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Date: January 1, 2005
Facilitating Team Member Responsible for Work Plan:
Issue 1: There is a critical shortage and continuing attrition of PhD level faculty that will affect professional preparation and conduct of research in communication sciences and disorders.
Outcome: Increased number of PhD teacher-scholars and students who choose higher education as a career option sufficient to fill academic faculty/researcher vacancies in human communication sciences and disorders over the next decade (i.e., supply = demand).
Strategies
- By December 31, 2005, the Scientific Programs and Research Development and Academic Affairs units and ASHA’s Web team will have prepared and maintained current information targeting the promotion of careers as a PhD level teacher and/or researcher in higher education for use on ASHA’s Web site.
- By December 31, 2005, the Science and Research and Public Relations units will have produced a product that serves to highlight academic and research careers (i.e., used in an introductory course in CSD or as a general recruitment tool into the professions) geared towards undergraduate and graduate students.
- By December 31, 2005, the Academic Affairs and Scientific Programs and Research Development units will have developed and funded an ASHA award program, the Students Preparing for Academic and Research Careers (SPARC) award, to promote PhD career development for CSD undergraduate/graduate students through enhanced educational mentorship experiences/curricula that prepare students for successful PhD education and academic careers, travel to enhance research exposure, research training under a mentor, and web-based cohort activities for program participants.
- By December 31, 2005, the Academic Affairs, Scientific Programs and Research Development, and the Clinical Practices units will have developed and disseminated informational resources that support 1) current practicing professionals who want to obtain a research doctoral degree, or 2) current practicing professionals who already hold a research doctoral degree and want to transition to a career as a teacher-researcher in higher education
- By December 31, 2005, the Academic Affairs and Scientific Programs and Research Development units will have developed and funded an ASHA award program, the Advancing Academic and Research Careers (AARC) award, for new faculty who are in the beginning stages of their academic/research careers for the purpose of promoting retention in higher education by providing financial incentives to mentor research in their own students, conduct research, and/or improve teaching knowledge and skills.
- By December 31, 2005, the Governmental Relations and Public Policy unit will have sought through federal legislation to have Communications Sciences and Disorders (CSD) graduates recognized as shortage specialties that have access to increased federal professional development and training funds, federal student financial aid, federal research funds and loan forgiveness policies that impact recruitment and retention of qualified school-based personnel, doctoral faculty and researchers.
- By December 31, 2005, the Governmental Relations and Public Policy unit will have pursued FY 2006 federal appropriations through the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) Comprehensive Program or line-item appropriations for academic programs in Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSD) to help mitigate the doctoral shortage in the professions of speech-language pathology and audiology.
Issue 2: Tradition has limited the role of research instruction in all levels of the curriculum resulting in a lack of a coordinated academic culture and scientific/research personnel preparation experiences in the discipline that promote careers as teachers-researchers in higher education.
Outcome: Increased availability and use of new models of education applicable for all levels (undergraduate, master’s, doctoral) and all types of programs (PhD granting and non-PhD granting) that (1) allow students to begin preparing for PhD education early in their careers and enter PhD programs upon completion of their undergraduate or master’s degrees, and (2) facilitate the coordination of professional and research training (for those students pursuing professional credentials in addition to the PhD).
Strategies
- By December 31, 2005, the Scientific Programs and Research Development unit will have expanded ASHA’s efforts to showcase student research and academic success at the ASHA Convention and other ASHA Continuing Education and Research Training venues.
- By December 31, 2005, the ASHF and ASHA’s Chief Staff Officer for Science and Research will have developed and funded a jointly sponsored ASHA and ASHF award program that facilitates interdisciplinary research collaboration among academic programs.
- By December 31, 2005, the Academic Affairs, Scientific Programs and Research Development, and Clinical Practice Units will have developed and disseminated informational resources that identify the philosophy, attributes and methods of successful integration of clinical and research interests as applied to all levels of education.
- By December 31, 2005, the Academic Affairs and Scientific Programs and Research Development units in conjunction with the Vice Presidents for Academic Affairs and Science and Technology will have planned and held a Researcher-Academic Town Meeting at the ASHA Convention to foster a coordinated academic and research culture, to address current issues in the preparation of future teachers-researchers in higher education, and to provide a networking experience for student and new faculty research award recipients to interact with seasoned researchers.
Issue 3: There is no coordinated data collection and dissemination system related to doctoral programs that allows for the exchange of information on research training experiences, funding levels, scholarship activities, and those who enter academia upon completing the PhD degree.
Outcome: Increased availability and use of a coordinated data collection and centralized mechanism for information dissemination on academic program characteristics, doctoral students and new faculty-researchers in CSD.
Strategies
- By December 31, 2005, the Academic Affairs, Surveys and Information, Credentialing, and Information Systems units will have implemented an integrated/coordinated communication sciences and disorders database designed to gather, maintain, access, and analyze information from academic programs, including data on PhD graduates employed in academic settings, PhD program characteristics, and sources and levels of funding for PhD students.
- By December 31, 2005, the Academic Affairs, Scientific Programs and Research Development, and Membership and Information Systems units will have developed a mentoring database in communication science and disorders and related disciplines to assist new researchers (i.e., either students or new faculty) in the discipline in the pursuit of their teaching-research careers.
- By December 31, 2005, the Scientific Programs and Research Development, Governmental Relations and Public Policy units, and Academic Affairs will have identified and disseminated current sources of federal, state and private funding available to fund students to pursue PhD studies and careers as new researchers in communication science and disorders.
- By December 31, 2005, Academic Affairs, Scientific Programs and Research Development and the ASHA Web Team will have developed and/or revised content on the ASHA Web site for the academic and research member communities to include doctoral students, clinical and academic faculty, researchers and academic programs. The Web site will also facilitate information exchange through various electronic mechanisms.
- By December 31, 2005, the Academic Affairs, Scientific Programs and Research Development units, and the ASHA Web Team will have published and promoted bimonthly issues of Access Academics & Research, an e-Newsletter for the academic community to share information on research, funding, teaching, and legislation news.
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