PRESIDING
OFFICER: Paul Panayotatos,
Chairperson
CALL TO ORDER, DETERMINATION OF A QUORUM, AND CHAIRPERSON’S REPORT
- Paul Panayotatos, Chairperson
Chairperson Panayotatos called the meeting to order at 1:17 p.m.
in the Multipurpose Room of the Rutgers Student Center, College Avenue
Campus, New Brunswick. He said that his chair's report would be very
brief, noting that his promised report on the Senate's Ad Hoc Shared
Governance Task Force would be part of the committee-of-the-whole
discussion on shared governance that was docketed for the end of the
meeting.
SECRETARY'S REPORT - Ken
Swalagin, Executive Secretary
- Agenda: The meeting's agenda, including time
limits, was approved as distributed by the executive secretary.
- Minutes: The Minutes of October 22, 2010 Senate Meeting were approved as
distributed by the executive secretary.
- Communications: The following communications were presented and summarized by the Executive Secretary:
COMMITTEE
REPORTS
University Structure and
Governance Committee (USGC) Response to Charge S-0712 on Enhanced Shared Governance, and University Senate and
Draft Senate Handbook Changes - Peter Gillett, USGC Chair
Chairperson Panayotatos explained
that the recommendations in this report include a change to Senate
Bylaws/University Regulations. In accordance with established parliamentary
procedure, this report was introduced at this meeting, but would not be up for
adoption until the January 2011 meeting. Senator Gillett,chair of the
Senate's University Structure and Governance Committee, summarized his
committee's report. Brief discussion followed, with no amendments proposed.
Faculty and Personnel Affairs Committee (FPAC) Response to Charge S-1011 on Endorsing the New Brunswick Faculty Council's Faculty Retirement Survey - Ann Gould and Paul Panayotatos, FPAC Co-chairs
Senate Vice Chairperson Ann Gould assumed the chair while Chairperson
Panayotatos, who also co-chairs the Faculty and Personnel Affairs
Committee, presented the FPAC report on the New Brunswick Faculty
Council's Faculty Retirement Survey. Panayotatos summarized the report,
and read aloud the recommendations and resolution for adoption included
therein. During discussion, the Senate voted to separate
Recommendations 1 and 2 from Recommendation 3. Recommendations 1 and 2
of the report were then adopted by the Senate on card vote. Panayotatos
read the third recommendation aloud. Following brief discussion,
Recommendation 3 of the report was adopted by the Senate on card vote.
Panayotatos then resumed the chair.
OLD BUSINESS: There
was no old business.
NEW BUSINESS: There was no new business.
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT -
President Richard L. McCormick
President McCormick presented an
administrative report, which included comments on topics including:
- Governor Christie's Task Force on Higher Education, chaired by
Former Governor Thomas Kean, with which President McCormick and
Executive Vice President Furmanski had multiple meetings and
discussions, and which is expected to issue a report and
recommendations on higher education in New Jersey in December;
- Rutgers' own responsibility for achievement of its ambitions and future finances;
- examples of Rutgers' support of its own programs;
- the November launch of Rutgers' capital campaign, the goal of which is to raise one billion dollars; and
- recent meetings with student groups, including LGBT students, and
members of the Latino Student Council, at which he received
constructive suggestions and input from the students, and for which he
applauded the students for their passion and commitment to making
positive change.
President McCormick
then responded to questions or heard comments on subjects including:
- a recent teach-in on the subject of the state budget and Rutgers
tuition issues held by Livingston Campus students, and a suggestion
that McCormick meet with students to discuss what the student loan and
debt crises mean to students;
- unpaid, contractual salary increases;
- a student government led initiative to eliminate the waste associated with paper ticketing at Rutgers athletic events;
- how Rutgers will respond to the anticipated report from the Higher Education Task Force; and
- the status of the proposal to require all New Jersey State employees, including Rutgers employees, to be New Jersey residents.
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE REPORT: Vice Chairperson Ann Gould reported on the
November 5, 2010 Senate Executive
Committee meeting.
REPORTS OF
REPRESENTATIVES TO BOARDS OF GOVERNORS AND TRUSTEES:
Senator Cotter, Faculty Representative to the Board of Governors, said
that the Board of Governors had not met since the previous Senate
meeting. Senator Rabinowitz, Faculty Representative to the Board of
Trustees, said that the Board of Trustees had likewise not met since
the previous Senate meeting..
CAMPUS FACULTY LIAISON
REPORTS: Senator McKeever, chair of the
New Brunswick Faculty Council, said
that group has not met since his last report to the Senate, but that an
agenda had been prepared for their December meeting. There were no reports from Camden or Newark faculty liaisons.
COMMITTEE-OF-THE-WHOLE DISCUSSION
Shared Governance Issues: A
committee-of-the-whole discussion on shared governance issues had been
docketed for the end of the meeting. Chairpeson Panayotatos described
the committee-of-the-whole environment, noting that there would be no
motions or formal action, that anyone may speak, and that the
discussion should remain focused on the issue of Senate effectiveness
and participation. Senator Markowitz moved the Senate to committee of
the whole. The motion was seconded by Senator Binetti, and the Senate
adopted the motion. Senate Chairperson Panayotatos and Vice Chairperson
Gould then summarized their recent experiences at a faculty governance
conference sponsored by the AAUP and held in Washington DC earlier that
month. Comments were made during the ensuing discussion on subjects
including:
- uncertainty on the part of some students, few of whom are
longterm Senators (as opposed to faculty or administrators) about what
the Senate is and does;
- the lack of student perspective in some Senate issues;
- challenges to student involvement and participation due to
structural differences in student governing associations, other student
government responsibilities assigned to student Senators, and
transportation difficulties (especially for Camden and Newark students
coming to New Brunswick meetings);
- formal power, or the lack thereof, assigned to the Senate;
- videoconferencing Senate meetings;
- possible penalties for neglect of Senate responsibilities;
- ideas for assembling student leaders as a group outside of the Senate;
- a call for student suggestions on how to get more and better-focused, sustained student involvement in the Senate;
- suggestions about sending short, easily digestible bulletins about upcoming Senate activities to all Senators;
- the lack of formal
powers assigned to the New Brunswick Faculty Council, and the rarity of
reports to the Senate from campus faculty liaisons;
- vehicles for promoting universitywide awareness of the Senate, including the new faculty/staff e-newsletter;
- a call for students
to consider why student participation in shared governance generally
has declined over the past decade, and how that decline could be
reversed;
- the size and scope
of issues assigned to Senate committees, and the related need for more
information from the administration on the committee level;
- the vital need for
Senators to understand their responsibilities to serve as conduits of
information between their constituencies and the Senate;
- structural and support issues related to student government groups, especially in Newark;
- funding support for the Senate;
- the need for mentoring of new Senators by experienced Senators;
- the wisdom of focusing on what the Senate can do, rather than what it cannot; and
- the evolution of
the Rutgers University Student Assembly, and how that evolution may
improve or affect student involvement in shared governance.
Senator Gillett
then successfully moved that the Senate rise from committee of the
whole, and followed that motion with a motion to adjourn.
ADJOURNMENT: The meeting adjourned at 3:03
p.m.
Minutes Written and Submitted by:
Ken Swalagin
Executive Secretary of the University Senate