improvement of the undergraduate student experience surfaced as a targeted goal of the University in the mid-1990's, due partly to actions by the Board of Trustees and partly to an unforeseen drop of enrollment in undergraduate programs. At its meeting on February 22, 1996 the Board formally approved a resolution directing attention and resources at improving the curriculum quality and standards for undergraduate programs, as well as student life outside the classroom. The Chancellor and the Provost, who were closely involved in its formulation, supported the resolution with enthusiasm and launched an extensive campaign to enhance undergraduate student life both inside and outside the classroom.

A broad range of initiatives was implemented as the University community strove to meet this mandate. The University has advanced by:

• becoming increasingly attentive to the entire array of enrollment management issues - from communicating with high school juniors to assessing undergraduate and alumni satisfaction with student services;
• significantly enhancing physical facilities that support undergraduate education;
• changing recruitment strategies to move from a "selective" to a "highly selective" institution;
• developing a strategy for enhancing teaching;
• enhancing customer service related to the undergraduate education mission;
• moving progressively to integrate student and academic affairs, with the intent of enhancing factors such as the quality of life in and outside the classroom, overall institutional satisfaction, retention, and graduation outcomes;
• launching a major upgrade of the undergraduate curriculum, focused primarily on the general education and skills requirements; and
• enhancing the advantages to the undergraduate educational experience of studying at a research university that has a medical school and state-of-the-art information technology, and is located in a major city.

The process of regional accreditation serves a variety of purposes for educational institutions. Accreditation actively affirms an institution's accountability to its constituencies, such as its students, funding agencies, governments at all levels, and the general public. The process also helps institutions sustain their quality through a commitment to continuous improvement. This end is achieved via the institutional self-study and subsequent peer review, conducted every 10 years. During the self-study, the institution critically examines its educational programs and services to assess its success at achieving its mission and goals. The self-study is the most important and valuable aspect of the accrediting process, and the benefits derived from the self-study are proportional to the intensiveness of its creation.

The University of Pittsburgh has a strong history of regional accreditation self-study within the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools' Commission on Higher Education. The 1980 decennial self-study focused on undergraduate education and set the stage for the continued growth of the University into a modern multiversity. The 1990 decennial self-study concentrated on the research enterprise and provided a vehicle for the entire University community to: understand the rapid changes that had occurred in research and research administration at the University; highlight unresolved issues; and provide a framework for future planning.

During the 1999-2000 academic year, the University conducted its most recent decennial self-study. Given the size and diversity of the institution, and the complexity of the issues facing it, the University chose to prepare a self-study that follows a "selected topics" approach, as defined by the Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. This model permits more concentrated analysis of a specific aspect of the institution and leads to a more thorough examination of facts and issues. This self-study has focused on "Improvement of the Undergraduate Student Experience: Setting a Course for the Future."

This topic was chosen because of its primary importance to the mission of the University, and because of the emphasis that has been placed on improvement of the undergraduate experience in recent years. In the early 1990's, the University administration recognized that an improved experience for undergraduate students would be essential in an environment of ever-increasing competition for and accountability to students. A broadly-based initiative was started to examine this experience and to work toward enhancing it. This self-study describes these efforts and their effectiveness.

The student experience as described herein includes not only the academic programs offered and the instruction in these programs, but also the campus life provided to students and its impact on their academic experience. The self-study also includes an examination of the many management initiatives undertaken to support the University's academic goals. Finally, since change is not possible without reallocation of resources, the self-study describes the new Planning and Budgeting System, a highly-participative system that made possible these reallocations.

The self-study was prepared under the guidance of a Steering Committee and two study teams focused on the Student Experience and on Management Initiatives Supporting the University's Academic Goals. The membership of these groups is provided in Appendix A.

Chapter I provides a brief overview of the University. Chapters II through IV study the efforts made to improve the quality of the overall student experience, including both academic activities and the environment outside the classroom. Chapter V describes the new management processes supporting the University's academic goals, including plans, policies and actions aimed at facilitating achievement of initiatives. These chapters show a major positive impact on the quality of the undergraduate student experience achieved within the financial constraints imposed on the University. Chapter VI describes the University's assessment plan (presented in full in Appendix O) and discusses examples of tools used to assess achievement of institutional goals. The final chapter is a summary of achievements and future challenges.

The University will continue to focus on the further improvement of undergraduate education as it simultaneously enhances its strengths in graduate and professional education, research, and service. This self-study can inform the community of the University's actions, achievements, and aspirations, and thus help in the development of future University initiatives as well as in the sustained commitment to initiatives articulated in this report.

Chapter I Institutional Overview

A.    General Overview

The University of Pittsburgh is a complex institution with a long history. The University has grown from a tiny frontier school to a major, public research institution known around the world. Its five campuses span Western Pennsylvania, providing a wide variety of academic programs. Its research programs span a broad range of disciplines. And its contributions to communities, through service, economic development, and health care, are a significant strength of the city of Pittsburgh and the surrounding region.

1.    History
The University of Pittsburgh of the Commonwealth System of Higher Education is a nonsectarian, coeducational, state-related, public research university made up of five campuses located throughout Western Pennsylvania. The Pittsburgh Campus, located in the cultural and medical center of the city of Pittsburgh, is within an hour's commuting distance for the metropolitan area's 2.4 million people.

