The Butte College Department of Physical Sciences provides quality educational programs within a student-centered environment. We offer complete lower division transfer programs for physical science (chemistry, geology, physics, physical science, and meteorology) and engineering majors, as well as high-quality general education, program support (health professions including nursing, respiratory therapy and EMT) and preparatory classes that serve the needs of our community.
Overview:
The Department of Physical Sciences enjoys an excellent reputation within the campus community. The Chemistry, Geology, and Physics programs offer lower-division courses for science and engineering majors and the Physical Science program offers general education courses for all majors. Students that have been through our programs return on a regular basis to reflect on their experiences, and the sense of collegiality they felt while in our classes. This is also reflected in student evaluations. Full-time faculty members Colin Ferguson, Penny Lillie, Jason Trento, and Bob White are former Butte College students and decided to return to the department and give back some of what they received. We work with other departments (specifically Mathematics, Biology, and Computer Science) to create a student-friendly schedule with accessible offerings in a number of different formats. Most sections in all four programs tend to close before the end of registration, many with full wait lists, reflecting a high degree of demand for our programs as well as a solid reputation for our courses.
Chemistry:
High enrollment and space limitations have pushed the chemistry program to near maximum capacity. Recent approval of a construction bond by Butte County voters will fund a much-needed new science building to open around 2023, which means the only way to improve access is to continue making the daytime schedule more efficient, to begin placing sections of certain classes (i.e., those without labs) in other buildings, and to study the feasibility of offering sections of some critical classes at night or on weekends. For example, we have been increasing the daytime sections of CHEM 51, and we have begun discussions to modify CHEM 110 into a transferable course. Both actions make better use of our physical space and our intellectual talent. The program has two important needs: more space for continued expansion of the schedule; and more money for equipment and supplies. The money increases we are asking for need to cover increased costs of chemicals, an increased need for student graders and assistants, and a need to begin purchasing equipment that will not be used immediately but will, instead, be held for the new building.
Physics:
Enrollment in the physics program continues to increase; most of the physics classes fill every semester along with full wait lists as we continue to add sections to the schedule. Research of similar community colleges in California has shown that we are below average in our offerings of the algebra-based (PHYS 21 and 22) physics sequence and the third semester of the calculus-based (PHYS 43) sequence. Now that the college has approved hiring a fourth physicist, we can offer all three of these classes during both semesters (in addition to the summer session for 21 and 22). The physics program currently subsists on two lab rooms that it shares with the geology and physical science programs. Therefore, like chemistry, we will need to continue improving scheduling efficiency and to look at non-traditional scheduling modalities to increase student access. In addition, we anticipate ever increasing supply and equipment budgets to begin stocking up for the new science building.
Geology:
The geology program is quite strong considering we only have a single full-time instructor. We have a full schedule of Physical Geology (GEOL 32) and we continue to offer Historical Geology (GEOL 34) each Fall. The program's greatest needs are a commitment from administration--in light of the recently approved AS-T degree--to offer more sections and hire a full-time instructor sometime in near future.
Physical Science:
Enrollments in the Physical Science program are very good--most classes fill well before the semesters begin. The Weather classes (PSC 50 and 51) are very strong at both the Chico Center and the Main Campus. We finally added a new course, Natural Hazards (PSC 53), in Summer 2015. It was successful and is now being offered regularly each Fall semester. Environmental Science (PSC 10) continues to be extremely popular. We currently offer one section of 24 students that closes during the first week of registration. The interdisciplinary Introductory Physical Science (PSC 20 and 21) also has very good enrollments, and the physicists have strengthened the Introductory Astronomy (PSC 30) with an Honors section as well as a regular section at night (erratic availability of part-timers prevents us from offering the nighttime class every semester). AS-T degree requirements in other programs also compels us to begin offering Concepts in Physical Science (PSC 12) in Fall 2017 and Earth Science with Lab (PSC 11) beginning Spring 2018. Recent approval to hire a fourth physicist has made this expansion possible. We continue to work with the Child Development program to make sure that PSC 11 and PSC 12 meet their needs and that our scheduling meshes as seamlessly as possible with students in that program.
Finally, our Physical Science Senior Laboratory Technician currently works under a ten-month contract. This position is responsible for three of our four programs; lacking the summer work time makes it very difficult for the tech to handle long-term projects. The physics and physical science faculty have had to forgo several building projects because of this. The increasing number of sections in both physical science and physics will only increase the tech's workload. We feel the tech can be much more effective if the position is recharacterized as a twelve-month one.
