COUNCIL AND COMMITTEE SUMMARIES
Meeting of the University Senate, September 28, 2015
As submitted to Yenisel Gulatee, Senate Secretary, University Senate
UNIVERSITY SENATE CHAIR’S REPORT –Cynthia Fox
1. Informational
a.
On June 12, the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences informed Senate
Chair Stefl-Mabry that the Religious Studies Program had been moved from
the Department of Art and Art History to the Department of History, effective
fall 2015.
b. On May 21, Senate officers were asked to provide feedback on the Middle States Periodic
Review Report (MSPRR); feedback and suggestions from Chair Stefl-Mabry were
incorporated into the document that was due June 1. Two recommendations that remain
only partially addressed include amending the process by which part-time faculty Senators
are elected (currently by “voting faculty,” of which they are not a part) and consideration
of representation on the Senate by emeritus faculty and those employed by the Research
Foundation.
c.
Senate Chair Stefl-Mabry and Vice Chair Fox met with Provost Stellar and Chief of Staff
Leanne Wirkkula on July 1. Topics discussed included the MSPRR report, SUNY
EXCELS, faculty evaluation of administrators, the status of the yearly reports from the
Vice President for Research on the occurrence of cases pertaining to violations of
academic integrity principles in research and scholarship and their disposition, and the
need to replace Albany Law student Andrew Howard as Senate Parliamentarian. As a
follow-up to that meeting, Chair Stefl-Mabry sent Provost Stellar documents related to the
proposed Senate Council on Administrative Review and Evaluation (CARE) which the
Governance Council has been working on since 2011.
d. In mid-July, Senate officers received materials from Vice Provost for Academic Planning
and Strategic Leadership and Senior Associate Vice Chancellor Jason Lane relative to the
implementation of SUNY’s Seamless Transfer framework. As per a Memorandum to
Campus Presidents of 6/13/13, the Final Program Status Inventory and STR Attestation
Letter need to be completed and submitted to system administration no later than COB on
October 15, 2015.
e.
In August, Barry Trachtenberg, Vice President for Academics of the Albany Chapter of
UUP, asked to meet with Senate officers to convey some concerns regarding CPCA.
f.
The schedule of monthly meetings between the Senate Chair, Vice Chair and Immediate
Past Chair, the Provost and the President’s Chief of Staff has been established for the
2015-16 year. The first meeting was held on September 15.
g. Chair Fox learned on September 14 that SUNY Central administration has invited campus
governance bodies to provide input by October 9 on a revised Patent and Inventions
Policy that they plan to submit to the Board of Trustees in November.
h. Senate officers were informed on September 15 that (14) proposals were submitted to
SUNY System Administration on August 28 in response to their invitation for ideas that
support SUNY Excels and goals for student completion, and on September 16 that eleven
(11) of these proposals (listed below) have now been given the go ahead for development
and submission by October 15.
# 123 Advanced Data Analytics Institute
# 124 Data Analytics for Transforming SUNY
# 126 Developing Cyberstructure to Advance Sensor Research and Development
# 127 Expansion of EOP program
#129 Faculty Start Up packages for CEHC
#129: Increasing Access Completion and Seamless Transfer Success through the
Development of Common Student Learning Outcomes
#130 Increasing Student Enrollment and Minority Representation in the STEM
Fields and Licensed Professions
#132: Renovation of the Schuyler Building as the New Home of the UAlbany
College of Engineering and Applied Sciences
#133 SUNY Global College College of Multilingual Online Learning
#135 The Steps 2 0 Evidence-Based Early Intervention Program for Alcohol
Marijuana and Non-Medical Prescription Drug Use
#136 UAlbany Advantage Enhancing the Student Experience
i.
Chair Fox received a request for Senate consultation in the appointment of faculty
members to the Honors College Governing Board (HCGB) on September 16.
j.
The fall faculty meeting will take place on Tuesday, October 27 from 3-4pm in the PAC.
2. Actions Taken
a.
Chair Fox attended the first meeting of CPCA on August 30 to share UUP concerns.
b. Materials relevant to SUNY’s proposed Revised Patent and Inventions Policy were
forwarded to COR for comment on September 14.
c.
Materials relevant to appointment of faculty members to the Honors College Governing
Board (HCGB) were forwarded to GOV for action on September 16.
d. The 11 proposals that support SUNY Excels and goals for student completion were
forwarded to relevant Senate Councils for comment on September 16 and 18.
e.
Following consultation with the SEC on September 16, Chair Fox has appointed Ronald
Vero as Senate Parliamentarian for 2015-16.
3. Recommended Actions
a.
