September 2011

FACULTY REPRESENTATIVE ASSEMBLY MEETING
September 9, 2011

Attendance: Peg Bacon, Brian Burnett, Andrea Hutchins, Katie Kaukinen, Amanda Elder, Catherine Kelly, Tom Napierkowski, Don Morley, Bob Durham, Jeff Spicher, Morgan Shepherd, Julaine Field, Pam Carter, Rebecca Webb, Michele Companion, Suzanne Cook, Hilary Smith, Beth Kumar, Lonnie Schaible, Christina Martinez, Edgar Cota-Torres, Dorothea Olkowski, Janet Sauer, Dave Anderson, Rory Lewis, Janel Owens, David Moon, Ron Fitz

Call to Order / Approval of Minutes:

Motion to approve the minutes from May 13, 2011 meeting by Bob Durham
Seconded by Michele Companion
Motion passed unanimously

Reports of Visitors:

Peg Bacon:
Enrollment is up 5.3%, with an increase of 17.8% in the freshmen class and an increase of 6.2% in transfer students!  Opening Convocation ceremony went very well.  Tom Huber, Professor of Geography and Environmental Studies and President’s Teaching Scholar, was the featured guest speaker, whose presentation focused on the themes presented in the all-campus read this year – No Impact Man.  Doug Fine, the author of Farewell, My Subaru will be coming to campus later this month as a guest speaker concerning this topic.  Mary Snyder has joined the campus as the new dean of the College of Education.  The search for the dean of the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences is underway and they have received 80 applications so far.  We have a total of 29 new faculty this year – 9 tenure track and 20 non-tenure track.  The CIMB Center, which is based in Boulder, is expanding in collaboration with our campus to establish a center at UCCS.  There are several academic grant initiatives underway to include ACE At Home in the World, which Charlie Sweet and Kee Warner are directing and the President’s Interfaith Campus Challenge, which is spearheaded by Jeff Scholes, Philosophy Instructor.  Both of these initiatives focus on global diversity efforts.  The first Café Scientifique of the fall semester will be held on Tuesday, September 13 at Clyde’s.  The General Education Phase II Taskforce has been meeting regularly and is planning an all-faculty retreat on Friday, November 18.  The 2012 new strategic campus plan effort is just beginning.  We have 5 new bachelors degrees, one new masters degree and 3 new doctoral degrees.  The Weekend University program has been very successful.  The faculty mentoring program has been beneficial – all colleges have recently revised and posted their RPT criteria.  There is currently an undergrad online initiative underway as a result of 47% of the national college student population taking online courses.  The Faculty Information System currently used in Boulder will be established and set up for our campus.  This process has just started and will include the FRPA report for faculty.  Retention is up to 71% this year.  Tam Doane is taking Amy Hill’s place in international student studies.

Brian Burnett:
We currently have approximately 9300 students on campus.  Our current strategic plan covers 2007 – 2012, which is why we are launching a new strategic plan effort to cover 2012 – 2020.  We want to have 75% of all faculty and staff involved in the process and we hope to be finished by spring (April or May) of next year, 2012.  The Facilities Master Plan is also under development as well.  The dorms are full, with a waitlist of 95.  In May we will start building 2 more towers for housing, which will create accommodations for 200 more students.  We plan to offer continuous dining in the Lodge starting fall 2013.  The first academic building on North Nevada, the Academic Health Services Center, will break ground next summer.  The power lines will be removed from overhead on Nevada and placed underground.  We have unbudgeted tuition revenue and are up about 20% in non-resident fees, which is good news.  However, the state has already announced a $120 million cut to higher ed next year with a $50 million cut to Financial Aid, which we will need to back-fill for our share.  The World Softball teams will be coming here to our campus in summer 2012.  Our campus has been given a piece of the World Trade Center, which will be unveiled and put on display in a dedication ceremony on Monday, September 12.

Mark Malone (Faculty Council Chair):
A presentation was given to the assembly representatives concerning the dismissal for cause and severance pay faculty issue.  Several visiting faculty from Boulder were also in attendance to discuss this issue.  The full PowerPoint presentation is attached for reference.  Faculty feedback is requested by October 14, 2011.

Officer Reports:

President’s Report
Report attached

Vice-President’s Report
Andrea is serving on the campus food services committee and welcomes any feedback to pass on.

Past President’s Report
No report

Reports from Standing Committees:

EPUS Report:
No report – has not met yet

Personnel & Benefits:
No report – has not met yet

Faculty Advisory Committee on the Budget:
Report attached

Faculty Minority Affairs Committee:
Report attached

Women’s Committee:
Report attached

Non-Tenure Track Faculty:
Report attached

Academic Computing:
Report attached

Library:
Currently working on implementing experimental system to restrict quiet zones – research/work only; no Facebook, cell phones or social media networks

Intercollegiate Athletics:
No one present – no report

Sustainability:
Currently seeking grant opportunities; involved in Master Plan and program to green the labs; all-campus read efforts are going well with No Impact Man

PRIDE:
No one present – no report

OLD BUSINESS

None

NEW BUSINESS

Discussion on charge for Library Committee (Regular Standing Advisory Committee) – this item was postponed until the October 14, 2011 meeting (proposed by Amanda Elder, seconded by Pam Carter, passed by unanimous vote)

MOTIONS

None

Adjournment:

Motion to adjourn the Faculty Assembly Meeting by Michele Companion
Seconded by Suzanne Cook
Motion passed unanimously
Meeting adjourned at 1:59 p.m.