SENATE MINUTES

Meeting Date:

19 Sept 2002

Status of Minutes:

APPROVED

Senate Session:

XIX

Meeting Number:

3

Present:

Present: S.A. Davis, L. Pifer, N. Sidell, B. Holtman, H. Biblehimer, M. Chester, F. Craig, D. Rotella, B. Cunningham, P. Welch, J. Phillips, A. Longoria, S. Thornsley, B. Smith, E. Washington, W. Keeth, K. Thorne, W. Evans for K. Fulk, M. Materese, K. Guenther, M. Syrett, M. Haner, D. Crowder, I. Newman, S. Brown, R. Keller, R. Wooley, J. Floyd, L. Cass, J. Warner, M. Lane, N. Cooledge, M. Lane, J. Halstead. Parliamentarian: K. Young

I.

S. Davis called the meeting to order at 3:32 p.m.

II.

Minutes of September 5, 2002, were approved as electronically distributed (J, Warner/W. Evans).

APPROVED

III.

Treasurer's Report (B. Holtman)

The current account balance is $679. Senate reps were reminded to collect dues from faculty. Checks should be made payable to the MU Foundation, with “University Senate” written on the “memo” line. Funds are used for student book scholarships.

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APPROVED

IV.

Announcements

1. A faculty member willing to serve on the CCSI board is needed, as is a faculty representative for the Tobacco Policy Task Force. Interested faculty should contact S. Davis.
2. A faculty assembly is scheduled for 9/20 at 3:30 in 307 Alumni on the topic of general education assessment options. Plans for conducting this assessment will be presented and discussed; faculty are urged to attend. Questions and input are encouraged.
3. A. Longoria announced that over 60 persons auditioned for Macbeth, which will run from November 14th through the 17th.

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V.

Committee Reports

Executive Committee

The issue of invalidation of the Fall 2002 elections was discussed.

The question of whether Senate is the appropriate forum to undertake this action was first addressed. The issue cannot be resolved at the 9/20 Faculty Forum, as forums are called in advance with specific agendas. If the body does not feel that Senate is the appropriate forum, a special Faculty Assembly will be called.

Discussion: What part of the Senate Constitution was violated? The Constitution indicates that a slate of nominees is published for corrections, additions and deletions and this step was not done. One issue is that several Senate members are not faculty members. Those present non-faculty members indicated they would abstain from voting on the action, thus satisfying this concern. Could any faculty member seek election again if this election were invalidated? Run-off elections carried over from the spring election would not require invalidation, as the slate for those positions was determined in the spring by the appropriate procedures. Does this procedural noncompliance rise to the level of needing to overturn an election? Is this instance so significant that this action is required?

No objections were voiced to having the issue decided in Senate. A motion was made by Senate Executive Committee: With the exception of the run-off elections for Administrative Affairs/Elections and Student Affairs/Admissions Committees, the Senate Executive committee moves that the Fall 2002 elections be invalidated and held again, including time for nominations, publishing slate, time for additions/corrections and balloting. Rationale: As a result of changing the procedures to electronic formats, some irregularities in procedure and processes have occurred, including leaving at least one person off of the ballot, as well as unintentional votes being cast. The two run-off elections were not affected by the irregularities and should stand.

Discussion: Since the Senate Constitution gives specific dates for elections to occur, the same time frames apply here as well, if the election is invalidated. It is unlikely that unintentional votes cast influenced the run-off election results. To what degree is this an issue of technology? If electronic balloting is a desirable method of voting, issues of technology should be addressed. The appropriate IT staff person has been contacted to prevent further technological problems with electronic balloting. Were there instances of faculty being left off the ballot? One faculty member’s e-mail communication indicating a willingness to run was never received and was not verified by the publishing of the final slate. As both options have negative ramification, is invalidating the election better than letting the election results stand? Is this situation so significant that invalidation of the election is required? MOTION APPROVED.

B.

Academic Affairs (H. Biblehimer)

The following motions were put forth by AAC:

MOTION ONE: AAC move to approve the curricular actions proposed by the Department of Business and Economics:

# 1 Action: Course Change Request: New Title for BUS 4451W

Old Course Title: Behavioral Approach to Management

New Course Title: Managing Organizational Behavior;

Prerequisites: None

Purpose and Nature of the Change: The rationale behind the change is to emphasize the managerial nature of organizational behavior, and provide a bridge between theory and practice. The course focuses on actual managerial problems involving organizational behavior. It deals with ways practicing managers can utilize the theories and research in the field of organizational behavior to deal with problems involving people. The new title reflects more accurately the main objective of the course: help students understand and influence behavior in organizations by showing the connection between contemporary OB theories and actual events in organizations.

#2 Action: Course Change BUS 4490 Business Policy

Purpose and nature of change: It is necessary to change the number of hours that a student completes before registering for BUS 4490 from 96 to 75. We want BUS 4490 to be a capstone senior level course. Students should take the course in the spring semester of their senior year. Some students graduate in May and some in December. To accommodate both May and December graduates, and to recognize that the number of credits is determined at the beginning of the semester, we would like the number of credits to be 75.

Discussion: This corrects a Datatel issue. MOTION APPROVED.

