Minutes

Signed-in as present: (legible)

J. Brawner, B. Brown, K. Brown, J. Bruce, J.C. Casey, L. Crumb, F. Dorman, R. Drummond, C. Elder, V. Ferguson, A. Frankland, D. Hanson, J. Hanson, K. Harrison, L. Hester, H. Howard, S. Huguenin, J. Johnson, S. Kao, S. Kelly, R. King, J. Knapp, K. Lamar, J. Long, L. Magrath, J. Mather, M. Mather, J. Miller, N. Osborn, J. Pasley, D. Reigh, I. Shafer, P. Thomas, N. Warden, M Vliet, M. Williams

I. President Darryel Reigh called the meeting to order at 11:05 am.

II. Minutes of the April 2, 2003 meeting were moved for approval

(L. McGrath/I. Shafer).

Motion carried.

III. Treasurer Report -- Faculty Association has a balance of approximately $800. Motion made by N. Osborn to set association dues at $10 for the upcoming year. N. Warden seconded the motion. Motion carried.

IV. Committee Reports

A. Curriculum Committee –

B. Brown suggested removing the English proficiency requirement since it is time consuming to grade and serves no real purpose. Consensus is that it does not accomplish what it was intended to accomplish and that there are other options to achieve the goal of better writing skills. V. Ferguson suggested that there might be ramifications for teacher education if the requirement is removed. D. Reigh suggested exploring whether there was administrative opposition to removing the requirement and running it through the normal committee process before making a final decision.

B. Faculty Handbook –

D. Reigh will present the suggested changes in the faculty handbook (included below for reference) to the Regents on September 9, 2003.

1. Changes for requirement for rank of Associate professor, p. 14.

2. Changes in Faculty Responsibilities, p. 11-12

a. Addition of item on collegiality

b. Change in community service item

3. Clarification of selection process for members of the Grievance Committee, p. 25

4. Editorial changes proposed by Dr. Bernard.

5. Changes in document “Guidelines for Faculty Performance”-- adding participation in Faculty Association and divisional committees.

6. Change in document ”Guidelines for Development of Tenure and Promotion Dossiers” – delineating the responsibilities for participation in IDS and special functions of the USAO and adding new items for scholarly and professional development.

7. Adding the two “Guideline”(for Tenure and Promotion)documents as appendices to the Faculty Handbook.

C. Faculty Resource Committee – (no report)

D. Tenure and Promotion -- (no report)

V. Old Business — None

VI. New Business —

A. N. Osborn suggested expanding the amount of information included in the graduation program to include hometown, major, and outstanding graduate. Discussion was tabled until the next meeting.

B. J. Johnson opened a discussion on the class attendance of athletes. He stated that he has had success with giving his syllabi to the coaches so that they can identify potential conflicts, thus allowing for prior arrangements to be made. L. McGrath raised the issue of student-athletes majoring in biology who have conflicts with the lab portion of science courses since these typically are offered only in the afternoon. It was noted that the problem also affects other students engaged in certain extracurricular activities. A lengthy discussion ensued on related problems and possible solutions. L. McGrath, K. Bohannon, N. Osborn, J. Johnson, V. Ferguson, and JC Casey volunteered to arrange a meeting with the coaches to discuss the issue.

C. J. Johnson expressed concern about the lack of rigor on the CLEP test for computer science. The test does not include all of what is included in Introduction to Computer Science and allows those who pass the CLEP to move on without acquiring essential knowledge. J. Johnson, B. Brown, V. Ferguson, and S. Huguenin volunteered to serve on a committee to further explore the CLEP exams.

D. N. Warden suggested that the university calendar should be a faculty association focus. A. Frankland suggested separating the issue into the regular semester and the summer semester since the majority of members are satisfied with the regular semester calendar.

VII. Announcements

A. Deb Rowntree announced the formation of “The USAO Staff Association Scholarship Fund” to provide scholarships with preference given to current USAO personnel and their immediate family members. The fund currently has a balance of $2600 and must reach $5000 before it is a seeded fund.

B. K. Bohannon announced the 2003-2004 Davis-Waldorf Performing Arts Series schedule.

C. J. Johnson announced plans for a possible October bonfire.

D. S. Huguenin announced a need for “homes” for sixteen German exchange students who will be visiting in October.

E. D. Reigh will show videos from his African expedition after the October 7, 2003 faculty association meeting.

VIII. Meeting Adjourned 12:07 pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Kelly Brown, FA Secretary