Meeting Minutes: January 29, 2015

Faculty Senate Minutes
Regular Meeting
January 29, 2015

The Faculty Senate was called to order by, Craig Parks, Chair on Thursday January 29, 2015, in FSHN T101 at 3:30 p.m. Thirty-nine (39) members were present with sixteen (16) absent and eight (8) nonvoting members present.

Minutes of November 20, 2014 meeting were approved as circulated.

1. Announcements (Information items).
   1. Information Items.
      1. Senate Officers met with the Provost on December 3, 2014.
      2. Senate Officers met with the President on January 21, 2015.
      3. Minor Change Bulletin 5 (Exhibit T)
      4. Minor Change Bulletin 6 (Exhibit U)
      5. Minor Change Bulletin 7 (Exhibit V)
      6. Graduate Studies Committee has approved the revisions to the bylaws for Mechanical Engineering, MS and PhD and these are available on the department’s website.
      7. Graduate Studies Committee has approved the revisions to the bylaws for Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) and these are available on the department’s website.
      8. Graduate Studies Committee has approved the revisions to the bylaws for Sociology MA and PhD and these are available on the department’s website.
      9. Graduate Studies Committee has approved new bylaws on Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and these are available on the department’s website.
      10. Graduate Studies Committee has approved new bylaws for the Statewide Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) Program and these are available on the department’s website.
      11. Laura Lavine (Entomology), who was elected to the Faculty Status Committee last year, has had to step down after taking an administrative appointment. Janet Katz (Nursing), who was the runner-up in the election, has agreed to take Laura’s spot.
      12. Nomination period for chair-elect is open until February 24 2015.
      13. Class Roster Photo available to faculty and instructors. http://esg.wsu.edu/news.html
      14. Library Open Access Policy for WSU (Exhibit E)
2. Announcements (Reports).
   1. Remarks by the Chair.—C. Parks
      1. Officers met with the President and were provided with a list of high ranking administrative vacancies.
      2. Bellevue College has initiated contact regarding a possible partnership with WSU. Negotiations are in the early stages.
      3. The Provost will be sending the Senate two proposals to streamline the selection process for department chairs and the annual review process.
      4. A reminder that the nomination period for chair-elect is open until February 24 2015.
   2. Remarks by Meredyth Goodwin. PowerPoint attached.
      1. An overview was provided about the Access Center and its primary functions for providing equal access to students with disabilities. A question and answer session followed.
3. Additions or Changes to the Agenda.
   1. Change to Discussion Item #9 Undergraduate Major Change Bulletin #7 was amended prior to the meeting and PLP 301 and PLP 597 in the course proposal were removed.
4. Agenda Items (Action Items).
   1. Recommendation from Research & Arts to approve the Provost CIL proposals (Exhibit B and Exhibit B1 )
      1. Motion Carried.
         1. Exhibit B as noted:
            1. Arboretum and Wildlife Conservation Center
            2. Clean Plant Center Northwest
            3. Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources
            4. Food and Environmental Quality Laboratory
            5. Freight Policy Transportation Institute
            6. Laboratory of Astrobiological Investigations and Space Mission Planning
            7. Laboratory for Biotechnology and Bioanalysis
         2. Exhibit B1 as noted:
            1. Sports Science Laboratory
            2. University Center for Innovation and Value Creation
            3. Veterinary Clinical Pharmacology Laboratory
            4. Western Center for Risk Management Education
            5. Wildlife Habitat Nutrition Laboratory
   2. Recommendation from Academic Affairs Committee to approve Undergraduate Major Change Bulletin #4 (Exhibits C C1)- D. Baker
      1. Motion Carried.
   3. Recommendation from Academic Affairs Committee to approve Undergraduate Major Change Bulletin #5 (Exhibits D D1) – D. Baker
      1. Motion Carried.
5. Agenda Items (Discussion Items).
   1. Recommendation from Faculty Affairs Committee to approve the name change from Department of Mathematics to Department of Mathematics and Statistics (Exhibit F)- J. McDonald
      1. No Discussion
   2. Recommendation from Faculty Affairs Committee to approve the changes to the Faculty Manual – Workplace Violence & Bullying Policy (Exhibit G) – J. McDonald
      1. Discussion- A question arose about the definition of bullying and it was noted that a special Task Force has been formed to address the definition.
   3. Recommendation from Faculty Affairs Committee to approve the changes to the Faculty ManualEPPM, Designation of Academic Unit (Exhibit H) – J. McDonald
      1. Discussion: Academic Units are defined in Faculty Manual and this designation is currently covered by the Memorandum of Understanding between the Provost and Senate.
   4. Recommendation from Faculty Affairs Committee to approve the changes to the Faculty ManualPromotion Process (Exhibit I) – J. McDonald
      1. No Discussion
   5. Recommendation from Faculty Affairs Committee to approve the changes to the Faculty Manual – Clinical Faculty Appointments (Exhibit J) – J. McDonald
      1. Discussion: It was noted that clarification wording is being sought so Senior Instructors and Clinical Faculty can all be awarded five year contracts .
   6. Recommendation from Faculty Affairs Committee to approve the changes to the Faculty Manual – Business Days/Working Days clarification (Exhibit K) – J. McDonald
      1. No Discussion
   7. Recommendation from Graduate Studies Committee to approve Graduate Major Change Bulletins #4 & #5(Exhibits L L1) – K. Daratha
      1. No Discussion
   8. Recommendation from Academic Affairs Committee to approve Undergraduate Major Change Bulletin #6 (Exhibits M M1) – D. Baker
      1. Discussion: A question arose asking why the foreign language courses were not consecutive. It was noted this may be due to scheduling, and that the Registrar’s Office and Academic Affairs Committee Chair will review this issue.
   9. Recommendation from Academic Affairs Committee to approve Undergraduate Major Change Bulletin #7 (Exhibits N N1) – D. Baker
      1. No Discussion
   10. Recommendation from Academic Affairs Committee to approve UCORE Bulletin #5 (Exhibit O) D. Baker
       1. No Discussion
   11. Recommendation from Academic Affairs Committee to approve proposal to Revise Rule 108 (Exhibit P)- D. Baker
       1. Discussion: When it was observed that this seemed to be a major change, it was explained that that these changes clarify the language making it clear that compliance and meeting graduation criteria the existing student’s responsibility.
   12. Recommendation from Academic Affairs Committee to approve proposal to Revise Rule 109 (Exhibit Q)- D. Baker
       1. No Discussion
   13. Recommendation from Academic Affairs Committee to approve proposal to Revise Rule 118 (Exhibit R)- D. Baker
       1. Discussion: A concern was raised that the wording was unclear and hard to understand. It will reviewed and clarified.
6. Constituents’ Concerns.
   1. An E-mail from a colleague was shared regarding a concern about the funds being proposed to build a new fountain and that said monies could be better used towards scholarships for students. The Executive Officers will follow up on this question.\
   2. Content on Information item #3 listing alternate year/semester classes was very helpful.
   3. A request was made to increase staff at the Access Center during exams so that students aren’t proctoring other students. The Executive Officers will follow up on this question.
7. Adjournment.
   1. Meeting adjourned at 4:35 p.m.
      1. Sheila Converse, Executive Secretary