Faculty Senate President Dr. Susan Popham Keeps the Wheel Turning

There are a lot of moving parts involved in cultivating a vibrant and thriving campus. A key component is an engaged faculty senate which governs academic affairs.

Susan Popham, Ph.D., associate professor of English and current Faculty Senate president, has taken a very active role in academic program development, teaching, and incorporating online technologies to enhance student learning.

Before joining IU Southeast in 2016, Popham taught, researched and administered programs at the University of Memphis for 15 years in the undergraduate and graduate programs in composition studies and professional writing.

“I was drawn to IU Southeast because of its strong culture of faculty support and resources,” said Popham.

Making an Impact on Campus from Day One

Popham is committed to students’ success and seized on the opportunities presented at IU Southeast.

She has served as a Writing Program Coordinator for three years in the English Department, helped start, with others, a new master’s program in the English department in 2022, and worked to strengthen the online master’s program throughout the entire IU system.

In addition, Popham previously served on the Faculty Senate as chair of both the Gender Studies committee and the General Education committee in subsequent years. The transition to Faculty Senate President was the next natural step.

“I see my role in the senate as pulling together good people doing good work and ensuring that they have the resources and support to continue to do good work,” said Popham. “It is similar to how a wheel needs to have all the spokes in the hub balanced to turn the wheel and do the work that is needed.”

Currently, the senate is divided up into over 20 committees to help provide guidance in an efficient manner.

“The senate is responsible for setting the academic agenda in partnership with campus administration,” said Popham. “We deliberate often, whether it is a small policy change that might have a major impact or a large scale policy overhaul, and we discuss and talk through all the implications.”

Future Goals

There is a renewed spirit on campus with lots of improvements and changes happening this semester. A new IU Southeast chancellor, redesigned classes, new programs and facility upgrades are all part of the energy buzzing around campus.

“One of my goals is to improve both faculty and student morale on campus,” said Popham. “The pandemic was tough, like a dark cloud hanging over campus. Now, it feels like a new campus. I see the senate playing a role to continue fostering hopefulness throughout campus.”

Popham also has goals to enhance and improve online learning going forward.

“The senate can explore developing a committee to recommend ways to strengthen and enhance online technologies and learning for both faculty and students,” said Popham. “Teaching online really improved my in-person teaching because it taught me to focus more on what I was doing in the classroom. It made me prepare more and think about what was essential for students to learn. Also, online students have to show a good deal of discipline to do the work independently. I think for their future, that’s a big benefit, aside from the fact that more and more of our society will expect them to know these digital skills.”