The Johnstown Campus, a four-year undergraduate college in Cambria County, serves the region at the foothills of the Allegheny Mountains. The Bradford Campus, a four-year undergraduate college located in the Allegheny Mountains at the Pennsylvania-New York border, serves the predominantly rural areas of Western Pennsylvania and Western New York. The Greensburg Campus is a four-year undergraduate college located east of Pittsburgh that serves Westmoreland County and the Eastern Pittsburgh areas. The Titusville Campus is a two-year college located in Northwestern Pennsylvania.

The University was founded in 1787 as a small, private school named The Pittsburgh Academy and was located in a log cabin near the confluence of Pittsburgh's three rivers. In 1819, it was renamed The Western University of Pennsylvania and then renamed again, in 1908, as the University of Pittsburgh. The Johnstown Campus was established in 1927, while the Bradford, Greensburg, and Titusville Campuses were established in 1963, completing the five campuses that now comprise the University of Pittsburgh System. The University of Pittsburgh remained private until becoming a public, state-related institution in 1966 and was renamed the University of Pittsburgh of the Commonwealth System of Higher Education.

The University was recognized for membership in the Association of American Universities (AAU) in 1974. For the past 25 years, the University has used, in particular, the public members of the AAU for benchmarking and peer comparison purposes. More detail of the contents of this Overview can be found in the University of Pittsburgh Fact Book: 2000-2001 (see Appendix B and URL address http://www.pitt.edu/~instres/fb/fb00/).

2.    Mission and Strategies
A five-year strategic plan, entitled Toward the 21^st Century, was prepared under the leadership of Chancellor J. Dennis O'Connor and was the first articulation of the University's strengths and vision for the future produced in many years (see Appendix C and URL addresshttp://www.pitt.edu/~jdl1/Toward21stCentury.html for details). Many objectives were categorized into 10 overall strategies for action, which were endorsed by the Board of Trustees on October 21, 1994. Those strategies included the following.

Strategy 1: Transmit knowledge in more effective and efficient ways, seeking out new students, exploring different and improved instructional techniques, and recognizing the importance of all knowledge dissemination activities.

Strategy 2: Facilitate the discovery of knowledge, enhancing funded research opportunities and promoting and assisting investigations in the humanities, natural sciences, social sciences, health sciences, and professions.

Strategy 3: Serve the citizens of the Commonwealth and beyond by seeking solutions to problems of human society and condition and by providing career-oriented educational opportunities to students, especially in professional programs unique in Pennsylvania.

Strategy 4: Strengthen the core areas of the University -- the arts and sciences, business, engineering, law, and medicine -- and continue to nurture existing areas of high quality.

Strategy 5: Enhance the knowledge environment by improving the quality of student life and providing the most appropriate range of academic opportunities and student activities.

Strategy 6: Move toward becoming a better integrated system of five campuses.

Strategy 7: Promote improved policies and procedures relative to the personnel who transmit, discover, and apply knowledge.

Strategy 8: Improve the structure and processes of the University, reducing barriers to the achievement of the other goals, and ensuring the continued primacy of the academic mission.

Strategy 9: Maintain and further develop the physical infrastructure and campus environments that support academic achievement, remaining sensitive to the interests of surrounding communities.

Strategy 10: Construct a new image of the University of Pittsburgh through the concerted application of long-range planning strategies, thereby enhancing institutional reputation and voluntary support.

The Mission Statement of the University had not changed since being approved by the Board of Trustees on January 13, 1976. After the review of the University's strategic planning and budgeting document, Toward the 21^st Century, the Board of Trustees recognized the need to revise the Mission Statement to reflect better the strategies and priorities of the University. At the direction of the Board, the Mission Statement was rewritten as shown in Figure 1 and approved by the Board of Trustees on February 16, 1995.

3.    Academic Programs
The University of Pittsburgh is the most comprehensive educational complex in Western Pennsylvania, enrolling more than 32,000 students. The Pittsburgh Campus, located in Allegheny County, offers certificate, baccalaureate, master's, first professional, and doctoral programs. The University campuses in Johnstown and Bradford offer certificate, associate, and baccalaureate programs. The Greensburg Campus offers certificate and baccalaureate programs, while the Titusville Campus offers certificate and associate programs and other lower-division curricula. In total, the University offers 373 distinct degree programs and additionally offers numerous dual, joint, and cooperative degree programs. See section II.A.1 for details on new academic programs in recent years. Certificate programs are available through many of the schools and through the University Center for International Studies. During FY 1999, the University conferred 5,975 degrees (See Figure 2). In the past three decades, the University has awarded 190,000 academic degrees.
 

* Pittsburgh Campus total also includes degrees granted in programs not based in a single school.

More than 10,000 undergraduate students are enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences (see Figure 3). An additional 2,400 predominately nontraditional undergraduates are enrolled in the College of General Studies. Many of these undergraduates are employed full-time and receive educational support from their employers. Undergraduate programming is also offered in the schools of Education, Engineering, Social Work, Information Sciences, Business Administration, Dental Medicine, Nursing, and Health and Rehabilitation Sciences. An important part of the University's undergraduate education mission is carried out on its four regional campuses, with a total enrollment of more than 6,400 students. In total, University of Pittsburgh students account for 5.6% of all students enrolled in institutions of higher education in Pennsylvania.

