Humanities and Sciences Senate Meeting Minutes
March 28, 2003
Present: Rick Anderson, Cynthia Baldessare Henderson, William Kolberg, Patrick
Meister, Teresa Moore, Bruce North, Nancy Ramage, Diane Schwartz, Hugh Stephenson,
Michael Trotti, Zenon Wasyliw
Meeting called to order at 4:10.
Approval of minutes:
February 7, 2003 – Accepted with a vote of 6 yeah and 2 abstentions
Announcements:
Due to the provost reception scheduled for four o’clock on this same day, Howard Erlich
will not be attending this meeting but will plan on attending the April meeting.
David Garcia was offered and has accepted the position as the new Associate Dean for
the Humanities & Sciences School.
Old Business:
Letter on Emeritus Status: The Theatre Arts Department submitted a letter to the
Senate not supporting the draft dated April 1, 2003. They believe that
“Emeritus/Emeriti” should not be a ‘rubber-stamp’ from the dean. A letter of support
should accompany the department’s recommendation.
After hearing the concerns of the Theater Arts department and other members of the
Senate, Nancy Ramage is willing to re-word the document to clarify some strong issues.
The Senate is still encouraging the Dean’s involvement in the Emeritus/Emeriti process,
he would still have a final say, just encouraging him to be more ‘generous’ in the
recommendations. Each department should still follow the procedures as the Faculty
Handbook states in order to make their recommendations.
Motion: Nancy will modify the letter as per the Senate, present it to the Executive
Committee in two weeks, and then proceed on to the dean. – yeas, 9 – 1 abstention.
Letter on Workload: The final draft was presented to the Senate for
discussion/approval. With some concern over the closing paragraph Michael Trotti will
rewrite the last paragraph to read, “The H&S Faculty Senate appreciates the
administration efforts to implement this needed change in faculty workload and urges
serious consideration of these recommendations.
Motion: Accept this as the final proposal as amended. – 10 yeas.
It was suggested that it be presented to the dean and faculty in the near future.
Benefits for Part time Faculty – Was discussed at the meeting between Howard and the
Executive Committee.
New Business:
Elections:
Michael Trotti will solicit nominations for five seats that will be open. The Senate also
needs to elect officers in April; Diane has a three-year term limit as president that will
expire also. The executive committee needs to be reestablished for next year.
Appropriate forms for class discussion of political issues.
Howard made the executive committee aware of a few complaints he received from
parents regarding topics discussed in the classroom setting regarding the current situation
in Iraq. He’s looking for advise on how to handle the concerns of parents and students.
The provost has suggested that faculty ‘make time’ to discuss the current events.
However, faculty freedom may need to be looked at with a little more concentration on
the relationship between faculty and student. While it is relevant in some classes to
discuss the current times, it may not be appropriate in all situations. Also, it may be
taken to the extreme where one side of the issues is discussed and encouraged while the
other side is hushed.
The Faculty Senate will propose a friendly letter to faculty to encourage them (faculty) to
refer to the handbook in regards to faculty freedom. It will remind the faculty to be
sensitive to all opinions. This however, must go out quickly in order to be relevant.
Hugh, Cynthia and Teresa agreed to work on a letter and email a copy out to Senate
members for input and approval.
Revisiting the by-laws
There is currently a sub-committee reviewing the by-laws. They are considering
‘softening’ the language in order to encourage the ongoing relationship with the Dean.
The Senate has made progress since it’s beginning and would like to continue to keep the
public profile positive. The Senate members are encouraged to go over the by-laws and
email Teresa Moore with any suggestions before the next meeting.
Adjourned at 5:15
Submitted by Diana Lotito
Edited and submitted by Cynthia Baldessare Henderson