Chemistry Instructor
Hiring an eighth full-time chemistry instructor has allowed the program to increase its offerings of CHEM 51 while keeping the number of sections of CHEM 110 fairly constant (both courses are in very high demand). This increases our overall FTES contribution to the college, and because of greater flexability in the schedule, we've been able to offer sections at times more likely to allow students to create a successful schedule. Filling this position has been an enormous benefit to the college.
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Indicator |
Source |
College |
Program |
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2014-2015 |
Standard |
Six Year Goal |
Fall 2011 |
Fall 2012 |
Fall 2013 |
Fall 2014 |
Fall 2015 |
Standard |
Six Year Goal |
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Access |
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- Unduplicated Headcount |
PDR |
12,691 |
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582 |
551 |
552 |
581 |
558 |
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Course Success |
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- Overall |
PDR |
70.6% |
70.0% |
73.0% |
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- Transfer/GE |
PDR - CHEM |
71.7% |
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73.0% |
76.2% |
77.7% |
70.8% |
71.2% |
70.8% |
70.0% |
75.0% |
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PDR - GEOL |
68.5% |
70.8% |
67.7% |
67.3% |
76.9% |
65.0% |
70.0% |
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PDR - PHYS |
64.4% |
59.7% |
65.9% |
67.6% |
75.7% |
65.0% |
70.0% |
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PDR - PSC |
63.8% |
64.2% |
71.2% |
67.8% |
72.9% |
65.0% |
70.0% |
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- CTE |
PDR |
75.3% |
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77.0% |
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- Basic Skills |
PDR |
51.7% |
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55.0% |
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- Distance Ed (all) |
PDR |
62.6% |
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64.0% |
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Persistence (Focused). Note: The Persistence (Focused) that is included in the PDR is a different indicator than the three-primary term persistence indicator, from the State Student Success Scorecard that is used to measure institutional persistence. The Focused Persistence indicator measures the percentage of students that took a second course in a discipline within one year. There is no relationship between the college and program standards in this area. |
PDR - CHEM |
71.8% |
67.0% |
75.0% |
39.0% |
44.3% |
47.6% |
42.6% |
42.5% |
38.0% |
47.0% |
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PDR - GEOL |
12.4% |
9.8% |
8.3% |
8.9% |
4.6% |
8.0% |
12.0% |
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PDR - PHYS |
45.9% |
51.2% |
60.1% |
56.7% |
60.3% |
45.0% |
60.0% |
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PDR - PSC |
10.1% |
12.8% |
9.9% |
9.9% |
11.8% |
8.0% |
12.0% |
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(Three-Term) Scorecard |
(Three-Term) Scorecard |
(Three-Term) Scorecard |
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Degrees - annual |
PDR - CHEM |
1,421 |
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1,475 |
1 |
2 |
6 |
3 |
1 |
2 |
8 |
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PDR - GEOL |
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1 |
1 |
5 |
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PDR - PHYS AS |
2 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
2 |
10 |
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PDR - PHYS AS-T |
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1 |
1 |
1 |
5 |
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PDR - PSC |
2 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
- |
1 |
5 |
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Certificate of Achievement (CA) - annual |
PDR |
814 |
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475 |
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Local Certificate (CC) - annual |
PDR |
518 |
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Developmental Strand Completion |
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- English |
State |
43.7% |
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45.0% |
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- Math |
State |
33.8% |
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35.0% |
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- ESL |
State |
42.9% |
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45.0% |
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Licensure Pass Rates |
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- Registered Nursing |
SC |
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- Licensed Vocational Nursing |
SC |
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- Respiratory Therapy |
SC |
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- Paramedic |
SC |
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- Cosmetology |
SC |
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- Welding |
SC |
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Job Placement Rates |
PIV |
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Our latest program review was 2013-14. The Validation Team issued twelve (12) recommendations. Their status is outlined below.
New science building: The college has recently agreed to float a bond issue, part of which will fund a new science building.
Counseling: The department works closely with two counselors, Debbie Reynolds and John Soldate, so that the advise they give science students is germane to their majors and helps them navigate our courses efficiently and successfully.
