The Barrier Team at UWG will identify, assess, and provide recommendations for improving operational processes, policies, and practices with the goal of eliminating barriers of inefficiency. With a culture and mantra of problem solving, this team must align identified barriers with efficient solutions through the lens of mandated statutes, governing policies, and system shared services.  

The Barriers Team does not address issues related to interpersonal conflict, discrimination, professional misconduct, supervisor/employee disputes, instructor/student issues, or faculty/staff issues. If you are dealing with any of these issues, here are some other offices on campus that may be able to assist you.

  • The Ombuds Office on campus is a place where the staff works to resolve university related conflicts and concerns. Specifically, it can help when you do not know how to begin the process of resolving your conflict. The Ombuds office is completely confidential and does not have a responsibility to report.
  • The Office of Human Resources can formally address issues related to discrimination and harassment as well as conflict resolution.
  • Barrier Team Members
    Chair

    Ms. April Coe Duffie

    aduffie@westga.edu

    		 Prospect Research Coordinator, Advancement
    Members
    Mr. Kevin Shunn Chair, Department of Art
    Ms. Rebecca Smith Assistant Director, Newnan Center
    Ms. Liz Baker Executive Director, Budget Services
    Mr. Ron Richards Director, Internal Audit
    Dr. Shea Rose Associate Professor, Geosciences
    Dr. Jennifer Jordan AVP Enrollment Management, SAEM
    Ms. Angela Mehafee Interlibrary Loan Manager
    Dr. Denise Overfield AVP Academic Affairs; Dean, Graduate School
    Ms. Brooke Keener Staff Advisory Council, Publications & Printing
    Mr. Vedat Gunay Project Manager, ITS
    Mr. Cole Fannin Business Consultant, Small Business Dev. Center
    Dr. Tammy McClenny RN to BSN Director and Asst. Professor, THSSON
    Ms. Bridgette Stewart Health & Community Wellness Program Coordinator and Sr. Lecturer, COE
    Ms. Elizabeth Smith Associate Director, Auxiliary Services
    Ms. Aysha Marennis Director, New Student Programs
  • Projects In Progress
    Barrier Team Projects in Progress as of January 1, 2019
    Survey Reliability/Validity  
    Faculty Hiring Process  
    Tracking Campus Committees (Charge & Membership)  
    NEXTGen Scholarship Portal Utilization  
    OneUSG Employee Assistance Fund  
  • Sledgehammers Awarded

    Academic Catalog

    Barrier: A combination of concerns about the timing of publication of the academic catalogs and the process for updating their content.

    Solution: The Provost Office (under the direction of Dr. Myrna Gantner) led the implementation of new catalog and curriculum software--Acalog and Curriculog, respectively. UWG will complete implementation of the software systems and will begin the process of sharing information out to campus so the systems can fully launch in Fall 2018.

    Faculty Toolkit

    Barrier: Faculty needs a way to quickly and easily refer students to the proper resource(s) for common topics.

    Solution: The Faculty Toolkit

    Extended Leave Replacement August 2014

    Barrier: Departments operate inefficiently when an employee has to take an extended leave.

    Solution: Human Resources - Leave Administration

    Earlier Distribution of e-tuition Dollars

    Barrier: The late distribution of E-tuition dollars makes it difficult for units to utilize funds in ways that most benefit the students who pay those dollars.

    Solution: View our Barrier Identification Form - E-tuition (pdf) to explore our recommendations.

    Dual Career Assistance Program

    Barrier: Desirable staff and faculty candidates who are considering relocation to UWG may not accept an employment offer if they do not believe career assistance is available for their working partners.

    Solution: Establishment of a Dual Career Assistance Program (DCAP) managed through UWG's Office of Community Engagement. Visit the DCAP website.

    Revised Academic Calendar

    Barrier: The current approach to annual scheduling results in confusion in every division of the institution, less instructional time for classes, insufficient time for processing important information (transcripts, diplomas, etc.), insufficient time for students to move between classes, and a lack of breaks during the fall semester.

    Solution:

    1. Provost should make the decision about which of the 4 fall options (2016) he prefers. That decision will determine the pattern for future calendars.
    2. Once the decision is made, we recommend that he appoint the permanent UWG Academic Calendar Committee. This standing committee will be charged with producing the calendar for the next four years (2017-2018, 2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021) and each year thereafter. (Each year, the UWG Academic Calendar Committee will develop the calendar for the next 5th year so that the institution always has calendars established for five years).

    Note: the Barrier Team subcommittee consisted of members of the Faculty Senate, Student Government Association, Student Affairs, Auxiliary Services, Academic Affairs, and Business and Finance.

    Work West Employee Toolkit

    Barrier: The lack of an easily accessible source for important documents, procedures, policies, etc., is a barrier to our operational success.

    Solution: Create a centralized website that houses frequently requested forms, policies and procedures beneficial to the larger UWG campus community. View the Work West Employee Toolkit.

    Internal Communications

    Barrier: The declining usefulness and readership of the current Daily Report.

    Solution: Replace the Daily Report with a weekly Work West Bulletin; to reduce clutter, the Work West Bulletin focuses on items relevant to faculty, staff and administrators across campus, is issued weekly, and relocates events to a separate calendar platform. 

    Work West Brochure

    Barrier: A lack of knowledge about the full picture of what it's like to "Work West" may hamper recruitment of faculty and staff.

    Solution: Created a print-on-demand brochure that can be found online by potential hires and/or distributed by departments to candidates for positions. View the Work West Brochure (PDF, 13.8M).