Shared Governance Taskforce Report
Comprised of four Faculty Senate representatives, four academic administrators, and three ex-officio members, this joint task force will deepen and expand our collective understanding, expertise, and best-emerging practices for activating shared governance across the range of activities, responsibilities, and areas in Academic Affairs and across campus.
CVPA DAC Faculty Feedback
The charge of the College of Visual and Performing Arts Dean's Advisory Council (CVPA DAC) is to provide a vehicle for the faculty, staff, and students of the college to directly communicate with the Dean, communicating concerns, viewpoints, and recommendations interdependent of any other administrative levels of the college. Please let us know your thoughts, comments, and questions about the college by completing this form.
If you would like to share your thoughts, comments and questions about a school, please contact:
- *School of Art, Design and Art History: MiKyoung Lee at lee28mx@jmu.edu or 540-568-7330
- *School of Music: Dr. John Allemeier at allemejm@jmu.edu or 540-568-3614
- *School of Theatre and Dance: Ilana Morgan at ys8plq@jmu.edu 540-568-3468
NOTE: If you have contacted the school director and your question or comment remains unresolved, you can also use this form to share with the CVPA DAC.
The Cultural Connections Residency Program 2025-2026
The Cultural Connections Residency Program aims to bring diversity, in all its forms, to the JMU campus and to provide opportunities for students and faculty to engage with artists and designers from multiple disciplines. The CVPA Council for Inclusive Excellence encourages proposals from all artists in order to enhance the diversity of thought, perspective, socioeconomic status and background, and cultural experiences.
A Sampling of Past and Upcoming Guest Artists Funded by the CCRP
Faculty Recognition Awards
The College of Visual and Performing Arts is proud of the accomplishments and commitment of its faculty. In recognition of superlative achievements, the college gives five honors: Distinguished Teacher, Madison Scholar, and Distinguished Servicer. See nomination forms, guidelines and past honorees.
Faculty Professional Development Awards
Purpose of the Awards
The College of Visual and Performing Arts at James Madison University offers financial assistance to stimulate and assist teaching effectiveness, advance creative scholarly and research agendas, or assist in developing service activities, while also reflecting the goals of the academic unit, college, and university. Proposals in any field of creative or scholarly activity related to the faculty members’ discipline may be submitted. Awards are to be used to sustain activities necessary to complete the proposed projects or endeavors, including travel expenses and other related costs (see budget section for restrictions). Faculty are limited to a maximum of $5,000 across both award periods.
Eligibility
Proposals may be submitted individually or on behalf of a team; the principal proposer must be a full-time CVPA faculty member (including academic unit heads). Faculty members may be part of multiple Faculty Professional Development Award proposals; however, they will only be eligible to receive one award as a principal proposer in each academic year. Faculty members are able to apply for and earn these awards annually; junior faculty members are particularly encouraged to apply.
Proposal Submission and Review
Proposals will be reviewed two times a year by the CVPA Professional Development Committee. Proposals should be submitted by 5:00 pm on October 31, 2025, for the fall, or February 28, 2026, for the spring to Interim Associate Dean Eric Guinivan (guiniver@jmu.edu). A limited number of fall or spring applications may be funded for projects that span academic years (summer funding).
Educational Leave
PURPOSE
The College of Visual and Performing Arts at James Madison University offers Educational Leaves to provide faculty members with opportunities to expand their research and/or teaching abilities and/or to foster intellectual growth. The ultimate purpose of these leaves is to sustain vigor, especially in the College’s academic instructional programs, and to ensure that faculty members have the opportunity for professional development.
ELIGIBILITY
To be eligible to apply for an Educational Leave, a faculty member must meet the following qualifications:
- The candidate must be a full-time faculty member or school director in the College of Visual and Performing Arts.
- The candidate must occupy a renewable term appointment (e.g. lecturer), a tenure-track position or have tenure at the time of application.
- The candidate applying for the first time must be in at least the third year of full-time service at James Madison University.
- A previous recipient of an educational leave must complete five full academic years of teaching before he or she is eligible for another leave. Those who last received a leave in 2024-2025 are eligible to apply for a leave for the 2030-2031 academic year.
- The candidate must not be serving as a member of the College's Professional Development Committee.
- The candidate must have the written endorsement of their academic unit head (AUH).
APPLICATION SUBMISSION PROCEDURES
Written application for Educational Leave must be submitted on the attached forms and forwarded to the applicant’s school AUH in advance of the due date. The proposal must be reviewed and endorsed by the school director. The original application and endorsement must be submitted via email to the Interim Associate Dean Eric Guinivan (guiniver@jmu.edu) no later than 4 pm Friday, October 10, 2025. Only applications received by this date will be accepted for consideration by the CVPA Professional Development Committee.
Alumni Mentor Program
The CVPA Alumni Mentor Program is an opportunity for students in a course to build a relationship with a CVPA alum through recurring engagement around the course content in connection with the alum’s experiences and expertise. Alumni mentors will be provided an honorarium for collaborating with the faculty/instructor to provide at least three interactions with the students enrolled during one semester. Interactions with the class can be virtual, in person, or hybrid. Alumni Mentor Proposals will be reviewed by the associate deans and school directors. Additional information is included in the proposal form.
Proposals for the Alumni Mentor Program are due to the Assistant Dean by August 1 for fall semester courses and November 1 for spring semester courses.
