University of Wisconsin - Parkside
Faculty Senate Minutes for October 31, 2000
PSF 5/00-01

The meeting was called to order at 3:35 in D137 MOLN. Members present were Colston, Duetsch, Gellott, P. Goldsmith, Gregory, S. Hansen, Hayward, Kavenik (Chair), Keating, Lenard, Li, McNair, Mayer, Monardi, Mullen, Ostheimer, Ross, Ruffolo, Schmidt, Sunstrom, Walasek, White, Wright, and Zaibert. Also present were W. Adams, D. Cress, A. Crist, M. Day, P. James, R. Montemurro, S. Norton, M. Power, R. Singer, J. Stark, M. Wafa, and G. Wood.

The Senate Minutes for October 3, 2000, were approved as distributed.

REPORT OF THE UNIVERSITY COMMITTEE CHAIR

Professor Gellott said that the University Committee has developed a list of faculty nominees for seats on the Provost Search and Screen Committee that Chancellor Keating will soon appoint. She said she expects to discuss those appointments with the Chancellor before he strikes the committee. UWPF 4.19, which applies in this case, calls for formation of a search committee that is chaired by a faculty member and is dominated by faculty members. Professor Gellott also reported that the University
Committee has identified faculty members for a search committee that will screen applicants for the position of Director of Institutional Research and Assessment Services. That new person will have expertise in the assessment of student learning outcomes and will provide appropriate counsel to the faculties of each of our programs.

Professor Gellott noted that the survey of faculty/staff perceptions of administrative performance that has just been distributed should be returned to the University Governance office by November 7. The survey asks faculty/staff members to assess the performance of three key administrators - Chancellor Keating, Provost Ostheimer, and Dean Cress - in fulfilling our institutional mission/objectives. (The Provost requested that his assessment proceed despite his announced retirement; Dean Wafa
has simply not been in place long enough to warrant such an assessment.) The survey has been distributed to all faculty members and teaching academic staff members who have at least a fifty percent appointment and at least one year of service.

REPORT OF THE CHANCELLOR

Chancellor Keating confirmed that he is prepared to initiate the search for a new Provost shortly after the Board of Regents authorizes him to do so, which they are expected to do on November 10. He expressed the hope that some way can be found to involve community members in the search process without expanding the search committee to an unwieldy size.

Chancellor Keating said that he was pleased by the turnout for the listening session that the UW System sponsored at UW-P on October 24. Themes that resonated with attendees involved the pressing regional need for enhancement of our infrastructures, for expansion of investments leading to high-tech job opportunities, and for attraction of more highly educated employees. In mid-November, the UW System will sponsor a Wisconsin Economic Summit to identify strategies that will speed the State's transition to the new economy.

The Chancellor said that, although the next UW System biennial budget is still under development, provisions of the operating budget pertaining to biotechnology and the education of nontraditional students are likely to benefit UW-P, as are provisions of the capital budget that involve our Fine Arts project.

The Chancellor went on to note that he has proposed alternate dates during 2002-03 for the visit of the North Central Association accreditation team, as NCA asked, and expects their choice to be known by mid-January. He assured the Senate that preliminary drafts of our self-study will be widely circulated during the year preceding the visit and will be revised
on the basis of the feedback that is obtained. He emphasized the importance of ensuring that the content of the self-study is well
understood and accepted throughout the institution.

Finally, Chancellor Keating addressed two issues that have recently been subjects of discussion on the campus: 1) the defacing of posters announcing a course dealing with gay and lesbian literature; and 2) the the wisdom of supporting the United Way when that organization in turn may continue its financial support of the Boy Scouts. In regard to the defacing of posters, he stated that he will not tolerate infringement of free expression on this campus and will invoke the strongest possible sanctions against any perpetrator that can be identified. He called upon everyone in the university community to be watchful and to bring forth information that may help identify perpetrators. In regard to the wisdom of supporting the United Way, the Chancellor said that it is his understanding that the Racine Area United Way has not yet determined whether funding will be continued for the Boy Scouts. As a member of the Board of the Kenosha Area United Way, he said he has first-hand knowledge that the matter of continued funding has not yet been resolved by that Board. He emphasized that UW-Parkside policies unequivocally prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and added that he stands ready to take appropriate steps, as needed, to enforce that prohibition.

