Teachers College graduate programs reviewed
By Kris Karnopp
Staff Reporter
A UNL Teachers College Coordi
nating Council will wipe the slate
clean when it considers new graduate
programs in the spring, an official
said.
Terry Gutkin, coordinator of doc
toral studies in education, said he
hopes parts of the revised graduate
program would be approved in the
spring and would be operating by the
fall of 1991.
The Teachers College currently
offers doctorates in administration,
curriculum and instruction; commu
nity and human resources; and psy
chological and cultural studies.
Gutkin said Teachers College Dean
James O’ Hanlon decided in 1987 that
a comprehensive review of the gradu
ate program was necessary.
“Many of the faculty sensed that
the doctoral program could be bet
ter,” Gutkin said. “We needed to
address the program’s weaknesses and
maintain its strengths.”
Education specialists, UNL fac
ulty and Teachers College doctorate
students reviewed the current pro
gram and suggested improvements,
Gutkin said.
In April 1990, the Teachers Col
lege graduate faculty approved the
suggested philosophy and general
direction of the new program, he said.
“We are now putting the opera
tional nuts and bolts into the philoso
phy,” Gutkin said.
The coordinating council will
review proposals for new graduate
programs in the spring. The proposals
will be submitted by faculty backed
by at least one department sponsor.
Students currently working toward
their doctorate degrees will be given
the option of finishing under the old
program or meeting the requirements
of tfoe new program, Gutkin said.
The revised program approved in
April addresses enhanced faculty/
student interaction,continued depart
ment coordination, and minority re
cruitment, he said.
A greater emphasis on interaction
between faculty and doctoral students
is one of several goals officials hope
to accomplish in the revision of the
Teachers College graduate program.
The mentorship of graduate stu
dents is the “most critical issue” in
any graduate program, Gutkin said.
Education at the doctoral level goes
beyond the classroom experiences of
undergraduate courses so “a more
intensive relationship needs to de
velop between students and faculty,”
Gutkin said.
“Faculty members must be more
than advisers. They must serve as role
models for the students,” he said.
The revised program will include
doctoral seminars in which graduate
faculty can mentor students by work
ing with them on research projects
and participating in small-group dis
cussions. Gulkin said that all gradu
ate students would be required to
complete a minimum of four semes
ters of doctoral seminars in the new
plan.
O’Hanlon said the new program’s
selection process also would help
achieve a “good working match”
between the interests of faculty
members and students.
In the current program, an adviser
is selected for students after they are
admitted, O’Hanlon said. In the re
vised admissions process, an adviser
would be found for each student be
fore the student is admitted.
Gulkin said another problem with
the graduate program is a lack of
resources because the three current
doctoral programs are not connected
with any department.
“Running a doctoral program
requires a tremendous amount of re
sources and one of the main findings
was that our doctoral programs are
resource-poor,” Gutkin said. “We
have no budget and limited faculty.”
Under the revised program, all
doctoral programs would be spon
sored by one or more departments.
Departmental sponsorship will add to
the amount of financing and faculty,
as well as increase the number of
graduate assistantships, Gutkin said.
The graduate program would also
place emphasis on minority student
recruitment and programs, he said.
Any new graduate programs will
have to include an explanation about
how minorities will be recruited be
fore they are approved, Gutkin said.
O’ Hanlon said that seven graduate
assistantships and three instructorships
also will be set aside for minorities in
the revised program.
—- 1 " -- ' - ' . \
Recruit
Continued from Page 1
Merit semi-finalists. And, Schmidt
said, her department works closely
with high school guidance coun
selors and UNL alumni to persuade
students to attend the university.
Recruiters stress several aspects
about UNL, Schmidt said. The size
and the people of Lincoln appeal to
some prospective students, she said.
UNL is also nationally visible
with quality programs, opportuni
ties for involvement and low-cost
out-of-state tuition, she said.
Schmidt said her department has
received positive feedback since
recruiting changes were made. Guid
ance counselors and alumni have
remarked that the students arc treated
better, she said.
Schmidt credits other univer
sity departments in helping make
student recruiting a success.
“Student recruiting is a univer
sitywide effort,” she said. “The
successes we’ve enjoyed have been
through the help and cooperation
of hundreds of people on campus. ’ ’
UNL also actively recruits stu
dents from abroad, said Peter Levi
tov, director of International Edu
cational Services. About 1,100
foreign students attend UNL, he
said.
Most of the time, prospective
students write for information,
Levitov said. And, two years ago,
the university produced a videotape
showing foreign students at UNL
talking about school. This tape,
along with printed materials, are
sent to U.S. embassies and other
offices where students who want to
study in the United States go,
Contacts made overseas have
led to more students coming to
UNL, Levitov said, but because
foreign recruiting is mostly indi
rect, it is not as effective as it could
be. UNL enrollment reflects re
cruiting success
UNL trying to stay competitive
in recruiting firstclass faculty
By Mindy Wiison
Staff Reporter
A growing shortage of qualified
faculty members has made recruit
ing teachers a competitive process,
said Robert Furgason, UNL vice
chancellor for academic affairs.
The University of Nebraska
Lincolri has tried to stay competi
tive with peer institutions as far as
salaries, facilities and teaching loads,
Furgason said.
Recent salary increases approved
by the Nebraska Legislature have
enabled UNL to attract more fac
ulty .Furgason said. Two years ago,
teachers’ salaries were increased
by 11 percent. Last year and this
year they were increased 11.5 per
cent. A 10-percentincrease in sala
ries tor each of the next two years
is planned.
Research initiatives provided by
the government are an added draw
for faculty to the university, Fur
gason said.
The Lied Center for Perform ing
Arts and the Lee & Helene Sapp
Recreation Facility provide fac
ulty with recreation opportunities,
he said.
The community of Lincoln also
attracts faculty, Furgason said. With
modest housing costs and a reason
able cost of living, Lincoln is a
good place to raise a family, he
said.
This contrasts to California,
which has more crime and pollu
tion, he said.
Furgason said UNL does have
probiems filling faculty positions
in computer science, business,
accounting and foreign languages
because of the competition in these
fields. But this problem is not a
new one, he said.
To improve recruiting, UNL has
increased the graduate enrollment
in hopes that the graduates will
come back as faculty, Furgason
said.
This year, 75 percent of the
faculty hired were the university’s
first choices. This shows the suc
cess of UNL’s faculty recruiting
methods, Furgason said.
“I don’t know how anybody gets through college
today without a Macintosh. Sometimes I have so many
assignments that I barely have time for sleep Yet my
Macintosh allows me to get my work done on time
without making sacrifices.
“Working on my dissertation and field studies
means collecting an incredible amount of
infonnation. So jumping from one program to
another with ease is imperative, as is quickly
making charts and graphs. By enabling me
to do these things, Macintosh probably
saves me an hour and a half each day.
“Another really great thing about the
Macintosh is that it makes you feel
technically confident. Remember putting toys together
when you were a kid? Who reads die directions?
Nobody. You look at the picture of the bike and you
know exactly what to do. The Macintosh operates the
same way. I actually taught a friend to use one in
two minutes.
“What would my life be like without a Macintosh?
Scary.”
Why do UNL Students love Macintosh?
Ask them.
Computing Resource Center
Computer Shop
University Bookstore
Lower Level Nebraska Union
472-5785 Hours: 8:00am - 5:00pm
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c Apple the Apple logo, end Macintosh are registered trademarks ot Apple Computer, me