Faculty Senate Minutes October 8, 2012
2012-2013
Monday, October 22, 2012
The Western State Colorado University Faculty Senate met on Monday, October 22, 2012 in the Aspinall-Wilson Center. The meeting convened at 4:15 p.m., chaired by Roger Hudson.
Attendees
Faculty Senate
Christina Buchanan (RESS)
Susan Coykendall (BASS)
Roger Drake (Senator-at-large)
Shannon Eagles (LIB)
Kimberly Fix (MCIS)
Roger Hudson (BAE, Chair)
Scott Lazerus (BAE, Clerk)
Jack Lucido (CALL)
Veronica Mendez-Maqueo (CALL)
Caroline Mitchell (BASS)
Jason Mullins (NES, Vice-Chair)
Don Seastrum (ART)
Allen Stork (NES)
Ken Todd (MUS)
Tim Wawrzyniec (Senator-at-large)
Jim Woytek (TEP)
absent: none
Others in attendance
Patricia Manzanares-Gonzales (Provost), Haleigh Hanifen (SGA President), Kim Gailey (HR)
The agenda and the minutes were unanimously approved.
Provost’s Report
The Provost attended a Rotary meeting today at the Aspinall-Wilson Center, to discuss possible linkages between local businesses and the University, and was encouraged by the interactions with that group.
At the faculty research showcase meeting, it was announced that the Provost will institute an incentive program to encourage faculty grants and research. Departments will receive funding in the name of the awarded faculty member, to use for conferences or other research activities, which may involve students. This should be implemented within the next two weeks, with an intent-to-submit form soon to become available.
Old Business
Priorities, responsibilities and timetables regarding revisions to the Handbook for Professional Personnel
Mendez-Maqueo: CALL is in favor of an ad hoc committee to deal with all the handbook issues at once. Seastrum: The Art Department agrees that the piece-by-piece approach is problematic. The current handbook is subject to interpretation, and a one-time rewrite would make it easier to address these issues with the entire handbook in mind. A chapter by chapter approach would be less efficient, since some of the same issues crop up in multiple chapters. Coykendall: BASS got very little feedback, but did get a suggestion to try to tackle the easier or quicker issues first. Buchanan: RESS will be discussing the issue tomorrow, but the possibility was raised of looking at other institutions’ faculty handbooks as a possible template for ideas/revision. Todd: Music, looking at the priorities, is especially interested in the family leave and faculty load issues. Fix: MCIS has questions about the benefits of splitting the faculty and staff handbooks. Eagles: The Library also questions the benefits of splitting the handbook. Librarians, and some others on campus, are in positions that combine staff and teaching responsibilities, and have questions about how these people will fare with a divided handbook. Stork: NES is concerned about the length of time needed to achieve a complete revision of the handbook, so would still like to consider prioritizing the things that can be done more quickly, so that these changes are not held up by the length of the overall process. The possibility of a permanent committee to oversee the handbook as a “living document” was raised, but Hudson pointed out that this would require a change of the Senate bylaws, and suggested an ad hoc committee, with the understanding that this would be a committee that could exist for quite some time, and could potentially be made permanent if that seems desirable down the road. Before discussing committee size and makeup, Lucido wanted to know whether the groundwork could be laid by academic affairs. The Provost responded that academic affairs should have a seat at the table, but that the faculty should drive the process. In terms of forming a committee, concerns were raised by BASS and RESS in regard to faculty fatigue resulting from heavy current workloads and the just-completed self-study. Lazerus pointed out that the formation of a committee would only begin the process, which could still allow for prioritization of issues, and the picking of the low-hanging fruit first.
Eagles made a motion to form the ad hoc committee for handbook revision. Wawrzyniec seconded. The motion passed with one abstention. Several senators expressed a willingness to serve on the committee. Stork suggested that someone from Academic Affairs, and someone from the Chairs’ Council be included. An advisory group for professional staff should also be formed, to look at the staff side of the handbook division and coordinate with the faculty process.
New Business
Curriculum proposals
Due to the length and complexities of the Master of Fine Arts curriculum revisions and the Master in Environmental Management curriculum proposal, the Curriculum Committee has forwarded both proposals to the Senate earlier than is typical. The Curriculum Committee passed both proposals unanimously but notes that the proposals may require more discussion than is typically the case. The remaining proposals will be forwarded to the Senate at the end of the month. Curriculum proposals have typically been acted on after a second reading but this is not required by Senate By-Laws or the Faculty Constitution.
