The fourth meeting of the semester was called to order at 12:15 pm.
Members Present: D. Prasad, C. Fontana, A. Guagliumi, W. Carr, G. Puerschner, B. Wein, B. Jirsa, T. Sherman, T. Seyed, B. Matthews, U. Nwachuku, J. Fullmer, B. Eldridge, J. Ensign, S. Larocco, D. Burow, R. Pelayo, S. Judd, C. Schofield-Bodt, P. Holmer, K. Grant, J. Kavanagh, E. Beatty, C. Rinehardt, R. Luquis, E. Colon, P. Major, A. Vicenzi, F. Hatcher, L. Prince, D. Pettigrew
Guest: Joe Brignola, Director of Academic Computing
The implementation for last year's computer requests has not yet been completed. All approved items have been purchased, but installation is not complete.
For 1997/98, the May date for requests was pushed back to this September because of the late arrival of bond funds. Late October the list of approved requests will be finalized. This will probably be the top two priorities per department. The orders will go out the 2nd week of November, and delivery should commence in Mid-December. Hopefully two UA's will be hired to expedite installation. The prioritized list will be posted on the Web.
This year's budget is based upon the typical $230,000 bond money, $153,000 from the client-server system, and $100,000 President Adanti allocated from the ERIP savings.
There is no plan to reduce Macintosh support. Presently the campus is approximately 40% Mac, but the last order was approximately 80% Intel based machines. At the moment we do not know the "owner's name" that is associated with each computer. Steve Arnold is working to rectify this.
No laptop computers will be ordered for faculty that already have been issued a desktop machine unless the desktop is forfeited.
Retiree computers have not been reassigned as of yet.
The Information Technology Fee (ITF), totaling $860,000 last year and $1,000,000 this year has been used to upgrade most labs, put new labs in Chase Hall and North Campus, and convert MO 106 and EN 105 to High Tech rooms. The Academic Computer Center work will be phased in over three years.
The issue of who gets the computers, new or older faculty, is a departmental issue. If we were to get each new faculty a machine that would be approximately $170,000 for the anticipated hiring of 55 new faculty next year. We need to be upfront with the prospective new hires about the possibility that they may not get a computer immediately.
No privately owned computers can be serviced by SCSU, therefore you can't bring them to work to hook up to the network.
Vice President Pinciaro
The Deans have been notified of the reallocated positions to replace the faculty that took advantage of the ERIP.
The Grad School Dean position will be an internal search because it was decided that there are enough capable candidates already at Southern. Applications are being accepted now.
The VP for Student and University Affairs, the VP for Institutional Advancement, and the Chief Information and Technology Officer positions have been advertised in the Chronicle. Searches for the Director of the Library, and Director of Student Teaching positions, being AFSCME, have begun internally via email. The job description and advertisement for the Director of Continuing Education will be in the Chronicle in November. The Director of Alumni Affairs has been hired.
There is also an ongoing search for an assistant to aid faculty with computer needs. We are not being overrun by applications.
The Minutes of October 8th were accepted as amended.
Executive Committee Report
Faculty Senate Representatives to the various Search Committees have been appointed
A. Vicenzi, Director of the Library
A Guagliumi, Director of Student Teaching
R. Jirsa, Graduate Dean
R. Jirsa, Dean of Continuing Education
T. Seyed, Chief Information and Technology Officer
L. Prince, VP Institutional Advancement
R. Cretella, VP Student and University Affairs
The University Library Committee has four new faculty members, V. Neverow, M. Brown, R. Snyder, and M. Spence
Bob Eldridge will collect some data and develop a statement regarding how best to approach the issue of the full time to part time faculty ratio. Vice President Pinciaro will not provide copies of the departmental requests for faculty allocation for fear of violating implied confidentiality.
There was a question about whether the sabbatical leave is being underutilized, and if so why? The Personnel Policy Committee was asked to poll the faculty on this matter.
Senate President's Report
please forward the subcommittee minutes
Standing Committee reports
Elections: Self nominations have been sent out. Because of the small number of returns (20) the deadline will be extended to 10/30.
Finance: On Oct 9th, the VP of Finance was emailed asking for a monthly report on travel funds by the 5th of each month.
Who has the final authority to sign off on the documentation, vis a vis an injury occurring during travel raises workmen's compensation questions?
The President has placed $25,000 from his budget into the travel budget.
Personnel Policy: The Sabbatical leave document changes are meant to clarify and facilitate and are therefore mostly editorial in nature.
The motion passes unanimously with the change: "Recipients shall submit" replaces "please submit" in number 8 on page 2.
The list of people approved for promotion tenure and sabbatical leave should be posted.
Rules: no report. However.... they are still working on the voter realignment issue.
Student Policy: Has collected the aggregate data from the student affairs surveys, and is looking for guidance on how to continue.
The committee is also looking into the history of the community hour.
Academic Policy: A motion was circulated with the agenda.
Whereas we further recognize the value of distance learning to enhance student access to learning and
Whereas we recognize the importance of student faculty interaction Therefore be it resolved that departments may set limits on the inclusion of distance learning courses that may be used to fulfill requirements in a student's overall program, and/or as part of the required courses in the student's major, and/or as part of the cognate area of the student's major and
Therefore be it further resolved that departments may decide whether a specific distance learning course is accepted as part of a student's major.
Discussion centered on the question "does this run counter to the idea that a department knows its subject area best and should have the final say on its course content."
Should the "courses" in the second therefore be changed to "credits"?
The Meeting was adjourned at 2:04.
Respectfully Submitted,
Bob Wein, Secretary