DEPAUL’S MISSION STATEMENT TELLS US THAT AMONG THE THREE FUNDAMENTAL RESPONSIBILITIES OF ALL UNIVERSITIES—TEACHING, RESEARCH, AND PUBLIC SERVICE—“THE UNIVERSITY PLACES HIGHEST PRIORITY ON PROGRAMS OF INSTRUCTION AND LEARNING.” In this age of constant change, easy access to information, and automation, DePaul graduates need not just a mastery of their field, but also the ability to create, innovate, and discover. Our academic mission is to serve as an incubator and repository of knowledge and to transfer that knowledge, first and foremost between faculty and student, and also between university and society. Our learning community of faculty, staff, and students will be further strengthened by focused support of distinctive academic initiatives, improved teaching effectiveness and program assessment, and enhanced support for faculty and student research and creative work.
5.1 Elevate DePaul’s academic profile
A. Create a funding mechanism to support innovative academic initiatives.
B. Increase selectivity and elevate DePaul as a valued destination for high-achieving students.
C. Invest in marketing strategies designed to build and sustain DePaul’s brand awareness and promote its academic distinction.
D. Implement changes in institutional practice and performance to improve DePaul’s national academic rankings.
E. Support faculty’s work as public intellectuals and publicize distinctive research and creative activities to internal and external audiences, including alumni and trustees.
F. Secure funding for endowed chair positions to recruit and retain outstanding faculty in select areas.
G. Support doctoral programs to enhance the academic reputation of the university and sustain its Carnegie classification.
H. Ensure DePaul maintains its competitiveness and commitment to academic excellence through continued investment in the recruitment and retention of junior tenure-line faculty.
I. Develop an appropriate balance within programs between tenure-line, term, and adjunct faculty that recognizes the central role of tenure-line faculty in personnel decisions and the development and oversight of academic programs.
5.2 Enhance faculty teaching effectiveness
A. Create a centralized resource for faculty development related to teaching and provide incentives to all ranks of faculty to continue to develop skills as teachers.
B. Implement faculty development workshops to teach best practices on cultivating inclusion in the classroom.
C. Develop more effective procedures for peer evaluation of teaching and better tools for measuring teaching effectiveness.
D. Develop flexible faculty workload models to support alternative curricular structures and better balance individual faculty teaching, research, and service obligations.
E. Implement tools to improve the consistent tracking of faculty workload.
F. Foster and support cross-college interdisciplinary faculty collaborations such as team teaching.
G. Improve use of academic program assessment results to inform curricular and pedagogical revisions in all programs and the Liberal Studies Program in particular.
5.3 Integrate diverse perspectives into academic programs
A. Charge each program with integrating diverse topics into its curriculum.
B. Implement faculty development workshops on integrating diversity in the curriculum.
C. Enhance the tenure and promotion standards to recognize teaching, research, and service accomplishments that promote and advance diversity and equal opportunity.
5.4 Increase support, incentives, and recognition for scholarly and creative work by faculty and students
A. Enhance and expand college and university structures that support research, creative activities, and technology transfer.
B. Strengthen support to help faculty locate, secure, and manage external funding.
C. Increase student participation in research and creative activities by providing incentives for faculty research supervision and competitive financial support for graduate and undergraduate research assistants.
D. Strengthen support for students and faculty seeking competitive external scholarships (e.g., Fulbright, Rhodes, Boren).