MOTION TWO: AAC moves to approve the curricular actions proposed by Library Sciences to its Master’s program in School Library and Information Technology:

#1 Action: Course Change Request LSC 5560 Seminar/Residency and Practicum in School Librarianship

Purpose and Nature of the Change: Change the number of credits to 1-4 credits. Previously the credits were 2-4 credits.

#2 Action: Program Change Proposal: School Library and Information Technology

Rationale for changes: Students who only want to get a Master's degree and have no interest in becoming certified are not required to complete the Residency or Practicum portions of the online School Library and Information Technologies program. As a result, they will only need a total of 31 credits. Therefore, the number of credits to complete the program must be changed to 31 - 34 credits instead of the present 32 - 34 credits.

Discussion: none.

MOTION APPPROVED.

MOTION THREE: AAC moves to approve the curricular changes requested by Education and Special Education:

#1 Action: Course Change: SPE 3300 Curriculum Development Adjustment

Purpose and nature of change: Delete pre-requisite SPE 2270 Due to the Department of Education's GATES requirements faculty feel that deletion of the prerequisite will facilitate scheduling of this course for students. The lack of adequate staff forcing required "fall only" or "spring only" courses would cause students to take two years to get courses with these current prerequisites.

#2 Action: Course Change: SPE 3380 Assessment in Special Education

Purpose and nature of change: Delete pre-requisite SPE 2270 Mentally and Physically Disabled. Due to the Department of Education's GATES requirements faculty feel that deletion of this prerequisite will facilitate scheduling of this course for students. The lack of adequate staff forcing required "fall only" or "spring only" courses would cause students to take two years to get courses with these current prerequisites.

#3 Action: Course Change: SPE 3390 Methods for Individuals with Mild Disabilities

Purpose and nature of change: Delete pre-requisite SPE 3300 Curriculum Development Adjustment. Due to the Department of Education's GATES requirements faculty feel that deletion of this prerequisite will facilitate scheduling of this course for students. The lack of adequate staff forcing required "fall only" or "spring only" courses would cause students to take two years to get courses with these current prerequisites.

#4 Action: Course Change: SPE 4440 Methods for Individuals with Moderate/Severe Disabilities

Purpose and nature of change: Delete pre-requisite SPE 3300 Curriculum Development Adjustment. Due to the Department of Education's GATES requirements faculty feel that deletion of this prerequisite will facilitate scheduling of this course for students. The lack of adequate staff forcing required "fall only" or "spring only" courses would cause students to take two years to get courses with these current prerequisites.

Discussion: The department reassured AAC that students would perform well if these courses are not taken. MOTION APPROVED.

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C.

Academic Planning (M. Chester)

The committee is in the process of reviewing program changes related to the 120-hour requirement. If gen ed requirements are reduced by three hours, as proposed in a CAN, will this affect those programs who have already processed changes for the 120-hour requirement? If the gen ed change is approved, those three hours will be moved from the left to the right side of the ER.

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D.

Administrative Affairs & Elections (F. Chua)

No report.

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D.

Student Affairs & Admissions (D. Rotella)

An update was given on residence hall renovations. Maple B is open; Maple A is on target. Final planning is occurring for renovations of Laurel and Pinecrest. Hemlock will be torn down and apartment-style housing will be built. Cedarcrest renovations will be done last. The old bookstore is slated for completion Fall 2003. The old Mountie Den will be used for seating. The search committee reported that approximately 25 candidates have met minimum requirements for the V-P position. Each division of Student Affairs is developing a plan to ease the transition when the position is filled. The fraternity Sigma Tau Gamma has lost recognition due to financial issues. Admissions counselors are busy recruiting for next year. With the increased number of students and housing being off-line, are problems resulting? J. Halstead indicated that previous single-occupancy rooms are being used as doubles. There have been few reported complaints from students.

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F.

Information Technology (F. Craig)

A meeting with C. Beckman has been set for next week, with the My.Mansfield e-mail glitch and recent university server problems on the agenda.

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G.

Library Advisory (M. Syrett)

No report.

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Provost (M. Lane)

• The official fall enrolment is 3,368 (head count, not FTE); our goal will have been met.
• The first Brown Bag session of the semester is slated for 10/7 from 8:15 ­ 9:45 a.m. in 307 Alumni. There is no planned topic, but rather an open discussion on any issue of concern.

I.

President's Report (J. Halstead)

• Enrollment is up two percent and marks the largest freshmen class ever.
• There appears to be increased vitality on campus.
• A Town Meeting is set for 9/23 in 307 Alumni Hall. “Environmental changes in Harrisburg and System mandates ­ managing our own destiny” will be the topic. A buffet lunch will be served at noon, followed by the open meeting from 12:15 ­ 1:15 p.m.
• The House Appropriations Committee meeting held on campus earlier in the week was an historic first and resulted in positive exposure for the university. A discussion of several issues and a healthy exchange occurred. While it may or may not translate into dollars, the legislators present know who we are and have seen us first-hand.

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VI.

Old Business

None.

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VII.

New Business

None.

VII.

Meeting adjourned at 4:14 p.m. (P. Welch/W. Evans).

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Respectfully Submitted,
Nancy Sidell
Secretary of Senate