CALL TO ORDER:

The Faculty Senate of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside met on Tuesday, March 23, 2004 at 3:30 PM in Molinaro Hall D137. The meeting was called to order at 3:35 PM by Prof Doug DeV inny, Chair. Present in addition were Profs Funkenstein, Mayer, Sounderpandian, Allen, Castor, McCann, Elechi, Kavenik, Walasek, Li, Gellott, McNair, Eichner, Zaibert, Schmidt, Gurnack, Goldsmith, and Eigenberger, Senators representing the departments; C. Zanowski, Senator and Chair of the Academic Staff Committee; University Committee Members and Senators, Profs Evans, Kinchen, and Wood; Ex- Officio Senators (non-voting) Chancellor Keating, Provost Martin, Prof Feldt, Secretary of the Faculty; and guests Profs Tim Fossum, Susan Haller, Steve Hawk, David Holmes, and Dean Don Cress.

Minutes of the Meeting of December 2, 2003
The minutes of the meeting of December 2, 2003 were APPROVED. (PSF 9/03-04)

BUSINESS:

Report of the University Committee Chair
Prof Gary Wood, Chair of the University Committee, reminded Senators that there was a meeting of the Faculty scheduled for Thursday, March 24, in Moln D137, at 3:30 PM. General Education would be the topic of a committee-of-the-whole discussion.

He also mentioned that the legislature was considering a taxpayer’s bill of rights. The proposal would be a constitutional amendment and thus be sent to a referendum if passed by two successive legislatures. The appeal to the electorate is obvious, as it would force a reduction in taxes, but the effect on the UW System could be devastating. Similar measures, passed in other states, have had such an effect.

Prof Wood continued that there is a proposal in the State Senate to establish a Fiscal and Economic Research Center at UW-Whitewater. He offered that the Department of Business might wish to link with this center, if it is approved.

The Schneider Bill has been formally introduced. This matter was previously mentioned during the Report of the University Committee Chair found in the Faculty Senate Minutes on October 14, 2003.

The Board of Regents, he said, was currently pondering the best approach to gain some funding in the next biennial budget. In particular, it was seeking stories from students related to the ill effects the budget cuts have had. Faculty are encouraged to submit any stories.

Prof Wood next mentioned that the search and screen committee to seek a successor to President Katherine Lyall had been appointed.

At a recent meeting of the UWS Faculty Representatives, he continued, a discussion concerning the Open Records Law and student evaluations of instruction developed. Students at UW-Milwaukee have contracted with an outside agency which will place the student evaluation results on the web. Furthermore, System Counsel has advised that anonymous comments on teaching effectiveness are open records and departments that solicit such information are cautioned to retain the information. Should a department get a request for comments submitted by students, the request should be directed to the Chancellor’s office. In some cases, comments considered defamatory may be redacted.

In response to a question, Prof Wood responded that it was unclear how long teaching evaluation information needs to be retained.

Report of the Chancellor
Chancellor Jack Keating concurred that the Schneider bill was indeed in the legislative docket. He was confident that it would not survive in its current form.

He also concurred that the taxpayer’s bill of rights concept was indeed a potential danger to the System.

He then commented on the System’s strategy for funding for the next biennium. He reminded the Senate that $25M in aid to students was funded by raiding reserves for such things as maintenance of the Student Union and campus housing. Furthermore, Governor Doyle had vetoed the sunset provision in the law allowing this so that reserves could again be taken for the same purpose. One strategy being discussed was to focus on obtaining the $25M by legislative action, eliminating further threats to the reserve funds. In the current fiscal climate, it was, he though, unlikely that the legislature would be very generous.

There was also a move to “regionalize” campuses, i.e. to give some autonomy to regional groupings of campuses. In this manner, it was thought, legislative support could be increased.

In response to a question, the Chancellor said that President Lyall had offered to stay on until a successor was named, though there might be limits on how long she will serve. He thought it was likely that a successor would be named by September at the latest.

Questions - Written/Oral

Faculty Lounge – Provost Martin
A written question had been submitted concerning the plan to close the lounge area in the D1 level of the Library and construct a new lounge on the L2 level. Specifically, the nature of the consultation process was raised.

