Faculty Senate Minutes - 4/3/2003
Missouri Western State College
Faculty Senate Minutes
April 3, 2003
Call to order:
The meeting was called to order by President Steven Greiert at 4 p.m.
Senators present:
Larry Andrews, Ben Caldwell, Richard Cluff, Steven Greiert, Susan Hennessy, Marilyn Hunt, Mark Mikkelsen, Barry Nelson, Michael Ottinger, Keith Rhodes, Randye Williams, Carolyn Windsor
Senators absent:
Brenda Blessing, Bill Church, Mike Smith, John Tapia, Sharon Wagner
Ex-officio members present:
President James Scanlon
Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs David Arnold
Guests present:
Kevin Anderson, Phil Mullins
New members present:
Robert Klostermeyer, Victoria Wacek
New members absent:
Jennifer Hegeman, Mitch Haney
Approval of minutes:
Minutes of the March 20, 2003 meeting were approved with one correction: Last page, second paragraph, second sentence, change date and time from “ December 21 at 4 p.m.” to “December 22, 2004 at 1:30 p.m.” (Andrews/Caldwell).
Approval of the agenda:
The agenda for the April 3, 2003 meeting was approved (Ottinger/Mikkelsen).
Report from college president:
President Scanlon reported on the following:
1) He had met with the editorial board of the local newspaper and perceived Sunday’s
editorial as an outcome of the meeting. Acknowledgment was given to the
quality of the campus, faculty and students in the editorial. Plans were discussed
to meet monthly or bimonthly to enhance communication;
2) The Coordinating Board for Higher Education has requested all campuses to outline
for the Senate Appropriations Committee the impact of a potential 15% core cut.
Scanlon indicated this would be a $2.8 million cut for Western. He assured
senators he will manage and protect current positions.
Report from vice-president for academic and student affairs:
Vice President Arnold reported on the following:
1) He has been working with department chairs and Student Affairs to develop a plan for filling faculty positions. Arnold indicated that planning teams have been established to review Student Affairs. Don Willis has been appointed to scheduling and will be responsible for the scheduling software and monitoring facility usage. Willis will report to the Registrar. Bob Klostermeyer has been appointed Acting Dean of Student Affairs and will be responsible for the Citizens Scholar Model, the orientation process, residence hall issues and incidents reports. A search for a dean of student affairs will occur next year;
2) There will not be a full-time director for the Center of Teaching Excellence. Barb
Davis has been hired as the secretary for the Dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences,
Martin Johnson;
3) Western’s Regents have approved the new residence hall, which will be team-based
housing;
4) Western is receiving more national attention through a variety of programs, including
the American Democracy Project, which is designed to help students understand
themselves in a democracy;
5) Arnold will chair the Search Committee for the selection of the director of athletics,
beginning July 1, 2003.
There was a brief exchange between Greiert and Arnold regarding the shifting of one position (that of the secretary for the Dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences) and the process utilized to fill the position. Greiert asserted that he was disappointed that the Policy Guide had not been followed in filling this position. Greiert did not accept that this was an issue of money, rather it was an issue of equitable treatment of all employees under the Policy Guide. Greiert further stated that the credibility of the administration had been damaged among support staff and faculty because of the failure to adhere to the Policy Guide. Greiert thanked Arnold for his report and congratulated
Klostermeyer on his appointment.
Report from faculty senate executive committee:
1)Election of faculty senate officers for AY2003-2004:
President: Barry Nelson accepted by acclamation with no senators requesting ballots for voting (Klostermeyer/Mikkelsen).
Vice President: John Tapia accepted by acclamation with no senators requesting ballots for voting (Hunt/Williams).
Secretary: Larry Andrews accepted by acclamation with no senators
requesting ballots for voting (Cluff/Caldwell).
2)Procedure for appointments to faculty senate committees for AY2003-2004:
Nelson described the procedure for appointments to committees which will close next
Tuesday. He expressed a concern that all faculty may not access their email messages on
a daily basis and a suggestion was made that he utilize the empinfo list rather than the
faculty list.