In addition to undergraduate and graduate preparation in the humanities, natural sciences, and social sciences, the University has professional schools of Business, Education, Engineering, Law, Public and International Affairs, Social Work, Information Sciences, Dental Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Public Health, Medicine, and Health and Rehabilitation Sciences. These schools enroll over 12,000 students.
 

* Pittsburgh Campus total also includes enrollments in programs not based in a single school.

4.    Health System
The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) Health System, while separate from the University, works closely withe the schools of the health sciences. UPMC is the leading integrated delivery system for health care in Western Pennsylvania, offering a full range of high-quality, geographically convenient health care services. At its heart is an internationally-renowned academic medical center dedicated to its mission of providing high-quality patient care, research, and teaching. The health system's tertiary care hospitals, UPMC Presbyterian and UPMC Shadyside, provide advanced care for all human illnesses, as well as the opportunity to participate in clinical trials of the latest treatments. UPMC medical and surgical programs include the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute and the Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute, as well as comprehensive services in orthopedics, geriatrics, occupational and environmental medicine, AIDS and immunology, trauma, ophthalmology and otolaryngology, neurosurgery, and critical care medicine. Psychiatric services are provided at the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic. Additionally, the UPMC Health System comprises community hospitals, two diploma schools of nursing, and other health-related services. With more than 25,000 employees, the UPMC Health System is the largest non-governmental employer in the region and is one of the largest not-for-profit integrated health care systems in the United States.

The Hospital Services Division supervises the operation of the region's largest network of hospitals, including community hospitals with rich traditions of neighborhood caring and University-affiliated "teaching" hospitals that offer the latest tools for diagnosing and treating human illness. Through its Medical Services Division, the Health System manages same-day surgery centers, physicians' offices, and practices consisting of primary care and specialist physicians -- the region's top academic "teaching" doctors and its finest community practitioners. Through its Diversified Services Division, UPMC offers long-term care, staffing, and management of emergency departments, in-home services, retirement living options, a mail-order pharmacy, a regional reference laboratory, durable medical devices, rehabilitation and occupational medicine services, technology transfer ventures, and international health care initiatives. The Insurance Services Division offers UPMC Health Plan, a managed care insurance company that features care at UPMC-affiliated hospitals of the Tri-State Health System. By providing reasonably-priced insurance products that allow access to the region's finest hospitals, UPMC Health Plan helps to maintain the high standards of care that the people of Western Pennsylvania have come to expect.

In addition to providing a clinical site for the University's School of Medicine, UPMC Health System also collaborates with the School on research and graduate medical education programs. For the year ended September 1999, the School of Medicine ranked 10^th in the nation in National Institutes of Health dollars granted to not-for-profit entities for biomedical research. The success of the Health System also attracts students from around the world to the University's schools of Dental Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Public Health, and Health and Rehabilitation Sciences.

5.    Governance and Organization
The University Board of Trustees is responsible for advancing the purposes of the University; promoting and protecting its independence, academic freedom, and integrity; and enhancing and preserving its assets for the benefit of future generations of students and society at large. The complete membership of the Board, includes the Chancellor, and four categories of trustees: Term (17); Special (15); Alumni (6); and Commonwealth (12) for a total of 51 members. The Governor of Pennsylvania, the Commonwealth Secretary of Education, and the Mayor of the City of Pittsburgh serve as ex-officio members without vote.

The Board of Trustees delegates general administrative, academic, and managerial authority to the Chancellor of the University. The Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor is responsible for general academic policies and standards, and for overall academic matters in all schools and colleges, regional campuses, and centers. Schools of the health sciences report to the Senior Vice Chancellor for the Health Sciences (see the Unersity of Pittsburgh Fact Book in Appendix B for organizational charts).

The Senate of the University of Pittsburgh is an official University body for shared governance. Through its various organs, it cosiders and makes recommendations concerning educational policies and other matters of University-wide concern. The Senate fosters discussion and maintains communication channels among students, staff, faculty, administrative officers, and the Board of Trustees on all matters affecting the welfare of the University or its constituent members. The Staff Association Council (SAC) is an official University organization for shared governance composed of elected representatives from classified University staff not covered by a collective bargaining agreement. SAC maintains an important communication link between staff members and the administration and makes recommendations to the University administration on matters of general University concern, particularly staff-related issues.

6.    Faculty and Staff
The University employs a total of 3,197 full-time and 649 part-time faculty (see Figure 4). More than 87% of the total full-time faculty have doctoral or first professional degrees. Excluding the School of Medicine, the University employs 1,803 full-time and 581 part-time faculty. Over 90% of these full-time faculty have doctoral degrees and 65% are tenured or in the tenure stream. The University also employs 5,331 staff and 423 research associates.
 

7.    Finances
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania uses a model of financing for state-related universities that relies heavily on tuition revenues offset by direct state aid to students. The University receives an appropriation from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania each year that accounts for close to one-fifth of total revenues (see Figure 5). While this model of state support necessitates a tuition rate that is among the highest in the country among public institutions, it is still far below typical tuition rates at private universities. Total actual FY 2000 University expenditures were $906.5 million (see Figure 6). See section V.E. for details on recent finance-related initiatives.
 

