Governance Council
Monday, December 10, 2012
2:00PM
UNH 306
Christine Wagner, Chair
Minutes
Present:
Liang Chu, Anthony DeBlasi, Yenisel Gulatee, Reed Hoyt, Ann Kearney, John Schmidt,
Christine Wagner, Benjamin Weaver
The meeting convened at 2:03 pm.
CHAIR’S REPORT
Chair Wagner reported that she had presented the Bylaws amendment to members the Senate Executive
Committee for their review. There were no recommended changes but there was a discussion about proposals
becoming stalled in a council or committee. The amendment does not go to the Senate for a vote but will go to
the full faculty and expect to have a vote at the spring faculty meeting. The amendment will be distributed
within two to six weeks before the faculty meeting. The logistics of the vote still need to be worked out.
Provost Phillips made a request for 18-27 names for the Honors College Governing Board. GOV has
submitted its recommendations from the list that was distributed at the last meeting. The recommendations
were forwarded on December 17.
Chair Wagner provided an update on the report from the Resolution 5 Committee. The minority report has been
written and distributed. The report will be presented to the Senate. GOV reviewed the report and discussed
problems with the mechanics of the original resolution.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
The minutes of November 26 were reviewed and some minor changes were made. The minutes were approved
unanimously.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
IRCUAP & the Senate Charter:
GOV revisited a discussion from the last meeting concerning department name changes. Chair Wagner referred
to the Rights and Responsibilities of the Faculty as outlined in Article I Section 2.2.2 of the Bylaws:
2.2.2. The Faculty shall be informed and given opportunity to discuss at the earliest
possible stages in their formulation, and shall review and provide formal consultation on,
prior to adoption, all proposals regarding:
(a) Creation, renaming, major re-organization, or dissolution of academic units and
programs
Chair Wagner said it provides credence that the Senate must review changes for department name changes and
is clearly articulated in the Bylaws. She said she would bring it the attention of the Chair Lyons and the SEC.
GOV continued its discussion of IRCUAP. GOV has endorsed the statement that IRCUAP is not operational.
Chair Wagner said the debate now is whether or not to remove it from the Charter. In order to move forward,
she asked for a motion of action or inaction to leave as is or to move in some direction. If GOV choses to table
issue, she said the Senate parliamentarian could be consulted about how to proceed.
John Schmidt moved to leave the amendment in the Charter as passed by the Senate. He said by doing so, it
remains an option for handling course proposals that are not put forward by an individual college before being
reviewed by UAC. Professor Schmidt said removing the amendment would require further action by the
Senate. The motion was seconded.
GOV members debated the motion. Senator DeBlasi said it reversed GOV’s previous motion and suggests that
IRCUAP is operational if the Provost wants it to be. Professor Schmidt said it is potentially operational if the
new president decides to sign the amendment. Senator DeBlasi noted course action forms that would be
forthcoming for the new writing program. If the provost decides they are not bound by IRCUAP the forms
would have to be referred to UAC. Professor Schmidt said it would then be up to UAC on whether or not to
accept them.
Secretary Gulatee voiced concerns about how other legislation lacking a president’s signature would be affected
if IRCUAP were kept in the Charter. She asked how decisions would be made about what has more
importance. Professor Schmidt said an amendment not signed by the president is a caveat that the Senate can
form internal operations without obtaining presidential approval. Senator Hoyt added that governance is not
compelled to do anything unless an issue arises.
Chair Wagner agreed that having the debate now was important as opposed to waiting until a proposal comes
forth. She offered the option of leaving IRCUAP in the Charter but to qualify with the fact that the president
did not sign it. Professor Schmidt said doing so would be an amendment. The Senate would have to decide
whether to accept reports from UAC on proposals. Chair Wagner asked if GOV wanted to alter the motion or
vote on it as originally stated. She said the motion could also be withdrawn and tabled pending a Charter
amendment. Professor Schmidt withdrew his motion and moved for the formation of a subcommittee to write
and amendment to the Charter clarifying that IRCUAP remains as a possible method to handle course
proposals, to direct them to UAC or to an alternative body for review. The motion was approved unanimously
by a vote. Professor Schmidt agreed to chair the committee. Reed Hoyt and Benjamin Weaver agreed to serve
on the committee. Chair Wagner charged the committee with submitting a draft of an amendment at the first
meeting of the spring semester.
NEW BUSINESS
Schedule for Next Semester
Chair Wagner proposed dates for the spring semester and proposed that GOV meet at 2:00 pm. She is
recommending that GOV meet two times each month since there will be many issues on the table for
discussion. The meetings will alternate with the Senate and the SEC. She will send an email to all GOV
members with the dates.
Review of Bylaws and Senate Documents
Since a Bylaws amendment will be submitted for a vote during the spring semester, Chair Wagner said it would
be an opportunity to review the entire document and make other needed changes. She asked GOV members to
read through the document and bring issues to future meetings. In general she did not see anything major but
deferred to those who may have greater institutional memory and may recognize inconsistencies or issues.
The Charter has not had a full review since its inception. Chair Wagner would like council and committee
chairs to review their sections and recommend updates where needed.
The Senate Handbook is a lower priority as well as the FAQs document on parliamentary procedure. The
documents are not binding nor do they require a vote from the Senate. Chair Wagner said it is however up to
GOV to make them user friendly and useful.
John Schmidt informed GOV that work on CAIR is ongoing. Changes have been made to the amendment in
response to the administration’s request to eliminate the term “evaluations” and change to “assessments”.
Members of the Committee on Administrative Review met with Bruce Szelest and discussed who would
develop a survey questionnaire and what will happen to the results. The perspective of the committee is to
develop a questionnaire of integrity in terms of having the right questions and one that would allow the faculty
to give written comments and advice. The committee hopes to be able to present a document to the new
president and to the Senate.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 2:59 pm.
Respectfully submitted by
Gail Cameron, Recorder