News Reporter
The office of Academic Affairs is in the process of hiring 35 new teachers. Last year, they hired about the same amount.
“There are various reasons to have small class sizes, but among the most important are smaller classes enhance the interaction of faculty and students and smaller classes promote more opportunities for active learning.” Vice President of Academic Affairs Carol Futhey said.
Futhey deals with faculty hires on campus.
Before becoming a university, CMU President Tim Foster said he aimed to maintain CMU’s small class sizes. As student enrollment grows, new faculty members and administrators are being hired to facilitate the student-to-faculty ratio.
“Small class sizes at CMU allow us to fulfill our unique role and mission,” Foster said. “As a regional university that’s focused on teaching, making sure our students know their professors and that their professors know them, really enhances the learning experience and makes us unique amongst our peer institutions.”
CMU has over 9,000 students. There is approximately one teacher for every 22 students, which Foster said is a good student-to-faculty ratio and it’s his goal to keep the ratio in the current range.
Futhey said that there is no ideal student-to-teacher ratio.
“The student-faculty ratio is the basis for a budget calculation and not an indication of academic quality,” Futhey said.
Futhey said that she hires teachers who possess several qualifications.
“In addition to education and experience, faculty members at CMU should have the joy of learning and a passion for being an effective teacher,” Futhey said. “Because of CMU’s student make-up, it is especially important that they enjoy working with undergraduates.”
CMU’s Human Resources page lists the positions that have not yet been closed. Currently, the page shows that there are 12 faculty positions and 18 administrative positions available.
Futhey said there is a specific process that teachers go through to get hired.
“Faculty search committees screen applications, and out of the applicant pool, the committee identifies a subgroup with whom they want to have telephone interviews,” Futhey said. “The two to three candidates in whom the search committee has the most interest in are invited to campus for a day of interviews. Faculty applicants usually are expected to teach a class and/or make a presentation to CMU faculty members and students.”
In addition to new teachers, a new admission index score for CMU will help maintain an adequate student-to-faculty ratio.
“The Colorado General Assembly is currently considering House Bill 12-1324, which will change CMU from a ‘moderately selective’ institution to a ‘selective’ one,” Foster said. “The practical effect of this legislation will be to change our admission index from 85 to 92.”
Foster said increasing the index score would better distinguish CMU.
“Because we’re a unique institution that also has a community college branch, students will always be able to attend our institution,” Foster said. “Changing our admission index really puts CMU on the same playing field with our peer institutions and much better reflects our current student body. The average index score of students currently attending CMU is over 103, which is high enough to be admitted at CU-Boulder.”
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