Wichita State University Faculty Senate Minutes of the meeting Monday, September 26, 2005

Accepted as corrected

 

MEMBERS PRESENT: Akrabova, Billings, Brooks, Carruthers, Cavarozzi, Celestin, Close, Decker, deSilva, Dooley, Elder, Forlaw, Griffin, Hamdeh, Hathaway, Hodson, Klunder, Lancaster, Loftus, Markovich, Mau, C.Moore-Jansen, P Moore-Jansen, Myers, Rokosz, Ross, Roussel, Soles, Spurgeon, Stanga, Taher, Teshome, Vanderburgh, Waters, Yeager
 

MEMBERS ABSENT:  Badgett, Bryum, Driessen, Eckert, Sun, Turk, Waheba, Wolf, Wynn

MEMBERS EXCUSED:  Gibson, Myose, Proctor
 

EX-OFFICIO MEMBERS:  VPAAR Hutchinson

 

Summary of Action:
    1.  Accepted the nomination of Curtis Proctor to represent LAS Social Sciences (complete the term of Brian Withrow)  and Rob Manske as Senator(2yr) from Health Sciences
    2.  Accepted the following committee appointments:

                Faculty Support --- Gwen Mukes, Education -- appt. ends 2008   and Beth Mohler, University Libraries --  appt. ends 2008
                University Admissions  --  Susan Matveyeva, University Libraries

                General Education  --  Peggy Anderson, Education -- appt. ends 2007

    3.  Accepted the following committee appointments September 12, 2005

                Academic Affairs --  Cathy Moore-Jansen, University Libraries -- appt. ends 2008

                Rules  --  Dharma Chopra, LAS Math/Natural Sciences --  appt. ends 2008

                General Education --  Elizabeth Clarkson, LAS Math/Natural Sciences --  appt. ends 2007
 

I.       Call of the Meeting to Order:  President Brooks called the meeting to order at 3:30 pm.
 

II.    Informal Statements & Proposals:
Senator Roussel discussed the activities of the local AAUP chapter, and provided a handout dealing with the expectations of the AAUP in regard to issues of faculty governanace.  Senator P.Moore-Jansen requested that the Senate Executive Committee ask the appropriate standing committee to investigate the science / non-science high school science classes and if WSU should accept them.
 

III. Approval of the minutes:  As a result of the Secretary and the Senate Administrative Assistant be gone from the 9/12/05, meeting, no minutes are available.
 

IV.  President’s Report:  

1.      The Morale Survey conducted by the BOR is on the agenda again this year.  The Senate may wish to review it and or its results with some emphasis on the affects it has had on any of the institutions and possibly adding questions about if consideration has been given to leaving the university for another institution.

2.      The University is looking for evidence that the Qualified Admissions Policy which has been in place the past few years has made a difference in the quality of students.  Teaching faculty with comments should share with President Brooks.

      V. Committee Reports:  
               1.  Rules -- Brigitte Roussel, chair  (see summary of action)

           

VII.  Old Business:

 

VI.  New Business:         

       A.  Tuition assistance for faculty and staff.  Given the funding situation for this program, there appears to be a choice to either provide reduced tuition for spouses and children of faculty, or use the money to hire replacement faculty in empty lines.  The consensus of the Senate was that this was an important recruitment and retention issue, and that WSU should focus on developing procedures to develop a cogent tuition assistance program. KU and KSU already have such a policy in place. Senator Klunder moved (Lancaster - 2nd) for the Faculty Senate to endorse the idea of Tuition Assistance for WSU by granting of a 100% tuition remission, which would directly benefit 15-20% of the faculty, and indirectly benefit the entire faculty.  Motion was passed, with the expectation that a policy be developed.

                   B.  TABOR.  President Brooks led a discussion of the TABOR movement.  This limitation on spending at the State level could have a significant negative impact on higher education, and                   on  overall quality of life in the State.  Colorado has had such a spending limitation for over ten years, and its impact on that state was described.  President Brooks solicited feedback from         members of the Senate regarding appropriate strategies to pursue regarding raising the level of public awareness of the outcome of such a spending limitation.  It was suggested that whatever program developed should be a joint one, involving all of the Regent’s Schools.  President Brooks recommended that Senators and faculty sign petitions opposing TABOR and become involved and educated on the issue.


 

VII.      As May Arise: none

 

The meeting was adjourned

Respectfully Submitted
Joyce Cavarozzi, Secretary