8.    Facilities
The Pittsburgh Campus consists of 132 acres in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh and includes more than 90 academic, research, and administrative buildings and residence halls. The Bradford Campus is a 160-acre campus including 30 academic, student life, and administrative buildings and student apartments. The Greensburg Campus includes a 220-acre campus with 17 buildings. The Johnstown Campus includes a 650-acre campus with 32 buildings, outdoor recreation areas, and a 40-acre nature area with marked trails. The Titusville Campus consists of 10 acres holding nine buildings. See section V.C. for details on the University's facility planning.
 

*Most of the variance between total revenues and total expenditures consist of revenues to endowment funds, plant funds, and other restricted funds for which related expenditures do not occur until future years.

9.   Library and Learning Support
In FY 2000, the University's library collections totaled 4,147,584 volumes and more than 28,000 subscriptions (see Figure 7). The Hillman Library is the largest of the University's library facilities with seating for 1,530 users, and serves as the hub of the University's humanities and social science collections. It offers an open stack arrangement and an extensive range of services, as well as excellent Latin American and East Asian collections. The University Library System includes the Hillman Library and 13 other locations, many supporting resources for specific schools.

The Health Sciences Library System serves the health science schools and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Health System. This System includes the Falk Library of the Health Sciences and the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic Library. Other University libraries include the Barco Law Library and libraries located at each of the four regional campuses.

PITTCat, the University's on-line library catalog, offers detailed information on more than three million titles, representing most of the book and periodical collections in all University libraries. University libraries have access to thousands of computerized databases. The University is a member of the Association of Research Libraries. The University Library System was among the first to deliver disparate electronic resources - information on CD ROM, the World Wide Web, and on locally mounted platforms - to users in a single, graphical menu.

The University partners with Carnegie Mellon University and the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh to form the Oakland Consortium, sharing resources and advancing research through special projects. The University Library System was a leader in the formation of the Pennsylvania Academic Library Consortium and is serving as a development site for a new system linking 38 academic libraries' online catalogs into a virtual collection of 40 million volumes. The University is also a member of an international network of nearly 8,000 libraries known as the Online Computer Library Center, making nearly 50 million bibliographic records available through 20 regional networks.
 

10.    Computing Support
The academic and research environment is a blend of personal computing, client/server, and timesharing services connected via PittNet, the University's data network. PittNet provides high-speed access to computing services and support for students and faculty at all five campuses. PittNet's connection to the Internet operates at a maximum bandwidth of 125 Mbps.

Technology support for instruction and research are in very high demand. Substantial resources have been devoted to providing faculty with a Web-based course management tool, CourseInfo. This application has given faculty new opportunities for teaching, and provided students the chance to learn using technology outside the classroom. During the most recent fall term, more than 650 course sections were available to nearly 20,000 enrollees through the Web using the CourseInfo environment. Six public computing labs at the Pittsburgh Campus provide more than 600 personal computers and workstations to students; two of these locations are open 24 hours. Two recent initiatives have targeted the need to provide authenticated access to email and Web browsing beyond campus computing labs, and more extensive dial-up access to all information technology resources. UNIX and VMS Timesharing services operate and support a wide range of research and administrative applications, including authentication, email, and enterprise file storage.

This small sample of the University's information technology activities significantly understates the advances made during the past decade. Additional examples and greater detail is provided in section V.D.

The University of Pittsburgh is a complex institution with a complex mission. As the University enters the 21^st century, it is ready to be a leading public research university, as well as a major participant and educational resource for the development of the Western Pennsylvania region and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

B.    The Decade of the 1990's

When the history of the University during the 1990's is written, the theme will likely be the University's response to external opportunities and challenges and how those responses reflected its institutional strengths and weaknesses.

1.    External Trends
The University has experienced great change since 1990. Like all institutions of higher learning, the University faces the challenge of constricted revenues. Like many private institutions, the University must carefully monitor the effect of tuition increases on a pool of potential students that has fluctuated greatly in recent years. Like its publicly funded peers, the University must meet the expectations of a state government demanding greater efficiency, employers who themselves face rapid changes in occupational structures, and taxpayers who demand greater accountability.

The decade of the 1990's presented a variety of challenges to American universities. Much like the nature of knowledge itself, the rate of change of the higher education environment and issues facing colleges and universities continued to grow. The decade was ushered in by a precipitous decline in the traditional college-going student cohort balanced, in part, by a rapid increase in nontraditional student populations. While not as severe as during the high inflation period of the previous decade, public support for higher education experienced harsh constraints. Complicating matters further was the tremendous growth of computing and information technologies with their ever-shortening technical life expectancies.

In response to factors causing limits on their decision-making flexibility, institutions turned to strategic planning, environmental scanning, and quality initiatives to make the most effective use of resources. Ironically, at the same time, students and parents/caregivers began to view colleges and universities in much the same way as at other consumer products. Students' decisions on enrollment were increasingly influenced by the expected rate of return and more quantifiable benefits of a college degree. Students began to demand enhanced undergraduate student life opportunities, while legislators expected greater accountability in the application of public funds.

