Minutes for September 10, 2018

The Faculty Senate of Eastern Kentucky University met on Monday, September 10, 2018 in the South Ballroom in the Keen Johnson Building. Senator Winslow called the first meeting of the academic year to order at approximately 3:30 p.m.

The following members were absent:

^* Indicates prior notification of absence to the Faculty Senate Secretary
^ ALT Bill Phillips attended for K. Engebretson
^ ALT Ginny Whitehouse attended for J. Fitch
^ ALT Caroline Walz attended for A. Gossage

ANNOUNCEMENT:

Chair Winslow announced that as a cost-saving measure, the Senate would revert to an earlier version of digital voting software. The most notable change will be that everyone must use the clickers to record votes. The smart phone app does not work with the older software version.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES:

Senator Woodruff moved approval of the May 7, 2018 regular and organizational minutes, seconded by Senator Dyer. Motion carried. (Due to a computer glitch in the digital voting software, total votes and individual votes are not available to post for this meeting.)

EKU FORWARD:

Chair Winslow introduced EKU Forward as a new agenda topic where senators can share ideas for moving EKU forward and making EKU a better place for faculty and students.

Some suggestions shared included:

• Provide opportunities for our diverse faculty, graduate assistants and students to assist with both on-campus and e-Campus international recruiting.
• Provide more advisor training for faculty which could positively affect student retention. 

REPORT FROM THE PRESIDENT:  Senator Benson

On the Monday of Faculty Senate, refreshments will be available in the Faculty Center from 7am until 6pm.

The Board of Regents is meeting two weeks from today. The meeting will be hosted by Rusty Carpenter in the Faculty Teaching and Learning Center. Board meetings are open to the public.

We talk often about how, given the opportunity, that EKU students can compete favorably on the national stage, even in academic competitions against students from bigger-name schools.

The same is true for our faculty. As if we needed any further proof, consider Dr. Margaret Ndinguri of our chemistry department, and Dr. Lindsay Calderon, from biological sciences, who have teamed up to earn a U.S. patent, with 15 claims approved, for their discovery of a chemical compound that better targets specific types of reproductive cancer tumors. They are truly on the leading edge of science to improve treatments for specific cancers by providing a personalized therapy.

Just as our undergraduate students have been involved in that important project, other undergrads are involved with faculty members Dr. Stephen Richter, from biological sciences, and Dr. Michael Bradley, from the Department of Recreation and Park Administration, in some interesting work in the Red River Gorge, where they are tracking the behavior of copperhead snakes in an effort to minimize human-snake interactions in the popular recreation area.

Dr. Angela Aaron, staff psychologist and training coordinator in our Counseling Center and a two-time EKU alum, is the 2018 recipient of the Counseling Center Outstanding Early Career Psychologist Award presented by the American Psychological Association. Dr. Deborah Givens, chair of our Department of Communication, was elected vice president of the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors. And Dr. Clint Pinion, of our Environmental Health Science faculty, has been named president of the Association of Environmental Health Academic Programs.

Elsewhere, our undergraduates are gaining valuable career-related experience by virtue of partnerships that various academic programs have established throughout the area. For example, a new general aviation facility at Blue Grass Airport opened this summer and is already giving our professional flight and aerospace management students a head start on their careers.

One student who may be even better known as our 2017 Miss EKU recently distinguished herself in a national student entrepreneurship competition. Rose Pidgorodetska was one of only 21 finalists in a pitch competition this summer in Detroit. She gave credit to several EKU business faculty members who helped her perfect her pitch, as well as to the Kentucky Innovation Network office on our campus.

Dr. Erik Liddell has lined up another impressive set of speakers for our Chautauqua lectures, related this year to the theme “Truths and Consequences.” One, for a special Homecoming Week event, is our own professor and award-winning author, Dr. David Zurick, who’ll talk about his latest book, “A Fantastic State of Ruin: The Painted Towns of Rajasthan.” Before that, on September 27, well-known Chicano activist Bobby Verdugo (for whom a center on campus is named) and Yoli Rios will reflect on the L.A. school walkouts of 50 years ago.

Less than 7 percent of the world’s business programs can claim accreditation from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, and EKU is one of them. The five-year re-accreditation covers the School’s baccalaureate degree programs in all majors, as well as its revamped MBA program.

