Physics

What is the program’s mission statement or statement of purpose? Why does the program exist?

The central mission of the undergraduate program in physics is to teach students how physicists measure, describe, and explain natural phenomena through scientific investigation and critical thinking. Students learn concepts in physics, quantitative methods for analyzing data and developing theoretical insights, computational, and experimental techniques for testing theoretical predictions and discovering new phenomena. The study of diverse applications as well as elegant theoretical formalisms reveals physics to be an exciting and highly rewarding discipline that has important connections to other sciences, engineering disciplines, and societal goals.

The Physics Department offers educational opportunities that are consistent with the broad principles of the College of Sciences. The undergraduate program for students pursuing a BS degree in physics provides a solid and challenging education and prepares them to excel in diverse career paths where independent thinking, analytical skills, and experimental skills are useful. These paths include graduate or professional school, industrial research, and education, not just in physics but in other scientific, engineering, social, and professional fields. The Department offers several options for students with varying interests. Students can also take a track where they study basic Physics, Math, and Chemistry in preparation to transfer to an Engineering program at another institution. EIU students have been successful at many Engineering programs including University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, and Missouri University of Science and Technology. The personal touch with small class sizes and individualized attention helps students to succeed in whatever direction they choose after leaving EIU.

For non-majors taking introductory physics as a part of their liberal arts, the courses develop physical concepts and intuition along with the laboratory work and problem-solving skills required to succeed in their chosen course of study. Specific service courses for certain majors as well as general education courses both emphasize the core features of the physicist's perspective on the natural world. A wide variety of topics covered in the introductory Physics courses help to develop a conceptual understanding of topics of general interest. All physics courses encourage students to appreciate the relevance of physics and integrate it in their everyday lives and in their future professions.

How does the program mission align with the university mission?

The Physics Department has three academic roles within the University. It provides service courses, it provides Gen Ed courses, and it provides a challenging curriculum for motivated and capable students in preparation for rewarding careers in the field.

The service component of the Physics curriculum lays a basic foundation of the science as well as some of the reasoning processes necessary for several fields. We offer courses that are required of the following majors: Communications Disorders Sciences, Applied Engineering Technology, Pre-medical fields, Geology, and Chemistry. The enrollment in these courses constitutes a significant fraction of all of the students taking courses from the Physics Department.

The Gen Ed offerings of the Physics Department help to create well rounded students across the entire University. These courses are pitched at a level that all students from all majors will find accessible and still interesting and challenging. We now offer 14 courses with the G suffix. The Physics Department Gen Ed curriculum falls into the Scientific Awareness part of the Gen Ed system under the Physical Sciences category. Enrollments in the Gen Ed part of the curriculum overlap significantly with the service part but nonetheless constitutes most of the classroom seats generated by Physics in a given year.

The Physics Major is the third part of the academic role of Physics. The students in the Department are consistently among the best students in the University. Average ACT scores for Physics majors are consistently among the highest in the University. Watson-Glazer Critical thinking shows that the Physics majors demonstrate abilities that are beyond the norm at EIU. .

The Physics Department also has an active research program that involves undergraduate students in mentoring experiences. Students present research locally as well as at regional meetings.

Whom does the program serve?

The Physics Department serves several other academic Departments directly. We offer PHY 1071 and PHY 1072, the Physics of Sound and Music with its associated lab for the Communications Disorders Sciences program in the College. We offer PHY 1052 and PHY 1053, Adventures in Physics with its associated lab for the Applied Engineering Technology majors. We also offer PHY 1151, PHY 1152, PHY 1161, and PHY 1162, Principles of Physics I and II with their associated labs. This sequence is required by some pre-medical fields as well as by the Geology major. We also offer Physics is PHY 1351, PHY 1352, PHY 1361, and PHY 1362, General Physics I and II with their associated labs. These courses are required of the Chemistry majors.

The Physics Department serves the students of the University through Gen Ed. These courses are pitched at a level that all students from all majors will find accessible and still interesting and challenging. The offerings include PHY 1010G - Sustainable Energy, PHY 1051G - Physics of the Modern World, PHY 1052G - Adventures in Physics, PHY 1053G - Adventures in Physics Lab, PHY 1055G –Principles of Astronomy, PHY 1056G – Principles of Astronomy Lab, PHY 1151G – Principles of Physics I, PHY 1152G – Principles of Physics I Lab, PHY 1351G – General Physics I, PHY 1352G – General Physics I Lab, PHY 3045G – Wonders of Astronomy, PHY 3050G – Excursions in Physics.

Of course, the Physics Department serves the students majoring in Physics through a challenging and rigorous curriculum that offers 7 different concentrations. The Department serves these students through the curriculum but also through mentoring opportunities as well as integrative initiatives through professional societies, Sigma Pi Sigma, Society of Physics Students, and Astronomy Club.

What are the services provided? How do these services align with the university mission and program mission?

The services provided by the Physics Department are primarily curricular. The Physics Department offers a rich Gen Ed curriculum for the University Students, an important set of service courses specific to various majors, and a dynamic educational curriculum for Physics majors as Pre-Engineers.

