Minutes for November 5, 2007
The Faculty Senate of Eastern Kentucky University met on Monday, November 5, 2007, in the South Room of the Keen Johnson Building. Senator Eakin called the third meeting of the academic year to order at approximately 3:30 p.m.
The following members of the Senate were absent:
| D. Clay | B. Gaffney | M. Hesse*^ |
| J. Koontz* | S. Neumann | B. Phillips |
| D. Phillips* | B. Pruitt* | V. Sanchez* |
| B. Shadur* | E. Waters*^ |
*Indicates prior notification of absence to the Faculty Senate Secretary
^ALT John Taylor attended for M. Hesse
^ALT Mary Hauser Whitaker attended for E. Waters
Visitors to the Senate: Ray Arnold, SGA; Lyndsey Cross, SGA; David Fifer, SGA; Jerry Pogatshnik, Graduate Education & Research; Barry Poynter, Financial Affairs; Travis Reynolds, Eastern Progress; Sherry Robinson, Academic Affairs; Virginia Underwood, Chief of Staff; Janna Vice, Academic Affairs; and John Wade, Arts & Sciences
APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
The October 1, 2007 minutes were approved as written.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Senator Rainey distributed a flyer on a new course being offered Spring 2008--POL 301 CACTUS (Citizen's Assembly for Critical Thinking About the United States). This is one of the first QEP initiatives to actually become implemented. Please share with your faculty and encourage students to sign up for the course. Additional information is available on the website at http://www.cactus.eku.edu.
REPORT FROM THE PRESIDENT: Senator Whitlock
Senator Whitlock shared that at the October 22nd Board of Regents meeting his tenure as President was extended until July 31, 2010.
On October 23rd, a series of town meetings began around the twenty-two county campus to discuss the Council on Postsecondary Education's doubling the numbers plan and how to succeed in achieving that goal.
The Council on Postsecondary Education has adopted and recommended for transmission to the Governor the final budget recommendation for the next biennium. As previously reported, it's a departure from prior years. CPE has actually stated goals, indicated a means to reach those goals, and has attached price tags to achieve those goals.
The base tuition increase which is designed to offset cost of living for the institution in the first year of the biennium for 2008-09 is $2,638,700, and the second year is $2,799.900. There is a capital renewal allocation of $428,100 in the first year of the biennium that EKU is required (and prepared) to match. See the chart below for a condensed version of the proposed recommendations.
| CPE's FUNDING RECOMMENDATION SUMMARY FOR EKU | |||
| 2008-09 | 2009-10 | ||
| Maintenance & Operations | |||
| Base | $2,638,700 | $2,799,900 | |
| Capital Renewal Allocation (EKU is required & prepared to match funds) |
$ 428,100 | ||
| New Maintenance Operation on new facilities coming online in the biennium | $ 367,200 | $ 896,100 | |
| TOTAL: | $3,434,000 | $3,696,000 | |
| Strategic Investment | |||
| Developmental Education | $ 500,000 | $ 261,600 | |
| Statewide Priorities (regional stewardship, etc.) | $1,317,200 | $ 878,100 | |
| TOTAL: | $1,817,20 | $1,139,700 | |
| Double the number degree productivity | $ 257,500 | $1,646,300 | |
| Endowment Matching Program ("Bucks for Brains") | $9,449,500 | ||
The funds for developmental education have been increased since the last Senate meeting. That total has increased to $500,000 in the first year and $261,600 in the second year of the biennium.
The degree productivity incentives have increased considerably from what was reported at the last Senate meeting. For each baccalaureate degree above the baseline (EKU's baseline is a rolling two-year average for the two prior years) funding is anticipated at the level of $5,000 for any baccalaureate degree and another $1,750 for baccalaureates in the STEM disciplines. CPE projects that for EKU that should generate a little over $257,500 in the first year and $1,646,300 in the second year. In the second year the amount is greater because $15,000 is estimated for each additional baccalaureate and approximately $3,750 is estimated for each additional baccalaureate degree in the STEM disciplines.
Funds for the "Bucks for Brains" endowment matching program have been increased to $200 million. EKU's proportional share of that amount is $9,449,500.
Senator Whitlock stated that a number of faculty and staff have asked if there will be an inauguration ceremony. If there is, it will be very low key and will focus on EKU as a community.
Senator Whitlock announced that there will be some organizational changes in the near future in Academic Affairs and Student Affairs. However the changes will not affect the college or departmental structure.