Fees: We used to collect profits from the sale of lab manuals, but the college rescinded this ability two years ago. The Validation team recommended that if the administration does not allow us to reinstate these profits, then they should make up the difference in our supply budgets.
Long-term savings: We are currently with dean Suzanne Gripenstraw to find ways to build long-term savings by holding onto unused monies at the end of each fiscal year.
Hire an additional chemist: In progress. This chemist will begin Fall 2016.
Smart room upgrades: In progress.
Prerequisite enforcement: In progress.
Improved scheduling using all five days: This is something we have no control over. The faculty at large have convinced themselves that by only meeting their students four days per week instead of five somehow improves student success and access.
Tracking graduates: In progress.
Chemical Hygiene Officer stipend: In progress.
Projects involving students: In progress.
2+2 articulation agreements for CHEM 110: This idea has not been pursued yet. The faculty has been focusing on possible changes in CHEM 110 content due to a request from the Life Sciences department. Once this issue is resolved, we will pursue 2 + 2 agreements.
The Physical Sciences department has developed two (2) major goals and three (3) future development strategies to achieve these goals. Our goals are: increase student access; and, increase both the number and the quality of the tools we use to serve more students. Our future development strategies involve: more space; more physical and virtual equipment; and, more staff.
Since the approval of the bond measure in 2016, the space issue will be solved in the long term. Our concern now is how to increase access in the interim. And, as we add space, we have to increase our equipment and supply budgets, our computer hardware and software budgets, and we have to hire more staff (both faculty and classified). We also need more and better counseling, like retaining a dedicated STEM counselor for science and engineering students. We understand this will not happen within a few years, but rather we want to begin long-term planning (20-30 years) now so that when the new builiding is complete, we can transition into it with a minimum of upset to our staff and students and a maximum of service to our students and the community.
Strategy 1 - Increased Lecture & Laboratory Space
All four programs share the same basic needs: one, the ability to add sections of popular classes to the schedule, both at Chico Center and Main Campus; two, more lecture and laboratory space; three, more funds for both supplies (to account for inflation, depreciation, and attrition) and student assistants; and, four, more staff. The recently approved 2016 bond measure will solve the space issues (and staff issues) long-term, but we need to think about short-term solutions. We see only two possible solutions: capturing space in exisitng unused buildings (e.g., automtive); and/or the importation of portable classrooms and/or labs. Since the bond will most likely go to infrastructure and not to equipment and consumables, we also need to start increasing our equipment and supply budgets--slowly, but regularly--so as to begin purchasing equipment over the next seven years that can be stored and moved into the new builiding.
All of our programs and courses are popular because science is aesthetically pleasing and economically rewarding. America prides itself on its Enlightenment heritage, a revolutionary movement of thought and discovery that was largely informed and driven by scientific advances. All of the wonderful technology that Americans utilize and worship is the direct result of the patient and exacting labor of scientists discovering fundamental physical processes and the clever and ingenious work of engineers who shape these processes into devices that do our bidding. The maintenance and nurturing of our programs at Butte College should be obvious: if you want a new generation of scientists and engineers to continue developing awesome technological solutions to life's problems, you need to feed our programs.
Strategy 2 - Twelve-month Senior Physical Science Laboratory Technician
The senior physical science laboratory technician is currently serving on a ten-month contract. This individual is responsible for the equipment, lab facilities, and supply and grader budgets of three (3) of the four (4) programs in the department: physics, physical science, and geology. A successful senior laboratory technician is one who is orderly, punctual, self-motivating, and knowledgeable in the physical sciences in the broadest sense. Most importantly, however, this position demands someone who enjoys seizing the initiative and working on projects that enhance student success and whose benefits might not accrue for several semesters. As we increase the number of sections, the responsibilities of the senior laboratory technician will inevitably increase as well. When we move into the new science builiding, this will only become a larger issue. Given our needs now and our anticipated needs in the long-term, we want to recharacterize this position into a twelve-month one.
Increasing demand in physics and the uncertainty surrounding the overall space allocations for the entire department in the near future have greatly added to the senior laboratory technician's normal duties. These duties include: maintaining and servicing all the laboratory and demonstration equipment for the three programs; overseeing and dispersing monies from the supply and grader budgets for those programs; summer school support; and, working on various building and laboratory projects that enhance students' experiences, provide safer work environments, and help the department as a whole operate more efficiently. The time available for these routine duties, however, is slowly eroding due to the ever-increasing time the technician must devote to help the physics program grow. The technician's absence from the college for two months each summer exacerbates this problem, making it very difficult for him to accomplish many long-term projects since many of his routine duties are being squeezed into ten months. While the department does have another full-time senior technician, the physical science tech position is unique. Therefore, his duties cannot be readily transferred to someone else.
