Minutes: September 22, 2003
Student Center, Room 221 - 10:50 AM Senators in Attendance: James Abbott, Herb Appelson, David Applebaum, Bryan Appleby-Wineberg, Lorin Arnold, Joe Bierman, Greg Biren, Lori Block, Carl Calliari, Bruce Caswell, Julia Chang, Jay Chaskes, Eric Constans, Steve Crites, Joanne Damminger, Joe Davey, Gini Doolittle, Tom Fusco, John Gallagher, Kathy Ganske, Jim Haugh, Judy Holmes, Gabriela Hristescu, Karlton Hughes, Olcay Ilicasu, Lee Kress, Kristyn Kuhlman, Denyse Lemaire, Phillip Lewis, Janet Lindman, Mary Marino, Mark Matalucci, Robin McBee, Stuart McGee, Eric Milou, Janet Moss, Pat Mosto, Terry O'Brien, Joe Orlins, Anne Phillips, Robi Polikar, Edward Smith, Robert Sterner, Eileen Stutzbach, Skeffington Thomas, Sandy Tweedie, Cindy Vitto, Barbara Williams, Ellen Miller, Tricia Yurak Not in Attendance - Represented by Alternate: Martin Itzkowitz represented by Erin Herberg/alternate, Frances Johnson represented by Don Stoll/alternate, David Klassen represented by Eddie Guerra/alternate, Julie Peterson represented by Jonathan Foglein/alternate, Karen Siefring represented by Kevin Miller/alternateNot in Attendance: Dorie Gilchrist, Diane Hughes, Bela Mukhoti, James Newell, Charles Schultz, Sonia Spencer, Hal Vogel, Faye ZhuNote: If anyone was omitted from attendance list and you were in attendance, it indicates that you did not sign in. Please notify the Senate office and the minutes will be corrected.Call to Order: President Cindy Vitto called the meeting to order at 10:50 AM.
Motion to approve agenda, seconded and carried.
Motion to approve minutes of May 14, seconded and carried.New senators introduced themselves. Senators were reminded that (1) meetings follow Robert's Rules of Order; (2) discussion on an item of business is limited to 10 minutes, with a possible 5- to 10-minute extension; (3) it is crucial that senators report back to their departments and also bring feedback from their constituents to Senate meetings. Senators are encouraged to distribute Senate agendas and minutes, as well as to make brief reports on Senate business at department meetings, in order to enhance communication and make meaningful shared governance possible. Election of Promotion Committee Chair
John Gallagher nominated. Motion to close nominations and cast unanimous ballot, seconded and carried.Standing Committee Reports
A. Committee on Committees - Jonathan Foglein standing in for Julie Peterson -
Motion to accept formerly distributed committee lists as amended (John Gallagher as chair of Promotion Committee, Joseph Pizzillo added to Career Development Committee), seconded and carried. SGA and AFT representatives have not yet been added to the committees.
B. Curriculum -
1. Phil Lewis discussed the curriculum process and noted this year's deadlines of October 3 for Fall 2004 implementation and Feb. 13 for Spring 2005 implementation. He also reminded us that the new library resources form requires the signature of a library liaison; department curriculum committees can check with Judy Holmes if they do not know who their assigned library liaisons are.
2. After several questions on the M.S. in Accounting and the B.S.N. proposals, motions to accept both programs were seconded and carried.
C. University Budget and Planning - Sandy Tweedie reported that the committee met on September 18. For fiscal year 2003 (ending July 1, 2003) we ended with a $3.9 million surplus after a projected deficit. The surplus comes primarily from auxiliary services (Student Affairs budget). We anticipate an operating budget reserve of about $1.9 million this year. This also provides a cushion against possible mid-year budget cuts from the state. Fiscal year 2005 will be difficult because of factors such as increased expenditures in the salary program, new hires, debt service on the Education Building, a change in accounting methods for capital spending, and the non-carryover of this year's infusion of ELF money. The committee will also be looking at the Academic Affairs portion of the five-year plan, which needs to be updated.