NEW BUSINESS:
Policy on Bulletin Boards. David Fifer, SGA President, gave an overview and of the current policy. He asked the Senate to consider passing a resolution stating that the Faculty Handbook should not be applied to students. In addition he requested the Senate to pass a motion to repeal the paragraph and strike it from the Faculty Handbook until a new policy is created.
Senator Robles suggested that SGA draft new statements for both the Student Handbook and the Faculty Handbook and bring back to the Senate for further deliberation.
Sponsored Programs Policy Regarding Workload. Dr. Jerry Pogatshnik was in attendance to introduce the proposed sponsored programs policy regarding workload and give a brief history explaining why the policies are needed.
Senator May moved to replace the 3.4.8 Sponsored Program policy proposal with the College of Justice & Safety's revision to policy 3.4.8, seconded by Senator Collins.
Senator May moved to amend the original motion to include "The Senate encourages Sponsored Programs to convene a work group of knowledgeable, interested faculty, staff, and administrators, which would include representatives from all colleges and from the Senate, to consult with and come up with a draft policy by January, 2008." The amendment was seconded by Senator Taylor. The majority were in favor and the amendment to the motion carried.
The majority of the Senate were in favor of the original motion in its amended state and the motion carried.
Senator May moved, seconded by Senator Taylor, to request that when Sponsored Programs convenes the work group that all the proposed Sponsored Programs policies be reviewed. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
Report from Council on Academic Affairs - Dr. Janna Vice presented the following materials at the request of Senator Piercey.
- General Education Course Syllabus Policy - Informational Item
- Procedure for Proposing an "S" or "W" designation to permit courses to carry a writing intensive or service learning designation - Informational Item
- Proposal for Service Learning course designation - Informational Item
- Geography & Geology Department Name Change to reflect merger approved by Board of Regents
- Correctional & Juvenile Justice Studies (AA) - Program Suspension
- Correctional & Juvenile Justice Studies (MS) - Program Revision
Add a college-granted certificate; remove transfer course restrictions; change total curriculum requirements from 31 hours to 30 hours; provide students with the option of taking either COR 820 or COR 840; and add online information. - Youth Work Certification Program - Program Revision
Revise the 31 hour certificate into a 24 hour Professional Certificate in Youth Services. - Fire & Safety Engineering Technology (AA) - Program Suspension
Items 1, 2, & 3 were introduced as informational items only.
Senator Robles moved approval of item #4, seconded by Senator Winslow. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
Senator May moved approval of item #5, seconded by Senator Robles. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
Senator Ruddell moved approval of item #6, seconded by Senator Shaffer. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
Senator Beckett moved approval of item #7, seconded by Senator Collins. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
Senator Collins moved approval of item #8, seconded by Senator Winslow. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
GENERAL & STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE REPORT: Senator Eakin
Senator Eakin expressed his appreciation on behalf of Senate to Senator Whitlock for hosting the Senate dinner at Arlington on October 17.
The Promotion and Tenure forum went well. The Provost has the document in his office now and will share the recommendations with the President who will then share them with Board in the near future. This process has given great opportunity for several wonderful discussions and comes as close to shared governance aa anything previously seen.
Senator Eakin reported that Sarah Spurr came to the last Executive Committee meeting to discuss the need to change the University's dead week policy. The committee were in agreement that the Senate chair and the SGA President should work together to form a joint ad hoc committee to address that issue.
FACULTY REGENT REPORT: Senator Frisbie
Senator Frisbie shared that the CPE has approved their budget proposal which included $41.6 million dollars for the second phase of the new science building.
The Board of Regents met on 22 October 2007 for a special meeting. The Board's Finance and Planning Committee met before the Board convened as a whole.
Informational Items
- The Board received a draft audit report from Deloitte & Touche, the accounting firm charged with auditing the University's financial operations. The report will be finalized in the near future and will be formally presented to the Board at its next meeting (January 2008).
- The university will receive a clear and unqualified audit report, indicating that the auditors have found the university's accounting and reporting practices to be fair and accurate.
- The fiscal report for 2006-2007 indicates that the university is on solid financial ground: total net assets are $200+ million; total unrestricted assets are $42 million; and the university's unrestricted cash assets are approximately $4.5 million.
Action Items
The special meeting of the Board was called to review applications submitted by presidential search firms in response to the university's request for proposals that was released on 27 August. In addition, the original plan called for the Board to interview the firms selected for further consideration based upon review of those applications.
In advance of the meeting, informal discussion among Board members indicated that there was sufficient interest within the university community in extending the term of appointment for President Whitlock to warrant postponing interviews with search firms. Thus, the reason for the meeting shifted from selecting a search firm to reviewing, and possibly modifying, the planned course of action regarding the presidency over the next several years.
