Announcements:
The many campus personnel and office changes that have taken place were discussed. The chairs were provided with a list of changes. Academic Affairs now supervises the learning/testing center, math tutoring lab, advising center, career center, student retention.
ERE has their ABET accreditation review this fall – Oct.
CNRS has been approved for two tenure track searches – OCN and ERE
Reminder – staff vacation usage. Encourage folks to use their vacation time. Costs associated with “lump outs” are paid from the departmental budget.
NRPI degree is now called Environmental Management and Protection. The new dept name is Environmental Science and Management.
Reminder about dates and deadlines:
 HOP Aug 18-20
 Meet and Greet Aug 19
 IUPC names to Mary Aug 27
 Syllabi to server Aug 27
 Last day to register without penalty Aug 27
 Last day to register Aug 30
 Fin Aid deadline Sept 7
 Census Sept 20. Students must be on class rosters by that date – no exceptions.
Sponsored Programs Foundation:
Please encourage your faculty and staff to be patient as they try to fix problems in
SPF. Faculty are encouraged to discuss complaints with Dean Smith prior to going directly to SPF. Procards will be issued to Principal Investigators by the end of
August.
Curriculum Changes –When changes are submitted to ICC, a copy must go to the
Dean’s office and he will share it with the CDC. Oct 11 is the deadline for new course proposals, changes for the 2011-12 catalog.
Department Chairs: APS will conduct chairs’ training lunches this year. Suggested topics from CNRS chair include– scheduling, communication with faculty and dean, evaluation, review RTP, chairs calendar for deadlines.
Syllabi: Discussion of syllabi content and due date to Dean’s office (Aug. 27). Must include learning outcomes, final exam schedule and dates for field trips.
CNRS IT Committee – A committee of faculty from departments that use software will meet to discuss tech needs for the college. Dave Marshall will be part of this committee and will serve as a liaison with the University IT personnel.
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Unit caps – Grad students are running up against financial aid unit cap limit due to the requirement of taking extra independent study/thesis units each semester.
Oceanography Dept: Lori Dengler will serve as the department chair for now. A committee will be put together to discuss the future. Suggested committee members: Jeff Borgeld, Dave Hankin, Sean Craig, Matt Hurst, Lori Dengler.
HSU Enrollment: We planned for 1150 (funded) freshman. We expect 1300 -1350 freshmen. 6612 FTES is the target. It was a little over 7000 before. Seat availability
– tight on science but enough seats overall.
BUDGET
University – $7.2 million budget cut. 12.5% last year. Furloughs saved money and bought some time for planning. Still have $1.4 budget gap in OAA.
MSF will bring in an estimated $910,900 for our college. CNRS gets a larger percentage of fee than the other colleges. MSF funds cannot be used for faculty salaries, travel, software or hardware. They are for items that provide an enhanced educational experience for students.
The group discussed lab fee expenditure approvals and agreed to make lump disbursements based on past purchases and to hold back 25% reserve for special requests that would be reviewed by a fee committee which would then bring their recommendation to the CDC. The fee committee will have student representation.
Enrollment Management Group – is working to develop program cost estimates and figure which programs might need to limit enrollments, which we can grow.
Recommendations are expected this fall. Beth Eschenbach represents our college on this committee.
Campus has been granted impaction for freshmen. Controls growth. When a campus has impaction, admission standards can be increased.
Forestry: Ken met with a relative of the Dean Whitter ranch and he is offering his ranch on the Mendo/Humboldt line as a live laboratory for student research. Cattle, forest, streams, etc. Faculty from Forestry will go down during October.
Bello property is still open for weekend field trip opportunity for wildlife, fisheries, etc.
New Field Trip Procedures: Colby Smart, learning technologist. Field trip audit resulted in the need for a more efficient system to effect compliance with the system and campus policy. Colby and others developed an on-line system that interfaces with People Soft and should facilitate filling in the forms. Instructions for faculty are on the Faculty Center help site. Note that any trip off campus property requires this release.
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Wording on dates can be flexible on the form: “During the month of October, dependent on stream flow, we will take a field trip on one of these three weekends:
Oct 11, 28, Nov 4.” If the field trip date gets changed, the faculty/ASC will have to put in a new date and the students will have to go to their student center and agree to the risk.
Modifications to building structures – Chairs were asked to let their faculty and staff know that no modifications may be made to any permanent structure on campus. Plant Operations MUST be contacted for any work on permanent structures, including securing bookshelves, etc. If in doubt, check it out.
OAA Priorities for AY 2010-2011
*Student success
*Governance broadly construed – Cabinet of Change recommendations – transparency, committee structure, decision processes
*Inclusive excellence – WASC theme with an emphasis on trying to diversify faculty, staff and administration.
*Improving campus climate (collegiality)
Chairs were reminded of the seven University-wide Student Learning Outcomes.
Chairs should review these and remind faculty what they are:
HSU Graduates will have demonstrated:
 Effective communication through written and oral modes
 Critical and creative thinking skills in acquiring a broad base of knowledge and applying it to complex issues.
 Competence in a major area of study.
 Appreciation for and understanding of an expanded world perspective by engaging respectfully with a diverse range of individuals, communities and viewpoints.
HSU graduates will be prepared to:
 Succeed in their chosen careers.
 Take responsibility for identifying personal goals and practicing lifelong learning.
 Pursue social justice, promote environmental responsibility, and improve economic conditions in their workplaces and communities.
Environmental Sciences Management – is creating a guide to student learning. This can include the student learning outcomes for the university.
Campus Climate – Steve asked chairs to encourage faculty in their consideration of staff. Professionalism is called for and required of faculty and staff.
CNRS Priorities
Marine Lab steering committee will set direction for the next few years and to recommend a plan for seeking a new director .
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Diversity Plan - ACTION - Each department needs to submit a brief diversity plan this Fall. This can be a one page report which will list best practices. Each department had been asked to pick two best practices a couple years ago and report on those. Faculty members need to be familiar with campus resources, and identify students who need assistance early on.
Courses with high failure rates. The chairs discussed a list of CNRS courses with enrollments of 30 or more that have 15% or more D, F, or WU. A variety of hypothetical reasons for the high failure rates were discussed. The Dean’s Office will come up with an action plan and will bring it to a chairs’ meeting.
Graduation Plan – needs to be on departmental radar. Action steps and timelines.
Make sure faculty are familiar with this plan.
There will be a campus discussion to implement a course required of all freshman
(the so-called University 101 course). The chairs discussed the possibility of having an NR-specific intro class that would be required for all majors.
Program reviews due in AY 2010/2011– Biology, Chemistry and Engineering.
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COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #1, August 26, 2010
BSSB 508
Announcements:
 Copies of all curriculum changes should be sent to the Dean’s Office. They will be reviewed to determine if the CDC should review.
