Graduate Academic Council
2010 – 2011
Minutes of the Council meeting for February 18, 2011
Approved by the Council on March 25, 2011
In attendance:
J. Baronner (staff), J. Bartow (staff), F. Bolton (staff), S. Commuri,
N. Fahrenkopf, C. Fox, T. Groves, S. Kazanas, L. Kranich (Chair),
H. Miller, K. Williams
Unable to attend:
J. Aini, R. Beach, S. Chittur, L. Fuller, W. Lanford, F. Leiva,
T. Timmons
Guests: Sue Faerman, Vice Provost and Dean for Undergraduate Education
Professor Peter Shea, Educational Theory and Practice
1. Minutes
Minutes from the February 11, 2011 were approved by Council.
2. Dean’s report
SUNY administration is sponsoring poster sessions on March 8th from 10:30 AM to 2:30
PM: Research that Matters: An Exposition of Graduate Research in SUNY and CUNY. A
total of six UAlbany doctoral students will present their work at the session. One each from
Clinical Psychology, Criminal Justice, and Economics, and three from CNSE. The Dean
will forward the program and has already sent program information to the Graduate Directors
and councils.
The Dean also announced a Graduate Student Speakers Series to be held this Spring. The
dates and speakers are:
- March 23rd, @ 4:00-5:30, Standish Room: William Daley, Department of Biological
Sciences
- April 6th, @ 4:00-5:30, CC 374: Christine Preble, Sarah Taylor, and Heidi Nichols,
Department of Anthropology
- April 23rd: TBA.
An announcement will be sent out.
3. Chair’s report
The Chair contacted the Governance Council regarding excessive absenteeism and was
informed that according to Senate Charter Sections VIII.5.1 and X.1.5.3, members who are
absent for four consecutive meetings are subject to be replaced. The Chair will review
previous attendance records and notify those members who have been absent from more than
four consecutive meetings.
The President has signed Senate Bill No. 1011-03 to establish a combined BS/MA Program
in Economics. The proposal will now be sent to SUNY and the State Education Department.
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February 18, 2011
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At it’s meeting on February 14, the Senate approved the proposal from the School of
Business for a Graduate Certificate in Information Security. This will now be forwarded to
the President for his signature.
The charter amendment proposed by GOV to require that the Chair of CPCA hold the rank of
full professor did not pass by the necessary 2/3 vote. Thus, it has been defeated.
The second charter amendment proposed by GOV to require Senate approval of the slate of
Council Chairs has been withdrawn.
4. Committee Reports
CAAS – H. Miller, Chair
Nothing to report. A meeting has been scheduled for March 3.
CC&I – T. Groves, Chair
CC&I met on February 7th to discuss the School of Education’s proposal for a Certificate of
Graduate Studies on Online Learning and Teaching (COLT). Chair Groves mentioned that
the Committee reviewed the proposal and found it favorable but several committee questions
remained (see bullets in part #1 of handout).
Prof. Peter Shea from the Department of Educational Theory and Practice & College of
Computing and Information attended the Council meeting to discuss the proposal.
The proposal calls for all courses counting toward the certificate to be completed with a grade
of B or better, whereas a number of graduate programs at the University require a minimum
grade of C, and some require a B or better only in core courses. However, programs can
choose to impose higher standards. Prof. Shea commented that the proposal is consistent
with University policy. A member inquired if doctoral students holding an MA are allowed
to teach graduate classes. University policy specifies one must hold an earned doctorate or
MFA to instruct at the graduate level. However, the Dean of the college is permitted to grant
exceptions provided this is reported (along with the rationale) to the Graduate Academic
Council and the Graduate Dean. Prof. Shea commented that the courses included in the
curriculum are already on the books and classes are near capacity. He also noted that we are
attempting to increase enrollment by creating a feeder for the current graduate programs.
The Chair inquired if the proposal had been approved by UPPC. Prof. Shea was not certain
but would check with Prof. Arthur Applebee, Chair of Department of Educational Theory &
Practice. The Chair commented that proposals usually include mention of similar programs
elsewhere and inquired if such programs exist and how they are structured. Prof. Shea
commented that a similar program exists at the University of Wisconsin. The Sloan
Foundation offers on-line teaching and learning. Prof. Shea informed the Council that he
will forward the information to the Chair. Prof. Shea is Chair of the Conference for On-Line
Teaching this year and next, and he is very familiar with the existing programs in the area.
