The following procedures are designed to help colleges and universities arrange and conduct College Chemistry Consultants Service (C3S) visits.
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Introduction;
Initiating a Consultant Visit
Consultant visits should be initiated by the participating institution as far in advance as feasible, preferably two or three months prior to the desired visit date. This is done by completing the Request for a Consultant form found at the C3S Web Site. The request can be initiated by any authorized individual at the client institution, usually the chemistry department chair, a dean, or other administrator. The completed Request form is sent to the American Chemical Society (ACS) Division of Chemical Education (DivCHED) administrator, Susan Greer (sgreer@purdue.edu; see C3S Contacts page for additional contact information), who will forward the request to the Chair of the C3S Advisory Board. The Chair of the Advisory Board will contact the individual requesting the visit for preliminary discussion. The topics for that conversation include the major issues to be addressed by the consultant(s), funding for the visit, preferred and other suitable consultants, timing of the visit, and other procedural matters. If there is agreement on these issues, a joint decision is made to proceed with the planning phase. The C3S Chair or C3S Secretary will then ascertain the availability of an appropriate consultant or consultants and inform the client accordingly. At this point, direct communication between client and consultant(s) begins, and the details of the visit are worked out. However, we expect that the C3S Secretary be copied or otherwise kept informed of important decisions such as the date for the visit.
Institutional Information
Institutions planning visits should download the C3S Institutional Information Form, which seeks to generate a comprehensive overview of the department. This information is of great value in enabling the consultant(s) to prepare for an effective visit. Moreover, if distributed internally, responses to the questions on the form can give individuals on campus a clear picture of the present state of the chemistry department. Above all, completing the form can be an instructive exercise for the faculty of the department. For similar reasons, many colleges and universities require self-study reports as part of the review process. If that is the case with your institution, there is no need to complete the C3S form as well, though the information solicited there can be a useful guide. Regardless of what format is used, the following categories should be included.
1. Institutional information
2. Faculty and staff
3. Departmental administrative procedures
4. Curriculum; course syllabi
5. Students
6. Financial resources
7. Instrumentation, other resources, and facilities
8. Major problems
Some of these areas can be addressed by submitting copies of documents that may already exist, such as college catalogs, course lists, operating budgets, faculty CVs, internal annual reports, and any other relevant reports. Additional suggestions can be found on the Institutional Information Form. In unusual cases that involve only one or two specific issues, such a comprehensive amount of information may not be required. To make the visit useful, any significant deviation from normal procedures must be discussed in advance with the assigned consultant.
Once the package of information has been assembled, a complete set should be sent to the consultant. All the information made available by the institution to the consultant is strictly confidential, and none of it will be released without the express consent of the client institution. Although the C3S Advisory Board will solicit feedback on the effectiveness of the consultant visit, such information will be confidential and used only for the purpose of evaluating C3S.
Some departments, colleges, and universities
select consultants from the C3S list but do not go through the C3S
process. If you choose to do this, you may contact your preferred consultant(s)
directly. In such cases, there is no need to send the DivCHED Administrator, the
C3S Advisory Board Chair or the C3S Secretary a copy of
your informational packet or self-study, though the consultant would almost
certainly wish to receive the same information. For the completeness of our
records, however, we would be grateful if you would inform the C3S
administrator, Advisory Board Chair, or Secretary if C3S consultants
have been directly contacted and contracted.
Costs
Costs associated with a C3S visit include a recommended honorarium of $300 per day per consultant, a report fee of $250, and the expense of consultant travel, lodging, and meals. Preliminary funding agreements should be reached between the client institution and the C3S consultant(s). C3S serves only as a matchmaker between client and consultant, and financial arrangements and reimbursements should directly involve only the institution and the consultant.
Planning
the visit
1. The optimum time frame for planning a visit is at least six weeks, but preferably 2-3 months, prior to the desired date, to allow the consultant to obtain the lowest available travel fares.
2. The visit should last one or two days, during a regular instructional period.
3. As soon as a consultant is identified, the client and consultant should begin telephone or e-mail communication about the time of the visit, the needs and expectations of the department, the information to be submitted, the visit itinerary, and any other relevant topics.