Greiert reminded senators that the appointments need to be made at the April 10, 2003
meeting. Senator Williams suggested the times and days the committees meet should
be published so faculty could take that into consideration when selecting their
committee preferences.
3)Membership of ad hoc active career program committee for AY2002-2003:
Greiert listed the members of the committee: Richard Cluff, Diane Gorcyca, Pat McLear,
Pat McMurry. They will be serving with Vice President Arnold, Dean Johnson, and
Dean Daffron.
4)Evaluation of administrators:
Greiert reminded senators that Vice President Arnold had requested to be the first
of the administrators to be evaluated for the position he was hired for. Senators discussed
current practice of evaluating deans and chairs and discrepancies in practice were noted.
5)Dual credit:
Greiert indicated he would like to see the senate initiate discussion on the issue of dual
credit this spring and continue the discussion in the Fall 2003.
6)CGAC:
Greiert announced that CGAC will be meeting Tuesday, April 8 at 3:30 p.m. in MC208.
He will report on faculty senate activities accomplished this year.
7)Progress reports from disciplines/departments regarding issues of peer review/peer
evaluation- due May 1, 2003:
Greiert reported that only a few departments/disciplines have submitted progress reports
which he will then forward to the Promotion and Tenure Committee and to the schools’
deans.
8)Randye Williams reported on the selection of the date for final grade submission for
Fall 2004. She indicated that she had assumed the semester started August 23 and was
later told that the semester would start August 30, 2004. Don Willis, chair of the
Calendar Committee had given Williams the date of December 20 at 1:30 p.m. as the
date that faculty senate needed to consider. Williams reported that the committee has
accepted the compromise date of Tuesday, December 21 at 4 p.m., which will also
align with the availability of the new dorm for students.
Reintroduction of ad hoc grievance proposal:
Senator Andrews introduced the new ad hoc grievance proposal.(Attachment A) Motion to suspend the rules to discuss the proposal without a vote passed unanimously (Caldwell/
Hunt). Phil Mullins indicated that, if the new proposal passes, the Bylaws will need to
be changed, specifically pages 255 and 266. Andrews agreed to bring proposed
Bylaw changes to the next meeting. Andrews identified the strongest elements in the
proposal and he thanked Dr. Arnold for his helpful advice on some adjustments in
this process to maintain continuity in the process. Andrews emphasized that this
proposal would be more efficient, economically sound and guarantee due process to all
faculty.
Hunt asked Mullins about potential adjustments by the Board of Regents in its own
grievance policies. Mullins indicated he was uncertain at this time.
Greiert requested the discussion resume at the next meeting, because of the lateness of
the hour, and reminded senators that the proposal may be voted on at the April 10 or
May 1 meeting. He thanked Arnold, Mullins, and Andrews for their work on this
proposal.
Report from faculty senate salary committee:
Kevin Anderson, member of the committee, distributed copies of the committee’s report to senators. (Attachment B). Senate discussion ensued. A question was raised about charge #2 and
Dr. Arnold responded that the “institution’s policy of hiring only at the assistant professor level”
is “practice” and not “policy”. Anderson clarified charge #3, indicating the committee had decided to table discussion of pay increases for years of service.
Senator Mikkelsen asked about the MA+60 step, seeking clarification about where it applies
and whether the committee had discussed it. Another question raised was whether we needed
to review “terminal degrees”. President Scanlon asked how the college had determined terminal
degrees in the past and Senator Andrews responded with a brief history. Scanlon stated that usually terminal degrees are determined by accrediting agencies. Mikkelsen asked if all faculty
with terminal degrees started at the same salary and whether the issues are salary and placement.
Greiert added that these issues may come up as a result of the progress report on professional
development. Mikkelsen asked if the policy would fix the problem and Senator Rhodes indicated that it would now. Greiert asked Anderson if he could come to next week’s meeting and discuss
the report more fully. Anderson agreed to come.
