MINUTES
Graduate Council Meeting
Monday, January 23, 2012, 3:00 p.m.
University Center Annex, Room 203
Present: Drs. Irene Aiken, Valerie Austin, Scott Billingsley, Sherry Edwards, Warren Eller,
Roger Guy, Rita Hagevik, Patrick Hannigan, Ann Horton-Lopez, Roger Ladd, Howard Ling,
Larry Mabe, Karen Stanley, Tommy Thompson, Velinda Woriax; John Edwards (GSO)
Absent: Drs. Alfred Bryant, Leah Fiorentino, Karen Helgeson, Angela Holman, Raymond Lee,
Kim Sellers, Sara Simmons
Guests: Dr. Mark Canada
Call to Order
Dr. Aiken called the meeting to order at 3:00 p.m. The agenda was adopted as distributed. The
minutes of the November 21, 2011 meeting were accepted by unanimous consent. Dr. Aiken
introduced new Graduate Council member, John Edwards, President of the newly formed
Graduate Student Organization (GSO).
Graduate Faculty Nominations
The following graduate faculty nominations were presented by Dr. Hagevik, moved by Dr.
Thompson, seconded by Dr. Horton-Lopez, and approved:
Department of Biology
Debra Hamner, PhD, full status
Bonnie Kelley, PhD, adjunct status
Robert Poage, PhD, full status
Tim Ritter, PhD, full status
Proposals
Social Work
Following its accreditation visit and a change in the requirements of the Council on Social Work
Accreditation (CSWE), Dr. Edwards proposed forth the following changes to the MSW program:
1) Make the core courses in the first year 27 hours and 27 hours in the second year with 6
hours of electives for a total of 60 hours (total hours remain unchanged).
2) Delete SWK 5570 from the program (material is covered in another course).
3) Add more electives for students, without changing the overall hours for the program.
4) Change several course titles to better reflect the content and the new accreditation
standards.
The proposals were seconded by Dr. Billingsley and approved.
Graduate Policy Issues
Dr. Roger Ladd described a 4 + 2 policy proposal for undergraduates to be provisionally
admitted to Graduate School as early as a year before they actually earned their undergraduate
degree. The group discussed the possibilities and implications, including concerns about the
potential impact on financial aid.
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Graduate Council Updates
Dr. Austin, Chair of the Graduate Council Task Force handed out a sample recruiting calendar to
show how it would be helpful in recruiting efforts. Dr. Eller suggested lobbying for resources for
marketing. Dr. Edwards said that marketing monies would soon be available and we need to be
ready to submit what we need (brochures, flyers, electronic advertising and/or other recruiting
tools), with associated cost. It was also discussed that, with the constant changes, it may be more
cost effective to utilize flyers or tri-folds instead of costly brochures. Discussion led to the
decision that the Graduate School office needs to develop templates for recruitment usage (e.g.,
PowerPoint template, brochure/flyer template, card template).
Report from School of Graduate Studies
 Dr. Aiken announced the upcoming Graduate Research Poster Session to be held on
Tuesday, March 27, 2012. She stressed the need for directors to continue to work with
your students to identify projects to present. She also announced that Dr. Lee Phillips will
hold a poster workshop on Tuesday, February 21 from 4 to 5 pm in Old Main, room
256. A request for volunteers to help with the poster session was addressed (Volunteers:
Drs. Ladd, Hagevik, Austin, Warriax, and Eller). It was also suggested by Dr. Austin that
we have an outside judge, like last year.
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Dr. Aiken requested volunteers to serve on the review team for graduate student travel
fund applications. Dr. Hagevik volunteered to serve and Dr. Aiken asked for other
volunteers to send her an email.
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Dr. Aiken reported on the results of the Writing Seminar series surveys given to
attendants at the New Graduate Student Orientation on January 7, 2012. A large
percentage of students expressed interest in attending such seminars. Saturday, half-day
sessions were their first choice for times. Dr. Hagevik suggested making the series have
a value equaling one credit hour as incentive in the future.
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Dr. Aiken reported that a location for a graduate student lounge is still being sought.
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Dr. Horton-Lopez gave a brief report on the Art Department’s recent successful reaccreditation.
Unfinished Business
Dr. Aiken called for any unfinished business and there was none.
New Business
None.
Announcements/Reminders
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“Good News” items:
o Dean Simmons is progressing extremely well in her recovery.
o Dr. Edwards announced the Social Work Symposium: Celebrate Social Work
2012, 20th Annual Social Work Symposium Future Directions in Social Work:
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Field in Social Work Education, February 24, 2012, 8:30 am until 3:30 pm.,
University Center Annex
o Larry Mabe announced the Teacher and School Administrator Symposium to be
held Saturday, March 17, 2012, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm in the University Center
Annex. Sponsored by the UNCP School of Education and featuring: Dr. Neila A.
Connors, author of If You Don’t Feed The Teachers, They Eat The Students and
Beth McCullough from Amme & Associates, Inc. on Crisis Leadership for
Administrators and Teachers.
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Upcoming spring Graduate Council meetings: February 20, March 19, April 16
Graduation application deadlines:
March 1, 2012 for fall 2012 graduation
October 1, 2012 for spring 2013 graduation
Graduate Appeals Committee meetings: February 22, 2012; June (date TBD); October
(date TBD)
Spring Grad Finale: March 21-22, 2012 in Annex
Graduate Research Poster Session: Tuesday, March 27, 2012 in Annex, proposals due
March 1.
North Carolina Spring Teacher Education Forum--Friday, April 13, 2012; Student
Research Poster Session proposals due March 1, 2012 (http://www.nc-acte.org)
Graduate Studies Spring Commencement: Friday, May 4, 2012 at 7:00 p.m. in GPAC
Fall 2012 New Graduate Student Orientation: Saturday, August 11, 2012 in Annex
Withdrawal deadlines: Check Graduate Academic Calendar (see below)
Remember to check regularly the Graduate Academic Calendar for dates of importance
(http://www.uncp.edu/grad/news/calendar/).
Next Meeting: Monday, February 20, 2012, 3:00-5:00 p.m., UC Annex Room 203
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