D. Academic Policies and Procedures - Martin Itzkowitz sent the following report:
1. Martin met with Provost Helen Giles-Gee recently to discuss the pass / no credit policy, a continuation of the committee's discussion from last year. She believes that this option should be arranged with the registrar rather than with individual professors. She also believes the option should be pass / fail. The committee will meet in October to discuss the issue.
2. The Provost will be sending a letter to chairs and deans reminding them that D grades for transfer students must be treated in the same way as D grades for native students.
E. Campus Aesthetics and Environmental Concerns - Skeff Thomas reported that the committee will be meeting this afternoon.
F. Career Development - Sonia Spencer - no report
G. Intercollegiate Athletics - Rob Sterner - The committee will be meeting soon. Ed Streb, faculty athletics representative, is co-chairing the committee this year.
H. Learning Outcomes Assessment (LOAC) -
1. Anne Phillips reported that the LOAC has been working with Barbara Sjostrom, who is coordinating the Middle States Periodic Review Report but is unfortunately on medical leave this semester. The committee met on September 17, with all members except one having served the previous year as well to assure continuity. Members will be attending chairs' meetings of the various Colleges to discuss the importance of assessment efforts and to answer questions. The committee will have a report prepared in November so that the information can be submitted by January to Christy Faison and Janice Rowan, who are co-chairing the Middle States Periodic Review Report efforts.
2. Don Stoll will be representing the LOAC on the Middle States Steering Committee, and the committee has been asked to provide a representative to the Graduate Review committee. Roberta Harvey was commended for having taken on a significant leadership role with the LOAC. Because the Provost has indicated an interest in attending, she will be invited to this year's meetings of the LOAC.
3. Anyone qualified and interested in filling in for Barbara Sjostrom for the fall semester is encouraged to contact Cindy Vitto or Helen Giles-Gee.
I. Professional Ethics and Welfare - Barbara Williams - Although a conflict of interest form was distributed in the spring, the return rate was not high. This form will be distributed again in October. Senators should encourage their constituents to sign and return the form to acknowledge receipt of the policy and to indicate (1) if they hold professional license or certification and/or (2) if they are engaged in outside employment. By completing and submitting this form, faculty and professional staff are not asking for approval of outside employment but notifying administration of such employment. State universities are required by the New Jersey Attorney General to collect this data.
J. Promotion - John Gallagher - Nick DiObilda and Bob Zazzali will conduct a promotion briefing on October 9 at 12:15 and October 13 at 3:30 in Campbell Library 126. (Note that these dates and times are not yet confirmed.) The promotion agreement is now available on the Provost's website; following are important dates coming up soon:
By Oct. 1 - department committees elected
By Oct. 17 - sign up in Provost's Office
By Oct. 17 - candidates for full professors must submit names of external evaluators to department and Dean
K. Recruitment, Admissions, and Retention - Jay Chaskes - Meeting will be scheduled soon.
L. Research and Technological Resources - Gabriela Hristescu - Committee will be meeting September 30.
M. Sabbatical Leave - Janet Lindman - Application for sabbatical leave and guidelines are on the Senate website. Deadline for submitting applications is November 17. Candidates are strongly encouraged to notify their chairs of their application for sabbatical leave and also to notify Janet Lindman to provide for better tracking of files.
N. Student Relations - Lorin Arnold - Committee will meet September 24.
O. Tenure and Recontracting - Jim Newell - No report.>>Back to top Other Committee Reports
A. Campus Master Plan Committee - Joe Orlins - The committee has developed a set of guiding principles and will take up the questions of (1) how to merge those principles with the already-existing master plan prepared by architects and (2) how the committee fits into the overall planning and construction process. The committee met September 19 with architects for a presentation on the proposed fine and performing arts complex.
