Faculty Assembly Minutes, February 13, 2004

College of Arts & Sciences

FACULTY ASSEMBLY MINUTES

February 13, 2004

Registering Attendance:
Anthropology: S. Parkhurst, C. Tillquist
Biology: J. Alexander, G. Cobbs, P. Ewald, C. Gulledge, D. Schultz
Chemistry: F. Luzzio
Classical & Mod. Lang: A. Cedeno, W. Cunningham, M. Dalle, J. Greene, G. Hutcheson, A. Leidner, R. Luginbill, A. Mastri, W. Pfeffer, C. Pooser, C. Sullivan, L. Wagner, J. Winkler, L. Zeng
Communication: J. Berman, M. D.Silva, S. Esrock, J. Ferre, A. Futrell, J. Gregg, J. Hart, G. Leichty, K. Walker
English: D. Anderson, M. Biberman, T. Byers, G. Cross, J. Dietrich, S. Griffin, D. Hall, C. Mattingly, T. Van, A. Willey, B. Williams, J. Wolfe, T. Yohannes
Geography/Geosciences: J. Anderson, B. Dakan, J. Hadizadeh, C. Hanchette, G. Lager, C. Leuthart, K. Mountain, W. Song
History: A. Allen, B. Beattie, W. Lee, T. Mackey, L. Weissbach
Humanities: M. Stenger, E. Wise
Mathematics: G. Barnes, B. Bradley, K. Clancey, M. Das, R. Gill, S. Holt, K. Lee, I. Levi, B. Li, T. Riedel, D. Swanson
Pan-African Studies: B. Hudson
Philosophy: E. John, A. Kolers, O. Wiggins
Political Science: J. Bunck, A. Caldwell, D. Clayton, J. Farrier, T. Gray, S. Hua, P. Laemmle, L. Rhodebeck, C. Ziegler
Psychology: D. Molfese
Sociology: J. Beggan, C. Negrey
Theatre Arts: R. Vandenbroucke
Women's/Gender Studies: K. Christopher, D. Heinecken, N. Theriot

Professor Ferr&acutee;, Chair, called the meeting to order.

The minutes of the Assembly of January 23, 2004, were approved as distributed.

The Chair recognized Associate Dean Hudson, who explained that clarification of current procedure was the reason for the two proposed revisions to the Personnel Policy and Dean's Guidelines.

The change to section 2.3 of the Personnel Policy regarding promotion in rank was moved and seconded by the Personnel Committee. Hearing no call for discussion, the Chair put the question and the motion carried.

The policy, as revised, now reads:

Section 2.3 - Promotion in Rank

  1. Criteria for Promotion from Associate Professor to Professor
    1. The candidate for promotion shall present evidence of having attained proficiency in teaching, research and creative activity, and service, and of superior achievement and recognition in at least one area, and shall give promise of continuing performance at or above such levels.
    2. All evaluations for promotion in rank shall take into consideration a faculty member's annual work plans during the period of review. Evaluation of research and creative activity shall include extramural evaluation.
    3. Whenever used in this document, the word "proficient" shall have the meaning specified in Section 2.2.F.
    4. Whenever used in this document, "superior achievement and recognition" shall be understood to mean "having attained distinction, as recognized by one's peers, in a particular situation, craft, or profession."
  2. Procedures for Reviews and Evaluations for Promotion in Rank
    1. Each faculty member shall be reviewed for promotion in rank according to procedures specified in Section 2.2.I.

The change to the Dean.s Guidelines regarding Selection and Review of Divisional and Departmental Officers was moved and seconded by the Personnel Committee. Hearing no call for discussion, the Chair put the question and the motion carried.

