Minutes for February 4, 2008
The Faculty Senate of Eastern Kentucky University met on Monday, February 4, 2008, 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:
| H. Bennett*^ | C. Clay | D. Whitlock |
| M. Gerken | S. Godbey*^ | J. Koontz |
| M. McDermott* | B. Phillips* | R. Piercey*^ |
| B. Pruitt* | C. Resor* | V. Sanchez* |
| E. Styer* | M. Ware*^ |
*Indicates prior notification of absence to the Faculty Senate Secretary
^ ALT Tom Butler attended for H. Bennett
^ ALT Darrin Smith attended for S. Godbey
^ ALT Janna Vice attended for R. Piercey
^ ALT Claire Schmelzer attended for M. Ware who served as Parliamentarian
Visitors to the Senate: Jim Conneely, Student Affairs; David Fifer, SGA; Nickole Hale, University Housing; Deborah Newsom, Financial Affairs; Brian Perry, Student Affairs; Mike Reagle, Student Affairs; Sherry Robinson, Academic Affairs; Virginia Underwood, Chief of Staff; and John Wade, Arts & Sciences
APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
The December 10, 2007 minutes were approved as written.
REPORT FROM THE PRESIDENT: Senator Whitlock
Senator Whitlock expressed his regrets for having to miss the meeting. In his written report to the Senate, he shared the following.
As noted in the media, the Governor's recommended budget included the 12 percent reduction in state appropriation for which higher education institutions had been asked to prepare for as a "worst case scenario." While the economic problems are very real, the Governor and legislative leadership are committed to work together to improve the funding picture before final action is taken on the state budget in late March or early April. Hopefully, the reduction will be less than the projected 12 percent.
At this time, the EKU community must continue to work together to prepare for as much as a 12 percent reduction in the state appropriations base (approximately $9,240,000 for EKU). Senator Whitlock is committed to minimizing the budget impact on EKU's core instructional mission and, he firmly believes that the impact on personnel can be accommodated through attrition. A cut of this magnitude will effectively remove financial flexibility for the coming year. Therefore, the new initiatives in the business plan will be delayed and as a result EKU's momentum in the state's "double the numbers" effort and regional stewardship will be impacted.
A tuition increase sufficient to replace these potentially lost state dollars would place an unbearable burden on students.
On a more positive note, there is hope that phase II of the science building might be funded in the second year of the coming biennium. EKU has received a nice earmark of federal funds for equipment and has been invited to submit proposals for more federal funding both for that purpose and for some other needs of the institution. One of those is the Studio for Academic Creativity in the library, which recently benefitted from a private gift of more than $1,000,000.00 from Ron and Sherrie Noel.
Indications are that the doctoral program in educational leadership has been well-reviewed by the consultants from the Southern Region Education Board by the CPE; and hopefully that program will be approved to move forward soon.
NEW BUSINESS:
Budget Committee Election (2 vacancies). Senator Randles announced that, at the Executive Committee's suggestion, the two members elected to the Budget Committee will serve for the remainder of their Senate term.
Senators Johnson and Shordike were nominated. Senator Ciocca moved to accept the nominees by acclamation, seconded by Senator Redmond. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
Partnership Opportunities with Faculty. Nickole Hale and Brian Perry were in attendance to discuss partnership opportunities available with faculty and they shared several handouts on the opportunities available. Anyone with comments or questions should contact either Nickole.Hale@eku.edu or Brian.Perry@eku.edu.
(Handouts: Living Learning Communities, Alternative Spring Break 2008, Alternative Spring break trips, Bowl For Kids Sake, 5-Step Team Tip Sheet
Ms. Hale encouraged faculty to attend a roundtable discussion on "What is the Link between Higher Student GPAs, Retention Rates, and Co-Curricular Learning Experiences?" on February 12 from 11am-1pm in the Faculty Lounge in Keen Johnson.
