James I. Perkins College of Education
Department of Human Services
2012-2013 Annual Report
Department Chair: Robbie J. Steward, Ph.D.
Departmental Advisory Council Members: Frank Brister
Paige Mask, Ph.D./Kathy Sheriff
Glen McCuller/Ginger Kelso
Michael Munro
Robin Rumph
Le’Ann Solmonson, Ph.D.
Frankie Swift
Bill Weber
Scott Whitney, Ph.D.
The Stephen F. Austin State University Department of Human Services
www.humanservices.sfasu.edu
· 39 faculty (full-time, tenure-track and clinical);
· 15 part-time faculty;
· 5 administrative support staff;
· 7 clinics/laboratories (Counseling, Audiology, Speech and Language Pathology, Rehabilitation
Career Laboratory, Sign Language Laboratory, Neuroscience Laboratory, Autism, School
Psychology Assessment)
· 5 undergraduate programs (Deaf & Hard of Hearing, Special Education, Rehabilitation
Services, Communication Disorders, Orientation & Mobility);
· 8 master’s programs (i.e., Special Education, School Psychology, Orientation & Mobility,
School Counseling, Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Rehabilitation Counseling, Student
Affairs, Speech & Language Pathology);
· 1 doctoral program (School Psychology)
· 2 certification programs (Visual Impairment & Educational Diagnostician).
· 21 graduate assistantships (16 doctoral and 5 master’s-level),
· 5 work study students, and
· 4 large training/service grants (e.g., Rehabilitation Services, Rehabilitation Counseling,
Orientation & Mobility, Visual Impairment).
Departmental Major Activities/Accomplishments (19)
Listing includes all citations that were announced between 09/01/2012 and 08/31/2013.
The Cole Audiology Lab, directed by Dr. Kelly Jobe, offered hearing evaluations to SFA employees, their families and the general public. Services include hearing evaluations for all ages, hearing aid fitting and repairs, earplugs for noise and swimming, and auditory processing evaluations. Faculty and graduate students in the Speech and Language completed hearing screenings for all students in the Nacogdoches Independent School District.
The Counseling Clinic, directed by Mr. Robert Patterson, provided Substance Abuse Screening for the general student body population.
The Rehabilitation Career Planning Clinic provided vocational testing and career guidance to adolescents participating in the Good-will Guide Program for at-risk populations in the surrounding community.
The Rehabilitation & Counseling Programs offered free anonymous depression screenings in recognition of National Depression Screening Day (NDSD). Attendees had the opportunity to complete a written self-assessment and talk one-on-one with a mental health counselor in training. Those who appear to need further evaluation will be given referrals to local treatment services.
The Speech and Language Pathology program held their second, annual, mini-conference that consisted of 19 empirical-based research presentations of collaborations between graduate students and faculty.
Two faculty/staff searches were completed successfully: Dr. Vickie Depountis (Vision Impairment) and Dr. Luis Aguerrevere (Neuroscience Laboratory Director/School Psychology/Speech & Language Pathology). The School Psychology and the Speech and Language Pathology/Communication Disorders faculty searches continue.
Ms. Crystal Evans was hired part-time as a secretary for the School Psychology program.
The National Association of School Psychologists’ (NASP) Program Approval Board has granted NASP Approval—Full (National Recognition) for 2013—2017! This is an outstanding accomplishment that required extensive self-study and ongoing compliance to national training standards.
The School Psychology doctoral programs’ FIRST graduates participated in the summer graduation ceremonies: : Dr. Carol Lynn Bradley, advised by Dr. Ginger Kelso and Dr. Robbie Steward; Dr. Stevie Gail Hight, advised by Dr. David Lawson and Dr. Ginger Kelso; and Dr. Melanie Denise Kellam, advised by Dr. David Lawson). These graduates are to be considered our honored trailblazers, who verify that the pathway to degree completion in this program is stable and manageable. Their graduation also opens the door for application for accreditation that was not available before.
The Special Education program graduated fourteen (14) on-line completers, which is a major accomplishment attributed to the stellar work of faculty led by Dr. Mask in shepherding students to TexES success.
The Deaf and Hard of Hearing program received Special Recognition with Conditions from the
(NCATE) after the review of their Specialized Professional Association (SPA) report.
The School Psychology doctoral program secured membership with the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC) as a Doctoral Program Associate, which allows our students to participate in the review and matching with pre-doctoral internship sites accredited by the American Psychological Association.