The Department promotes the teaching mission of the University through these offerings. The Department promotes scholarship through various research programs that are dedicated to student faculty mentoring experiences. The Department promotes the integrative learning goals of the University through active undergraduate RSOs. The Astronomy Club and the Society of Physics students are organizations that help our students to learn global citizenry and leadership. Outreach is a key element of the Astronomy Club as they host Open Houses for the Observatory each month.

Describe the program’s origins (e.g. year established, purpose, expectations).

At the beginning of EIU’s history J. Paul Goode, a geographer, first taught Physics at the Normal School. At that time Physics was required of all students in the four-year program. Chemistry professor A. B. Crowe gave course offerings in Physics after arriving in 1904. So the roots of Physics date back to the very origins of EIU. The first Physics teacher who was primarily trained as a Physics teacher was Ora Railsback who came here in 1924, developed a program, and became head of the Physics Department. Physics, as a subject, is a natural science that is central to any liberal arts program.

How has the unit changed or adapted over time?

In the early 50s the Physics Department created a Pre-Engineering program so that students could learn the basic science and math at EIU and transfer to UIUC or other Engineering programs to complete an Engineering degree. In the late 60s the department initiated an MS in Physics program, which was dropped a few years later because of minimal assistantship support from the university. In 1972 a new graduate program for high school teachers, MS in Ed in Physical Sciences was initiated by the Chemistry and Physics departments. In 1999 the biological and physical science masters programs for teachers were combined to form the Master of Science in Natural Sciences program.

In fall 2001, the Physics Department created an Applied Physics option and a Radiation Physics option. Following recommendations of CUR in 2005, the Physics Department has expanded its program to include Astronomy, Computational Physics, and a dual degree Physics-Engineering option between EIU and UIUC called Engineering Physics.

In recent years the University has wanted to move toward an online presence. The Physics Department has developed several offerings in this area. We converted PHY 1051 and PHY 3050 to be able to be delivered online. We developed an Astronomy course as an online course. We also developed an online lab course. The online lab course was developed after much study on how to best deliver this curriculum. Students do labs at home with a package of materials that they purchase. This is the first Gen Ed lab course offered by EIU. We have also developed two courses on Energy and the Environment. The first is PHY 1010 that will be offered as a Gen Ed that discusses more current topics of sustainable. The second is PHY 5233 that can be offered online but has so far been in class. This course is a graduate course developed for the new MS in Sustainable Energy program.

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand the program’s history and relevance to university mission.

Provide data showing the four-year trend in the number of majors, minors, options, and concentrations.

Provide data showing the four-year trend in student credit hour (SCH) production, percent of SCHs that are general education, and percent of SCHs that are taught to non-majors.

What elements of the program’s curriculum are offered specifically to support other academic majors, minors, options, and concentrations?

The Physics Department serves several other academic Departments directly. We offer PHY 1071 and PHY 1072, the Physics of Sound and Music with its associated lab for the Communications Disorders Sciences program in the College. We offer PHY 1052 and PHY 1053, Adventures in Physics with its associated lab for the Applied Engineering Technology majors. We also offer PHY 1151, PHY 1152, PHY 1161, and PHY 1162, Principles of Physics I and II with their associated labs. This sequence is required by some pre-medical fields as well as by the Geology major. We also offer Physics is PHY 1351, PHY 1352, PHY 1361, and PHY 1362, General Physics I and II with their associated labs. These courses are required of the Chemistry majors.

The Physics Department serves the students of the University through Gen Ed. These courses are pitched at a level that all students from all majors will find accessible and still interesting and challenging. The offerings include PHY 1010G - Sustainable Energy, PHY 1051G - Physics of the Modern World, PHY 1052G - Adventures in Physics, PHY 1053G - Adventures in Physics Lab, PHY 1055G –Principles of Astronomy, PHY 1056G – Principles of Astronomy Lab, PHY 1151G – Principles of Physics I, PHY 1152G – Principles of Physics I Lab, PHY 1351G – General Physics I, PHY 1352G – General Physics I Lab, PHY 3045G – Wonders of Astronomy, PHY 3050G – Excursions in Physics.

In support of Continuing Ed and online education we converted PHY 1051 and PHY 3050 to be able to be delivered online. We developed an Astronomy course, PHY 3045 as an online course. We also developed an online lab course, PHY 1052 and PHY 1053. This is the first Gen Ed lab course offered by EIU. To keep current with sustainability and CENCERE we developed Energy and the Environment, PHY 1010, that will be offered as a Gen Ed that discusses more current topics of sustainable.

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand the internal demand for the program. Note any clarifications or special circumstances (e.g., curriculum changes made by another program) that should be considered when reviewing the above data.

From 2008 to the present the Physics Department has graduated 57 majors in all of our concentrations.  This is an average of 10 students per year.  This means that EIU is 7th out of 28 Physics programs in the state of Illinois in production of Physics majors.  The programs that graduate more are:  University of Chicago, Illinois State University, Illinois Wesleyan University, University of Illinois - Chicago, Loyola University - Chicago, and Northwestern University.  Data was not provided by UIUC but we are notably ahead of WIU, NIU, SIUE, and SIUC in production of Physics majors. See http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/reports/physrost.pdf for 2012 data on Physics programs nationwide.

