All University Faculty Meeting Minutes - May 15, 2003

I. Call to Order
 The meeting was called to order at 1:05 p.m.

II. Minutes
 The minutes of the October 16, 2002 meeting were approved as distributed.

III. Report on the Faculty Senate, Rick Karp, Chair of the University Faculty
 The Chair’s (written) report is included in its entirety.
  
 “This has been a very active year for us as faculty.  Unfortunately, the state legislature has also been very active.  In light of the continuing assault on our state support, we have continued to accomplish a great deal at the University of Cincinnati.

 The faculty has been involved in the ongoing restructuring of some of the colleges on the West Campus.  This has certainly not been an easy task, and still has many hurdles to cross.  However, Provost Perzigian has been very tenacious in seeing this through, and has made extensive use of various faculty members in trying to negotiate through the murky and unknown waters to help build a more efficient and effective institution.  Our thanks should go to those many individuals who contributed to the initial process, and those who continue to serve in an effort to bring restructuring into focus.

 Faculty were also involved in the successful search for a new East Campus Provost.  Dr. Jane Henney will be joining us, and represents a high quality addition to the UC family.  There is no doubt that her acceptance of this position has helped raise our profile for the major search that is now underway for a new president.

 Speaking of which, two members of the Faculty Senate are members of the Presidential Search Committee, which is now in ‘mid-stream’ in the search process.  Dr. Charles Knapp, from the search firm of Heidrick and Struggles, has been engaged to guide us in our selection.  Dr. Knapp has sterling academic credentials, which include being the President of the University of Georgia for 10 years, as well as President of the Aspen Institute.  After a rocky start, we are now well on our way, and hopefully, we will have a new President in place by fall quarter.  Also, on behalf of the Faculty, I want to wish President Steger all the best in his future endeavors.

 The budget problems in the state continue, and so does the amazing amount of ignorance and bias concerning higher education in the vaunted halls of the House.  There is an overwhelming amount of data showing that the welfare of Ohioans, and their income, are directly tied to the acquisition of baccalaureate degrees.  Yet our legislators continue to ignore the fact that higher education is the only means available to all Ohioans, regardless of socio-economic status, to turn their lives around, and at the same time, turn the state economy around.  We have data indicating that of all the myriad of state agencies receiving state support, only higher education has controlled its spending, and has stayed within or below the inflation rate.  Yet we are still the agency receiving the major cuts.

 If there is any good news to the continuing budget cuts, it is that it has forced the state institutions to focus and prioritize their missions as never before.  It has also induced a cooperative atmosphere amongst the state universities in attempts to raise our voices in order to put a stop to this devastating financial bloodletting.

 In other news, the Faculty Senate has been trying to find a way to begin the process for establishing a Strategic Master Plan for Academics.  I want to thank Emel Yakali, Rebecca Leugers, John Cuppoletti, Dan Langmeyer, and Randy Morris for their efforts on our behalf.  This is a very knotty problem to solve, but at least we are trying to initiate a means of creating such a plan.  This will continue to be of high priority for the next academic year.

 We have a revision in our bylaws to present today.  The purpose of this revision is to bring our by-laws into line with our past voting practices.  This particularly affects clinical, field service and research appointments.  Provosts Perzigian and Boat have nominated all faculty with 64% or greater effort as voting members of the faculty.  The Senate has unanimously endorsed this request, and so it comes before you today for ratification.

 Speaking of elections, the All-University Faculty elections will take place between May 16-23, and for the first time will be done electronically.  I want to thank John Cuppoletti for his tireless efforts in bringing this about.  He will be talking to you later about the process involved.

 Finally, I want to thank my cabinet members, who have guided me during the year, and have also served the Senate and you so well.
  David Lee Smith–Vice Chair
  Bob Faaborg–Chair Emeritus
  John Cuppoletti–Chair of Planning
  Emel Yakali–Chair of Academic Affairs
  Randy Morris–Chair of Budget and Priorities
  Sunny Saelinger–Chair of the IT Committee
  Virginia Russell–Chair of Human Relations
  Marla Hall–Secretary
  Dan Langmeyer–Member-at-large
  Lanthan Camblin–BOT Rep
  Evie Brod–BOT Rep
  Debbie Page–Parliamentarian

 and of course, I want to thank Thyra Jackson for running the Senate office, and for all her help in organizing our meetings.