The new section in Dean.s Guidelines now reads:

Dean's Guidelines

Selection and Review of Divisional and Departmental Officers
(see REDBOOK Section 3.3.5)

  1. Appointment and Tenure of Divisional or Departmental Officers
    1. The chair of any division or department and the director of any institute or school within the College of Arts and Sciences shall be appointed by the Board of Trustees upon the recommendation of the dean after approval of the appropriate vice president and President of the University. Such officers serve at the pleasure of the Board of Trustees and may be removed at any time upon the recommendation of the President.
    2. In units offering programs in the Graduate School, the dean of the unit shall consult with the Dean of the Graduate School before recommending appointment of divisional or departmental officers to the appropriate vice president when such officers have administrative responsibility for programs of the Graduate School.
  2. Selection of Divisional or Departmental Officers
    1. Searches for divisional or departmental officers may be limited to internal candidates at the discretion of the dean. In such cases, the departmental faculty shall submit a slate of candidates to the dean, from which the dean may strike any candidates. Before making a recommendation, the dean shall seek the concurrence of the departmental faculty by one of two methods:

      Method 1: The departmental faculty may vote on all acceptable candidates.

      Method 2: The departmental faculty may vote on the candidate tentatively selected by the dean. When the dean and a majority of the departmental faculty concur on a candidate, the dean may recommend to the provost for approval by the President and Board of Trustees. If there is an impasse in this process, the dean and departmental faculty shall each submit written reports to the appropriate vice president, or provost who shall recommend a departmental officer to the President and Board of Trustees.

    2. Searches for divisional or departmental officers open to both internal or external candidates shall be conducted by a search committee, the majority of whose members shall be full-time faculty of the unit involved. The candidate selected by the dean shall be acceptable to a majority of the departmental or divisional faculty. If there is an impasse in this process, the dean and departmental faculty shall each submit written reports to the provost who shall recommend a departmental officer to the President and Board of Trustees.
  3. Evaluation and Review
    1. The performance of all chairs and directors shall be reviewed annually according to the provisions of the College Personnel Policy, Section 2.B.6
    2. After every five years of service, the performance and effectiveness of each chair or director shall be reviewed on a cumulative basis by a broad-based committee established with the concurrence of the departmental faculty. The officer under review shall be informed of the basis of all conclusions and offered an opportunity to respond before the report is completed. The chair or director may be retained or removed on the basis of a committee recommendation with which the departmental faculty and dean concur.
    3. In the event of an impasse on the outcome of a review, the dean and the departmental faculty shall each submit a report with that of the review committee to the provost for a final decision. All such reports are preliminary recommendations and shall be kept confidential. The criteria, procedures, and a substantive summary of the findings shall be made available in confidence to the faculty of the department or division involved. The summary shall be written by the committee in consultation with the dean or dean's designee.
    4. Deans may conduct special reviews of administrative subordinates at any time as may be necessary to assure effective leadership and may recommend removal of a chair or director at any time for any reason that is not illegal or arbitrary.

The Chair recognized Professor Kolers who moved that the Assembly recommend to the Faculty Senate the creation a Student-Staff-Faculty Common Concerns Committee "where points of conflict among the three constituencies may be aired and constructively addressed, and where shared interests can be articulated and jointly pursued."

The motion was seconded.

Discussion included Professors Hall, Griffin, Pfeffer, Wise, Liedner, John, Stenger, Byers, Dakan, and Leichty.

Hearing no call for further discussion, the Chair put the question and the motion carried. The Chair of the Assembly will forward the resolution to the Faculty Senate.

The Chair recognized Professor Beattie for the Curriculum Committee, which moved approval of the graduate certificate in Latin American Studies.

Discussion included Professors Bunck, Ziegler, and Pfeffer.

Hearing no call for further discussion, the Chair put the question and the motion carried.

Professor Ferré then opened the floor for nominations for Chair of the Assembly.

Professor Laemmle nominated Professor Hall, who was elected unanimously.

Professor Hall's election as chair necessitating the election of a new parliamentarian as well, Professor Weissbach was nominated. Professor Weissbach was elected unanimously.

There being no additional business, the Chair recognized a motion to adjourn and the meeting was adjourned.