Teaching

Teaching includes, among other things, classroom and laboratory instruction; development of new courses, laboratories, and teaching methods; publication of instructional materials, including textbooks; and supervision of graduate students. Teaching is one of three “Marks of Excellence” identified in Texas A&M University’s Vision 2020 Mid-term Review, Creating a Culture of Excellence—Serving the Public Good:

Lead in Educating the Next Generation: We will graduate highly recruited leaders who are critical thinkers, effective communicators, and lifelong learners with diverse and global perspectives. We will build on our historical emphasis on student leadership development to:

• Accelerate our strengthening graduate programs
• Graduate students who are highly valued in their professions
• Increase the number of graduates and reduce time to degree
• Ensure that students have high-impact educational experiences including international experiences
• Enrich the quality of life for a diverse and global campus environment
• Develop responsible servant leaders with a commitment to public service
• Value the residential experience
• Enhance the integration of curricular and co-curricular experiences
• Maintain accessibility

Research

Research, scholarship, and creative activities focus on creation and dissemination of new knowledge or other creative activities. For most disciplines, this category consists of research and publication. For some disciplines, however, it may include other forms of creative activity. Architectural design, engineering technology, veterinary or medical technology, fiction, poetry, painting, music, and sculpture are examples. Research, scholarship, and creative activities represent the second of three “Marks of Excellence” identified in Texas A&M University’s Vision 2020 Mid-term Review, Creating a Culture of Excellence—Serving the Public Good:

Lead in Scholarly Impact: Our scholars' work (faculty and students) will have more impact in the classroom, the laboratories, the disciplines and in the lives of people around the world. We will leverage our scholarly strengths to:

• Foster multidisciplinary and multi-modal research
• Inform public policy
• Fuel economic development and the entrepreneurial spirit
• Build energy capacity
• Enlarge the food supply
• Enhance national security
• Strengthen the letters and the arts
• Advance the professions
• Innovate in technology
• Generate advancements in health and the life sciences
• Build on the extension model to expand scholarly engagement

Service

Service includes time and contributions that support the institution, students, colleagues, departments, colleges, and the University--as well as service beyond the campus. Examples of the latter include service to professional societies, research organizations, governmental agencies, the local community, and the public at large. Service, engagement, and outreach constitute the final of three “Marks of Excellence” identified in Texas A&M University’s Vision 2020 Mid-term Review, Creating a Culture of Excellence—Serving the Public Good:

Lead in Stewardship and Partner Engagement: We will be the exemplar of responsible stewardship of resources, driven by transparent, effective planning and decision making. We will develop mutually beneficial partnerships and strategic alliances with external constituents that involve the creation, dissemination and translation of academic knowledge. We will:

• Be accountable for those resources entrusted to us
• Improve the return on funds invested by the state and benefactors
• Maintain the public trust
• Sustain and enhance the environment
• Foster continuous improvement
• Increase strategic alliances with K-12, community colleges, non-profit and for-profit partners, especially in urban areas
• Expand distance and continuing education
• Expand scholarly engagement with urban and emerging population centers