Faculty Senate Minutes
November 6, 2008
Call to Order:
Call to order: 4:15 pm; Breckinridge 302.
Senators Absent: Glen Colburn, Lynda Donathan, Beverly Klecker, Bruno Morra, Paul Taylor
Visitors: Phil Gniot, Suzanne Hogge
Minutes: Senator Wymer moved to approve the minutes of October 16, 2008 as submitted. Senator Neeper seconded the motion. Motion passed.
Committee Review:
Academic Policies: No Report
Communications: Will report on the Faculty Discussion Forum on Blackboard
Evaluation: No Report
Fiscal Affairs: Will present UAR 334.01 – Procedures for Phased Retirement Program (PRP) for first reading
Governance: Will present committee appointments to be voted on
Professional Policies: Will present PAc-1 for second reading
Reports:
Chair’s Report:
- Phil Gniot provided the members with a handout on the MSU Wellness Incentive Program.
- Suzanne Hogge presented an overview of the Wellness Incentives that will be effective in 2009. The goals of the Wellness Incentives are:
- Empower employees to choose healthy lifestyles
- Identify Health risks
- Provide ongoing education and resources to help employees improve/maintain health
- Provide incentives for participation
- Slow/reduce health insurance costs
Participation in the Wellness Incentive Program allows employees to earn WellPoints that convert to cash to be used against annual health insurance premiums.
A question and answer session followed.
Provost’s Report:
- Charlie Patrick provided the Provosts Report. The student evaluation IDEA form for tenure track faculty is being handled by the Testing Center. Student evaluations for tenured faculty for this semester will be handled within the departments. Dr. Patrick asked for recommendations from the Senate for ideas for evaluation tools to be used for the spring semester and the future. The Evaluation Committee will be meeting regarding an evaluation instrument.
Regent’s Report:
- Regent Morrison thanked the members for supporting the Regent Blog. He will discuss issues with the President as required.
- BOR work session will be November 20, 2008.
Senate Actions:
Communications:
- Senator Wymer explained the Faculty Discussion Forum on Blackboard and encouraged the Senators to distribute the information to their colleagues. The members asked questions and made suggestions regarding the Discussion Forum. Chair Thomas thanked Senator Wymer for creating the Discussion Forum.
Fiscal Affairs:
- The committee presented UAR 334.01 – Procedures for Phased Retirement Program (PRP) for a first reading. Senator Buck provided background on the revisions. Senator Buck stated that all of the revisions with the exception of the “Timetable” were made by the Employee Benefits Committee. The members provided several items for the Fiscal Affairs Committee to review prior to presentation for second reading.
Governance:
- The committee announced the following election results: Amy Brown (Nursing) was elected to the Planning Committee for 2008-2012 and Mattie Decker (C&I) was elected to the Graduate Committee for 2007-2009. The committee recommended Lola Aagaard for appointment to the Student Media Board and Ken Henderson for appointment to the Research and Creative Productions Committee. The appointments were approved.
Professional Policies:
- The committee presented PAc-1 for a second reading. Senator Chatham answered the questions from the last meeting regarding the definition of “universities recognized by their respective governments” and “what does it mean to have the credentials in the teaching discipline”. A Senator asked “how narrowly credentialing is drawn with respect to SACS accreditation”. Charlie Patrick stated that the major reason for noncompliance with SACS is related to faculty credentials. Examples are: “if your Ph.D is in Management and you teach Economics you have to show exceptional expertise, if you are in Mathematics and you’re teaching Statistics you don’t necessarily have to show 18 hours of statistics, although it could be argued by a SACS reviewer.” Starting next semester someone who is teaching outside of their discipline will be asked to provide exceptional expertise narratives by their Department Chairs. The members discussed various ways to define expertise in your discipline.
Regent Morrison moved to end discussion and vote on PAc-1. Senator Chatham seconded the motion. PAc-1 was approved as revised.
Adjournment: 5:25 pm
