FAEIS Newsletter

May 15, 2008

In This Issue:

2007 Surveys

User Spotlight

Faculty Age

International Program Database Update

Featured Project Profile from the International Program Database

Greetings from the FAEIS team at Virginia Tech. If you are not familiar with this important project from USDA/CSREES, click here to read about FAEIS and why it is important to you.

For the May newsletter we focus on the age of faculty (see below).

2007 Surveys

About 85% of 2007 student and faculty survey data have been received. The 2007 data is processed and added to the reports extracts and is available for your use in Report Builder.

We will continue to send reminder messages to those who have not started their surveys. To check on the status of FAEIS surveys for your college, see the 2007 Survey Status Report.

THANK YOU to all who have completed your surveys. We appreciate you taking your time to provide this important information.

User Spotlight

From Dr. Alan Mathew, Professor and Head, Department of Animal Science, The University of Tennessee:

"Following a presentation of the FAEIS data on graduate enrollment, we had a very good discussion at our Animal Science Department Heads meeting in Reno NV last week... Again, thank you for the excellent work FAEIS conducts for us." View the entire quote..

Faculty Age

Age is calculated from demographic data (birth month/year) collected with each entry in the annual faculty survey. Reports can also be produced for faculty head counts and salaries (monthly and annual). Parameters include rank, appointment, discipline, institution, gender and race.

Four of the top ten academic areas with the youngest average faculty age at FAEIS colleges are in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences area (biotechnology, cell/cellular biology, ecology, evolution, systematics and population biology and biomathematics and bioinformatics). Two other academic areas with the youngest average faculty age include athletic training/trainer and exercise science, physiology and kinesiology. Contact us at the FAEIS Help Desk if you would like us to produce faculty reports for you.

Average Faculty Age by Academic Area at All Institutions in 2006

Click here to see the entire list of academic areas.

Average Faculty Age by Rank and Race for all Institutions in 2006

The average age of an assistant professor regardless of race is 42. For an associate professor the average age is 50 and for a full professor it is 56.

The average age of Caucasian and Black faculty is similar, however, the average age of Asian and Hispanic faculty is lower.

International Programs Database Update

After a successful launch, the FAEIS International Program Database (IPD) has made substantial progress in collecting information about international programs and projects in the Agricultural Sciences nationwide. The IPD was rapidly adopted by the international community among Land Grant universities, and now has over 60 participating institutions. The FAEIS team stands ready to ensure that institutions are well-represented in the database, and that any questions receive a thorough and timely answer. We are making email and phone contacts to personally assist with registration and data entry.

Through the FAEIS International Program Database, information is shared with funding organizations and other institutions to help promote international activities across the U.S. and abroad. Data collected thus far show that over 2600 students are studying abroad in the fields of Agriculture, Human/Family and Consumer Sciences, Forestry and Natural Resources, Veterinary Medicine, and related sciences; data also demonstrate that FAEIS IPD institutions are partnering with 65 countries worldwide to share progress and create change. To make sure that your institution is included in the database and to access any of the information from the IPD, please contact Jessica Muller, FAEIS IPD Project Assistant, by phone at 540-231-6204 or by email at jmuller@vcom.vt.edu, Dr. H. Dean Sutphin, FAEIS International Module Co-PI at sutphind@vt.edu, or the FAEIS Help Desk at faeis@vt.edu.

Featured Project Profile from the International Program Database

University of Kentucky
Improving Agricultural Education in the Republic of Georgia
Principal Investigators: Dr. Michael Reed, Dr. Larry Grabau, Dr. Rick Costin

In September of 2005, faculty at the University of Kentucky began a partnership with USDA to create a three-year project which provides technical assistance to the Republic of Georgia through improving academic structures and subject matter at four different agricultural colleges. The project engages University of Kentucky faculty members, state extension specialists, county agents, students, and agricultural education specialists in a series of short visits throughout the school year and in 6-8 week summer internships, designed to help agricultural colleges in rural Georgia better serve their students and local farmers. View the entire project description..

Need Any Help?

We've tried to make FAEIS Data Entry and Report Builder simple and intuitive but we know there are still some challenges when you are first getting started.  We're here to help! Call us at 540-231-4941 or e-mail us at : faeis@vt.edu.

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