 Spring 2011 graduate student admissions is much the same as last year, dependent on the State budget. Justification is needed for all admission requests.
Diversity Plan:
Each department needs to submit a diversity plan that identifies two best practices designed to improve the success of traditionally underrepresented students. Dale will send out resources to guide the development of the plan. One easy practice is for departments to participate in the wide variety of diversity events that are available throughout the year. A calendar of September multicultural events was distributed.
CNRS IT Committee:
The CNRS IT committee will be re-established and is charged to: 1) provide advice on academic computer lab refresh; 2) develop a CNRS Instructional
Technology (IT) policy to address software, computer equipment, etc. purchases.
The Chairs expressed the need for web design support from either the college or the University.
Oceanography Department Future:
A task force has been formed to recommend which department would be the best administrative partner for Oceanography. Lori Dengler will serve as department chair for this year while the department undergoes a tenure-track search for a biological oceanographer and a temporary hire for a physical oceanographer.
MSF Equipment Committee
A committee will meet to discuss the distribution of MSF funds for CNRS instructional equipment needs. The committee includes: Ken Fulgham, FWR;
Eileen Cashman, ERE; Steve Tillinghast, Geology; a to be determined Wildlife
Dept. representative and two Associated Student reps. A call for proposals will be sent out this fall and the committee will review all requests.
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Sponsored Programs Foundation
The Sponsored Programs Foundation is not financially sustainable in its current configuration because there is no cash-flow reserve. Strong consideration is being given to moving the SPF entirely to general fund support. There are a number of concerns, many of which surround Human Resources issues, that need to be explored before a final decision is made. Please forward specific concerns about the proposed re-configuration to Dean Smith.
High Failure Rate Courses
CNRS is reviewing courses with a high failure rate and is looking at solutions to this issue. Dean Smith asked for ideas on incentives for faculty to get involved in addressing this issue. The Deans Office is exploring approaches to engage the faculty in the conversation.
The Chemistry Department has given all CHEM 109 students an assessment/diagnostic exam that was created by the American Chemical Society in conjunction with CSU/UC and California Community Colleges. Exam scores this fall will be “truthed” against student performance. In the spring the exam will be used to identify students who should participate in supplemental instruction that will be offered by the department.
Space Utilization
Dale Oliver has sent an email request to chairs asking for the annual update on departmental space.
Course Planning
The group discussed the feasibility for developing and posting five- year course offering plan for each major. This would be helpful to both undergrad and grad students to better plan their degrees. The chairs were in favor of this idea.
Academic Senate Update
The first meeting was held this week with not much to report. The goal is to switch to a University Senate by January. Jay Verlinden is now chair of the
Academic Senate.
ICC
The ICC is discussing program review revision and proposed minors. The chairs asked for a timeline and a summary of what the ICC is working on and what the deadlines are. Dale Oliver will provide this.
CNRS Weekly The chairs asked for an email reminder of the updated CNRS weekly (on the CNRS website). Mary Hackett will send out an email (with a link) each Monday reminding all faculty and staff that the CNRS weekly has been updated.
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COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #2, September 9, 2010
BSSB 508
o Doctoral Incentive Program – remind former students about this CSU program. If you are a CSU alum, earn a Ph.D and take a teaching job at a CSU they will forgive some of your loans. o Vandalism – Vandals broke glass on the NR building and both greenhouses. CNRS has lots of valuable stuff outside and employees need to be careful, lock windows, etc. Alarm did go off in main greenhouse. o Arcata Arts Alive! Humboldt State community reception hosted by
Wells Fargo at Bank of America. o Thursday! Natural Resources Living Community BBQ: Sept. 9 3:00-
5:30, Canyon Lawn. This dorm on campus houses NR students. o CNRS Student Mixer – Sept. 23 4-6 pm Sci B lobby. o Upcoming Multicultural Events – encourage attendance. Native
Welcome Sept. 16 4-6 in Forum. Queer Community Welcome KBR
Sept. 13 th . Ramadan breaking fast Sept. 12 Creekview Lounge. These announcements are on the CNRS Weekly. o SPF Principal Investigator meeting Thursday Sept 16 5-7 pm in NR
101. o HSU Faculty and Staff Achievements Website – be sure to submit achievements. Submissions are as you input them, so be careful. If you publish a paper, send it to the president or send it to Steve and he will forward it to the president. o Free Tdap Immunizations in the South Lounge Sept. 9 11:00 – 5:00 due to concern over whooping cough. Free for all over age 11.
Scott Hagg and Lisa Perry
Scott reported the following numbers: fall headcount 7932, 7969 last year. First time freshmen 1317; 1330 on first day of classes. 1392 started last year. Many admitted students were withdrawn by Admissions due to missed deadlines. 890 transfer, increased over 783 last year. This is intentional – 1000 is the target for next year. 6612 is FTE target from Chancellor’s Office. No penalty for exceeding.
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4.68% exceeding on FTES. We get to keep the fee revenue. 13.77 average unit load, last year 14. FTE 7363, down from 7625 last year.
Spring admits: accepting applications until Sept. 27 transfer, freshmen, out of state non-res, non WUE. Qualified CR upper division transfers will be allowed to enroll. Unlimited number of grad students will be admitted for spring using program specific deadlines. Humboldt will declare first time freshman impaction for Fall 2011 for applicants outside of local service area. Local service area includes Humboldt, Del Norte, Western Trinity, Northern Mendocino. Lisa
Perry is working on an articulation project with Valerie Green in Registrar’s office. They have completed 31 new articulations just with 3 schools. Makes it easier for transfer students to see what will transfer. Any details or feedback on what to look for should go to Lisa.
Jyoti Rawal, Associate Dean for Student Success and
Retention
Jyoti is coordinating retention efforts on campus and she shared a timeline and plan for retention. Block scheduling and advising on GE courses was discussed with concern about science majors being advised to take too many GEs early which leaves them with only science classes later. Balance out GEs through the 4 years. The group discussed creating an advising assessment tool for faculty and talked about the need for early intervention and recognition of at-risk-of-failure students. The instructor needs a way to determine which students need help in the first three weeks (or at least before census). Early tests or quizzes were suggested.
SB1440 passed assembly and senate and is expected to be signed by the governor. Requires that CC assoc degree student be admitted to a CSU in a major that is aligned with their CC major. CSU will HAVE to complete them in 60 more units. Courses completed at the CC that are similar to the CSU will have to be accepted for credit.
University Advancement has augmented the dean’s trust accounts with $22K each and $9K for the library. These funds are to be used in ways they can relay to donors to create interest.
Discussion deferred to next meeting.
Mary Hackett is the CNRS contact for the RTP process. Department IUPCs should be elected in the spring so that they are prepared for the early fall deadlines. The chair will then be aware of what the process is and what their roles are.