A bulleted list of duties that currently are NOT being performed at only ten months include:
Strategy 3 - Equipment
We have extensive equipment needs. Some of this is to replace outmoded and/or unserviceable equipment, and some of it is upgrades, and some of it is simply to acquire more units due to more sections of a given class. Finally, we anticipate further needs in the future to equip the new science building.
The Physical Sciences only work when students perform experiments. Therefore, specialized equipment and dedicated facilities are key components in every class we teach. Equipment must be maintained and calibrated and we have to continually replenish consumables like chemicals, glassware, carbonized paper, electrical components, testing samples, housekeeping materials, etc. Relentless improvements in technology, along with continual software upgrades, means we constnatly need to imporove the way we use our equipment, or replace it, or completely change the way we do experiments. All of this requires a large supply budget, a budget that increases over time.
Strategy 4 - Student Grader Money
As we continue to add sections and try to fulfill other tasks for the college (e.g., SLO assessment), it is becoming even more important for us to have sufficient funds available for student graders. The grader issue is especially dire in the Chemistry program. Given the proven meticulous pedagogy used by the Chemistry instructors and the large number of overloads they teach, the Chemistry program needs money to pay for more student graders. Due to the increase in the state's minimum wage, the college graciously awarded us more money, but their largesse has been insufficient to cover the anticipated grader budget. We've added more sections to the Chemistry schedule this year, so the problem will become even worse. Also, we had a tradtion of backfilling grader money with Chemistry Foundation monies, yet we no longer wish to do this since our loss of income from the sale of lab manuals means the account will quickly deplete. We need more money for student graders. Absent this, we need to regain permission to sell lab manuals (q.v.) for profits funneled into the Foundation accounts.
Mastery of the physical sciences requires focused attention on detail and the nurturing of analytical skills. Hence, grading lab reports and other work is necessary, yet very time-consuming for the instructors especially since many of us are on overload. Employing our successful students as graders yields three great benefits: 1) Students receive significantly more feedback with an increased level of detail and in a more timely manner than the instructor would be able to provide alone. 2) Instructors are better able to focus on student success and learning outcomes in their courses. 3) The student graders receive valuable training in analytical skills and physical intuition, as well as a source of income with a highly flexible schedule.
Strategy 5 - Lab Manual Profits
For years, instructors wrote their own lab manuals and then sold them through the bookstore for a modest profit. These profits accumulated in various Foundation accounts, which would ultimately be used to purchase special or one-time pieces of equipment that would be used in lecture or lab. These lab manuals were unique in that they were written specifically for the classes that our students take and could not be easily replaced with a broad market lab manual available online or in bookstores. The lab manuals sold through Butte were also inexpensive compared to lab manuals sold en masse from large publishing houses (~$20 compared with ~$80). Three years ago, administration rescinded their permission for us to accumulate profits due to fears that continued accumulation would violate specific items in the Chancellor's Office protocol. While we respect administation's stance, we believe they do not fully appreciate the value of these profits for physical science programs. By accumulating profits into Foundation accounts, they are no longer considered private income or property of the faculty, but instead become property of Butte College. As such, it is then very unlikley (if not impossible) for the faculty to spend these funds capriciously or dishonestly. Disbursement of Foundation funds requires not only the signature of an appropriate instructor (only done after consultation with other faculty), but also the signature of the relevant dean. We believe that the very structure of Butte College presents an inpenetrable firewall between the Foundation and the faculty. Because we always counted on these funds, we rarely asked for administartion to increase our supply or grader budgets. For many years, we used Foundation funds to backfill these deficient accounts, in a sense cushioning administration's responsibilities to the programs. We believe we have found a way to offer the lab manuals for profit once again while avoiding any confrontation with the Chancellor's office. We see this as a "win-win" since it gives us back the flexability we once enjoyed while reducing pressure on administation from the department for ever more monies.
See above.
