University of North Carolina at Asheville FACULTY SENATE MEETING Minutes, December 5, 1996 - 3:15 p.m. Senate Members: T. Dohse, M. Ghidina, G. Henderson, E. Katz, K. Moorhead, B. Larson, P. Laughon, P. McClellan, I. Rossell, B. Sabo, H. Stern, R. Tynes, K. Whatley, A. White-Carter, J. Pitts Excused: A. Wengrow Visitors: P. Caulfield, R. Chess, R. Maas, L. Nelms, B. Sensabaugh, A. Shope I. Call to Order Dr. Larson welcomed senators and guests and called the meeting to order at 3:15 p.m.. Approval of Minutes The minutes of November 7, 1996 were presented for approval. The minutes were approved following editorial changes (Tynes/Stern). II. Administrative Report VCAA Jim Pitts gave the Administrative Report. Post Tenure Review and Early Retirement Issues Dr. Pitts will circulate two one-page statements on Post Tenure Review activity and Early Retirement to faculty. Funding Formula Dr. Pitts reported that the funding formula tries to recognize differential costs by levels of instruction. Dr. Pitts questioned the logic that it is more intensive to educate doctoral students than masters students, and both of those more so than undergraduates. Although there is nothing on paper, General Administration is listening and UNCA will eventually get resources. A copy of the funding formula will be forwarded to the FWDC. Fiber Optics Vice Chancellor Foley recently told Administrative Computing that funds are available for the fiber optics project. This project is imperative for curricular, creativity, and marketing reasons. III. Executive Committee Report Dr. Larson gave the Executive Committee report. All of the members of the Executive Committee attended the Board of Trustees planning retreat. Faculty Assembly Report - Mrs. Linda Nelms As background information, Mrs. Nelms explained that the Faculty Assembly is an advisory body that can make resolutions requesting the President's actions. Representatives of the Faculty Assembly communicate the needs of their university to General Administration informally and communicate the sense of the faculty to the President. This is the only body that speaks for faculty to the President. Issues such as pensions and raises pass easily, whereas pedagogical issues are more difficult to pass because the campuses are so diverse. The Faculty Assembly recently passed the following Resolutions: 1: Resolution requesting that faculty and students have access to electronic technology; 2: Resolution asking that a qualification for candidates for President of the University of North Carolina system include a background in higher education. 3: Regarding the controversial issue of Post Tenure Review, the Faculty Assembly recommended that: 1) consistent with current practice with regard to tenure decisions, each campus should independently develop procedures suitable for reviewing the performance of permanently tenured faculty, and 2) the principle goal should be faculty development. 4: Regarding the issue of Post Tenure Review, the Faculty Assembly passed a Resolution urging President Spangler to work with the Board of Governors to establish professional development opportunities such as workshops, seminars and symposia for department Chairs focusing on teaching, evaluation and administration. 5. Resolution requesting that some representatives of the Faculty Assembly and representatives of the Association of Student Governments meet confidentially with the final candidates for President of the University of North Carolina and provide confidential comments regarding those final candidates to the Presidential Search Committee of the Board of Governors. Material on Reserve The Faculty Assembly receives mass quantities of material which may interest faculty. A list of documents on reserve in Ramsey Library will be sent to faculty via email. Kudos for UNCA UNCA receives very high response rates from students on surveys. These students indicate that they are very pleased with our academic advising. UNCA was only one of three institutions in our system whose SAT scores either increased or held steady over last year. Post Tenure Review Questions A discussion of the Post Tenure Review (PTR) process followed. Mrs. Nelms reported that there had been a strong movement to eliminate tenure in other states, including South Carolina. General Administration is putting before the Legislature a set of principles of the PTR process and how to implement it. The recommendations of the PTR Committee will go to President Spangler in March. It is anticipated that President Spangler will meet with his administrators to work on the process before sending it to the Board of Governors. IV. Student Government Report There was no Student Government Association Report. V. Academic Policies Report Dr. Pam Laughon reported for the Academic Policies Committee. First Reading: The following documents were distributed for First Reading: APC 9: Catalog Change in Environmental Sciences APC 10: Catalog Changes in Sociology APC 11: Catalog Changes in MLA Program APC 12: Deletion of Minor in Education without Licensure APC 13: Catalog Changes in Computer Science Second Reading: The following documents were considered for Second Reading: APC 4: Department of Education Curriculum Changes (Laughon/Sabo) This document deletes six one-hour credit courses in Education that are typically taught as independent study courses. APC 4 passed unanimously and became Senate Document 0696F. APC 5: Catalog Changes in Economics (Laughon/Katz) This document renumbers the 201-sequence to a 101-sequence, deletes courses in small demand, adds two new course descriptions for seminars in economics, and presents an integrated approach to international course offerings by the department. Other changes are editorial. APC 5 passed unanimously and became Senate Document 0796F. APC 6: Catalog Changes in the Department of Literature and Language (Laughon/Tynes) This document