Texas A&M is asking for feedback from students, faculty and staff on a new wave of recommendations for campus reorganization and renovation focused on the Texas A&M Galveston, or TAMUG, campus.
On Jan. 24, President M. Katherine Banks released the MGT of America Consulting’s findings and recommendations for the Galveston campus as a part of the comprehensive review of A&M. Galveston Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Michael E. Fossum, in an online message, said feedback collected on the report will aid in determining which recommendations will be accepted, rejected, modified or require further review, but said that “many of the proposed recommendations have already begun.” This included remediation of pay discrepancies and the centralization of services such as: Student Enrollment Services, Marketing and Communications, Human Resources and Organizational Effectiveness, Information Technology Services and Finance and Business Services. A confidential online survey will be available until Feb. 24 and one-on-one meetings with units and departments mentioned in the recommendations will be scheduled shortly, Fossum said.
The Galveston campus includes the Texas A&M Maritime Academy, or TAMMA, which was established in 1962 and is the only maritime academy located on the Gulf Coast. The academy is one of six State Maritime Academies across the U.S. supported by the Department of Transportation. Through four-year degree plans and opportunities to become a commissioned officer and Merchant Marine, the academy provides students with the ability to earn a U.S. Coast Guard license through degree completion. The academy has an 80% graduation rate and contains approximately 352 students, as of fall 2021.
The report outlines the current findings of the campus, research on how Galveston can better align itself with the College Station campus and recommendations to promote the unique education and research opportunities.
Methodology
To complete the report, MGT held virtual interviews with five anonymous members of Galveston leadership to “identify the scope and inform the key questions to consider for the study.”
The key questions identified are as follows:
➢ What is the most effective organizational structure?
➢ What are the best pathways for a positive Aggie student experience?
➢ What is the communication plan for Galveston?
➢ How should Student Affairs align with College Station?
➢ How should the TAMU Office of Diversity support Galveston?
➢ What is the best alignment for academic programs?
➢ How does the Galveston campus elevate the Sea Grant Mission?
Following the initial interviews in May of 2022, MGT conducted additional on-campus interviews with faculty and staff members at Galveston. Interviews lasted 30 to 60 minutes, with select follow-up interviews held virtually. In addition to these interviews, MGT reviewed state, system and campus documents and toured the campus. According to MGT’s methodology listed in the report, no students were interviewed.
Organizational structure
Currently, Fossum serves as vice president of A&M, chief operating officer of the Galveston Campus and the superintendent of TAMMA. The campus is split between operations and academics with leadership positions often reporting directly to related areas at the College Station campus.
“Within each of the two primary areas, functional areas do not align with College Station nor other organizational structures of campuses across the nation,” the report reads. “For example, the director of information technology reporting through the academic structure is unexpected.”
The report states that the Galveston campus has struggled with finding a clear relationship with the College Station Campus and has continuously changed in structure throughout the years. As a result, the report cites that it has been a challenge “to keep up with the larger infrastructure of the College Station campus.”
The MGT findings recommended creating a “chief of staff” position to guide day-to-day activities at the Galveston Campus and further support internal focus on the campus. The chief of staff has five major responsibilities, including: “air traffic controller” for the leader and executive team, connector for bringing often siloed areas together, communicator within, among, across and beyond the leadership team and the rest of the organization, provider of objective, organizational-wide perspectives regardless of turf considerations and confidant without an organizational agenda.
Galveston leadership positions will report directly to College Station as well as report on the structure of the Galveston Campus, in an effort to align Galveston leadership with the College Station campus. MGT’s proposed Galveston administrative organizational structure includes the same number of positions as the current structure. However, the proposed structure includes new, repurposed titles, including: the chief of staff; special projects and critical campus priorities manager; advisor to the campus president, vice president and superintendent; community affairs liaison and an associate vice president, or AVP, of operations. The current external relations position will be terminated.
As a part of the larger reorganization of the College Station campus, Galveston’s Human Resource Department will be reorganized and evaluated for compensation and classification. The goal of this study is to evaluate the competitive salaries of other higher education human resources departments in the Galveston area and position the department to support “necessary” succession planning.
“This will also serve to provide opportunities for developing staff to identify pathways for career development and assist in employee retention concerns,” the report reads. “This classification and compensation study should include cost of living assessments and a review to ensure that positions are evaluated, and job descriptions align with work responsibilities.”
The report also states that Galveston Technology Services should report to the AVP Operations and coordinate itself with the College Station model. The role of Technology Services should focus on financial concerns, training and support, and being a strong advocate for software selection. The report states that the current information technology model was created when the department focused on classroom support and was responsible for a smaller number of students, programs and services. Furthermore, the report recommends that Technology Services provide more staff support and training to better align with College Station’s software and systems.
“Employees identified that they would like more investment and support from College Station to more effectively align with the software and systems that are available to better support students and organizational efforts,” the report reads. “The reporting relationships should align with the larger College Station Information Technology reorganization.”
Finally, the report suggests developing onboarding to back the engagement of new employees.
“Employees identified a lack of communication, training on procedures, and support for acquiring information and navigating campus process and expectations,” the report reads. “This process should be connected to the new efforts in College Station to best support all employees.”