Old Business
SB05.03 (Nelson/Windsor) “Amend the MWSC Policy Guide in four places:
1. Page 62, SECTION TWO: ACADEMIC AND INSTRUCTIONAL POLICIES.
VI. CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT. B. Curricular Constraints (Form C).
2. Baccalaureate degree programs [second bulleted statement]:
from: “Major degree programs will require no fewer than 30 and no more than
66 credit hours.”
to: “Major degree programs will require no fewer than 30 and no more than
72 credit hours”.
2. Page 62, SECTION TWO: ACADEMIC AND INSTRUCTIONAL POLICIES.
VI. CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT. B. Curricular Constraints (Form C).
2. Baccalaureate degree programs [part b]:
from: “Credit hours earned for the following courses will all count toward the
maximum of 66 credit hours for major degree programs.”
to: “Credit hours earned for the following courses will all count toward the
maximum of 72 credit hours for major degree programs.”
3. Page 63, SECTION TWO: ACADEMIC AND INSTRUCTIONAL POLICIES.
VI. CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT. B. Curricular Constraints (Form C).
2. Baccalaureate degree programs [part d]:
from: “Major degree programs may exceed the 66 credit hour maximum only if a
convincing case has been made for exceeding this limit.”
to: “Major degree programs may exceed the 72 credit hour maximum only if
a convincing case has been made for exceeding this limit.”
4. Page 63, SECTION TWO: ACADEMIC AND INSTRUCTIONAL POLICIES.
VI. CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT. B. Curricular Constraints (Form C).
2. Baccalaureate degree programs [part d- second bulleted statement]:
from: “Baccalaureate degree programs will require no more than 124 credit
hours.”
to: “Baccalaureate degree programs will require no more than 128 credit
hours.”
Motion made to take SB05.03 off the table (Caldwell). Nelson asked to hold over this
senate bill until the next meeting since five senators were missing. Greiert agreed.
SR06.03 (Ottinger/Caldwell) “Faculty Senate Resolution on Children in the Workplace
at Missouri Western”
Whereas Missouri Western State College wants to recruit and retain quality faculty, and
Whereas the current budget situation does not allow for financial incentives to accomplish
this goal, and
Whereas flexible work schedules, favorable working conditions, and a family
environment are some of the primary non-monetary fringe benefits of a faculty
position at Missouri Western,
Be It Resolved that the MWSC Faculty Senate supports faculty who choose to spend
part of their workday with their children. However, if the presence of a faculty
member’s minor children on campus presents a safety hazard, or if it interferes with
the faculty member’s work performance or the performance of others, then the
department chair (or Dean if the faculty member is a chair) has the responsibility
to request a change in the faculty member’s behavior. Failure to respond favorably to
such concerns may result in a negative annual evaluation.
There was faculty senate discussion of the resolution. Motion to table the resolution, SR06.03
(Mikkelsen/Hennessy). Vote taken, 8 in favor, 1 opposed, 2 abstentions. New Business:
Motion to approve the proposal set out in Appendix 1 of the Faculty Senate Salary Committee Report, presented to the senate on April 3, 2003 (Rhodes/Andrews). Motion to approve the proposal set out in Appendix 2 of the Faculty Senate Salary Committee Report, presented to the senate on April 3, 2003 (Rhodes/Andrews). These motions will be discussed under Old Business at the next meeting.
Motion to amend the Policy Guide, H. Grade Appeal Process, step three, first paragraph, p.47, by adding after the second sentence, “The student must inform the department and ask that any relevant documents regarding the case be sent to the Academic Regulations and Standards Committee”. (Attachment C) (Windsor/Nelson). This motion will be discussed under Old Business at the next meeting.
Adjournment:
Meeting adjourned at 5:50 p.m. (Mikkelsen/Williams).
Respectfully submitted,
Carolyn Windsor
Faculty Senate Secretary
NOTE: Attachments A and B will be sent in an email from Vice President Barry Nelson.
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