St. Mary's University
365th Meeting of the Faculty Senate
August 29th, 2003
1 :30 p.m. Alkek 106
Present: Bentch, Boggess, Byrd, Calentine, Castaneda, Curet, Cutting, Duesterhoeft,
Ebben, Hampton, Higgins, Hill, Kampschroeder, Lene, Padmanabhan, Talarski,
Uhlig.
Excused: Gomez, Lesher
Prayer: The meeting was called to order at 1 :34 PM by President Hampton. The opening prayer was offered by Senator Cutting.
Approval of Minutes for 364th Meeting: President Hampton called for the approval of the minutes of the 364th Meeting, May 9, 2003, of the Faculty Senate. Senator Higgins moved for approval, and was seconded/ by Senator Curet. President Hampton called for a vote, and the minutes were approved. Senator Lene then brought up the question of approval for the minutes of the 363rd Meeting, May 9, 2003, the final meeting of the 2002-2003 Faculty Senate. Since many of the members of the current Senate were not present at that meeting, no action was taken with regard to approval of the minutes.
President's Report
President Hampton reported on several items as follows:
Meeting of the Academic Affairs Committee
Enrollment of incoming freshmen this semester was 479, which is better than some predictions. The budget had provided for and enrollment of
600.
Total class hours were down 2%, which is a marked decrease. The number of hours in the Law School increased, as did hours in the PhD
programs.
Meeting on SAC Accreditation
Information on this meeting was provided by Dr Larry Hufford to President Hampton, who was unable to attend. Enrollment figures have been published, and the Accreditation Report has been filed.
Report on the Core Curriculum
President Hampton reported that a faculty convocation is scheduled for September 5 to discuss the two curricular models which are now being considered. This is to be followed by a faculty vote on September 12 to choose one model. A Design Committee will then be chosen to develop core curriculum using the model chosen. Confusion about the process was expressed by some Senators, so further clarification was provided by Senators Hill and Uhlig. Doubts were also expressed regarding the proposed voting date, and a need for further discussion of the two curricular models became apparent. President Hampton proposed that a request be forwarded to VPAA Manuel asking that the September 1ih vote be postponed until the two models could be further discussed at another faculty town hall meeting. A vote was taken on the proposal, and the proposal was approved. President Hampton encouraged Senators to attend the September 5th Convocation, and to be ready to bring up problematic issues regarding the curricular models and their possible impact. He also recognized the efforts of Senator Uhlig in the development of the new core curriculum.
Status of Senators:
President Hampton informed the Senate that he had been contacted by Senator Bob O'Connor and Senator Dana Comstock, and that they would be unable to serve on the current Senate. President Hampton said that their positions would be taken by the Senate alternates Diane Duesterhoeft and Marcella Lesher, therefore, two new alternates would be needed. He then asked for nominations to fill the two alternate positions.
Appointment of Representative for Part Time Faculty
President Hampton noted that the position of a Senator to represent part time faculty was still unfilled, and he suggested that Elaine Talarski be appointed to fill that position. Senator Curet moved to appoint Elaine Talarski to that position, and was seconded by Senator Cutting. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously.
Appointment of Senators to University Committees/Reports
While asking for volunteers, President Hampton made the following appointments:
Academic Development Council - This council does not seem to meet, but Senator Castaneda volunteered to serve on it if it should ever do so.
Athletic Council- This council no longer exists as its function has been taken over by the Executive Council. President Hampton expressed a need for Faculty Senate representation in this area, but no further action was taken. The Senate will suggest to the VPAA and University President that a Senate-appointed representative be included in this area.
Budget Committee - Senator Gomez, who is already on the committee, will be asked to continue to serve. Senator Calentine also volunteered to serve on the committee.
Campus Beautification/Design Committee and Campus Environment Committee - These two committees appear to have been folded into a single committee. Senator Byrd agreed to serve on this committee.
Facilities Master Planning Committee - President Hampton said that he needed to be on this committee. Senator Kampschroeder volunteered to act as his alternate.
Student Judicial Committee - Senator Curet and Senator Higgins, who are already on this committee, agreed to continue to serve.
University Parking Committee - Vice President Bentch, already on this committee, agreed to continue to serve. Senator Boggess volunteered to join her.
Benefits Committee - President Hampton pointed out that the faculty representative on this committee need not be a member of the Senate, and that he would ask Dr. Bob O'Connor, a long-standing committee member, to continue to serve.
Faculty Senate Committee Assignments
President Hampton, in consultation with members of the Senate, made following assignments to Faculty Senate committees:
Committee A - Senior Faculty Review. This committee will develop a faculty survey, oversee its administration, and report back to Senate with a proposed resolution. If the resolution is to retain the Senior Faculty Review, then the committee will develop procedures to insure the formative nature of the process. Senators Hill, Kampschroeder, and Lesher.
Committee B - Grievance Process. Senators Curet, Ebben, Higgins, and Talarski.
Committee C - Summer Work/Compensation. Senators Cutting, Duesterhoeft, Padmanabhan and Uhlig.
Committee D - Harassment and Discrimination Policies. The Senate Executive Committee will raise this issue with the VPAA. Senators Boggess, Byrd, and Gomez.
Committee E - Status of Visiting Professors. The work of this committee has been completed, and a resolution and the revisions to the Faculty Handbook have been sent to the VPAA. The Senate Executive Committee will ask for a report on the status of the revision from the VPAA. Senators Bentch, Cutting, and Kampschroeder.
Old Business
President Hampton presented a prioritized list of old business in the form of a "to do list". Items with the greatest priority are covered by the committees listed above.
President Hampton also said that Committee C of the 2002-2003 Faculty Senate had recommended that this Senate continue the issue of sabbatical leave policy, and that this issue will need further discussion at the next Senate meeting.
Senator Curet suggested that input from VPAA Manual regarding the
existence of criteria for granting or denying sabbatical leave be requested. Depending on the answer, Committee C will decide whether to undertake a narrow inquiry by requesting objective criteria from the Academic Council. Committee C may then consider developing a broader approach emphasizing the purpose of sabbatical, the process and criteria, and the grievance process for denials, the importance of sabbatical leave to all faculty, publishing the purposes, and inquiring into matters such as the number and distribution of applications and grants in terms of acceptance rate, gender, and other issues.
Senator Curet moved to request input from VPAA Manuel on this issue prior to further discussion. The motion was seconded by Senator Kampschroeder. A vote was taken and the motion carried.
Senator Curet then moved for adjournment, and was seconded by Senator Higgins.A vote was taken and the motion carried without opposition.
The 36Sth Meeting of the Faculty Senate was adjourned at 3:40 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Gene W. Lene, Secretary
2003-2004 Faculty Senate