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Academic Council
Meeting Notes
November 14, 2000
Present: Curtis Johnson, Dean of the College; Dinah
Dodds, Dean of Arts and Humanities; Gary Reiness, Dean of
Mathematical and Natural Sciences; Harry Schleef, Dean of
Social Sciences; Terri Banasek, administrative assistant and
recorder; and Rosie Felton, administrative assistant for
budgets and contracts. Guests: Greg Walters, director of
human resources; and Cindy Wray, Benefits and HRIS
Manager
Long-Term Topics
- Computer Replacement Plan: The Academic Council, in
conjunction with IT, will devise a form to determine
future computer needs for faculty. The form will contain
specific questions regarding usage and the probability of
the present computer meeting anticipated needs. The
Council would then be able to assess needs and prioritize
requests. The appropriate timeframe for this process
would be early fall, beginning in 2001. The process for
requests for equipment for next fall will begin as soon
as the form is devised.
The Council agreed to invite June Jones and a
representative from IT to the Nov. 21 meeting to discuss
the plan.
- Chairs' Responsibilities: Dean Dodds reported on her
meeting with chairs in Arts and Humanities. 1) They feel
strongly about retaining the course release. The
tradeoff of additional compensation in lieu of a course
release does not appear to be a viable option. 2) The
advisee load is distributed unequally across departments,
with the chair taking on advisees for faculty who are
overseas or on sabbatical. Some chairs felt that only
certain faculty should do pre-major advising, with
students meeting at the beginning of the school year with
pre-major advisor and have subsequent meetings with
department faculty or with someone the student knows. 3)
Some chairs think the chair's responsibilities do not
extend to significant issues and are limited to
unimportant or bureaucratic tasks.
Dean Dodds suggested advising mentors - senior faculty
who can work with junior faculty on advising skills.
There is currently no way to hold faculty accountable for
their advising. Dean Johnson stated that the obvious way
to get at this is to identify individuals who don't
advise and help them with this skill. Dean Schleef
pointed out that there is some confusion about whether
advising is service or teaching. It says in the handbook
that it is teaching; but if it is part of teaching, it is
not valued at the same level as classroom teaching. Dean
Johnson will check to see whether the topic of advising
is being addressed in the Commission on Teaching or in
AAAS. Guidelines must be set right away.
The Council agreed they need a clear definition of the
important things that chairs do. The divisional deans
will gather that information at the next chairs
meeting.
Suggestions for streamlining chairs' duties:
- Move responsibility for writing salary review
letters from chair to divisional dean.
- Move other responsibilities to the divisional
deans.
- Give chairs more long-term, significant
responsibilities in direction of department, to
include responsibility for planning for adjuncts.
- Identify mundane administrative tasks that can be
performed by department secretaries or delegated to
other members of the department.
- Course scheduling - could possibly be done by
department secretary in conjunction with department
faculty.
- Adjuncts: The divisional deans each presented
reports on courses taught by adjuncts in their respective
divisions. Dean Johnson requested the total number of
courses from Deans Dodds and Reiness as well as a
breakdown by department from Dean Schleef. The dean's
office will then compile the data into one report. That
report would contain the total number of courses taught
by adjuncts and a breakdown by department for last year
and this year.
Dean Johnson would like to use the data to attempt to
determine how permanent the reliance is on adjuncts as
well as to see which parts are being fixed by the
searches and to determine the acceptable level of
adjuncts in the classroom. We can't answer the entire
question until we know the probability of successful
searches for next year. Course schedules must be done by
early December, and then the Council will know what the
departments need. That will drive what we can do about
adjuncts.
Agenda Items
- Gernot Blume's sabbatical application was
approved.
- Parental Leave: Greg Walters and Cindy Wray reported
on different options for a parental leave policy for
faculty, including distribution of the College's family
medical leave policy. Human Resources needs clarity on
how to pay faculty for different types of leave.
Oregon law allows a separate 12-week bank for pregnancy
leave, plus an additional 12 weeks for other qualifying
conditions. Birth mothers can combine pregnancy leave
and parental leave. This is unpaid leave, and it
supersedes any College policy. Childbirth is considered
a serious illness and is covered under short-term
disability policy.
Two things to consider in building the policy are how it
affects the tenure process and giving flexibility to
allow semester replacements. Mr. Walters recommends
going back to what was decided last year and asking
specific questions. He has talked to colleagues at other
institutions and discovered a wide variety of
policies.
The Academic Council agreed on six weeks of leave
available to each faculty member at the beginning of the
academic year, with the leave being dependent upon
meeting the qualifying conditions for state and federal
leave and requiring documentation from doctors. This
policy could also apply to fathers. This would provide
six weeks paid leave, with anything beyond that unpaid.
Short-term disability would start after the six weeks for
mothers who give birth.
Birth mothers would get full semester off including
short-term disability. Fathers could get College's six
weeks off paid and then take the rest of the semester
unpaid. The policy should specify that semester leave is
a two-course semester to the extent that we can control
it. To limit the College's liability, we could build in
a provision that if it is the three-course semester,
compensation would not include the third course.
Dean Johnson will take the plan to Greg Walters for him
to spell out the planning for the six weeks, ensuring
that the College's disability policy covers birth mothers
for the entire semester.
- Mathematics Position: It is not a good idea to jump
into new searches until the Commission on Academic
Priorities has come forth with recommendations. The
normal time for submission for new positions is spring
semester.
- Biology Search: The committee has received vitas
from senior applicants. Because the position was
advertised as assistant professor level, the College is
required to hire at that level. It is possible, however,
to offer earlier consideration for tenure.
- Faculty Meeting Attendance: Some faculty have
complained about how trivial the meetings are.
Attendance will improve if there are substantive issues
before the faculty. Dean Johnson has urged the Faculty
Council to bring issues and has emailed the faculty as
well. Some of the chairs have said that the College has
lots of committees that don't always come up with
tangible results. Perhaps the Academic Council could
give the faculty some options to discuss rather than
refer topics to committees. The Council considers the
opinions and advice given by faculty to be very
important.
Next meeting, Tuesday, November 20, 8 a.m., in the dean's
office.
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