Grad Council Minutes, May 7, 2014
Meeting started 10:05am
Attended: Hans-Peter Bischof, Carol DeFilippo, Hector Flores, Deanna Jacobs, Joseph Hornak,
Chris Licata, John McCluskey, Ferat Sahin, Hrushikesh Saga, Andreas Savakis, Marla
Schweppe, Tom Trabold, Linda Underhill, Don Wilson
1. Tom Trabold: Update on Policy Initiatives

Residency requirement for Ph.D. students: Policy D.12.0.VI.B.11
o

Color Science

Should be strengthen
o
Imagine Science

Required, but left up to department
o
Astrophysical Sciences and Technology

No opinion either way
o
Golisano Institute for Sustainability

No strong opinion either way,

Might be a barrier for part time students
o
Conclusion: Tabled for next academic year. More feedback needs to be
gathered
M.S. on Way to Ph.D: Policy D.12.0.VI.B.11
o
o
o
o
o
Color Science

Not automatic

It should be granted as a 2. degree
Imagine Science

Should be possible, but up to the program
Astrophysical Sciences and Technology

Would RIT charge a fee?
Golisano Institute for Sustainability

A MS would then come for free.

Might be a barrier for part time students
Conclusion: Tabled for next academic year. Benchmarking with other
institutes needs to get done. Regular meetings between grad council and
Ph.D. program director would allow to create a dialogue.
2. Discussion: Primary Dimension: Research and Graduate Education
Secondary Dimension: Culture of Graduate Education and Research
Goal III: RIT will create a strong culture of graduate education and research excellence
 There was a lot discussion regarding:
o This document is mainly focused on research (90%), but only 10% of the graduate
degrees are research focused.
o What was the rational to have the 4 focus areas selected? The paper discussing this is
due May/12/2014.
o It appears it is difficult to integrate the Ph.D. goals with M.S. goals.
o There was a discussion about financial aspects of the proposal
o Conclusion: Graduate council agreed to draft a strong letter recommending slowing
down the process in order to give the faculty more time to get involved. Hector, Joe,
and Chris will take the lead on this. The letter will be sent to the co-chairs of the task
force with a recommendation to distribute the letter accordingly.
Meeting adjourned 10:58am.
Minutes submitted by Hans-Peter Bischof.