12-16-2011 GAC Minutes
Minutes of the Council meeting for December 16, 2011
Approved by the Council on January 13, 2012
In attendance:
A. Assuwiyan. J. Baronner (staff), J. Bartow (staff), J. Bissonnette,
F. Bolton (staff), S. Commuri, B. Dieffenbach, T. Groves (Chair), L. Halpern,
A. Krause, D. Mancini, G. Robinson, K. Williams
Unable to attend: D. Dewar, C. Duncan, M. VanUllen
1. Minutes from the November 16, 2011 meeting were approved by the Council.
2. Dean’s report – K. Williams
Regarding the Graduate enrollment benchmarking project, the Provost has requested a
systematic review of graduate enrollment with the goal of re-establishing realistic enrollment
goals in each graduate program. The extent to which the University reaches it enrollment
goals has important implications for the quality of graduate programs and funding. The
University’s multi-year campus financial plan, to a significant degree, is predicated on
revenue expectations built upon these goals. Strong graduate programs depend on a number
of factors, including the ability to recruit highly qualified students and the ability to sustain
them with adequate critical mass in terms of enrollment. The Provost has asked Dean
Williams to work with Bruce Szelest (Director, Institutional Research) and Bob Andrea
(Director, Admin and Enroll/Assistant VP Academic Affairs) to address the problem. They
will be meeting with deans, chairs, and program directors to generate realistic enrollment
goals for 2012-13.
The 2007-09 GSEU contract was ratified and includes retroactive pay for students employed
during that period, as well as a one-time retention and recruitment bonus for current doctoral
students. The retroactive pay has already been sent to students, and the recruitment/retention
bonuses will be provided shortly (one payment in December and one payment in the Spring).
SUNY BOT has approved a rational 5-year tuition plan that includes annual increases for
Master’s students (averaging about 5% per year for in state and 10% for out-of-state).
Doctoral tuition will increase for one year, but then remain flat.
3. Chair’s Report – T. Groves
Chair Groves summarized highlights of the President and Provost reports from the preceding
meetings of the Senate and Senate Executive Committee as follows:
President Philip referred to an e-mail sent to the University community announcing
his retirement. He reassured those present that he would remain President until a
successful search for his successor was complete.
UAlbany received a gift of $1M from an anonymous donor, along with a number of
individual gifts of six figures. The endowment has grown by $10M in recent years.
In a later e-mail, Chair Groves quoted the most recent Annual Report, stating that the
total endowment of UAlbany is presently $36M (up from $13M in 2002). Present
total assets are $119M (up from $35M in 2002).
GAC Minutes
December 16, 2011
Page 2 of 3
A pilot program has been undertaken on how to create a proposal for hiring faculty in
anticipation of the SUNY2020 funding coming to fruition. A faculty panel has been
assisting with the effort.
Chair Groves paraphrased highlights of the SUNY Senate President’s report of October 21-
22, 2011 as follows:
Shared services: The purpose of the SUNY Shared Services Initiative is to reduce
administrative overhead in order to move savings toward instruction and instructional
support. Shared services are being initiated on a roughly regional basis. Campus
leaders are exploring shared HR, Procurement, and IT services.
Legislative agenda: The alignment of the state’s economic goals with the Power of
SUNY plan includes passage of NYSUNY2020, authorization to increase tuition by
$300, plus an additional $75 student fee for the University Centers.
Chair Groves reported that he and Dean Williams met with the Undergraduate Academic
Council (UAC) and others to discuss policies governing ethical conduct. For example, the
policies explicitly stated in the Undergraduate and Graduate bulletins are not completely
aligned with respect to reporting of incidents and follow-up actions. In addition, newer
technologies including cell phones, clickers, and internet use are not mentioned with regard
to cheating, plagiarism, and verifying class attendance. Faculty should have a resource
where they may be informed on the reporting process, especially for new faculty. Susanna
Fessler (Senate Chair), Sue Faerman (Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education), and
JoAnne Malatesta (UAC Chair) also attended the meeting. Chair Groves and JoAnne
Malatesta will review the Graduate and Undergraduate Bulletins. The workgroup will
reconvene to discuss suggestions and a method to go forward. Discussions will include
severe and not-severe cases, protocol for second and further offenders, and the egregiously
severe cases. Discussion followed. It was mentioned that an office exists to resolve conflicts
and hear appeals. Dean Williams mentioned that workshops have been held on plagiarism,
with more to be held in the spring semester.
4. Committee Reports
CAAS – S. Shahedipour, Chair (L. Halpern reporting)
The GAC voted to approve the findings of CAAS regarding three appeals cases as follows:
Case #1 was approved by the Council with nine yes votes and one abstention.
Case #2 involved a lack of communication between the student and department. Council
approved Case #2 report, and will not provide additional comments. Seven members voted
to pass with three members voting against Case #2.
Case #3 was approved by the Council with ten yes votes.
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December 16, 2011
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The Committee on Curriculum and Instruction and the Committee on Policies and Practices
had no new business to report.
5. Old Business
Outstanding assessments remain for four departments. Chair Groves requested volunteers.
Joseph Bissonnette will review Criminal Justice, Sociology will be reviewed by Aymen
Assuwiyan, Physics will be reviewed by George Robinson, and Psychology will be reviewed
by Diana Mancini. The assessment reports are from 2006-2007. Chair Groves sent an e-mail
earlier on December 16 with wiki information to access the review documents. He
emphasized that all reports are confidential. Chair Groves requested the reviewers bring
highlights of their reviews back to GAC and provide comments, including suggestions for
improving programs.
6. New Business
Chair Groves previously mentioned in his report on-going discussions regarding a review of
policies for redressing infractions. Once the small working group has completed their
assignment, a report will be provided to the Council. A member mentioned that the outcome
should comprise a resource for faculty rather than a policy. The current policy entails the
Graduate Dean referring offenders to the student judicial system only after a second
infraction occurs.
END OF GAC 12/16/2011 MINUTES
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