COUNCIL AND COMMITTEE SUMMARIES
University Senate Meeting, April 6, 2009
As submitted to Dick Collier, Secretary, University Senate
UNIVERSITY SENATE CHAIR’S REPORT – John Delano, Chair
FYE Task Force: Several members (Diane Dewar, Wayne Locust, John Delano) of the Freshman Year Experience (FYE) Task Force met with the
CAA, UAC, and UPPC to describe the basic components of the three FYE models that been developed by the Task Force. Those three models are
resource-dependent (limited, intermediate, maximum), as requested by Provost Phillips during her charge to the Task Force at its first meeting on
June 3rd, 2008 . Important perspectives were provided members of those Councils that will be incorporated into the final FYE report, which will be
widely distributed upon its completion. A copy of the FYE ‘Executive Summary’ was e-mailed to all SEC members after the March 23rd SEC
meeting for their perspectives.
March 13
th meeting with Provost Phillips and UUP representatives
: On Friday, March 13th, a 2.5-hour meeting occurred to discuss the issue of TA
support for graduate students and the 3-tier program rankings contained in the 1997-1998 campus assessment that had been discussed by the Dean of
Graduate Studies at a GAC meeting on March 2nd. During the first hour, Provost Phillips provided the group with a ‘Tsunami 101’ report describing the
financial challenges that the campus faces during the current and next fiscal years. The Provost’s report was illustrated with a 15-page handout of graphs
and tables. Following thereafter, UUP representatives (Candace Merbler, President of the UAlbany Chapter; and Frederick Floss, Vice President for
Academics) provided their views on faculty workload issues bearing on decreased support for graduate teaching assistants, and enrollment-thresholds in
graduate courses. The subset of SEC members then decided to frame a document over the weekend that would be delivered to the Interim President and
the Provost providing its views on these issues. After many iterations conducted via e-mail over the weekend, that memo was completed and delivered
by the Senate Chair to the offices of the President and Provost on Monday morning, March 16th.
Electronic balloting for Senate elections: SEC members agreed during their March 23rd meeting that the Senate Chair should contact key-members
of the University’s administration to see if holding electronic balloting for Senate elections would be possible. The Senate Chair pursued this matter
on March 25th. While the concept of electronic balloting was greeted with enthusiastic interest, subsequent communications (e.g., March 28th)
indicated that electronic balloting, although still viewed as important to pursue, would not likely be possible for the upcoming Senate elections in late
April 2009. Following the submission of a memo by the Governance Council on the importance of this capability, the potential for electronic
balloting for the upcoming April 2009 elections went from being unlikely to likely, as reported by members of the University administration to Senate
officers in a meeting on April 3rd. The Senate Chair expresses his sincere thanks to all participants who have worked to make this capability possible.
March 20
th meeting with Interim President and Provost
: As agreed at the February 23rd meeting of the SEC, a group of SEC members met with
Interim President Philip and Provost Phillips on Friday, March 20th, to voice their concerns about an apparent pattern of conflict of interest by a
member of their administration. The meeting lasted for ~75 minutes.
UFS (University Faculty Senator’s Report) – William Lanford, R. Michael Range SUNY Senators
Nothing to report.
GSO (Graduate Student Organization) – Nicholas Fahrenkopf, Lead Senator
At its last Assembly Meeting the GSO passed a resolution recognizing Harvey Milk and urging the University to recognize outstanding alumni that
have passed away (like Milk) through the “Reaching Higher, Achieving More” initiative. GSO elections will be held April 22nd until the 24th and will
include a referendum item on the existence of the GSO. As the time comes closer please encourage graduate students you know to participate in this
important election. The GSO is also starting a Volunteer Program and will be volunteering at Habitat for Humanity on Wednesday the 8th from 9am
until 3pm.