 Next year will be an even busier one as the evolution of the University continues.  We will have many new faces, hopefully some of which will be faculty.  In any case, thank you for being here today.”

IV. Report by the President of the University, Joseph Steger.
 President Steger thanked the faculty for making the University of Cincinnati such a great institution.  He expressed his belief that it is a much finer institution now than when he initially became the President of the University.

 He also congratulated all of the faculty who would be receiving awards later in the meeting.

 He concluded his remarks by again thanking the faculty for working with him.

V.      Report by Sr. Vice-President and Provost, Tony Perzigian  
 Provost Perzigian gave an update on the progress of the initiatives related to Academic Affairs. 

 He first addressed the work related to UC’s monitoring report to the North-Central Association (NCA) demonstrating the implementation of a General Education Program.  The report is now being reviewed by NCAA and he encouraged faculty to review it as well.  The report chronicles a tremendous amount of work over the past four years including the implementation of the program.  Provost Perzigian acknowledged Ann Twinam and the rest of the General Education Committee for their extensive work on Gen Ed.  The next step will be the assessment of the program.

 Provost Perzigian next discussed the Collegiate Structures Initiative.  It also is an outgrowth of the 1999 North-Central review.  The initiative was undertaken to address redundancy in our programs and ill-defined missions across colleges and to promote better coordination and collaboration across student groups.  The Provost expressed appreciation for the work of several colleges for their efforts in absorbing the evening college programs.  Now the work is focused upon improving pathways for under prepared and other students in moving from two-year to four-year colleges.  He was excited about the faculty turnout and the work accomplished at the recent retreat which addressed transition issues.   He felt that progress was made toward breaking down some of the boundaries across disciplines and in beginning dialogs between the parties involved.  Provost Perzigian also acknowledged the work of the University-level Collegiate Structures Initiative Committee. The committee worked diligently through Winter Quarter in designing the “blueprint” for the discussions across colleges which is outlined in the committee’s report of April 3, 2003.  The CSI committee continues to work on different facets of the initiative.

 The Provost identified several ongoing events and programs which address student success.  These included the ‘fair’ for undeclared majors which was going on in University Pavilion at the time of the meeting, the Center for Exploratory Services which had its Grand Opening last week, and the Adult Learning Center which had its opening earlier this quarter.  The two centers are both outgrowths of the Collegiate Structures Initiative.  He sees the activities related to the Collegiate Structures Initiative as positive efforts toward aligning our resources and designing our structure to more effectively meet the needs of the University community and serve the needs of our diverse student population.

 Provost Perzigian next addressed Faculty Development and pedagogy.  He acknowledged the hard work of many faculty on the many initiatives including those which address  learning communities, the first-year experience, problem-based learning, service learning, and learning technologies.  He expressed that based upon the Provosts’ reports from the other Ohio Universities, he feels that very few compare to UC in terms of activities toward pedagogical and curricular development.

 The Provost was very positive about the Curricular efforts of the University and the impact of these efforts toward attracting more students to UC.  Some of the “reach” of the curricular development include: our MBA program at Wright Patterson, an articulation agreement with Cincinnati State for a B.A. program in Culinary Arts and Sciences, an on-line Masters degree in Criminal Justice, and the Early Childhood Learning Community for individuals nationwide to earn an Associates Degree.

 UC will soon be celebrating its 100 year mark for offering Co-ops.  Efforts in this arena continue to develop.  Notably, Engineering has begun the ASCEND programs wherein students will gain both a B.S. and an M.S. when they complete the 5-year program.  In part this will be possible because students will take courses on-line while completing their co-ops.  Presently the programs for Civil Engineering and Nuclear Engineering have been approved.

 Yesterday was the annual event sponsored by the library for authors, editors, and composers.  The accomplishments of 137 faculty were celebrated at that event.  Provost Perzigian expressed his excitement over the productivity of these faculty.

 Provost Perzigian reported that his office had just completed the latest round of promotion and tenure files which included 72 submissions.  He was very pleased with the research productivity of faculty and expressed that he felt that outstanding faculty are being tenured.  Also related to Reappointment, Promotion and Tenure (RPT), the Provost noted that we are good at assessing research and getting better at assessing teaching, but that we do not assess or reward service well.  To address this, next year some departments will be “enlisted” to join the Provost’s office in piloting a project with the National Review Board.  The University is very interested in community engagement efforts and attention toward assessing and rewarding service activities will promote this interest.  Interested departments should contact the Provost’s office as work will begin this summer.

