Rutgers University Senate Minutes, May 1, 2009

EXCUSED: Alger, Allender, Bubb, Buckley, Burrell, Covey, DeLisi, DeMoya, Edwards, Gimenez, Robert Goodman, Roe Goodman, Guo, Kukor, Lemieux, Lintakoon, Minsky, Mittra, Papathomas, Perrone, Pignatiello, Pinchuk, Rockland, Rudman, Sharp, R. Simmons, F. Thompson, Vitello, Y. Wang, Yeagle, Zullo

PRESIDING OFFICER: Samuel Rabinowitz, Chairperson

CALL TO ORDER, DETERMINATION OF A QUORUM, AND CHAIRPERSON'S REPORT - Samuel Rabinowitz, Senate Chairperson: Chairperson Rabinowitz called the meeting to order at 11:22 a.m., immediately following adjournment of the 2009-2010 Senate's Organizational Meeting. He said that he sat in with the president's budget advisory group the previous day, and asked everyone to make suggestions to the administration on what they would like to see done more efficiently in the long run at Rutgers. He said those ideas could be emailed directly to Executive Vice President Furmanski, or anonymously through his own email (rabinowi@camden.rutgers.edu).

REPORT OF THE SECRETARY - Ken Swalagin, Executive Secretary of the Senate:

Agenda: The agenda was approved as distributed by the secretary. Chairperson Rabinowitz explained that the order in which committee reports would be presented would be flexible to efficiently use the time before the lunch break.
Minutes: The Minutes of March 27, 2009 Senate meeting were approved as distributed by the secretary.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Faculty and Personnel Affairs Committee Response to Charge S-0901, Academic Freedom for Contingent Faculty - Ann Gould and Paul Panayotatos, FPAC Co-chairs
FPAC Co-chairs Ann Gould and Paul Panayotatos presented and summarized their committee's report and recommendations on Charge S-0901, on Academic Freedom for Contingent Faculty. The report and recommendations were then discussed, and adopted unanimously by the Senate.

Faculty and Personnel Affairs Committee Response to Charge S-0804, Dealing with Psychological Emergencies - Ann Gould and Paul Panayotatos, FPAC Co-chairs
FPAC Co-chairs Ann Gould and Paul Panayotatos presented and summarized their committee's report and recommendations on Charge S-0804, on Dealing with Psychological Emergencies. Senator Nolfi moved to amend the report to include in the recommendations that Rutgers' Counseling and Psychological Services should work with University Human Resources when dealing with psychological emergencies involving employees. The amendment was accepted as friendly. Senator Jon'a Meyer suggested (but did not move) including language to increase funding for campus counseling offices, noting that, in Camden, students are being referred to outside providers because the Rutgers staff and facilities can't handle additional cases. Panayotatos asked that Meyer's comment be included in the minutes. Senator Boylan called the question, and the report and recommendations were then adopted by the Senate.

[Chairperson Rabinowitz declared the Senate in recess at 12:05. The Senate recessed for lunch, then reconvened at 12:58 p.m.]

POST-LUNCH SESSION:

ANNOUNCEMENT OF ELECTION RESULTS: Secretary Swalagin announced the results of the Election of Senate Officers, Executive Committee Members, and Board Representatives.

COMMITTEE REPORTS, CONTINUED:

University Structure and Governance Committee Response to Charge S-0805, Senate Representation by Full-time, Non-tenure-track Faculty - Tricia Nolfi and Jonathan Tittler, USGC Co-chairs
The USGC report on S-0805, on Senate Representation by Full-time, Non-tenure-track Faculty, included a recommendation to change a Senate bylaw, and therefore had been improperly docketed for action at this meeting. Senator Wild objected to introducing the bylaws change at this meeting, as it could not be voted on until next year (bylaws changes requiring introduction at one meeting, and action at the subsequent meeting). Secretary Swalagin added that this was the last meeting of the 2008-2009 Senate, and therefore this item should not have been docketed. Wild then moved to postpone introduction of this report until the October 2009 Senate meeting. The motion was adopted, and the report was tabled.

