REGULAR MEETING OF THE UNIVERSITY
FACULTY SENATE
NOVEMBER 5, 2012 – 104 GORE HALL
OFFICIAL MINUTES
Senators Present: Tom
Angell, Deputy Provost Ardis, Provost Brickhouse, Martha Buell, Vicki Cassman, John Courtright, Leslie Criston, Prasad Dhurjati, Robert Dyer, Danielle Ford, Megan Gaffney, Norma
Gaines-Hanks, Nancy Getchell, Michael Gilbert, Robert Golinkoff,
Linda Gottfredson, Michael Gutierrez, Steve Hastings, Tianjian
Hsu, John Jebb, Amy Johnson, Akisha R. Jones, Paul Laux, Mark McLeod, Doris Miklitz,
John D. Morgan, James Morrison, Jason Mycoff, Babatunde Ogunnaike, Lynn Okagaki, Phill Penix-Tadsen, Ali Poorani, Marcos
Portnoi, Mark Rieger, Charles Riordan, Matthew Robinson, David Satran, Nicole Seymour, Seth Shabo,
Chien-Chung Shen, Andrew
Shermeyer, Greg Shriver, Ivan Sun, Herbert Tanner, Kathleen Turkel, Maggie Ussery, Tom Vermeer, Margaret Werth,
Randall Wisser, Anu Sivaraman, Kate Rogers, Jeff
Jordan, Sheldon Pollack, Joerg Busch, Deni Galileo
Senators Excused: Brian
Ackerman, Joseph Daniel, Gabriella Hermon, Dean Matt, Michael O’Neal, Darcy Reisman, Dean Targett, Dean
Watson, Dean Webber,
Senators Absent: Tom
Rocek, Michelle Parent, Andrew Muenchow,
Lance Winn, Jo Kallal, Phillip Duker, John Gillespie
October
29, 2012
TO:
Senators and Executives
FROM:
Katherin Rogers, Vice President
University Faculty Senate
SUBJECT:
Regular Faculty Senate Meeting November 5, 2012
In accordance with Section IV, paragraph 6 of the Constitution, the regular
meeting of the University Faculty Senate will be held on Monday, November 5,
2012 at 4:00 p.m. in 104 Gore Hall.
I
certify that hard copies of the approval page for each undergraduate and
graduate studies academic item on the agenda are filed in the Faculty Senate
Office with the appropriate signatures of approval up through the Chair of the
Faculty Senate Coordinating Committee on Education. The Agenda will be as
follows:
AGENDA
I.
Adoption of the Agenda
Motion to Amend the
November Agenda – Items A under unfinished business and items D, E, and F under
New Business were proposed to be pulled from the agenda. Motion passed.
II.
Approval
of the Minutes: October 1, 2012
II.
Remarks: Provost Nancy Brickhouse (slide
presentation)
Update on
Capital Projects.
·
ISE Lab –
Paid for by a combination of operating funds and gifts. University does not
allow bonds to be issues on building. Certificate of Occupation expected in
April. Opening ceremonies to be scheduled for October. Classes can be scheduled
for Fall 2013. High cost of the building is due to
high-cost temperature controlled environment that is part of the design of the
building. Facility designed for classrooms for majors and non-majors and
facility conducive to PBL.
·
East Campus
Plant = Budget $37.5. Very nearly done.
·
Life
Sciences Research Facility = Budget $12.5 – paid for by stimulus money and our
operational funds. Very nearly complete.
·
Alison Hall
- $17.5M Budget. Almost completely gutted and renovated completely. Largely
funded by state money. Expected completion in May – should be ready for classes
in the fall.
·
Health
Sciences Complex – STAR Campus. Budget $30.5 M. Physical Therapy, Nurse Managed
Healthcare and a few other departments will be moving there. Land is ours but
the development is being funded by private developers. Expected to be completed
by 2013.
·
Drake
Organic Chemistry Lab – Budget = $5.5M.
Combination of State funds and support from CAS.
·
Materials
Management Facility – Budget $3.7M – Expected to be done by the end of Spring.
·
East Campus
Residence Halls A and B - $84.5M Budget – funded by student fees and bonds.
Expected to be done in the summer and ready for occupancy in the Fall.
