April 2005

Middle Stages Reaccreditation Subcommittees

Huseonica’s Role Puts Him in Touch with “UMUC’s Finest”

By Alita Byrd
Special to FYI Online

Art Huseonica

For Art Huseonica, chair of the leadership, governance, and integrity subcommittee for the Middle States review, his work is all about people. It’s about getting to know UMUC’s leaders, faculty, and staff across the globe, as well as forming a closer working relationship with his subcommittee members. To Huseonica, being chair means “working with some of UMUC’s finest staff, faculty, and students to develop the subcommittee’s report.”

Huseonica’s subcommittee members feel the same way. They frequently tell him how much fun it is to research and find the proper faculty or staff member within UMUC’s three divisions who can help answer their charge questions.

“Friendships have already developed that will last a long time,” Huseonica said.

The leadership, governance, and integrity subcommittee started by unpacking the 26 charge questions, translating complex issues into easy-to-manage pieces. Each of the nine subcommittee members took the responsibility of researching a set of three to five related questions. To answer the questions, subcommittee members interviewed UMUC’s global staff, faculty, and students.

“Because leadership and governance includes the University System of Maryland and the Board of Regents, we also interviewed USM Chancellor Brit Kirwan,” said Huseonica. “The results were very enlightening, helping us to better understand the terminology and governance processes at that level.”

As a result of the self-assessment, Huseonica’s subcommittee has a clearer understanding of the way UMUC works in its different divisions.

“While we are one UMUC, some processes in Europe, for example, are slightly different than in Adelphi,” Huseonica said. “[This is] due to the operational environment and the fact that UMUC Europe is under contract with the U.S. Department of Defense.

“In some ways, the standards of leadership, governance, and integrity are all abstract qualities to measure, requiring careful analysis,” Huseonica said. “By contrast, some charge questions . . . can be easily answered by referring to the appropriate Web page.”

After many hours of work, Huseonica and his colleagues finished their research into UMUC’s leadership and governance. They are drafting their report for Middle States, “filling any information potholes as deemed necessary,” Huseonica said. Next they will work with the Steering and Coordinating Committees to make adjustments and improvements to the draft report.

“Anytime you do a self-assessment, it’s worth the time and energies,” Huseonica said. “We are learning more about UMUC’s programs, processes, and personnel as a result of our research . . . and we have highlighted some areas for improvement.”

Huseonica said the best part of the process has been “working closely with my talented and motivated subcommittee colleagues.” The subcommittee members represent all UMUC divisions and stakeholder groups, including faculty, students, and various levels of administrative staff. Bill Berglof represents UMUC Asia, while John Golembe, Tevis Noelting, and Jason Vera hail from UMUC Europe. Bob Jerome and Andrew Rein are based in Adelphi, and Rachel Zelkind is in the Office of Legal Affairs. Carol Dell’Amore is director of the National Leadership Institute and Richard Schumaker is manager of worldwide training for the Center for Teaching and Learning. Huseonica is adamant that these contributors get the recognition they deserve for their hard work.

As for himself, Huseonica currently serves as academic director for computer studies and an associate professor, but he has held a number of posts with UMUC since he completed his UMUC bachelor’s degree in Japan in 1987. He first taught for UMUC Europe in Iceland in 1990. He became a full-time administrator in Iceland in 1995, then later was named chair of UMUC’s global faculty advisory council. Later still he became the collegiate faculty representative for the School of Undergraduate Studies.

The current Middle States review is not Huseonica’s first encounter with self-assessment studies. Before starting work for UMUC, Huseonica was an ocean systems technician working with undersea surveillance units for the U.S. Navy. As part of his work, Huseonica managed self-assessment preparations at global installations and served on a variety of teams reviewing naval facilities around the world.

After globetrotting for the Navy, Huseonica enjoys UMUC’s international component. He says his job is “fast-paced and challenging, which means every day is different.” But again, it is his “great colleagues” that really make the place special.

“I’m hopeful that our report will contribute to evaluating the extent to which UMUC is achieving its mission and serving the nontraditional student,” Huseonica said.

For more about the Middle States reaccreditation subcommittees, see the earlier stories about Alan Berg and Pamela Monaco.