List relevant data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Outlook Handbook, the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) New Graduate Salary Survey, and the EIU Career Services Annual Report.

From the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Outlook Handbook the job of Physicist and Astronomer is listed as earning $105,430 per year. This data is found at:

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/life-physical-and-social-science/physicists-and-astronomers.htm#tab-1

From the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) New Graduate Salary Survey the job of Engineer shows a salary of $62,062 which is the highest in the Executive Summary. For Math and Sciences (of which Physics is only a small fraction and would be expected to be closer to Engineering) the number is $42,713. This data is found at:

http://www.naceweb.org/uploadedFiles/Content/static-assets/downloads/executive-summary/2013-september-salary-survey-executive-summary.pdf

From the EIU Career Services Report graduates of the Physics Program are 100% employed and the reported salary was an average of $65,000. This employment rate is not uncommon in the College of Sciences but the salary is among the highest in the University.

The American Institute of Physics maintains statistical data on Physics graduates. For starting salaries for bachelor’s degrees the data shows that the range is from about $20,000 to about $60,000 for the 2010 year as well as an approximate average of $40,000. http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/highlite/emp3/figure2b.htm

For 2008-09 the AIP data shows that Physics was second or third in the salary range expected among all of the STEM fields. http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/reports/fall09a.pdf

According to a recent article in Business Insider on the top 15 salaries of different professions Physics and Engineering are consistently the top paying fields for bachelor’s recipients. Physics shows a starting median salary of $53,100 in this survey. This article can be found at:

http://www.businessinsider.com/15-highest-paying-majors-payscale-2013-9?fb_action_ids=10151873013404116&fb_action_types=og.recommends&fb_source=other_multiline&action_object_map=%7B%2210151873013404116%22%3A532833603451718%7D&action_type_map=%7B%2210151873013404116%22%3A%22og.recommends%22%7D&action_ref_map=%5B%5D

In conclusion, graduates in Physics and Engineering at EIU are in demand and typically garner high salaries. Furthermore STEM training needs to grow. The PCAST report to the President indicates that the nation needs to gear up for 34% more production of STEM qualified graduates. This report can be found at:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/pcast-engage-to-excel-final_2-25-12.pdf

Is the program accredited or approved by a recognized external agency or otherwise certified to meet established professional standards? Provide an executive summary of and link to the program’s most recent accreditation or certification report, if available.

In general Physics Departments do not have an accrediting body. The Physics Department has undergone a Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) Review in the fall of 2013. This process is not complete so the report is not posted. In addition, the Physics Department will submit an IBHE review in January of 2014. That report is not complete and so is also not available.

Is the program required to meet any regulatory or legal requirements? Is the program subject to any special auditing requirements?

No

What are the most important outreach or public service activities supported by the program?

The Physics Department hosts an Observatory Open House on the last Friday of each month. This activity has been ongoing since the opening of the Observatory in 2004. More than 5000 visitors have toured the facility and had the opportunity to peer through the 16” telescope.

The Pre-Engineering program hosts the World Youth Science and Engineering (WYSE) sectional competition each year. This brings 600 students to campus from area high schools to take exams in 7 different subjects. Between students and coaches there are hundreds of people on campus for the day. Awards are given to winners and the best students qualify for the state level competition.

A third outreach that EIU Physics offers is something we call the Physics Road Show. This activity consists of members of the Department going to area schools and doing a presentation on physical principles. Students get a learning experience as well as a good introduction to EIU Physics. The Department is typically asked to do two or three of these events each year.

How do the local community and the region benefit from the program?

These outreach activities are unique in the area.   School students benefit in ways that are not available through other avenues from each of these activities. Their educational experience is enhanced through any of the outreach activities that the Department offers. The Road Shows benefit area teachers by showing their students equipment and effects that the teachers do not have. The Observatory has been used for “Star Parties” by the local 8th grade.

The Observatory Open House is also available as family entertainment for anyone in the area. It is common to see parents taking small children to the Observatory to get a close up view of some celestial body such as Mars or Jupiter.

In addition, the graduates of the Physics program are helpful in the workforce in the area and across the region. Several of our graduates work in education, law, the power industry, information technology, and other areas.

If needed, provide supplemental comments or data sources to help the reader understand the external demand for the program.

Physics (B.S.)

Significant Achievements that Document Quality/Improvement

Significant achievements that document support of VPAA and/or University goals

Integrative Learning Opportunities

Student Research/creative Activity

Faculty-student collaboration

Strategies to improve P-16 teaching and learning

External Partnerships

Pass rates on any professional/ occupational licensure exams

Faculty Achievements

Student Achievements

If needed, provide supplemental comments or data sources to help the reader understand the quality of program outcomes.

Note any special benefits (e.g., personnel support, equipment, permanent improvements) that the program has received in the past three years from its grants and other sponsored programs.