 Provost Perzigian concluded his remarks by expressing his appreciation for the collaboration with Faculty Senate this year, especially relative to the Collegiate Structures Initiative efforts, the Richard Light Workshop, and student service.  He encouraged a “carry over” of momentum as we continue in efforts to better manage enrollment through more effective recruitment and more effective retention.

 Chair Karp expressed gratitude for Provost Perzigian’s efforts in taking the lead and being aggressive in trying to improve the academic atmosphere at UC.

VI. Update on the Spring Elections by the Chair of the Nominations Committee,
 Les Vuylsteke
 Chair of the Nominations Committee, Senator Vuylsteke first thanked all who recommended names for consideration by the Nominations Committee.  He further thanked the full Nominations Committee which consisted of all of the first-year Senators.  He went on to give special thanks to the Nominations Coordinating Committee including Senators Phil DeGreg, Adrianne Lane, Raj Manglik, and Pat Mezinskis.  Lastly, he thanked all who had given consideration to running in the elections and especially to those slated as candidates.

 He then presented the following slate naming the 2003 Nominees  for All-University
Faculty Elections which was approved by the Faculty Senate in its April meeting:

 Chairperson-Elect of the University Faculty (1 to be elected)
 (1 year as Chairperson-elect, 2 years as Chair, 1 year as Past Chair)

 John Cuppoletti   Medicine–Molecular & Cell Physiology
 Marla Hall    College of Applied Science–Psychology

 Secretary of the University Faculty (1 to be elected for a 2-year term)

 Angela Myatt    Academic Info. Tech & Libraries

 Representatives to the Board of Trustees (2 to be elected for a 2-year term)

 Lynn Davis    RWC–Math
 Karen Monzel    DAAP–Design–withdrew to be Assoc. Dean of DAAP
 Randal Morris    Medicine–Cell Biology
 Rita Taylor    RWC–Accounting

 At-Large Senators (4 to be elected for a 2-year term)

 Michelle Conda   CCM–Keyboard
 Carl Huether    A&S–Biological Sciences
 Andrea Kornbluh   RWC–History
 Daniel Langmeyer   A&S–Psychology
 Soleda Leung    Univ. College–Business Tech.
 Dennis Mann    DAAP–Architecture
 Kenneth Martin   Education–Teacher Education
 Sue Trakas    Clermont–Business Info. Tech

 University Faculty Grievance Committee (7 vacancies for a 2-year term)
 Two-Year Colleges (1 to be elected)
 
 Habtu Ghebre-Ab   Clermont–History
 Barbara Wenner   Univ. College–Language Arts

 West Campus Professional Colleges (1 to be elected)

 Jan Fritz    DAAP–Planning
 Y.K. Kao    Engineering–Chemical Engineering

 Medicine (1 to be elected)
 
 Edmund Choi    Molecular Genetics
 Charles Sidman   Molecular Genetics

 Medicine, untenured (1 to be elected)
 
 Ray Pun    Molecular & Cell Physiology

 Untenured, at-large (1 to be elected)

 Judy Dulin    Nursing
 T. Robin Riley    CCM–Electronic Media

 Tenured, at-large (1 to be elected)

 Michael Kazmierczak   Engineering–Mechanical Engineering
 Kurt Neuwirth    A&S–Communication

 Nursing/Pharmacy/Allied Health Sciences (1 to be elected)

 Jeff Guo    Pharmacy
 Judy Laver    Nursing

 Senator Vuylsteke then asked Chair Karp to open the floor for any further nominations from the floor.  There were no nominations from the floor.  Nominations were closed.

VII. Committee Reports
 Academic Affairs–Emel Yakali
 Senator Yakali was unable to attend the meeting due to a class conflict, however, Chair Karp reported that there have been some changes made in the grading policies which were approved by the Faculty Senate.  The updated policies should be ready/available to faculty by the beginning of Autumn quarter.
 
 Budget and Priorities–Randy Morris
 The report is contained in its entirety in a separate attachment.