Dr. Scott Whitney developed software that will allow faculty to integrate LiveText data with TracDat domain and individual criteria reports. It is also not possible to manually copy and paste data for processing and uploading automatically to TracDat. This is a critical development instrumental in addressing the ‘conditional’ status received from NCATE.
The Department had 100% program representation during each summer academic informational and orientation sessions with parents and incoming students.
This was the first year that annual reports from our university-approved laboratories and clinics were submitted and posted on the departmental website. In this age of accountability, these reports provide a space for the documentation of the need for our presence and the excellent services that we provide the university and surrounding communities.
The VI/O&M programs developed detailed descriptions of activities involved in the instruction of each required courses. This was instrumental in providing a guide for future instructors and in documenting instructional modality, time commitment, and travel associated with the unique training experience.
Faculty and students submitted eleven (14) IRB applications for review.
At this point of the academic year last year seven (7) courses required explanation for small course enrollment. This year, the number of explanations were required for only three (3) courses). The decrease in the petitions for approval of small course enrollment is noteworthy; the goal is 0% submission.
There was significant increase in faculty attention to regular submission of on-line, monthly, leave reports, which reached 88% by the end of the academic year.
Special Indi vidual Accomplishments of the Department Chair
(Dr. Robbie J. Steward) (31)
The Department Chair-facilitated faculty and student research team guided the research and scholarship of new faculty and doctoral students, resulting in increased number of conference presentations and publications. Faculty/Staff who participated included Michael Munro, Barry Stafford, Nina Ellis-Hervey, Tracy Hallak, and Ms. Amanda Flores (Office of Multicultural Affairs). Dr. Steward also worked with doctoral students Josh Staley and Tiffany Wilbourne, and this supervised research activity resulted in a presentation at a national conference and an invited submission for publication. Weekly meetings were held with teams specifically for the purpose of proposal development, data collection, coding & analysis, and writing.
Dr. Robbie Steward orchestrated cross-departmental collaboration in instruction between the School Psychology program and the Department of Psychology facult. Dr. Glen McCuller’s graduate level course was co-listed with a required Psychology course increasing instructional efficiency and further securing the connection between the two academic units. Because of this connection, faculty in the Psychology Department served adjunct faculty during a time of program faculty retirements.
The Department Chair served as a guest lecturer on-campus each semester in Dr. Towns’ Crisis Communication course and Dr. Killam’s Counseling course.
Dr. Robbie Steward facilitated collaboration between the department and the Charter School through the development of a unique training model that will provide services to the Charter School, and place a faculty line on site to meet standards as a NASP-approved practicum and internship training site for School Psychology masters and doctoral students.
The Department Chair shifted faculty compensation practices to increase congruency with university workload policy. This involved of review of faculty instructional load and calculating TLCs for each.
The Department Chair orchestrated the means for all clinic and laboratory staff was established to receive the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) training required by law in the provision of services to non-university clientele. An established committee has planned to insure laboratory- and clinic- affiliated students’ receipt of training every two years as required by law.
Dr. Robbie Steward studied the implications of the use and purchase of a department-wide SONA System, which will provide web-based human subject pool management software for faculty in the Department of Human Services. The purpose of this software is to improve the efficiency of faculty members’ scholarship by making students’ participation in research more accessible and the research process more easily managed. The system will be operational beginning Spring 2014 and faculty have been encouraged to include research participation in course syllabi, especial in courses that have content associated with research design and implementation.
Dr. Robbie Steward designed an ongoing research study and data analysis occurred for the continuous improvement of departmental training environments by program. Statistically significant results will guide discussions about improvements in training environments by program based on the comparison of the 2011 survey data and that collection during the Spring 2013. For the whole department, on a scale of 1 (least positive perception) to 5 (most positive perception) , a random sampling of advanced enrolled majors (n=112) resulted in mean ratings as follows: 3.8 on students’ perceptions of faculty members effective responsiveness to students; 3.7 on students’ perceptions of comfort approaching faculty for guidance; 4.4 on students’ perceptions of other students’ as sources of support and encouragement; and 3.2 on students’ perceptions of faculty members relationships with each other. Data were analyzed by program and students’ racial/ethnicity status, gender, and enrollment status (undergraduate vs. graduate). Findings will be discussed and addressed during Advisory Council meetings during the 2013-14 academic year for the purpose of continuous improvement across the department. During the next data collection period (Spring 2015), the variable of students’ disability status will be included in the data collection and analyses.
