49th Faculty Senate
October 16, 2014 – 3:30 PM
Robert C. Voight Faculty Senate Chambers – 325 Graff Main Hall
Vol. 49, No. 5
I.
Roll Call
a. Present: M. Allen, J. Anderson, K. Beyer, L. Caya, G. Cravins, M. Current, T. DocanMorgan, R. Fowler, T. Gendreau, D. Hart, K. Hunt, S. Kelly, T. King-Heiden, J. Kirsch,
W. Maas, R. McKelley, M. Rott, B. Seebach, J. Shanks, B. Shrestha
b. Excused: C. Angell, N. Eschenbaum, P. Haried, K. Terpstra
II.
Minutes of October 2 approved
III.
Reports:
a. Chancellor (Joe Gow):
i. Report on Regents' Meeting: Chancellor Gow shared some information from the
recent Regents' Meeting in Stevens Point with the Senate.
1. Inclusive Excellence: The Regents seem pleased with UW-L's work
regarding this project.
2. Fund balances: UW-L's fund balances were approved.
ii. Questions:
1. Proposed student fieldhouse referendum vote: It was noted that, although
the referendum passed, there were a significant number of votes against
it. Chancellor Gow was asked if he knew the nature of the opposition to
the referendum. He stated that he assumed it was related to the increase
in student fees. He also noted that the project requires further approval at
higher levels.
b. Provost (Heidi Macpherson):
i. University Calendar: Since the new university events calendar has gone live,
more than 400 events have been scheduled on it. The Communications Team
plans to put out mobile-friendly codes soon and will be reaching out to the
University community for feedback.
ii. Office of International Education: Provost Macpherson reported that all of the
payments for faculty members who led a study abroad program in the summer of
2014 have been processed. Also, she noted that all of the bills that were initially
sent out to international students were inaccurate and have since been adjusted.
International students will not be charged late fees for their new bills. Questions
regarding this matter should be directed to the Office of International Education.
iii. Visiting Scholar: Dr. Lixian Jin, an expert on intercultural communication, was
on campus this week. Her visit has generated some good discussions.
iv. Undergraduate Discovery Grant: The administration received a preliminary call
from System about this grant that was submitted recently. The focus of this grant
is to support faculty in developing undergraduate research opportunities in their
curriculum.
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v. Dean's Search and Screen Committees: Provost Macpherson noted that the search
for the next CBA Dean has begun and the search for the next CLS Dean will start
soon.
vi. Final Report on Admissions: This report contained very strong numbers, and the
numbers of acceptances are up.
vii. Questions: (none)
c. CFO (Bob Hetzel):
i. Growth, Quality, and Access Positions: CFO Hetzel announced that another
round of GQ&A positions has begun. Approximately 10 positions will be
available, with the possibility of two tenure track positions (the remaining
positions will be IAS). Provost Macpherson is taking requests from departments,
which will then be forwarded to the Dean's Council for prioritization. The
administration is hoping to make these decisions as soon as possible so
recruitment for the positions can start.
ii. Ground Breaking Ceremony: CFO Hetzel reminded the Senate that the ground
breaking ceremony for the new Student Center would be held on Friday,
10/17/14, at 2:30 PM.
iii. Questions: (none)
d. Faculty Representative (Georges Cravins):
i. Rep. Cravins shared the following points regarding discussions he's been
following at the state level:
1. Faculty Turnover: This was an item on the agenda for the Board of
Regents' Education Committee meeting. The overall turnover in faculty
is approximately 5%, which is up from previous years.
2. Faculty Compensation: Rep. Cravins noted that he has heard more
discussion about compensation now than he has ever heard before, both
within System and in government.
3. Universal Transfer Agreement: This continues to be a topic of discussion
at System meetings.
4.
Remedial Education Changes: System is working to expand and
strengthen remedial education efforts.
ii. Questions: (none)
e. Student Senate Liaison (Amy Keel):
i. Report from Student Senate: At the Student Senate meeting on 10/15/14, a
resolution was passed regarding the creation of gender-neutral bathrooms on
campus. At their next meeting, the Senate will be reviewing the results of the
Student Fieldhouse referendum.
ii. Questions: (none)
f.
Faculty Senate Chair (Bradley Seebach):
i. Change in Composition of the Faculty Senate: Chair Seebach noted that the
changes in the number of Senators (to accommodate the School of Education and
to more accurately represent the number of faculty in different colleges) need to
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be enacted soon. This policy was approved by the 48th Faculty Senate in the
2013-2014 academic year.
ii. Questions: (none)
IV.
Report on the HLC Accreditation Process (Natalie Solverson, Director of Institutional
Research):
a. Overview/Timeline: The last time UW-L's accreditation was reaffirmed (in 2005-2006),
it was carried out through the Program to Evaluate and Advance Quality (PEAQ). For the
upcoming accreditation (in 2015-2016), UW-L will migrate from the PEAQ to the Open
Pathway process. More information about this process can be found at the HLC's website,
http://www.ncahlc.org.
b. Assurance Process and Improvement: The 'Quality Initiative' is a policy of the HLC that
requires an institution to identify one major improvement effort that it has undertaken.
