WSU Communication School Visited by Deans

PULLMAN, Wash. – Washington State University’s Edward R. Murrow School of Communication was visited last week by a panel of deans from four top communication programs in the nation.

The deans will make a recommendation about possible independence for the school from its current home in the College of Liberal Arts. Their report to WSU President Elson Floyd is expected at any time.

Erich Lear, dean of the College of Liberal Arts, said, “The external deans did an excellent job of reviewing our program. I have been and continue to be supportive of an independent structure for the Murrow School and hope that the university’s program prioritization process will allow for the needed investment.”

E. Culpepper Clark of the University of Georgia, Jean Folkerts of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Tim Gleason of the University of Oregon, and Terry Hynes, dean emerita of the University of Florida, were in Pullman last week to gain a firsthand understanding of the situation. They toured facilities and spent the day meeting with students, staff, faculty and administrators.

In June 2007 the communication school concluded a review of its program by a task force, comprised of members representing their advisory board, the College of Liberal Arts, the university at large and from outside the university, to evaluate and make a recommendations for possible restructuring. 

In a similar time period, a university task force was assembled to examine the structure of the College of Liberal Arts. A recommendation that the Murrow School and the College of Liberal Arts would both benefit through autonomy emerged from both groups.

A subsequent College of Liberal Arts realignment implementation task force concurred with those findings in a report delivered to Floyd shortly after his arrival on campus in June. Floyd convened the panel of deans to obtain an additional opinion through a process of external review.

Erica Weintraub Austin, interim director of the Murrow School, said in an e-mail letter to faculty and staff, “Although I have not yet received these recommendations, I do feel comfortable sharing with you that it seemed clear from their discussions that they viewed the preponderance of evidence as supportive of increased independence for the school.”

“The reality is if you look at the best programs in the nation, the vast majority of them are independent,” said Bruce Pinkleton, communication professor and chairman of the Task Force on the Funding and Structure of the Murrow School of Communication.

Within the communication school, the process of self-examination proved to be an extremely positive experience according to Austin.  Students, faculty, staff and administrators were all involved.

 “I’ve never seen so much shared focus and excitement about our future than I’m seeing now,” Austin said. “Because of the careful, collaborative and evidence-based way the administration and the school have approached these issues, I am confident that the school will benefit enormously from the final outcome of the process, whatever the ultimate outcome may be. It’s been energizing and educational for us to go through this process of self-discovery and collaboration.”

Creating and maintaining a freestanding communication program would require $2.5 million each year, which according to Pinkleton may be an underestimate.

The Task Force on Funding and Structure in a May 10 memo to the Provost stated, “It is the unanimous opinion of task force participants that inadequate funding will doom the Murrow School of Communication to mediocrity no matter its structure.”

WSU Provost and Executive Vice President Bob Bates said, “It’s a very serious discussion, and I think we’ll have a pretty good sense of what direction we’re going to go pretty soon. Then the question will be what’s the timeline, more detailed budget development and budget preparation for exactly what this will look like for an independent unit.”

“I have appreciated the careful and supportive way the dean, provost and president have partnered with the Murrow School to examine best practices and opportunities for us to move ahead in way that will help us achieve our potential,” said Austin. “It’s been tremendously exciting to see the confidence they have expressed in the Murrow School, and it’s been a privilege for me to help lead the school through this process of discovery.”