Graduate Academic Council
2001 – 2002
Minutes of the Meeting of January 22, 2002
Approved by the Council on 2/15/02
In attendance:
C. MacDonald (Chair), J. Mumpower, J. Bartow (Staff), L. Raffalovich, L. Trubitt, M.
Gallant, P. Brusoe, R. Irving, S. Nagy-Zekmi, V. Ng, C. Smith, H. Charalambous & J.
Baez
Unable to attend: L. Niu & D. Shub
Guests:
Professor Debi May, Special Education
Professor Sean Walmsley, Reading/Literacy
1.
Minutes from the GAC meeting of December 7, 2001 were reviewed and unanimously approved
by the Council without amendment.
2.
Report of the Dean of Graduate Studies – J. Mumpower
a.
The NLRB has been conducting hearings pertaining to the potential unionization of
Graduate Assistants funded through the Research Foundation. Dean Mumpower has
provided testimony at these hearings. More on the issue will undoubtedly follow.
b.
Mission review funds for graduate assistant stipend supplements received last year
(approximately ½ million) appear to be shaking down as a one-time allocation only. A
report on the use of these funds will be provided to the GAC at the next meeting.
c.
The revised draft of the clarifying 899 dissertation load policy implementation memo,
amended and sanctioned by the GAC at the December 2001 meeting, has been distributed
to deans for further consideration.
3.
Proposal to Establish a M.S. Program in Literacy and Special Education
The Proposal, previously distributed and introduced at the December meeting of the GAC,
returned to the table for discussion. Professor Raffalovich raised questions about the lack of
notation of any current students, since there are already two separate programs in these areas of
study. Professor May explained that the information in the Proposal must pertain to the specific
program only, per State guidelines. Professor Raffalovich also inquired about any separate
assessment courses in the curriculum. Professor May explained that assessment is integrated
within several courses, not simply covered in a course of its own. Mr. Baez arrived during the
course of the discussion and opted to abstain during the voting. All other members voted to
approve the proposal and authorize its introduction to the Senate (11-0-1).
4.
Chair’s Report – C. MacDonald
The work to propose revisions to the By-Laws lies ahead. We are still seeking to determine where
GAC committees are specified in governance documents. We are also, therefore, waiting for J.
Bartow to offer comments on the by-laws and committees. Professor MacDonald proposes that
the desired outcome of GAC consideration of these matter might be an indication of what Council
members feel the GAC should be doing vis-à-vis what is being done now. Some members
expressed feelings that the Senate Exec. Committee should be apprised of the current discrepancy
between what is being done and what is intended.
The Council tabled this matter for further input and future consideration.
Meeting Adjourned.
The next meeting of the GAC is scheduled for Friday, February 15, 2002 in
Campus Center Room 367 at 3:00PM.
