This review of activity in the second year of Candidacy is excerpted from the Second Year Candidacy Report submitted to AACSB on March 2, 2001. Appendices I, II, and III referenced herein are outside of this excerpt, but can be viewed as part of the complete Second Year Report.

Complete text of Second Year Report

THE YEAR IN REVIEW

The College of Business at Florida Gulf Coast University [FGCU] continues its steady growth. From Fall 1999 to Fall 2000, there was a 17 percent increase in the number of business students enrolled and over a 7 percent increase in student credit hours generated by business faculty. The College of Business had the strongest growth rate of all the colleges, and now accounts for 29 percent of undergraduate and 33 percent of graduate enrollment at FGCU. The College also awarded 25 percent of the undergraduate and 39 percent of the graduate degrees during 1999-00.

The business student population is relatively diverse and currently includes 50 percent women and 18 percent non-white students. FGCU has ongoing programs to enhance ethnic diversity, and the proportion of minority students in the College is slightly higher than for the overall student population. The College serves both traditional full-time students and non-traditional students. The non-traditional students typically attend classes part-time in the evening or at a distance. Over the last year the average age of business students dropped from 28.3 to 25.4. This decrease can be attributed to enhanced recruitment of first time in college students and the doubling of on-campus student housing units. The majority (51 %) of undergraduate business students now attend FGCU full-time, whereas the graduate business population remains predominately (64 %) part-time.

Looking to the future, the College expects to continue to grow at similar rates over the next several years. In August 2000, the University hired a new Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management [AVPEM] with overall responsibility for student recruitment and retention. The AVPEM is also responsible for integration of College and University marketing efforts.

At the beginning of academic year 2000, the College had 33 faculty members. Additions included the three newly recruited Alico Chair Eminent Scholars and a faculty member with JD and PhD qualifications to teach legal environment and accounting courses. Previously, adjunct faculty had taught all legal environment courses. Twenty-six faculty members are academically qualified based on evidence of faculty development and intellectual contributions relevant to the teaching field, as evaluated against the Faculty Framework and Standards for Renewal, Promotion and Tenure criteria. Self-reported faculty intellectual contributions and academic and professional qualifications were validated by a consultant in February 2001 (please see page 4 for details of the consultant's report). There was minor faculty turnover during the 1999-2000 academic year when two faculty members accepted positions at other schools. Faculty searches are in the interview stage for these and one other position that was not filled last year. The College was fortunate to attract professionally and academically qualified visiting faculty to fill the vacant lines on an interim basis.

The Business Faculty sustained its strong commitment to continuous improvement. Both the Graduate and Undergraduate Program Committees implemented procedures during the year to assess program content, as well as student performance. These assessments included input from business advisory groups, sending surveys to graduating students and alumni, and administering the ETS Business Major Field Exam to graduating seniors. Data from these surveys and/or exams will continue to serve as benchmarks for future assessment activities. Integrated Program Matrices [IPMs] were also completed and/or updated. These IPMs map the courses included in each program and their learning objectives against University Goals, College Core Competencies and AACSB skills, perspectives and core areas.

In response to assessment data, budgetary constraints, and student demand for programs, the faculty approved a number of curricular changes during the year. First, the MBA curriculum was consolidated to meet student needs and optimize resource utilization. The revised curriculum includes proficiency examinations in Computer Information Tools; 24 hours of foundation courses in the fundamentals of business; 21 hours of core courses that build on the foundation; and 9 hours of courses in a concentration area - i.e. finance, general management, or interdisciplinary business studies. Enrollments in concentrations will be monitored to determine student demand and financial viability in the future.

[See Appendix I for Description of Revised MBA Program].

Second, the new Master of Science in Computer Information Systems (MS-CIS) was modified. Although the MS-CIS had met its initial enrollment targets of 20 students, the CIS faculty and Graduate Program Committee felt that changes were needed to provide a greater distinction between the graduate and undergraduate programs. The new MS-CIS curriculum maps the program to the national MSIS 2000 curriculum model and responds to rapid changes in the information technology field.

[See Appendix II for Description of Revised MS-CIS Program].

Changes to undergraduate programs included the elimination and/or consolidation of under-subscribed concentrations in Finance and Marketing. Additions included an advertising concentration in Marketing, as well as a minor in advertising. A minor in software engineering from the Computer Information Systems and Computer Science Department was also approved. In Fall 2000, the new University Provost called for the creation of more minors to enhance enrollments and better utilize under-subscribed courses. The COB now has five minors, each of which requires 18 credits of integrated course work. Due to the AACSB 50/50 rule, only non-business students may enroll in these minors. However, these minors should serve as an effective recruitment tool by allowing students from other colleges to sample courses from business programs.

[See Appendix III for Descriptions of Business Minors]

The 53 graduating seniors who took the ETS exam in Spring 2000 placed FGCU students in the 63rd percentile nation-wide. A review of specific assessment indicators showed some weakness in economics. Currently, most FGCU students now transfer their economics courses from community colleges. The College hopes to continue to expand the availability of economics on this campus. The Undergraduate Program Committee plans to review results from 2001 ETS exams and then make any necessary curricular revisions based on trend information.

The University's centralized Career Development Services (CDS) expanded it services this year. A new Coordinator of Employer Relations was added to the CDS staff. The CDS hosted two job fairs during the last year. Also students and employers are making more extensive use of CDS electronic listings for internship and final placement opportunities. The CDS also conducts resume writing workshops and mock interviews. The CDS uses a life-long career development approach with the goal of preparing graduates for a rapidly changing world of work.

