Eastern Michigan University
College of Arts & Sciences
College Advisory Council
Minutes
February 5, 2015, 3:30 – 5:00 p.m.
219 Pray-Harrold
Present: Higgins (WGST, Chair), Egge (H&P), Molloy (Art), Luttrell (ENGL), Venner (Dean), Plagens
(PLSC), Mehuron, (Assoc. Dean), Ramsey (Arts DH), Kovacs (G&G), Laporte (Assoc. Dean), Ensor
(SAC), Angell (Bio), Johnson (Chem), Moore (COSC), Jacobs (P&A), Kindred (CMTA), Bonem (PSYC,
alt.), Merrill (M&D), Kim (ECON), Garrido (WL)
I. Call to Order: Chair Higgins called the meeting to order at 3:30
II. Approval of Minutes (January 8, 2015) Motion to Approve: 13-0-1
III. Recommendations of the Arts Committee (January 22, 2015)
Recommendation to approve (with comments if noted):
SWRK 442 (request for new course)
SWRK 456 (request for new course)
SWRK 556 (request for new course)
SWRK 675 (request for new course)
SWRK 683 (request for new course)
ARTS 354 (request for new course)
SWRK 411 (request for new course): “We strongly recommend that the names of these courses
be changed to ‘Professional Ethics in Social Work’ with the understanding that Dr.
Nybell and Dr. Bridge are amenable to this change.”
SWRK 511 (request for new course): “We strongly recommend that the names of these courses
be changed to ‘Professional Ethics in Social Work’ with the understanding that Dr.
Nybell and Dr. Bridge are amenable to this change.”
SWRK 473 (request for new course): “The syllabi for SWRK 473 and SWRK 573 should have a
schedule and a bibliography.”
SWRK 573 (request for new course): “The syllabi for SWRK 473 and SWRK 573 should have a
schedule and a bibliography.”
SWRK 447 (request for new course): “We recommend adding to the end of the catalog
description ‘, for the purpose of social work practice’.”
SWRK 547 (request for new course): “We recommend adding to the end of the catalog
description ‘, for the purpose of social work practice’.”
NURS 831 (request for new course): “The proposals should have bibliographies and the schedule
for NURS 831 is incomplete.”
NURS 840 (request for new course): “The proposals should have bibliographies and the schedule
for NURS 831 is incomplete.”
NURS 860 (request for new course): “The proposals should have bibliographies and the schedule
for NURS 831 is incomplete.”
Motion: Accept Arts committee recommendations for ARTS 354 and all SWRK courses
with the following additional comment on all of the SWRK courses: “The credit hours for
these courses exceeds what University policy allows, given the number of contact hours.”
Motion approved 11-3-0.
Motion: Table NURS proposals to give the Sciences committee the opportunity to
review. Motion approved 14-0-0.
IV. Recommendations of the Sciences Committee (January 22, 2015)
Recommendation to approve (with comments if noted):
THRC 280 (request for new course)
CHEM 111 (request for new course)
CHEM 116 (request for course revision)
Neuroscience Interdisciplinary Program (new program)
NSCI 301 (request for new course): “Students who plan on going to graduate school are advised
that many graduate programs in Neuroscience require a year of physics.”
NSCI 302 (request for new course)
NSCI 330 (request for new course)
NSCI 397/398/399 (request for new course)
NSCI 401 (request for new course)
NSCI 440 (request for new course)
NSCI 497/498/499 (request for new course)
MET 450 (request for new course): “No goals and objectives were provided for MET 450.”
MET 455 (request for new course)
CHEM 533 (request for new course): “Although part of the same program, CHEM 533, 553, 563,
620 have inconsistent course-grade scales which vary by as much as 10% between
comparable grading levels (i.e. 60%=C for 533 and 70%=C for 620).”
CHEM 553 (request for new course): “Although part of the same program, CHEM 533, 553, 563,
620 have inconsistent course-grade scales which vary by as much as 10% between
comparable grading levels (i.e. 60%=C for 533 and 70%=C for 620).”
CHEM 563 (request for new course): “Although part of the same program, CHEM 533, 553, 563,
620 have inconsistent course-grade scales which vary by as much as 10% between
comparable grading levels (i.e. 60%=C for 533 and 70%=C for 620); CHEM 563 does
not have a recorded vote on the submitted form.”
CHEM 620 (request for new course): “Although part of the same program, CHEM 533, 553, 563,
620 have inconsistent course-grade scales which vary by as much as 10% between
comparable grading levels (i.e. 60%=C for 533 and 70%=C for 620); CHEM 620 does
not report course goals and objectives in the filed paperwork.”