Strategy 6 - Counseling
Despite ongoing and constructive conversations with Counseling, we continue to hear testimony from students that they are often advised to take GE courses in lieu of their STEM prerequisites. STEM majors have content-heavy loads; most courses are four or five units. Diverting them into GE courses prolongs their stay here at Butte because they cannot transfer until they complete their prerequisites. This runs counter to both the college's and the state's mandate to increase completion and transfer rates. Part of this is due to our lack of space and therefore lack of enough sections to satisfy demand--counselors inevitably encourage students into GE courses to help give them a complete schedule. Part of this is also due to the confusing nature of enrollment: there are many moving parts that can overwhelm many students. While we work well with Counseling, we feel that this problem is best solved by retaining one or two counselors whose sole job is to advise science and engineering majors, counselors who understand the absolute necessity for STEM students to complete their prerequisites and NOT to focus so much on GE. Guided Pathways will help with this, but GP combined with a STEM counselor or two will make an enormous impact on transfer rates and decrease the amount of time that STEM students spend at Butte.
See above.
Strategy 7 - Maker Space
The college is currently studying the creation of a Maker Space on campus where students and faculty can work on various construction and fabrication projects. We fully support this as we see that students mostly learn by doing. A Maker Space gives them just that without it impacting our instructional lab rooms. We hope the administration continues to support this project.
See above.
Lecture and laboratory space. We would like the college to consider remodeling unused space (e.g., automotive) into labs or possibly lecture rooms. Since there is no other appropriate space on main campus for chemistry and physics labs, this seems a sensible solution. If not, then consider moving some labs into temporary portable spaces that could also serve the Life Sciences department until the new science building is finished.
The department currently has NO external funding sources.
| Original Priority | Program, Unit, Area | Resource Type | Account Number | Object Code | One Time Augment | Ongoing Augment |
| Description | Supporting Rationale | Potential Alternative Funding Sources | Prioritization Criteria | |||
| 1 | Chemistry | Operating Expenses | $9,400.00 | $14,500.00 | ||
| Student Grader Money | Graded assignments are at the core of how Chemistry is taught. Students must receive feedback on assignments to correct errors in technique and concepts. Course content builds on previous understanding, so this process of learn, apply, correct, and understand is then applied to additional topics. The College’s support for student grading did not keep pace with increases in enrollment, so faculty began to add a small surcharge to faculty-produced lab manuals (with the blessing of the College’s administration) and used these funds to support the demand for grading. In 2014, this practice was suddenly stopped by the College administration. However, in spite of promises to replace the funding, no permanent solution to the loss of this support has come forward. This has had a significant negative impact on our educational programs, affecting our ability to achieve our Program Student Learning Outcomes. Laboratory reports and homework assignments are two major categories of graded assignments used to support student these SLOs. Laboratory experiments are critical for Chemistry Program SLOs #1 and #2. Students prepare for each experiment by reading the experimental introduction and procedure (including safety warnings). Many classes require that students complete a “pre-lab” that includes sample calculations and concept questions. The students then complete the experiment, and data is then used to determine the experiment’s results, which involves graphing and/or calculations using the data on the report. Finally, students are asked to interpret data, reflect on the experimental procedure, and answer concept questions based on their results (which applies to SLO#3). These reports provide the student important feedback on their understanding of the experiment and its concepts. Homework assignments address SLOs #2 and #3. Students are assigned reading in their text, and then directed to answer questions (in writing) about what they have read. Collecting and grading homework assignments is especially critical in entry-level chemistry classes, since the students may not yet understand the essential nature of hands-on learning in the natural sciences. In November 2015, an affective survey was administered to five different chemistry classes (310 responses) to assess the value of graded assignments to the students in those classes. These courses varied in whether homework was simply assigned (and not collected) or collected and graded and not all courses required pre-lab assignments. The results indicated that feedback is seen as being extremely important to students (80-100% responded this is always or sometimes true), and comments are especially helpful to them (87-94%). Timely feedback is critical to the students (90-100% as very important or important). Homework is also universally seen as essential in preparing for examinations (95-100% as true). Finally, pre-labs and especially graded lab reports are seen as valuable teaching and learning tools (80-97%). Select comments included: • When teachers write comments on my paper it really helps me to see what I have