The Physics Department has obtained external funding from two different granting agencies during the period to be reviewed. They are:

Amitabh Joshi – 2010 – Research Corporation – $35,000

Jie Zou – 2012 – NSF Major Equipment Grant – Collaborative with other EIU Departments – $267,000

In addition to the financial grants, the Department has acquired several Equipment Grants from the Department of Energy.  This equipment has been acquired over the past 4 years and have a total original purchase price of greater than $500,000. We have acquired 20 oscilloscopes, 1 lock in amplifier, 1 spectrum analyzer, 12 proportional counters, 3 signal generators, 1 current supply, 1 set of optical rails and mounts, 1 set of microscope objective lenses, 4 microscopes, 3 binoculars, 1 lot of dial gauges, 1 optical table, some spools of wire, 1 lot of glassware, 1 faraday box, 1 lot of capacitors, 1 lot of jacks, 1 vacuum system flange, 1 mechanical sieve system, 4 CCD controllers, 1 lot of nuclear detection equipment, 2 Fermilab beam parts, 2 xyz motion controllers, and 2 vacuum systems with turbo molecular pumps.

Finally, the Department has benefited greatly from the TRM system. This program relies on the Department teaching courses under the TRM system and has resulted in additions to the Department budget of $19,910 in FY11, $40181 in FY12, and $47,917 in FY13. It is important to know that this is money that came to the Department after University, Continuing Ed, and COS took their share.

How does the program benefit from donor gifts (e.g., scholarships, endowed chairs)? Does donor support provide a significant percentage of the program’s overall funding?

The Physics Department has two donor accounts. The Physics Department Gift Account and the Physics Department Observatory Account currently have $48,240 and $22,140 in them respectively. The Physics Department Gift Account averages about $5,500 in donations each year. The Observatory Account received a donation of $10,000 in FY11 but generally does not accumulate donations. These accounts are used for special projects within the Department as needed.

The Physics Department also has a number of Scholarships that are granted regularly. They include William & Brigitte Brown Scholarship, Dr. William Butler Physics Scholarship, Christos & Theodora Efstathiou Scholarship, Jesusa Valdez Kinderman Scholarship, Michael A. Memorial Fund, Glen Lefler Physics Scholarship, Irvin L. Sparks Memorial Scholarship, Dr. Henry A. Taitt Physics Scholarship, and the Robert Waddell, Leyla Peck Waddell Prize. These scholarships typically total about $10,000 for the academic year. Last year we spread that money around among 11 students.

List two or three key relationships that the program maintains with external constituencies (e.g., community colleges, other universities, government bodies). How do these relationships advance the university mission or otherwise benefit the university?

The Physics Department hosts the Pre-Engineering Program.  This is a 2-2 or a 3-2 program whereby students take basic math and science at EIU and then transfer to another program to complete an Engineering degree.  Since 2008 the 3-2 program has graduated 17 majors (with EIU degrees as well as UIUC Engineering Degrees).  This is a very successful program that serves UIUC, SIUC, NIU, and other Engineering programs.  The benefit of this program is that it provides a service to our students as well as an avenue for STEM production at the other institutions. 

The Physics Department has several external collaborative relationships. We have a close relationship with Astronomical Research Institute which is 10 miles east of EIU and is developing the largest privately owned telescope in the world. ARI has three telescopes in operation (one of which EIU students refurbished) that are available to EIU students for studies of Near Earth Objects. This initiative helps EIU students learn about astronomical research. It is also a gateway for EIU students to use Skynet which is a network of telescopes around the world.

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand the resources generated by the program. Note any clarifications or special circumstances (e.g., revenue pass-throughs) that should be considered when reviewing the above data.

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand the productivity of the program. Note any clarifications or special circumstances (e.g., accreditation requirements, curricular changes, program restructuring) that should be considered when reviewing the above data.

The numbers for productivity are not necessarily accurate. For example, the Physics Department has maintained a list of the graduates from Spring 2008 on. This list shows specific names and fields for the Physics majors. Clearly, some of these people are not represented in the data given in the Program Analysis Report.

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand the costs associated with the program. Note any clarifications or special circumstances (e.g., expenditures made centrally or externally, expenditures made on behalf of other units) that should be considered when reviewing the above data.

Seed Grants, Students in Undergraduate Research, Early Research Support Grant, Redden Grant, and PIF Grant are all grants that were earned by Physics students and faculty over the period of consideration but are not shown. These grants are in excess of $10,000. They should be in the same category as the CFR grant. The benefits of this work are obvious.

The total head count for Physics includes students who are very part time and are paid minimum wage. While they are very important contributors to the program, they are not full members of the staff. Moving forward from FY13 the Physics Department has lost considerably. One Unit A faculty member was terminated. Another Unit A faculty is on sabbatical and only teaching for one semester. A third Unit A faculty member was on FMLA and was absent for 2/3 of the fall semester. One Unit B faculty member has been put on a half contract (due to SURS Rules). Our ASP, who taught a number of Continuing Ed classes, retired and the replacement may not teach those courses. So the Department has been scaled back significantly for FY14.

The Physics Department uses scientific equipment to maintain the learning experience for our students. The Equipment Reserve that the Dean’s office distributes each year is something that Physics requests in large amounts. However, some years Physics receives more than other years. The fluctuations or amounts are not reflected in the base budget of Physics.