CHEM 690 (request for new course)
ESSC 202 (request for course revision): “We strongly recommend that elementary education
majors have at least one course in Chemistry.”
Recommendation to approve conditionally:
PHY 100 (request for course revision)
Recommendation to not approve:
SWRK 442 (request for new course) [recommendation from Arts to approve accepted]
SWRK 454 (request for new course)
SWRK 473 (request for new course) [recommendation from Arts to approve accepted]
Motion: Approve SWRK 454 with the following comment: “The credit hours for these
courses exceeds what University policy allows, given the number of contact hours.”
Motion approved 12-3-0.
Motion: Approve PHY 100. Motion approved 15-0-0.
Motion: Approve remaining courses recommended for approval by Sciences committee
(with comments, if applicable). Motion approved 15-0-0.
Tabled by Sciences committee (no recommendation yet):
CHEM 630 (request for new course)
Master of Science in Chemistry (proposal to revise program)
Geospatial Information Science and Technology (new program)
BMMT 396 (request for course revision)
SAG 165 (request for new course)
SAG 215 (request for new course)
SAG 290 (request for new course)
SAG 385 (request for new course)
SAG 475 (request for new course)
Simulation, Animation, and Gaming Minor (new program)
NURS 608 (request for new course)
NURS 623 (request for new course)
NURS 691 (request for new course)
Master of Science in Nursing Education (new program)
NURS 810 (request for new course)
NURS 811 (request for new course)
NURS 830 (request for new course)
NURS 831 (request for new course)
NURS 840 (request for new course)
NURS 851 (request for new course)
NURS 852 (request for new course)
NURS 860 (request for new course)
NURS 870 (request for new course)
NURS 882 (request for new course)
NURS 891 (request for new course)
NURS 892 (request for new course)
NURS 893 (request for new course)
NURS 894 (request for new course)
Doctor of Nursing Practice (new program)
ORPR 583 (request for new course)
ORPR 584 (request for new course)
ORPR 585 (request for new course)
Master of Science in Orthotics and Prosthetics (proposal to revise program)
SWRK 554 (request for new course)
SWRK 557 (request for new course)
SWRK 573 (request for new course) [recommendation from Arts to approve accepted]
SWRK 632 (request for new course)
SWRK 668 (request for new course)
SWRK 675 (request for new course) [recommendation from Arts to approve accepted]
SWRK 683 (request for new course) [recommendation from Arts to approve accepted]
V. Dean’s response to CAC input on instructional budget model: Discussion of process for petitioning
for target adjustment
Higgins: Any process should include be transparent. Petitions for target adjustments as well as
the Dean’s response should be disseminated through the CAC.
Dean Venner: Factors influencing why a department might petition for having its targets to be
revised: Department is creating a new program; Increase or decrease in enrollment;
Department failed to reach its target.
Group discussed topics related to petitions including: When may petitions be submitted?
(Deadlines should be set by Dean’s office, but it should be prior to course schedule being
distributed to students.) May departments petition for a target reduction on the basis of
workload inequality (e.g., if a pedagogically similar department has a lower target)?
VI. Summer meeting options
(a) Scheduled Council meetings in May and June, compensated at $50 per meeting
(b) Council meetings only for exceptional circumstances, to be called by Chair or Dean,
compensated at $50 per meeting
(c) No summer meetings
(d) Option (a) plus committee meetings
Representatives voted by ranking the options 1 to 4 (1 indicating top preference). [The votes were
tallied by Higgins and Kindred (Procedures Committee) following the meeting. Options A and B
were tied as most preferred (average rank 2.13); option C had an average ranking of 2.2 and
option D had an average ranking of 3.53. Higgins reported these results by email and
recommended that the Procedures Committee draft amendments to the Input Agreement and
Bylaws codifying option B, the current practice and the plurality’s top choice.) A vote to amend
the Input Agreement and the Bylaws will take place in the March CAC meeting.
VII. IESS representation on CAC: Postponed to March
VIII. Dean’s Remarks: None
IX. Faculty Remarks: None
X. Evaluation of the Dean
• After closing the meeting to non-voting members, CAC representatives discussed the 2012
survey questions and made some revisions and additions to the list. The procedure for conducting
the survey and for analyzing the results were also discussed. Chair Higgins will send the survey
and Dean Venner’s self-evaluation to CAS faculty soon.
XI. CAC input on Dean’s ranking of faculty position requests
• Chair Higgins distributed the input received via email and will forward these to Dean Venner.
Meeting adjourned at 5:05 PM
Recorded by Merrill