A literal explosion of guides and ratings hit the market, purporting to help students make more informed college choices. Even historic institutions with well-established reputations were forced to re-examine their image as the 21^st century approached. In particular, those institutions with well-deserved reputations based on research and graduate education now faced the challenge of proving the worth of their undergraduate programs to high school students.

In just a few short years, as funding sources were becoming limited, major research universities found themselves investing millions of dollars in new technologies and deferred maintenance on facilities built in the boom days of the 1960's. An institution's ranking in U.S. News and World Report's annual college issue could greatly help or hinder student recruitment efforts. Most importantly, major research universities found themselves competing with small baccalaureate institutions for a dwindling pool of traditional college-age students.

2.    Internal Trends
In addition to these external trends, the University faced several internal challenges in the early 1990's. A change in institutional leadership led to even further changes in management style and direction. Major reorganizations refocused institutional resources on academic initiatives. The volatile health care industry thrust the University into an even greater position of regional leadership. And, the state budget situation forced the University to compete more vigorously with other sectors of public funding for support.

In the early 1990's, demands on institutional expenditures continued to exceed the general inflation rate each year. As a high-quality research university, the University recognized the need to maintain its state-of-the-art infrastructure to compete successfully for grants and other sponsored funds. As a state-related university, the University assigned a high priority to providing a comprehensive range of programs for its diverse student population. As the largest institution of higher education and one of the largest employers in Western Pennsylvania, the University acknowledged its leadership role in public service and its value in economic development.

As these statements imply, the University is a unique, hybrid institution of higher education. For most of its 214-year history, the University was a private institution. Since 1966, the University has had state-related status in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania System of Higher Education. As a result, the University retains much of the culture of a private university while operating as a major public university. In some ways, this dual nature allows the University to draw on the strengths of both types of organization. In other ways, this dual nature is a unique challenge. When planning for the future and managing change, the University can rarely use the experiences of other institutions as examples since few universities have similar operating traditions.

In 1991, Chancellor Wesley Posvar retired after 24 years leading the University, precipitating a significant change in institutional leadership. Posvar had led the University for a quarter of a century through the turbulent years of student unrest in the 1960's, growth and reorganization, and the inflation crisis of the early 1980's. At a time when most University leaders served an average of less than five years in their positions, Posvar left as one of the longest sitting University leaders in the country. After an extensive national search, J. Dennis O'Connor was chosen to replace Posvar and took office in 1991. O'Connor resigned in August 1995. In 1996, Mark Nordenberg, former Dean of the School of Law and former Interim Provost, was selected to serve as Chancellor. Additionally, Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor Donald Henderson retired in 1993. That position was filled by James Maher, who took office in 1994. Other changes in senior leadership and organizational structure followed these changes.

Many changes were brought about by a fundamental shift in management philosophy. In past decades, as the range of University operations expanded, many student-related functions were housed in "administrative" units. Partly in response to external trends as well as to planning efforts to be discussed throughout this document, many units and resources were transferred to the "academic" administration, particularly under the Provost.

Another change affecting the University was the rapid growth of the health sciences and the expansion of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC). In the 1990's, many university medical centers operated under fiscal crisis and many cities suffered severe challenges as health care providers came and went. For a number of reasons, not the least of which include quality leadership and talented faculty and staff, UPMC has emerged as an international leader in providing medical services and in training students in clinical health professions.

Possibly the greatest internal challenge was financing the institution in the 1990's. Shifting revenue sources while keeping tuition affordable and still funding necessary expenditures was an immense challenge that required a whole new model of management decision making.

3.    Changes in Planning and Budgeting
Many of the responses made to challenges facing the University in the past decade were derived from or facilitated by a new system of planning and budgeting. Recognizing the need for significant change in decision-making processes, the University's faculty, staff, and administrators worked together to design the Planning and Budgeting System.

The Planning and Budgeting System (PBS), unique in many respects among institutions of higher learning, has opened participation in management decision making to all constituencies. The quality of and access to information used to support decision making has improved greatly and will continue to improve in the near future. For the first time, the University effectively merged long-range and operational planning and budgeting with program evaluation activities to provide a rational, clear, and consistent framework for administration (See Appendix D and URL address http://www.pitt.edu/~jdl1/PBSdoc.htm).

Since this System was implemented in 1992, it has evolved to meet the planning and budgeting needs of the University. Even though there have been major changes in senior administration, the Planning and Budgeting System has provided continuity in guiding institutional decision making. A five-year review of the System recommended its continuance and offered recommendations to strengthen its effectiveness in schools and departments.

Probably the most significant benefit derived from the Planning and Budgeting System has been a gradual change in the institutional culture of the University. All units are increasingly aware of the need to be more responsible for fiscal management and more responsive to the needs of students. The System provides a framework for the University to make the hard financial choices facing all institutions of higher education today. At the same time, it provides the tools for the University to plan for innovation and change in all its units.

Many of the academic program and administrative changes outlined in this self-study derived from the Planning and Budgeting System. The University continues to assess its strengths and weaknesses and identify priorities accordingly in an atmosphere of collegiality and openness. By better understanding institutional and unit-level priorities, the University makes wiser use of its existing resources and determines areas for resource allocation that will have the greatest benefit. Actively seeking the input of faculty, staff, students, and administrators has not only improved the communication of decisions, but has resulted in better decisions. This framework has produced substantial changes in the operation of the University and provided means to fulfill its mission.