Policy on Policies. Dr. Sherry Robinson was in attendance to discuss the draft of the policy on policies and to gather feedback. The policy will come back before the Senate at a later date for a vote of support. Senator Eakin suggested that all comments and/or questions should be directed to Sherry.Robinson@eku.edu. (additional handouts: Standard Policy Process, Expedited Policy Process)
One of the concerns voiced by the senators was that the flowchart provided for an expedited process removes Senate from the review process. Dr. Robinson indicated that in an emergency situation, the Provost's office would probably be responsible for initiating an expedited process for Academic Affairs policies. However, the expedited policy should still eventually be viewed by the Senate. (*)
Report from Council on Academic Affairs - Dr. Janna Vice reported for Senator Piercey.
- Teacher Admission & Certification Admission Requirements - Catalog Text Revision - Informational Item
- Community & Regional Planning Minor - Program Suspension
- Geographic Information Systems Minor - Program Revision
- Geology Minor - Program Revision
- Natural Resource Geography Minor - Program Suspension
- Teaching M.S. - Program Revision (pulled from agenda on 02-01-08)
- Certified Alcohol & Drug Counselor Certificate - Program Suspension
- Correctional Intervention Strategies Certificate - New Program
- Women & Gender Studies - Department Name Change
- Women & Gender Studies Minor/Certificate - Program Revision
Dr. Vice indicated that item one was listed for informational purposes only.
Senator Winslow moved approval of item #2, seconded by Senator Robles. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
It was moved and seconded to approve #3. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
Senator Collins moved approval of item #4, seconded by Senator Reed. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
Senator Ciocca moved approval of item #5, seconded by Senator Johnson. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
Dr. Vice announced that item #6 should be withdrawn from the Senate agenda.
Senator Flanagan moved approval of item #7, seconded by Senator Pressley. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
Senator Collins moved approval of item #8, seconded by Senator Ruddell. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
Senator Ciocca moved approval of items #9 and #10, seconded by Senator Robles. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
GENERAL & STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE REPORT: Senator Eakin
Dr. Judy Short, Corey Bray, Teresa Belluscio, and Sandy Douglas were in attendance to discuss the proposed regulation regarding early registration. The primary purpose was to gather feedback. It was suggested that it be vetted by the Provost's Council prior to coming to Faculty Senate.
The new EKU Colonel 1 ID Cards will begin to be issued in April. While the cards will be issued to the entire campus community, the change will primarily affect students. The committee working on this process would like to have a faculty volunteer. (Senator Noblitt volunteered at the Senate meeting to serve on the Colonel I Card Committee.)
David "Doc" Fifer was in attendance to present a draft policy on Bulletin Board postings for the University. The Student Senate will continue making revisions to the policy and Mr. Fifer will bring it back to the Executive Committee for another review before bringing it to the Senate.
Dr. Sherry Robinson came to ask for feedback and judgment on how to best involve the Faculty Senate in the review of existing academically-related policies.
Senator Collins reported that the Benefits Committee made a new recommendation of a 5% increase in co-insurance which will increase individual out-of-pocket expenses. The Benefits Committee is also creating a sub-committee to further discuss domestic partner benefits.
Senator Shadur, reporting for the Withdrawal Committee, stated that there is some real confusion regarding the proper use of the "Exception to Academic Policy" form; even by department heads and Deans. Please remember that there is no specific form for withdrawal after the published withdrawal date; it is an appellate process requiring documentation by the student. Some departments have been using the "Exception to Academic Policy" form leaving students with the assumption that their withdrawal request has been approved with the completion of that form. This appears to be a problem requiring some education of staff and students.
The new joint Ad Hoc Committee to review EKU's Dead Week Policy has been established. The names of the student and faculty members are available on the Senate website.
In response to the chair's report several senators voiced concerns about EKU's I.D. Card and the proposed Higher One card being synonymous. Many felt there were hidden costs associated with the Higher One card for students; and the majority were opposed to having the MasterCard logo on the faculty/staff I.D. card. Several senators suggested either keeping the current cards for faculty/staff or allowing faculty/staff the option to not have the MasterCard logo on the I.D. card. (*)
FACULTY REGENT REPORT: Senator Frisbie
The Board of Regents met on January 18, 2008 for a regular quarterly meeting. Below are several highlights that may be of particular interest to the Senate.