·
Academy
Street Dining and Residence Hall - $62M – in the initial stages of
design – paid for with student fees – July 2015 completion date.
·
Harrington
Residence Hall Renovation – Budget = $30.75M. Construction will start 2013 and
end in Mid-2015
·
Carpenter
Sports Building – Under extensive renovation and additions are being made.
Budget: $25M – Addition is likely to be completed by early Fall
2013 and Renovation by end Fall 2013.
·
Bloom
Energy Infrastructure – STAR Campus – will be a manufacturing site. Funded by
the SOD Infrastructure Fund.
John Morgan, John Jebb and Joerg Busch,
Martha Buell, Ali
Poorani, and Jim Morrison – had questions regarding
various projects.
III.
Announcements: Senate President Sheldon Pollack
Hans Joerg made an announcement requesting
senators to volunteer for the P & T committee and the Graduate Studies
Committee.
Senate President Pollack’s
presentation provided updates on various issues in front of the Senate. (slide presentation)
V.
Consent
Agenda
1.
Announcements for Challenge: None
VI.
Regular
Agenda
1.
Unfinished
Business:
a.
Recommendation
from the Faculty Senate Executive Committee (Sheldon Pollack, Chair) with the
concurrence of the Faculty Senate Committee on Rules (Anu Sivaraman, Chair) for
the approval of a resolution concerning the “Introduction of New Business” on
the Faculty Senate Agenda
Whereas,
Section IV, article 9 of the University of Delaware Faculty Constitution
provides that: “No motion introduced under new business, except a motion to
refer to committee, shall be acted upon until the next meeting of the Senate,”
and
Whereas,
the University of Delaware Faculty Senate previously adopted a rule
implementing such provision in the Constitution; and
Whereas,
such rule provides that if a motion
(beyond a comment or observation) is made under the “Introduction of New
Business” on the agenda of a regular meeting then the Senate must vote to
either: (i) refer such motion to the Executive committee to determine the
proper committee to consider such motion, or (ii) refer such motion to a
particular committee, or (iii) vote to not refer such motion to any
committee; and
Whereas,
matters under “Introduction of New
Business” are raised at the end of Senate meetings, when often there is
insufficient time for adequate consideration of such matters; and
Whereas,
more time is often needed for
adequate consideration of such matters; be it therefore
Resolved,
that the rules of the University of
Delaware Faculty Senate be amended to provide that if the presiding officer
determines that there is inadequate time to adequately consider a matter raised
under the “Introduction of New Business,” then such matter will be held for
discussion and consideration at the next regular meeting of the Faculty Senate
under “Unfinished Business.”
Current
Rule of the UD Faculty Senate re the Introduction of New Business:
If
a motion (beyond a comment or observation) is made under “Introduction of New
Business,” then the Senate must vote to either: (i) refer that motion to
the Executive committee to determine the proper referral committee; (ii) refer
the motion to a particular committee; or (iii) vote to not refer the
motion to a committee.
Proposed
Revision to Rule of the UD Faculty Senate re the Introduction of New Business:
If
a motion (beyond a comment or observation) is made under “Introduction of New
Business,” then the Senate must vote to either: (i) refer that motion to
the Executive committee to determine the proper referral committee; (ii) refer
the motion to a particular committee; or (iii) vote to not refer the
motion to a committee. If the presiding
officer determines that there is insufficient time for reasonable discussion,
then the matter will be held for discussion and consideration at the next
regular meeting of the Faculty Senate under “Unfinished Business.”
2. New
Business:
Resolutions:
a.