CDS Programs complement the College Career Prospectus Program developed by the Marketing Department. All students in the Introduction to Marketing Course are required to create a personal portfolio. This portfolio includes an assessment of the student's skills, their personal objectives and a marketing plan for achieving their career/professional goals. A recent survey of FGCU business alumni indicates that 59.7 percent were employed at or upon graduation, another 28.7 percent were professionally employed within one year of graduation and 4.6 percent continued on to graduate school. When asked how well their education prepared them for their career or graduate school on a scale where 1 indicates "not well" and 5 "very well," the mean response was 4.04.

At the suggestion of the Undergraduate Business Association, the University CDS initiated an internship-like program this year for students interested in exploring business careers. This program is targeted to students who may not yet have the prerequisites for a full semester's internship, but who still want some real-world experience. This program also benefits students who are still uncertain about their career choices. Another student-centered program begun in January 2001 is a Career Networking and Opportunity Night for graduate students. The initial program was held at the Center for Leadership and Innovation (CLI) and attracted a distinguished panel, including senior executives from financial, customer service and hospitality industries.

Support from the business and professional community for FGCU students has been quite strong. Of note are groups such as the Hospitality Financial and Technology Professional, the Florida Institute of CPAs and the Institute of Internal Auditors. So far this year, they have awarded over $11,000 in scholarships to our FGCU students.

The College continues to foster regional economic development, and this was a watershed year for that effort. The highlight of the year was the establishment of a multi-million dollar, 137-acre research park near FGCU. The research park is to be named "Florida Gulf Coast Park - A Research, Development & Technology Office Campus." The research park is a partnership between FGCU, Alico, Inc., a major Florida corporation, the Lee County Office of Economic Development, which will coordinate activities of the park, and a national planning and development group. In a particularly generous move, Alico, Inc. donated 20 acres of the park to FGCU. It is envisioned that the College's CLI and Small Business Development Center (SBDC) will expand into an anchor facility in the Park. "This public/private partnership provides the catalyst to create a thriving research, development and technology office park that will nurture an active exchange of ideas and information among faculty, students, researchers and business people," said William C. Merwin, President of FGCU. "Dean Pegnetter is committed to continuing to take (business outreach) programs and services wherever they are needed."

The expansion of the CLI is critical to accommodate the increase in center activities. Of particular note are faculty clinical support and applied research activities with area businesses and organizations. Faculty members are encouraged to form self-funded institutes and centers in the CLI and offer their experience and expertise to the Southwest Florida economy. There are now eight such applied activities in the CLI, including the newest, Institute for e-Business Development.

Another mechanism to foster faculty applied expertise and research is through the Sponsored Projects and Programs Division of the CLI. A "Clinical Interaction" Business Partnership Model is used to link faculty expertise, student resources and the business community. This model, which generated nearly $250,000 in sponsored activity last year, is similar in scope to Medical School "Clinical Interaction" models in which school staff and infrastructure are used to link medical staff practice and expertise with the patient community. These and other CLI partnership programs, including the Executive MBA, generated over $2 million in gross revenue last year, permitting the College to again provide substantial summer research grants to one-third of the faculty. Faculty are asked to write research proposals and grants are awarded on a competitive basis

The physical expansion of the CLI is also critical to accommodate the increasing activities of the Small Business Development Center. The SBDC, open for only three years, leads the U.S. Small Business Administration South Florida District in the number of loans obtained for start-up and expanding businesses. The SBDC also opened its Procurement and Technical Assistance Center this year to help Southwest Florida businesses obtain government contracts. Also of note, the FGCU SBDC led the other 20 Florida SBDCs in the number of patent and trademark searches, reflecting the creative entrepreneurial spirit of Southwest Florida.

The College also continues to expand its unique "Second Circle" International Model that facilitates business and academic ties with other countries. There are now 11 academic/business agreements in Mexico, Germany, Sweden, France and Switzerland. The most recent agreement, signed in November 2000, is a Memorandum of Understanding between FGCU and St. Gallen Management Program University, Switzerland, for the development of FGCU-SMPU Business Certification Programs via the Internet. A proposal to permit St. Gallen students to earn an FGCU MBA over the Internet is also being discussed. Another agreement in negotiation is a Memorandum between the University of Wuerzburg in Germany and FGCU for a Certificate Program in Business and Management Studies. Under this program, German MBA students would travel to FGCU for two weeks of intensive management training.

Second Circle partnerships have begun to yield international opportunities for FGCU's students, as well. Last summer an MS-CIS student interned in Germany at Seimens. The internship was arranged by a professor from Harz University who became aware of the student while giving Internet lectures in an FGCU class. While in Germany, this student coauthored a paper with a German student, who will now be coming to FGCU to take several classes.

Because of its leadership in International partnership initiatives, the College was asked to organize a significant part of Florida's economic development mission to the Yucatan in Mexico in August 2000. The Dean invited a senior FGCU business student from Mexico, who is also Vice President of the Student Government Association, to direct many of the Enterprise Florida activities and act as interpreter for the FGCU Florida delegation in Mexico.

The College continued to commit resources to the accreditation effort. The Accreditation Web Master further developed the College's AACSB Website. (Please visit http://www.fgcu.edu/cob/aacsb/index.htm.) This website provides an archive of processes and continuous improvement results mapped against AACSB Accreditation Standards. It also provides the faculty with useful operational information and links to College, University and external documents and information. This year, a faculty member was provided summer support to further develop a relational database to measure activity associated with the utilization, development and evaluation of the faculty. The resulting Database reports support the Faculty Resource Management Plan.

As a measure of recognition for some of the new ground being broken by the College, the Dean was invited to give the following two presentations at national AACSB programs in 2000-01: "Building an AACSB Business School with Multi-year Contracts" at the Management Education Strategic Compensation and Rewards Conference (Atlanta - November 2000), and "The Second Circle Model: Creating a Global Academic Environment" at the Undergraduate Program Conference (Dallas - February 2001).