Regular Meeting of
the University Faculty Senate
Meeting Minutes
7 March 2005
104 Gore Hall
4:00 PM
Members excused: J.
Blits, A. Fox, J. Morrison, L. Peterson, D. Sekel, R.
Steiner, K. Theopold
Members absent: R. Brown, J. Daniel, I Davis, M. Dement, S. Gillian, S. Kikuchi, R.
Nichols, R. Opila, M. Robinson, M. Serva, R. Sylves, L. Ware, B.
Williams
I. Adoption of the agenda – Senate President Charles Boncelet called the meeting to order. The agenda was approved unanimously.
II. Approval of the Minutes of February 7, 2005 – The minutes were approved unanimously.
III. Remarks: Provost Dan Rich – Report on Academic Progress
Report to the Faculty Senate. Provost Rich described the five key elements to academic progress at UD: Excellent faculty, successful students, high quality affordable programs, superior research and service, and outstanding facilities.
Some excerpts from his presentation describing UD academic progress were as follows:
Excellent Faculty Progress: Growth in full-time faculty positions, larger and more accomplished faculty, nationally recognized for excellence in teaching, scholarship and service, >100 named and endowed professorships, low reliance on part-time/supplemental instructors, consistent hiring of first choice to fill faculty positions.
Excellent Faculty Priorities: Will continue to strengthen faculty quality and diversity; fill hundreds of faculty positions, mostly at junior level; recruit and reward faculty who integrate teaching, scholarship, and service – fitting the UD mold; coordinate hiring across departments and colleges; increase promotion and tenure standards, expect excellence in all areas; and evaluate impacts on student learning, on the creation of new knowledge, and on the improvement of communities UD serves.
Successful Students Progress: UD is the institution of choice in the mid-Atlantic region, 22,000 applicants for 3,400 positions; UD students are more academically qualified and more diverse than ever before; retention and graduation rates exceed national standards for highly selective universities; full-time graduate enrollment increased 70% since 1990, now 18% of total enrollment; admission is very selective.
Successful Students Priorities: Current undergraduate enrollment will be maintained; student academic qualifications will continue to improve; graduation rates will continue to improve; graduate enrollment will grow to 4,000; graduate degree completion rates will increase.
Affordability Progress: There are currently125 undergraduate and 148 graduate programs, all meeting highest accreditation. UD has Carnegie classification as Extensive Doctoral/Research University. UD consistently rated a “best value” in higher education; no student pays full cost of education; since 1990, undergraduate financial aid has nearly quadrupled and graduate student funding has more than doubled.
Affordability Priorities: UD will focus on improving academic program quality rather than increasing the number or size of programs; UD will strengthen its identity as a research institution that is also an outstanding teaching university; a UD education will remain affordable, undergraduate financial aid will continue to increase; graduate stipends and benefits will remain competitive.
Superior Research and Service Progress: UD is a major research university; faculty research and scholarship are more extensive and better recognized and supported than ever before; since 1990, annual funding from external contracts and grants has increased from $31 million to $135 million; UD is an “engaged” university, one that makes a sustained contribution to improving the communities its serves; UD provides more public and community services than public universities in larger states.; <18% of operating budget is from the state.
Superior Research and Service Priorities: Diversity research funding sources and institutional partners; develop new interdisciplinary research programs that draw upon faculty expertise from many departments and colleges; expand research facilities and sustain investments in technology and library resources; establish a new partnership with the State of Delaware that better reflects mutual expectations and resource requirements for public service programs.
Outstanding facilities Progress: >$700 million into facilities since 1990, 34 new buildings and 1,400 renovation/renewal projects.
Outstanding facilities Priorities: 2% minimum annual investment into facilities; facilities valued at $1.4 billion. New building concept: an Undergraduate Laboratory Building.
Priorities in four mission areas:
Undergraduate education: Support for general education reforms, undergraduate research, study abroad and service-learning programs, interdisciplinary study programs, instructional innovation, and outcomes assessment.
Graduate education: update enrollment and financial support for all programs, support new programs, expand combined/coordinated undergraduate/graduate options, and strengthen graduate student support services.
Research and scholarship: improve productivity, increase investments in interdisciplinary programs, strength contracts and grants management, and enhance research resources and collections.
Public, community, and professional service: Strengthen service partnerships, introduce new models for service, improve integration of service values, and strengthen recognition and support for in service.
In closing, Provost Rich noted that UD is a land grant, sea grant, space grant and urban grant university, of which there are few that have all four designations.
IV. Announcements: Senate President Charles Boncelet
A. An open hearing on grade inflation will be held in 140 Smith from 4:00 – 5:30 PM on Wednesday, March 9.
B. An open hearing on the new Ph.D. in Preservation Studies will be held in 116 Gore Hall on Wednesday, March 16 at 3:00 PM.
C. The next meeting of the Faculty Senate will be Monday, April 11th. The UD Faculty meeting will start at 3:30 PM; the Faculty Senate meeting following immediately afterwards.
V. Consent agenda
A. Announcements for challenge (38): There was unanimous approval of all 38 items, as no item was pulled from the agenda.
B. Resolutions (3): All three items were pulled from the consent agenda format since two of the resolutions have friendly revisions
1. Additional information was added as “that a new major be established in Sport Management within the Department of Health, Nutrition and Exercise Sciences on a provisional basis subject to review after five years.” The resolution was approved unanimously.
2. There were no revisions to this resolution. It was approved unanimously. Added information for additional clarity for the specified academic year. It should be read as “the 2007-2008 academic year.” This resolution was approved unanimously.
IV. Regular agenda
A. Old business: None
B. New business: None
VII. Introduction of new business: None
The meeting adjourned at 5:15 PM.
Submitted,