The GSO has a handful of events coming up including “Marketing Yourself for Success during Tough Economic Times” presented by Career Services and co-
sponsored with the Office of Graduate Studies. The AASS&F presents Music Movie Night – Triple Feature on 4/29 at 6PM in LC25 featuring: Sade “Lovers
Live” in Southern California, Yanni “Tribute” at the Taj Mahal in India, and The Supremes “Reflections” the Motown Sound. The English Graduate Student
Organization will hold its seventh annual conference, "Negotiating Land: New Readings" Friday and Saturday 4/17 and 4/18. This conference will
interrogate how recent theory and scholarship has understood changing local and global geographies and the spaces--textual, pedagogical, political, etc.--in
which we attempt to read terrestriality. Additional events and more information on the GSO can be found at http://www.albany.edu/~gso and through
(gso@albany.edu).
MSCHE Steering Committee Report – Reed Hoyt, University Senate Representative
In attendance were: C. Anderson, T. Gage, S. Faerman (Co-Chair), B. Hamill, Honda (graduate assistant), R. Hoyt, E. Lifshin, K. Loscocco, D.
McCaffrey, C. McNeil, S. Messner (Co-Chair), M. Sutherland, L. Trubitt.
The first drafts of each chapter are due Monday, 6 April. (The first draft of the Subcommittee on Institutional Assessment and Assessment of Student
Learning has already been submitted.) Each committee should take the long view and not focus too much on the current financial situation.
Questions of how to deal with it and what are we doing about it can be considered. The current climate has affected data gathering. Strategies for
gathering data were discussed.
CAA (Council on Academic Assessment) – Henryk Baran, Chair
The Council met on March 11, 2009 and first reviewed and adopted the minutes from its February 25, 2009 meeting. It discussed and accepted the
Program Review Committee’s report on the review of the Department of Educational Administration and Policy Studies. This was followed by a
presentation by Senate Chair John Delano and Vice Provost Wayne Locust of a draft report by the First-Year Experience Task Force: the document
lays out different models of possible living-learning communities, and the presenters asked Council members for their views. There was considerable
discussion of the alternatives, though CAA as a whole did not take a position on the proposals. Finally, there was a discussion, initiated by the CAA
Chair, of the mandate of Council, with reference to both the Bylaws and other documents; Prof. Delano contributed his own perspective on these
matters.
The Council next met on April 1, 2009. Following the review and approval of minutes from the March 11 meeting, it agreed that the Chair seek to
have CAA minutes posted on the Senate website as expeditiously as possible, and that he request that the record of CAA deliberations from prior
years be posted there as well; having these materials openly may be beneficial in various contexts. The Council reviewed and accepted a report on the
Department of East Asian Studies prepared by the Program Review Committee. The Council reviewed the draft of the report by the General
Education Assessment Committee for 2008-2009; the text will be finalized at the next meeting. In connection with that, the Council agreed to
consider at its next meeting a proposal to defer the review process for General Education Assessment during 2009-2010 in the scheduled three
categories, in order to give GEAC the opportunity to review the adequacy of the process as a whole. Finally, CAA discussed the report forwarded by
the First Year Experience Task Force, and agreed on several points to be included in a formal response.
CAFFECoR (Committee on Academic Freedom, Freedom of Expression, and Community Responsibility)
– Malcolm Sherman, Chair
CAFFECoR will be sponsoring a forum on campus freedom of expression policies on Thursday evening, April 16 at 7PM in the Campus Center
Assembly Hall. Format and panel members have yet to be finalized.
CERS (Committee on Ethics in Research and Scholarship) – Carolyn MacDonald, Chair
Nothing to report.
COR (Council on Research) – Lawrence Schell, Chair
The Council on Research has not met since the last Senate meeting. It will meet again on April 22nd.
CPCA (Council on Promotions and Continuing Appointments) – Eric Lifshin, Chair
CPCA continues to dig into the backlog of tenure and promotion cases at a rate of about two per week.
