Faculty Senate holds final 2002-03 meeting

The Faculty Senate quickly made its way through the agenda for its final meeting of the academic year when the group met June 11.

Senate members approved a change to the body's bylaws, which had required two nominations for a person to be able to serve on a committee. The change will allow nominations to go through two rounds, then if there are no individuals with two nominations, to allow those with one nomination to be placed on the ballot in the third round.

David Kesterson, provost and vice president for academic affairs, who will be returning to a full-time professorship position in August, delivered his final report to the senate. He spoke about the state budget recently approved by the Texas Legislature and said it will be several weeks before the university will know what that means for its own fiscal plans. He also talked about other legislation passed during the session, including tuition deregulation; the elimination of the Texas Academic Skills Program — the state's mandatory placement examination taken by all students attending state institutions of higher learning; and the reduction — from 2,500 to 1,000 — in the number of full-time equivalent students required at the UNT Dallas Campus before the campus would gain free-standing university status.

Lou Pelton, senate vice chair and chair-elect, reported to the senate about the activities of the senate Executive Committee. He said Bonita Jacobs, vice president for student development, recently met with representatives of the Student Government Association regarding "use fees" that would allow faculty members to use the new Student Recreation Center. He also reported on the high rate of participation in this year's administrator evaluation process and on the pending creation of a faculty ombudsman position to provide an alternative method for the treatment of grievances. Pelton also read a resolution recognizing outgoing senate chair Jeffrey Oxford for his leadership of the senate during the last year.

Oxford gave his final report as chair of the Faculty Senate and touched on several topics, including the challenges to come regarding the pending budget and growth-related issues, the growth of the UNT Dallas Campus; faculty workload issues; and the pending arrival of new administrators; including a new College of Engineering dean, new provost and vice president for academic affairs, and new vice president for research and technology transfer.

BY MICHELLE HALE mhale@unt.edu

Other featured articles in this issue

• Summer I enrollment dips 1.9 percent
• More changes on the way for UNT employee prescription drug plan
• UNT work attire standards relax as temperatures go up
• Verizon donates $50,000 to UNT's TAMS
• UNT chancellor hits the books
• First Flight Week planned to help incoming freshmen learn about life on campus
• National String Project Consortium extends College of Music funding with $10,000 grant
• UNT holds first-of-its-kind bilingual education camp for high school students
• UNT professor: New Harry Potter book will continue inspiring reading, discussion between adults and children

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