Annually, each academic unit updates its strategic plan with the intent of utilizing resources in ways that enhance the various units' missions, goals, and strategies, while simultaneously advancing the University's overall standing as a major research university. Key academic planning factors related to realizing the University's academic goals have been:

• establishing target faculty and student body sizes;
• enhancing the quality of the students, faculty, and staff;
• improving undergraduate education;
• internally reallocating resources to high priority academic programs;
• developing new revenue streams to support high institutional and unit academic priorities;
• preserving centers of excellence and strengthening other academic programs;
• utilizing existing space effectively while planning for new space to meet real needs; and
• improving the use of instructional technology and information systems.

4.    Major Academic Achievements
While PBS created the framework for greater participation and improved management information, the actual work of achieving the University's goals remained at the school and department level. Above and beyond the emphasis on the undergraduate student experience, the University remains committed to maintaining its excellent programs of graduate education and research, as well as service to the region.

In its most recent review of academic arts and sciences departments, the National Research Council found that many departments at the University are among the best in their disciplines, including philosophy, history and philosophy of science, chemistry, economics, English, history, physics and astronomy, political science, psychology, and physiology. The University ranks among the top 20 institutions in science and engineering research and development funding and remains among the top recipients of National Institutes of Health funding. The University's libraries are world leaders in the transition from paper to electronic centers of information.

The growth of the University Honors College has spearheaded a tremendous increase in applications received, as well as the academic qualifications of incoming freshmen. During the past 15 years, students at the University have won more Rhodes and Marshall Scholarships than any other school in Pennsylvania, public or private. With Honors College leadership, a University undergraduate has won one of the nation's 40 coveted Marshall Scholarships in each of the past three years. In 1998 and 1999, the University team ranked first among all public colleges and universities in the United States in the prestigious Putnam competition for mathematics undergraduates. The College Bowl team has won its regional championship and gone on to compete in the national finals. Operating to serve able and motivated undergraduates University-wide, the Honors College has expanded and vitalized intellectual opportunity in every corner of undergraduate life - from the growing roster of honors courses and independent undergraduate research funding programs to a range of new intellectual recreational activities and the pioneering new living learning arrangement at the Honors College-managed Forbes-Craig Apartments.

Faculty at the University have dramatically increased research productivity and the number of breakthrough discoveries, increasingly involving undergraduate students in their efforts, from the internships in the Center for Biotechnology and Bioengineering to the Brackenridge Fellowships that provide financial support allowing students to pursue full-time research during the summer. Interdisciplinary opportunities have greatly expanded, from degree programs like the new environmental studies major to new study abroad programs to the University's sponsorship of the Semester at Sea program aboard the S.S. Universe.

In recent years, the University initiated many new programs that prepare students to enter promising new careers and to contribute to exciting new fields. Just a small sampling of these efforts include Pittsburgh Campus programs in wireless telecommunications, computer and bioengineering, as well as a new undergraduate business college. Students at the Johnstown Campus can now pursue allied health associate degree programs, a new environmental studies major, and a social work master's degree. The Bradford and Greensburg Campuses continue to add majors to better fulfill their missions to provide a rounded liberal arts experience as well as selected programs focused on professional disciplines. And the Titusville Campus has achieved its highest enrollment ever with the new physical therapist assistant and other programs.

In his 1998 annual report (see Appendix E), Chancellor Nordenberg stated that the University "is in the midst of a renaissance." He cited a very positive feeling in the University and a pride that had not been evident for a long time. Much of this renaissance derives from the University asking itself how conditions could be made ideal for students' social and intellectual growth. The University is indeed poised to solidify its place among the nation's best universities.

5.    Board of Trustees Leadership
The University's Board of Trustees became more integrally involved in macro-level decision making during the past decade. Trustee leadership and support has facilitated the building of a successful management team responsible for helping the University survive the financial constraints of the early part of the decade and thrive in the current higher education environment.

In the fall of 1995, the Board of Trustees embarked on a program of self-education designed to produce a better sense both of the University's existing condition and of its future prospects. The most visible element of the process was the commissioning of an external review of the institution. The Board then invested even more of its own time in a series of day-long weekend retreats devoted to discussions involving the Trustees, the Chancellor, the Provost, and the Senior Vice Chancellor for the Health Sciences.

At the conclusion of that process, the Board formally adopted a series of position statements, broadly charting a course for the University. Two of those statements related directly to the core academic aspirations of the University -- urging the aggressive pursuit of excellence in undergraduate education and in research. Another, which made partnering in community development a priority, reflected a heightened awareness of the link between the University's strength and the strength of its home region. The remaining two position statements, directing the pursuit of higher levels of operating efficiency and effectiveness and that the University secure a more adequate resource base, recognized the basic fact that the University can never hope to achieve its full potential without maximizing resources and applying them effectively.

These statements have guided institutional efforts since their adoption and have provided the framework for a period of very significant progress for the University. The first, and most important, of these position statements dealt with undergraduate education (see Figure 8).