Our Master of Public Administration (MPA) Program also met the high standards for continuing accreditation by the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration. The program, which is available in online and on-campus formats, is accredited through 2025.

Several faculty and staff members have recently won significant awards or have been elected by their peers to serve in important positions.

We’re approaching the college ranking “silly season” (the same might be said for elections as well), but there is one ranking that is fairly unique that EKU has managed to make for its 9th consecutive year: Forbes Magazine’s Top Colleges in America. Considering that there are over 3,000 four-year degree-granting colleges and universities in the United States and this ranking is limited to the top 650, EKU is in good company.

Lastly, as many of you know, our Model Laboratory School underwent quite a facelift this past summer, with fresh paint, improved lighting, new safety features, and much more. As Superintendent John Williamson has noted, together with some programmatic changes, this will help the school in its ongoing quest to be a leader in successful teaching and learning practices. 

GUEST SPEAKERS:

Open Meeting Laws. Amye Bensenhaver, Former Commonwealth Assistant Attorney General gave a brief presentation on the correct procedures to following for open meeting/open records laws.  Two helpful links she provided that are available on the Attorney General website are: Protecting Your Right to Know and Your Duty Under the Law.

Ombud Minute.  Ombud Joan Beck reminded that the Office of the Ombud adheres to the principals of the International Ombudsman Association, which are: Independence, Impartiality and Neutrality, Confidentiality and Informality.

An ombudsman is a dispute resolution resource. An Ombud assists people as they endeavor to solve interpersonal conflict.

An Ombud can be a mediator. A mediator is a go-between, a neutral person who facilitates conversations between people in conflict. The mediator helps those parties clarify the cause of the difficulty, and then helps them craft a solution that will work for them.

The Ombud doesn’t make policy, take a side, or advocate a position. Talking to the Ombud does not put the University on notice of a claim. The Ombud is not part of the legal system or the human resources system or the tenure system or any other system in the university. But the Ombud may be able to help clarify a course of action, by engaging in a thoughtful conversation.

Ombud Beck’s regular office hours in Commonwealth Hall are Monday through Wednesday, 8:00 – 4:30, or by appointment. 

Provost Search Update. Chair Winslow announced that tomorrow the committee will begin to narrow down the pool from approximately 50 applicants to 10 or 12. Video interviews of the smaller pool will take place next week. Based on those interviews, 3-5 candidates will be invited to campus. The open forums will be scheduled for the first week in October. Please plan to attend the forums if at all possible and encourage your colleagues to attend as well.

University Printer Program. Steve Caudill gave an overview of the new university printer program. In the spring semester the Budget Advisory Committee recommended that the university transition to a university printer program similar to the successful copier program. The program will include printers and toner, and all maintenance services will be provided by the vendor. The program will be implemented in four different phases with the first phase replacing existing networked printers with new printers. The second phase will be at the regional campuses and one remote location student lab. The third phase will be replacing personal non-networked printers with centrally located networked printers, if possible. The fourth phase will address all printer needs in special situations.

Student Government Association. President Ryan Wiggins gave a brief update.

• Colonel Pride, an initiative started last year to increase student attendance at events on campus, has increased from only 7 events last year to 15 already scheduled for the fall semester.
• Student Government approved the budget and fund allocation will begin soon. One of the main goals this year is to bring about more diversity awareness throughout the campus for students, and the diversity grant funds were increased to help with this initiative.
• The first joint branch meeting for Student Government is scheduled for September 18.
• SGA Orientation is scheduled for September 30. 

NEW BUSINESS:

Election for Committee Vacancy.

• Rules Committee – 1 vacancy
  Senator Woodruff was elected by acclamation

Policy Updates.  The following three policies were reviewed and acted on by the Board of Regents in June and were presented to Faculty Senate for information only.  Questions on these policies should be directed to Barbara Kent, Director of Policy and Legal Operations.

• Policy 1.3.1 – Service and Assistance Animals (approved by BoR on 06-25-18)
  • Policy 1.3.2 – Assistance Animals in University Housing (repealed by BoR on 06-25-18)
  • Policy 1.3.3 – Service Animals (repealed by BoR on 06-25-18)

The following policies were presented for first-read and will be on the October agenda for action.