replaces Persuasive Writing with an Advanced Essay Writing course. The new course has a broader focus and interdisciplinary content and should give students an opportunity to develop their writing skills at a much higher level of sophistication. This document also adds a new course on Modern Jewish Writers which will give students information and insight into Jewish civilization. APC 6 passed unanimously and became Senate Document 0896F. APC 7: Catalog Changes for the Department of Mathematics (Laughon/Katz) This document changes the course title and description for MATH 163 and increases the course to four credit hours; deletes MATH 105 due to low enrollment, de-emphasizes trigonometry and restricts general education requirements to meet Senate guidelines; changes course description and number of Math Seminar from 380 to 480. APC 7 passed unanimously and became Senate Document 0996F. APC 8: Catalog Changes in Environmental Science (Laughon/Ghidina) This document combines the Pollution Analysis track and the Energy and Waste Management Systems track to form a new track in Pollution Control. APC 8 passed unanimously and became Senate Document 1096F. VI. Institutional Development Committee/University Planning Council Report Dr. Kathy Whatley gave the Institutional Development Committee/University Planning Council Report. Board of Trustees Planning Retreat Dr. Whatley reported that the Planning Retreat for the Board of Trustees went extremely well and the UPC was very pleased with the outcome. In addition to the UPC, the following groups attended the retreat: The Executive Committee of the Faculty Senate, The Board of Trustees, the Vice Chancellor's group, the Academic Affairs group, and the Board of the UNCA Foundation. Mr. Wengrow is collecting notes from individuals who led the discussion sessions; a summary of the discussions will be available at the Campus-wide Planning Retreat in January. Members of the Senate praised Dr. Whatley and Dr. Gravely for their efforts in making the retreat a success. Campus-wide Planning Retreat Dr. Whatley encouraged faculty to attend the Campus-wide Planning Retreat on January 10, 1997, from 8:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. in the Owen Conference Center. Several groups have been invited to the retreat, including students, alumni, members of Boards, and the community. The UPC hopes to receive input from a variety of sources. Philosophy Department - Religious Studies Minor The UPC approved the concept of a Religious Studies minor in the Philosophy Department and forwarded it to APC for a more detailed consideration of its academic content. In response to questions, Dr. Whatley reported that the UPC did not consider the individual courses for the minor. A detailed proposal from an adjunct was tabled last year until the Philosophy Department's Self Study. The Philosophy Department rewrote the proposal and brought it officially to the UPC. There seemed to be student interest in the minor. There was no mention of making Religious Studies an independent department or a major track within the Philosophy Department. Action on The Perceptions of Administrative Offices Survey Dr. Whatley reported on The Perceptions of Administrative Offices Survey. There are administrative offices on campus that are doing a wonderful job. Some administrative offices are perceived as not being very effective. SACS requires that all administrative offices have a set of goals and a plan to achieve those goals. The UPC recommended that all administrative offices develop a set of goals and planned steps to achieve those goals by the end of May. The UPC recommended that departments whose perceived job performance was below expectations will develop a set of goals and plans in March. UPC will review this in late spring. The full report is on reserve in Ramsey Library. Dr. Whatley and Dr. Henderson emphasized that some offices will never enjoy good ratings because of the issues with which they deal. Enrollment Management Task Force Dr. Whatley will report on the Enrollment Management Task Force's recommendations at the January Senate meeting. Guiding Concepts - BOT Approval The Board of Trustees approved the Guiding Concepts as written. VII. Faculty Welfare and Development Committee Report Ms. Anita White-Carter gave the Faculty Welfare and Development Committee Report. First Reading: The following document was distributed for First Reading: FWDC 3: Guidelines for Children in the Workplace As background information, Ms. White-Carter reported that the FWDC received a policy from the Vice Chancellor's Council that would not permit SPA employees to bring children to campus during working hours. The FWDC was asked to evaluate the policy for faculty. The FWDC could not endorse the policy for faculty but felt it would be prudent to have guidelines for all concerned. Post Tenure Review Ms. White-Carter distributed copies of the Faculty Senate Statement on Post Tenure Review. The FWDC prepared the statement from input at the last Senate meeting. The statement was forwarded to Dr. Browning, a member of the Post Tenure Review Committee. VIII. Old Business There was no Old Business. IX. New Business Post Tenure Review Process In response to questions, Dr. Larson explained the Post Tenure Review process; the final document will reflect faculty perspectives and represent institutional and political realities. Dr. Pitts will place the PTR Progress Report from General Administration on reserve in Ramsey Library along with the Early Retirement document. The Progress Report can also be accessed through the Internet. Misinformation Dr. Larson commented on the misinformation printed in the Blue Banner and reiterated that school begins on August 18, 1997, three days earlier than in 1996. X. Adjournment Dr. Larson adjourned the meeting at 4:20 p.m.. Respectfully submitted by: Sandra Gravely Anita White-Carter