University Information

Commitment to Continual Quality Improvement

professor and student As enrollment figures have grown, at times dramatically, there has been concern that the University maintains its quality and commitment to superior instruction. Nearly 70 percent of USI’s classes have enrollments of 25 or fewer students. USI reflects student-centered learning in its extraordinary commitment to an educational model that emphasizes faculty/staff-student connections and educating the complete student inside and outside the classroom for a future of active lifelong learning. Students often comment that they value the opportunity to work closely with their professors. USI students who compare notes with friends attending larger universities come away pleased that USI does not have teaching assistants as a filter between students and faculty.

Excellence in teaching continues to be the most important criterion in faculty recruitment. The ability to do research, to engage in continuous scholarly and creative work, and to provide service, primarily to the region and the state, are important additional qualifications. Because full-time faculty are the core of the University, USI will continue its efforts to reduce the present reliance on part-time faculty while maintaining flexibility in staffing. Funding through the Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs allows faculty to participate in scholarly research, engage in student/faculty research projects, and undertake summer and sabbatical study.

Measuring what students are learning is fundamental to judging the quality of teaching. To that end, more than 2,500 freshmen and juniors participate annually in the Assessment of Academic Achievement testing program. In addition to this assessment method, many of the institution's academic departments administer the Educational Testing Service Academic Major Field Test for students in their senior year. Overwhelmingly, USI students exceed national norms on these tests.

A revised general education program, the University Core Curriculum, was implemented in fall 1995 following several years of study, development, and planning.

Commitment to Expanded Access to Higher Education

Education is the key component in productivity, economic competitiveness, and workforce development. The University has historically been actively engaged in addressing the state’s interest in economic and workforce development and is a proven resource for helping achieve the state’s goals. The
institution has a consistent record of developing and expanding programs and services in anticipation of or in response to the needs of a changing economy. USI produces well-prepared graduates who live, work, and lead in the region, helping to drive economic growth.

In an effort to keep Indiana's brightest and best students in the state, the University has created scholarship programs which recognize scholastic achievements. The Presidential Scholarship program, funded with private gifts, offers full scholarships, including tuition, room and board, and books, for qualifying valedictorians and salutatorians. The competitive Dean’s Scholarships, also privately funded, are renewable full-tuition awards to entering freshmen. With the Indiana University School of Medicine- Evansville, USI offers a highly competitive Bachelor/Doctor of Medicine (B/MD) scholarship to as many as six entering freshmen each year. This scholarship covers tuition, and grants the student a provisional seat in IU School of Medicine-Evansville if grades and test scores meet the school’s criteria. In academic year 2007, USI students receivedmore than $52 million in financial assistance, with the USI Foundation contributing nearly $1 million from privately funded scholarships.

The University plans to accommodate larger numbers of students through recruitment and retention strategies. Past enrollment trends show the University has been successful in these efforts. The University developed and adopted a comprehensive student retention plan which addresses student success in the areas of instruction, student support, and student services. In partial fulfillment of the plan, faculty members have developed a number of experimental course pairings for the promotion of "learning communities.”

Current enrollment trends indicate that larger numbers of students are coming to the University from more distant areas, necessitating the construction of additional campus housing. The number of students living in University housing has increased from 976 in 1988-89 to approximately 2,600.

Several programs and working partnerships facilitate the goal of meeting the state's future enrollment needs. These include dual enrollment programs with area high schools and articulation agreements in a number of areas with Ivy Tech Community College and Vincennes University, endorsement of the statewide agreement on transfer of general education courses, the Indiana-Kentucky reciprocity program, high school agreement courses, and active participation in the distance education initiative of the Indiana College Network.