University of Louisville
Faculty Senate Meeting
December 1, 2010
The regular meeting of the Faculty Senate was held on December 1, 2010 at 3:00 P.M. in the Chao Auditorium, Ekstrom Library in the, on Belknap Campus, Robert Staat presiding.
Senators Registering Attendance
A&S – Annette Allen, Beth Bradley, Jasmine Farrier, Dennis Hall, Martin Klotz, Mary Makris, Joseph Steffen, Tamara Yohannes CoB – Rob Barker, Carrie Donald, Bruce Kemelgor, Robert Myers DENTISTRY – Ricardo Caicedo, Robert Staat, Dave Willis EDUCATION –Kathleen Rudasil KENT – Sharon Bowland, Seana Golder, Wanda Lott Collins LAW – David Ensign, Kurt Metzmeier, Enid Trucios-Haynes LIBRARIES – Gail Gilbert, Terri Holtze, Margo Smith MEDICINE – Forest Arnold, Moataz El-Ghamry, Lawrence Hunt, Saeed Jortani, John Nyland, Jeannie Roberts MUSIC – Seow-Chin Ong, Krista Wallace-Boaz NURSING – Diane Chlebowy, Sandra Holmes PART-TIME – Charlie Baker, Judy Heitzman, Rose Mills, Susan Peacock, Dana Seay PUBLIC HEALTH – Ray Austin SPEED – Suraj Alexander, Nageshwar Bhaskar, Roger Bradshaw, Hollace Cox
Also Attending -
Ex Officio: James Ramsey, Shirley Willihnganz, Diane Nichols, Virginia Brown
Others: Melissa Laning, Robert Stenger, Allison Hebert (SGA), Gretchen Henry, recording secretary
Press: Janene Zaccone (Inside U of L)
Senators Not Registering Attendance -
A&S – Elizabeth Grossi, Cynthia Negrey, Elaine Wise DENTISTRY – Donald DeMuth EDUCATION – Peter Alter, Rod Githens, Tom Simmons MEDICINE – David Cunningham, Richard Downs, Pamela Feldhoff, Nobuyuki Kuwabara, Steven Myers MUSIC – Daniel Weeks PART-TIME – Brian Barnes PUBLIC HEALTH – Ruth Carrico
ACTION ITEM: Consideration of the Minutes
The minutes of the November 2010 meeting were approved as distributed.
REPORT: Student Government Association – Allison Hebert
The SGA report was presented by Ms. Allison Hebert. She reported that the Book Awareness Campaign would begin in January. The SGA is also working on changing the DROP DATE for classes from 5 to 14 days. Ms. Hebert also asked faculty to encourage students to apply for the Student of the Month recognition.
REPORT: Staff Senate – Virginia Brown
This report was available online.
ACTION ITEM: Second Reading: revised personnel documents - Willis
- Speed School – changes were made to have the Speed School personnel document’s language match that used in The REDBOOK. There was no discussion and the motion to accept the revisions passed unanimously.
- Kent School - changes were made to have the Kent School personnel document’s language match that used in The REDBOOK. There was no discussion and the motion to accept the revisions passed unanimously
ACTION ITEM: Volunteers (5) needed for Student Conduct Hearing Board - Staat
Chair Staat reported that he had been asked to provide five volunteers to serve on the Student Conduct Hearing Board. Senators Annette Allen and Jasmine Farrier, both from A&S, volunteered to serve. Chair Staat will seek more volunteers at next month’s meeting.
ACTION ITEM: Volunteers (2) needed for ad hoc committee on the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics - Staat
Chair Staat reported that he had been asked to provide two volunteers to serve on the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics. No volunteers came forward at this meeting. More will be sought next month.
