The Electronic Newsletter of the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminology
From the Desktop of the Department Head - Karl Kunkel
I hope you enjoy the Spring 2009 version of our Department newsletter. The past year was quite eventful for the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminology and the attached articles provide many of the details. Some of the highlights for the past year include the Master of Science in Applied Anthropology program beginning with a cohort of nine students, the Master of Science in Criminology program growing to 32 graduate students in its second year and seeing the first two graduates at the December 2008 Commencement, two new sociologists and one new anthropologist joining our faculty, Dr. Lorene Stone resigned as Dean of the College of Humanities and Public Affaris and joined our Department faclulty, and we added a sixth department-based scholarship opportunity for our students, the CRA Applied Social Scientist Award. Our students also had various unique opportunities for learning and community service. In addition, many Department faculty continue to be very productive in research, scholarship, and various funded projects. Select any of the links on the left to learn more about these topics and other recent happenings in our Department.
A major undertaking this year was our five-year program review. The process now begins with an in-depth self-study report generated by faculty in each program. That report is sent to an external reviewer who later conducts a two-day campus visit to talk with faculty, students, administrators, and community members during the process of gathering information on how each program is operating, what we are doing well, and what can be improved. Based on the self-study report and campus visit, the reviewer submitted a report including various recommendations for the programs. I wish to thank our external reviewers, Dr. Samuel Wilson (Anthropology, from the University of Texas), Dr. Kevin Delaney (Sociology, from Temple University), and Dr. Scott Decker (Criminology, from Arizona State University) for their outstanding efforts providing assessments and evaluations of our programs. Their comments create a solid foundation as we strive to improve our graduate and undergraduate offerings in anthropology, criminology, and sociology.
If you are an alum of a program in our Department, I invite you to keep us informed of your activities and accomplishments by either submitted the Alumni Information Form or sending an e-mail to us at DSAC@MissouriState.edu.
As you will see from the articles in this electronic newsletter, this is exciting time for the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminology at Missouri State University.