Recommendation
from Senators Galileo, Buell, Hastings, Heinz, Jebb, Johnson, Morgan, and
Morrison with the concurrence of the Faculty Senate Committee on Rules (Anu
Sivaraman, Chairperson) and the Executive Committee (Sheldon Pollack,
Chairperson) for the approval of a resolution defining eligibility for Faculty
Senate Officers and Committee Chairs (attachment 1)
Whereas,
the Faculty Senate functions as the standing executive committee of the Faculty
of the University of Delaware and, as such, exercises the powers vested in the
Faculty by the Board of Trustees, and
Whereas,
Senate Officers (President, President Elect, Past President, Vice President,
Secretary, Parliamentarian, and Chair of Committee on Committees and
Nominations) comprise the Senate Executive Committee, which is charged with
many important Senate duties including consideration of agenda items for Senate
meetings, and
Whereas,
Senate committee Chairs also perform
leadership roles in conducting Senate business, and
Whereas,
Senate Officers and committee Chairs now can be elected or appointed from all
full-time voting Faculty of the University, and
Whereas,
the University exists, in part, to foster the free exchange of ideas and, thus,
this should be manifest in Senate discussions and committee meetings, and
Whereas,
University administrators are represented adequately in the Senate as
non-elected Senators and members of multiple Senate committees, and
Whereas,
a Senate Officer or committee Chair would have potential conflicts of interest
if he or she also held an administrative appointment at the University, be it
therefore
Resolved,
that the bylaws of the faculty be amended
as in attachment 1 above to read as follows: that eligibility for nomination,
appointment, or service as Senate Officers or committee Chairs shall be
restricted to full-time voting Faculty who are not appointed to serve in an
official capacity for the Offices of the President, the Provost, any Vice
President, or the Dean of any College, including but not limited to
administrative officers of the University (including deputy, associate,
assistant and vice provosts), academic deans (including deputy, associate and
assistant deans), and department chairs or academic program directors (as
defined in the Policy Guide for Department Chairs and Academic Program
Directors). Faculty who serve in a temporary capacity for an
administrative office as a member of a search committee, standing committee, or
ad hoc committee shall not be deemed ineligible because of this service.
Senator Getchell sought
clarification on how this policy would be administered. Senator Galileo
and Senator Gottfredson mentioned that HR has classification codes that will
help recognize administrators and they did not foresee any issues in
administering this policy. Resolution
passed unanimously.
b. Recommendation
from the Faculty Senate Committee on Rules (Anu Siveraman,
Chairperson) with the concurrence of the Executive Committee (Sheldon Pollack,
Chairperson) for the approval of a resolution revising the title of the Vice
Provost for Academic Programs and Planning to Deputy Provost in the Faculty
Constitution (Attachment 1)
Whereas,
the University of Delaware Faculty
Constitution provides for twelve (12) non-elected, ex officio members of
the Faculty Senate; and
Whereas,
one such member of the Faculty
Senate is the Vice Provost for Academic Programs and Planning; and
Whereas,
such position was re-titled many
years ago and the functions of such officer were delegated to a new position,
the Deputy Provost; and
Whereas,
the past practice of the Faculty
Senate has been to recognize the Deputy Provost as a member of the Faculty
Senate, replacing the former Vice Provost for Academic Programs and Planning;
Resolved,
that the University of Delaware Faculty
Constitution be amended to provide that the Deputy Provost is a member of the
Faculty Senate in lieu of the position previously held by the former Vice
Provost for Academic Programs and Planning as indicated in Attachment 1 above.
Senator Hastings sought
clarification on the full title of the Deputy Provost. Resolution passed unanimously.
c.
Recommendation
/from the Executive Committee (Sheldon Pollack, Chair) with the concurrence of
the Student Life Committee (Mark Parcells, Chair) to approve a resolution of
the University of Delaware Faculty Senate regarding certain amendments to the
Student Code of Conduct.
Whereas,
certain faculty members of the University of Delaware have become aware that
students in their class have entered into agreements with certain commercial
websites; and
Whereas,
pursuant to such agreements, said
students post their notes and other material from such classes on such
commercial websites in exchange for a fee; and
Whereas,
such faculty members wish to end
such practice in their classes; and
Whereas,
the Faculty Senate wishes to provide
such faculty members with a practical and effective method for prohibiting such
practice; be it therefore
Resolved,
that the Student Code of Conduct shall be
amended to provide that in cases where a faculty member states on the course
syllabus that no student may post notes or other material from the class on the
Internet, whether or not for a fee, and any UD student, whether enrolled in the
class or not, shall thereafter post such material on the Internet in
contradiction of such prohibition, such act shall constitute a violation of the
Student Code of Conduct.
Senator
Shabo asked what the enforcement mechanism would be.