Todd brought up the Curriculum Committee’s remaining desires for clarification about the MEM program, despite the proposal’s passage: resources (faculty salaries), teaching loads, organization issues, program evaluation, and determination of program success. These issues were not thought to be part of the CC charge, so they wanted to ask the Senate to consider these issues. Stork: Basic structural issues of the program have not been discussed. The Provost pointed out that the entire graduate program policy needs to be revisited, and until those answers are forthcoming, the faculty should wait to weigh in. Hudson suggested inviting the graduate program directors and the Provost to address some of the faculty’s concerns about graduate policy at the upcoming November 8 all-faculty meeting. The Provost agrees that the current graduate policies are no longer workable, and need to be revised, clarified, and transparently promulgated. Coykendall raised the issue of whether investing in graduate programs makes sense when there are unmet needs in the undergraduate programs.
Announcements
Hudson: The Senate budget is very limited this year, so Senators were asked to check with the Chair before planning travel of other activities with the expectation of reimbursement from the Senate budget.
The agenda for the all-faculty meeting (November 8) will be sent around next week, and Hudson solicited agenda suggestions.
The next Senate meeting will be November 5.
The meeting was adjourned at 5:36 p.m.
Minutes prepared by Scott Lazerus, Senate Clerk
Monday, October 8, 2012
The Western State Colorado University Faculty Senate met on Monday, October 8, 2012 in the Aspinall-Wilson Center. The meeting convened at 4:15 p.m., chaired by Roger Hudson.
Attendees
Faculty Senate
Christina Buchanan (RESS)
Susan Coykendall (BASS)
Roger Drake (Senator-at-large)
Shannon Eagles (LIB)
Kimberley Fix (MCIS)
Roger Hudson (BAE, Chair)
Scott Lazerus (BAE, Clerk)
Jack Lucido (CALL)
Veronica Mendez-Maqueo (CALL)
Caroline Mitchell (BASS)
Jason Mullins (NES, Vice-Chair)
Don Seastrum (ART)
Allen Stork (NES)
Ken Todd (MUS)
Jim Woytek (TEP)
absent:
Tim Wawrzyniec (Senator-at-large)
Others in Attendance
Patricia Manzanares-Gonzales (Provost), Phil Crossley (CFAC Representative), Rex Ranser (?) (Higher Learning Commission Team Chair), Haleigh Hanifen (SGA President), Dale Orth (Faculty Trustee)
The agenda was passed, with Phil Crossley’s CFAC report replacing Dale Orth’s Trustee report. The minutes were unanimously approved.
Provost Report
The Higher Learning Commission accreditation meeting will be completed by Wednesday morning. After this ten-year visit, the process will be changed going forward, requiring annual reports with visits every four or five years, in part to reflect new federal reporting requirements. The review process is lengthy, and the University will probably know the outcome sometime this spring.
CFAC Report (Phil Crossley)
WSCU may have to address the state’s finding that the university is out of compliance with state mandates in some areas, including the failure to require a history course as part of the General Education program. (The Provost added that this particular issue may be addressed through changing the state policy.) The second issue is the concern over potential wording to be applied to future performance contracts. Concern was expressed about the use of “annual increase” or “annual reduction” in certain goal areas, and the lack of clarity in regard to the consequences of not meeting goals. (The Provost added that her belief is that the contract process will include flexibility for institutions in regard to these issues.)
Chair’s Report (Roger Hudson)
It was reported from the Budget Committee that, while there will be no budget money for salary increases, the University will be likely to pay for the increase in health insurance costs that will come at the beginning of 2013. This will change the University’s percentage of the cost above 60% for 2013, without a commitment that this arrangement will continue.
Old Business
Revisions to the Handbook for Professional Personnel
The Handbook revision requires the following work, with key stakeholders listed in parentheses:
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Name changes, including University for College (Senate)
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Amending selected disciplinary policies (Academic Affairs, FPAC, HR, Legal Counsel, Senate)
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Family leave policy (Academic Affairs, FPAC, HR, Legal Counsel, Senate)
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Separating Faculty and Non-Faculty Professional Personnel chapters (Academic Affairs, FPAC, HR, Legal Counsel, Senate)
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Statement of Academic Freedom (Senate, Academic Affairs, Legal Counsel)
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Statement of Intellectual Property Rights (Senate, Academic Affairs, Legal Counsel)
After revisions are complete, revisions must be approved by the Faculty Senate and the Board of Trustees.
