Minutes for February 5, 2007

The Faculty Senate of Eastern Kentucky University met on Monday, February 5, 2007 in the South Room of the Keen Johnson Building. Senator Eakin called the fifth meeting of the academic year to order at approximately 3:30 p.m.

The following members of the Senate were absent:

^*Indicates prior notification of absence to the Faculty Senate Secretary
^SUB Karen Camarata attended for V. Sanchez Noblitt
^ALT Brooke Bentley attended for L. Wray

Visitors to the Senate were: Gary Barksdale, Human Resources, Jim Conneely, Student Affairs; Phillip Gump, SACS; Deborah Newsom, Financial Affairs, Jaleh Rezaie, SACS; Wally Skiba, Human Resources; Aaron Thompson, University Programs; and Virginia Underwood, Chief of Staff

APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
The December 11 minutes were approved as written.

REPORT FROM THE PRESIDENT: Senator Glasser

Senator Glasser shared the following updates in her written report to the Senate:

Senator Glasser welcomed Senator Piercey to his first EKU Faculty Senate meeting.

EKU unveiled a new financial aid initiative this week, the BEACON Program. BEACON is an acronym for "Bringing Educational Access to the Commonwealth and Our Nation." This program is a bold new initiative created to reach those students and families least able to finance a college education. For additional information, please see EKUpdate (http://www.prm.eku.edu/Update/?issue=82&department=0&article=849).

As shared in December, a new and improved budget calendar and process are in place. The Academic Affairs budget information submitted to date is being accumulated/processed for redistribution through the Provost's Office for the Provost review.

The Student Government Association, in conjunction with the President's Office, held a student tuition forum to give students an opportunity to ask questions and express concerns regarding the tuition increase for next year. The forum was held in Walnut Hall on January 23rd and was also made available via broadcast and web-cast to students at the extended campuses.

On January 29th, President Glasser brought the 2007-08 Board of Regents approved tuition before the Council on Postsecondary Education. The CPE approved the tuition increase without discussion.

Since the last campus update, there has been a significant emphasis on regional events and visits. The regional outreach program has been and continues to be key to securing support for the capital campaign.

The Spring Phonathon and Annual Fund efforts are off to a very good start. Student calling is underway and annual fund initiatives targeting key constituencies, especially class gifts, are also off to a promising start.

The alumni magazine is being completely redesigned, and the first edition of the newly designed magazine will be mailed in early March.

This year's Alumni Weekend is scheduled for April 27-29, 2007. For additional information, please contact Jackie Collier, Director of Alumni Relations, at 622-1260.

The Department of Family and Consumer Sciences and Human Resources submitted a proposal for funding to the EKU Foundation for a Feasibility Study for an On-site Child Care Center. The proposal was approved and funding is now available to conduct this study. It is anticipated that the study will begin during the spring and be concluded by summer.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

Report from Council on Academic Affairs

Senator Schlomann moved to split the motion into two separate motions, seconded by Senator Johnson. The first part has to do with procedures and the second part has to do about whether or not students can graduate with an "I". The majority were in favor of splitting the motion into two parts and the motion carried.

Senator Case moved, seconded by Senator Winslow, to postpone further discussion until March and to invite the Registrar to the March meeting. The majority were in agreement and the motion carried.

NEW BUSINESS:

Budget Committee Report on Alternative Scheduling. Senator May introduced the Budget Committee's report on alternative scheduling as an informational item. Based on the survey results, the committee felt there was no immediate need to change EKU's current course configurations.

Senator Robles suggested that the alternative scheduling report be electronically distributed again after the meeting so senators could share it with their faculty and get additional faculty feedback. Furthermore, the issue could be addressed again at a future "For the Good of the Order" discussion.

SACS & QEP Update. Jaleh Rezaie gave a 20 minute powerpoint presentation on the status of the SACS & QEP preparation. She also distributed a handout on "Frequently asked questions about EKU's QEP."

The SACS site visit is scheduled for April 10-12, 2007. There will be several training workshops on the QEP available in March in preparation for the on-site visit.

Health Care Plans Update. Wally Skiba announced that the University will cover the increase in premium costs for 2007-2008.

