UNIVERSITY
SENATE
Executive
Committee
A G E
N D A
October
2, 2015 - 1:10 p.m.
1. Chair’s Report
2. Secretary’s Report
- Approval
of Agenda
- Approval
of Minutes of September 4, 2015 Senate Executive
Committee Meeting
- Communications:
- Determination
of which numbers of faculty lines should be
used for Senate entitlement calculations: Numbers
received in the past from the
administration have included only state-funded lines. RBHS and possibly
other
units include many faculty not on state
lines.
Ken Swalagin has requested total numbers of faculty in each unit.
3.
Administrative
Liaison
- Administrative
Report – Barbara Lee, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
- Summary
of Rutgers'
Interim Title IX Policy - Judith Ryan, Enterprise Risk and
Institutional Compliance Officer
- See
#6 below, depending on timing.
4.
Proposal for Senate-Sponsored Symposium on Shared
Governance for Rutgers' 250th Anniversary - Martha
Cotter
5. Standing
Committees
Reports:
Instruction,
Curricula and Advising Committee (ICAC) Response
to Charge S-1413 on Selection Process for Software Packages or Services
of Significant
Instructional Impact [Revised]
– Natalie
Borisovets, ICAC Chair
This
report has been revised since first being discussed at the September EC
meeting. The
ICAC was charged as follows: Using
the most
recent Pearson contract as a case in point, review the process by which
large
contracts that have the potential to seriously affect curricular or
academic
areas of the University are awarded. How are final
bidders
selected, and by what criteria are choices made? How are specifications
determined for components/needs? How do we ensure that faculty
preferences and
pedagogical priorities are included in the consideration of such
packages?
University
Structure and Governance Committee (USGC) Response
to Charge S-1403 on Process for Unit Mergers or Other Structural Changes
[Revised Draft] –
Jon Oliver and Robert Puhak, USGC Co-chairs
This
report was discussed at the previous EC meeting, and was sent back to
committee for revision. The
USGC was
charged as follows: Consider whether the University Senate
should
establish a general procedure, timeline, template and process for
merging,
dissolution or making structural changes to any university unit.
Consider how
such a process could assist the university and units in working in a
deliberate, consultative and rational way so that all issues, impacts,
concerns
and benefits can be properly considered on a timely basis. Make
recommendations
on time limits, and process.
University
Structure and Governance Committee Response
to Charge S-1410 on Honorary Degree and Commencement Speaker Selection
Processes [Currently previous draft. Revised draft expected.]
– Jon Oliver and Robert Puhak, USGC Co-chairs
This
report was discussed at the previous EC meeting, and was sent back to
committee for revision, but was also docketed for Senate action for the
October Senate meeting. The
USGC was
charged as follows: Formulate
details of
processes to be used to facilitate the proposal submitted to President
Barchi
on Charge S-1405 on Procedures for Selecting Commencement Speakers and
Honorary
Degree Recipients.
Issues/Proposed Charges:
Proposed
Charge on Deregistration of Students for Non-Payment of Term Bills
- Submitted
by Rudy Bell
6. [At
approximately 1:45 p.m.] Briefing
on Compliance Policies for Accessibility of Online Materials -
Gayle Stein, Associate Director of Information, OIT-Office of
Instructional and Research Technology; and William Welsh, Executive
Director, Office of Services for Students with Disabilities
7. University Senate Agenda
October 16, 2015 Senate Meeting:
- RBHS
Campus Report - RBHS Chancellor Brian Strom
- Response
to Charge S-1410 on Honorary Degree and Commencement Speaker Selection
Processes - Docketed for this Senate meeting at the September EC
meeting.
8.
Old Business
From
Robert Boikess, as “a matter of interest for the
Senate,” on flawed
evaluations of faculty teaching
- This matter was discussed briefly at the previous EC meeting, but was
tabled until ICAC Chair Natalie Borisovets could be present.
From
James Oleske, RBHS:
The items below were discussed at the September EC meeting, and acted
upon as indicated in brackets:
1. I
believe that the medical residents that our faculty
supervise, teach and direct for three to seven year
periods of residency training, should be considered graduate/post
graduate
students of Rutgers and after completion of their residency training
programs
considered Rutgers Alumni.
[Jane Otto to speak with Oleske and will bring further information to
the EC regarding a potential committee charge.]
2.
I would ask for the continued and strong support of the
RGPEC in advocating for the continued support of library services in
the maintenance
for repository/collections that support literature searches and access
for
faculty, residents and students. In particular I am concerned about any
support
reduction of the Smith library servicing the Newark campus of
NJMS/Rutgers.
[Jane Otto to speak with Oleske and will bring further information to
the EC regarding a potential committee charge.]
3.
There have been several negative consequences due to the
separation of the university hospital in Newark NJ from Rutgers NJMS
that
threatens the education and clinical training goals for students,
residents and
faculty at Rutgers NJMS.
[Jerry Langer to speak with Oleske and will bring further information
to the EC regarding a potential committee charge.]
Follow-Up on Law Schools Merger - Submitted by Brandon
Thiess, as follows:
Dr.
Barchi in his address to the Senate on several occasions
stated that the combined law schools will generate administrative
cost
savings. However, both Camden Law Campus
acting Dean Oberdiek and Newark Law Campus Dean
Chen, when questioned were unaware of the
administrative cost savings the President was referring to and did not
know
where such savings could be realized. In fact, Acting Dean Oberdiek
suggested
that there was an increase in administrative costs associated with the
merger.
Further, both Deans emphasized there was not a planned reduction in
faculty or
staff as a result of the merger. In addition, the cost of operating the
physical buildings will increase over time and in fact the immersive
classroom (aka
the "holodeck") will not be
paid off for several year. If the campus Deans are unaware of the
sources of
the savings and are not labor and facilities,
where will the savings come from and how will we know if the savings
actually
occurs?
Budget and Finance Committee (BFC) input
on
President
Barchi’s Response to Senate
Report and Recommendations on Charge S-1408 on Athletics Program
Deficits was requested by Peter Gillett at the September EC
meeting. BFC Chair
Menahem Spiegel said he will recommend that an outside authority
investigate the matter.
At the September meeting, the EC appproved a motion to invite Kim
Pastva, Interim Secretary of the University, to attend an EC meeting to
discuss how University Policies are revised and disseminated.
9.
New Business
Proposal
for Senate Co-Sponsorship of Symposium on Academic Freedom in
November - Submitted by David Hughes, President of Rutgers AAUP-AFT -
The EC members were e-polled for input on this matter last week.
Discussion will continue at this meeting.
Proposal
on "Senate Transparency" - Submitted by Justin Schulberg, New
Brunswick Student Executive Committee Member
Statement
of Support for the Faculty Senate of the University of Iowa - The
statement solicits endorsement by representatives of faculty governance
systems across the CIC of their statement of no confidence in their
Board of Regents.
10.
Adjournment