Dr. Robbie Steward developed a workload policy that included the evaluation of faculty members’ attention to required administrative responsibilities (i.e., leave reports, posted office hours & physical presence in office; timely submission of syllabi and vitae; regular attendance/participation at assigned meetings; attendance at graduation ceremonies as indicated in university policy; the collection of and submission of required assessment data) and provided for a more in-depth evaluation of course instruction (i.e., documentation of time commitment required beyond direct student contact; more detailed use of current evaluation form to distinguish attention to course content, instructor characteristics, student interest, and students’ learning). These course instruction variables are included in a study of course evaluation, which is currently in the data analysis process.
Dr. Robbie Steward developed guidelines and instruction for new adjunct faculty and doctoral teaching assistants. These guidelines are posted under faculty resources on the departmental website.
The Department Chair developed a step-by-step guideline for students’ application to graduate-level programs in the department and posted on the departmental website.
The Department Chair developed plan, (approved by Dean Judy Abbott and Associate Provost Mary Nelle Brunson), which facilitated VI/O&M students’ return to the program after a substantial time period to complete research projects so that they might proceed to degree completion.
The Department Chair served on the University Core Curriculum Committee, the College of Education Diversity Committee, the College NCATE Steering Committee, NCATE Steering Committee Standard 4 (Diversity) Chair (collected data and wrote report), the SFA Distance Education Committee, the Professional Educators’ Council, the Department Chairs’ Forum, the Assistant Dean Search Committee, and attended Parents’ Day, Showcase Saturdays, and guided all but two of the Summer Academic Information meeting. She also facilitated bi-monthly Departmental Advisory Council meetings, (agendas posted on the departmental website).
The Department Chair developed a department-wide Diversity Statement that provides students, faculty, and staff with guidelines for re-conceptualizing cross-cultural collisions as ‘normal’ and describing a structure for problem-solving toward effective resolution. The statement is posted on the departmental website.
The Department Chair, managed 20 departmental accounts and maintained fiscal solvency through weekly meetings with the administrative assistant and ongoing consultation with the Budget Office and ORSP. Funds were used to provide final critical upgrades in technology associated with training in the Counseling Clinic, the Audiology Clinic, the Speech and Language Pathology Clinic, and the Neuroscience Laboratory.
The Department Chair, in addition to regular load, also assumed responsibilities associated with the position of School Psychology Program Director, stabilized course sequence, wrote the annual report for the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, instituted the practice of town hall meetings for faculty-student problem-solving and planning, and moved the program toward increased compliance to the THECB, NASP, and APA standards.
Dr. Robbie Steward orchestrated major technology updates for the SFA Counseling and Stanley Speech and Language clinics, the Audiology Clinic, and the Neuroscience Laboratory, which will enhance training and research, insuring optimal levels of service delivery to students and clients from the surrounding communities. These upgrades will also increase the chances for positive outcomes of future internal and external grant applications.
The Department Chair was invited as the keynote speaker for the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day SFASU Celebration by the Office of Multicultural Affairs.
Dr. Robbie Steward served as a member of four doctoral dissertations: Gina Meyer (Counseling Psychology—Western Michigan University, successfully defended & degree completed), Molly Heyn (Counseling Psychology—Western Michigan University, successfully defended & degree completed), Carol Bradley (School Psychology—SFASU, successfully defended & degree completed—co-director), and Josh Staley (School Psychology—SFASU, proposal development stage--Chair).
Dr. Robbie Steward served as a member of the university-wide Core Curriculum Committee charged with developing the format for the evaluation of courses for inclusion in the list of core curriculum. She extended this educational improvement effort to include the development of course syllabi that integrate the core-curriculum language/objectives and criteria for disposition evaluation into all course content and instruction associated with programs housed in the Department of Human Services.
Dr. Robbie Steward developed a course syllabus evaluation guideline for faculty to use to update course syllabi for compliance to THECB, university, and College required standards.
After review of faculty and students’ IRB applications, and serving as consultant on faculty and students’ research projects, Dr. Robbie Steward guided faculty in curriculum improvement by incorporating the requirement of the CITI, on-line, ORSP Research Training module in research related courses to insure that all students are aware of the meaning of ethical practice in research.