Provost Martin said that the D1 Library space currently housing the lounge would likely be needed as expansion space for additional computing facilities. The plan is to construct a space, with similar amenities on the L2 level of the Library. Users of both spaces had been consulted, she said. The new location is currently used for breakout space for training sessions. The costs for the renovation would be quite modest, she said. A new office for the Center for Teaching and Learning would be adjacent to the new lounge.

Teacher Preparation Steering Committee – Dean Cress
In response for a progress report on the transformation of the education of educators, Dean Cress reported, at some length, on the history of the venture to revitalize the teacher education program at UW-Parkside.

He said that there were efforts throughout the nation to broaden faculty input into the teacher education process. UW-Parkside began this study with a grant from the Johnson Foundation in 2002 culminating in the creation of the Teacher Preparation Steering Committee (TPSC) in the fall of 2003.

The TPSC had its first meeting on March 23. The committee consists of faculty, staff, teachers and UWP and local school district administrators.

Dean Cress also said that he was temporarily chairing the Teacher Education Department since two senior faculty had retired in June leaving only two faculty members, and a lot of adjunct staff.

He said that thought had been given to recruiting for a Coordinator of Clinical Experiences, a position that once existed, but was discontinued years back.

He also offered that Department of Public Instruction (DPI) requirements were a continual issue and that the TPSC, upon recommendations from the department, will be considering how to address these.

For additional information, please link to http://www.uwp.edu and search the UWP site for "teacher preparation."

NEW BUSINESS:

Resolution on Office Hours - University Committee

Upon the recommendation of the University Committee, the following motion was discussed.

Be it RESOLVED, that the resolution on office hours be approved as follows:

All instructors should post a minimum of one office hour per week per course, however, three hours is sufficient for those teaching more than three courses. This information shall also be provided in the syllabi. Office hours should be scheduled for the convenience of students.

Instructors are obligated to be available to students during their office hours. If an instructor must be unavailable during his/her office hours, he/she shall post such a notice or inform the appropriate program assistant or inform the students. Notification to students via e-mail may also be appropriate.

Prof Wood, on behalf of the University Committee, said that this issue originally arose through the University Planning Council and later by Dean Cress. In addition, the Academic Staff Committee had concurred with the recommendation.

The motion was APPROVED viva voce. PSF 16/03-04

Request for Authorization to Implement a New Academic Program – Bachelor of Arts in Digital Arts - Committee on Academic Planning

Prof David Holmes, Chair of the Committee on Academic Planning, introduced the following motion.

Be it RESOLVED that the request for authorization to implement a new program degree in Digital Arts be approved.

As Chair of the Department of Art, Prof Holmes stated that the Digital Arts major (aka DAM) was an offshoot of the department’s current graphic design efforts. He said that new major would complement the department’s current offerings and would feature concentrations in graphic design and animation. He continued that job prospects appeared good, especially in Lake County , Illinois , a major source of UWP students.

In response to a question, Provost Martin said that any additional staffing, beyond current recruiting efforts, would be funded by increased tuition revenues from expected enrollments, as would expenses for laboratory equipment.

Another question concerning the need for a major vs a concentration brought forth a response that this could be a really successful niche for UW-Parkside and that a major was more visible.

The motion to recommend to the administration that the proposal to implement the major be forwarded to the UW System was APPROVED viva voce without audible dissent.
PSF 17/03-04

Request for Authorization to Implement a New Academic Program – Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems – Committee on Academic Planning

Prof Holmes introduced the following motion.

Be it RESOLVED that the request for authorization to implement a new program degree in Management Information Systems be approved.

Prof Sounderpandian said that Prof Stephen Hawk would comment further on the proposal. Prof Hawk said that the proposed major was a repackaging of the current MIS concentration, with two additional courses added in the MIS area. He said that with a new hire slated to join the staff in 2004-05, no additional faculty needs were foreseen in the near future. He also said that there is a national trend to offer separate majors in the various areas of business, e.g. MIS, finance, accounting, human resources, As a separate major, MIS, while retaining the business content, would attain higher visibility and thus attract more students. He concluded by saying that the proposal had been favorably received by several potential employers.

