Graduate Academic Council
2010 – 2011
Minutes of the Council meeting for March 25, 2011
Approved by the Council on April 8, 2011
In attendance:
J. Baronner (staff), J. Bartow (Staff), F. Bolton (Staff), S. Chittur,
S. Commuri, N. Fahrenkopf, T. Groves, L. Kranich (Chair), W. Lanford,
F. Leiva, H. Miller, T. Timmons, K. Williams
Unable to attend:
J. Aini, R. Beach, C. Fox, L. Fuller, S. Kazanas, N. Novroski
Guests: Dr. Mary S. Applegate, Associate Dean, School of Public Health,
Emilie Dassie (Department of Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences Ph.D.
student) and Yongchen Zhao (Economics Ph.D. student)
1. Minutes
The minutes from the February 2, 2011 meeting were approved with minor
corrections.
2. Dean’s Report – K. Williams
Dean Williams did not have a report.
3. Chair’s Report – L. Kranich
The Chair introduced Dr. Mary S. Applegate, Associate Dean, School of Public
Health, and two doctoral student guests.
The Chair announced that consideration of the School of Public Health Proposal to
Suspend Admission to M.S. in Health Policy Management and Behavior will be
moved to the next regular GAC meeting on April 29th.
The President has signed the School of Business proposal for a Graduate Certificate
Program in Information Security.
The proposal for a combined BS-MA in Economics has been approved by SUNY and
sent to the State Education Department. State Ed will probably act on the matter
within the next couple months.
President Philip sent an e-mail yesterday confirming the deactivation of
undergraduate majors in Theatre, French, Russian, Italian, and Classics, and
deactivation of graduate programs in Russian, French and Classics. The University
will continue undergraduate minors in Theatre, French, and Russian, and continue
instruction of Italian.
The Chair requested that Council members distribute the draft summary statements of
their respective CAA reviews by April 1 for discussion at the meeting on April 8. The
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March 25, 2011
Page 2 of 5
Council had previously voted to approve the Computer Science summary with minor
changes.
4. Committee Reports
CAAS – H. Miller, Chair
The Committee considered case GAC CAAS 2010-11-3 involving a petition by a
department that it be permitted to admit a Ph.D. applicant without a bachelor’s
degree. In light of the evidence presented and the supporting documentation, the
Committee voted 5-0-1 in favor of the petition.
The Council discussed the case and, while registering procedural and precedential
concerns, voted 7-2-0 to approve the Committee’s recommendation. Jon Bartow will
note the Council’s concerns in his draft informing the petitioner.
CC&I – T. Groves, Chair
The Committee met March 14th to consider the following four items:
1. Request to revise the Certificate in Nonprofit Management and Leadership –
Rockefeller College and School of Social Welfare
2. Proposal to establish a fully online version of the Master of Public Health (MPH)
degree program – School of Public Health
3. Request to revise course requirements for the Master of Public Health (MPH)
Social Behavior and Community Health Concentration – School of Public Health
4. Request to revise course requirements for the M.S. in Forensic Biology Degree
program – College of Arts and Sciences Biology Department
These will be considered separately under New Business.
CEPP – S. Commuri, Chair
The Committee met March 9th to consider the following three items:
1. Proposal to Establish Graduate Level Policy Pertaining to Grade Changes
2. Proposal to Digitally Submit Master’s Theses
3. Proposal to Amend Policy Pertaining to Graduate Certificate Programs
These will be considered separately under New Business.
5. Old Business
Graduate Certificate in Online Learning and Teaching – School of Education
The Council had requested that the proposal be revised to identify comparable
programs and to explain the process for advisement and interaction between students
and instructors. Those changes are included on the third page of the revised version,
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March 25, 2011
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which was previously e-mailed to members by the Chair. The Council voted
unanimously to approve the proposal.
6. New Business
Request to revise the Certificate in Nonprofit Management and Leadership –
Rockefeller College and School of Social Welfare
This 15 credit certificate program is jointly offered by Rockefeller College and the
School of Social Welfare with the intention of exposing students to each. As
presently structured, it is possible for students pursuing a degree in either college to
complete all requirements for the certificate within their own college, without
crossing over. To rectify this unintended consequence of the Certificate guidelines,
the curriculum would be changed to require that students complete 3 of the 5 courses
in addition to those required in their degree program, and at least 2 courses must be
taken in Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy. Since these changes are
consistent with the intent of the Certificate program, CC&I approved the proposal by
a vote of 3-0-0.
A Council member inquired why the crossover coursework specifies that two courses
must be taken in Rockefeller College, presumably by those in Social Welfare, but
does not specify the reverse for those in Rockefeller College. It was noted that GAC
cannot amend a proposal. Thus, the proposal will need to be sent back for rewording.
Committee Chair T. Groves will inform the parties.