Should an ad hoc committee be appointed with representatives from Academic Affairs, FPAC, HR, and the Senate to undertake these revisions, with a deadline included in the committee’s charge?
Given the size of the task, NES (Stork) recommended choosing a couple of the most urgent issues to deal with this year, while planning to finish the remaining tasks as soon as possible thereafter, combined with a survey designed to elicit a prioritization of issues. Lucido asked the faculty to consider how to continue this process in the long run, with the possibility that this policymaking process might be ongoing over time. Lucido also reported that the family leave policy is already well along to being completed in the incentive and compensation committee currently looking into these issues. The Provost pointed out that it is especially important to split the faculty portion of the handbook into a separate document. Crossley added that the Trustees tend to prefer seeing a completed document, as opposed to dealing with policy changes piecemeal. Lucido suggested working with the Trustees to make them aware of why an ongoing change process might be preferable. Eagles raised the question of who “owns” the professional handbook if it is separated from the faculty handbook. The Provost pointed out that most institutions have a staff Senate to represent them, and that she would advocate for that model at WSCU. Hudson offered to provide a list of potential issues that need to be addressed by the end of the week, so that departments can discuss what they think should be prioritized, with the request that the Senate be ready to reach some conclusions on the issue at the next meeting.
New Business
Salary Comparison Study
As explained in Appendix J of the Handbook for Professional Personnel, faculty salaries at WSCU are determined, in part, by comparison with peer institutions. The peer comparison data is out of date and the selection of peer institutions has never been transparent. If desired, the Faculty Senate can take the lead in recommending peer institutions to the Provost, after which the Provost’s office can purchase salary data and prepare comparisons between WSCU salaries and those at peer institutions. Is it so desired?
Hudson spoke with Research Director Doug Driver, who has suggested putting this off for a year, with the argument that the current list of peer institutions is more up-to-date than we may have realized. This could be added to the list of issues to be prioritized, as mentioned in the previous item.
Announcements
The Curriculum Committee will forward curriculum proposals, including revisions to the MFA and a proposal for a Master’s in Environmental Management, to the Senate by the end of October.
The next meeting will be on October 22.
The meeting was adjourned at 5:08 p.m.
Minutes prepared by Scott Lazerus, Senate Clerk
Monday, September 24, 2012
The Western State Colorado University Faculty Senate met on Monday, September 24, 2012 in the Aspinall-Wilson Center. The meeting convened at 4:15 p.m., chaired by Roger Hudson.
Attendees
Faculty Senate
Christina Buchanan (RESS)
Susan Coykendall (BASS)
Roger Drake (Senator-at-large)
Shannon Eagles (LIB)
Kimberley Fix (MCIS)
Roger Hudson (BAE, Chair)
Scott Lazerus (BAE, Clerk)
Jack Lucido (CALL)
Veronica Mendez-Maqueo (CALL)
Caroline Mitchell (BASS)
Jason Mullins (NES, Vice-Chair)
Don Seastrum (ART)
Allen Stork (NES)
Tim Wawrzyniec (Senator-at-large)
Jim Woytek (TEP)absent: Ken Todd (MUS)
Others in attendance
Patricia Manzanares-Gonzales (Provost), Dale Orth (faculty trustee), Gary Pearson (VP Student Affairs), Bill Niemi (AVPAA), Rob Fillmore (Foundation Liaison), Haleigh Hanifen (SGA President)
The agenda and the minutes were unanimously approved.
Provost Report
CCHE Master Plan: WSCU has until 9/26 to respond to latest Master Plan draft, on which the next performance contract will be based. WSCU will ask for flexibility in altering or adding to progress indicators for each plan goal based on campus location, student makeup, and other unique institutional factors. The four goals of the current draft include improving attainment, improving student success, reducing gaps, and restoring fiscal balance. The final plan should be in place by December 1.
The Higher Learning Commission reaccreditation ten-year visit will be October 8–10. This is a critical time for the campus, and we expect to do well.
WSCU was the only representative outside of the Denver area to sponsor and attend a recent Great Education event.
Succession planning for faculty and positions is being discussed with Chairs.
Faculty Trustee Report
The Trustees met last Friday. The Board wants to stress the flexibility in performance measures as discussed in the Provost report. Trustees and the Foundation Board are attempting to increase coordination, with Trustees stressing the importance of the educational mission in considering other goals. It was noted that the state budget picture improved somewhat in September. Allocation for deferred maintenance might be considered. Orth would like to encourage faculty to consider attending Board meetings (the next one is November 1–2). The Board appreciates meeting the faculty, and Orth believes we should be encouraged by the Board’s engagement with and by their attitude toward WSCU.
