March 10, 2004
Meeting:
Faculty Senate Meeting, March 10, 2004, Wooten Hall, Room 322
Absent: Allen, Barton, Benjamin, DeCarvalho, Grable, Harris, Hastings, Huff, King, Mueller, Oliver, Plummer, Smith, White, Wilhite
Guests: Lynn Bissett, Senior Editor, Academic Publications; Michelle Hale, Publications Editor, InHouse; Paul Dworak, Compliance Officer; Donna Ledgerwood, Chair, Faculty Mentor Committee; Emily K. Ownby and Marcus Lopopolo, SGA; Alicia Layton, NT Daily; Suzanne LaBrecque and Howard Johnson, Academic Affairs; Students: Betsy Mathews, Steven Kim, Janet Piper, Kwami Koto, Lac Shaffer, Armand Warfield, Joleen Ford, and Stephen Reynolds
Opening: Lou Pelton, Chair of the Faculty Senate, called the meeting to order at 2:02pm
Approval of February 11, 2004 Senate Minutes: Upon motion by Senator Jordan , second by Senator Koch, the minutes of the February 11, 2004 meeting were approved as presented.
Old Business:
Update on the Committee on the Status of Women: Chair Pelton reported that the committee is on hiatus. While everyone is in agreement that serious issues remain unresolved regarding the status of women on the campus, there is at the current time no clear consensus as to how to address the issue. The Executive Committee will continue its dialogue with Provost Howard Johnson on this important topic.
Town Hall Meeting in April: Chair Pelton reported that a Town Hall Meeting for members of the academic community in general and faculty in particular is set for April 28, 2004 from 3 to 5 p.m. in the Student Recreation Center Meeting Room. Pelton asked that senators forward to him ideas for topics to be included. Participants are expected to include President Norval Pohl and Provost Johnson.
Faculty Evaluation of Administrators: Chair Pelton stated that 256 faculty had participated to date and encouraged all faculty members to return the evaluations and make their voices heard.
New Business:
Administrative Salary Query: Chair Pelton distributed copies of summary data on administrators at UNT and the UNT Health Science Center in Fort Worth.
Institutional Compliance of UNT System: Chair Pelton reported that the new system Vice President and General Counsel, Nancy Footer, will be in charge of the compliance system.
Promotion and Tenure Protocols: Chair Pelton reported that he received an inquiry from a faculty member regarding administrators serving on promotion and tenure committees and associate professors serving on promotion committees considering promotions to full professor. Pelton undertook a survey of all deans on campus regarding this matter. All deans save one were in agreement that administrators should not serve on such committees and associate professors should not serve on committees considering promotions to full professor. The Faculty Senate Executive Committee agreed with the majority of the deans. Pelton will draft a letter to Provost Johnson expressing the Executive Committee’s position.
Tracking of Issues: Chair Pelton reported that the Faculty Senate system for tracking issues and actions is now on the Faculty Senate website.
Committee Reports:
Committee on Committees: Senator Tarlton presented the report and read additional nominations. Acceptance was seconded by Senator Woods. The report was accepted unanimously on voice vote.
Faculty Mentor Committee: Professor Donna Ledgerwood presented the committee’s report. She noted that the committee was looking for good models of faculty mentor programs. Acceptance of the report was seconded by Senator Taylor. The report was accepted unanimously on voice vote.
Report of the Provost & VPAA:
Vice Chair’s Update: Vice Chair van Tassell reported on the RCM Workshop, Provost Johnson’s Academic Plan, the Texas Council of Faculty Senates meeting and the Executive Committee’s most recent dialogue with administrators. 1) RCM Workshop. Presentation by David Proulx, RCM Project Manager, University of New Hampshire. Visit www.unh.edu/rcm for more information. The meeting was attended by EC members Miles, Mueller, van Tassell, and White. The speaker stated that RCM should be an incentive/allocation model, not a cost accounting model. Characteristics of successful RCM models include: a project manager; open and frequent meetings with all affected persons; units are the college/school, not department; units receive all revenue/are accountable for all expenditures; a central budget committee that includes representatives from all constituent groups; no tax on productive units for support of less-productive unit; not sacrificing quality programs for the sake of the budget; governance mechanisms that prevent unhealthy internal competition; focus on generating reserves; a “hold harmless” policy so no unit enters RCM in a state of deficit; a balancing adjustment to bring units into RCM on a revenue neutral position (funded by state appropriations; do not inflate); deficit units should employ and be held accountable to a mitigation plan; and common rules that apply to all operations. 2) Provost Johnson’s Academic Plan. Provost Johnson provided the EC a draft of the proposed plan, previously reviewed by deans. The EC reviewed the draft and prepared comments and recommendations. Senate Chair Pelton and Vice-Chair van Tassell will meet with Provost Johnson at 4:00 p.m. on March 10 to discuss the recommendations. The Senate will review the plan soon. 3) Texas demographic data from Texas Council of Faculty Senates meeting (available on Faculty Senate web site). 4) March 3, 2004 EC meeting with administrators. In attendance: Provost Johnson and EC members. Topics: a) External evaluations of units/programs. The first report (COBA) from the review team is expected the week of March 8, 2004. External reports are in the domain of the Provost, thus will not be shared publicly. The charge to the committee may be reviewed. The external review process will be reviewed prior to moving to the second review. b) Online/distance education. How do grades compare between online and other classes? Online grades are higher (Dean Turner). Does UNT ensure academic integrity for online self-monitoring assessments? IP addresses denote source of log-ins. A study is needed regarding online instruction. The EC recommended that Provost Johnson commission a task force to conduct an in-depth study of issues related to online instruction (academic integrity, grade distribution, faculty work load, etc.). c) Social security numbers and identity theft. EIS reduces chances for identify theft (Harris). Random ID #s are generated rather than social security numbers. In the meantime, caution is advised regarding handling of class rosters and grade reports. d) EIS budget and its recent four percent (4%) increase. EIS is very costly and may require even more increases. e) Open review of dissertations. Provost Johnson will look into the report that a dissertation could be approved without an open review. He was also made aware of faculty concerns regarding some faculty members publishing their doctoral students’ work. Provost Johnson responded that one of UNT’s core values is integrity. All persons will be held accountable for conduct that lacks integrity. f) Status of honorary degrees. Provost Johnson surveyed 10 institutions regarding the process of determining honorary degree recipients. The EC should be a recommending body. Faculty, staff, and students should have a voice. Confidential information must be protected. g) Ph. D. in logistics. This degree is not offered at UNT. h) Issues regarding the status of women at UNT. Action is needed. UNT must solicit women applicants and not rely solely on self-nominated applicants. Routinely, there are few women applicants for administrative positions. Provost Johnson asked for the Senate to provide specific issues that might be addressed. i) Uniform accounting statement for all units. Given movement toward RCM, could we expect that all units provide an annual profit/loss (income/expenditure) statement? An example of such a report was shared with the Provost. j) Status of UNT Ombudsman. Four applications were received. Two interviews are scheduled for March 31 with recommendations forwarded April 1.
Chair’s Update:
Chair Pelton updated senators on the request for information from the Vice President for Finance. Senators White and Staff are analyzing the information.
Chair Pelton encouraged attendance at the Faculty Town Hall Meeting with Administrators on April 28, 2004.
Committee of the Whole:
No business was brought forth by the committee of the whole.
Chair Pelton adjourned the Senate at 3:00 pm.
Send comments or questions to Sue Young, syoung@unt.edu, at the Faculty Senate Office, Telephone (940) 565-2053.