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February 18, 2011
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Chair Groves inquired of maintaining contact between students and instructors. Prof. Shea
responded that such courses are designed to be interactive and to ensure such contact. Prof.
Shea also commented that for those students who are struggling they can have further contact
via mail, telephone, or in person. Chair Groves questioned whether that was written in the
proposal. Prof. Shea will add such language. In addition, he commented that students will
have access to an advisor. He also commented that the point person for student contact is
typically the department’s chair. Prof. Shea also noted that in the USA 5.5 million students
have enrolled in fully on-line courses. The University presently has three on-line courses at
the graduate level.
The Sloan Foundation has provided a grant for a combination of in-class and on-line
instruction. This is an area of growth for on-line instruction. We are losing summer
enrollments with many students returning home and/or enrolling in on-line courses. It was
mentioned that on-line courses are typically offered in summer to accommodate full time
instructors. Prof. Shea mentioned that the NYS Education Department has virtual learning at
all levels. Improving the profile of on-line learning is being addressed. New York State is
currently number 50 among states for on-line instruction. On-line instruction has grown
tremendously, and individuals want some type of certification of learning to provide to their
employers. Administrator on-line courses are another area of strong demand. Prof. Shea
mentioned that on-line instruction is growing ten times as fast as the number of in-class
courses, and the University wants to serve those markets. Prof. Shea also noted that the
certificate can be completed entirely on-line. Courses already on the books will be offered
this summer. Prof. Shea mentioned that implementation is expected next year.
The Council will defer a vote pending the aforementioned revisions. Once UPPC and GAC
have approved the proposal, it will be forwarded to the Senate. After Senate passage and
approval by the President, it will be forwarded to both SUNY Central and the State
Education Department. Jon Bartow offered to forward the proposal to UPPC.
The Committee’s second piece of business was to review the request from Rockefeller
College and School of Social Welfare to revise the Certificate in Nonprofit Management and
Leadership. Several questions were brought up, and they have been forwarded to the
administrator of the program. The Committee will present a future report to the Council after
obtaining answers from the program administrator.
CEPP – S. Commuri, Chair
Nothing to report. A meeting will be scheduled in March.
5. Committee on Community Engagement
Sue Faerman, Vice Provost for Undergrad Education, spoke to the Council about the Campus
Committee on University-Community Engagement (CCUCE). She is the Chair of one of
CCUCE’s working groups. The Committee’s history dates back to March 2008 when the
University’s President and Provost convened the first UAlbany roundtable on outreach and
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February 18, 2011
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community engagement, which included both campus and community members. Several
themes emerged from that roundtable, including the fact that many local community leaders
were familiar with certain departments but were unaware of the University’s outreach as a
whole and that there is a need for a more university-wide, coordinated and mission-driven
community engagement agenda. Based on the discussions at the roundtable, The Steering
Committee on Community Engagement was established in May 2008 to create (1) a vision
and mission statement for community engagement at UAlbany and (2) an action plan to make
community engagement a widely recognized hallmark of the University. The Steering
Committee met for about a year, and presented the action plan to the President and the
Provost in fall 2009. Based on one of the recommendations of the action plan, CCUCE was
established as a more permanent body and has been meeting since January 2010.
CCUCE is co-chaired by Bob Bangert-Drowns, Dean of the School of Education, and
Miriam Trementozzi, Special Assistant to the President for Community Engagement.
CCUCE has five working groups: Assessment of UAlbany Community Engagement,
Community-Engaged Scholarship, Community-Engaged Learning, Themed Project: the
Education Pipeline, and Cultural Events and Quality of Life. Vice Provost Faerman chairs
the working group on Community-Engaged Learning and, currently, a GAC Council member
is also a member of this working group.