 Committee on Committees–Rita Taylor
 Chair Karp expressed hearty thanks to Senator Taylor for her considerable efforts as the Chair of the Committee on Committees.  He further commented that she has done a wonderful job and jokingly added that he thought she is running for the Board of Trustees position in order to get out of continuing as the chair of the committee.

 Planning–John Cuppoletti
 Senator Cuppoletti first thanked the members of the Planning committee for their work during the past year.  The two main tasks accomplished by the committee were identifying a list of names of former faculty to be considered for the naming of buildings and development of the electronic voting procedures.

 He announced that faculty would be receiving a letter by e-mail explaining the electronic balloting process.  He noted that there would be a ‘hot-link’ to a voting site and that to vote one must enter their last name, date of birth without the year, last 4 digits of their social security number and their votes.

 The dates for voting will be May 16-23 and the votes will be tallied electronically.  All faculty meeting the 65% status criterion may vote.  It is expected that more faculty will vote via the electronic mechanism. 

 Senator Cuppoletti then briefly described the proposed changes to the Bylaws which would bring the bylaws in line with the current voting practices.  In essence the proposed changes assert that all persons holding clinical, field service or research titles and all persons with adjunct appointments with more than 64% FTE will now be eligible to vote.  (The complete proposed revision changes are included in an e-mail from Chair Karp to All-University Faculty dated May 5, 2003).  Senator Cuppoletti presented the changes for approval.  The changes were approved unanimously.

VIII. Presentation of Faculty Awards
 Chair Karp announced the awards, their recipients and presenters.  Senator Brod read the award citations and joined President Steger in congratulating each recipient individually.

 Following is the list of awards, recipients and presenters.

 George Barbour Award for Promoting Good Student-Faculty Relations
 Recipient: Professor T. Michael Baseheart
 Presenter: Dean Stephen T. Kowel
 
 Mrs. A.B. (Dolly) Cohen Award for Excellence in University Teaching (2)
 Recipient:  Professor Kirsten F. Nigro
 Presenter:  Professor Lowanne E. Jones

 Recipient:  Professor Timothy J. Northcut
 Presenter:  Professor David H. Adams

 George Rieveschl, Jr. Award for Distinguished Scientific Research
 Recipient:  Nira Ben-Jonathan
 Presenter:  Dean Andrea R. Lindell

 George Rieveschl, Jr. Award for Excellence in Scholarly or Creative Works
 Recipient:  Professor Kathryn J. Gutzwiller
 Represented by: Professor C. Brian Rose
 Presenter:  Vice Provost Wayne E. Hall
 
IX. Unfinished Business
There was none.
       
X. New Business
 There was none

 XI. Adjournment.
 The meeting was adjourned at 2:10 p.m. and was followed by a reception.

Respectfully submitted,

Marla Hall, Secretary
University Faculty

Attachment

Report to the All-University Faculty Meeting by the Budget and Priorities Committee

May 13, 2003

 During the past academic year (2002-03) the Budget and Priorities Committee has met on a monthly basis, meeting on the second Tuesday of each month.  The first meeting was an organizational meeting.  All subsequent meetings were business meetings where the committee discussed budgetary issues and made recommendations either to the chair of the Faculty, Dr. Richard Karp, or to the entire senate. 
 From a budgetary standpoint this past academic year is best characterized as austere.  Owing to the negative effects of the third year of national economic decline, state support for the university as a percentage of the total university budget has eroded to an all time low.  In at least one instance, dollars had to been sent back to Columbus.  The reductions in state support have been exasperated further by declining enrollments.  These factors contributed to a budgetary crisis that peaked in January of 2003.  In response to the budgetary crisis, the Budget and Priorities Committee held weekly meetings throughout the months of February and March of 2003.  The purpose of these meeting was to make recommendations to the chair of the senate concerning the Faculty's suggestions for the allocation of scarce dollars. It was our intent that our recommendation should be presented for consideration at the level of the president's cabinet.  The list of our recommendations is appended to this document.
 At the time of this writing the state budget for the upcoming fiscal year (2003-04) has not been signed into law.  Accordingly the Budget and Priorities Committee is awaiting the details of the next state budget, and in anticipation of additional cuts we are deliberating various options.

   Respectfully submitted,

   Randal E. Morris, Ph.D.
   Chair; Budget and Priorities Committee