Ohio Northern University Faculty
2015 - 2016
Minutes of the December 1 Meeting
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President DiBiasio called the meeting to order at 11:01 AM, starting with a moment
of silence in memory of Stuart Schakett.
Invocation was offered by Paul Nutter.
Minutes from October 27, 2015 were approved.
Unfinished Business: None.
Approval of Fall Term Graduates: Melanie Hough requested approval of fall term
graduates with the following updates: Amelia Fox (Bachelor of Arts) has been
approved; Christopher Gray (Bachelors of Arts & Music) will not be graduating this
term; Brandon Michael DeVault (Bachelor of Science in Business Administration)
has been approved and also has a minor in Finance. For four of the students in the
Master of Professional Practice in Accounting program, their major was incorrectly
listed. The major should be listed as Forensic Accounting & Auditing Services.
Honorary Degree Recommendations: J. D. Yoder requested approval of the following
three recipients for honorary doctoral degrees: Inara Brubaker, Bernard (Bob)
Shapiro, Tammy McIntire Stefanovic. (See Attachment 1 on the agenda for further
details). The honorary degree recipients were approved.
Report from University Council: Melissa Eddings-Mancuso shared that Council met
Tuesday, Nov. 17th. Business as usual with a collective exhale regarding budget
approval. General education update: Taskstream accounts expire for fifth year
seniors. Julie Hurtig met with each student individually to make sure they are
fulfilling artifact requirements. If you are aware of students that may not graduate in
Spring 2016, send an email to the registrar so DegreeWorks can be updated. A
concern was raised regarding the dissemination of information from the President’s
request for ideas about saving money and enhancing revenue. That document has
now been sent to everyone. Another concern was raised about the Healthy Campus
program with respect to the late rollout, moving to WorkTerra and the lack of
transparency. Bill Ballard, as a representative from the Health Services Advisory
Committee, shared that the intention was to be transparent and minutes from previous
meetings will be available on the p-drive. The next meeting for the Health Services
Advisory Committee is December 4th; University Council will next meet on January
19th, 2016.
Reports from Constitutional Committees:
a. Budget and Appropriations: Kathie Fleck shared that the committee is meeting on
December 8th.
b. Academic Affairs: Kelly Kobiela stated that they are working on the program
review portion of Appendix 5 in the Faculty Handbook. The next meeting is
tomorrow (December 2nd).
Ohio Northern University Faculty
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c. Student Affairs: Heath LeBlanc shared that the committee met on Thursday,
November 19th to review new student organization proposals. The documents
still needed some work.
d. Personnel: Robin White said the committee submitted sabbatical application
choices. An announcement should be coming out soon.
Reports from Operational Committees:
a. Athletic Events: President DiBiasio announced that the football team made it to
Round 2 of the national Division III Playoffs. In addition, ONU had the most
OAC All-Conference Academic Awards.
b. Cultural Events: The Committee on Cultural and Special Events has voted to help
support our Fulbright Scholar’s African Drumming and Dance project and CASE
is supporting in part the ZFX Flying Workshop in January 2016.
c. International Affairs: Lynda Nyce announced that the committee is meeting
December 3rd. International Education Week was the week before Thanksgiving
break. The passport booth was a success and will continue. The committee will
solicit feedback on having the booth available once or twice per academic year.
d. Religious Affairs: Chaplain MacDonald shared that the committee met before
Thanksgiving break to discuss Baccalaureate week. On January 24, 2016, ONU
will be hosting a Pack Away Hunger event. The goal is to package 40,000
nutritionally balanced meals that will be sent overseas and to areas in northwest
Ohio. You can sign up for this event through Get Connected ONU. If you have
students that are struggling, please make them aware of resources in the
Chaplain’s Office and the Counseling Center. Paul Nutter inquired if there was a
quick way to get a student in to talk to somebody. Chaplain MacDonald said to
call 911 if the student is a danger to his/herself or someone else. If the student is
not in immediate danger, call the Chaplain’s Office (x 2200) or the Counseling
Center (x 2190). President DiBiasio added that one of our ONU graduates, Clay
Mathile, and the Mathile Institute for the Advancement of Human Nutrition, has
been involved in the development of these meals. A recent Pack Away Hunger
event at Baldwin-Wallace packaged 40,050 meals – so of course our new goal is
40,051! Come join us on January 24th.
e. Information Technology: Jeff Rieman shared that they are currently discussing
network and data security policy.