Old Business
Review/Assessment of First Year Experience: Academic Policies has presented a motion for that subcommittee to evaluate the academic aspects of the First Year Experience, as follows: “Request that the initial charge for the AP during the 2012–13 academic year be to begin assessing the benefits of academic components of Western’s FYE as part of university-wide assessment efforts.” Niemi (head of First Year Experience Council) suggested to that AP play a role in developing tools to evaluate any and all aspects of the program. The course itself will be evaluated by the assessment committee. Stork moved to put aside AP’s request for a charge, pending further development of the overall assessment process, in order to better understand the most appropriate role for AP within that process. Drake seconded the motion. The AP motion failed unanimously. Stork’s motion passed, with one vote in opposition. Stork proposed another motion, moving that the Senate ask for a report on the state of First Year Experience assessment, from the First Year Committee, on November 1, after which the role of AP could be reevaluated. The motion passed unanimously.
Faculty Handbook: FPAC wants to do the revision work on the handbook, as it is under that committee’s purview to implement the policies. This work could be completed by March. Wawrzyniec and Stork emphasized the importance of the Senate being more closely involved, to ensure that any contentious issues are raised to the Senate sooner rather than later. The consensus was to continue discussion at the next meeting, while trying to get feedback on the best way to proceed.
Chair Training: Agenda item postponed until the next meeting.
New Business
Review of Campus Security by Gary Pearson, VP Student Affairs: The impetus for concern was the three reported sexual assaults (two off-campus) last spring. Following are a few points from Pearson’s presentation: Campus Security Services goes beyond policing into other services. One recent change is to increase security presence during daylight hours. There are monthly meetings with the Gunnison police, with whom there is a good working relationship. The response time is one to three minutes, if law enforcement is needed. Protocols and training are in place, including roles for RAs, residence hall assistant directors, and police. An Emergency Operation Plan (available online) is being implemented, including tabletop exercises with campus departments. The RAVE mobile safety alert system is in place, and everyone is encouraged to register their cell phone if possible. (Email addresses are automatically enrolled.) Title IX included federal guidelines on response to sexual harassment, violence, and discrimination. WSCU has a coordinator for Title IX responsiveness, and efforts are underway to educate faculty, employees, and students on responsibilities and expectations. Outside consultants are being brought in this semester to help with these efforts. WSCU is at the forefront of efforts that are being ramped up at campuses across the country. Crisis Prevention team meets every two weeks allows for ongoing evaluation of current situations and concerns. Concerns were raised in regard to the recent court ruling allowing students over 21 to carry concealed weapons on campus, but the current interpretation is that this ruling must be followed at WSCU. In response to Hudson’s question about assessment and evaluation, Pearson responded that this has not been done historically, but it is being implemented now, and the Senate will be informed when details are available.
WSCU Foundation Report, Rob Fillmore, Faculty Liason: The Foundation met on 9/14. The Foundation fund is up 9% this year to $14.6 million. The “Elevate” campaign has a goal of raising $55 million. The Athletics Department asked for $5 million ($2 ½ million from Foundation, $2 ½ million to be raised by the Athletic Department) to build a press-box and improve dressing rooms at the football stadium, which was positively received by the Foundation Board. Concerns were raised about what happens if the project is begun and the money can’t be raised, and how priorities are determined. The Provost reaffirmed the concern that capital campaigns must be aligned with institutional priorities. Hudson suggested a discussion of various department/discipline needs at the next faculty forum.
Temporary Additional Membership on Assessment Committee: Stork moved to allow the Assessment Committee to increase membership from five to eight. Seastrum seconded. Coykendall pointed out the need to always keep in mind the faculty challenges involved in forming new committees and expanding committees in this way. The motion passed unanimously.
Announcements
CTE workshop on meeting management, 9/27 12:30 Borick 104
Next Senate meeting 10/8
The meeting was adjourned at 6:08 p.m.
Monday, September 10, 2012
The Western State Colorado University Faculty Senate met on Monday, September 10, 2012 in the Aspinall-Wilson Center. The meeting convened at 4:20 p.m., chaired by Roger Hudson.
