Text of Prepared Comments,
Chairperson's Report to the University Senate, March 2014
Senate Chair Ann Gould
Welcome.
Two issues have surfaced in recent
months that
have served to foment lively discussion, and in one case, almost
polarize, the
university community. The first issue [The Proposed Merger of the
Rutgers
College of Nursing – Newark and New Brunswick, and the Rutgers
School of
Nursing - Newark] will be addressed as a formal report a bit later in
today's
meeting, so I will set that aside for now.
The
second issue is the selection of Condoleezza Rice as the 2014
Commencement
Speaker and recipient of an honorary degree. I'm sure that everyone in
this
room is well aware of the controversy that surrounds the selection of
this
degree recipient, both pro and con: the faculty have circulated
petitions, the
faculty councils have considered the issue; the students have engaged
in
discussion and debate, e-mail exchanges have occurred, and the issue
has had
media attention as well.
The
Senate Executive committee has also weighed in on the matter, and after
a good
deal of discussion and without complete agreement I might add, has
decided that
the issue of greater disquiet is not the actual name of the candidate
selected,
but the process by which these candidates are selected and if
appropriate input
from the university community has been considered.
Background:
Until
2011, a Faculty Committee on Honorary Degrees, that included
representatives
from all three campuses who were appointed by the president, was tasked
to
solicit nominations for the honorary degree recipients about 18 months
in
advance and then to confidentially prepare a slate of candidates. The
composition of this committee was changed in 2013 to include: President
Barchi,
the New Brunswick and RBHS Chancellors, a member of the Board of
Governors, a
member of the Board of Trustees, and two professors.
However,
it is important to note that these committees, regardless of structure,
serve
to advise the Board of Governors. Any confidential slate of candidates
prepared
by the selection committee is forwarded to the Board, who we must note,
is free
to solicit nominees from other sources. Thus there is no guarantee that
names
forwarded to the Board from any selection committee will be chosen.
But
the question remains if the current process provides sufficient input
from the
celebrants of commencement, the students, and the faculty who shepherd
them
through the educational process, and if not, how may this be remedied?
So, it
was decided at the March Executive Committee meeting that we would call
for a
review of the selection process and procedures relating to selection of
commencement speakers and recipients of honorary degrees. A charge was
issued
to the Student Affairs standing committee as follows:
Charge
S-1405 - Procedures for Selecting Commencement Speakers and Honorary
Degree Recipients:
Consider, and make recommendations to ensure that, the procedure for
selecting
Commencement speakers, as well as those who receive honorary degrees,
seeks,
and provides sufficient opportunity for, input from the Rutgers
community.
Respond to Senate Executive Committee by November 18, 2014.