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The President has given Academic Affairs $100K to augment faculty and student travel. The group discussed various ideas for prioritizing requests and what the requirements should be. All faculty requests will be considered as long as they include a paper or poster presentation or professional activity.
National/international meetings may be given priority. The Dean’s Office will distribute a request form and will set deadlines. This is a one-time funding opportunity.
Just informational this week. No action taken. Visit from Sonya Hildreth, director of learning assessment. If you have questions about assessment she is the person to contact. Dale is also the CNRS contact. Visit from Anna Kircher, Info officer, setting up virtual computer labs that would be available off campus through the web. Web conferencing, streaming, video capturing. Updating smart classrooms, new document management system for financial management. In January a new front end Business Intelligence in addition to Hyperion. The HELP desk is now called User Support Services. The campus wide event calendar is coming.
The Provost gave an update about SPF and President Richmond discussed enrollment info.
There was a brief discussion of the results of the exam given to all CHEM 109 students to assess achievement.
9

COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #3, September 23, 2010
BSSB 508
Meeting 10:00-12:00
Announcements –
 CNRS Mixer today (Thurs) 4-6.
 Dean Smith shared the weekly Biology Department newsletter. Good job
Liz!
 A one-page MSF spending explanation will be issued to students.
 A faculty member is needed for the advising task force as part of the
Graduation Rate Improvement Plan, let Dean Smith know if you are interested.
 A travel request form for the President’s Scholarly travel funds will be distributed to departments. $1000 for faculty/$500 for students for travel involving presentations.
 Memorial service for retired biologist Jake Houck this Sunday. 4:00 P.M. at the Marsh.
Classroom evaluation –
The group discussed classroom visitation/evaluation by colleagues and chairs for tenure track faculty and lecturers. The newly released Chairs’ Handbook outlines department chairs’ responsibilities and department personnel committees should be current on their responsibilities.
Gateway Courses
The chairs shared a brainstorming session about reasons for high failure rate in some courses and possible solutions with many interesting ideas/thoughts generated and discussed. Chairs will query their faculty as to interest in small group book club discussions of pedagogical ideas with materials provided by the
Dean’s Office.
Senate Update
John Reiss reported there was general concern over SB 1440 (community college bill). The Biology Department ecology emphasis now has a new name: Ecology and Biodiversity.
Two resolutions were discussed–
1. Minimum passing grade required for courses taken for grad degrees is now B-.
2. Internship policy. See Academic Senate website for details on these resolutions.
ICC
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The academic master planning committee discussed the Computing Science major. Any compelling arguments about having a CS major on campus should be shared with Mark and Dale.
Reports
A variety of items are due from departments, including program reviews for some. All reports should be sent to the Dean’s Office. Instructions will soon be sent out about the Writing Assessment follow up and results are to be sent to
Dale Oliver electronically. All departments will also submit a two-page Diversity
Plan or update on their existing plan. Again, instructions will be emailed to the chairs.
Next meeting: Thursday, October 7, 10-12 BSSB 508
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COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #4, October 7, 2010
BSSB 508
Meeting 10:00-12:00
Announcements – o 5 HSU student awards at SACNAS
 S. Craig, B. O’Gara, J. Bolman present o Wildlife Quiz Bowl Team wins National Title, again!!!
 HSU 110 U Wyo 15
 HSU 135 Mich Tech 0
 HSU 95 Penn State 20
 HSU 120 TAMU 55 o Census
 FTES 6730 (6765 in F 09)
 Unit Load 13.98 (14.16 in F 09) o Grand re-opening at the Natural History Museum this Saturday 10-3 o The Dean’s Office conference room now has a large video screen and is available for meetings needing video training o The Great California Shakeout is October 21 at 10:21 a.m. All faculty and staff are asked to drop, cover and hold no matter where they are.
Faculty in classrooms are asked to have students drop, cover and hold for two minutes. More info will be distributed. Please take this seriously ! o Need CNRS rep on Materials Services Committee/ATI o Need CNRS rep on Faculty Development Committee o There is a discussion about whether we should continue to read thesis titles and hood our Masters students at graduation because of the time it takes. Smith shared the consensus feeling of the CNRS that both should continue, the day is for the students. OAA will explore options. Stay tuned. o Closed Captioning funds are available for videos shown in classes o Chief Oren Lyons will have a keynote speech as part of Indigenous
Peoples Week, Mon. Oct 11 5:00 pm in KBR o There was a good turnout at the Latino Reception. CNRS was well represented.
RTP Standards
RTP Standards are posted on the APS and the CNRS website. Some departments standards were not approved by the committee and will now be reviewed by the
Dean. Other departments with approved standards may want to re-review their approved standards to differentiate between promotion to associate and promotion to full.
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Space Allocation
The Dean’s Office often reviews requests for office and/or lab space. The Council of Chairs will serve as an advisory council for the Dean when potentially contentious space decisions must be made. The CSU space guidelines will be followed.
Physics Education Reform (Article)
The chairs discussed an article concerning teaching pedagogy in physics and the sciences in general. The main point was that students learn far more when interactive engagement strategies are routinely used instead of the traditional lecture format. Many additional examples of ways to engage students were shared. The chairs also discussed an article on “Teaching the Millennial
Generation” which chairs will share with their faculty.
Web Site Maintenance
The group discussed departmental website maintenance needs. CNRS and
CAHSS are discussing the possibility of hiring someone to maintain (not design) departmental websites. Further discussion will take place.
Service Learning
A new CSU initiative (STEM) 2 is aimed at involving STEM students in service learning. HSU (Annie Bolick-Floss) is applying for a small grant to get involved with this initiative.
Senate Update
The Senate is looking at setting standards for approving new minors. It is also discussing future Senate configurations.
ICC
The ICC has a very heavy workload and Monday is the due date for new course proposals for the next catalog. Programs changes are due in the Spring.
Reports
Assessment reports are due to Sonya Hildreth. If your department did not complete assessments, they should let Sonya and Dale Oliver know and begin assessment process now.
Next meeting: Thursday, October 21, 10-12 BSSB 508
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COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #5, October 21, 2010
BSSB 508
Meeting 10:00-12:00
ADA Training
Nikola Hobbel, Faculty Development Coordinator, and Kevin O’Brien, Student
Disability Services, introduced the Accommodating Students with Disabilities online training module http://asd.humboldt.edu/ This course takes about 40 minutes to complete and CNRS is strongly encouraging all faculty (including lecturers) to take this training.
Nikola and Kevin made it clear that the ADA is an access/non-discrimination based policy that ensures a level playing field for all students. Academic standards remain the same for all students.
The group also discussed the evacuation of severely disabled students during an earthquake and suggested that faculty briefly outline emergency response plans on the first day of class. Regardless of the room or lab, the first action during an earth quake should be to drop, cover and hold on. Do NOT run out of the room.
