Office of the Provost
Provost Faculty Fellow Projects
Page Content
SPRING 2024
Expanding Career-Themed Dual Credit Options
Bridgette%20Davis
Assistant Teaching Professor
School of Education
The Faculty Fellow project, "Expanding Career-Themed Dual Credit Options," at The University of Southern Mississippi focused on exploring strategies to enhance access, equity, and quality in dual credit offerings. The project deliverables included a comparative analysis of successful dual-credit academies and collegiate high schools, recommendations for potential dual credit programs to offer at USM, and an estimation of student enrollment, logistical requirements, and scheduling for dual enrollment academies.
The research began with a review of foundational terms such as dual enrollment, dual credit, and concurrent enrollment to establish a clear framework for analysis. A comprehensive review was conducted to identify universities comparable to Southern Miss that have established career-themed dual credit partnerships with local high schools. These programs were analyzed to better understand their structures, operational frameworks, and the number of students served.
Dual enrollment and dual credit programs often face criticism for issues such as random course offerings, inconsistency in instructional practices, variability in course quality, and perceptions of exclusivity favoring privileged students. To address these concerns, career-themed dual credit options were conceptualized as structured pathways that align high school coursework with career and technical education. These programs integrate academic instruction with workforce preparation, equipping students with industry-relevant skills and credentials. The study also explored partnerships between colleges, universities, and high schools to identify best practices and scalability.
SPRING 2024
Recruiting and Retaining Representative and Successful Faculty
Michelle%20McLeese
Associate Teaching Professor
School of Social Science and Global Studies
Semi-structured interviews were conducted over the Spring 2024 semester with full time, permanent USM faculty. This method was chosen because it allowed for one-on-one dialogue with faculty to better understand their experiences (including how and why they came to work at USM, the successes they have experienced and witnessed as faculty, as well as the challenges and/or problems they have experienced and witnessed as faculty at USM).
SUMMER 2024
Credit for Prior Learning
Carsten%20Schmidke
Assistant Teaching Professor
School of Leadership
Credit for prior learning or CPL is a term for various methods that colleges, universities, and other education or training providers use to identify, evaluate, and formally recognize prior college-level learning that has occurred outside of the traditional academic environment such as work, life, or military experience. It is used to grant college credit, certification, or advanced standing toward further education or training as along as the student can prove competence in a topic or subject.
SUMMER 2024
Identifying Graduate Pathways for Honors College Students
Leslie%20W.%20Oglesby
Associate Professor
School of Health Professions
After an initial increase in graduate school enrollment during the COVID-19 pandemic, enrollment numbers have since been on the decline. There are approximately 500 students enrolled in the USM Honors College, and many of them will attend graduate school upon graduation. While some will choose graduate programs that are not offered at USM, many could have the option the stay and therefore should be given good reason to do so. Therefore, the purpose of this fellowship was to build pathways for USM Honors College students into USM graduate programs.
Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) were created between the Honors College and four different USM graduate programs. These MOUs included benefits such as guaranteed interviews or guaranteed admission as well as special considerations for those wishing to enter an accelerated master’s degree and the Honor’s Thesis satisfying various graduate research requirements. This work will continue moving forward as more MOUs with additional graduate programs are sought out.
FALL 2024
Enhancing Faculty Mentorship
Masha%20Krsmanovic
Assistant Professor
School of Education
This project aimed to analyze current practices for faculty mentorship across the university and provide recommendations for their enhancement. The study employed a mixed-methods approach, gathering the data from surveys and interviews with faculty and academic leaders. The project analyzed current mentorship models across the institution and identified best practices and the challenges faced. Key findings highlighted varied mentorship approaches and emphasized the importance of supporting faculty through onboarding, career guidance, and understanding institutional policies and culture. Challenges included inconsistent communication of expectations, limited mentor training, and insufficient recognition for mentorship contributions. Based on the findings, the report recommends improving mentorship communication through clear guidelines and expectations, enhancing mentor-mentee matching processes, and providing formal training and resources for mentors. Additionally, it calls for better recognition of mentorship in evaluations and promotion criteria, along with providing tangible incentives. The full report details these findings and offers actionable steps for implementation.
