RUTGERS UNIVERSITY SENATE
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
M I N U T E S
January 8, 2016


MEMBERS PRESENT: Barraco (by phone), Borisovets, Cotter, Gillett, Gould (Chair), Janniger, Langer, Lee, Mhaske, Oliver, Otto, Puhak,  Swalagin (Executive Secretary), Theiss, Thompson

MEMBERS EXCUSED:   Schulberg

ALSO ATTENDING: B. Lee (Senior V.P. for Academic Affairs), M. O'Toole (Nursing School-Camden Associate Dean), K. Pastva (Interim Secretary of the University), J. Robinson (Nursing School - Camden Dean), S. Rabinowitz (Faculty Representative to the Board of Governors), A. Samant (Faculty Representative to the Board of Trustees)

The regular meeting of the University Senate Executive Committee was held on Friday, January 8, 2016 at 1:10 p.m. in the Executive Board Room of Administrative Services Building-III, Cook Campus.

1. Chair’s Report 

Senate and Executive Committee Chair Ann Gould called the meeting to order at 1:12 p.m. She introduced Kwangwon Lee, who was attending his first meeting as Camden Faculty Member of the Executive Committee. She then asked everyone to introduce themselves for Senator Lee's information.

2.    Secretary’s Report - Ken Swalagin, Executive Secretary of the Senate
3.    Administrative Report - Barbara Lee, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs

Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Barbara Lee presented an Administrative Report, which focused on:
 Lee then responded to questions and heard comments on the above subjects, as well as plans for Rutgers' 250th anniversary, and Senate reports to which the administration has not yet responded.

[Jerome Langer joined the meeting at 1:25 p.m.]

4.1.    Old Business

Nursing Programs Merger Update: The University Senate's May 2014 endorsement of the Nursing programs merger included a provision for updates to be provided to the Senate. Nursing Deans Joanne Robinson and Marie O'Toole arrived at this meeting at 1:30 p.m. as scheduled, and provided that update. After Robinson's and O'Toole's departure at 2:09 p.m., the Executive Committee decided that there was no need for further follow-up reports on the Nursing merger.

[Kimberlee Pastva joined the meeting at 1:57 p.m.]

Discussion of how University Policies are revised and disseminated, and other Board of Governors and Board of Trustees Issues: Kimberlee Pastva, Interim Secretary of the University, had been invited to brief the Executive Committee on the processes by which University Policies are implemented or updated. Pastva reported on those processes, and responded to questions thereon. It was decided that Swalagin should begin sending Senate reports to the Office of the Secretary of the University after positive administrative responses are received on Senate recommendations for changes to University Policies. Pastva also responded to multiple questions regarding process and timing on nominations and vetting of candidates for honorary degrees and commencement speakers. Pastva said that if the nomination solicitation is done during the summer, students are less likely to be aware of the opportunity than they would be if it were done later. She added that it could possibly be done in April, after the first Board of Governors meeting following selection of the following year's selections are complete, or possibly earlier. She offered to discuss the timing further with the Executive Committee.

[Pastva and Barbara Lee left the meeting at 2:53 p.m.]

5.    Standing Committees

Report:

Student Affairs Committee (SAC) Response to Charge S-1507 on Deregistration for Non-Payment of Term Bills, Including for Online Courses - Robert Barraco, Zachary Borden, and Samuel Rabinowitz, SAC Co-chairs

SAC Co-chairs Robert Barraco and Samuel Rabinowitz spoke about their committee's response to Charge S-1507 on Deregistration for Non-Payment of Term Bills, Including for Online Courses. The SAC had been charged as follows: "Examine the issue of student deregistration for non-payment of term bills, including for online courses. Refer to Senator Rudy Bell's proposal and background when pursuing this charge. Make recommendations for preventing inappropriate deregistration." The report, minus the resolution that Swalagin had added, was docketed for information only on the upcoming Senate agenda.

4.2.    Old Business (Continued)

How Faculty are Counted - Senator Jerome Langer had raised the issue of how faculty are counted for Senate-entitlement and other purposes, particularly relevant to the faculty entitlements for Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. Swalagin explained that, although he had been receiving numbers of only state-budgeted faculty lines for each unit, he had requested and received total numbers of faculty lines, and had used those in the entitlement calculations for next year.

Draft Resolution on Web Accessibility Policy - At the previous Executive Committee meeting, Ken Swalagin was asked to draft a resolution documenting the Senate's discussion and endorsement of the Web Accessibility Policy. The committee discussed the resolution, and docketed it for action at the upcoming Senate meeting as follows:
Whereas, the Rutgers University Senate Executive Committee has discussed the Draft Web Accessibility Policy; and
Whereas, the Rutgers University Senate, at its meeting on November 13, 2015, conducted a committee-of-the-whole discussion on the policy; and
Whereas, the Senate and Executive Committee have benefited from presentations by, and responses to questions from, Gayle Stein, Associate Director for Instructional Technology, OIT-Office of Instructional and Research Technology; Christian Aziz, Manager of Information Technology; and William Welsh, Executive Director, Office of Disability Services; and
Whereas, the University Senate recognizes the need for the policy, and finds it appropriate and in the best interests of Rutgers University;
Therefore, Be It Resolved, that the Rutgers University Senate endorses the Web Accessibility Policy in principle, and recommends its implementation.

Proposal on "Senate Transparency" - This proposal had been discussed at previous Executive Committee meetings. The aspect of the report suggesting that Senate meetings be webstreamed remained unresolved. Swalagin reported that meetings could be streamed from the College Avenue Student Center, and from the Camden Campus Center. The matter was discussed further, and it was decided that Swalagin would work with Justin Schulberg, who co-sponsored the proposal, to limit it to the webstreaming aspect. The pared-down proposal would then become the basis for a charge to an ad hoc committee, and the standing committee chairs would be asked to solicit volunteers from their respective committees to serve on that ad hoc group.

Further Discussion of the Senate's report and recommendations on Charge S-1410 on Honorary Degree and Commencement Speaker Selection Process: University Structure and Governance Committee (USGC) Co-chair Robert Puhak asked for confirmation that no changes to the USGC report on the Honorary Degree and Commencement Speaker Selection Process are necessary. Peter Gillett noted that the report already stipulates that the University Commencement Panel shall be appointed at the beginning of each year, and that the Senate is only responsible for forming that panel, and the rest would be up to the chancellors. The Executive Committee agreed that the report would not be amended.

6.    University Senate Agenda

The agenda for the January 22, 2016 Senate meeting was established. Docketed items included:
 7.    New Business

There was no new business.
8.    Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 3:58 p.m.

Minutes written and submitted by,

Ken Swalagin
Executive Secretary of the University Senate