October 4, 2013 Rutgers University Senate Executive Committee Minutes

RUTGERS UNIVERSITY SENATE
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
M I N U T E S
October 4, 2013

MEMBERS PRESENT: Benjamin, Berman, Boikess, Cotter (Vice Chairperson/New Brunswick Faculty Liaison), Gillett, Gould (Chairperson), Oliver, Otto, Puhak, Sheth, Swalagin (Executive Secretary), Thompson, Vodak

MEMBERS EXCUSED: Barraco, Burrell

ALSO ATTENDING: Cashin (Student Board of Governors Representative), Edwards (Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs), M. Mickelsen (Senate Administrative Assistant), Rabinowitz (Faculty Representative to the Board of Governors/Camden Faculty Liaison), Samant (Faculty Representative to the Board of Trustees), Vaz (Graduate Student Representative to the Board of Trustees)

The regular meeting of the University Senate Executive Committee was held on Friday, October 4, 2013 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 Ann Gould called the meeting to order at 1:19 p.m. She spoke about that morning's meeting of the newly formed Ad Hoc Strategic Planning Task Force, at which its members worked on shared-governance items to be sent to the administration in hopes of them being added to the strategic planning framework. She then summarized her and Vice Chair Martha Cotter's September 19 semiannual meeting with President Barchi and Executive Vice President Edwards, at which issues of common interest to the central administration and the University Senate were discussed, and at which President Barchi said that, if the Senate needs a communication avenue to the entire Rutgers community on a mutually agreed-upon matter, his office would facilitate that. Gould reported that President Barchi was not in agreement with recent Senate recommendations on academic freedom, but that there may be negotiation on the issue, and that an administrative response to the Senate's recommendations is expected.

2. Secretary’s Report - Ken Swalagin, Executive Secretary of the Senate

Agenda: The meeting agenda was amended to remove discussion of the Alma Mater, and to move discussion of the October Senate agenda to precede committee reports. The agenda, so amended, was approved.
Minutes:

On Peter Gillett's motion, duly seconded and adopted, approval of the September 6, 2013 Senate Executive Committee Meeting Minutes was deferred until the next meeting to allow the Executive Committee more time to review them.

Communications: The following communications were presented and acted upon as indicated:

Joshua Benjamin (Camden College of Arts and Sciences) has joined the Executive Committee as Camden Student Member. [Noted.]
September 16, 2013 Memo from Richard Edwards to Senate Executive Committee Re Decanal Reviews for Dean Thomas Farris (School of Engineering), Dean James Hughes (Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy), and Dean Jai Ganesh (School of Business - Camden), and status of other decanal reviews [Noted, and suggestions for evaluation committees to be sent to Edwards by Executive Committee.]
No members of the Research, and Graduate and Professional Education Committee (RGPEC) are members of the Senate Executive Committee, so RGPEC Co-chairs Jane Otto and Gayle Stein have been asked to plan for one of them to attend Senate Executive Committee meetings as the RGPEC Executive Committee liaison. [Noted. Otto was present at the meeting.]
Rudy Bell has volunteered to co-chair the Faculty and Personnel Affairs Committee, along with Ann Gould. [Approved.]

3. Administrative Liaison

Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Richard Edwards presented an administrative report, which included comments on:

the previous week's meeting in Camden with Board of Governors and Board of Trustees;
the Ciclovia event planned for Sunday, October 6, and related traffic issues; and
plans to respond to items sent previously to the administration by the Senate, specifically those on the ten-year rule, and on phased retirement.

Executive Vice President Edwards then responded to questions, or heard comments, from those present on subjects including:

phased-retirement plans; and
Sunday exams, and Ciclovia-related traffic.

4. Standing Committees and Ad Hoc Task Force

Ad Hoc Strategic Planning Task Force: Martha Cotter, who chairs the Senate's Ad Hoc Strategic Planning Task Force, summarized that morning's meeting of the group. She said that the task force intends to compose an additional foundational element for the strategic plan that would focus on leadership and governance, particularly shared governance. Bullets would then be added to the element, and the Camden and New Brunswick faculty councils asked to endorse it, and then bring it to the Senate at the October meeting.