UW-L's Quality Initiative is the Firm Footing: Foundations for Student Success program
that was approved in 2012. UW-L will report the results of its Quality Initiative with an
Assurance Filing (in May 2015). Once this report has been filed, a draft will be shared
with the university community.
c. Executive Committee Membership: The committee coordinating the assurance process
includes Natalie Solverson, Patrick Barlow, Jennie Hartzheim, Sandy Grunwald, Mark
Reeves, and Brad Seebach.
d. Other Informational Items: UW-L is required to provide HLC with annual institutional
updates, and the HLC will conduct an on-site visit on April 11-12, 2016. Chair Seebach
noted that the Senate would be sending charges out to specific committees to address
some of the core components regarding the criteria for accreditation.
e. Questions:
i. Draft of the Report: At an earlier meeting, the question was raised about whether
or not the Senate could review a draft of the report. The executive committee will
find a way to give the campus community access to the draft and make
suggestions.
ii. Core Items: A question was asked about the main parts of the review process.
This information is summarized at the HLC website, and can be accessed by
searching for 'criteria for accreditation.'
iii. Comprehensive Plan vs. Strategic Plan: Director Solverson was asked if the HLC
required that UW-L have a strategic plan. She indicated that although UW-L has
a comprehensive plan, the decision to have a strategic plan is up to the institution.
V.
Anti-Bullying Task Force (Julia Johnson, Associate Dean of CLS and Heidi Macpherson,
Provost):
a. Background: Dean Johnson provided the Senate with a handout that described the charge
of the task force, provided a constitution, and identified where the task force did their
research on the definition of 'bullying.' She informed the Senate that this task force had
come about as a result of a campus climate survey that identified bullying as an emerging
issue. The task force wanted to show that UW-L takes the issue of bullying seriously. The
task force also wanted to provide clarity as to where people might look to find assistance,
and to clarify the process that would be involved in addressing a claim of bullying.
b. The policy drafted by the task force has already been to the Academic Staff and
Classified Staff Councils; the Academic Staff Council has approved the policy, and it will
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go before the Classified Staff Council again. This is the second time this policy has come
before Faculty Senate, and the task force is interested in additional feedback.
c. The policy is designed to attend to the needs of UW-L employees (faculty and staff).
d. The policy has provisions for both formal and informal procedures for addressing claims
of bullying. The task force wants to make sure that the policy includes provisions for
education and awareness.
e. Discussion:
i. A question was raised regarding the actual procedure for filing a bullying
grievance, and whether or not a grievance could be filed with the group defined
in this policy and CGAAF and/or OSER. Dean Johnson replied that it was not the
intention of the task force to make these claims into the responsibility of multiple
venues.
ii. It was noted that one of the goals of the task force was to refrain from overdefining the nature of possible claims. Although FS bylaws give CGAAF
jurisdiction over what could be considered bullying behavior, the term 'bullying'
is not actually used. Furthermore, while CGAAF could provide faculty with a
means of recourse in instances of bullying, there is no parallel group for staff.
iii. Provost Macpherson offered that, based on her experiences, administrators are
trying to identify ways to address bullying incidents and to identify procedures
for dealing with these incidents. It was subsequently noted that the policy, as
written, leaves the final decision about disciplinary actions up to the preferred
official (as opposed to a committee of peers like CGAAF). Dean Johnson noted
that these decisions were always made in consultation.
iv. It was proposed that bullying could be addressed in ways similar to harassment.
It was also noted that UW-L's discrimination policy is quite clear on procedure,
and the task force could use it as a template for the wording of the anti-bullying
policy.
v. Specific Suggestions:
1. The formal process for addressing bullying grievances should be more
clearly defined. This could be done by modeling the procedure after the
one outlined in the discrimination policy. CGAAF may be the best place
for formal actions involving faculty, but appropriate groups for staff
grievances need to be identified/created.
2. It is important to keep the word 'bullying' in the policy, as it does not
appear anywhere else.
3. The policy does not cover student complaints; only those from faculty,
staff, and campus visitors.
4. Corrective actions and disciplinary actions should be separate.
5. Language should be introduced to the policy to prevent the same claim
from being presented to multiple groups.
6. Faculty Senate Ombudspersons could help with the overall process.
VI.
Giving Shape to a Future Campus Seminar & Performance Series:
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a. This series is an idea for fostering an intellectual environment on campus that is not
necessarily linked to grant activity. It could provide a forum for larger, more general
presentations (seminars, performances, exhibits, etc.). Chair Seebach asked the Senators
to consider the following:
i. Could the Senate (or an ad-hoc subcommittee) begin to devise a plan for
developing a weekly or monthly seminar/performance/exhibit series on campus?
ii. Could this series assist UW-L in retaining young, bright faculty? There is support
from the administration (including financial support) for the series, as well as
possible external donors if the community can be involved in some way.
b. Discussion:
i. Currently, there is no single time when all of the faculty can get together on
campus. Other institutions have contemplated creating a single hour where no
faculty members have teaching responsibilities. This could be part of a long-term
plan for UW-L.
ii. The series could also be used as showcase of newly promoted faculty members.
c. Senators who are interested in being part of a steering group for this series should contact
Chair Seebach.
VII. Old Business:
VIII. New Business:
a. Timely Notification of Contracts & Salary: Discussion among the senators led to the
following request of HR (brought as a motion):
i. No later than the first day of contract, HR should distribute salary
information to 9-month employees. M/S/P
ii. It was also noted that any efforts to simplify compensation and benefit
information would be appreciated.
IX.
Adjournment at 5:12 PM
Respectfully submitted,
Janet Kirsch
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