GAC (Graduate Academic Council) – Laurence Kranich, Chair
GAC met on March 30 and approved proposals by the School of Public Health to modify its Doctor of Public Health and its Master of Public Health
programs. In addition, the Council acted upon a petition before its Committee on Admissions and Academic Standing. Two other measures before
the Council’s Committee on Curriculum and Instruction, one from the School of Business to create an elective track in Nano Technology and one
from the College of Arts and Sciences to revise the MS in Atmospheric Science program, were tabled pending receipt of additional clarifying
information. The Council will meet next on April 27.
GOV (Governance Council) – R. Michael Range, Chair
GOV met on March 16 and March 31, 2009. In response to questions raised at the 3/09/09 senate meeting, GOV reviewed two bullet items from the
last summary report to the SEC (2/23/09) and the Senate (3/09/09). The second bullet in those reports contained incorrect information. The Council
decided to replace that item with the following text.
A draft of the 2005 MSCHE Periodic Review Report was sent to the UAlbany Senate Executive Committee and to Faculty and Staff by Interim
Provost Mumpower on May 05, 2005. As acknowledged in that message, the PRR was due on June 1, 2005. It is difficult to see how this
very short time frame at the end of the semester would allow for the level of consultation called for by MSCHE guidelines. (“The preparation
of a PRR, just like a self-study, should involve various campus constituencies including faculty, staff, administration, and the board of trustees.
Prior to submitting the PRR to the Commission, representatives of these groups should have adequate opportunity to discuss and respond to
the draft PRR.”)
( http://www.msche.org/publications/PRRhandbook08081114133252.pdf )
Furthermore, the Council agreed on the following revisions of the last bullet item in said reports.
The selection and appointment of the current chair of the MSCHE Self-Study Steering Committee was done by the then Officer in Charge
without any consultation with University at Albany elected governance bodies. The appointment was later confirmed by the Interim
President. A co-chair was added after Senate Officers had raised the issue, referring to the MSCHE guidelines which include such co-chairs
as an appropriate model, among others, for the Steering Committee.
GOV finalized the proposed Charter Amendment concerning the creation of the Initial Review Committee of Undergraduate Academic Proposals
(IRCUAP), which replaces the IRCAP proposal first considered in Spring 2008. (Amendment is on today’s agenda.
The Council also held a special meeting on March 23 to discuss nominations to replace senators-at-large and UAS faculty representatives whose
terms end at the end on August 31, 2009. The list was finalized at the March 30 meeting, and a preliminary slate has been distributed to the Voting
Faculty, together with a call for additional nominations by petition. University-wide elections will be held before the end of April 2009. GOV
discussed the shortcomings of the election process that has been used in recent years and agreed to recommend that university-wide elections be
handled electronically, following a procedure analogous to the one used by the student associations through myUAlbany. The Council sent a memo
to Interim President Philip asking for his support to implement such a plan for this spring’s elections. GOV is also working on finalizing a senate
handbook, a project that was initiated a few years ago. It is hoped that a draft version will become available before the May Senate meeting..
LISC (Council on Libraries, Information Systems, and Computing) – Lawrence Raffalovich, Chair
At the 4/3 meeting of LISC, CIO Chris Haile reported that the new Data Center project is now in the design stage. This facility, which
will house IT equipment and key personnel, is funded from the capital budget and is not affected by the current crisis. The new
Information Security Council, an administrative body mandated by the Chancellor to identify and review IT management practices, has
been convened. Headed by Information Security Officer Martin Manjak, membership is currently composed of 'primary data owners'
(e.g., Registrar, Human Resources, etc.), but will include other constituents as they are identified. The council will meet quarterly.
Acting Director and Dean of Libraries Mary Casserly reported that academic departments will soon be contacted about the Libraries'
acquisition budget.
The University Library will remain open 24/7 during the final exam period.
UAC (Undergraduate Academic Council) – Joan Savitt, Chair
UAC met on March 10, 17, and 31.
UAC reviewed and approved all the curricular changes for the Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science and the related items in the
Atmospheric Science major and minor. These changes will take effect in the fall of 2009. Students already in these majors may complete their
existing programs. The council noted that the earlier curriculum included coursework in public policy and urged that students continue to be advised
to study that field as well.