Committee Reports

Faculty and Personnel Affairs Committee (FPAC) Response to Charge A-1303 on Minors on Campus Task Force Report - Ann Gould, FPAC co-chair, summarized her committee's response to Charge A-1303, on the Minors on Campus Task Force Report. The FPAC had been charged as follows:

Minors on Campus Task Force Report: Review and respond to the Draft Policy on Minors on Campus written by the Minors on Campus Task Force. See Executive Vice President Edwards' memo requesting this charge, and List of Members of the task force.

The report was discussed, and docketed for information only at the upcoming Senate meeting.

Faculty and Personnel Affairs Committee Response to Charge S-1306 on Dual Career Programs - Ann Gould, FPAC co-chair, summarized her committee's work and intentions in response to Charge S-1306 on Dual Career Programs. The report was not yet available at the time of this meeting, but Gould said she believed the report could be ready soon, and circulated to the Executive Committee for approval to docket for action at the upcoming Senate meeting. The FPAC had been charged as follows:

Dual Career Programs: Examine the desirability of establishing a dual career services program within Rutgers Human Resources in order to enhance the ability of Rutgers to recruit and retain faculty and staff who may need to relocate to accept a position at the institution. Research policies at peer institutions that provide the accompanying partner with the tools and services to access resources for an effective job search and make recommendations as appropriate.

During discussion of this report, Executive Vice President Edwards voiced support for the concept of dual career programs, and asked that help with housing opportunities be added to the report's recommendations. Gould agreed to add that. Following further discussion, the Executive Committee agreed to provisional docketing for the Senate, after the report had been finalized and circulated by email to the Executive Committee's members.

Issues/Proposed Charges:

Potential Charge to Faculty and Personnel Affairs Committee (FPAC) on Promotion Criteria for Distinguished Professor - This issue was raised by BJ Walker, Senior Staff Representative, Rutgers Council of AAUP Chapters: Ann Gould summarized the issue for the Executive Committee. Supporting documents for discussion included: September 2013 Letter to Ann Gould from Lisa Klein, President of Rutgers Council of AAUP Chapters, AFT; and May 3, 2013 Email from Richard Edwards to All Faculty, Subject Change in Professor II Title. Following discussion, it was decided that the FPAC would look informally at the issue, and decide whether a charge would be requested.

Potential Charge to Academic Standards, Regulations and Admissions Committee (ASRAC) on Academic Calendar, and University Commencement 2016 - This issue was raised by Christopher Retzko, Special Events and Programs Manager, Office of the Secretary of the University. See the Text of Email from Christopher Retzko. A related issue was raised by Scott Walker, Director of Academic Support Services for Student Athletes. See the Text of Email from Scott Walker. Martha Cotter, who co-chairs the ASRAC, said that the ASRAC and Senate had acted on moving Commencement in the January 2012 Report and Recommendations on Charge A-0906B, on Commencement Dates. Ken Swalagin will direct Mr. Retzko and Mr. Walker to that Senate report.

5.    Agenda for October 18, 2013 Senate Meeting

The agenda for the October 18, 2013 Senate meeting was discussed. The agenda will include the two FPAC reports docketed (one provisionally) above.

6.    Decanal Review Committee Nominations

The Executive Committee briefly discussed the September 16, 2013 Memo from Richard Edwards to Senate Executive Committee Re Decanal Reviews for Dean Thomas Farris (School of Engineering), Dean James Hughes (Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy), and Dean Jai Ganesh (School of Business - Camden), and status of other decanal reviews. An email will be sent to Executive Committee members asking for nominations for these committees.

7.    Old Business

There was no old business.

8.    New Business

Martha Cotter raised the issue of reconciling the Code of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity Policy with those of the legacy UMDNJ units, noting that a group that includes herself, Ann Newman, and student Senators Joseph Cashin and Samuel Berman, are currently working on the matter. Cotter will draft a charge to the Academic Standards, Regulations and Admissions Committee, and forward that to Ken Swalagin, who will circulate it by email to the Executive Committee for their information, and will issue the charge to the ASRAC with a March 2014 deadline.

9. Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 2:46 p.m.

Minutes written and submitted by,

Ken Swalagin
Executive Secretary of the University Senate