The state appropriated operating budget for the Department is currently $22,383.75 which is roughly half of the Commodities, Contractual Services, Travel, Student Employment, and Other categories of the Departmental cost. The rest is made up through TRM and internal grants. All additional money is needed for purchasing equipment to maintain our educational standards for teaching Physics.

How does the program seek to distinguish itself from similar programs at other institutions?

Historically, the physics department has viewed itself as a teaching unit and this is where it has placed its emphasis. This has included Pre-Engineering which has recently been about half of the total majors in the program. This program is well known in the state as an excellent alternative to UIUC for the first two years. The students find financial value as well as a more nurturing atmosphere to start their college career. The success of the students who have graduated from the program, as evidenced by those who matriculated from the 3-2 engineering option at EIU to the University of Illinois in Champaign Urbana (one of the premier engineering programs in the country), is evidence that the instructional program prepares its students well. Furthermore, the 100% employment of Physics majors after graduation, as documented by the EIU Career Development Office, is indicative of the high quality all of our students bring to the marketplace.

Over the past 5 years, there has been significant growth in the number of students majoring in physics, with the number of students who now report that they are physics majors/astronomy majors approaching 100. One reason for the growth is that the Department has developed numerous “options” (applied physics, astronomy, physics, computational physics, engineering physics, and radiation physics).

The Department has developed a research collaboration with ARI. This program has allowed EIU students to accomplish state of the art research on Near Earth Objects through the ARI telescopes, the EIU Observatory, and the Skynet network. This and other research collaborations are serving to distinguish EIU from other institutions.

Note any unique and/or essential contributions that the program makes to the university.

Technology is one area where the Department excels. The Department has 4 computer equipped laboratories. Three of them are introductory lab rooms. These rooms have 12 lab stations with computers. In two of the introductory Physics rooms the computers are used for data acquisition and analysis. Labpro and Vernier software and hardware are used. The Department has an Electronics lab room that is fully computer equipped. The computers are interfaced with the equipment through GPIB. The operating software is Labview. Computers are also used for data acquisition in the Advanced Lab program. Data Studio and Labview have been used to run the interface.

The Department offers technology delivered courses at the Gen Ed level. The Department is the only department in the University that offers an online scientific awareness laboratory course.

The Physics Department has had an active research component that has focused on mentoring students. The success of that program lies in the numbers – there have been 113 student projects since 2008. The excellence of this program is demonstrated through the success of our students at the ISAAPT Student Research Symposium where we have had 8 students receive awards for top three finishes since 2008 (nearly half of the awards given).

The Physics Department has a nitrogen pumped dye laser facility that is unique across the country. These lasers are used in the introductory sequence to demonstrate some quantum mechanical phenomena. There is an entire lab set for this program. The Department is also renovating a room to make a clean room that will be used for a Nanotechnologies lab. This will be unusual for undergraduate institutions.

Provide any program-specific metrics that help to document program contributions or program quality. Examples of some commonly used program-specific metrics may be found here.

The Physics Department has 15,534 square feet of space. 65% of that space is classroom or laboratory. 12% of that space is office space and 4% is research space. The rest is some form of service space. We have one lecture room that is scheduled for classes or tutoring for more than 70% of the time from 8:00AM to 6:00PM during the week. Lab rooms are used for lab as well as lectures. Classrooms and labs meet handicap accessible requirements. In addition, we have special equipment for teaching that is handicap accessible for faculty.

As stated elsewhere, we have a high production of Physics graduates within the state. We rank 7th among Illinois institutions in number of majors produced in 2012.

As stated elsewhere, we have a high degree of success in grants. We have averaged over $150,000 per year in dollars and equipment grants.

The Physics Department is understaffed (as stated in the CUR Review for fall 2013. For FY14 it is expected that 3 of the 6 tenure track faculty will be in overload, 1 is on sabbatical, one is Department Chair, and one is on FMLA. In the ACF category, two of the three are scheduled for overload with the third required by SURS to take only half load. So 100% of faculty that could do overload are doing overload in this Department. Unlike some academic departments, Physics does not operate well in overload and cannot maintain it.  

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand the program impact on the university mission.

Provide a link to or listing of the program’s goals and/or strategic plan.

The Physics Department web page has the mission statement at http://www.eiu.edu/physics/mission.php . More information about what makes EIU Physics attractive is found at http://www.eiu.edu/physics/whyEIUphysics.php . In 2008 the Department did a Strategic Plan. The results are not published on the web. I have included the text of that statement in the Comments section below. It should be noted that this was a 5 year plan 5 years ago. In the intervening time Physics has more than doubled the numbers of majors, we have increased our research laboratory position, we have increased the involvement of our students, we have opened opportunities for collaboration, we have improved out educational offerings greatly, in short we have made great strides toward the goals laid out in this document.

Moving forward, the Physics Department has received some comments from the CUR Reviewers and their first comment was that we should undertake another Strategic Plan. This year that is a goal of the Department. It is difficult when the sands are shifting under our feet. Staffing seems to be a moving target. Enrollments are a moving target. Financial support is a moving target. A more stable and tenable administrative position would help in the planning.

