RUTGERS UNIVERSITY SENATE
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
M I N U T E S
November 30, 2007
MEMBERS
PRESENT: Becker, Bodnar, Borisovets, Cooke, Cotter, Greenhut, Leath (Vice
Chair), McCall, Puniello, Rabinowitz (Chair), Swalagin (Executive Secretary),
Thompson
MEMBERS
EXCUSED: Adam, Gould, Stein
ALSO
ATTENDING: Coppolo (Student BOG Representative)
The regular meeting of the University
Senate Executive Committee was held on Friday, November 30, 2007 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., welcoming all present to the meeting.
2. Executive Secretary’s
Report
Agenda: The
meeting agenda was approved as
distributed by the executive secretary.
Minutes: The
minutes of the October 26, 2007 Executive Committee
meeting were approved as distributed by the executive secretary.
Communication: Executive
Secretary Ken Swalagin shared with the committee a Resolution Against Weekend
Examinations
adopted by the Rutgers University Student Assembly, and sponsored in RUSA by
the Engineering Governing Council. The resolution was discussed later in the
meeting under “Standing Committees, Potential Committee Charge, and was the
basis for a charge issued to the Senate’s Academic Standards, Regulations and
Admissions Committee. [See below.]
3. Administrative Report
Neither President McCormick nor Executive Vice President
Furmanski were able to attend the meeting. There was no administrative report.
The Executive Committee discussed strategies and methods of monitoring and
tracking administrative action on Senate reports and recommendations. The
docketed discussion of presidential follow-up on acknowledged Senate
recommendations was postponed until President McCormick could be present. The
Executive Committee agreed that it would propose to President McCormick a plan
whereby the committee would list the top three priorities for administrative
follow-up, and present that list to McCormick and/or Furmanski at a meeting for
response at the following meeting.
4. Standing Committees
Committee Reports
Instruction,
Curricula and Advising Committee (ICAC) Report on Charge S-0607, Sale of Examination
and Desk Copies of Textbooks:
ICAC Chair Natalie Borisovets summarized her committee’s report on Charge
S-0607, Sale of Examination and Desk Copies of Textbooks. Borisovets accepted
Paul Leath’s suggestion that the ICAC add a recommendation calling for a
publicized, university-wide collection drive for textbooks faculty wish to
donate. No action was required or taken by the Executive Committee on this
item. Borisovets will consult with the ICAC before amending the report’s
recommendations accordingly. Recognizing that the report may be revised before
the Senate meeting, the Executive Committee docketed this item for action by
the Senate on December 7. [Note: The above link displays the report in its
original form, as considered by the Executive Committee at this meeting. To
view the report and recommendations as amended and adopted by the Senate at its
December 2007 meeting, please see http://senate.rutgers.edu/ICACOnComplimentaryTextbooks1207RevisedAsAdopted.pdf.]
University Structure
and Governance Committee (USGC) Second-Draft Report on Charge S-0603, Senate
Membership, New Brunswick
(Part 2, Faculty)
USGC Chair Tricia Nolfi was unable to attend the meeting.
Ryan Cooke, Executive Committee member and liaison to the USGC, summarized his
committee’s report on Charge S-0603, Senate Membership, New Brunswick Faculty. Swalagin
explained that, because this report included a recommendation for a Senate
Bylaws/University Regulation change, it would be introduced as advance notice
at a Senate meeting, but not docketed for voting or action by the Senate until
the subsequent Senate meeting, in accordance with established parliamentary
procedure. Paul Leath raised the issue of former FAS-NB Senators who were not
now SAS-NB faculty, and their current ineligibility to be elected to the Senate
through SAS-NB. Jonathan Becker, formerly a USGC member, summarized some of the
USGC discussions on that issue, and suggested that faculty Senators so affected
should identify their present constituencies, and campaign for election based
on their qualifications and longstanding Senate record. A motion to send the
report back to the USGC was discussed and defeated. The report was docketed for
advance notice on the Senate’s December 7, 2007 agenda.
Victor Greenhut, Executive Committee member and one of the
formerly FAS-NB Senators affected by the situation discussed above, moved to
charge the USGC with considering separately the issue of disenfranchised FAS-NB
Senators, as well as the potential for revising the at-large faculty representation
component of the Senate roster. Swalagin will draft an appropriate addendum to
USGC charge S-0712 on Enhanced Shared
Governance, and University Senate for consideration at the next Executive
Committee meeting.
Committee Charge
Charge to Academic
Standards, Regulations and Admissions Committee on Weekend Exams: The
Executive Committee discussed the RUSA Resolution Against Weekend Examinations,
and issued a charge to the Academic Standards, Regulations and Admissions
Committee as follows:
Evaluate the appropriateness or desirability of continuing
to hold weekend exams. Consider the Rutgers University Student Assembly's
"Resolution
Against Weekend Exams," as well as the Senate's February
2000 adoption
of weekend exams. Consult with the Director of Scheduling and Space
Management, University Registrar and others to research the statistics on
conflicts with these exams. Make recommendations as to whether weekend exams
should be continued. Respond to Senate Executive Committee by March 2008.
[Senators Cooke, McCall, and Thompson left the meeting by
3:15 p.m.]
5. December 7, 2007 Senate Meeting Agenda
Items for the December
Senate meeting agenda were discussed, adopted, and docketed.
6. Old Business
Academic Integrity Policy Committee Update: Martha Cotter
reported that the academic integrity policy committee had met that morning in
EVP Furmanski’s office, and reached consensus on what was reasonable in the
new, draft policy. Brian Rose will draft the revised interim policy, which will
come to the Senate’s ASRAC after it is agreed upon by the ad hoc committee.
After ASRAC/Senate approval, work will begin on the permanent policy. Cotter
was not certain if the ad hoc committee will meet again.
7. New Business
There was no new business.
8. Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at 3:43 p.m.
Kenneth Swalagin
Executive Secretary of the University Senate