Anthropology MOU 4/23/14
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Office of Assessment and Program Review
Anthropology
Program Review – 2013-2014
Memorandum of Understanding
The CSUN Department of Anthropology, housed in the College of Social and Behavioral
Sciences, offers a minor, a BA, and an MA degree. The Department undertook a self-study
(submitted January 14, 2013), followed by an external review on November 13-14, 2013. The
external reviewers were Dr. Dorothy Wills from California State Polytechnic University,
Pomona and Dr. Karin Enstam-Jaffee, Sonoma State University. The Department’s MOU
meeting occurred on March 18, 2014. Follow-up will occur at one and three years. Their next
program review cycle will culminate in a new self-study, external review, and MOU in AY
2018-2019.
The following commendations and recommendations are intended to help the Department focus
its efforts over the next 5 years. They are arranged in topical order as follows: students, faculty,
curriculum, assessment/strategic planning, other/misc.
Commendations: The Department is commended for:
1. High student engagement in the program and graduates performing well in subsequent
educational and work settings.
2. Support for student travel and attendance at conferences.
3. The collegial, forward-looking, and student-centered climate.
4. Faculty research and scholarly publications.
5. Active aggressive pursuit of external funding, grants in particular.
6. Effective and extensive outreach and partnering with other programs on campus.
7. The faculty’s extensive professional involvement with and commitments to communitybased programs.
Anthropology MOU 4/23/14
8. Its reputation as a “good citizen department,” due to its model of service, outreach, and
collaborative program activity which has led to administrative support of the program and
of faculty and student research.
9. A strong representation of theoretical and practical subjects taught by experts.
10. The creation of a new minor in Applied Anthropology, options in the graduate program,
and hiring of several new faculty who have applied backgrounds in cognitive,
community, heritage, museum, and contract archeology.
11. Wholeheartedly embracing and excelling at evaluating and assessing the program,
addressing deficiencies, and implementing corrections.
12. The success of the Catalina Field School, attracting domestic and international students.
13. The collaboration with Nord-Pas-de-Calais which has brought an incomparable collection
of osteological materials to the department on a temporary basis.
14. Its biological anthropology and archaeology collections, which are among the best seen at
a CSU.
Recommendations: The Department should:
1. Conduct an assessment of undergraduate and graduate advising and seek resources to
cover additional advisement.
2. Seek funding to develop and implement an intake assessment of and in-depth orientation
programs for transfer students and first-year students.
3. Conduct an in-depth analysis of on-going initiatives to improve graduate students’
graduation rates and time to degree; develop additional strategies for improving both
measures.
Anthropology MOU 4/23/14
4. Develop a 5-year hiring plan to ensure an inclusive as possible applicant pool.
5. Continue to work with the administration to find support for faculty research, including
space and internal and external funding.
6. Analyze size of seminars and other classes and revise teaching rotation.
7. Continue carrying out the curriculum improvements suggested by assessments.
8. Develop a system to assess PLOs more frequently.
9. Explore ideas for other field schools.
10. Continue regional, national, and international collaborations that provide research
opportunities for students and faculty.
11. Identify options for increasing teaching, research, lab and storage spaces for the
biological anthropology and archeology collections.
12. Enhance access to collections and records for students and external researchers.