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Summary 2002 - 2003 Summary of the Work of the University Senate, 2003-2004 In accordance with the Bylaws of the Senate of Syracuse University, Article IV, Section 6, that the Agenda Committee submit to the Senate a summary of its work during the preceding academic year, this report is submitted to the Senate. During the academic year 2003-2004, the University Senate met on the following dates:
I. ANNUAL MATTERS The University Senate recommended to the Board of Trustees the conferring of appropriate degrees on May 9th and 16th, 2004 upon those candidates who qualified for such degrees by Friday, May 7th, 2004 or May 14th, 2004 at 12:00 noon, and upon those students who would complete requirements for degrees at the end of the various summer terms and the fall semester of the 2004-5 academic year. The University Senate recommended to the Board of Trustees that the nominees approved by the Senate be honored with an honorary degree. The nominations included: Joseph O. Lampe; Mary Ann Shaw; Kenneth A. Shaw; Jozef J. Zwislocki. Additional nominations added at the January Senate meeting included: Catherine Bertini and Cornel West. The University Senate recommended to the Board of Trustees of Syracuse University that the following retiring faculty members be honored with the title Emeritus, to be added to the rank at which they retired: Retiring Faculty Members
II. CURRICULUM MATTERS The Senate approved the following programs and program changes during 2003-2004: School of Information Studies
III. MOTIONS Agenda Committee The Senate approved a motion to establish an ad hoc committee on athletics, charged to facilitate an informed conversation about the role of athletics at SU, and to examine and report on the related issues. The Senate approved a motion supporting the University's plan to change some SU Public Safety personnel to Peace Officer status. Committee on Academic Affairs The Senate approved a motion, which recommended the establishment of a Department of Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises in the School of Management. The Senate approved a motion recommending that the SU Scholar Selection committee include a tenured or tenure-track faculty representative from each undergraduate school or college, as well as the College of Law, for a three-year renewable term, appointments to be made in the spring for the following year, with two undergraduates appointed for a one-year term. Committee on Instruction The Senate voted to approve a motion recommending adoption of a revised schedule of a general sort, that would: add 80-minute class time slots on Monday and Wednesday afternoons; enforce reasonably strict compliance with a revised grid, allowing exceptions as needed and approved for purposes such as laboratories, studios, and seminars; and retain the day-matching of MWF, TTh and MW (p.m. only). [ Full description of the new paradigm available from the Senate Office. ] The Senate approved a motion recommending that the deadline to add a course be changed to the end of the first week of classes, with courses added after that only with permission of the instructor. Committee on Budget and Fiscal Affairs The Senate approved a motion recommending a policy change to charge future retired employees, ages 65-69, a health insurance premium at the same rate as for active employees and retirees aged 55-65. [ Current employees and retirees who have attained age 55 by January 1, 2004 would be grandfathered under the present policy, which calls for no premium for retirees aged 65-69. ] Committee on Services to the Faculty and Staff The committee brought a motion to endorse the Budget committee motion (above), but with the expectation that serious consideration would be given to designing a retirement health benefit option that included a sliding scale to determine premiums paid by retirees. [The motion was lost.] Motion from the Floor The Senate approved a motion directing the Budget committee to craft a solution to the shortfall in the Athletic Department for fiscal 2005, that protects Academic Affairs from subsidizing the shortfall. IV. RESOLUTIONS The Senate received a statement in memoriam of the following member of the University community, who had served as a member of the University Senate, and who died during 2003-4:
V. COMMITTEE REPORTS The following committees reported on their work. Full reports are on file in the Senate Recorder's office. Committee on Academic Affairs The Committee on Academic Affairs reported on its 2002-3 work, which included: recommendation on the closure of the School of Nursing; review of proposals for a Center for Urban Education in Mathematics and Literacy and a Center for Digital Literacy; revision of guidelines for the SU Scholar Selection Committee; recommendation of a name change to Department of Communication and Rhetorical Studies; discussion of the rule regarding crediting years toward tenure to new faculty. The committee reported on its 2003-4 work, which included revision of the process for selecting SU Scholars, calling for the inclusion of a tenured or tenure-track faculty representative from each undergraduate school or college, as well as the College of Law, appointments to be made in the spring for the following fall. The committee reported a process for the proposal of new centers and institutes, as well as guidelines for closure or merging of two or more colleges or schools. The committee recommended the establishment of a Department of Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises, and reported that the following students had been selected as SU Scholars for 2004:
The Committee on Academic Freedom, Tenure, and Professional Ethics reported that it had had seven cases during 2003-4, two involving tenure denials, one of which involved allegations of academic freedom, professional ethics, and procedural violations, as well as a hostile environment, and the other of which rested on allegations of academic freedom violation. The committee reported that the other five cases involved allegations of professional ethics and/or academic freedom violations, and one involved academic freedom and sexual harassment/hostile environment allegations. The report said that two of the cases were still in process, and that one case of tenure denial heard in spring 2003 and not sustained by AFTPE had moved to the civil courts. Committee on Administrative Operations The Committee on Administrative Operations reported with a summary of its 2003-4 work, which included a presentation by Executive Director of Government and Community Relations Beth Rougeux and SU Public Safety Department Chief Marlene Hall on a proposal to upgrade some of the SU public safety officers to peace officer status. The committee supported the move to peace officer status, with the provision that there would be clear guidelines about jurisdiction, officer training and qualifications, and strict oversight and management Committee on Athletic Policy The Committee on Athletic Policy reported with a detailed update on graduation