CCUCE’s co-chairs and a few of the working group chairs, including Vice Provost Faerman,
met with the Senate Executive Committee during the fall and agreed that it would be
beneficial for each of the working groups to have representation from appropriate Senate
councils. Vice Provost Faerman had previously met with the Undergraduate Academic
Council was now meeting with GAC to describe the efforts of her working group and to see
if any other GAC members were interested in serving on the working group. Eventually, the
University wants to apply for Carnegie (elective) classification for community engagement
but must first demonstrate greater campus coordination of efforts. Applications were due in
September, but we decided that we were not ready to submit an application at that time. The
next opportunity to apply will be in 2015. The application process is somewhat involved
and, although over 300 schools had registered, only about half actually submitted
applications by the September deadline. The Vice Provost will forward Carnegie’s
requirements via e-mail. The goal is not merely community service but engaged partnerships
with the community. We also need to track these efforts to examine impact of the
University’s efforts, as well as identify a commitment to academically-focused community-
engaged coursework, which goes beyond the types of community service efforts of many
students groups.
In the Fall, the University submitted an application to be included on President Obama’s
Honor Roll for Community Service. To submit this application, data were collected from
students and deans regarding courses that fall under the classification of community-engaged
learning and also about students’ community service efforts. One of the working group’s
efforts involves creating definitions and categories of community-engaged learning, so that
courses can be identified as such within PeopleSoft, which will allow us to track students’
completion of community-engaged learning courses more easily. Currently, the categories
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February 18, 2011
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focus on community-engaged courses, research, creative work and internships, practicums,
and other types of field experiences. ITLAL will support those faculty wishing to add
community-engagement to their courses. The Vice Provost invited GAC members to join the
Community-Engaged Learning Working Group. While, in general, research is also being
reviewed by the Community-Engaged Scholarship Working Group, the Community-Engaged
Learning Working Group is interested in tracking both graduate and undergraduate students
doing research that involves working with the community to carry out the research, whether
or not that research is published. She acknowledged that both graduate and undergraduate
students could get credit for research, but they could also end up working with a professor,
and not receive any credit. The Vice Provost did note that there is some overlap in the work
of some of the working groups, and community-engaged research is one example of the
overlaps. The Vice Provost also mentioned that CCUCE defines community as “local to
global” and so the community with which the faculty or student is involved may be outside
the area and even outside the country. A Council member who is on the working group
mentioned that the subject is vast, and trying to wrap your arms around is significant.
There are various constituencies trying to determine how UAlbany is related to the
community at large and what our image is around the area. The Vice Provost mentioned
there are many occasions where students perform community service with their clubs, and
some are some on-going partnerships such as clubs that work consistently with Big
Sisters/Big Brothers, but other community service efforts may be one-shot deals, such as
cooking a meal at Ronald McDonald House. However, community engagement is a
sustained relationship with faculty and/or students. In these sustained efforts, university
members will bring expertise, but we as a university also benefit from that relationship. She
defined it as a level of reciprocity.
A member asked what is involved in the educational pipeline. The Vice Provost mentioned
that the Chancellor has acknowledged a need for improved connections between high schools
and colleges, which could result in an increase in the number of students transitioning from
H.S. to college enrollment. The connections could not only help students academically, but
could assist H.S. students get information about applying to college and related information.
A Council member mentioned that Siena College already offers a class for high school
students at their college. The Vice Provost mentioned that NYS Education Department is
examining the high school and college connections with a notion that increasing college
course enrollment by high school students while they are still in the secondary school may
ease their transition to college.
A member inquired about community engagement and economic development. The Vice
Provost mentioned that a lot of work in community engagement that is related to economic
development will likely fall under the area of research and scholarship. She gave an example
of work done by students in the Urban Planning program and the research projects that are
done there. She also mentioned that there is a regular effort to determine the economic
impact of UAlbany on the local community. A member mentioned University at Buffalo’s
efforts to increase involvement with the community. Syracuse University made a
considerable effort to increase their community involvement a number of years ago, and their
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February 18, 2011
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president came to UAlbany to discuss their efforts. In both of these examples, campus
efforts involved developing some new curriculum and courses as well as new ways to teach
courses, which involve more experiential learning. Vice Provost Faerman also provided an
example of one of her former students who is now teaching at one of the colleges in the
Hudson Valley and has her students working with non-profit organizations. Such efforts
result in students feeling more engaged in their learning, and they become excited when they
witness the impact of their completed work. The Chair requested the GAC member on this
committee to keep the Council updated on the activities of the working group.
6. Continuation of CAA reviews
In response to a request from the Chair, Jon Bartow will inquire of the schedule for the CAA
review of CNSE.
Council member T. Groves presented his report on the Reading Department.
END OF GAC 2/18/2011 MINUTES
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