What role will the program have in the implementation of the university’s strategic plan (provide link to strategic plan)?

The first bullet on the EIU strategic plan is academic excellence. The Physics program is among the most rigorous programs in the University. Our results on the Critical Thinking exam which all students take show our students consistently score at the highest or second highest in the University. Our job placement is second to none with 100% employment according to the EIU Placement Center.

The second bullet is global competition and the third one is emerging technologies. The Physics Department offers the only online physical science lab in the University to access the world market in this area. We also offer a number of online Gen Ed classes to help with a global presence. We are a part of Skynet which has allowed our students to take research data from a telescope in Chile. We have other collaborations that span several fields.

The fourth bullet is campus life. The SPS and Astronomy Clubs engage our students in campus community as well as offering outreach activities to the community. Other outreach activities make this program an integral part of science and technology in the community.

The fifth bullet is financial sustainability. Physics has participated in recruiting efforts through school visits, e-mail advertising, and open houses. The numbers in the Physics program are on the rise over the same period that the University student enrollments have dropped.  

The last bullet point is marketing. Physics has made a serious effort to recruit by sending out an e-mail to 17000 high school students in Illinois and surrounding states. We would like to continue this into the future but there is considerable resistance at the upper levels. As disappointing as this is, we continue to be hopeful that recruiting is something that we can help with.

What are the program’s two or three most promising opportunities that could help advance the university’s academic mission? Provide an estimate of additional investments or other costs required and additional student credit hours, revenue, or other resources generated.

A student fee was instituted to pay for renovations of the Physical Sciences Building. This is an opportunity to renovate Phipps Lecture Hall into a Planetarium with an open meeting space at the entryway. Adding a planetarium would give the College a multimedia presentation facility similar to an IMAX theater that could enhance material delivery in many departments. The entryway will be a showplace for the entire College of Sciences. The cost is $3.34M which has already been accumulated through the student fee. This project has significant fundraising possibility because bricks and mortar with this level of wow factor are magnets for donors.

            The Physics Department has been approved for a Tenure Track Hire during the 2013-14. This hire replaces an ACF in the Department so the total cost for this initiative is $20,000 to $30,000. The Provost has given us this hire to better enable us to continue to be a part of EIU initiatives for innovative course/program delivery and initiatives for recruitment and retention. We also need upper level teaching as well as expertise in Astronomy. This addition to the Department will also help to promote Undergraduate Mentoring.  The CUR Review process undertaken in the fall of 2013 resulted in a suggestion that the Physics Department make an effort to enhance Undergraduate research opportunities and this hire will be a big step in that direction.  This is a great opportunity for Physics.

Another opportunity is Tuition Remission Model (TRM). As a practical matter, this has become tied to all online offerings. Last year the TRM money in the Department amounted to about $47k in a year when the Department Budget was about $22k. So TRM is a significant opportunity to increase our budget. This has given the department considerable flexibility in our operations. More online teaching could result in more TRM funds available for continued improvement in our offerings. The limiting factor is staffing at this point. There is no cost because expanded staffing would be paid for as a fundamental principle of TRM.

Pre-Engineering and Physics at EIU has been in a state of growth for 4 years. This has been partly due to promoting the program better. It has also been partly due to our 3-2 program where students receive their Engineering degree from UIUC and also an EIU Physics degree. This double degree program has been well received and continues to grow. This program is in the process of expanding to SIUC. Further expansion of the program may lead to more growth. There is no cost for this expansion.

            Electronic Media are now both available and the method of choice for contacting perspective students. The Physics Department has developed a facebook page as well as enhancing their web page to make them more attractive to potential students. The Physics Department has also tried mass e-mail as a communication method. The Physics Department does not have the resources to maintain these at the dynamic level required to keep the interest of today’s high school students. Admissions and Media Relations should be responsible for development, updating, and delivery of these social media devices for the Departments as needed. The benefit is growth in student enrollment while the cost is one media relations person who keeps up with the current media landscape.

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand future opportunities for the program.

What is the department doing and what should the department be doing?

I have put a lot of thought into these questions. In answer to these questions I had to take a step back and consider what our Physics Department is and what it should be. How do we determine what a good department should be? How do we define “good”? There are many aspects of the department that could be considered in these discussions. I have started with the general approach and reserved the discussion of the particulars for later. When we know who we are we can discuss what our curriculum needs. When we know where and how we will excel then we can devote resources towards that end. Until then here are some general ideas that I think are important.

In determining what we should do we must consider our customers first. Those are our students, the administration (both EIU administration and the State of Illinois), and our colleagues both at EIU and outside of EIU. A “good” department will address the wants and needs of each of these constituencies.  