Aggie Student Experience
When reviewing the “Aggie Student Experience,” MGT outlined an issue in communication and marketing from the university, as prospective students apply to Galveston through the College Station application process. Because of this unified application, there are two types of students at Galveston: those who specifically applied to programs on the coast and those who were placed at Galveston for College Station-based programs.
These differences, according to the report, make for “a challenging student engagement experience and impact the campus community identity.” This is further challenged by the separation of students within the Maritime Academy. Another challenge listed was the additional costs to students from some programs, such as the United States Coast Guard Merchant Marine licensing.
Alongside these challenges, benefits of the Galveston experience were identified, including smaller class sizes, unique educational opportunities — such as research and vessel trips — and student organizations directly related to coastal and marine experiences.
With these findings, MGT made four recommendations to improve the Aggie student experience, related to financial aid, recruitment and specifying the Galveston experience.
MGT recommended financial aid for Galveston be managed by College Station offices, with an associate director based in Galveston. The objective of this organization is to “provide additional scholarships and resources to students to equalize financial aid packages between College Station and Galveston.”
For recruitment, MGT also recommended centralizing operations to College Station, with a primary staff person at Galveston to “better align and coordinate recruitment strategies.” The group suggested recruiting students to Galveston by highlighting the unique opportunities available in a coastal setting. By increasing communication with applicants, MGT said the goal is to improve overall student experience, as well as retention.
Lastly, the report outlines Galveston as a “distinctly different Aggie Student Experience,” emphasizing that, though the values and traditions are the same as those in College Station, the campus affords different opportunities to students with coastal or marine academic interests.
Communications
Under the communications findings, MGT outlined concerns both with the internal and external communications for the Galveston campus.
The report finds that, internally, employees described confusion about the chain of communication, particularly regarding policies and practices, “leading to a culture that is perceived as mistrusting and fearful.” Part of these issues were attributed to the reality that some Galveston staff served in multiple roles, which can cause delays. Though campus leadership regularly meets to discuss campus updates, MGT stated that “how this information is passed on for each area is unclear,” as many faculty and staff members are confused about who is responsible for providing updates to different departments on campus.
In the internal communications between College Station and Galveston, MGT reported that staff felt frustration for being left out of decision-making processes, which resulted in “activities and initiatives that are inefficient and inconsistent, as well as negatively impacting time, effort and budget.”
To address lack of communication from leadership to the larger community, the report states that “communication is a shared responsibility,” and the role of communication should start with leadership, to then be emphasized and clarified by mid-level leaders to their respective units.
To improve communication between College Station and Galveston, MGT recommended including Galveston staff when selecting software, stating that “College Station may not be aware of the impact of decisions without including consideration from representatives at the Galveston campus.”
For external communications, MGT identified a lack of resources and support within the Galveston campus, in turn leading to a “lack of accountability and transparency for communications in other areas leads to greater inconsistency.” A point of emphasis was creating a brand identity for Galveston that aligns with, but has unique aspects from, the College Station campus.
To resolve the external-facing issues, MGT proposed the centralization of marketing and communication efforts to “align the mission, brand and communication efforts.” This proposal includes a unified plan for marketing, identifying a Director of Marketing and Communications at Galveston to ensure accountability and having the A&M-Galveston vice president and other campus leaders provide regular updates to the community.
MGT also proposed an establishment of new procedures for several areas of campus, including marketing and communications, information technology, human resources and finance. In addition to this revamp of policy, “newly reorganized areas should make every effort to deliver high quality and timely materials and services.”
For establishing a brand identity for Galveston, MGT recommended promoting that “Aggies are Aggies regardless of where they are,” and highlighting all campus locations to create greater awareness of the Aggie experience.
Student Affairs
MGTrecommended that the management of all summer camps, other camps and minor programs should fall under the oversight of Student Affairs, based in College Station.
“Student Affairs is best positioned to handle the risk management and support of programs with campus guests and minors,” the report reads. “Other departments can lead campus and minor programs but should receive administrative support from Student Affairs.”
Furthermore, Galveston programs should be equally involved in A&M College Station traditions. However, because the Galveston campus is based on place, it should focus on also building “community, mattering and belonging opportunities” for students, according to the report.
“Ensuring support and alignment for Galveston community events, service/experiential learning, heritage months, affinity clubs, mental health support, international students, veterans and students with disabilities is essential to establishing a sense of belonging and support that is unique to the Galveston campus,” the report reads.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Despite “robust” student diversity initiatives, the report finds that limited funding often prevented diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at the Galveston Campus.
The Civic Literacy, Inclusion, Diversity & Equity Committee publishes an annual diversity plan accountability report to assess the status of inclusion, diversity, equity and accountability efforts. The report is submitted to the Office of Diversity at the College Station campus, however, the report suggests a “dedicated diversity plan” for the Galveston campus would promote underrepresented student enrollment, retention and completion.
Additionally, the report finds an overall lack of “visibility to valuable information regarding a student’s socio-economic status, work-study eligibility, family income and other life situations” in interviews with underrepresented students. The report cites an overall lack of training and technology as a cause and states the issue may be worsened by a staffing shortage.
