11-16-2011 GAC Minutes
Minutes of the Council meeting for November 16, 2011
Approved by the Council on December 16, 2011
In attendance:
J. Baronner (staff), J. Bartow (staff), J. Bissonnette, F. Bolton (staff),
S. Commuri, S. Chittur, C. Duncan, T. Groves (Chair), L. Halpern, A. Krause,
D. Mancini, G. Robinson, M. VanUllen, K. Williams
Unable to attend: D. Dewar, B. Dieffenbach
1. Minutes from the September 30, 2011 meeting were approved by the Council.
2. Dean’s report – K. Williams
Dean Williams attended the Graduate Student Organization Assembly Meeting and held a
question and answer session with students. Concerns were expressed about the UAlbany
budget and implications for graduate education. Students were apprehensive about future
tuition increases and new fees, such as the “excellence” fee proposed in the SUNY 2020
plan. The Graduate Education Working Group charged with implementing the University’s
Strategic Plan is continuing to work on developing program outcome metrics to be used in
assessment of graduate programs. Finally, a piece of positive news on the budget front was
notification that the SUNY allocation for diversity funds was spared cuts and is
approximately the same as last year’s allocation. This allows us to fund our Carson Carr
Diversity Fellowship Program and GTOP programs at their current levels.
Dean Williams solicited comments from Council members regarding departmental or unit
concerns related to graduate education. One member expressed concerns about funding levels
for graduate student support, noting that the erosion in GSS allocations over the past two
years has made science departments rely more and more on part-time lines to meet its
teaching obligations. Concerns were also raised about the competitiveness of graduate
student stipends at UAlbany, especially relative to other SUNY University Centers. Chair
Groves and Dean Williams plan to convene a session of GAC in January to discuss these and
related issues. Council members were urged to email them with suggestions or ideas for the
January meeting
3. Chair’s Report – T. Groves
Chair Groves’ report consisted of highlights from the Provost’s report at the 10-24-2011
UAlbany Senate meeting:
Provost Phillips reported that none of the four university centers have had plans approved
for NYSUNY 2020. UAlbany has submitted its proposal, and is awaiting a date to give
its presentation.
Governor Cuomo and the PEF leadership have reached a tentative agreement. The new
agreement covers four years instead of five. There would be no salary increase during
the first three years. UAlbany has approximately 40 members of PEF. Provost Phillips
stated that the UUP contract is still being negotiated.
Graduate Minutes
November 16, 2011
Page 2 of 3
At the economic development conference in September, Governor Cuomo announced a
new initiative to develop 450 mm silicon wafer capability for the semiconductor industry.
The total investment is $4.8 billion, most of which comes from large corporate partners.
This includes $400 million capital investment going to the College of Nanoscale Science
and Engineering for infrastructure development. Former President Bill Clinton delivered
the keynote address at the conference and discussed the state’s economic future.
UAlbany hosted NSF Day last week in an effort to boost federal research on campus.
Congressman Tonko, Chancellor Zimpher, and President Philip were on hand to kick off
events.
A regional forum was held on October 18 with the focus of assisting students in
understanding how service learning works. The featured speaker was Dr. Edward
Zlotkowski from Bentley University.
Occupy Wall Street came to campus earlier in the month. Over 200 students protested
against tuition increases. President Philip held a forum with students in the atrium of
University Hall.
Kick off events were held earlier in October for Community Service Month. Student
leaders conducted workshops with regional high school and elementary students.
Additional comments provided by Chair Groves mentioned that the October Community
Service Month was a great success, with many events taking place. This is part of a larger
ongoing effort to enhance university-community engagement. The Campus Committee on
University-Community Engagement is co-chaired by Miriam Trementozzi and Robert
Bangert-Drowns. The committee includes (among many others) GAC members Kevin
Williams, Diana Mancini, and Tim Groves.
4. Committee Reports
CAAS – S. Shahedipour, Chair (
L. Halpern reporting
)
The Committee has met once to date, and Shadi Shahedipour was elected by the Committee
to be the new Chair. Four appeals cases are currently pending and under active discussion.
CAAS will hold their next meeting on Friday, November 18th.
CC&I – S. Chittur, Chair
The Committee held their first meeting November 4, 2011 and reviewed three business
items: School of Education’s request to add a new track, School of Public Health’s proposal
to reduce required credits, and the School of Public Health’s request to revise course
requirements.
Graduate Minutes
November 16, 2011
Page 3 of 3
The School of Education’s Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology requested
a new track be added to its Special Education and Literacy II MS program to be entitled
Adolescence: Special Education Generalist. The NYS Department of Education replaced
the existing program’s Grade 5-9 certification with a Students with Disabilities 7-12
Generalist certificate making revisions to the program necessary.
The School of Public Health had two proposals: (1) A proposal to reduce the number of
credits required for completion of the Biomedical Sciences PhD degree program from 66 to
60 credits. The proposal will improve the program’s training quality, and it would enable the
degree to be completed in approximately five years. (2) A request to revise course
requirements for its Master of Public Health (MPH) degree program’s Environmental Health
Sciences Concentration. The second proposal adds two courses to the EHS core course
concentration and expands elective courses within its other required areas to enhance student
choices while maintaining the overall credits needed for the track
The GAC voted to approve all three proposals.
CEP&P – S. Commuri, Chair
The Committee met and elected Suraj Commuri as chair. No business is currently pending.
A member expressed curiosity whether a policy was in place regarding assignment of
assistantships. Information is being collected, and an informal report will be presented by the
end of the semester.
4
Old Business
Continued Discussion of CAA Assessment Reports
Chair Groves mentioned that assessment reports for Criminal Justice, Sociology, Psychology,
and Physics remain to be reviewed. GAC has a wiki site to access the assessments for
review. The Chair proposed that remaining reviews be done by small groups of GAC
members, with the assignments to be determined. If a member has a preference to review a
certain department, they should contact the Chair.
Future Meetings:
All meetings will be held in the MSC 102 Conference Room
- Friday, 12/16, 9:15-10:45 AM
END OF GAC 11/16/2011 MINUTES
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