I. Program Productivity and Efficiency
FGCU Fall Enrollments by Major and Year Fall2009 Fall 2010 Fall 2011 Fall 2012 Fall 2013 Fall 2014* Journalism 0 0 30 90 106 117
*Note the program only existed 3 of the 5 years reported to BOT
Selected Majors As a Percent of All Majors including second majors and pre-majors)
Fall 2012 Fall 2013 Fall 2014
MAJOR Number of students with this major % of Majors who declare this Major Number of students with this major % of Majors who declare this Major Number of students with this major % of Majors who declare this Major Anthropology 61 0.48% 62 0.46% 61 0.44% Biotechnology 49 0.39% 49 0.37% 52 0.38% Economics 103 0.81% 127 0.95% 119 0.86% Journalism 98 0.77% 112 0.84% 122 0.88% Music Performance 44 0.35% 51 0.38% 45 0.33% Philosophy 41 0.32% 42 0.31% 58 0.42% Sociology 90 0.71% 94 0.70% 98 0.71% Theatre 44 0.35% 45 0.34% 38 0.28%
Number of All Majors at
FGCU -> 12713 100% 13379 100% 13798 100%
FGCU Degrees Awarded by Major and Year Fall 2009-10 Fall 2010-11 Fall 2011-12 Fall 2012-13 Fall 2013-14 5-Year Sum Journalism 0 0 2 1 5 8
*Note the program only existed 3 of the 5 years reported to BOT Degrees Awarded (Double Counting Dual Majors)
2011-12 2012-13 2013-14
MAJOR Number of degrees in Major % of degrees in Major of FGCU degrees awarded Number of degrees in Major % of degrees in Major of FGCU degrees awarded Number of degrees in Major % of degrees in Major of FGCU degrees awarded Anthropology 8 0.44% 12 0.62% 7 0.36% Biotechnology 5 0.27% 4 0.21% 3 0.16% Economics 9 0.49% 12 0.62% 18 0.93% Journalism 2 0.11% 1 0.05% 8 0.41% Music Performance 6 0.33% 6 0.31% 5 0.26% Philosophy 18 0.99% 11 0.57% 6 0.31% Sociology 13 0.71% 19 0.98% 18 0.93% Theatre 8 0.44% 5 0.26% 8 0.41%
Total degrees awarded
at FGCU-> 1819 100% 1940 100% 1932 100%
Percent of Majors Graduating
(degrees granted through Spring per Fall majors, counting double degrees and double majors)
Selected Majors 2012 2013 2014
% of all those with the major who graduated during
2012
% of all those with the major who graduated during
2013
% of all those with the major who graduated during 2014 Anthropology 13.1% 19.4% 11.5% Biotechnology 10.2% 8.2% 5.8% Economics 8.7% 9.4% 15.1% Journalism 2.0% 0.9% 6.6% Music Performance 13.6% 11.8% 11.1% Philosophy 43.9% 26.2% 10.3% Sociology 14.4% 20.2% 18.4% Theatre 18.2% 11.1% 21.1%
Percent of Total Degrees that are
the selected majors 0.54% 0.52% 0.53%
Average Cost Per Student Credit Hour (SCH) By Selected Programs
Average Cost Per Credit Hour Percent of University Average Percent Lower Level SCH
Dollars 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 Undergraduate Anthropology 124.20 88.73 80.94 128% 88% 78% 69% 73% 81% Biotechnology 229.66 226.047 277.66 238% 223% 268% 35% 33% 16% Economics 134.82 106.64 97.41 139% 105% 94% 74% 70% 73% Journalism 84.57 109.57 91.51 87% 108% 88% 62% 42% 42% Music 176.81 165.11 131.71 183% 163% 127% 67% 73% 85% Philosophy 48.14 45.52 42.90 50% 45% 41% 61% 66% 48% Sociology 41.25 36.43 35.56 43% 36% 34% 83% 85% 83% Theatre 111.38 145.15 162.28 115% 143% 157% 65% 70% 63% Graduate (Percent Undergraduate SCH) Criminal Justice 113.39 136.07 95.52 117% 134% 92% 92% 92% 95% (Percent Undergraduate SCH) Management Information Systems 325.46 223.71 251.62 337% 221% 243% 80% 77% 82% Total University 96.67 101.38 103.66 100% 100% 100% 51% 53% 53% 3
II. Post-Graduation Outcomes for Journalism Alumni
Journalism Graduates have secured employment in Journalism and Related areas.
Of the small number of Journalism graduates
4 are known to have secured full time work as print journalists 2 are known to be working in broadcasting
1 is working in marketing 1 is a graduate student.
Journalism BA Graduates have secured high prestige jobs: Alex Pena - Digital Journalist at CBS News, New York, NY
2011 Walter & Betsy Cronkite Award: Overseas Press Club Foundation Scholarship 2011 Placed in Online and In-depth reporting Region 3 Mark of Excellence Awards SPJ. 2010 NAHJ Student Fellow at NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams
Caity Kauffman - Social Media & Digital Marketing Manager at Tampa Bay Lightning
Named a “2014 Up and Comer” by the Tampa Bay Business Journal, November 2014 First-ever winner of the Naples Daily News Journalism Scholarship
Jenny Williamson - Owner of JRW Social Media.
