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Faculty Senate Chairs' University Faculty Meeting Speeches

General Faculty Address - August 13, 2001
Gayle Marie Weitz

Good morning! I'm told I'm the "clean-up hitter," which is perplexing, because I don't know how to bat. So, I guess that I shall bunt.

On behalf of the Faculty Senate, I too welcome each of you to the 2001 Fall term. Being last in this series of speakers, I feel it appropriate and necessary to be brief and to the point, so that we may all get on with the myriad of tasks that await us. (Besides, public speaking is not my forte!)

I'd like to begin by commending the Chancellor for successfully defending Appalachian's five-year athletic plan, our Athletic Director, and the faculty's position against going 1-A football. Thank you, Chancellor.

Next, I'd like to highlight some of the recommendations proposed by last year's Faculty Senate:

  • * Simplifying the Post Tenure Review process

  • * Granting tenure for Chairs and Deans at the time of hiring

  • * Eliminating the rental text program

  • * Adopting the new Academic Integrity Code

  • * Examining standing university committees, and

  • * Increasing tuition to raise faculty salaries.

In addition to work done by the Faculty Senate standing committees, several ad hoc committees composed of senators, faculty, and administrators (several in conjunction with the Council of Chairs) were created to address faculty workload, evaluation of the deans, the grievance process, and the Faculty Handbook. This work resulted in the following recommendations:

  • * Changing faculty workload to a three-course teaching load with one-course release time for research/creative activity

  • * Instituting a process for regular evaluation of the Deans

  • * Changing the grievance process and better define the role of the Equity Office (still pending Senate approval), and

  • * Revising the Faculty Handbook.

All of these recommendations represent hours of thoughtful deliberation by numerous folks to whom we owe much gratitude. (Shared faculty governance is labor intensive, time-consuming, and painfully slow!) The current status of these recommendations varies. For example:

  • * The Faculty Handbook (part of our contract) will be approved and adopted this December. (Look for it on-line.)

  • * The $150 tuition increase to raise faculty salaries (for this year and next year) has been approved, but due to the uncertainty of the state's budget, it is unknown if we actually will receive this money.

  • * The faculty workload document will be analyzed for feasibility and implementation this year.

  • * Recommendations to improve the faculty grievance process and the Equity Office will be discussed by the Senate at its first meeting next week. (We have permission to use a current grievance case, which will help us to better examine the pros and cons of our current process and these recommendations.)

Some issues to be considered by the Faculty Senate this year include:

  • * Promotion and Tenure guidelines

  • * Health benefits

  • * Alcohol and Drug policy

  • * Space Committee policy and procedures

  • * University Budget Committee, and

  • * Departmental Personnel Committees

I invite and encourage you to attend the General Faculty Meeting immediately following this, where we will present a more comprehensive 2001/2002 Faculty Senate agenda and entertain any questions and concerns you may have.

In addition, I solicit participation on the Senate this year, especially by our respected senior faculty members. We have several one-year positions available immediately. (Contact the Faculty Senate office -- x2067 -- if interested.)

In closing, I was reminded yesterday while discussing Gaines' book, "A Lesson Before Dying," of how powerful having hope is. I was astonished at the strong sense of optimism that generated from each of these new students. A similar feeling of hope radiated from new faculty during faculty orientation. It occurred to me how hope acts as a catalyst for change. So, here's hoping that we continue to work together - faculty, staff, students, and administrators - to make Appalachian the finest comprehensive university it can be. Have a terrific semester with high hopes!

- Gayle Marie Weitz 2001/2002

Faculty Senate Tasks (as of 8/13/01; unprioritized)

ACADEMIC POLICY

  • Convocation Center use

  • Progress reports

  • Graduate School Professional Certificates

  • Departmental Operating Procedures

  • Representative to AP&P

  • Representative to BoT Academic Policies Committee

  • Policy regarding student evaluations

  • Intellectual property document

  • Listing of Chairs up for renewal

  • Voting on-line

  • Promotion and Tenure guidelines

  • Part-Time faculty

WELFARE AND MORALE

  • EOC person

  • Streamline paperwork (annual report, promotion and tenure, merit, etc.)

  • Faculty Lounge policies

  • Directorship of Loft and App House

  • Health Benefits

  • Teaching portfolio

  • Pick new "peer" institutions

  • Policy for faculty list serve

WELFARE OF STUDENTS

  • General Studies advising

  • Core curriculum and Special Designators

  • Retention survey (check with SGA)

  • Implementation of Academic Integrity Code

  • Evaluation of Faculty (SGA on web page)

  • Name change from "lady mountaineers" to "mountaineers"

  • Alcohol and drug policy

  • Representative to SGA meetings

  • Representative to BoT student development committee

  • University Courtyard (relationship to ASU, policies and procedures)

CAMPUS PLANNING

  • Representative to University Relations Committee

  • Representative to Foundation Board meeting

  • Representative to BoT Advancement committee

  • Representative to Space Committee

  • Representative to Strategic Planning Commission Recommendations for improvements to Space Committee policies, procedures

  • Regular meetings with Jane Helm

  • Status of Restructuring University recommendations

BUDGET

  • Recommendations for a University Budget Committee (oversee and planning)

  • Distribution of tuition increase money (2001/2002 and 2002/2003)

  • 101-1310 hit list

  • Monitor administrators' salaries

  • Recommendations for possible budget cuts

  • Check competitiveness of faculty salaries

  • Recommendations for access to/participation in university, college, and Departmental budgets

  • Forum on ASU's internal budgeting process

  • Obtain copy of Lapsed Salary reports (Bill Ward)

  • Representative on BoT Business Affairs committee

COMMITTEE ON COMMITTEES

  • Schedule for review of university committees

  • Allocate university committees to standing senate committees

  • Continue investigating university committees

  • Status of recommendations made by this committee to university committees last year

  • Add policy on replacements in F.S. Guidebook

  • Add Chancellor's Advisory committee to standing committees

FACULTY HANDBOOK COMMITTEE

  • Status of new handbook

  • Propose changes to handbook, based on approved motions

In addition, we have the following ad hoc committees:

AD HOC ON MERIT (with Council of Chairs)

  • Charge: What is ASU's Merit Pay system? What are the possible problems with this system? What are some recommendations for improvement?

AD HOC ON DPCs (with Council of Chairs)

  • Charge: How do DPCS function? What is the relationship between DPC and Search Committees? What are the possible problems with DPCs? What are some recommendations for improvement?

AD HOC ON IMPLEMENTATION OF THE WORKLOAD DOCUMENT (with Council of Chairs)

  • What factors can be manipulated to achieve implementation of the Workload document? Recommendations and Timeline.

AD HOC ON TECHNOLOGY

  • Representative on ITAC

  • Faculty input on policies and procedures involving technology

OTHER

  • Recommendations for changes in Faculty Senate

  • Recommendations for Grievance changes?

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