Informational Items
- The Board was privileged to hear remarks from Mr. Brad Cowgill, Interim President of the Council on Postsecondary Education. Later in the meeting, President Whitlock and VP Moberly shared with the Board a Powerpoint presentation that had been prepared by the Legislative Research Commission for the General Assembly.
- VP Newsom reported that the University is on track in terms of its expenditures versus revenues for the current budget year.
Action Items
- The Board approved all 12 items from the Council on Academic Affairs.
- The Board approved the revised University Promotion and Tenure Policy that was recommended by the Faculty Senate. The new policy takes effect in August 2008. The Provost has subsequently emphasized several provisions of the new policy in an email to the university community. It is important that those whose initial appointment at EKU predates August 2008 and who are still in their probationary period understand that they will follow the old probationary period provision of five years unless they request in writing to be moved to the new probationary period of six years. Those requests must be made by September 30, 2008.
- The Board welcomed a new member, April Pergrem. In addition, Hunter Bates was re-elected as Board chair. Gary Abney was selected as the new vice-chair, and Steven Fulkerson was selected as the new secretary.
The Board will next convene on April 11, 2008 for a regular quarterly meeting.
COSFL: Senator McKenney
COSFL met on Saturday, January 12, 2008 at the University of Kentucky's Young Library from 10:00 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.
Representative Harry Moberly and Brad Cowgill, Acting Head of the Council on Post-Secondary Education, were special guests. Both addressed the state budget situation and its likely impact on higher education.
In answer to a question as to whether the CPE would have to submit an amended budget, Cowgill said he was unsure, but he felt that the original budget will not be very useful in view of the current financial situation. Both he and Representative Moberly felt that it would be useful to no longer follow the benchmark funding model. Tuition, scholarship and appropriation policies need to be coordinated. Cowgill noted that House Bill 1 does not specify who should develop education policy for Kentucky.
Representative Moberly indicated that he and others will argue that the "tolerance" bill should to be killed. (The bill actually prohibits domestic partner benefits.)
PROVOST REPORT: Senator Piercey
Senator Piercey shared the following in his written report to the Senate.
Institutional Effectiveness has been working on the configuration of the TracDat upgrade and collateral materials for the new system. NSSE will be administered this spring.
The next meeting of the Strategic Planning Committee is February 8th. SPC has been preparing the final report on progress towards the goals of the '06-'10 University strategic plan.
Stacey Street, a member of the planning committee for the QEP Foundations for Learning course, has worked on the development of the assessment plan for the proposed course. In other news, Michele Goltz is the newly appointed QEP Assessment Analyst.
A group of 25 members of the EKU faculty and staff have been designated to participate in the CPE's Adult Learner Summit on February 4th and 5th . The purpose of the summit is to create a comprehensive policy framework at both the state and institutional levels to support adult learners, so it ties into the Project Graduate outreach efforts.
Institutional Effectiveness has been gathering information from peer/benchmark institutions, including Kentucky comprehensives, to determine their polices on awarding multiple degrees at the same level. Only one benchmark institution, Mankato State in Minnesota, prohibits awarding of the same degree (e.g., B.A., B.S.) twice.
Institutional Effectiveness also met with a cross-group of EKU transfer staff to assess the extent to which transfer students from Bluegrass Community and Technical College and Somerset Community College are being properly advised‹both before and after they transfer to EKU. Information will be collected from these transfer students via focus groups or surveys on their experiences.
Institutional Research has finalized testing the SNAP survey software and will be launching the Graduating Senior Survey and the Survey of Graduate Degree Candidates soon.
STUDENT GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION: David Fifer
The annual rally for higher education will be held at the Capitol in Frankfort on February 20th. All student governments across the state will participate.
The President's Ball will be Friday, February 8th. Tickets are $10 for faculty and staff. All proceeds will go to benefit the Tom Myers Endowed SGA Scholarship Fund.
The NWC Live program will be held on February 15th at 7:30 p.m. in the Student Services Building Auditorium.
STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Budget Committee. Senator Ciocca reported the following in his written report to the Senate.
The committee meet on January 18, 2008, and Senator Ciocca was selected to serve as chair. In light of the recent announcements regarding State Budget Cuts, the committee has realigned the committee charge to more closely reflect the charge stated in the Senate bylaws. Senator Chapman agreed to draft the new charge and will share it with members in the near future.
Rules Committee. Senator McKenney reported that the committee will meet next on February 12th.
Welfare Committee. Senator Waters shared the following in her written report to the Senate.
The Faculty Welfare committee met several times in December and January to discuss the health insurance plan for 2008-2009 plan year.
All of the plans had changes in the prescription co-pay structure for generic, preferred, and preferred brand medications. All of the plans had changes in the number of covered visits for chiropractic, physical therapy, and speech/occupational therapy. The Economy Plan and the Standard PPO Plan had no other changes. The High PPO plan had changes with the addition of the 5% co-insurance until the maximum out of pocket is reached for the individual and the family. The premium increase for the individual High PPO is at 8%. There was no increased premium for the Economy and the Standard PPO Plan.
The recommendations from the University Benefits Committee will be sent to President Whitlock and the Board of Regents for approval. Mr. Wally Skiba of Human Resources will make a presentation to the Faculty Senate at the March meeting in order to discuss health insurance and other benefits.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Senator Eakin thanked Senator Ware for serving as Parliamentarian for today's meeting.
FOR THE GOOD OF THE ORDER:
The topic of discussion was "State Budget Cut Backs"
Senator Redmond asked if there was anything the Senate could do, perhaps in coordination with other Faculty Senates across the state, to express concern about the budget situation. Senator McKenney mentioned that Brad Cowgill of the CPE and all the state Presidents recently sent a letter to the Governor expressing their concerns about the budget situation. Senator McKenney agreed to share that letter with the senators. (additional handout: Powerpoint Presentation presented by Brad Cowgill, Interim CPE President.)
Senator Shadur suggested that one thing that might be looked at is which programs have been committed to separately by the CPE which were not intended to be funded either from general funds to the University or from student fees, such as the regional stewardship initiative.
On behalf of one of his colleagues, Senator Reed mentioned a problem with budget issues that should be addressed in relation to professional development. For informational purposes he shared the following section from the University's strategic plan:
Strategic Direction 4.3
Strategic Direction 4.3 is measured by three KPIs. The first indicator relates to planning group professional development plans. The target is for 100 percent of planning groups' professional development plans to include a strategy to address faculty reassigned time and/or staff time for scholarly and creative endeavors. Of the seven planning groups reporting data, only two have a strategy to address faculty reassigned time. In the future all planning groups will be asked to report data pertaining in this area so that the SPC can capture staff related data. The University is falling short on this KPI.
The second indicator relates to faculty reassigned time. The target is to increase by 10 percentage points, the percent of faculty with reassigned time specifically for scholarly and creative endeavors by 2010. Baseline data indicates that of the 650 full-time faculty members at EKU, 17 percent now get 3SH or more of reassigned time.
The third indicator also relates to faculty reassigned time. The target is for all faculty actively pursuing scholarly and creative endeavors to receive a one 3-credit-hour course reassigned time per year. All colleges and departments within the University currently address these issues differently based upon their assessment of the needs of their units. While currently two colleges provide reassign time to all full time faculty, in the future the SPC needs to collect data by department to get a more complete picture of the University's progress on this KPI. A committee was appointed in 2006-07 by the Provost to examine this issue.
Goal 4 Summary
The University is doing well at providing professional development opportunities for its faculty and staff despite most planning groups not having a comprehensive professional development plan in place for the entire group. While progress is being made on addressing staff professional development needs, the University did not make acceptable progress on the KPIs related to financial assistance for faculty professional development opportunities. Finally, the University ha much work to do regarding the creation of a cohesive strategy to address faculty and staff reassigned time.
ADJOURNMENT:
The meeting was adjourned at approximately 5:30 p.m.
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