44th Faculty Senate
October 15, 2009 – 3:30p.m.
Robert C. Voight Faculty Senate Chambers – 325 Graff Main Hall
Vol. 44, No. 4
I. Roll Call.
Present: J. Anderson, C. Angell, J. Baggett, S. Brokaw, D. Buffton, V. Crank (excused), G. Cravins, T.
Gendreau, J. Heim, K. Hoar, J. Holman, D. Hoskins, K. Hunt (excused), D. Lake, R. LeDocq, A. Loh,
C. Lee, R. Mikat, J. Miskowski, S. Shillinger (excused), R. Smith, M. Tollefson, B. Van Voorhis and
M. Wycoff-Horn
II. Minutes of October 1, 2009 were approved.
III. Reports.
a. Chair’s Report.
Brian Udermann and Kristin Koepke are working on an Online Handbook, which will contain
best practices for teaching online courses and a standard set of policies for online instruction.
They have met with SEC and will be attending a future FS meeting to discuss the handbook.
The SEC is still working on revisions to the furlough response letter. Agenda items for the
October 29 FS meeting include Gen Ed Committee Student Learning Objectives and the
Medical Dosimetry Master’s Program. A reminder that the Centennial Celebration begins next
week with various events throughout the week and into the weekend. Tickets for the Gala are
now sold out. The week begins with Dr. Carl Wimberly’s presentation on the History of UWL (Monday, October 19, at 4:00pm in Port O’ Call).
b. Provost’s Report. (via Bob Hoar, Faculty Assistant to the Provost)
The mission statement is currently being reviewed by the BOR. The Director of the School of
Education Search and Screen Committee has forwarded a list of candidates for on-campus
interviews.
c. Faculty Rep Report.
The Faculty Rep has contacted other campuses regarding whether or not they had sent
furlough response letters. The campuses that have responded thus far are not planning to send
out any response letter.
d. Student Association Representative.
SUFAC (formerly Apportionment Committee) is still short one faculty member. The Faculty
Senate office is working on this issue.
IV. Faculty Nominee to the IT Working Group.
There were a total of ten volunteers for one faculty seat. There is very little information at this point
regarding the complete makeup of this committee. The chair reviewed the characteristics that would be
important in the faculty representative. Motion to forward Dave Riley (Computer Science) as the
faculty representative to the IT Working Group. Motion approved.
V. A Review of the McNair Scholars Program (Roger Haro).
The McNair Scholars Program will serve all UW-L students – not just those in the sciences. This
program will serve 26 students per year, with 2/3 being either first generation or low income and 1/3
from under-represented groups. The goal of the program is to make sure all program students do
undergraduate research and complete a baccalaureate degree. Of these, 70% will complete the
baccalaureate degree within three years of acceptance into the program. Ten percent will go on to
receive a PhD. The typical timeline would see students recruited in their Sophomore year, followed by
working with a faculty mentor and preparing a research proposal during their Junior year. A summer
research experience would include a stipend and/or living costs. The Senior year would include
finalizing a portfolio and presenting their project at a regional or national conference (funding included).
McNair Scholars are highly sought after, with many graduate schools waiving the application fee.
Students in our program would be expected to apply to no less than 5 graduate programs. Faculty are
encouraged to get in involved with the program at any stage (recruitment, mentoring, research, etc.)
The campus coordinator for the program is Jessica Thill (115G Graff Main Hall; 785-6913;
mcnair@uwlax.edu; www.uwlax.edu/mcnair). For further information, a FAQ handout will be posted
to the FS website.
VI. Academic Staff Policies – UW-L 8-13 (Kerrie Hoar).
Changes that have been made to the chapters since they were discussed by the 43rd FS were presented.
The current drafts have the approval of Academic Staff Council, UW-L Administration and Human
Resources and have passed a first reading by UW System Legal. Motion to approve UW-L 8-13
Academic Staff Policies. Motion approved.
VII. Inclusive Excellence (Barbara Stewart and Paula Knudson).
Feedback from September 30 open forums was positive. The next phase of IE include fostering a
philosophy of inclusion and better practices on our campus. The IE committee is proposing the
formation of subcommittees to work in the areas of Retention of Diverse Faculty, Retention of Diverse
Students, Awareness and Engagement, and Marketing/Publicity. More information on the IE can be
found at www.uwlax.edu/catl and www.uwlax.edu/general/diversity. An IE website is currently under
construction. While the Retention of Diverse Faculty and Students will follow stricter goals and
timelines, Awareness and Engagement is an area where you and /or your department can look at where
there is a need and how you can best address it. IE is not something that you do and then you are done
and can check it off of a list. It is something you build on and integrate into your teaching, your
curriculum and your everyday interactions with others. For guidance in this area, the IE area of the
CATL website has a Self Developer Survey.
VIII. Adjournment at 4:59p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Kerrie Hoar