CNRS needs to have two representatives on the Faculty Development Committee – which will be working on graduation rate improvement, diversity, service learning and more. Please let your chair know if you are willing to serve.
Drop, Cover and Hold On
At 10:21 a.m. all in attendance dropped to the floor and took cover under the conference table as part of the Great CA Shake Out. Nice video of the chairs crawling under the table is available if you are a Facebook friend of Lori Dengler!!
– Matt Johnson will be honored as Scholar of the Year on
Wed., October 27 at 5 p.m. in the Van Duzer Theatre. All CNRS faculty and staff are encouraged to attend and show their support.
The McCrone Promising Young Scholar award requests are coming up – candidates must have received their terminal degree within 7 years.
SB 1440 update from John Reiss and Bill Golden who went to the meeting in
Sacramento. The community colleges are working on AA transfer degrees that the
CSU must accept. CSU will come up with an implementation plan once the community colleges present some options.
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Dr. Joe Bezerra, California Agricultural Technology Institute (CATI) and the
California State University Agricultural Research Institute (ARI) is on campus and will meet with CNRS faculty on Friday at 10:00 a.m. in BSSB 508. Faculty with an interest in funds for ag based research are encouraged to attend. (Ag includes biomass, alternative energy, forest, biodiversity conservation, grazing, water quality and more). Funds are specifically available to Humboldt.
– The guidelines, created by the ICC, were shared and chairs are encouraged to provide input. The group discussed minors in general and the wide variety of requirements for minors.
– CNRS chairs and invited guests are reading “What the Best College
Teachers Do” and will meet to discuss the book on Nov. 9.
– The group discussed various departmental trust accounts that are currently housed in the foundation and that may be moved stateside. Many questions were raised and Dean Smith will invite someone from Accounting to come to a meeting to discuss the potential transfer of funds.
– John Reiss shared events of the recent meeting and reported that the proposed IRA fee increase was discussed. The CNRS chairs reacted with strong emotions over the large percentage of funds that go to support athletics.
A resolution on Service Learning courses was passed. A draft of the new University
Senate constitution and bylaws were discussed and it was suggested that a
Committee on Resources and Planning (subcommittee looks at overall distribution of funds, advisory to president) instead of the UBC be created along with a
Community Committee to assess campus climate.
Misc
Departments are encouraged to hold community building events for their students, i.e., advising nights, pizza nights, etc. in order to engage students and build relationships between faculty and students. These sorts of events go a long ways towards improving student retention which is a main priority for our campus.
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COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #6, November 18, 2010
BSSB 508
Meeting 10:00-12:00
 CNRS Taste of the Holidays will be held on Dec. 15 12-3:00 p.m. in FR 103. A flier will be distributed.
 Textbook orders need to be placed. In future semesters, orders will be due earlier due to state/fed law.
 The National Council for Science and the Environment conference will be held in
Washington DC in January with the theme “Our Changing Oceans.” HSU has been invited to participate and to have a film made mostly featuring work on the Coral Sea.
The President’s Office and Advancement will pay for this film which will then be available for campus and recruiting use.
 Plans are underway for an on-campus presentation by Marine Biologist Rick Rosenthal – a fisheries alumnus. He is made the PBS documentary “Superfish” (about bill fishes) and is working on “Hot Tuna” (which is about…guess what?)
 The Forestry Club will have Christmas trees for sale at the Natural History Museum beginning Nov. 29.
Annie Bolick Floss and Stacy Becker of the HSU Service Learning Center discussed HSU’s efforts to increase service learning opportunities in the STEM disciplines through a series of grants. The
SL staff will attend department meetings in the spring to conduct a survey on current SL classes.
They are also hosting a large regional conference in March which will include presentations by two STEM faculty scholars from other CSUs. They will provide support to departments to meet the new risk management requirements and other paperwork requirements for service learning courses.
The Chairs discussed ideas for one-time funds that may be received from the State budget augmentation. Top priority items include: equipment (including equipment for some departments) and software refresh, core lab space enhancement, new lab space and.
The Chairs discussed mandatory student advising and the various approaches departments take.
Several departments have group advising sessions which are very effective in building community while cutting down on the need for individual advising sessions.
The current CNRS policy is 5 hours per week shared over 4 days. The Chairs discussed various options and methods of offering office hours and appointments. Dean Smith will review the policy and consider adjustments.
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The group discussed various building coordinator responsibilities which include emergency evacuation plan posting, working with custodial staff, key requests, building hours and various uses of the building. Improved communication methods with the custodial staff will be pursued.
The chairs recently received a draft of the updated plan for program reviews, now known as program planning. The timeline coordinates the annual processes (assessment results, diversity planning, program data) which will then be compiled into a five-year program report. This is a work-in-progress and will continue to be improved.
Lastly
Dean invites faculty to consider joining Tomorrow’s Professor, an on line list serve out of Stanford
University. Postings include many useful suggestions for teaching, including the STEM disciplines.
To join click on: https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/tomorrows-professor
From the Dean’s Office: Have a nice week away (for those of you who will be) and enjoy a safe holiday!!
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COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #6, December 2, 2010
BSSB 508
Meeting 10:00-12:00
 CNRS Taste of the Holidays will be held on Dec. 15 12-3:00 p.m. in FR
103. A flyer will be distributed.
 CFA Social Monday evening, Dec. 6
 Departmental five-year course schedules are due to the Dean’s Office by the end of the semester.
 Annual Geology Dept rock auction – Dec. 3, 6 pm FH 118
 CNRS Faculty meeting – Jan 12, 1 pm in NR 101. Dean of Students Randi
Darnall Burke will provide advice and training on dealing with disruptive students. CNRS Faculty are required to attend.
All courses with a CRN require an indication whether or not a textbook is required, including 499 and 699s. Faculty can simply indicate no text required.
Marissa Mourer, HOP coordinator, attended the meeting to discuss Summer 2011
HOP.
Dates: June 20-21 1 st session. June 27-28 2 nd session.
No July session
HOOP transfer session Aug 16-17
Aug 18-19 freshmen session.
The HOP office is proposing some changes to the on-line HOOP advising sessions and asked Chairs for input on holding on-line video introductory group advising meetings (using Illuminator) which could be followed by individual sessions if necessary. Many opinions were offered on the wide variety of advising options available, including social networking. Marissa will take this information under advisement and will get back to the Chairs with more information.
All Spring 2011 freshmen and transfer students will go through HOP online for the spring semester and they will be assessed as to the effectiveness of the experience. Numbers on Spring admits should be available this week.