First let’s consider our students. This group breaks down into three categories. Our majors are the first category and we must serve them in several important ways. More on that later. Our service courses for other majors are the second category and we must serve these students in two important ways. First we must convey the principles that will be necessary for them to go forth into their careers. We must give them the tools to understand our advancing technology and how it might relate to their chosen careers. This means that we must supply the Pre-meds with enough understanding to do well on the MCATs and understand what is being measured in an EKG for example. We must give the geology students enough understanding of the physical world to have insights into the forces involved in plate tectonics but also understand the equipment that they will use for x-ray sample analysis for example. These courses are important to our standing in the EIU community and we must treat them accordingly. Finally we have a group of students that we call gen ed. Our purpose for these students is to instill a sense of what the physical world is about and how we go about investigating it. We do not need to convey details about theoretical physics but rather, a warm fuzzy feeling about science. These students will be the voters of tomorrow and it will help us in the long run to have them friendly to science.

The Physics major category needs significant discussion in terms of our service to them. We are the mentors to these people as they enter their chosen field of study. We must prepare them in their knowledge base for Physics. That may mean different things for different concentrations but it must be a solid foundation from which to embrace the physical principles that they will face. This knowledge base must include a broad theoretical understanding of principles. It must also include a broad knowledge of techniques and equipment that aid in observing the physical world around us. It must further include proper computational knowledge and abilities to compete in the ever growing technical areas of Physics. It is our job to provide a proper balance between all of these competing issues and deliver a product (our graduates) that can successfully function and even be a leader in their chosen endeavor.

The Physics major is owed more than the simple passing of knowledge. We are the role models and mentors to these people. We pass along values and ethics. We pass along an overview of the real world. We pass along ideology and methods of inquiry that go beyond classroom teaching. It is not necessary that we decide on a unique path to these concepts or even that we agree on the content of the message but we must know that we are giving this information to the students and quite possibly changing their lives with that act.

In the course of giving life skills to our majors there are some things that we must do. The first is to give them a healthy knowledge of what it means to study Physics. That includes instilling in them the techniques and processes involved in research. What they will do in the future is not all about solving problems from section 2.5 of a textbook. It is about problem solving in a much broader sense. We must show them how to approach open ended problems. We must show them methods for solving problems and pitfalls that occur in such open ended inquiries.

Finally, it is our job to help them to proceed into the world on a path that will be fruitful. Proper advising is essential to this goal. We must be realistic about what our graduates will be capable of and we must promote fulfilling career paths for our students. This goes from reasonable matches for graduate school to finding career leads that will be positive. We can hold this type of discussion informally (such as at Society of Physics Students meetings) or formally as might occur in a Seminar. We should not impose our biases on the students but rather we should show them the options and give them a realistic evaluation of their position.

Another customer of EIU Physics is the administration. We have some specific responsibilities to the administration such as Radiation Safety Officer. But the vast majority of our responsibility is more nebulous. We certainly have a duty to follow the UPI contract and all of its details. We further have a duty to be fiscally responsible both with our time and with budgeted money. The administration has given us the charge to improve our “numbers”. But, of course, the numbers that must be improved seem to be “all of them”. Off the top of my head I can think of such topics as number of majors, cost per CU, number of butts in seats, credit hours per staff year, major GPA, publications, credit producing and non credit producing hours worked per week, and a whole host of other numbers that are occasionally brought out as important. This makes the administration a very difficult customer to answer to. Over the years I have seen “important” numbers come and go and trends in calculating them change too. But the one number that seems to be ever present is credit hour production. I believe that this is more important than, say, cost per credit hour because the department has so much fixed cost. Fixed costs are not something that the administration will change easily however, the amount of credit hour production is something that they have control over. So, I have come to the conclusion that credit hour production is the most important number for the administration (above quality of education and all other concerns). So to satisfy this customer we need to increase credit hour production. I have no idea of how to do that but there must be a way. I think we need to consider efficient ways to do that without increasing workload in general. A difficult line to balance on but perhaps if scheduling and class assignments were discussed in this light it might help. The most unfortunate thing about the administration as a customer is that this customer controls our size and purse strings. That means that we must start working on their priorities with much more serious and passionate efforts.

The final customer that must be addressed is our colleagues. These are the people that we work with both within and outside the University. These are not paying customers but they are certainly important in the long run. It is necessary to have the respect and even helpful have the admiration of our colleagues in order to function in the community. We gain that respect by being diligent in our efforts to promote Physics. This can be either through committee work or through scholarly endeavors. Prestige is difficult to measure but it is essential for the strength and growth of the department. We must have an active department in the eyes of many people. This includes high school teachers, EIU professors in other departments, professors in Physics at other institutions, and professionals in the field. Strengthening our position and prestige can lead to such benefits as increased visibility, increased representation in areas that impact Physics and Physics at EIU, and increased collaborative opportunities.

These are some items that I feel we need to address in order to be a first choice institution. I would say that we are, to varying degrees, doing many of these things already. But we need a clear statement of our direction before we even begin to determine what to do to make EIU Physics a first choice program.

What should be done to make EIU Physics better?

Certainly it will be necessary to satisfy the needs of each of our customers to one degree or another in order to carry out our mission. But what must be done specifically? Our specific duties are laid out in the DAC. These duties are divided into Teaching, Research/Creative Activity, and Service. There are certainly guidelines in the DAC for activities that would serve to make a department that would serve our customers better. However, as a document, the DAC is imperfect in a number of ways. Is it possible to fulfill the letter of the DAC and not have a department that serves our customers? I would say that since we need to have this discussion and we are mostly tenured full professors the answer is yes. So it is not fruitful to discuss what we should do in the context of the DAC.  