Executive Director of C Three Foundation.
First Place - Society of Professional Journalists Region 3 Mark of Excellence Award (Radio Feature)
Finalist - Florida Associated Press Broadcasters Collegiate Award (Radio Feature)
Kalhan Rosenblatt – Current Graduating Senior
Nominated for 4 Sunshine State Awards, including College Journalist of the Year Secured a job at the Daily Mail, beating out candidates from prestigious schools such as Columbia.
National Data on Journalism Employment Outcomes By the numbers:
• 468 new digital news media outlets have formed in the last 10 years, reversing the trend of traditional news outlets.1
• 5,000 new full-time jobs created in in the last 10 years.1
• The 2013 hiring rate has remained steady, despite journalism being an industry in rapid flux.2
• 65% of bachelor’s degree holders in journalism and mass communication found full-time work six to eight months after graduation2
• People with a journalism degree have about 6% unemployment, better than the national average.2
• 88% of working professional journalists have a college degree.3
• 50% of working professional journalists with a college degree majored in journalism or mass communication. 3
• There are six fields with positive growth projections that hire journalism majors outside of journalism itself: Technical writing (+15%), Public relations (+12%), Fundraising/Marketing (+13%), Film operating and video editing (+3%),
Meteorological sciences (+10%), and Sound engineering technicians (+9%). 4
Source: Payscale, an employment analytics company.
1) http://www.journalism.org/2014/03/26/the-growth-in-digital-reporting/ 2) http://www.grady.uga.edu/annualsurveys/Graduate_Survey/Graduate_2013/Grad_Report_2013_C ombined.pdf 3) http://www.poynter.org/uncategorized/9520/journalists-are-more-likely-to-be-college-graduates/ 4) http://www.bls.gov/ooh/media-and-communication/reporters-correspondents-and-broadcast-news-analysts.htm $0 $20,000 $40,000 $60,000 $80,000 $100,000 Civil Engineering Computer Networking Accounting/Business Biology Journalism
What Journalism Majors Earn
(compared with STEM)
Starting Salary
Florida Education & Training. Placement Information
Program (FETPIP)
Note. FGCU had not produced enough graduates by 12-13 to
generate FETPIP data for this program.
III. Potential Impact Upon Performance Funding Metrics
Bachelor’s Degrees Awarded in Areas of Strategic Emphasis - The CIP code
for FGCU’s Journalism program is 09.0702 Digital Communication and Media/Multimedia, recognizing the program’s stress on digital and multi-platform journalism. This CIP is classified as STEM in the BOG’s program inventory. Therefore, Journalism BA degrees count toward FGCU’s Degrees in Areas of Strategic Emphasis metric.
IV. Prospective Cost Benefits or Disadvantages Associated with Program Discontinuance
The most recent academic year for which faculty productivity data were available was 2013-14. During this period, the faculty in the Journalism Program generated 1396 student credit hours. The tuition and fee revenue generated by these faculty at $204 per credit yielded a total revenue to the University of $284,784. The total direct cost of instruction (i.e., faculty salary) for these individuals was $127,754. Thus the direct return to the University was a net profit of $157,031.
In addition, the Journalism Program faculty contribute to the credit hour production of multiple undergraduate programs across the university, such as Colloquium, Interdisciplinary Studies, and the Honors Program. These programs rely heavily on a faculty donation program. The faculty donation program requires faculty from different programs to contribute course production to these specific programs in order to meet the enrollment demands associated FGCU graduation requirements. Eliminating the Journalism Program may adversely impact this model which could increase the time to degree completion and increase the cost of instruction in these required course areas.
While the Journalism Program may generate a modest number of graduates currently, the program faculty clearly have an impact on the overall annual student credit hour production at FGCU.
V. Potential Impact Discontinuance of Journalism Might Have on the University
Impact on General Education
Journalism offers one course in the General Education Program: MMC 2604 News Literacy. Over the 4 year period from Fall 2011 to Fall 2014, this Gen Ed offering represented about 35% of the total seats in Journalism courses. This course is an innovative offering which trains students to be thoughtful and critical consumers of media messages. The course includes an innovative feature of recitation sessions with working journalists who handle the writing requirement and give students insider perspective on the production of news stories. This course advances the mission of the university to promote civic engagement and develop an informed citizenry. It requires the leadership of ranked faculty to deliver the course effectively.
Journalism courses cover all three outcomes of FGCU’s QEP: Writing, Critical Thinking, and Information Literacy. Information Literacy in particular is strongly supported by delivery of courses such as News Literacy, as well as by upper division courses in Journalism.