Things are in relatively good shape for the CNRS. The departments purchased
$115,000 of equipment that will enhance teaching with MSF funds. Another
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$300,000 will be used for routine equipment replace (i.e., for items not eligible for MSF funds) and for computer refresh for faculty and staff. The President’s
Scholar Travel funds were fully distributed to faculty and students and CNRS will cover the additional requests already received. Travel funds of $500 are also available for faculty in the RTP process.
VP for student affairs is encouraging departments to host meet and greet events in the spring for your majors. These events assist with retention and student connection. It is vital that faculty attend these events. The Dean’s Office will assist with matching funds.
Spring enrollments – freshmen are registering today and tomorrow.
Beth Eschenbach, ERE Professor, is the CNRS rep on this group which began last fall. The task force is evaluating programs and which should grow or shrink.
Beth shared a sample department data sheet with the following measurements:
Quality; Magnet programs vs. recipient programs; External Revenue Generation;
Department Costs; and, Capacity to Grow. The committee will review data sheets next semester and will make recommendations to the Provost. Departments will likely have a chance to provide input on data.
Reminder – nominations of faculty for the five faculty awards are due Dec. 20.
Next meeting: December 16.
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COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #7, December 16, 2010
BSSB 508
Meeting 10:00-12:00
 Reminder – faculty award nominations due Monday.
 Five year course plans – due Dec. 22.
 CNRS college meeting for all faculty and staff on Jan 12, FH 118 1:00 p.m. The meeting is primarily for training by Randi Darnall Burke on handling disruptive students.
Senate Bill 1440
Vice Provost Jena Burges discussed SB 1440 which requires CSU and CA Community
Colleges to collaborate on allowing transfer students to transfer seamlessly to CSU. This
Student Transfer Achievement Reform Act directs CCs to develop associate degrees for transfer, with specific disciplines. All lower div GE and institutions requirements and at least 18 units in the major will be included in the 60 unit degree. CSU must accept these degrees as meeting lower div GE, provide priority admissions to CSU, and not require students to repeat a course that is similar to one they have taken at CC at a LD. The law requires if you have a 120 unit degree in a similar area that is like the AA degree, they must be able to graduate in an additional 60 units, including the 9 units of UD GE.
Community colleges must begin offering these transferable degrees in Fall 2010 with
CSU expecting transfers in Fall 2013. Vice Provost Burges and Dean Smith urge faculty members and Chairs to get involved with the various state committees who are making plans for implementation of this bill. http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/09-10/bill/sen/sb_1401-
1450/sb_1440_bill_20100929_chaptered.html
Graduate Thesis Styles
The Chairs discussed the style options for graduate thesis. Most are thesis style, but some students choose to use a journal style which is currently allowed. This can cause difficulties in editing for the graduate coordinator due to the various manuscript styles required by journals and the need for students to still include thesis style pages, i.e. tables, figures, references, etc. The Chairs were asked to discuss the best course of action with their faculty. Should CNRS only accept thesis style or should there be more specific requirements for journal style submissions?
Dean of Research
The Provost and President are considering hiring a Dean of Research who would oversee campus research and also supervise a business director/manager of the
Sponsored Programs Foundation. The Chairs, who were generally in favor of this
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idea, were asked to discuss this with their faculty. This position would remain separate from the Dean of Graduate Studies.
CNRS Computer Refresh
Dave Marshall let the group know that 67 faculty and staff computers will be replaced with ordering beginning on Monday. Some departments are using their own funds to enhance the purchases. The Chairs and the Dean are in agreement that
CNRS supported faculty work stations be desktop computers, not laptops. Only under special circumstances, approved by the CNRS IT staff, will laptops serve as the primary work station for faculty. Laptops are not being refreshed at this time due to increased maintenance requirements and a shorter lifespan.
Service Learning
Matt Johnson, Wildlife Dept. Chair and Service Learning Fellow, spoke to the group about Service Learning in the sciences. He described service learning as a pedagogical attempt to dismantle the irony of making science real for students and a way to bridge students into the real world of hands-on science. He has worked with the HSU Service Learning staff and has been able to include preparation, evaluation, action and reflection in his students’ experiences. He encouraged CNRS faculty to work with the SL office to set up relationships with community agencies and to consider designating some science courses as SL courses.
ICC Update
The Integrated Curriculum Committee has been overwhelmed since its inception with huge amounts of work. A recent flurry of activity resulted in getting most courses and program changes through the ICC and Senate. The CS degree has been redone with CIS eliminated. Various other program and course changes have been approved. No action was taken on the approval of minors due to lack of time.
Frustration was expressed over the lack of progress and the excessive amount of paperwork required by the ICC.
Upcoming items for the ICC: minor guidelines, new major guidelines, program review process. The Chairs discussed the need to strengthen the roles of the colleges in the process.
Academic Senate Update
The Senate approved the Fall graduation list and the academic calendar. The Senate also discussed the program review evaluation planning and the revamping of academic senate. Claire Knox will come to the CNRS January meeting to discuss changes. The Lumberjack had an article on the academic senate reorganization.
Student vote: 67% against the IRA increase with a 19% turnout of voters.
Next meeting January 20, 2011, BSSB 508 10:00-12:00.
21

COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #8, January 20, 2011
BSSB 508
Meeting 10:00-12:00
 INRSEP Open House today 2-4 p.m. House 38
 Faculty should submit their R/V Coral Sea Spring cruise requests http://www.humboldt.edu/marinelab/forms.html
Freshmen First-Year Experience
Vice Provost Jena′ Burges and Jyoti Rawal, Associate Dean for Retention, briefed the group on plans for the Fall 2011 freshmen first-year experience. A small group of faculty will be meeting to set goals and make plans for this program, designed to increase skills building, confidence, engage students in their own education and ultimately to increase retention. Concerns and ideas were shared and additional faculty volunteers will be called on once the parameters are set for the program. Faculty are welcome to share their ideas with Jyoti or Jena′.
Budget Update
Dean Smith had just come from an Executive Committee meeting where a small amount of information about the State budget was shared. The $500 million cut to the CSU is a best case scenario which could devolve into something worse if the voters don’t approve extension of recent tax increases that are slated to sunset at the end of this fiscal year. The CSU presidents will meet next week and more information should be available.
Campus News
Training on a new campus protocol for booking state rate air travel will begin Feb. 1.
Faculty are encouraged to attend the 1:00 session. Other sessions will be offered.
Watch for an announcement with more details. Also, as of April 1 the CSU will be issuing a new travel policy; again, details are forthcoming.
The Sponsored Programs Foundation has moved to the SBS 4 th floor. Steve Karp is the new interim director and two pre-award staff members have been hired with a plan to hire a support staff position for the analysts. Hopefully, services in SPF will improve, please let Steve Smith know about any issues.
There are several new solar powered parking dispensers on campus. They take credit and debit cards.