B. Call for volunteers - Bruce Caswell, who is co-chairing with Karen Siefring an ad hoc committee to review the Senate Constitution, asked for volunteers. The goal is to provide representation from each College and also to secure one or more members who can provide a historical perspective on the Senate. It was suggested that a professor emeritus would be a good addition to the committee.Senate President's Report
A. Academic Affairs - Provost Helen Giles-Gee met with the Senate Exec on September 10 to update us on various issues. 1. Chairs are asked to provide information about staffing to Deans, who will prioritize requests for hires and provide rationales. We expect to follow the same procedure as last year by initiating searches of the highest priority first in case of a mid-year budget cut.
2. We will begin implementation of Banner this year and also will have a new library system that allows for one-time searching rather than
searching one by one through multiple databases.
3. Given an extremely short timeline this summer by the state, Rowan has applied for about $315 million in grants contingent upon passing of a $1 billion to $3 billion bond referendum at the state level. Because this money is targeted for the sciences, technology, engineering, and business, we must find ways to maintain a balance with other areas of the University.B. Administration and Finance1. Commendations to all who helped make possible the opening of the
Science Building September 2.2. A draft of a recruitment and hiring manual has been circulated to all department chairs. We will ask if the draft can be placed on a website for comments from the entire campus community and if the final version of the manual can be placed online for the reference of search committees.3. Look at new food and entertainment policy on the Administration and Finance website. Highlights:
a. You have the option of using an external caterer or providing food from an external vendor if you can do so for less than $250.
b. General University funds cannot be used to provide food for Rowan employees unless the group includes outside visitors or a meal is provided for an all-day meeting.
c. Discretionary funds may be used to provide food for Rowan employees.4. Parking - faculty and staff who owe three or more parking tickets may have their vehicle booted. (Note that this arrangement was agreed upon by all three union presidents and that faculty and staff have a 47% pay rate for parking tickets, compared to a 99% rate for students.) Because parking is a contract issue, please direct parking comments directly to the AFT local.5. An expected Board resolution to commission a manufacturer for prefabricated townhouses was pulled from consideration at the September 10 Trustees' meeting. Several members of the newly formed "Friends of Rowan Woods" (primarily community members and environmentalists) spoke at the meeting. Those interested in reading more about the issue from a land-use perspective may read John Hasse's information at users.rowan.edu/hasse.landuse6. Groundbreaking on the new Education Building is expected in January or February, with the building open for classes for the Fall 2005 semester. To compensate for parking lost to the construction area, all tennis courts will be replaced by parking lots.C. Student Affairs1. With the announcement of Marguerite Stubbs' retirement and Bill Myers' unexpected death, the Student Affairs division underwent a reorganization during the summer that eliminated the Dean of Students office and reassigned those duties. George Brelsford will have the transitional title of "Associate Vice President for Student Affairs/Dean of Students" in order to minimize confusion (and to prevent legal loopholes until our policies involving the Dean of Students can be rewritten). A reorganization chart was made available as a handout at the Senate meeting.2. Mold has been found inside locked utility closets in Edgewood Park Apartments. An environmental firm will be conducting testing and remediation, and students will be relocated as necessary. The mold found recently in academic buildings is of a different variety and is being removed by custodial staff.3. Drew Calandrella has scheduled an open forum for Student Affairs for the open period on Monday, November 17.4. It is extremely important that faculty return the 10-day rolls sent out from the Registrar's Office. These rolls are used to determine whether students receiving financial aid are actually attending class and therefore eligible for funding. New Business
A. Please ask constituents for comments on the attached policies from the VP for Administration and Finance. Forward your comments to Cindy Vitto, or directly to John Finan.B. Jay Chaskes expressed concern that the capital construction projects are assuming a significance out of proportion to other elements essential for faculty and staff to provide students with a quality educational experience at Rowan. He therefore requests that senators discuss the attached proposed Senate resolution with their constituents and come prepared to discuss the resolution at the October 20 Senate meeting.Announcements
Calendar of Senate, AFT, University Assembled, and open forum dates is attached. Please share this calendar with department chairs and others responsible for scheduling events throughout the year.