I will take the approach of identifying specific activities that will make our service to our constituencies better based on the discussion above. Certainly we need to be good teachers. Students are the paying customer for the university. We must satisfy their wants and needs. Their wants are often at odds with their needs because they want an A for minimal effort but they need to accomplish something in terms of learning to be prepared for the challenges in their careers.

We need to be able to embrace several different types of students and make the subject come alive. We need to design a curriculum that helps the students on their career path and entices more students to go down those paths. Curricular development must include designing pertinent courses. That includes all aspects of coursework; classroom, textbook, laboratory, assignments. This is true for our service courses as well as our majors’ courses.

Major and non-major courses come in a variety of different forms. The major courses should cover the standard traditional Physics curriculum such as PHY 1350, 1360, and 1370. Then they should go into more depth in some areas. We are not well equipped to cover all of Physics in 4 years so we should consider seriously what we offer to our majors. We need to cover Classical Mechanics, Electricity and Magnetism, and Quantum at a minimum for our standard major. There should be an appropriate laboratory component to this curriculum. But when everything else is stripped away this should be what is left. Such courses as Electronics, Circuits, Optics, Thermodynamics, Solid State, Modern I and II, General Relativity, and Math Methods are usually optional in a standard Physics major and so should be here. Perhaps they should be offered on a more sparing basis, say, when demand would yield a full CU credit course. This is a discussion of the particulars of our curriculum and should be saved for another time.

Non-major courses come in two categories, gen ed and service requirements. The service requirements are courses that we must run to serve other departments in fulfilling their requirements. There is no problem with requiring other majors to take courses that could lead to the Physics major in one way or another. However, we should be clear on the students we are fishing for if we are trying to obtain majors from this track. These are usually upper level students in other disciplines who may only have a limited time left at EIU. We need to design a major that can build on that situation and not penalize them for not seeing the importance of Physics at the time of matriculation.

Gen ed is certainly more of a “gee-whiz” service that we can instill. We should be generating that excitement for each and every student taking a Physics course but it is crucial for the Physics gen ed student. Exciting the imagination is, after all, one of the important social excuses for the existence of science. It is the primary excuse for public support of astronomy, since knowledge of distant stellar systems is unlikely to be of any practical use for the foreseeable future. The foundations of the liberal arts education are built on the cornerstone of “knowledge for knowledge sake”. Our students should already have the “gee-whiz” (gen ed all the way through majors) simply because they are here to get a liberal arts education. However, I am not so sure that we can assume it, rather, we must cultivate it in all of our offerings. The gen ed curriculum is one where that is, perhaps, ALL that we really need to cultivate.

We need extracurricular activities that draw students. TEAMS and SPS and Astronomy Club are most likely directly going to do that. Having worked with SPS for 16 years I know that it can have a tremendous impact on students. The excitement about going on trips is certainly good. The time spent meeting is good for students and can be good for faculty too. Extracurricular activities do take work and should be considered as something valuable to the department and rewarded as such in some tangible way.

We need active research and other mentoring programs for our students. This leads to the single most rewarding experience for most students (a common comment on exit interviews). Such programs should encourage participation by most of our majors. We need enough different topics to spark the interest of a variety of students. The research programs must be accessible to the students and promote scholarship as well as undergraduate learning.

Where do we need to be?

I would answer this question as follows. Above I have spelled out some of the things that I believe are important for our department to keep in mind. I hope that we are addressing all of these concerns and issues in the future. I don’t think that we are at the present. I hope that we have a “first in class” department with a comfortable number of high quality majors at some time in the future. I hope that most of our majors are involved in research and other mentoring situations with faculty. I hope that other departments can count on us to educate their majors in ways that are beneficial to them. I hope that we are well funded so that we can keep current in our offerings both in lab and in other venues.

Toward that end I would personally like to continue and improve the research opportunities afforded the students. I would like to be more active in the ISAAPT through student presentations. I would like to continue to pursue improvements in the laboratory program. I would like to continue to teach introductory and upper level courses. I would also be willing to participate in university level committee work to a limited extent. I hope that each and every faculty member can identify something that will contribute to the overall position of the department and pursue that diligently.

I believe that we are no longer able to promote the concept of a “teaching” department. We must be considerably more than that. We have not done what is necessary to continue the 1980s model of teaching our classes and having the administration bestow any amount of resources that we feel we need. We need to promote our prestige through some method beyond simply claiming that we are “the best” teachers. There is NO objective measure that indicates any validity to the claim that we are “the best” teachers. Research and community service are the most obvious paths to more prestige for the department on and off campus. A shining example of this type of activity is the Observatory. It is a promotion in the community to have open houses for it. The goodwill earned from those open houses should not be underestimated. But that is clearly a step away from the traditional teaching environment that the department had in the past.

So, in 5 years, I hope that the department is one that both students and colleagues are proud to be associated with. I hope that we are visible in the community. I hope that we are active and positive forces at EIU and in Physics nationwide. I hope that students are drawn to us by our reputation and by our image.