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Recruitment and enrollment update: applications numbers are way up and attendance at receptions is huge.
The Nursing program is in limbo right now. The President and Provost are meeting with local health care providers today. The interim nursing director is Pat Biteman and Steve Hackett is serving as interim department chair.
Loyalty funds (donations from alumni and parents) will be available for projects. A solicitation for projects will be out in a couple of weeks.
Tenure Track Position Requests
Position requests are due to the Dean’s Office by Feb. 15 for the 2012/13 academic year with a likelihood of around six positions campus-wide. The Chairs will discuss position requests informally at the next council meeting.
Updates
Shared department website support is still being discussed with CAHSS.
Lists of videos needing close captioning are due to CNRS by Jan. 28. In some cases it may be cheaper to purchase new videos that are close captioned. Youtube videos present a special challenge.
SB 1440 – Dale Oliver will keep Chairs updated on activity with this law.
Gateway Courses
The concern over high failure rate courses in the sciences remains front and center.
CNRS department chairs have been asked to look at their course failure rates and to discuss ways that faculty might address them. Lowering failure rates is not about lowering the quality or rigor of the course. The purpose of these discussions is to examine our teaching methods to see if there are more effective ways to engage students. Better engagement will hopefully promote success for more students.
Next meeting February 3, 2011, BSSB 508 10:00-12:00.
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COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #9, February 3, 2011
BSSB 508
Meeting 10:00-12:00
 Reception to name the T. E. Lawlor Mammal Collection – Friday, Feb. 11
2:30 p.m. Sci B atrium followed by Dr. Jim Patton seminar at 4:00 in FH
118.
 HSU Zoology alum and Emmy award winning wildlife film maker Rick
Rosenthal, will be on campus April 19. More info to come.
 Free on-line tutoring is now available for HSU students. Students have been notified via email. http://www.tutor.com/
 HSU Institute for Student Success May 18-19. Call for proposals. www.humboldt.edu/institute
 The Provost has recommended a paper “Beyond the Master Plan: The
Case for Restructuring Baccalaureate Education in California” for review.
The Chairs will receive an electronic copy.
 The Dean updated the Chairs on current faculty and staff recruitments for
Oceanography, Wildlife, Chemistry and the Coral Sea.
Planning Committee for Research, Scholarship and Creative Activities
CNRS has an opening on this planning committee. Several faculty members volunteered to serve and the Chairs voted to support Sean Craig, Biological
Sciences, as the representative.
Position Requests
The remainder of the meeting was dedicated to discussion of departmental needs for new faculty.
Next meeting February 24, 2011, BSSB 508 10:00-12:00.
24

COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #10, February 24, 2011
BSSB 508
Meeting 10:00-12:00
 CNRS student mixer – March 1, 3-5 p.m. Sci B atrium area. Faculty, staff and students are encouraged to attend – food and entertainment provided
 Rick Rosenthal film event – April 19
 Commencement is May 14
 Oliphant scholarship application and announcement were distributed. Two
$3500 scholarships are available for students in an area of marine science.
 Student work study opportunities are available at the Marine Lab for students in the marine sciences
 Loyalty funds – proposals are being accepted for projects that enhance students’ learning experiences. Proposals for totals up to $20,000 are due by April 25 to the Dean’s Office.
 CNRS needs to elect one more representative to the Academic Senate to serve through Dec. 2011. Faculty going through RTP who are in need of
University service experience should consider volunteering.
 Student Awards – 3-4 CNRS faculty reps are needed to select the CNRS student to receive the Award for Excellence in an Academic Discipline.
Please let your Chair know if you would like to volunteer.
 As of July 1, all information technology support functions will be centralized under Anna Kircher’s direction. The CNRS ITCs will report to her division.
 Chairs were asked to poll their faculty on their willingness to take attendance in freshmen level courses as one reporting tool to be used in the Early Alert software which identifies at-risk students.
 STEM Education Conference – the Dean will support one Chair or faculty member to attend this conference sponsored by the Association of
American Colleges & Universities. March 24-26 in Miami, FL.
Thesis Style
The Chairs continued their discussion on the journal style as an option for NR thesis submissions. The discussion will be continued at a future meeting. The
Biology Grad program does not allow the journal style.
ICC
John Reiss agreed to serve as the CNRS department chair representative to the
Academic Master Planning subcommittee of the ICC for the next academic year.
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The ICC is discussing College-level input on curriculum changes. They are also working to make curricular processes more visible so that departments can track their submissions.
Department Chair Elections
In AY 2011/12, department chair elections will need to take place in the first week of February, prior to the Fall schedule roll. Newly elected Chairs are invited to attend the Council of Chairs’ meetings during the Spring semester.
Geospatial Task Force
Mahesh Rao, FWR, and Associate Dean Dale Oliver updated the Chairs on the progress of the campus-wide Geospatial Task Force to upgrade curricula and eliminate course redundancies. A new minor and an updated certificate program are being proposed. A draft list of courses, including a possible new 100 level GE course, was distributed and discussed.
Assessment Plans
A number of departments have not yet submitted assessment plans for this academic year. They are due immediately to Dale Oliver.
Independent Academic Work Course Form
This form must be completed for all independent study courses taken for credit
(thesis, directed study, etc.) and must document learning outcomes. The form is available on the Academic Programs website and must be completed and filed in the department office. This form can be completed once for students who are enrolling in continuous semesters of independent work.
Internship Form Requirements
The HSU Internship Policy must be followed for any student taking part in a for credit internship. The policy and accompanying forms are available on the
Academic Programs website and the forms are to be filed in the department office. The forms say DRAFT but are now actually in effect. The site visit form is to be completed by the faculty member; however, if the location does not allow a site visit, the site supervisor can complete the form.
Budget Update
The campus will receive a $13 million cut next year, much of which will be covered by student fee increases and funds returned to the budget by the previous governor. At the moment this leaves OAA with about $1.5 million in new cuts plus nearly $3 million from last year’s deficit. It’s important to note that this is a best case scenario and assumes voter approval of tax extensions. The campus is looking for revenue enhancement opportunities, including increased recruitment of international students, out-of-state students and increased
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summer offerings through extended ed as ways to close the deficit. Creative ideas should be shared with the Dean.
Next meeting March 10, 2011, BSSB 508 10:00-12:00.
27

COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #11, March 10, 2011
BSSB 508
Meeting 10:00-12:00
 HSU is hosting the Western Student Wildlife Conclave this weekend on campus. Visit the Wildlife Conclave website for more information.
 The Redwood Regional Logging Conference is next week Thurs-Saturday.
 The Wildlife Department is organizing a Traditional Ecological Knowledge symposium for Sept. 22-23. Various departments are financially supporting this effort.
 Humboldt County Science Fair is during spring break. They are still looking for judges for Tuesday and Thursday.