done wrong in the problem. • Having homework being fully graded, rather than only partly graded would be fantastic. It helps hone in on study issues. • It is concerning not to receive corrected assignments in a timely manner because it is hard to compare any progress. It is clear homework and reports that are graded, include comments, and are returned in a timely fashion, are at the core of student success in chemistry courses. It is not physically possible for instructors to fulfill this responsibility without help. A core part of our instructional program, fundamental to achieving student learning outcomes, has been supported by income from our lab manuals that we are no longer collecting. This has forced us to make uncomfortable pedagogical decisions based on this lack of support, and our ability to continue to provide effective instruction has been seriously compromised. |
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| 2 | Physics, Physical Science & Geology | Personnel | $11,000.00 | $11,000.00 | ||
| Twelve-month Senior Physical Sciences Laboratory Technician | Our Physical Sciences Senior Lab Technician is currently on a ten-month contract. He is unable to utilize the summer months to work on badly needed long-term projects. We want to recharacterize this position into a twelve-month one. Since we've added sections to the summer schedule and spring schedule and we plan to continue adding, we need to have a full-year technician. While Rusty is very good at juggling his various duties and assignments, he lacks to time to work on long-range projects over the summer. We have a growing list of physics and physical science demonstration equipment that we would like to have Rusty build and test and given the constraints he has during the normal academic year, these assignments can only be realized in a summer setting. |
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| 3 | Chemistry/Physics | Equipment | $2,500.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Computers | We are hiring a new chemistry and a new physics instructors. They will need new office computers. |
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| 4 | Physics | Operating Expenses | $0.00 | $4,517.00 | ||
| Increased supply, grader, and equipment budgets | The current Physics budget is $5708 ($2763 for supplies, $2720 for student graders, and $225 for student assistants). The program has NO dedicated equipment budget. We ask for ongoing increases in the supply and student grader budgets of $237 and $280, respectively, and the creation of a dedicated equipment budget of $4000. The increases for supplies and graders reflect increases in the costs of consumables and increases in the minimum wage. Also, as we add sections to the schedule and full-time faculty take on overloads, they need more student graders. The new equipment budget will help us begin purchasing expensive, yet necessary, equipment for the new science building. (Some of this equipment is listed as separate augmentation requests.) Also, current equipment costs are covered by the supply budget or offset by using Foundation money (since we no longer receive profits from the sale of lab manuals, our Foundation accounts inexorably decrease). Examples of new equipment include: optics benches; liquids lab materials; and circuit labs. Finally, more sections means increases in printing costs, which are currently covered by the Chemistry program. |
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| 5 | Geology | Operating Expenses | $0.00 | $1,767.00 | ||
| Increase in annual supply and travel budgets | The current Geology budget is $643 for supplies and $290 for travel. This amount has not changed in at least six years. We seek an ongoing increase of $767 ($357 for supplies and $410 for travel) as well as the creation of a dedicated equipment budget (there currently isn't one) funded at $1000. Maps, scratch pads, glass plates, and other consumables continue to increase in price. The program also wants to slowly purchase microscopes and balances for the new building. We ask for a travel money increase since the field trips are very popular with the students and assessments have shown that they improve student success. |
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| 6 | Physical Science | Operating Expenses | $0.00 | $3,336.00 | ||
| Increased budgets for supplies | Like Geology and Physics, this program has NO dedicated equipment budget. The current budget is $1304 ($824 for supplies, $340 for student graders, and $140 for travel). We seek ongoing increases of $676 for supplies, $660 for student graders, and the creation of an equipment budget funded at $2000. These increases cover the increase of printing and student grader costs as we continue to add sections. The new equipment budget will help us begin purchasing equipment for the new science building. |
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| 7 | Chemistry | Equipment | $3,000.00 | $3,000.00 | ||
| ChemDraw software | ChemDraw is software that allows for the creation of line-bond structure drawings that represent molecules, ions, chemical reactions, and a variety of other chemical species and processes. It is industry and academic-standard software that is utilized by chemistry instructors for the development of course materials (including handouts, laboratory experiments, and assessment items). It is also utilized by students in several chemistry courses for writing laboratory experiment reports. This software is instrumental in providing for the following course level SLOs: CHEM 2: B, C; CHEM 21: A, B, C; CHEM 22: A, B, C, D; and CHEM 52: A, B. This software was previously funded for many years by the proceeds from selling lab manuals authored by our department, which is no longer allowed by the College. In spite of promises to replace the funding, no permanent solution to the loss of this support has come forward. |
