Common Acronyms & Terms

These are some common acronyms and terms that you'll hear and see used in relation to our Faculty Association, SMSU, committees, and various other faculty functions. If you have questions about an acronym you come across, reach out, and we'll add it to the list. 

• 19B funds: Contractually-granted funding for professional development purposes, can also be called "contractual travel" and "professional development funds." 
  
  
• ALS: Arts, Letters, & Sciences, one of the two colleges at SMSU.
  
  
• AOS: Access Opportunity Success, a program on campus designed to "facilitate access to Southwest Minnesota State University's academic programs through programs and services that contribute to individual students' development of academic skills and thinking processes necessary for academic success."
  
  
• Assembly: The every-other week meeting where IFO faculty gathers to determine stances on campus/academic initiatives and formulate/pass curriculum and policy changes. Only IFO members can vote on items, but all faculty are welcome to attend.
  
  
• Assessment-related acronyms can be found by following this link.
  
  
• BEPS: Business, Education, & Professional Studies, one of the two colleges at SMSU.
  
  
• BESI: Board Early Separation Incentive, designed to encourage the early separation of selected employees in order to reduce salary and benefit obligations in anticipation of a tightening budget or changing priorities.
  
  
• CIA: Committee on Institutional Assessment
  
  
• College Now: Our concurrent enrollment program, where high school students can earn SMSU credits by taking courses in their schools.
  
  
• Exec: Usually the SmSUFA Executive Committee.
  
  
• FIG: Faculty Improvement Grant, also occasionally called 19A funds.
  
  
• HLC: Higher Learning Commission, SMSU's main accrediting body. 
  
  
• IFO: Inter-Faculty Organization, the statewide faculty union that SmSUFA is a part of. All seven Minnesota State Universities' teaching faculty are represented by the IFO at the state level, including SMSU. As a faculty, you need to elect to be a member of IFO. To become a member of IFO, and thereby a full member of SmSUFA, fill out the membership form here or contact the SmSUFA President.
  
  
• LEC: Liberal Education Committee.
  
  
• LEP: Liberal Education Program, SMSU's general education curriculum.
  
  
• Master Agreement: our contract with Minnesota State administration.
  
  
• MnTC: Minnesota Transfer Curriculum. The MnTC is the basis for SMSU's Liberal Education Curriculum.
  
  
• Mustang Pathway: An alternate entry program to allow more students to earn their degree at SMSU.
  
  
• OPM: Online Program Managers, private companies that promise to generate online enrollment and support student enrollment in online programs. Wiley is an OPM. 
  
  
• PDP: Professional Development Plan.
  
  
• PDR: Professional Development Report.
  
  
• SmSUFA: The Southwest Minnesota State University Faculty Association. Pronounced "soofah" (the m is silent). This is our local arm of the IFO.