In addition, he encouraged everyone to attend the Wellness Fair on February 28 to become more familiar with ways individuals can help to improve EKU's health care costs.

Adopt Senate Resolution Regarding KTRS. Senator May moved approval of the proposed resolution (below) regarding KTRS, seconded by Senator Ciocca. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.

Adopt Senate Resolution Regarding Faculty Workload. Senator Robles submitted the resolution on faculty workload as an informational item to be discussed during the "For the Good of the Order" discussion. Due to time constraints, Senator Eakin postponed the discussion on the resolution until the March meeting.

Report from Council on Academic Affairs

1. Change catalog text regarding class attendance (informational item)
2. Change credit-by-Examination CLEP Policy to include Financial Accounting (informational item)
3. Change to President's Award (informational item)
4. General Education Course Syllabus Policy  (informational item)
5. Departmental name change from Loss Prevention & Safety to Safety, Security & Emergency Management (informational item)
6. CIS Program revision  (BBA) - adding 2 options 1) General CIS & 2) Networks Management
7. Health Services Administration Program revision:  merge Health Care Administration & Health Information Management into one: Health Care Administration & Informatics
8. Health Care Administration Minor - Suspend
9. Health Information Management Minor - Suspend
10. Post-baccalaureate HIM Certificate - Suspend
11. Corrections & Juvenile Justice Studies - delete At-Youth Studies Option (CAA approved 2-16-06) 

Items 1-5 were introduced as informational items only.

Senator Collins moved approval of items 6-11, seconded by Senator Johnson.  The majority were in favor and the motion carried.

GENERAL & STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS

All action items were unanimously approved, with the following exceptions. Senator Schlomann voted against: the President's contract, the tuition increase and the proposed allocation of new revenues.

COSFL REPORT: Senator Ware

COSFL met on Saturday, February 3, 2007 at the W.T Young Library, University of Kentucky. The next meeting is scheduled for April 21.

The WKU Resolution on KTRS was discussed, with other campuses reporting similar resolutions having been passed or under consideration.

House Bill 158, cited as an "academic bill of rights," has failed in all 14 states in which it was tried. The consensus is action should not be taken unless it begins to get significant support in the legislature. The link to the bill is: http://www.lrc.ky.gov/record/O7RS/HBl58/bill.doc.

Faculty Representative Wattier provided the following update on the CPE Presidential search:
University presidents have been contacted for support. The search committee meets again in April. The expectation is that 8 - 10 names will have been identified from the review of applications in March for consideration by the committee. Of these, five or six may be flown in for preliminary interviews. The list will then be narrowed to three for more extensive interviews with all stake holders, perhaps in early May.

Campuses should consider having their presidents submit the transcript on the collegial governance workshop, conducted by Carol Bredemeyer, Rick Feldhoff, and Mark Wattier at the last CPE trusteeship conference, to their boards.

An update was provided on the Developmental Education and STEM Disciplines CPE initiatives by Sherri Noxel, CPE Director of Academic Assessment, and Allyson Handley, CPE Senior Advisor for Economic Initiatives. There is a STEM Discipline meeting scheduled for February 28 from 9am - 4pm at the CPE headquarters in Frankfort. Allyson Handley encouraged all interested faculty to attend.

PROVOST REPORT: Senator Piercey

Senator Piercey provided the following updates in his written report to the Senate.

Mr. Gus Benson has been named as Director of the Division of Sponsored Programs. Gus has served as Interim Director since 2004. A search is currently underway for an Associate Director of Sponsored Programs.

Finalists have been selected for the Associate Dean of the Graduate School. Interviews for the position are being scheduled for mid-February. Candidates for the position are: Dr. Jaleh Rezaie, Chair and Professor, Department of Computer Science; Dr. Paula Kopacz, Professor, Department of English and Theatre; Dr. Victor Kappeler, Department of Criminal Justice and Police Studies; Dr. Barbara Pierce, Associate Dean, School of Business, Florida Institute of Technology; and Dr. Michael Collins, Chair and Professor of the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences at Mississippi State University.

