ATTENDANCE SUMMARY: Faculty: Of 93 total:
59 present (64%), 15 excused (16%), 19 absent (20%); Students:
Of 57 total: 28 present (49%), 6 excused (11%), 23 absent (40%);
Administrators: Of 38 total: 22 present (58%), 6 excused
(16%), 10 absent (26%); Alumni: Of 6 total: 5 present
(83%), 0 excused, 1 absent (17%) View Senate attendance
record for this year.
NON-VOTING MEMBERS PRESENT: Innerfield, Seto
PRESIDING OFFICER: Martha Cotter, Chairperson
CHAIRPERSON’S REPORT: Chairperson Cotter called the meeting to
order, wishing everyone a happy and productive new year. She presented
updates on two issues as follows:
Senator Leath has appeared before the Board of Governors’ Audit Committee,
and explained the difficulties faculty and others are experiencing with
the new Travel and Business Expense Report (TABER) procedures. Vice
President for Administrative Affairs Kavanagh set up a committee to review
the TABER policies, and that committee has now recommended changes based
on suggestions received. Chairperson Cotter then thanked Senator Leath
and Vice President Kavanagh for their work in revising the TABER policies.
Referring to the October 2000 Senate report and recommendations on
Use of Social Security
Numbers as Student Identification Numbers, Chairperson Cotter said that
the Senate Executive Committee shares the expressed concerns of other Senators
on the lack of progress toward discontinuing use of Social Security numbers
as identifiers. She said that an administrative committee is being
set up to address an alternative student-identification system, and that
Michael McKay, Vice President for Information Technology, will report on
the issue at a future Senate meeting.
Chairperson Cotter continued her report with a review of major issues being
undertaken by Senate committees this semester:
Review and revision of the Senate’s bylaws and enabling University
Regulations, which was docketed on the Senate agenda for action later that
day, and an expected report and recommendations on revision of the Senate’s
standing rules;
Recommendations on the new University Copyright Policy which has
been reviewed by the Senate’s Academic Standards, Regulations and Admissions
Committee;
Aforementioned TABER policy revisions;
Anticipated report from the Student Affairs Committee on ways in
which to promote tolerance and sensitivity on campus, particularly among
students;
University Structure and Governance Committee’s ongoing review of
the Senate standing-committee structure, particularly with respect to the
possibility of adding a committee specifically charged with issues related
to graduate and professional education;
Faculty Affairs and Personnel Committee’s charge to review the processes
by which faculty report teaching, scholarship and service, which has been
placed on hold pending an administrative review of those procedures;
Academic Standards, Regulations and Admissions Committee review of
the University Policy on Academic Integrity, which has been placed on hold
pending an administrative review of that policy; and
Faculty Affairs and Personnel Committee’s charge to evaluate proposals
to establish clinical faculty tracks in the Graduate School of Applied
and Professional Psychology, Rutgers Business School:Newark/New Brunswick,
School of Business-Camden, and Mason Gross School of the Arts.
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY:
Agenda: The agenda was approved as
distributed by the Secretary.
Communications: Secretary Swalagin informed the Senate
that the Senate office has moved from its College Avenue Location to Suite
110 of Administrative Services Building III on the Cook Campus. Phone
and fax numbers remain unchanged.
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT: There was no administrative report.
NEW BRUNSWICK CAMPUS REPORT: Executive Vice President for Academic
Affairs Philip Furmanski presented the New Brunswick Campus Report.
A summary of the report has been posted online, and is attached to the master
copy of these minutes as Attachment A. Main areas addressed in the
report included academics, research, faculty recruitment and development,
initiatives, service to constituencies, challenges, and Rutgers’ response
to the recent tsunami disaster.
Senator Hirsh noted the passing of Professor Yehuda Vardi, chair of the
Statistics Department, and announced that a memorial service would take place
at noon on February 4 at Kirkpatrick Chapel.
A question-and-answer period followed, during which Vice President Furmanski
responded to questions and comments on subjects including: the search
for a Vice President for Research and Graduate and Professional Studies;
campus transportation problems, and Route 18 construction; the search for
a Vice President for Undergraduate Education; grants to students; the search
for, and responsibilities of, a Student Ombudsperson; plans to address overcrowding
on the New Brunswick campuses; faculty participation in Rutgers’ administration,
and presence or absence of quorum in various advisory groups; and the need
for expansion of the Livingston Student Center.
Senator Scott gave a brief introduction to this report, which had been
introduced, but not docketed for action, at the November 2004 Senate meeting.
She then announced that she had been informed that a quorum was no longer
present at the meeting, and therefore the item could not be acted upon by
the Senate. There was some discussion of quorum requirements, which
resulted in a ruling by the parliamentarian. Although the item would
not be acted upon by the Senate during the current meeting, some discussion
of the report and its recommendations did take place, which included comments
and/or questions on: definition of the term “staff” as used in the
recommendations, as well as various categories of staff; a potential alternative
nominating procedure relative to the campus requirements for Senate chair
and vice chair; and term limits for Senate chairs. In response to Senator
Hall’s suggestion that insertions and deletions should be indicated in the
bylaws revision document as distributed to the Senate, Senator Scott said
that it would be done in that manner for the next Senate meeting, and that
it would go in that form to the Board of Governors following Senate action.
The report will be docketed for action at the February 2005 Senate meeting.
OLD BUSINESS: There was no old business.
NEW BUSINESS: There was no new business.
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE REPORT: Vice Chairperson Rabinowitz reported
on the November 5, 2004
and January 7, 2005
Senate Executive Committee meetings. Executive Committee minutes are
available on the Senate website.
REPORT OF THE REPRESENTATIVES TO BOARDS OF GOVERNORS AND TRUSTEES:
There were no reports from board representatives.
REPORT OF CAMPUS FACULTY LIAISONS: Senator Miller, chair of the
New Brunswick Faculty Council (NBFC), reported on recent and planned activities
of the NBFC.