 HSU Commencement Speaker and alum Rob Thomas will be on campus
May 12-13 and available for consultation regarding retention, curriculum and more.
 The Oceanography Department will have four tenure-track faculty candidates on campus to interview following spring break. The candidates will each give two presentations that are open to students and faculty.
Critical Thinking and Writing Concerns
The Chairs discussed concerns that some students are not able to effectively convey the purpose of an experiment in lab reports or other writing assignments.
General discussion included the tip that departments create a writing guideline for various types of assignments. The ERE Department has a guideline on their website and has found it to be an effective tool in directing students.
Advisor Evaluation
ESM Department tested an advisor evaluation last semester to get some feedback from students on advisor accessibility and effectiveness. The evaluation was sent to students via survey monkey and the response rate was acceptable.
The evaluation was shared with the Chairs and several expressed interest in using a similar tool. Dean Smith encouraged departments to voluntarily use it to assess some aspects of departmental advising.
CNRS Academic Senate Representative
Dean Smith thanked the faculty who volunteered for the Academic Excellence
Award Committee. The group discussed the difficulty of getting faculty to volunteer for the Academic Senate and the variety of reasons why this is true.
The CNRS has one empty seat and it is important to have a representative to share CNRS voice on many important issues. The Chairs will approach their
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faculty again to encourage a volunteer to serve through December 2011. The
Dean’s Office will compile a chart listing current collateral duties for CNRS faculty.
Waitlist Procedures
The procedure for students to get put on class waitlists was shared with the
Chairs and also emailed to department ASCs. Students will have the option of being put on a waitlist when they enroll for Fall 2011 semester courses. When a seat opens up the student will be automatically enrolled. Students will need to check their Student Center to be updated on their status. Notification will not be sent. Pre-requisites will be enforced. Faculty can opt out of having a waitlist for their courses.
Pay for Print
Teaching associates have faculty status in Peoplesoft and therefore print for free.
There is not currently an option for them to pay for printing if they are doing personal printing and the Central IT office had some concern about the amount of printing. The Chairs discussed various ways to offer printing options to grad students and TAs.
IT Consolidation
The Dean shared the current IT consolidation plan. The main effect on CNRS will be that our ITCs will not report to the Dean’s Office but most other services should remain the same.
Enrollment Management
The draft results from the Enrollment Task Force were shared with Chairs along with program data sheets on each department. Data questions or corrections should be sent to the Office of Institutional Research. A new committee will be formed to put the results in to action.
Next meeting March 24, 2011, BSSB 508 10:00-12:00.
29

COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #12, March 24, 2011
BSSB 508
Meeting 10:00-12:00
 Radha Webley, Office of Diversity, announced a series of Diversity Focus
Groups for faculty and staff and encouraged participation. The general
CNRS faculty group will be facilitated by Matt Johnson on April 6 at 5:30 p.m. Snacks will be provided. Other groups will meet – register at http://www.humboldt.edu/diversity/focus_groups.html
to determine which focus group fits you. Dean Smith encouraged all CNRS faculty and staff to take part in this important discussion.
 Proposals for Humboldt Loyalty, Parent & Family Funds are due to the
Dean’s Office by April 25. Proposals of up to $20,000 are being accepted.
Guidelines are available.
 Spring Preview is April 9. Forestry Alumni weekend is also April 9 as is the
California Big Time, a gathering and celebration of local tribes.
 WPAF workshop for faculty – April 15. Faculty in the RTP process are encouraged to attend. IUPC members are also encouraged to attend.
 Two INRSEP students have been placed in NOAA internships; one in
Sacramento and one in Arcata.
 The Geology Department is hosting a Japan earthquake and tsunami community forum on Monday, March 28, 5:30 p.m. KBR.
 Three candidates for the position of CNRS Dean will be on campus March
28, April 4 and April 11. All CNRS employees are encouraged to attend the open forums and provide feedback. Information is available .
Faculty Committee Service
The Chairs discussed the recently distributed Faculty Committee Service spreadsheet. Chairs were asked to provide any missing information about faculty service.
Upper Division GE Course Offerings
The number of UD GE course offerings (not required for a major) needed in
CNRS has steadily declined and CNRS has been directed to cancel several Fall
2011 courses. The Chairs discussed courses that may be cancelled (OCN 310,
PHYX 304 or FISH 300).
Thought Provoking Video
The Chairs watched an interesting video “Salman Khan: Let’s use video to reinvent education” which generated a lively discussion about student success, graduation retention and STEM pedagogy. The Chairs were encouraged to share
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the video with faculty and continue this discussion while perhaps implementing new methods of instruction. http://www.ted.com/talks/salman_khan_let_s_use_video_to_reinvent_education.ht
ml
Graduation Retention Plans
The Chairs shared current departmental activities to increase student success and retention. The Chancellor’s Office has directed HSU to improve retention rates by 12-15% over a six year period. All faculty and staff must take this directive seriously and implement plans for improvement.
The “Easy Button”
The group discussed a writing assignment administered in a chemistry course prior to an exam. The questions asked students to identify and write a brief nongraded essay about their values. The non-scientific result was a fairly substantial increase in test scores for the class. However, there is a growing body of literature that strongly supports how student emotions and feelings affect their learning capacity and performance on exams. If faculty approach and teach with student success as their goal, success rates improve. Similarly, faculty expectations of failure confirm that outcome as well. The Chairs were asked to discuss and consider trying this type of assignment with their faculty.
DARS and Major Contracts
The Dean asked for input on discontinuing the use of major contracts and relying solely on the DARS. The Chairs were strongly opposed to this idea with the current DARS set up. Provide your input to your chair. The Dean will invite the
Registrar to the next CDC meeting to discuss concerns.
Videos via Moodle
The Environmental Science & Mgmt Department has established a departmental
Moodle site with all ESM faculty given instructor status. Jeremy Ketelsen in Media has uploaded DVDs and VHS videos used in ESM courses that can be shared by all faculty. Thus a library of the videos is created. Faculty simply log in to the
Moodle site and play one of 20 or more instructional videos. Other departments may want to consider establishing a similar site.
Field Trip Safety and Earthquakes/Tsunamis/High Winds
In the wake of the Japan earthquake and tsunami, the Chairs were asked to discuss field trip safety with their faculty and to develop departmental policies on what to do in the event of a natural hazard during a trip. The Chairs will gather input from faculty and will discuss a college-wide policy at a future CDC meeting.
Next meeting April 7, 2011, BSSB 508 10:00-12:00.
31

COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #13, April 7, 2011
BSSB 508
Meeting 10:00-12:00
 Fall Chairs’ Retreat – August 16
 California Big Time – April 9
 Forestry Alumni Weekend – April 9
 Spring Preview – April 9
 Rosenthal film event – April 19 – get your tickets at the Bookstore now
 Institute for Student Success May 18-19. Faculty are encouraged to sign up on line http://www.humboldt.edu/institute/ . The Plenary speaker, Milton Randle, will be discussing enhancing learning outcomes and community building for STEM students.