Senator Pollack said that faculty would have to monitor these sites to see if
there is any violation. Student Life will amend Student Code of Conduct
immediately after this resolution is passed and also inform students. If the
student posts the notes anonymously, there may be no way to identify the
student. Senator Penix-Tadsen asked why this
specific rule for the specific case of posting notes online? What happens if
someone photocopies the notes and circulates it? Another question was about
audio and video recordings. President Pollack indicated that audio video
recordings would be a clear violation of intellectual property rights. 3
Opposed. Resolution passed
d.
Recommendation
from the Faculty Senate Executive Committee (Sheldon Pollack, Chair) with the
concurrence of the Faculty Senate Committee on Rules (Anu Sivaraman, Chair) for
a revision to the Bylaws of the Faculty Senate (attachment 1)
Whereas,
Paragraph 9 of Section XIV of the
Bylaws of the Faculty Senate states that the Bylaws of the Trustees of the
University authorizes the Faculty Senate to “adopt regulations governing its own
procedures with authority to enact, amend, and repeal its bylaws by a
two-thirds vote of those present”; and
Whereas,
Section 3.2.4.9. of
the Bylaws of the Trustees of the University in fact authorizes the Faculty
Senate to “adopt regulations governing its own procedures with authority to
enact, amend, and repeal its bylaws,” imposing no requirement with respect to a
two-thirds vote of those present for such an amendment; and
Whereas,
such provision in Paragraph 9 of
Section XIV of the Bylaws of the Faculty Senate is erroneous and misstates the
authority granted to the Faculty Senate with respect to amending its bylaws,
rules, and regulations; and
Whereas,
the Faculty Senate wishes to correct
such error;
Resolved,
that Paragraph 9 of Section XIV of the
Bylaws of the Faculty Senate shall be corrected to provide that Faculty shall:
“adopt regulations governing its own procedures with authority to enact, amend,
and repeal its bylaws.”
This resolution was pulled
e.
Recommendation
from the Faculty Senate Executive Committee (Sheldon Pollack, Chair) with the
concurrence of the Faculty Senate Committee on Rules (Anu Sivaraman, Chair) for
the approval of a resolution for amending the bylaws and rules and regulations
of the University Faculty Senate (attachment
1)
Whereas,
the Bylaws of the Faculty Senate
(the “Bylaws”) presently include a provision (Section IV) that purportedly sets
forth the voting requirements for amending such Bylaws as well as the rules and
regulations of the Faculty Senate (the “Senate”); and
Whereas,
such provision of the Bylaws in fact
only sets forth the requirements for amending the rules and regulations of the
Senate, but not the Bylaws; and
Whereas,
such provision of the Bylaws
requires an affirmative vote of two-thirds of those senators present and voting
at a duly called meeting of the Senate in order to amend the rules and
regulations of the Senate; and
Whereas,
the requirement for amendments to
the rules and regulations of the Senate is overly stringent; and
Whereas,
there is no provision in the Bylaws
that provides a procedure for amendments to such Bylaws;
Whereas,
it is important to have an official
procedure in the Bylaws providing for amendments to such Bylaws; and
Whereas,
the prior practice of the Senate has
been to adopt amendments to the Bylaws upon the affirmative vote of two-thirds
of those senators present and voting at a duly called meeting of the Senate; be
it therefore
Resolved,
that the Bylaws shall be amended to
include a rule in Section IV for amending such Bylaws by an affirmative vote of
two-thirds of those senators present at a duly called meeting of the Senate,
while the requirement for amending the rules and regulations of the Senate
should be changed to require only a simple majority of those senators present
at a duly called meeting of the Senate.
This resolution was pulled for now – we will come back
with a version that deals with amending the rules and regulations by a simple
majority only.
f.
Recommendation
by the Faculty Senate Executive Committee (Sheldon Pollack, Chair) with the
concurrence of the Faculty Senate Rules Committee (Anu Sivaraman, Chair) for
the approval of a resolution concerning a policy for amending the Faculty
Handbook
Alternative
1: simple majority resolution
Whereas,
the policy for changing the
Faculty Handbook found in the Handbook (“Preface: about the Handbook”) is
vague; and,
Whereas,
it is important to specify the
appropriate authority for changes to the Faculty Handbook; and,
Whereas,
the practice has been that
changes to the Faculty Handbook require Faculty Senate approval, with the
concurrence of the provost; be it therefore
Resolved,
that the Handbook (“Preface: about the
Handbook”) be revised to read “Policies contained in the Faculty Handbook are
official policies of the University and remain in full effect until changed by
the Faculty Senate, with the concurrence of the Provost.”