Professor Lenard asked whether new students were being informed about the serious nature of infringements on free expression and was told by Professor Gellott that this is referred to during our new student orientation but may be "lost" among the many items that are covered. Professor Gellott urged faculty to bring the matter up for discussion in their classes.

INFORMATIONAL ITEMS

The 1999-2000 Annual Reports of the Academic Achievement Assessment Committee and the Admissions, Records, and Student Information Committee were received and filed.

NEW BUSINESS

(At the suggestion of Chancellor Keating, the Chair reversed the order of the items to accommodate several members of the community who were in attendance specifically to indicate their support for the MPA proposal.)

ENTITLEMENT TO PLAN

The Graduate Studies Committee recommended the following:

Be it RESOLVED, that the request for an entitlement to plan a Master of Public Administration degree program is approved, as described in Agenda Document 5.

Professor Ross introduced the motion on behalf of the GPC, reading from their October 26 minutes. The Committee recommended that planning efforts 1) encourage involvement of the School of Business and Technology in the program, 2) add an explicit intention to serve the local community and our own graduates, 3) seek commitments from the departments that instructional resources will be made available for the program, and 4) proceed with a committee that includes representatives from all disciplinary areas included in the program. Professor Gurnack expressed appreciation for the GPC's thoughtful review of the proposal.

Professor Mayer cautioned against limiting the appeal of the program to a small local pool of potential students. Dean Cress agreed, noting that there are now more audiences for such a program than there were ten years ago and that the formation of a broadly constituted Advisory Board will help greatly in marketing the program. Professor Ruffolo asked what the history of the program had been and was told by Professor Gurnack that there were 100 graduates from 1979-91 and that the number of students had dwindled to 30 (some inactive) at the end.

At the invitation of the Chair, Julia Stark (Wisconsin Department of Corrections) spoke of the need for staff members with MPA training in her large (and growing) department.

Professor Ross asked what commitment the institution was willing to make to hire staff for this program and was told by Chancellor Keating that, as evidence of need and strong public support accumulated, we would do what we could afford. This will become a responsibility of the new Provost, he added. Provost Ostheimer noted that MPA graduates quickly become
influential public servants who are often valuable "friends" of the institution.

At the invitation of the Chair, both Bill Adams (Racine County Workforce Development Center) and Raffaelle Montemurro (Kenosha County Executive's Office) expressed strong support for reviving the MPA program. They noted that formation of a Veteran's Center in southeastern Wisconsin will add to the demand for this training.

Also at the invitation of the Chair, Mary Day (Precollege Programs) expressed her strong support for approval of the entitlement, saying that like other graduates of the program, she could foresee a great public benefit from the program.

There being no further discussion, the MOTION was APPROVED on a voice vote.

NEW CERTIFICATE PROGRAM AUTHORIZATION

The Committee on Academic Planning recommended the following:
Be it RESOLVED, that the request from the Center for International Studies for authorization to implement a Certificate in Global Skills is approved, as described in Agenda Document 4.

Professor Wood introduced the proposal on behalf of the CAP, apologizing for not having sent the revised version of the program to the Secretary of the Faculty for inclusion in today's agenda. Orally correcting Agenda Document 4 from the floor, he said the program would consist of 11 credits (rather than 9), requiring all 4 one-credit practicum courses (not just 3) and an added one-credit capstone course. He also corrected the list of three-credit elective courses and, noting a positive recommendation from Dean Cress, said that the program satisfied all of the criteria that the CAP uses to evaluate certificate proposals.

In response to a question from Professor Mayer, Professor James said that arrangements had been made to ensure periodic offerings of these courses. In response to a question from Professor Mullen about the Eurocentricity of the elective courses, Professor James said that the Steering Committee shared that concern and expected to add other courses to that list as they
became available.

There being no further discussion, the MOTION was APPROVED on a voice vote.

The Chair declared the meeting adjourned at 4:25.