In February 2000, the Board reaffirmed its support of these resolutions and further committed to:

...strengthen its already enviable position as one of America's most respected providers of high quality undergraduate education -- becoming among the country's most selective public universities in the credentials and commitment of the students it enrolls; striving continuously and creatively to ensure that the opportunities for learning and growth offered to its undergraduates are second to none; and effectively facilitating the movement of its graduates into the challenging and changing world of work, in the process maximizing their chances to achieve success and to make meaningful contributions to society.

These resolutions provided fundamental guidance for decision making in the past five years. In early 2000, the Chancellor provided a progress report to the Trustees who will continue to monitor activities related to the resolutions. Much of this self-study details steps taken by the Chancellor, the Provost, and the academic units to achieve the goals of these resolutions.

6.    The Self-Study Focus on the Student Experience
The external and internal trends facing the University in the 1990's pointed out the need to strengthen undergraduate education. With new senior leadership and a supportive Board of Trustees, it became possible to envision broad changes and to implement them. The need to chronicle and assess these changes led to a focus for the self-study.

By the mid-1990's, the University administration was aware that improvement of the student experience should be a major initiative, including the courses and programs students take, their experience in learning outside the classroom, and the physical environment in which they live and learn. The Board of Trustees' resolution at its winter 1996 meeting formalized its concern and its interest in this goal. The drops in student enrollment in successive fall terms in the mid-1990's provided a strong financial incentive for providing new initiatives to attract and retain students, and the University's culture was more open to new management ideas and resource reallocation. A new Chancellor and Provost, working with the Board of Trustees, set the agenda for change.

As this self-study details, a broad range of initiatives was implemented including:

• enhancing physical facilities;
• acknowledging the entire array of enrollment management issues;
• moving from a "selective" to a "highly selective" institution;
• enhancing teaching;
• developing a customer service culture;
• enhancing the quality of life inside and outside the classroom;
• upgrading the undergraduate curriculum; and
• enhancing the overall undergraduate educational experience at the University.

A primary benefit of this self-study, therefore, is to provide a coherent narrative of the many diverse efforts in recent years to improve the undergraduate experience at the University. This will enable the entire University community to recognize the progress that has been made in achieving its goals. The success of these endeavors becomes clear as well as what remains to be done. The self-study will thus assist the University in setting a course for the future.

With this introductory overview, the following chapters outline the past, present, and future activities in which the University is engaged to improve undergraduate student life and learning.

Chapter II The Student Experience - Academic Programs

A.    Major Academic Initiatives

In the past decade, in addition to striving to excel in graduate education and research, the University has committed itself to examining all aspects of its undergraduate academic programs in order to provide programs of the highest quality. Initiatives focused not only on the University's already broad range of academic program offerings, but also on learning outside the classroom and the total student experience.

1.    New Academic Programs
The University has always provided a breadth of academic programming to undergraduate and graduate students. The unusually large number and diversity of its professional schools have contributed to this breadth. Faculty at the forefront of their disciplines have constantly reengineered programs. In the last 10 years, the University has produced new degree and certificate programs to meet the needs of students who will be working and living in a rapidly changing environment (for a comprehensive listing of new academic programs, see Appendix F).

New undergraduate college
After years of planning, the University in 1995 admitted the first class of students into a new college, the College of Business Administration. Administratively part of the Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business, it offers the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in full-time and part-time programs with majors in accounting, finance, general management, and marketing, as well as a dual major program in conjunction with the College of Arts and Sciences. In fall 1995, the first class of 155 students began taking courses. In just a few short years, enrollment in the College is thriving and is already close to 1,500.

New undergraduate majors
In response to student interest in new and emerging fields of study and to faculty perceptions that the direction of their discipline or profession was changing, the University instituted a number of new majors in the last 10 years. All were initiated after a careful planning process that investigated the financial impact of the program, its predicted academic quality, and its relevance to the mission of the school proposing it.

New majors initiated since 1992 are: Molecular Biology, Environmental Studies, and Scientific Computing in the College of Arts and Sciences; Bioengineering and Computer Engineering in the School of Engineering; and Emergency Medicine and Rehabilitation Science in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences. The College of General Studies also initiated majors in Liberal Studies and in Dental Hygiene. The latter enables students who have received professional training leading to a certificate or associate degree to enlarge their studies and earn a bachelor's degree.

The regional campuses have introduced majors that expand the more traditional liberal arts base of their curricula. New bachelor's degree majors introduced since 1992 are: Theatre, Communication, Environmental Studies, and a Social Studies Teaching Certification at Johnstown; Sports Medicine, Sports and Recreation Management, Administration of Justice, and Sociology at Bradford; and Rhetoric Communication, American Studies, Anthropology, and History at Greensburg. New majors have also been initiated in associate degree programs aimed at meeting the professional needs of students. New associate degree programs were created in: Physical Therapist Assistant and Occupational Therapist Assistant at Titusville; Information Systems and Liberal Studies at Bradford; and Surgical Technology and Emergency Medical Services at Johnstown. Associate degree programs are often designed to meet the employment needs of the region, and the increase in medically-related associate degrees indicates the University's initiative to serve the people of the region.