Instruction, Curricula and Advising Committee Response to Charge S-0806, Hybrid Courses and Model of Teaching - Natalie Borisovets, ICAC Chair
ICAC Chair Natalie Borisovets summarized her committee's report and recommendations on Charge S-006, on Hybrid Courses and Model of Teaching. Amendments were moved and considered as follows:

Borisovets changes recommendation 4 to replace "multiple sections" with "in courses with more than two sections";
Gillett moves to drop recommendation 2 and renumber the other recommendations;
Panayotatos moves to amend Gillett's amendment to retain recommendation 2, but add at the end "unless they have been carefully crafted to minimize the risk of cheating" (amendment to amendment accepted by mover and seconder, and adopted by Senate);
Noting that discussion time for this item had expired, Senator Wild successfully moved to extend discussion time for ten minutes at 1:28 p.m.;
Senator Wild proposes friendly amendment to change language in recommendation 4 to "in courses with more than two hybrid sections";
Borisovets did not accept the amendment as friendly, and it was thereafter seconded and discussed;
Gillett proposed a friendly amendment to Wild's amendment, changing the language to "Courses offering multiple hybrid sections should also offer a face-to-face section" (amendment accepted as friendly by Wild, and adopted by Senate);
Senator Panayotatos moves to delete recommendation 4 and renumber the recommendations accordingly;
the question was called on Panayotatos's amendment, and a revote to break a first-voting tie resulted in the amendment failing by a margin of two votes;
Senator Levine moved to table the report and discuss it in October;
discussion time for this item having again expired, Senator Greaux moved to extend discussion time for five minutes (extension adopted by Senate);
Wild successfully called the question on Levine's motion to table; and
on card vote, the Senate postponed action on this report until the October 2009 Senate meeting.

Academic Standards, Regulations and Admissions Committee Response to Charge S-0713, Weekend Exams - Martha Cotter and Dan Schantz, ASRAC Co-chairs
ASRAC Co-chairs Martha Cotter and Dan Schantz presented and summarized their committee's report and recommendations on Charge S-0713, on Weekend Exams. Following some discussion of the report, Senator Yares moved to table or send the report back to committee, and call upon the administration to form a committee with languages, humanities, sciences and student governing associations to address the issue of weekend exams. The motion was not seconded, but Schantz suggested that Yares bring this idea as a separate charge to be issued by the Senate Executive Committee to the ASRAC. Yares will forward a proposal for this charge for Executive Committee consideration. Following additional discussion, the report and its recommendations were adopted by the Senate.

Budget and Finance Committee Response to Charge S-0707, Fundraising - Menahem Spiegel, BFC Chair; Marianne Gaunt, Subcommittee Chair
BFC Chair Menahem Spiegel, and Subcommittee Chair Marianne Gaunt, presented and summarized their committee's report and recommendations on Charge S-0707, on Fundraising at Rutgers. Senator Panayotatos proposed adding statistics on costs associated with operating the foundation, particularly as they are relative to other universities' foundations. Gaunt accepted the proposal as a friendly amendment. Following discussion, the report was adopted unanimously by the Senate.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT - President Richard L. McCormick

President McCormick presented an administrative report which included comments on the following topics:

his appreciation of the Senate and its work;
upcoming Rutgers Day, which will be staffed by approximately one thousand members of the Rutgers community;
faculty awards and recognitions;
recent awards to The Daily Targum, and ongoing discussions to reach a compromise on the Senate's recommended Revised Procedures for Funding Special Student Organizations;
recently completed administrative searches;
the Rutgers and NJ State budgets; and
celebratory year-end events, including graduations and commencement.

McCormick then responded to questions from the Senate on his administrative report, and on other issues.

OLD BUSINESS: There was no old business.

NEW BUSINESS: There was no new business.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE REPORT: Vice Chairperson Paul Leath reported on the April 17, 2009 Executive Committee Meeting.

REPORTS OF THE REPRESENTATIVES TO THE BOARDS OF GOVERNORS AND TRUSTEES: Senator Cotter, faculty representative to the Board of Governors, reported on the April 2 Board of Governors meeting. Senator Vodak, faculty representative to the Board of Trustees, reported on the previous day's Board of Trustees meeting.

CAMPUS FACULTY LIAISON REPORTS: Senator Stan Hall, a member of the Newark Faculty Council, reported on the April 6 Newark Faculty Council meeting.

Chairperson Rabinowitz then congratulated those newly elected to leadership positions, and thanked Senator Ryan Cooke for his services as parliamentarian.

ADJOURNMENT: The meeting adjourned at 3:22 p.m.

Kenneth Swalagin
Executive Secretary of the University Senate