UAC also reviewed and approved changes to the minor in Medical Anthropology. The effective date will be Fall, 2004 to allow students currently in
the program to graduate under the newest curricular specifications if they wish.
UAC heard a preliminary report from representatives of the First Year Experience Task Force and made suggestions that will be considered by the
full Task Force in the future.
UAC briefly discussed and will soon be reviewing a proposal for admitting and awarding credits for students who earn an International Baccalaureate
(high school) diploma.
UAC discussed whether students could or should be restricted from double majoring in areas where there is extensive curricular overlap. UAC
determined that individual departments should not make such policies, but that departments that wished to establish such restrictions should submit
their requests and justifications to UAC for its consideration and vote. If passed, these restrictions would become part of the Undergraduate Bulletin.
UAC discussed a proposal to restrict entry into the minor in Education Studies to students with at least a 3.0 GPA, and expects to vote in favor of this
restriction at its April 15th meeting after the department has clarified how these rules will apply for transfer students and has developed specific
wording to be published in the Undergraduate Bulletin.
UAC also discussed the campus-wide repercussions that might result from having many or most departments create restrictions on entry into their
minors. While UAC has created policy for departments that wish to restrict entry into majors, there is no such policy for minors. UAC will consider
drafting such a policy later this semester.
ULC (University Life Council) – Daniel R. Smith, Chair
ULC met on Wednesday, March 18. Result of a meeting was a vote by ULC members for a resolution, forwarded to the Executive Committee,
recommending that the president assemble a taskforce to move UAlbany toward becoming a smoke-free campus by Fall 2011 (a summary follows)
ULC also discussed unfounded rumors of a pending closure of the swimming pool. ULC will meet on April 15th to consider a yearly report from
Intercollegiate Athletic Board’s faculty representative and to see a presentation of the Summary Draft of the Freshman Year Experience Taskforce.
ULC Smoking Policy Bill Background
ULC was first approached to review the current smoking policy in Spring 2008. The request came late, and we were able to have one
meeting with Facilities Management, in the year and the issue was carried over until the 2008-09 academic year.
We discovered the following:
1.
The smoking policy is out-of-date, and does not meet an acknowledged national standard for distance from buildings and
structures (American College Health Association standard, 2005—copy available).
2.
It was discovered last year when facilities management presented to ULC that the location of air-intakes on the podium
could not be revealed due to security reasons—so UAlbany has a policy it can not enforce.
3.
A professor of Public Health presented to ULC in November on observations her graduate class made on policy
implementation of UAlbany’s smoking policy. The outcomes:
a.
Little if any enforcement.
b.
Butt cans moved from locations (in some cases directly under no smoking signs).
c.
Clusters of individuals smoking inside the established distance, up against entrances.
d.
Open window policy and distance not observed, BUT our unique architecture in many cases allows smoke to be
trapped by the roof and curves trap smoke.
e.
Areas where there are no butt cans (outside Campus Center).
f.
Complaint procedure is vague, as is enforcement.
The ULC observes one other SUNY campus (UBuffalo) is moving toward being entirely smoke-free.
There are currently 262 smoke free campuses nation-wide.
UPPC (University Planning and Policy Council) – Reed Hoyt, Chair
The UPPC met on Thursday, 19 March and approved the proposal to suspend admission to the MAPAP program. The proposal has already been
approved by the GAC. The UPPC discussed the matter of graduate program adjustments occasioned by the current budget crisis as outlined in the
Special SEC Meeting of 13 March. Provost Phillips provided extensive material that repeated parts of her presentation to the 13 March SEC meeting
but added a large amount of substantial information, which contextualized and expanded upon the data shared in the 13 March SEC meeting. Because
of the urgency caused by various deadlines concerning budget allocations and projected expenditures the UPPC will revisit other items on its agenda
at its next meeting.