New undergraduate certificates
Certificate programs can be developed quickly to meet the changing educational needs of students. There has been a rapid rise in the number of new certificates offered at the undergraduate level in recent years. These include German Language, Historic Preservation, Photonics, and Geographic Information Systems (Arts and Sciences), International Engineering and Energy Resource Utilization (Engineering), International Business (College of Business Administration), and Emergency Medicine (Health and Rehabilitation Sciences) all offered on the Pittsburgh Campus. All of these certificates can be earned only with a bachelor's degree.

Minors and areas of concentration: new options
The student information system introduced in the early 1990's enabled the University to indicate on students' transcripts the successful completion of a minor, as well as the major, and the area of concentration in the major. In recent years, schools offer minors not as a requirement but as an option for students who want a broader undergraduate program. Engineering has adopted minors in all of the subjects in which it offers a major. The College of Arts and Sciences has introduced minors in some disciplines. The regional campuses have used minors more extensively. The area of concentration option is used less often at the undergraduate level on most campuses. Many students graduate with double and sometimes with triple majors, another option that enables students to explore several areas in depth and to have this additional work recognized on their academic record.

In addition to the official minors sanctioned within the College of Arts and Sciences, several departments have "options" within their undergraduate programs. For example, in addition to the American Chemical Society-certified B.S. in Chemistry, the Chemistry Department offers concentrations in biological sciences, business, communications, computer science, and polymer science, as well as the newly-added education option and the proposed material science option. These programs of study allow students to begin to appreciate the interdisciplinary nature of all higher education as well as realizing its impact on their chosen field of study.

Other undergraduate offerings
Recent changes in student needs and career preparation have led the University to create new degree options. For example, a new accelerated 3/3 option between the School of Law and the College of Arts and Sciences allows a student to earn a baccalaureate degree and a J.D. in six years. A new program in Statistics allows a student to earn the B.S. and either the M.A. or M.S. in only five years. The College of General Studies created a Summer Institute for High School Students to provide an intensive college experience for prospective students.

The University Honors College has created a new program for qualified undergraduates to extend any University scholarship to a fifth year for the purpose of obtaining dual undergraduate degrees, such as Arts and Sciences and Engineering, or Arts and Sciences and Business. This program also extends to dual B.A.-B.S. degrees for students in the College of Arts and Sciences.

In 1996, after two years of planning, the University changed the organization of its summer session to offer a wider variety of courses over expanded scheduling options. In addition, admissions criteria for visiting students during the summer were standardized across the University and registration procedures were streamlined. This new arrangement maximizes the year-round use of campus facilities, meets a community need, and generates additional revenue. In 2000, 15% more courses were offered over the number in 1995 under the old system of summer course programming.

New graduate doctoral degrees and reorganizations
Since 1990, the University has approved new Ph.D. programs in Environmental and Occupational Health, Neurobiology, Bioengineering, Rehabilitation Science, Statistics, Immunology, and Cell Biology and Molecular Physiology. Some of these new programs are reorganizations of existing doctoral programs, but some (Immunology, Bioengineering, Rehabilitation Science) are in new and emerging disciplines. Although the University is reluctant to initiate new Ph.D. programs because of the substantial, long-term commitment of faculty resources, these initiatives moved forward because they respond to the need for new programs in rapidly changing disciplines in the health sciences and take advantage of the close proximity of the University's superb clinical departments and graduate programs. In this same period, the University eliminated its Ph.D. program in Crystallography and its Doctor of Science in Hygiene in Health Administration.

An exciting reorganization of the graduate programs in the basic sciences in the School of Medicine resulted in students in all doctoral programs being admitted into the Interdisciplinary Biomedical Graduate Program, taking a common curriculum the first year before deciding what degree program to enter. Two programs in the Graduate School of Public Health are also participating in this program. In addition, the Neuroscience doctoral program in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and the Neurobiology program in the School of Medicine are combining their programs and participating in the Interdisciplinary Biomedical Graduate Program. This consolidation of the various doctoral programs in the biological and biomedical sciences will improve their quality, make more opportunities available to students, and foster cooperation among faculty spread across the institution.

New graduate master's degrees and majors
New master's degrees introduced since 1990 are: Master of Public Policy and Management, Master of Studies in Law, Master of Laws, Master of International Business, Master in Public Health Promotion and Education, Master of Occupational Therapy. New majors in M.A. and M.S. programs include Genetic Counseling, offered by the Graduate School of Public Health, and Bioethics and Clinical Research, offered by the School of Medicine to serve students in all health science professions. In addition, both the School of Nursing and the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs have reorganized their graduate programs, introducing new majors. In the latter, the purpose of extensive changes in both the Master of Public Affairs and the Master of Public and International Affairs was to create a more integrated sequence of courses, to offer a curriculum better adapted to current issues and trends in international affairs, and to focus teaching and student and faculty recruitment on specific areas of strength. In this reorganization of its programs, the Master of Urban and Public Affairs degree program was eliminated and partly replaced by the new major in the program leading to the Master of Public Affairs. The School of Nursing changed its programs in response to the changing health care environment and to prepare students for specialized nursing roles. The School of Education reorganized and eliminated specializations in its programs (such as the Master of Arts in Teaching in Health, Physical, and Recreation Education) as part of a planned downsizing of faculty and programs.

A national trend reflected in changes at the University is to move entry-level health-science professional programs at th