RUTGERS UNIVERSITY
SENATE
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
M I N U T E S
October 3, 2008
MEMBERS PRESENT: Bodnar, Borisovets, Gould,
Greaux, Greenhut, Kind, Nolfi, Panayotatos, Pignatiello, Rabinowitz (Chair), Swalagin
(Executive Secretary)
MEMBERS EXCUSED: Bubb, Leath (Vice Chair), Thompson
ALSO ATTENDING: Cotter (Faculty BOG Representative), Furmanski (Administrative Liaison), McCormick (Administrative Liaison)
The regular meeting of the University Senate Executive Committee was held on
Friday, October 3, 2008 at 1:10 p.m. in the Executive Board Room of
Administrative Services Building-III, Cook Campus.
1. Chairperson’s Report
Senate and Executive committee Chairperson Samuel Rabinowitz
called the meeting to order at 1:16 p.m. There was no chairperson's report.
2. Executive
Secretary’s Report
Agenda: Executive Secretary Ken
Swalagin explained that a proposed charge submitted by Senator and
Executive Committee member Karen Thompson and PTL Senator Won-Jong
Rhee, which had been discussed at the September 2008 EC meeting, and
subsequently redocketed for this meeting, was once again postponed
until the November meeting because Senator Thompson was excused from
today's meeting. The meeting agenda was approved as distributed by the executive secretary.
Minutes: The September 5, 2008 Senate Executive Committee Meeting Minutes
were approved as distributed by the executive secretary.
3. Administrative Report
President McCormick and Executive Vice President Furmanski presented an administrative report which included comments on:
- appreciation of the Senate's hosting of the President's Annual Address to the Community;
- support of military veteran students, and consideration of what
academic credit Rutgers can extend for experiential learning or
academic courses taken in the military;
- possible impacts of the national financial crisis upon Rutgers, including increased costs and difficulty of borrowing money; and
- the state budget, and the potential for a mid-year funding cut at Rutgers, for which contingency planning has already begun.
McCormick and Furmanski responded to questions from the Executive Committee on subjects including:
- if the financial situation might cause postponement of the football stadium expansion;
- how, and to whom, football tickets are distributed, particularly relative to scholarship-program donors; and
- appointment of Richard Costello as Deputy Director of Athletics for Finance and Administration..
The group then discussed a request from the Senate's Staff Caucus for
presidential follow-up on Senate recommendations and advice, which had
been submitted as follows:
"The Staff Caucus of the University Senate requests that
President McCormick advise the Senate on a regular basis when actions promised
or suggested in his responses to Senate advice, reports or recommendations have
been initiated. For example, recent affirmations on Senate actions include the
formation of a universitywide committee on tolerance (S-0702), clearer
expectations for faculty and schools on intersession programs (S-0703), and
student involvement in student fee decisions and formal structure (S-0414)."
Staff Caucus convener Tricia Nolfi explained the request. President
McCormick suggested that he and Executive Vice President Furmanski
would report twice yearly to the Executive Committee on these items,
and would summarize actions taken by the administration. McCormick and
Furmanski will work with Ken Swalagin to identify items on which the EC
should be updated. Swalagin asked the EC members to review the online
reports listing and let him know about actions taken or not taken by
the administration, which could then be discussed at every other
months' EC meetings. Senator Panayotatos asked that all committees'
Executive Committee liaisons look at the list, review the reports, and
decide which items need follow up. Swalagin will forward the list of
items so identified to President McCormick.
4. Standing Committee Actions and Charges
Faculty Affairs and Personnel Committee Staff Survey:
The EC discussed the FAPC request that an "all-staff" administrative e-mail list message be
sent to Rutgers staff members asking them to complete an online survey on Professional Development and Self-Improvement Training,
so that the FAPC could evaluate and report on the returned aggregate
data. Senator Gayle Stein, who was instrumental in bringing this issue
to the EC, was unable to attend the meeting. Several EC members had
questions regarding the survey and how the data would be used. During
discussion, it was
noted that similar data are already available from the Staff
Development area of Human Resources. Both co-chairs of the FAPC are
also EC members and were present when the EC tabled the survey until it
could be discussed further in the FAPC.