4. At least three weeks before the visit, the consultant should receive the packet of information described above. A draft schedule for the visit should also be included, and the consultant should have an opportunity to respond to this draft.
5. Usually, the visit contact person offers to make lodging arrangements for the consultant and arranges to meet the consultant upon his or her arrival.
Conducting
the visit
1.
The visit should be structured to allow ample opportunity for the
consultant to become familiar with all aspects of the chemistry program. This is
accomplished by scheduling formal and informal meetings with faculty, staff, and
administrative officials; arranging a facility tour; and allowing time for the
consultant to probe and evaluate matters that appear to be major issues
confronting the program.
2. An early meeting with the chair and/or the C3S applicant and an informal get-together with the chemistry faculty during the afternoon or evening before the main part of the visit can provide an excellent introduction to the department and the institution.
3. Private sessions, each about 30-45 minutes long, should be scheduled with all full- and part-time chemistry faculty and staff. The consultant should also have an opportunity to meet with faculty from supporting disciplines and academic programs served by chemistry.
4. Representatives of the college or university administration should also participate in a C3S visit. In some institutions, a dean or provost requests an entry and/or exit visit with the consultant. Depending on local practice, the chemistry department chair may or may not be present for these meetings.
5. An important component of the consultant’s visit is a tour of the chemistry facilities. If time permits, general tours of the campus or of special facilities, such as the library, can also be included.
6. The consultant should be scheduled to meet with a group of chemistry students, both majors and non-majors. Sometimes this can be done over an informal meal.
7. Visits to classes and laboratory sessions can be valuable, especially when curricular matters are of concern.
8. Depending on local circumstances and the specific purposes of the visit, meetings with members of key faculty committees and representatives of offices such as admissions, academic support, advising, key alliance partners, and research can be useful.
9. Please allow one or two relatively short unscheduled blocks of time to allow the consultant to make notes, collect thoughts, and, if needed, request additional meetings or visits.
10. The C3S visit should conclude with an exit meeting involving the consultant, the chair of the chemistry department, the person requesting the visit, and/or the appropriate administrator(s), depending on local circumstances. This meeting is an opportunity for the consultant to ask any remaining questions, report initial impressions, offer some tentative suggestions, and agree on a schedule for the final report.
After
the visit
1. Ideally, a draft of the consultant report should be completed and mailed to the C3S applicant within one month of the visit, although in some cases, more time might be required. If more than one consultant is involved, one member of the team will have responsibility for preparing this draft and incorporating the comments of his or her colleague(s). The report should include recommendations to faculty, staff, and administration, utilizing the strengths of the existing program in planning the future. The C3S applicant should circulate the draft, as appropriate, for corrections, comments, and suggestions and return the marked-up copy to the consultant within three weeks. The consultant will correct any errors of fact and consider suggestions about interpretation and recommendations, revising the draft in a way that is consistent with his or her observations and conclusions. The consultant will send a copy of the final report to the C3S applicant, and he or she will be responsible for its internal distribution.
2.
Follow-up on consulting visits has proved to be valuable for clients and
is essential for the continuing assessment of C3S. Therefore, shortly
after receipt of the final report, the C3S Advisory Board Secretary
will send a questionnaire to the applicant to solicit input on the visit, its
utility, the apparent value of the report, and preliminary plans in response to
the visit and report. Approximately six months after the visit, the consultant
will contact the applicant to discuss the impact of consultancy and the status
of plans generated by it. The client may also contact the consultant, as needed,
with questions and requests for follow-up advice. Where indicated, return visits
may be arranged. About two years after the visit, the C3S
administrator or secretary will again contact the applicant in order to learn
about long-range changes attributable to the visit.
3.
Consultants should be reimbursed promptly after receipt of the final
report. Financial obligations of the various parties are agreed upon before the
visit. Consultants should be directly reimbursed by the client institution for
all legitimate expenses, including travel, lodging, and meals. In addition, each
consultant should receive an honorarium of $300 per day and the author of the
report should receive an additional fee of $250.
C3S
is a service to college chemistry
departments coordinated by the ACS Division of Chemical Education, Inc.