College of Liberal and Applied Arts
Chair Council Minutes
April 16, 2012
The meeting began at 2:30pm in room 273D of the Ferguson Building. People in attendance included the following:
Dr. Ron Anderson (Psychology)
Dr. Freddie Avant, Social Work
Dr. Troy Davis (History)
Ms. Dixie Groll, Dean’s Office
Ms. Megan Hartley (Military)
Dr. Mike Martin (Multidisciplinary Programs)
Dr. Brian Murphy (Dean)
Dr. Mark Sanders (English)
Dr. Owen Smith (College Council)
Dr. Robert Szafran (Sociology)
Dr. Jeana Paul-Ureña (Languages & Communication)
Dr. Jerry Williams (Sociology)
Ms. Sherry Williford (Media)
Associate Dean Mark Barringer opened the meeting with a series of important bookkeeping issues: (1) a new en bloc
report for transfer credit will be posted in WebFocus; (2) a data base of common course substitutions for transfer credit is
in the process of being developed; (3) late adds in the future will be required to pay late fees; and (4) reinstatements into a
course, as voted on by the chairs, must be completed no later than 60 days from the first class day.
Dean Brian Murphy distributed a new policy from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board outlining a new process
for graduate program reviews. The university, beginning in Fall 2012, has established a revised sequence of program
reviews to accommodate the policy change. A significant difference from the former procedure is the requirement that an
external review be conducted as part of the review process. Dean Murphy circulated a committee recommendation for the
College’s freshman convocation scheduled for next Fall. The chairs reviewed the proposal and endorsed it as presented.
Owen Smith summarized input from the College Council on the draft strategic plan for the College. In general, the Council
had little opposition to the specific action plans being proposed but requested that some of the language be modified for
more precision. The chairs voted unanimously to support the plan in its current format. The Strategic Planning Committee
will complete its work by semester’s end.
Dean Murphy distributed the draft template for annual assessment reporting. The chairs expressed satisfaction with its
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structure and agreed to a May 2 deadline to complete the document. Dean Murphy reminded the chairs that the results
of assessment must be discussed with faculty and the discussion reflected in minutes from the meeting. Dean Murphy
further reminded the chairs that the biennial course schedule is due at the same time as the Spring 2013 course schedule.
The format and departmental obligations for the May 3rd Honors Banquet were discussed. Chairs agreed to collect
monies from faculty and staff who will be attending by April 25th. The College will pay dinner costs for student award
recipients. Students in discipline honor societies will be recognized separately. Eric Davis was named the Alumnus of the
Year and will be acknowledged at the banquet.
Much discussion ensued about the continued viability of Donut Friday since attendance has been low. While consensus
existed that social opportunities should be supported for faculty and staff to mingle across departments, it was decided
that it would be best to consider a new event that might have greater attraction. The issue will be taken up at the next
chair and College Council meetings.
Dean Murphy raised the topic of standardizing the responsibilities of certain reassignments to ensure consistency of job
expectations. This will enable reassignment requests to be treated uniformly and ensure a fair basis on which to evaluate
performance. The chairs agreed so long as the standardization establishes only baseline definitions of responsibilities.
The meeting adjourned at 4:28 pm. after a series of announcements.