Several questions were raised. In response to one question, Prof Hawk said that while 75 credits was a heavy program, it did leave some latitude for free electives.

Another question concerned the fact that several issues which need to be addressed in accordance with System guidelines were not addressed in the materials distributed. Prof Hawk said that most of these had been addressed since the printing of the document and that the items deemed crucial by the University Committee and the Committee on Academic Planning were addressed to the satisfaction of those committees. Remaining items will be addressed before submission to UW System, he said.

It was pointed out that CSCI 340, listed as an elective choice, had stiff prerequisites. Prof Hawk said that other alternatives existed, but some particularly well-prepared students might take the CSCI course.

In response to another question, Prof Hawk said that CSCI 241 was thought to be too difficult a course for MIS students and that an MIS object-oriented programming course was being proposed.

The motion to forward the proposal to implement the program in Management Information Systems to the administration and UW System was APPROVED viva voce without audible dissent. PSF 18/03-04

Revision to Grade Appeal Procedure – Academic Policies Committee

Prof Laura Gellott, Chair of the Academic Policies Committee, introduced the following motion.

Be it RESOLVED that the Grade Appeals Procedure, PSF 32/98-99, be amended to include members of the teaching academic staff in the process.

Prof Gellott said that the primary motivation behind the proposal was to include teaching academic staff in situations when a member of the teaching academic staff was the instructor in the class with the challenged grade. She said that the Academic Staff Committee had concurred in the recommendation.

In response to a question, it was agreed that the added member might have to come from the teaching academic staff of a different department.

Prof Kavenik moved, seconded, that Section 8, line 5, be amended by adding “from outside the department in question” should be added after “member”. This would parallel the earlier phrase in the paragraph concerning faculty.

The amendment was APPROVED viva voce without audible dissent.

The main motion, as amended, was APPROVED viva voce without audible dissent. PSF 19/03-04

Extension of Meeting
Having reached the mandatory adjournment time of 5:00 PM , the chair asked for a motion to extend the meeting for five minutes. Prof Kinchen moved, seconded, that the meeting be extended five minutes. APPROVED.

Revision to Policy on Incompletes – Academic Policies Committee

Prof Gellott introduced the following motion.

Be it RESOLVED that the Incomplete Policy, PSF 19/00-01, be amended as follows:

Incomplete (I) - A grade of Incomplete is assigned at the discretion of the instructor, guided by the following policies:

1. A grade of "I" may be reported for a student who has maintained a passing grade in a course until near the end of the course and who then, because of unusual and substantiated cause beyond the student's control, is unable to take or complete the final examination, or to complete some limited amount of coursework. The grade of "I" must be accompanied by the instructor's description of the coursework that has yet to be completed.

2. Normally a request for an incomplete must be made by the student to the instructor prior to the final examination. However, an Incomplete may be initiated by an instructor on a student's behalf if the instructor believes there is cause to do so.

3. The amount of time a student has to complete the work and remove the grade of "I" shall be at the discretion of the instructor. Normally However, that time period shall not extend beyond the last day of classes of the following semester. Summer school is not counted as a semester for purposes of removing the grade of "I."

4. If the "I" is not removed within the specified time, the Incomplete will lapse to an "F" at the end of the semester following the term in which the "I" was assigned.

5. A request to change an already recorded grade to a grade of "I" will not be carried out unless the instructor files a Request for an Incomplete.

6. A student may not graduate with an incomplete on his/her transcript if failure in that course would make the student ineligible to graduate.

She said that having the instructor initiate incompletes on behalf of the student has led to confusion and lack of notification to the students of an action taken on their behalf. It has also diminished the intent of the original legislation, which was that a student make the request and make a case for him/herself as to why they are unable to complete the remaining work for the course.

After some discussion, it became apparent that the matter could not be brought to a conclusion quickly and the matter was TABLED until the next meeting.

Revision of Grade Change Policy - Academic Policies Committee

The proposed revision to the Grade Change Policy was also held over to the next meeting.

ADJOURNMENT:

The meeting adjourned at 5:10 PM .

Respectfully Submitted,

Walter T Feldt
Secretary of the Faculty