Proposal to establish a fully online version of the Master of Public Health (MPH)
degree program – School of Public Health
Dr. Mary Applegate from the School of Public Health attended today’s GAC meeting
to answer questions on the Public Health proposals.
The proposal is to establish a fully online version of its MPH degree program. This
will enable public health practitioners to complete online courses while continuing to
work in their employment position. The School currently offers 5 of 6 MPH core
courses online as well as various electives. Dr. Applegate mentioned that Wisconsin
and UMass are among the institutions that have online MPH programs, and many
different online courses are offered elsewhere. Five accredited schools of public
health exist in NYS. Some students cannot attend on-site classes. For some it is a
matter of distance. At the moment, we have some certificate programs which are
entirely online. There are plans to add more online summer courses across the
campus.
Revenue sharing will pay for adjuncts to teach these courses, and there is a huge pool
of faculty available. No face-to-face contact is required. There is online contact
under development, and the hope is to have an established program advisor once the
program grows. A member suggested that if the program is successful and develops a
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March 25, 2011
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large enrollment, some type of reporting mechanism should be established. Dr.
Applegate mentioned that the core courses have been online for about five years.
There are 200 students who are either currently in the program or have completed the
program. Six intern credits are waived for those students with related work
experience. An enrollment committee will ensure students are performing actual
public health work. The question of plagiarism was raised. Dr. Applegate stated that
online exams are not proctored. A member mentioned that there are agencies that
proctor online exams. She also mentioned that Public Health is accredited, and they
will be closely monitored for online and in-class instruction for both undergraduate
and graduate courses. The School’s in-house evaluation committee will monitor the
online programs. The Council voted unanimously to approve the proposal.
Request to revise course requirements for the Master of Public Health (MPH) Social
Behavior and Community Health Concentration (SBCH) – School of Public Health
The 51 credit MPH program has a 21 credit core and 30 required credits in an area of
concentration. Currently, the Concentration requires students to take one life-course
from among 3 as well as 9 credits of additional electives. The proposal is to offer
additional flexibility by grouping the life-courses into the general electives and
raising the required number of credits to 12. In addition, students would be required
to take at least two of the four elective courses within the SBCH concentration. Dr.
Applegate mentioned that students should develop specific expertise in elective
(sub)areas within their concentration. Core courses expose them broadly to the field.
The Council voted unanimously to approve the proposal.
Request to revise course requirements for the M.S. in Forensic Biology Degree program
– College of Arts and Sciences Biology Department
The proposal is to expand and revise the list of elective offerings in the MS in
Forensic Biology program. Currently, students are required to choose two elective
courses from a list of six. Three of the courses (Bio 513, 525, and 617) have not been
taught in recent years. However, the department intends to continue offering Bio 513
and 617 on an occasional basis. In addition, the list of electives would be expanded
to include Bio 505,521, 523, 531 and 563. Thus, students would be required to take 2
elective courses from the list of ten. The Committee voted 3-0-0 to recommend
approval, and the Council unanimously endorsed their recommendation.
Proposal to Establish Graduate Level Policy Pertaining to Grade Changes
The University Registrar’s grade change form states that the grade change may not be
based on re-examination or submission of additional work. However, that policy has
not been officially approved for inclusion in the Graduate Bulletin. The proposal
would formally adopt the above language, thus rendering the policy consistent with
existing practice. The Council voted unanimously to pass the proposal.
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March 25, 2011
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Proposal to Digitally Submit Master’s Theses
Doctoral dissertations have formally been submitted electronically since the Spring of
2009. Previously, cost considerations kept the Master's theses from being
electronically submitted. However, costs have dropped. It will cost the Library
between $17 and $20, and the Library is in support of Master's theses being submitted
online. The Council voted unanimously to approve the proposal.
Proposal to Amend Policy Pertaining to Graduate Certificate Programs
Graduate certificates have been offered by the University since the 1960's. All
programs are registered with the New York State Education Department as
“Advanced Certificate” programs. However, campus use refers to “Certificate of
Graduate Study,” “Advanced Graduate Certificate,” or “Certificate of Advanced
Study.” The proposal would distinguish between and establish uniform policies
pertaining to each of the three types on the basis of credit and residency requirements.
The distinction would be for internal use only. This is part of a national trend to
create different tiers of certificate programs. Generally, a Certificate of Graduate
Study would require in the range of 9 – 24 graduate credits; an Advance Graduate
Certificate requires in the range of 15 – 35 graduate credits; and a Certificate of
Advanced Study requires 48 – 60 graduate credits. Chair Kranich noted the
distinction between pre-masters and post-masters level certificates and recommended
that it be stipulated that the latter (Certificate of Advanced Study) involves study
beyond the masters level.
With that change the Council voted 8-0-1 to approve the proposal.
7. Continuation of CAA Reviews
The Council resumed discussion of the Physics review.
END OF GAC 3/25/2011 MINUTES
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