Attendees
Faculty Senate
Susan Coykendall (BASS)
Roger Drake (Senator-at-large)
Shannon Eagles (LIB)
Kimberley Fix (MCIS)
Roger Hudson (BAE, Chair)
Scott Lazerus (BAE, Clerk)
Jack Lucido (CALL)
Veronica Mendez-Maqueo (CALL)
Caroline Mitchell (BASS)
Jason Mullins (NES, Vice-Chair)
Don Seastrum (ART)
Allen Stork (NES)
Tim Wawrzyniec (Senator-at-large)
Jim Woytek (TEP)absent: Christina Buchanan (RESS), Ken Todd (MUS)
Others in attendance
Dale Orth (faculty trustee)
Scott Cohn (chair, Academic Policies)
The agenda and the minutes were unanimously approved.
Faculty Trustee Report
Dale Orth reported on the Trustees’ activities during the summer. The new University logo was approved. The annual retreat included several local business and political leaders, indicating the importance of community relations to the University. A meeting with a former CCHE director for consulting purposes resulted in several findings: WSCU, in comparison to other Colorado schools, has relatively high costs per FTE, but low costs per graduate, leading to the recommendation of a continued focus on retention; WSCU could benefit from collecting more evidence of student learning outcomes, to use in part for promotional purposes; WSCU ought to be looking at metrics related to performance contracts, as indicated by the state higher education master plan (though such metrics will not come into play unless state higher education funding increases significantly). Two new board members were introduced. The next Board of Trustees meeting will be on September 21.
New Business
Eagles accepted appointment as Senate Parliamentarian.
At the suggestion of the Provost and with the agreement of the Senate, the first campus-wide Faculty Meeting will be held on Tuesday, September 20, from 12:30 to 1:45, in the Quigley Recital Hall. Hudson asked for suggestions in regard to meeting mechanics and success, suggesting several possibilities for an agenda: short committee updates, including opportunity for faculty feedback to committees; recommendation, suggestions, and observations from the faculty (with a two-minute speaking limit for each); ten minutes each for the President and the Provost; and a question-and-answer session with administrators. A suggestion to make the committee reports optional was positively received. The importance of enforcing time limits on speaking was emphasized. There was discussion in regard to who would be invited, and whether faculty should be “expected” to attend. Contract adjuncts will be invited, and the meeting is open to the public. Drake suggested asking faculty to offer constructive questions and comments if possible, and there was general agreement that the Senate should consider ways to maintain a positive environment at the meetings, while not attempting to prevent open dialogue.
The Provost is planning to separate the Handbook for Professional Personnel into separate faculty and administrative handbooks. According to the Bylaws, FPAC would be responsible for the Faculty Handbook revision work, which also includes incorporating the institution’s name change. It was suggested that the Senate could do more of the work, since FPAC tends to be busy in the fall, or an ad hoc committee from either FPAC and/or the Senate could be formed. Hudson will discuss the question with the FPAC chair and the Provost. The Provost has suggested specific policy changes that will need to be reviewed by the faculty. Seastrum suggested inserting a statement that the faculty owns the curriculum, tying into Wawrzyniec’s point that Western’s academic freedom statement looks weak compared to other institutions, and ought to be strengthened as part of the revision process.
Is it the right time for the faculty get involved with researching a more representative list of peer institutions against which to measure salaries to help in developing salary policy? Seastrum argued that this is the moment to begin these discussions, given the new Provost and the new University designation. This is also an FPAC responsibility, so they will be consulted as to whether and how to proceed. Drake suggested including administration in the salary comparisons.
The Provost has brought up the possibility of training sessions for Senate Subcommittee Chairs, to help formalize and standardize meeting procedures. Hudson suggested implementing a CTE training session, which will be scheduled. There will be one session in the fall, and probably more in the spring.
Hudson suggested inviting Gary Pearson (Student Affairs) to the Senate to explain current policies and plans in regard to campus security. We may want to suggest implementation of an evaluation process. The suggestions were positively received by the Senate.
Cohn suggested that Academic Policies be charged by the Senate with assessing the First-Year Experience process from a faculty perspective. There was some discussion as to whether this would be better handled by the Assessment Committee. A motion from the Academic Policies Committee was presented for Academic Policies to proceed. The motion was as follows:
Request that the initial charge for the AP during the 2012–2013 academic year be to begin assessing the benefits of academic components of Western’s FYE as part of university-wide FYE assessment efforts.
Further discussion of this motion was postponed pending consultation with the Assessment Committee.
Announcements
Stork pointed out that missing the first two Mondays of the semester causes a major problem for scheduling science labs, especially when combined with the continuing problem of absences related to sports. The NES Department will be asking for this issue to be revisited.
The meeting was adjourned at 5:55 p.m.