 PREP (Program Review and Evaluation Program) training is available this month. Chairs and ASCs should take part. Sign up on the training website.
 A proposal has been made by University Advancement to consolidate the various recognition/awards events into one big event with a celebratory dinner. (Distinguished alumni, teaching excellence, staff recognition, etc.) University Advancement is working on this.
 Loyalty fund proposals (up to $20K) are due to the Dean’s Office by
April 25. Follow the proposal guidelines available from your Chair or the Dean’s Office.
 Federal Work Study money was overspent last year and funds will be expended by April 30. Departments will need to pay the student’s full salary after April 30.
Math Remediation Study
Jacqueline Nagatsuka, Office of Institutional Research, shared the findings of the recent math remediation study. The number of math remediation students at
HSU has almost doubled over the last five years. Nearly half of all freshmen are remediation students. Retention, graduation and success rates are all very low for students who require math remediation. HSU’s six year graduation rate fell from 42% last year to 37% this year giving us one of the lowest graduation rates in the CSU system. The Math Department is piloting several course adaptations to address these issues. Several faculty members will join Jacqueline and Jyoti
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Rawal in a site visit to Evergreen College, well known for its learning community and first year experience successes.
The results of the Math Remediation Study are available on the Institutional
Research website and should be reviewed by all.
University Senate Vote
Forums are being held and information is being distributed about the upcoming vote on the proposed University Senate and on the new faculty constitution. A pro and con voter’s guide will also be distributed. Faculty are strongly encouraged to be informed and to take part in the election coming before the end of the semester. Information is available at the Academic Senate website.
State University Grants (SUG)
We’ve recently learned that State University Grants have all been given out for next year already. This appears to be due to an increase in the number of requests for financial aid. Much of these sorts of student aid are awarded on a first-come-first served basis.
DARs and Major Contracts
The Vice Provost and Registrar will likely meet with Chairs at the Provost’s
Department Chairs’ meeting on April 21 to discuss concerns about eliminating major contracts and only using the Degree Audit Report. Chairs were asked to put their concerns in writing and Dean Smith will forward a list to Grace
Dempsey.
IUPC/RTP Training
Faculty going through the RTP process and those serving on IUPCs should attend the WPAF Workshop put on by APS. April 15, 12-1:30 p.m. in the University
Banquet Room.
Department Chairs Compensation
Dale Oliver outlined the plan for Chair compensation for work outside of the academic year.
Missing Reports
Various departments are missing diversity plans and assessment plans. Dale
Oliver will be following up.
Other
The University Center is considering allowing the Bookstore to be operated by an outside business/corporation. Comments are welcome and should be directed to either Mark Rizzardi or Ken Fulgham who sit on the University Center Board.
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CNRS Dean Candidate Steven Smith will interview on Monday, April 11. Open forum at 3 p.m. in Library 209. The Provost and the search committee are seeking your input.
Chairs were asked to submit updates to the recently distributed faculty collateral duties spreadsheet.
Building coordinators are to be taking part in mandatory Building Evacuation
Team training with Jan Marnall of UPD. Last week’s bomb scare in Founders Hall highlighted the need for effective and comprehensive building evacuation plans.
A “happy hour/wake” style event will be held in the near future in honor of the late Bill Golden. Stay tuned.
Next meeting April 28, 2011, BSSB 508 10:00-12:00. The meeting will be followed by a lunch at the Windows Café location. ASCs will be invited as well.
34

COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SCIENCES
COUNCIL OF DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
MEETING #14, April 28, 2011
University Banquet Room
Meeting 10:00-11:30
 Fall Chairs’ Retreat – August 16
 Dean Smith will meet with Rob Thomas, commencement speaker and education expert, on May 12. Chairs are invited to attend.
 The Institute for Student Success will be held May 18-19. The plenary speaker on May 18 is Milton Randle, “Enhancing Learning
Outcomes and Community Building for STEM Students and
Beyond.” Dr. Randle has implemented a summer bridge model, first developed at UCB, that greatly increases academic success of traditionally underrepresented students in the STEM disciplines.
Faculty are strongly encouraged to attend. Register now at www.humboldt.edu/institute . Additional workshops directed at
CNRS faculty and staff are also on the schedule.
 HOOP advising begins May 23.
 Elluminate web conferencing is now available free of charge. Visit the ITS website for info.
 Faculty are encouraged to use the CSU community learning portal
MERLOT at merlot.org.
Provost’s Chairs’ Council Meeting Questions
An enrollment management committee has been established to develop an enrollment management plan based on the Enrollment Management Task Force’s report. The goal is strategically manage program growth (i.e., limit, maintain, augment). The Chairs shared their concerns about access for all versus success in a major and controlling growth vs. declaring impaction. Dean Smith will serve on the committee.
The Chairs also discussed concerns about classroom space and scheduling of multiple sections during prime time. These items will be discussed further at the
Fall Chairs’ retreat.
Reflections on AY 2010/11
The Dean asked for comments about successes during 10/11 and room for improvement/growth in the coming year. The Chairs were pleased with the level of communication and transparency from the Dean’s Office. The Dean and/or
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Associate Dean will likely attend more departmental meetings next year.
Associate Dean Dale Oliver will remain as interim in 2011/12 and an internal search for the permanent position will likely take place in the fall semester.
Plans for AY 2011/12
The College will hold a strategic planning session to define the direction of the
College for the next few years. STEM pedagogy is at the top of the list along with curriculum alignment. Chairs were asked to query faculty about important issues for the planning process.
Faculty Position Requests
CNRS has been approved to search for four positions: FWR – forestry administration and economic policy (1/2 funded by the timber industry); ERE – water specialist; EMP – planning; and, EMP/ENVS – energy specialist. Search committee members must attend the May 19 workshop on “Strategies for
Avoiding Unconscious Bias in the Hiring Process.”
Collegiate Learning Assessment Test
CSU requires each campus to administer this critical thinking test to 100 freshmen and 100 seniors each year. Due to difficulties in getting seniors to volunteer to take the test, all three colleges will identify a class (or classes of seniors) to take the exam. Faculty whose classes are identified will be notified the semester prior to the exam so they can plan accordingly.
The meeting adjourned for a lunch including ASCs and CNRS staff to celebrate another successful year and to honor Bill Alexander, who is retiring from the
Physics stockroom. The group also toasted our wonderful CNRS IT guys, Dave,
Mason and Pat, who will soon be working under central ITS.
Next meeting: Commencement rehearsal May 12, 11:00 a.m. at the field house.
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