College of Liberal and Applied Arts
Chair Council Minutes
October 17, 2011
The meeting began at 2:30pm in room 273D of the Ferguson Building. People in attendance included the following:
Dr. Rick Abel (Government)
Dr. Troy Davis (History)
Dr. John Hendricks (Communication)
Dr. Brian Murphy (Dean)
Dr. Jeana Paul-Urena (Modern Languages)
LTC Todd Reichert (Military Science)
Dr. Mark Sanders (English)
Dr. Ron Tumelson (College Council)
Dr. Jerry Williams (Sociology)
Associate Dean Mark Barringer discussed the new process for students to graduate. Given the multi-stage sequence, the
process will be outlined in a memo prepared by Ms. Tiffany Gauntt from the College’s Academic & Career Advising Center
and will be distributed shortly.
Dean Brian Murphy informed the chairs that last year’s assessment process requires one additional step to close the loop.
Specifically, the results of assessment must be shared with departmental faculty and their input solicited on the findings. It
is imperative that departmental minutes reflect the discussion occurred to verify that the loop was indeed closed.
Dean Murphy provided an update on various college activities:
 The Alumni Networking event is scheduled for November 10. A planning committee has met and invitations
issued to alumni.
 The strategic planning committee has met twice and will formulate a proposal by semester’s end. A collegewide forum will be held to obtain feedback on the initial draft.
 The outreach and development committee has been merged into the strategic planning group.
The topic of scholarship coordination will be taken up at the next meeting of the chairs.
Dean Murphy opened the floor to a discussion of the revised course schedule that was implemented for the Spring
Semester. To recall, some departments had departed from the previous scheduling regime that limited courses to specific
time slots; for the upcoming spring, the college returned to uniform slots in an effort to enable students to register for
courses more easily. The chairs expressed no objection to this change.
Dean Murphy updated the chairs on the revision to the university’s workload policy. In the past, departments could offer
“monster sections” (100 or more students) and count this large section as equivalent to two courses in fulfilling a faculty
member’s workload commitment. Beginning in the Spring Semester, the university is reverting to its original workload
policy whereby a monster course (the size still to be determined) will equate to 4.5 teaching load credits (TLC) in a 12
TLC semester instructional obligation.
Dean Murphy reviewed the tenure and promotion calendar, alerting chairs to upcoming deadlines. Dean Murphy next
circulated departmental requests for HEAF fund allocations. Given that the total requested did not exceed the college’s
budget, Dean Murphy inquired if any chair objected to distributing the funds on the basis of the amounts proposed by
each unit. With one small amendment, the chairs approved dispersal as presented and agreed to supplement each unit
with an additional $4,000 for discretionary use.
Dean Murphy announced that the college’s interactive-TV installation is completed and available for departmental
instructional purposes. A training session will be scheduled in the near future to equip faculty with the skills to operate the
system. Dr. Jeana Paul-Urena reminded the chairs that a musician from Honduras will be performing in the Student
Center’s movie theater on November 30.
The meeting adjourned at 3:47 pm.