Attachment
1 for Alternative 1:
CURRENT
VERSION of HANDBOOK
Preface:
about the Handbook
Policies
contained in the Faculty Handbook are official policies of the University and
remain in full effect until changed by appropriate University actions. The
Handbook is a revision of the official 1963 Handbook adopted by the Board of
Trustees as University policy, and it has been approved for publication by the
Board.
PROPOSED
REVISION of HANDBOOK
Preface:
about the Handbook
Policies
contained in the Faculty Handbook are official policies of the University and
remain in full effect until changed by appropriate University actions the Faculty Senate, with the concurrence of the Provost. The
Handbook is a revision of the official 1963 Handbook adopted by the Board of
Trustees as University policy, and it has been approved for publication by the
Board.
*******************
Alternative
2: super-majority resolution
Whereas,
the policy for changing the
Faculty Handbook found in the Handbook (“Preface: about the Handbook”) is
vague; and,
Whereas,
it is important to specify the
appropriate authority for changes to the Faculty Handbook; and,
Whereas,
the practice has been that
changes to the Faculty Handbook require Faculty Senate approval, with the
concurrence of the provost; be it therefore
Resolved,
that the Handbook (“Preface: about
the Handbook”) be revised to read “Policies contained in the Faculty Handbook
are official policies of the University and remain in full effect until changed
by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of those members of the Faculty Senate
present and voting, with the concurrence of the Provost.”
Attachment
1 for Alternative 2:
CURRENT
VERSION of HANDBOOK
Preface:
about the Handbook
Policies
contained in the Faculty Handbook are official policies of the University and
remain in full effect until changed by appropriate University actions. The
Handbook is a revision of the official 1963 Handbook adopted by the Board of
Trustees as University policy, and it has been approved for publication by the
Board.
PROPOSED
REVISION of HANDBOOK
Preface:
about the Handbook
Policies
contained in the Faculty Handbook are official policies of the University and
remain in full effect until changed by appropriate University actions an affirmative vote of two-thirds of those members of the
Faculty Senate present and voting, with the concurrence of the Provost. The
Handbook is a revision of the official 1963 Handbook adopted by the Board of
Trustees as University policy, and it has been approved for publication by the
Board.
This resolution was pulled for
now. This will be back on the December agenda after being considered by the
Rules Committee.
g.
Recommendation
from Executive Committee of the Faculty Senate (Sheldon Pollack, Chair)
for the approval of a resolution recommending openness in administrative
searches
Whereas,
the Faculty Senate functions as the standing executive committee of the Faculty
of the University of Delaware and, as such, exercises the powers vested in the
Faculty by the Board of Trustees, and
Whereas,
it is the privilege of the Faculty to consider matters of general interest to
the University and to make recommendations concerning the formation of policies
governing appointments, and
Whereas,
the University currently is searching for a suitable candidate to be appointed
as Provost, who will serve as chief academic officer responsible for the
quality of the academic programs, the research and the scholarship of the
University, and
Whereas,
transparency and engagement of the University community are important and
should be clearly evident in the shared governance of the University, and
Whereas,
open searches have been commonplace at the University in the past and currently
are being done at many other colleges and universities, be it therefore
Resolved,
the Faculty Senate recommends that the
Provost search and other high-level administrative searches (including Deans) be
conducted in a reasonably open manner, such that the short-listed candidates
are announced and brought to campus where our students, faculty and other
concerned members of the University community may engage them and provide
feedback before a finalist is selected.
Senator Morgan, Senator Gottredson, Senator Morrison, Senator Buell, Senator
Galileo, Senator Courtright, Senator Shabo, Senator Wisser, Senator Rogers raised issues/commented on open vs.
closed search process. Resolution passed: 43 yes, 9 no.
VIII.
Introduction of New Business
Such
items as may come before the Senate. (No motion introduced under new
business, except a motion to refer to committee, shall be acted upon until the
next meeting of the Senate.)
/khs