• Policy 4.1.15 – Grade Appeals (First Read) - (FS approved in February – additional changes recommended from Chairs Association)
• Policy 4.3.8 – Posthumous Degrees (First Read) - (FS reviewed in December - additional changes recommended from Provost Council) 
• Policy 4.2.4 – Transfer Credits from Academic Institutions (First Read)
• Policy 4.4.14 – Laboratory Safety (First Read)
• Policy 4.6.5 – Evaluation of Non-Tenured Tenure-Track Faculty (First Read)
• Policy 4.7.7 – Outside Activities (First Read)

Posthumous Degree for Mohannad Alrayes.  Chair Winslow stated that the Registrar reviewed the request and has confirmed that Mohannad Alrayes meets the requirements necessary to be considered for a posthumous degree. Senator Liddell moved approval of the recommendation, seconded by Senator Dyer. Motion carried. (Due to a computer glitch in the digital voting software, total votes and individual votes are not available to post for this meeting.)

GENERAL & STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS

REPORT FROM SENATE CHAIR: Senator Winslow

Chair Winslow shared the charges for each of the Senate standing committees for the 2018-19 academic year.

REPORT FROM FACULTY REGENT: Senator Day

The Board of Regents will meet on Monday, September 24 at 1pm in Library 318, the new Teaching and Learning Center.

PROVOST REPORT: Senator Whitehouse

We performed very well on performance funding metrics in 2017-2018 and are in a strong position among the regional universities moving into 2018-2019. Enrollment numbers continue to be a primary focus across the state.

As part of the planning for the current academic year, deans identified thoughts and innovative strategies for continued progression and success, including:

• using strategic decision-making to support talented faculty and staff, ensure the success of our excellent accredited programs, and promoting the Eastern experience;
• remaining focused on the University’s mission to engage students;
• identifying essential components for excellence while letting go of non-essential practices;
• promoting innovative faculty development opportunities by utilizing the renovated Keen Johnson faculty meeting space for interdisciplinary engagement and the new, cutting-edge Faculty Center for Teaching & Learning, which represents the heart of our mission;
• engaging future generations of students through outstanding summer camps; and
• strategically refining curriculum to remain progressive while removing bottlenecks and barriers.

The state’s chief academic officers met this summer to discuss state policies and priorities for the upcoming academic year. As part of their discussion, the CCAOs talked about how we define academic quality to guide policy. The Council on Postsecondary Education has adopted a statewide definition of academic quality that program faculty should keep in mind as they prepare for their program reviews in 2019-2020:

The Faculty Center for Teaching & Learning is now open in Crabbe Library 318.

This year’s Teaching & Learning Innovation Series schedule is available. The TLI Series provides faculty opportunities to join colleagues in discussions focused on teaching and learning. Faculty can register for workshops at https://studio.eku.edu/tli.

Please mark the following upcoming dates on your calendars:

• September 24 – EKU Board of Regents’ Meeting
• September 28 – Assurance of Learning Day (Day classes will be dismissed to provide faculty the opportunity to meet and discuss student learning in their programs.) (Classes resume at 4 p.m.)
• December 5 – 2018 Showcase of Teaching & Learning Innovations. Proposals due October 26. For further information, visit https://studio.eku.edu/2018-tli-showcase. 

STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS:

Budget Committee. Senator Ciocca reported that the committee met in special session on Wednesday, September 5 to set the calendar for the semester. Senator Ciocca was elected to serve as chair for the academic year.

Elections & University Nominations Committee. Senator McCardle reported that the committee met on September 7 to set the calendar for the semester. Senator McCardle was elected to serve as chair for the academic year.

The committee also began the process for soliciting nominations for a new part-time faculty representative.

Faculty Welfare Committee. Senator Bentley reported that the committee met on September 10 to set the calendar for the semester. Senators Bentley and Cogdill were elected to serve as co-chairs for the academic year.

ADJOURNMENT:

Senator Whitehouse moved to adjourn at approximately 5:30pm.

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(Due to a computer glitch in the digital voting software, total votes and individual votes are not available to post for this meeting)

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