UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH ALABAMA

Faculty Senate
Unapproved Minutes
19 July, 2000

1. Call to Order:

The meeting was called to order at 3:05 p.m.


2. Roll Call and Agenda Approval:

Present

Dagenais, Bowers, R. Brown, Cohen, Matheson, Rogers, Shardo, Ryder, Bailey, Broughton, Ellis, McIntosh, Olsen, Murray, Norman, Wheeler, Benoit, Boggs, Derbin, Kayes, Perkins, Beatty, Bracken, Broome, DeWitt, Weitzel

Absent (Excused):

Blackwell, Kwiatkowski, Morris, Mozur, Vest, Townsley, Wesenberg, Hsu, Swofford

Absent (Unexcused):

Gifford, Hill, Spector, I. Brown, Comstock, Hitt, Kimbell, Miller, Payne, White, Garmon, Rowe, Strange, Parker, Sylvester, Baker, Cepeda, Cox, Sternberg, Stevens, Stubbs, Teplick, Tuck-Muller, Wilson, Temple

 

3. Approval of Minutes:

The minutes from the June 21, 2000 Faculty Senate meeting were presented and approved.


4. Report from the Chair:

Chairman Rogers remarked that the Senate will continue increasing its usage of the Web for information and document storage.

Several items discussed during the last meeting between the Executive Committee and President Moulton and other administrators were then mentioned:

During that meeting, a memo from Dr. Covey concerning computer/software requirements was discussed briefly. Numerous Senators voiced opinions concerning various implications of this memo. In general, some of the major concerns appear to be: student costs, support services, and compatibility/version problems. Senators also questioned the timing of catalog changes (many aspects of this policy need further discussion) and possible penalties for noncompliance. After much discussion, Senators agreed that several aspects of this policy need further consideration. Chairman Rogers indicated that Dean Feinstein will be invited to the next Senate meeting to discuss some of the issues.

It was announced that a retreat including faculty senators and university administrators is being planned. Tentative plans are for the retreat to be held at Brookley on Friday, September 8th.


5. Reports from Standing Committees:

Evaluation Committee: No report.

Planning Committee: No report.

Policy and Handbook Committee: Senator Brown announced that subcommittee chairs have been named. The committees and chairs are:

Grade Forgiveness - Linda Broughton

Work Load - Linda Payne and David Ellis

Faculty Service and Development awards - Richmond Brown

Distance Learning - Robert Ryder

Faculty Governance - Steve Cohen

Terminal Degree - Lyle Miller

Hiring Policies - James Swofford

Salary and Fringe Benefits Committee: No report


6. Reports from Caucus Leaders:

Several caucus leaders indicated that meetings have been held or scheduled with their respective Deans. The Colleges reporting this were: Arts and Sciences, Education, Engineering, and Nursing.

The following caucuses had no report: Allied Health, Computer and Information Sciences, Continuing Education, Medicine, Business, and Library.


7. Old Business:

Senator Richmond Brown gave a report concerning changes to the Faculty Handbook. Changes include:

A new policy on Honorary Doctorates.

The Joint Planning Committee has been deleted. The Board of Trustees' Long Range Planning Committee performs essentially the same functions.

The Faculty-Administrative Steering Team (FAST) Committee has been eliminated. Meetings between the Senate Executive Committee and the President and other administrators perform essentially the same functions.

Policies concerning the internal search process for chairs have been updated.

Language concerning Deans' responsibilities has been modified.

It was also announced that the Faculty Handbook will be available online. A copy should also be available in Deans' offices and departmental offices.

Senator Brown also suggested that the revised Faculty Service and Development Awards (FSDA) policy raises some questions. These questions include:

Are request deadlines reasonable?

Are deadlines for final reports reasonable?

Should an award be viewed as an entitlement?

Are people eligible for more than one award?

The Policy and Handbook Committee hopes to have a resolution concerning FSDA awards ready for a Fall 2000 meeting.


8. New Business:

There was a discussion of a motion concerning Deans' attendance (on a rotating basis) at Faculty Senate meetings. No vote was taken.

Senator Dagenais, chair of the Planning and Development Committee, announced that his committee plans to reevaluate the University-wide committee structure.


9. Adjournment:

The meeting was adjourned at 4:24 p.m.


Respectfully submitted by:

R. Bracken, Secretary


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