Discussion in executive session weighed the merits of proceeding with a national search for a president at this time verses committing to a longer period under the leadership of President Whitlock. Consensus emerged that the university would be best served by asking President Whitlock to serve for a period of three years through July 31, 2010.
The Board will next convene in January 2008 for a regular quarterly meeting.
Senator Johnson moved, seconded by Senator Gerken, to continue the meeting beyond 5:30 p.m. The majority were in favor and the motion carried.
PROVOST REPORT: Senator Piercey
Senator Piercey reiterated that the Promotion and Tenure policy is back being considered by the Provost and the President. The policy should go to the Board soon.
Senator Piercey thanked everyone for the great discussion on the Sponsored Programs policies. He reminded everyone that the policies are online for review at http://www.sponsoredprograms.eku.edu/pol.
Senator Piercey mentioned that a new policy on policies has been developed to serve as guidance in reviewing and updating the University's body of policy.
Current enrollment stands at 15,755 students, compared to 15,695 last fall which shows an increase of about a half percent. Graduate student enrollment is up approximately 2.2%.
EKU's honors program will take a group of 90 students and faculty to the National Collegiate Honors Conference in Denver on November 1-4. EKU will once again be the largest representative student/faculty group in the nation.
Institutional Effectiveness is working hard on making accurate forecasts on upcoming enrollments. Current forecasts predicts about 3% increase for new freshmen, 10% for new transfers, 7% for new graduate students.
The Strategic Planning Committee has begun initial assessments for development of an annual institutional progress report that will be submitted to the President soon.
EKU's accreditation should be re-affirmed in December at the SACS meeting. The Commission on Colleges is organizing an online resource room for the annual meeting in New Orleans in December to assist institutions that are beginning the reaffirmation process. EKU has been asked to be featured in the SACS resource room. EKU is the only level four institution, public or private, to be included in that room. This is a great tribute to the wonderful faculty that worked on the SACS reaffirmation process. Their hard work is now being recognized on a national scale.
The Division of Sponsored Programs and Sponsored Programs Accounting have been relocated to Jones 414. Combination of the two offices will provide a "one-stop" shop and provide better services for faculty and staff. A Sponsored Programs listserv has been created in order to improve communication. Please contact the Division of Sponsored Programs at 2-3636 for more information.
STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Rules Committee. Senator McKenney reported that the Rules Committee met on October 18 to work on the proposal to make the Ad Hoc Committee on New Senator Orientation into a standing committee of the Senate. Senator Robles was in attendance to share information and documentation concerning the functioning of the Ad Hoc Committee on New Senator orientation.
Senator Robles made a number of helpful recommendations, including a suggestion that new senators should be made aware that EKU has a chapter of the American Association of University Professors.
Rights & Responsibilities Committee. Senator Robles shared the following in her written report to the Senate.
The Rights and Responsibilities Committee met with the Provost at 10:30 am on October 25 to discuss the Faculty Workload issue.
The committee suggests that all faculty members complete the Faculty Workload form in its given format. Then, if a faculty member chooses to add a fourth category or further explanation, he or she should do so on a second page and attach it to the standard form. A standardized format is necessary for reporting to certain entities (e.g., sponsored programs) and also to compare workload management issues within the institution. Ultimately, it is hoped that the data from the forms can help identify details/bottlenecks where resources are needed.
The meeting ended with the recommendation that all EKU faculty strategize how to use the workload forms to faculty's advantage, by providing extra information that needs to be communicated to other levels of the University.
On October 25 at 3:00 p.m. a forum was held in the Faculty Club for discussion on the Promotion and Tenure document. EKU General Counsel has revised the language as needed for clarity. All university faculty were invited; about 25 attended. The document has already been approved by Senate so it is ready to be forwarded to the President.
Committee on Committees. Senator Foote announced that she will serve as chair of the committee for the 2007-2008 academic year.
Welfare Committee. Senator Waters shared the following in her written report to the Senate.
The committee has met twice since the last Senate meeting and has submitted another set of questions to the Office of Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action concerning the hiring trends within the university. The new data will be analyzed at the next meeting on November 12th.
The committee is working on a report concerning shared governance to be submitted to the Senate in December. The committee plans to request input from Faculty Senate about a university wide discussion of shared governance with all faculty in the spring semester.
A website link to a document of the American Federation of is provided below. Please read the section concerning the crisis of shared governance on university campuses. Please share this link with colleagues.
http://www.aft.org/pubs-reports/higher_ed/shared_governance.pdf
ADJOURNMENT:
Senator Piercey moved to adjourn at approximately 5:45 p.m.
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