Timeline

The College of Arts and Sciences provides foundational coursework to ALL STUDENTS AT CLEVELAND STATE, regardless of major. 75% of the University’s new Core Curriculum content comes from A&S programs. In addition, we focused on the following initiatives in AY 24/25:

1. Invested in student support services through the relocation, branding and promotion of the Academic Success Hub; hiring of new Writing Center and First Year Writing Program Directors; and hiring of Senior Assistant Dean for Academic Support and Enhancement.
    
2. Created a new General Studies bachelor’s degree aimed at helping adult learners with some college experience.

The College of Arts and Sciences collaborates with businesses, communities, and donors to IMPROVE THE REGION THROUGH WORK-BASED LEARNING. In addition, we focused on the following initiatives in AY 24/25:

1. Established and expanded experiential learning and work-based learning partnerships with local employers like Sherwin William’s Career Accelerator Learning Community program.
    
2. Transformed donor generosity into scholarships that include mentorship and entrepreneurial training like the Haddad Art Initiative.
    
3. Engaged in faculty-student collaborative research projects, scholarship, and creative activities, connecting summer opportunities to academic year coursework.

The College of Arts and Sciences adapts, concentrating on SUSTAINABILITY AND GROWTH. In addition, we focused on the following initiatives in AY 24/25:

1. Created a Division of Interdisciplinary and General Studies, to house and promote General Studies and 11 A&S integrated degrees (7 managed by the college).
    
2. Streamlined offerings while preserving meaningful coursework, like the new Cultural Studies degree which merges multiple world languages, literatures, and cultural studies areas while consolidating five majors into one.
    
3. Focused on persistence rates and budgets, establishing dashboards for every unit in the college and annual reporting by chairs and directors.
    
4. Restructured staffing to support units post VSIP.

PRIORITY 1: PEOPLE

1. Collaborate with faculty experts and Career Services to help frame applied skills and connect classroom experiences to student résumés and LinkedIn bios.
    
2. Document experiential learning opportunities by unit, with a focus on how curriculum connects to job skills.
    
3. Document existing efforts to support student academic successes.

PRIORITY 2: PARTNERSHIPS

1. Survey student groups by unit, with a goal of one student organization per major, preferably connected to a local or national professional organization.
    
2. Identify faculty leads on work-based learning in each program or unit and gather best practices for connectivity with employers.
    
3. Document paid internship pathways across units.

PRIORITY 3: PERSEVERANCE

1. Assess A&S personnel post VSIP and identify faculty and staff need areas.
    
2. Explore the benefits of divisional structures or disciplinary alliances for strategic and managerial purposes.
    
3. Streamline committee structure at the college and unit levels, with an emphasis on shared governance in a time of limited resources.

PRIORITY 1: PEOPLE

1. Share best practices from the classroom to résumé project, providing examples and templates for adoption across the college.
    
2. Expand experiential learning in units with a deficit of opportunity.
    
3. Expand student academic support as needed, unify the Writing Center, Math Emporium, and Academic Support Hub physical location.

PRIORITY 2: PARTNERSHIPS

1. Support units or programs with no student organizations, and empower faculty to facilitate connections to existing professional organizations.
    
2. Empower faculty work-based learning teams with support from Career Services.
    
3. Establish a cycle of support for paid internships, from friend-raising to fundraising, with community partners and Career Services.

PRIORITY 3: PERSEVERANCE

1. Create an identifiable space on campus for the College of Arts & Sciences, explore naming rights.
    
2. Document unique arts and cultural activities across the college to determine community impact.
    
3. Establish a college visiting committee.

PRIORITY 1: PEOPLE

1. Promote the classroom to résumé project to potential students, with current student testimonials.
    
2. Promote A&S programs as the engaging, pragmatic, and applicable choice.
    
3. Promote academic support options, so that every student on campus is familiar with available services and comfortable seeking assistance.

PRIORITY 2: PARTNERSHIPS

1. Promote student connectivity to professional organizations, emphasizing the instant peer group, leadership training, and employment opportunities they can provide.
    
2. Promote faculty-led work-based learning efforts, highlighting experiential learning and paid internship opportunities.
    
3. Seek investments to expand industry and community partnerships.

PRIORITY 3: PERSEVERANCE

1. Engage in a focused fundraising campaign for the college.
    
2. Promote life-long learning efforts, from the classroom and lab to the studio and stage.
    
3. Promote faculty leadership, connectivity to non-profit and industry boards, work-based learning, experiential learning opportunities, community dialog, and discipline expertise.