In accordance with Senate Charter X.1.3.3., the Senate, via the Governance Council, is
charged to develop and administer the next survey of effectiveness of governance and
consultation in Spring 2016.
UFS (University Faculty Senator’s Report) – J. Philippe Abraham, Walter Little & John
Schmidt, SUNY Senators
The UFS Senators look forward to the Fall Plenary at Buffalo State on October 22-24.
GSA (Graduate Student Association) – Robert Beach, GSA President
I am happy to report that we have put together an exceptional senate and senate council team in
the GSA. Our representatives are as follows:
GOV: Caitlin Janiszewski
COR: Hanna Pageau (Lead Senator), Hirah Mir
GAC: Rebecca Prince, Cristina Herrera, Tiffany Charles (Senator)
UPPC: Nakissa Jahanbani (Senator)
UAC: Derek Ellis
ULC: Yueyue Wang
LISC: Nicholas Schiraldi
CAA: Henry Curtis (Senator)
The GSA itself is in a very good position. It has a pretty big budget and is seeing increased
participation by graduate students. We are looking forward to a very productive year.
SA (Student Association) – Jarius Jemmott, Student Association President
Nothing to report
CAA (Council on Academic Assessment) – James Mower, Chair
CAA is still forming committee assignments but otherwise has nothing to report.
CAFFECoR (Committee on Academic Freedom, Freedom of Expression, and Community
Responsibility) –Carol Jewell, Chair
CAFFECoR met on Sept. 17. We discussed several issues, which we will work more on in the
coming months, particularly as they relate to or impinge upon Academic Freedom.
CERS (Committee on Ethics in Research and Scholarship) – Michael Jerison, Chair
Nothing to report
COR (Council on Research) – Daniele Fabris, Chair
The COR had its first meeting on September 17. We started to fill up the rosters of the various
subcommittees and discussed the major item in the agenda, which consists of the new
amendments of patent policies suggested by SUNY central. A document/report on this item will
be percolating among the COR members.
CPCA (Council on Promotions and Continuing Appointments) – Lynn Warner, Chair
CPCA met on Sep 15 and reviewed 1 promotion case and 1 tenure and promotion case.
CPCA is scheduled to meet on Sep 28 to review 2 tenure and promotion cases.
GAC (Graduate Academic Council) – Ronald Toseland, Chair
Nothing to report
GOV (Governance Council) – James Collins, Chair
Nothing to report; the dates for the GOV meetings are scheduled.
LISC (Council on Libraries, Information Systems, and Computing) – David Mamorella,
Chair
LISC will have their first meeting on Sept. 21.
UAC (Undergraduate Academic Council) –Karen Kiorpes and Christy Smith, Co-Chairs
Report of UAC Activity, May 7-September 15, 2015
The Undergraduate Academic Council, led by Chair Robert Yagelski, held its last meeting of the
2014-2015 academic year on May 7.
The Council reviewed and approved a proposal from the Psychology Department to change the
terms of conditional readmission to the Psychology major from 2.50 in Psychology courses after
completion of core courses to 2.75. This higher GPA requirement will increase the likelihood that
students will meet the full admission requirements to the major the following semester.
The Council also reviewed two proposals forwarded from the Provost and Vice Provost. English
is proposing a Joint 3+2 Degree Program with the School of Foreign Languages of Shanghai
University, and English/Liberal Studies submitted a proposal to create a new B.A./M.A.
program. UAC does not need to act or vote on either proposal but reports support for them. GAC
will review the proposals in the fall.
The Curriculum and Honors Committee reported out approval of the following proposals:
Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences is revising the B.S. in Atmospheric Science. A
new capstone course has been added and the program will require 70 credits, up from 66,
in part because of the guidelines associated with SUNY Seamless Transfer initiatives
Chemistry is deactivating the Chemistry/Comprehensive Forensics Chemistry Emphasis
B.S. since maintaining the Emphasis to meet the Forensic Science Education Programs
Accreditation Commission was become unwieldy
Geography and Planning is revising the Globalization Studies language requirement so
that it is clearer and simple
Political Science is clarifying the requirements of the B.A. to ensure 18 credits must be
taken at the 300 or 400 level at that a minimum of 15 credits must be completed
The Committee on Admissions and Academic Standing reported that the subcommittee,
Committee on Academic Standing has been meeting weekly to review student petitions for
exceptions to academic policy. CAS will convene for two full days in June to review petitions for
reinstatement from students who will be dismissed when grades are posted at the end of the
semester.
ULC (University Life Council) – Michael Jaromin, Chair
Nothing to report
UPPC (University Planning and Policy Council) – Joette Stefl-Mabry, Chair
Nothing to report; UPPC's first meeting is Thursday, September 24th.