rates, team cumulative GPA, participation rates for men and women. Committee on Budget and Fiscal Affairs The Committee on Budget and Fiscal Affairs reported the fall budget revision which included the five-year budget forecast, a list of additional agenda items for 2003-4, and an outline of highlights of the budget revision. In December, the committee reported its proposal for a change in the SU retiree health benefit. In January, the committee presented the pro forma budget for 2004-5, which recommended a 6.4% undergraduate tuition increase and a 3% base salary increase for faculty and staff. Other aspects of the report included: additional increments to the strategic faculty development fund; special increments to salaries for category-3 staff members; a travel fund for PTIs; funds to support a lengthened teaching day (starting at 8 a.m.); contingency funds to support upgrade to peace officer status for security personnel; funds to support the Athletic Department; academic space operating cost revisions; and an additional increase in tuition (FY 05 only). In April, the committee reported on its spring work, which included consideration of: fundraising expenditures and outcomes; first annual review of the budget of the Athletic Dept.; progress with the Academic Space Plan; and a recent history of budget add-ons in support of academics and student services. Committee on Computing Service The Committee on Computing Services reported on campus-wide viruses and worms that had threatened the integrity of the University e.mail system and network in 2003-4; discussion with representatives of CMS of such things as problem identification and current and future initiatives to address them; detailed current and future upgrade plans [Instructional Management]; discipline-specific issues such as foreign language instruction using CDs not compatible with current systems; small classrooms without technology-based tools. The report included a list of future issues, including campus-wide wireless computing and strengthening the use of faculty and student computing. The Committee for Diversity The Committee for Diversity reported on the progress of their two main projects: a comprehensive qualitative study of the climate at SU, and a study of the definitions used by the University to identify people of color or minorities for purposes of ensuring diversity on committees, tabulating statistics, and gathering data. Committee on Instruction The Committee on Instruction presented a motion to approve a revised classroom scheduling paradigm, which would promote the more effective use of the full five-day academic schedule and provide improved access to courses for undergraduates (appended). The committee also made a motion calling for a change in the deadline to add a course, from the end of the second week of classes to the end of the first week of classes, which the Senate endorsed. The committee further reported that it was currently considering several matters related to academic integrity (e.g., cheating, plagiarism, the reluctance of TAs to take action when they observe cheating because of uncertainty about administrative support or concerns about legal liability), and that it would be seeking input from many campus groups as they examined those matters. Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Concerns The Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Concerns (LGBT) reported their 2002-3 work, including: a presentation given by committee chairwoman Margaret Himley on LGBT pedagogy at the Future Professoriate Program/Preparing Future Faculty Conference at Minnowbrook; organization of two showings of a documentary "It's Elementary: Talking About Gays and Lesbians in Schools" during Coming Out Week (October 2003); co-sponsorship of a showing and discussion of "Our Brothers, Our Sons", a documentary about cross-generational tensions around HIV/AIDS in the gay community. The committee reported that some of its members had provided consultations and class visits with faculty in Newhouse, the School of Education, the Writing Program, Sociology, and SUNY-ESF; that they had brought Ellis Hanson, Associate Professor of English and coordinator of the LGB Concentration at Cornell, to campus to give a talk entitled "Developing and Maintaining LGBT Studies Programs"; and co-sponsored a talk with Rannveig Traustadottir, a visiting scholar from Iceland, on LGBT family policy issues in the nordic countries. The committee reported that it continued to discuss ROTC and its effect on the intellectual and financial status of LGBT students, faculty, and staff affiliated with ROTC. Committee on the Library The Committee on the Library reported that it focused on several activities during the year: improvements on the first floor of Bird; a development plan for the library; the problems in the journal and periodical collections; a projected library budget shortfall; and space for library collections. Committee on Services to the Faculty and Staff The Committee on Services to the Faculty and Staff reported briefly in December, with a motion calling for serious consideration of the design of a retirement health benefit option that included a sliding scale to determine premiums paid by retirees [The motion failed.] The Committee on Student Life The Committee on Student Life reported on its year's work, which included discussion and subsequent endorsement of the proposal to change the status of some SU Public Safety officer to Peace Officers. VI. GRATITUDE On April 14th, the Agenda Committee proposed that the Senate endorse the following resolution: That the Syracuse University Senate recognizes with great pleasure the strong and effective support given by Chancellor Kenneth A. Shaw to Senate activities during his administration. His actions have enabled faculty, students, staff, and administrators to use the Senate more effectively to work together for the welfare of Syracuse University.The motion carried with no dissenting votes. VII. REPORTS FROM KEY ADMINISTRATIVE AREAS During 2003-4, the Senate heard a presentation from the Department of Public Safety, given by Public Safety Director Marlene Hall. VIII. THE CHANCELLOR'S RESPONSE TO SENATE ACTION In addition to the annual update on his efforts to change the U.S. Department of Defense policy on gays in the ROTC program, the Chancellor concurred in a motion to endorse a revised classroom scheduling paradigm, as well as a Budget committee motion re: health insurance premiums for retirees (see p. 6) and a resolution on the athletic budget subsidy. He concurred in a motion endorsing a proposal to change the status of some Public Safety officers to Peace Officers, and one to establish a Department of Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises in the School of Management. He did not concur in a motion by the Senate to direct the Budget committee to craft a solution to the shortfall in the Athletic Department for fiscal 2005 that protected Academic Affairs from subsidizing the shortfall. IX. PENDING BUSINESS
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