“While these areas have recently become fully staffed, the process took a year and the need for student profile transparency continued to be expressed in order to make these services individualized,” the report reads.
To demonstrate diverse participation in maritime programs, the report recommends the campus promote the success of women and minority students. Furthermore, in order to boost enrollment and connect with underrepresented populations, the campus should feature outstanding students.
“This includes establishing a dedicated diversity plan for the Maritime Academy and would provide further support for the Academy’s enrollment, retention, and completion of underrepresented students,” the report reads.
To realign the focus of the Student Intercultural Learning & Engagement, or SILE, website, the report recommends pointing toward inclusive spaces on the Galveston campus, rather than in College Station. The current SILE website provides links to resources in College Station such as lactation rooms, and meditation and prayer spaces.
“These links should include locations to spaces that exist in Galveston,” the report reads. “If spaces and resources do not exist on the Galveston campus, efforts should be made to establish spaces with clear designation and resources to support diverse populations.”
Academic programs
The report finds confusion and misalignment between the organization of departments and programs that originated and are located in Galveston and in College Station, respectively. The report cites the Oceanography and Ocean Engineering programs in College Station’s use of Galveston resources as an example of this confusion.
To better serve a larger, more diversified student body, the report recommends the Galveston Campus should aim to feature research and experiential learning opportunities as well as increase faculty joint appointments and further align itself with the Texas Sea Grant mission. Through the expansion of faculty join appointments, more faculty can serve on committees for students located in College Station and possibly expand research opportunities in Galveston.
“An expanded strategic recruitment effort, specifically to graduate students seeking to conduct research on the Gulf Coast, should be further developed between Galveston and College Station to capitalize on the existing joint faculty appointments between the College Station Department of Oceanography and Galveston faculty, and provide opportunities for additional research and funding to come to Galveston,” the report reads.
In addition, future assessments of the Galveston Campus should be completed to determine if new sea grant programs can open as well as relocate any current College Station-based programs to Galveston.
The report recommends increasing joint faculty appointments between Galveston and College Station faculty may result in unique opportunities for “new degree programs and educational experiences in Galveston.” To promote enrollment, this model should also be adjusted for other programs, such as business and science degree programs.
“Identifying opportunities for new programs and experiences also serves to enhance the recommendation that Galveston be established as a vital component of creating lab experiences for TAMU students,” the report reads. “This provides an avenue for Marine Business Administration to join the larger Mays Business School in College Station to expand opportunities for students to go to Galveston for lab experiences.”
Due to low enrollment numbers, the report recommends the termination of the University Studies program as it is “unsustainable and does not meet the needs of students or faculty.” Liberal Studies faculty are encouraged to take advantage of joint appointment opportunities or transfer their tenure to the College of Arts & Sciences in College Station to administer courses and research opportunities furthering the lab experience provided to students by the Galveston Campus. However, these courses and experiential opportunities should still be located in Galveston and staff will remain on campus.
In addition to clearly linking sea grant academic programs between Galveston and College Station, MGT recommended the consolidation of the Marine Biology and Marine and Coastal Environmental Sciences departments.
“A strategic opportunity exists to elevate the student experience and faculty collaborations by combining Marine Biology and Marine and Coastal Environmental Sciences into a single department,” the report reads. “Such a merger also will help address current recruiting and retention challenges specific to each department.”
The new department should establish a new name that represents the new academic mission and continue to align itself with the College Station campus through tenure transfer to the College of Arts and Sciences or joint appointments, according to the report.
The report cites the low retention rates of both departments as reason for the consolidation recommendation.
“The opportunity exists to elevate the student’s experience and education by combining Marine Biology and Marine and Coastal Environmental Sciences into a single department,” the report reads.
In order to meet student demand, the report mentions the possibility of re-envisioning the degrees offered by the respective departments, developed by interdisciplinary faculty and departmental stakeholders.
“The names of the degrees should be informative to potential students and their families and accurately describe the curriculum,” the report reads.
Within the new department, the report also suggests the possibility of establishing professional and scientific degree tracks, or “even developing a Bachelor of Arts degree program.”
MGT said strategic academic advising should also be provided in the merged department to better allow students to look at majors that better fit their academic interests and skills in order to provide further support to students who may transfer.
“This also allows for the newly joined department to identify interdisciplinary programs for new investment and to evaluate the sunsetting of existing programs that no longer are in demand,” the report reads.
Sea Grant Mission
Currently, A&M is one of seventeen universities to hold a land, space and sea grant designation. Although the majority of the sea-grant programs at A&M are carried out in Galveston, College Station is technically the headquarters for the Texas Sea Grant.
To best support the Sea Grant mission, MGT recommended that the headquarters of this program be moved to Galveston, along with the oceanography department. This, however, would not mean moving all activities associated with the grant, as it may present issues to current research in College Station, as well as create risk to archival materials.
To incentivize this move to Galveston, faculty could receive joint appointments, research opportunities, resources and financial incentives. This change, MGT said, “invest[s] in Galveston as a lab campus, where students will receive critical career-ready experiences.”