Questions for the President: President DiBiasio made a few comments before opening
the floor to questions.
a. First floor renovations are underway in McIntosh. Funds for these renovations
are a combination of new and old philanthropic gifts. In the midst of the last
comprehensive campaign, there was an initiative to solicit gifts for a new student
union. Those donors have agreed to use donated funds for the renovation project.
Ohio Northern University Faculty
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Renovations in the lobby and activities room should be completed by next
semester.
b. Budget Forums will happen this Friday, December 4th @ 8:30 AM and 3 PM in
Dicke Forum. We will discuss budget, strategic enrollment planning and
academic programs. The presentation will be made available on the p-drive.
c. The Search Committee for a new Dean of the College of Business has been put
together. The committee will meet on December 7th.
d. Across the university, 26 faculty searches were approved.
e. Sabbatical requests have been received. The Board of Trustees will take action on
those at the January Board meeting.
f. Summer grants for online courses will be made available soon.
g. Promotion and tenure review has also begun.
h. Congratulations to Rob Alexander for his second Huffington Post article that was
published recently.
i. John Lomax delivered an outstanding talk on Veterans Day. Check it out in the
Northern Express.
j. The Annual Holiday Gathering is December 11th. This event provides a good
opportunity for the campus to be in community with each other. Items will be
collected for ReStore and the Ada Food Bank.
Other Reports: None
New business:
a. Director of Student Involvement Proposal: Julie Hurtig shared that Article X of
the Faculty Handbook discusses amending the Constitution. The proposal was
received on October 20th by the secretary and was distributed to the faculty
on November 12th, adhering to the required timeline of Article X. The proposal
before the faculty is to add the Director of Student Involvement to the Student
Activities Committee. Today we will discuss the motion, but will not vote. We
will need to make a motion for a date to vote and a motion for how the vote will
happen.
i. Heath LeBlanc shared the committee would like to add the Director of
Student Involvement (currently Jennifer Lambdin) to the Student
Activities Committee. The Director is charged with overseeing student
organizations and the process by which these organizations come into
existence. The Director deals with student organizations from their
inception and brings a wealth of information to the Student Activities
Committee. Jennifer Lambdin has attended meetings for many years and
should be a voting member of the committee. There are currently other
administrative positions on the committee (e.g. Secretary of Student
Senate).
Ohio Northern University Faculty
2015 - 2016
ii. Julie Hurtig proposed voting through CourseEval on Monday, January
25th. The faculty meeting on January 26th would allow 24-hour notice of
the outcome of the vote. Reminders will be sent prior to the vote and the
poll will stay open for 24 hours on January 25th. Rob Alexander made a
motion to vote through CourseEval on Monday, January 25th. Brad Wile
seconded.
XIII. Announcements:
a. Phi Beta Delta International will host a forum on Thursday, December 3rd, 2015
from 7 – 8:30 PM in Dicke Forum to increase public awareness about problems
associated with global climate change. Biology Professor Jay Mager will discuss
effects of climate change on birds. Geography Professor Mike Commons will
discuss drought and water issues in California.
b. The Chamber Music Concert tonight (December 1st) in Snyder Recital Hall at 8
PM will feature Ben Ayettey, an African drumming specialist and Visiting
Fulbright Scholar.
c. The Holiday Spectacular will continue this weekend with shows in Lima.
d. The ONU Symphonic Band will perform on December 3rd, 2015 from 1 – 2 PM.
XIV. Adjournment: The meeting adjourned at 11:40 AM.
Submitted by,
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Leslie A. Riley
Secretary