REPORT: University Provost – Dr. Shirley Willihnganz
Provost Willihnganz updated the Senate on administrative searches. An announcement will be made soon regarding the University Libraries dean search. Advertisements have been placed for the speed School dean position. An academic search firm has been hired to assist in the search for the Vice President of Health Affairs. The responses from the Great Places to Work survey will be studied to ensure that all is being done to make the University the best it can be for all involved. The Task Force on Tuition met yesterday to discuss a tuition increase. The Provost said the members do a great job managing a difficult decision. UofL has the lowest tuition increases in the state. A new committee, the Socially Responsible Investing Committee, is studying how the University invests affects our sustainability rating. We need to be more transparent on where and how we invest. She has a team of people reviewing service centers. They use the University’s resources and should be paying for them. As the University’s budget is being developed, this is a good time to take a look at this potential income stream. Also under review, is physical space. As the student population grows, so must the physical space for living and learning. There is a Space Allocation Review Committee looking at available space on campus and any possible space around town. Waiting for the state to assist will take another four years. The committee will look at what functions on campus could be moved off campus. There is a need for both Belknap and HSC campuses. She is seeking volunteers to this committee. She would like some Senate representation. The Administration Leadership Workshops are going well. Department chairs appreciate the opportunity to come together and exchange ideas and tips. The program will probably continue next year for new chairs. The Budget Advisory Committee has met twice to look at next year’s budget and to consider assumptions that form the basis of the budget. The switch in health care management companies may help the University balance its budget. This committee has new ideas on saving that it will present to President Ramsey. He will vet them and decide which ones will be implemented. With the savings, decisions can then be made on which prioritized options can be undertaken. After the President has decided, the Budget Advisory committee will look at them again and then they will filter down to the Senates. She expects to have a budget to present to the Board of Trustees by April. The Provost asked for nominations for the Trustees Award, the highest award given to a faculty member. The Provost then played a video encouraging faculty to outreach to students to complete their on-line course evaluations. Dr. Willihnganz then spoke about the Felner case and the Conflict of Interest policies that have grown from that. She noted that there will be many changes coming that will put universal best practices in place. Many of the changes come from outside the University. Credit card usage changes are from the banking industry and HPPA changes are federally mandated. Also, under federal pressure to be more stringent, the SACS review held at 10 years has been moved to a five year mini-review. It will require all faculty credentials and course syllabi to be available online. We will use Blackboard to meet this requirement. The Provost ended by saying her concern for the recent tragedy with the Sullivan University student, she said that the dangers of online relationships is addressed in the Student Handbook and covered at Freshman Orientation. She said more information may be added. Chair Staat added that he is meeting with the SGA and Staff Senate officers to discuss this issue.
REPORT: University President – Dr. James Ramsey
President Ramsey began his report with a video on the Capital Campaign. This led into a Power Point explaining the changes that have taken place since he last spoke to the Senate. He explained the changes going on with Passport Health Care after the audit. He then reported on the merger between UofL Hospital, Jewish and Catholic Health Initiatives. He has signed a letter of intent and expects the merger to be complete by May 15th.
REPORT: Guidelines for interacting with the media – Hebert, et. al
If a journalist calls they are usually looking for an academic expert to back a story or verify information. That is acceptable and is not going to hurt the University. He asks that the Media Relations department be made aware of the contact. If a journalist calls and is digging for negative University information or dirt, faculty members are advised to decline to comment or refer the journalist to Mark Hebert. If someone wants to discuss University policies, those conversations must be sent to Mark Hebert to handle. He is not trying to stop any faculty member from talking to the media; he would just appreciate to know beforehand.
REPORTS: Senate Standing Committees
Academic Programs Committee (APC)- This committee’s report was available online.
Committee on Committees and Credentials (CCC)- This committee’s report was available online.
Libraries Committee (FSC This committee’s report was available online. OL)-
Part-time Faculty Committee (PTFC)- This committee’s report was available online.
Planning & Budget Committee (P&B)- This committee’s report was available online.
Redbook & Bylaws Committee (RB)- The committee worked on the personnel documents’ second readings as reported above.
Executive Committee (XC)- This committee’s report was available online.
Other Reports
Academic Technology Committee (ATC) – This committee’s report was available online.
Bookstore Advisory Committee – This committee’s report was available online.
Commission on the Status of Women (COSW) – This committee’s report was available online.
Coalition of Staff & Faculty Leadership (COSFL) – This report was included in the Chair’s Report.
Dining Services Committee - This committee’s report was available online.
Employee Assistance Program (EAP) – This committee’s report was available online.
Faculty Athletics Representative (FAR) - This committee’s report was available online.
Human Resources Advisory Committee (HRAC) – This report will be sent later as Senator Feldhoff is out of town.
Parking Advisory Committee (PAC) – This committee’s report was available online.
Student Care Team – No report was made.
University Librarian Report – This report was sent too late to post.
Ad Hoc Grievance Committee – Melissa Laning reported that the revised grievance documents are available online. UofL Today announced the availability of the revised documents and encouraged feedback to the rbrevise@louisville.edu service account.
Chair’s Report – Robert Staat
This report was available online.
Old Business
New Business
Announcements
The Faculty Senate meets the second Wednesday of each January. The meeting will take place on January 12, 2011 at 3 P.M. in the Chao Auditorium in Ekstrom Library.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 4:50 P.M.
Gretchen Stein Henry
Faculty Senate Secretary