Impact on courses used by other programs
The Journalism program offers MMC 3020 Grammar, a 1 credit intensive grammar “Boot Camp,” which is offered at a cap of 60, and draws students from a variety of programs for which technically clean writing is important, such as English and Communications.
This academic year, the Journalism students have benefitted from a cooperative assignment between the instructor of the Journalistic Writing course and one of the faculty in Public Relations. Students in both courses work off a common case study assignment, with PR students producing press releases for the Journalism students, and Journalism students writing stories for the PR students to respond to. This innovative shared assignment is beneficial to both sets of students and simulates real workplace situations.
Impact on faculty retention and recruitment
Elimination of the Journalism B.A. program would have an effect on retention and recruitment at both the general and specific level.
At the specific program level, program elimination would likely induce some portion of the Journalism faculty to re-enter the job market and seek employment elsewhere. Recruitment of new faculty to a field where a program had been lost would be difficult; candidates who had an option to work in a department with a degree program would likely exercise that option.
At a general level, cutting multiple programs would affect recruitment in disciplines beyond the ones under review. Because tenure is the norm in academia, candidates for faculty positions at FGCU already come to an interview with many questions about our contract system. So far, we have been able to reassure most candidates that the contract system protects academic freedom and provides reasonable security from arbitrary layoffs. A story about program cuts would create doubts on these points, and make it more difficult to convince candidates in any discipline that coming to FGCU is a smart career move.
Impact on grants and awards
Journalism has been the recipient of grant awards to support programming associated with the Journalism program:
McCormick Foundation Support “Face to Face: Conversations with
Journalists $42,000
McCormick Foundation News Literacy Summit $500 McCormick Foundation News Literacy Initiatives $500
FGCU Internal Grant $1000
Impact on faculty and student diversity
Student Diversity
The Diversity profile of Journalism B.A. students is similar to that of the University as a whole; Hispanic students are represented at a higher rate than the University average.
Fall 13 Journalism Fall 13 University
Asian 1.8% 2.5% African American 4.7% 7.9% Hispanic 23.5% 18.0% Native American 0% 0.8% Non-res Alien 2.8% 1.6% White 62.3% 67.9% Not Reported 4.7% 1.2%
Impact on philanthropy to the university
The Journalism program has been the recipient of philanthropy from individuals and organizations. These gifts were given specifically to support establishment of the Journalism program.
Dan & Janet Warner “Truth in Media” program $25,000 Gannett Corp Cameras & Equipment $18,110
Naples Daily News Equipment $1,000
Gannet Corp Equipment $7,500
Naples Press Club Scholarships $10,000
Naples Daily News Scholarships $10,000
Reaction of alums
Program alumni have reached out to Journalism faculty in response to the news that the Journalism B.A. is under review. Excerpts from student letters are below:
My first day as an Eagle in 2007, Twitter didn't exist… Yet, one of my first projects was on "citizen journalism" - that regular folks on the street could document history using the tools in their back pocket. Instantly, I fell in love with digital media. My professors were always one step ahead of this trend in content creation and it gave me a substantial advantage upon graduation. Professors were always assisting us with opportunities to put our skills to work in real newsrooms… I was armed with the tools to adapt to the blossoming future of digital far beyond the classroom. Thanks to my education, I have an incredible career doing exactly what I dreamed of doing.
- Caity Kauffman, Social Media Manager for Tampa Bay Lightning
I am currently a full time graduate student at FGCU working toward my Master of Public Administration, owner of JRW Social Media and the executive director of the C Three Foundation. I manage five websites with three more in development. On the social media side of my career, there are 23 accounts across Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn and Google Plus that I am responsible for. In the last two years, I’ve run or advised on six crowdsourcing campaigns
on Indiegogo raising more than $86,000 including two for the C Three
Foundation project One Little Pill, an award-winning documentary film that focuses on the science behind an overlooked treatment for alcohol use disorder. I am able to confidently do my job because of the work I did during my senior capstone as an undergraduate in the Journalism department at FGCU.
- Jenny Williamson, 2013 graduate.
Impact on public opinion
The Journalism B.A. program is a crucial public outreach for FGCU.
Journalism B.A. students intern at media outlets and associated industries throughout the region. Journalism B.A. graduates have begun securing jobs at these same organizations. This influx of people who are knowledgeable about and well disposed towards FGCU positively impacts the University’s image within the local media landscape, and should raise the institutions profile within the community.
On the FGCU campus community, the Journalism B.A. provides crucial support for Eagle News, FGCU’s print and online newspaper. A campus newspaper is a crucial part of campus life at any university, acting as both a forum for information and views, and as an educational opportunity for student staff. The Eagle News has grown along with the Journalism program into a well-staffed and professionally run organization. Loss of the Journalism program would definitely mean a step backward for this aspect of the campus community.
More broadly, the public recognizes the cultivation of informed citizenship as one of the functions of a college education. Student journalism is an important part of this commitment; and the cancellation of Journalism would make many members of the community wonder whether FGCU’s commitment to civic engagement and citizenship education has waned.