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| 8 | Chemistry | Equipment | $700.00 | $350.00 | ||
| FileMaker Pro | For the past decade, the Physical Sciences department has administered a site license for FileMaker Pro and FileMaker Server software. The site license allows the College to use 54 copies of FileMaker Pro, one copy of FileMaker Pro Advanced and 3 copies of FileMaker Server. This software is used throughout the campus, including the IT department. Users reimburse the Chemistry department for their licenses. This software is crucial for efficiently maintaining the chemistry data files, and for several administrative functions both within the department and campus-wide. Under the existing license, the cost of each FMP seat is $26.50/year, for FMPA it is $48, and for FMS it is $99. The out-of-license cost per copy to the College would be $329, $549 and $7163, respectively, or a cost of $39,804 for the campus, and $19,481 for our department. The current cost of our license is based on having over 50 FMP licenses; the cost per user increases if we fall below that number. Current cost to the College to maintain these licenses is $1818 per year for the entire campus. Due to recent losses of funding, we can no longer sustain the current administration of these licenses without College support. The Physical Sciences department is currently using 14 copies of FileMaker Pro, one copy of FileMaker Pro Advanced, and two copies of FileMaker Pro server. We renew the contract every two years, to take advantage of additional savings. For our department only, this cost is $620 per year (saving the College about $18,861). If we are to continue to administer the licenses for the College, the cost would be $1820 per year (saving the College about $38,000). This software was previously funded for many years by the proceeds from selling lab manuals authored by our department, which is no longer allowed by the College. In spite of promises to replace the funding, no permanent solution to the loss of this support has come forward. |
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| 9 | Physics | Equipment | $7,500.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Coulomb's Law Apparatus | We currently have one (1) of these devices. Coulomb's law serves a foundational role for the entire electromagnetism section in PHYS 42 and PHYS 22. One device is good for demonstration purposes, but it does not suffice for twenty-four students trying to obtain data. We need five (5) more at an approximate unit price of $1500. |
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| 10 | Physics | Equipment | $9,000.00 | $0.00 | ||
| High Voltage Power Supply | The Coulomb's Law Apparatus each requires a high-voltage power source to generate sufficiently strong electric fields from which students can gather meaningful data. We have one (1) now, and we need five (5) more at an approximate unit price of $1500. Note: Our existing apparatus uses an unwieldy combination of decrepit power supplies. We want to upgrade the power supply for this apparatus. |
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| 11 | Chemistry | Equipment | $2,500.00 | $0.00 | ||
| UV-Vis Detector | The LabQuest device is a key component in CHEM 51, CHEM 1 and CHEM 2. The detector hooks into the LabQuest and it is designed for obtaining ultraviolet and visible signals for various experiments. These will allow us to collect quantitative data in experiments that rely on light absorption by matter, including using Beer’s Law experiments, and experiments examining complex ions. The latter experiment now relies on determining wavelength using a color wheel. Currently, students who are colorblind or visually impaired require assistance in collecting data for experiments that rely on color perception; these would remove that barrier. (Program SLO #1 and #2). These devices can also help students grasp the concept of color subtraction in spectroscopy, which is both non-trivial and nonintuitive (SLO #3). Since spectroscopy is such a widespread phenomenon in science, we expect the spectrometers will be useful throughout the Physical Sciences curriculum. This request is for five (5) of these detectors. |
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| 12 | Chemistry | Equipment | $9,300.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Organic Chemistry Glassware | Organic Chemistry courses have special glassware requirements. We want to secure a dedicated set of glassware for use in CHEM 21 and CHEM 22 without having to worry about the attrition of the general glassware in the other Chemistry classes. This glassware is necessary for students to perform experimental work and supports the following course level SLOs: CHEM 21: D, E; CHEM 22: D, E. |
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| 13 | Chemistry, Geology, Physics, and Physical Science | Equipment | $75,000.00 | $2,000.00 | ||
| Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) | The ability to view microscopic structures enhances the scientific experience for all students. We have identified various useful projects for an the SEM in the following classes in our department as well as in Biology, Nursing, Welding, Art, and Automotive: PHYS 10, 11, 21, 22, 41, 42, 43; PSC 20; GEOL 32, 34; BIOL 1, 2, 11, 12, 13, 15; ENGR 17, 45; NSG24; WLD 20; AUT 9; and ART 86D, |
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