President Glasser has recommended an increase in the stipend levels for graduate assistants in the FY08 budget approved by the Board of Regents in January. Beginning in the Fall of 2007, graduate assistant stipends will be increased from their current level of $6500/ academic year to $10,000/ academic year.

President Glasser has also provided additional funds under the Special One-Time Funding Initiative to support Graduate Recruitment and Retention and Faculty Research. A pool of $300,000 has been designated to support faculty research and $100,000 will be targeted toward graduate recruitment and retention.

The Division of Sponsored Programs will be implementing a new database system for funding searchers called SPINplus. The new system includes information from over 5000 Sponsoring agencies plus an alert service on an individualized basis when additional opportunities become available. Training sessions for funding searches using the new system will be held on February 7 and February 13. Please contact Sponsored Programs for more information.

The Office of Institutional Effectiveness worked with the Strategic Planning Committee to develop rubrics and reporting templates for the 96 key performance indicators of the 2006-10 EKU Strategic Plan to be used by academic leaders, including deans and department chairs. In addition to other numerous activities, the Office also prepared for NSSE administration and began promotion of the survey to prospective student respondents.

The search has begun for an Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management. Everyone is encouraged to help promote this important position to their colleagues inside and outside the University.

In the Continuing Education and Outreach area, the EC started their second semester at the new Lancaster Higher Ed Center with enrollments growing since the spring term (up to 61). The EC also saw an increase in their Blue Grass Community and Technical College site. In addition, the Danville campus has completed an expansion and its enrollments are up 25%. Plans for the new campus in Manchester are proceeding.

The SACS Leadership Team is continuing to develop Focus Reports and is preparing for the April site visit. There are still outstanding issues of non-compliance, but substantial research is being done to address them prior to the site visit and much progress is being made.

Based on initial meetings with the Associate Vice Presidents in the Provost's Office; with the College Deans, with members of the Faculty Senate, and with others from the university community, The Provost is encouraging a renewed, university-wide discourse on academic enterprise. These "Conversations on Academics" will include topics such as:

• fundamental principles of shared governance;
• faculty workload reporting;
• the role of the academic units in pursuing the university's strategic plan, and,
• other topics of interest.
   

STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS:

Rights & Responsibilities Committee. Senator Robles shared the following in her written report:

The Rights and Responsibilities committee met with the new Provost regarding the Faculty Workload issue.

The committee is working on a resolution to bring to Faculty Senate and will discuss the faculty workload subject as the "for the good of the order" topic at the February Senate meeting.

Election Committee. Senator Randles shared the following in his written report to the Senate.

The Elections Committee is conducting the process of electing a Faculty Regent. A call for candidates and the announcement of the election was communicated to faculty of the rank of assistant professor or higher and to the librarians. This was done via e-mail on January 26, 2007 and will be followed up by future e-mails. Please urge your department faculty to participate in this important process.

The process of electing a Part-time Faculty representative for the Faculty Senate has also begun. Please identify strong candidates and urge them to run for this important position.

Committee on Committee. Senator Dieckmann reported that the committee met on January 25. The committee's goal is to have the online form for self evaluations to University committees available by February 19.

Welfare Committee. Senator Collins shared the following in his written report to the Senate.

The Welfare Committee met during the Christmas Break and, with the help of data provided by Dr. Bethany Miller, Director of Institutional Research, compiled a survey of recent hires. The data presented covers the period 2001-2005 and includes hiring only in the faculty, executive/administrative, managerial and professional categories (no paraprofessional, clerical and service/maintenance hires are included) regardless of race-ethnicity and gender. The two charts listed report first the number of total new faculty hires compared to administrative/managerial positions and second the comparison between full-time hires and part-time.

While the interpretation of the data is preliminary at best, they suggest the following.

It appears that the number of new hires in managerial/administrative positions is comparable to the number of faculty hired during this period (first chart), and that the number of part-times hires seems to be growing rapidly as compared to full time, especially in part-time faculty. The latter trend is unsettling and the Welfare committee will continue its analysis to determine if this is indeed the case.

FOR THE GOOD OF THE ORDER:

The topic of discussion was "Faculty Workload."

Due to time constraints the discussion was postponed until the March meeting.