Committee Report:
University Structure and Governance Committee (USGC) Response to Charge S-0704, Senate Committee Structure
- The USGC report and recommendations on Charge S-0704, Senate
Committee Structure, was discussed. The co-chairs of the FAPC asked
that some additional editing be done on the report. Secretary Swalagin
will make the changes requested by the FAPC co-chairs before docketing
the item on the Senate's October agenda, per the EC's instructions.
Because the committee-structure changes recommended in the report
constitute a change to Senate bylaws, the report will be introduced at
the October meeting, but not acted on by the Senate until the November
meeting.
Proposed Charges/Issues:
Proposed Charge to Academic
Standards, Regulations and Admissions Committee (ASRAC)
- The following charge, requested by the
ASRAC and drafted by ASRAC chair Martha Cotter, was discussed: "Monitor
the progress of implementation of the Interim Academic Integrity
Policy and of efforts to develop a new, permanent academic
integrity
policy. Provide ongoing input to the new Academic Integrity Committee
charged
with developing the new AI policy. Report to the Senate on progress to
date
toward the end of the 2008-9 academic year. Respond to Senate Executive
Committee by April 2009." Senator Cotter and Ken Swalagin will refine
the language of the charge, and it will then be issued to the ASRAC.
Proposed Charge to Academic Standards, Regulations and Admissions Committee on Add/Drop Period: A Proposal submitted by Candice Greaux, accompanied by a related resolution from the Rutgers University Student Assembly,
was reviewed and discussed by the EC. It was suggested that the ASRAC
should consult financial aid personnel when considering this issue.
Secretary Swalagin will draft a charge and issue it to the ASRAC with a
reporting deadline of February 2009.
Proposed Charge to Instruction, Curricula and Advising Committee (ICAC) on Availablility of Syllabi: Another Proposal submitted by Candice Greaux, also accompanied by a related resolution from the Rutgers University Student Assembly, was reviewed and discussed by the EC. There was considerable discussion of this matter, with references to the 2006 ICAC Response to
Charge S-0313, Availability of Syllabi during Add/Drop.
Senator Greaux offered to rewrite the proposal to clarify the intended
areas of focus, and to incorporate the EC members' comments and
suggestions where possible. She will forward the redraft to Ken
Swalagin, who will circulate it to the EC by e-mail, and docket it for
the November EC meeting.
Request to Return Charge S-0709, on Inter-Campus Shuttle Service, to Budget and Finance Committee (BFC): The
Budget and Finance Committee's request that Charge S-0709, on
Inter-Campus Shuttle Service, which had recently
been transferred to the Student Affairs Committee
(SAC), be returned to the BFC for
continued additions to their original report on the charge. SAC
co-chair Max Kind asked that the SAC be allowed to review the BFC's
revised report before it goes to the Senate. SAC co-chair Sam
Rabinowitz said that could be an informal consultation between the two
committees. Charge S-0709 was returned to the Budget and Finance
Committee.
5. October 24, 2008 University Senate Agenda -
Items indicated above, as well as Interim Camden Chancellor Margaret
Marsh's Camden Campus Report, were docketed for the October 24, 2008
Senate meeting, which will be held in Camden.
6. Old Business
- There was no old business.
7. New Business- Senator Michel
Pignatiello asked if he could be permitted to teleconference into the
winter EC meetings to avoid conflicts with religious observances and
early sundown times. Ken Swalagin will investigate teleconferencing
arrangements, and try to accommodate the request beginning in December.
8. Adjournment
- The meeting adjourned at 2:43 p.m.
Kenneth Swalagin
Executive Secretary of the University Senate