I. Minutes of the September 20, 2005 Meeting

The minutes of the September 20, 2005 meeting of the Faculty Senate were approved

II. Report of the Faculty Senate Chairperson

Dr. Börger-Greco reminded Senators that commencement will be held on Sunday, December 18.

Student Senate President Fayth Balsam reported that five freshmen have been elected to Student Senate and requested that Senators encourage their students to consider filling open seats. She also noted that committee elections were held.

IV. Report of the Graduate Student Organization

The new Graduate Student Organization Representative, Meaghan Shirk, was introduced to Senate. She reported that the GSO is setting goals for their activities. One issue they are currently addressing is stipends for Graduate Assistants.

V. Report of the Administrative Officers

President McNairy

President McNairy congratulated the Senate regarding Millersville being awarded the highest Performance Funding from PASSHE. She noted that funds will be used to support accreditation efforts and provide library resources. However, she also indicated that remaining funds will be held in reserve to possibly offset budget deficits that may arise next year depending on legislative action affecting tuition income.

President McNairy also invited Senators to participate in the upcoming First Fridays. She commented that there would be no speeches and no agenda as the event is meant to encourage faculty interaction with colleagues from across campus.

President McNairy also clarified that recent reporting in The Snapper about the University Planning Council addressing an athletics master plan was erroneous. She reiterated that UPC will be using campus-wide input to draft a Millersville vision statement and developing mechanisms for assuring that the goals are met. The UPC will also begin preparing the university for the upcoming Middle States review.

Provost Prabhu

Provost Prabhu reminded Senators that an online survey is underway to increase the faculty input on the visioning process. Responses will be used by the UPC to develop the vision statement and performance indicators.

Executive Assistant to the President Phillips

Executive Assistant to the President Phillips encouraged Senators to explore options for upcoming Winter session courses. She commented that Summer sessions in 2005 were less successful than other years due to fewer offerings. She suggested that we should aim to expand offerings next summer to increase enrollment and revenue, particularly for graduate programs. The possibility of lowering summer tuition to attract students was raised. However, Dr. McNairy pointed out that the Board of Governors establishes tuition but efforts have been made at Millersville to limit fees charged to graduate students.

Dr. Phillips also noted that registration issues for sophomores are being addressed. Currently, there are enough sections for expected enrollments, but seats in 200-level courses are being reserved for sophomore registration. She indicated that reserving seats in English for BSE students worked well. She also noted that, during the next registration period, a limit of 17 credit hours will be enforced to keep students from "reserving" seats that they intend to drop later.

Dean DeSantis

The new Graduate Dean, Victor DeSantis, was introduced to Senate. He reported that he has been meeting with the Graduate Program Directors and the GCPRC. He noted that current graduate enrollment is below 1000 and indicated that he will be working to reinvigorate graduate programs.

Interime Assistant Provost Redmond

Interim Assistant Provost Redmond from the Division of Academic Support Programs and Learning Services reported that five advanced high school students from Penn Manor would be taking Millersville courses under a new $5-million dual-enrollment grant program. Conestoga Valley, Lancaster and Solanco have also formed dual-enrollment partnerships with Millersville. Students in the program are being encouraged to consider taking courses offered in the evening and at the Liberty Place Campus. He commented that participating students will pay tuition up front and be reimbursed through the grant funding.

VI. Faculty Emeritus

Rosenthal/Luek motion - Dr. Stuart Foreman was granted the honorary title of Associate Professor of English Emeritus. [see Attachment #1]

VII. Reports of the Faculty Senate Standing Committees

None.

VIII. Reports of the Faculty Senate Special Committees

None.

IX. Proposed Courses and Programs

Dr. Börger-Greco reported on administrative approvals of previous proposals.

(1) CHANGE IN COURSES/CURRICULA Requirements for the BSE in Chemistry dropped from 128 credits to 126 credits.

Dr. Wismer addressed questions regarding why the proposed waiver of the 3-credit Perspectives (P) requirement for a BSE in Chemistry results in a reduction from 128 credits to 126. He communicated that the Environmental Chemistry course already required for the Chemistry BSE students will no longer be available without a laboratory component. This results in an increase of 1 credit along with the 3 credit reduction. The proposal passed with one opposing vote.

X. General Education Reform

Dr. Foster-Clark presented updated language as requested at the previous meeting. [see Attachment #2] Dr. Ward communicated that the Task Force hoped to set up working groups of faculty to suggest approaches to curriculum for General Education. The intention is to expand the view points that will direct the final form of any reformatted curriculum structure.

Discussion was held addressing the meaning of "coherence" in Principle 3. Inclusion of the terminology is reflective of the Middle States' statement on General Education. Concern revolved around whether the concept of coherence could be interpreted to mean that students would need to take a specific set of general education courses. A Ward/Wismer motion to add "without being overly prescriptive" to Principle 3 was proposed. A Luek/Edeh motion to amend the proposal to drop the word "overly" was not approved. The original motion passed with one opposing vote and one abstention.

Further discussion was held regarding whether Principles 1-6 regarding the reformatted General Education program could be renamed to differentiate them from Principles A-F that describe the process of reforming General Education. A Ward/Buchanan motion to rename Principles A-F as Process Principles and Principles 1-6 as Program Principles was withdrawn. A Schaffer/DeCaria motion to relabel Principles 1-6 as Guidelines 1-6 was withdrawn. A Schaffer/DeCaria motion to relabel Principles 1-6 as Characteristics 1-6 passed without dissent.

XI. Other/New Business

None.

XII. Committee Elections

Nominations were accepted for open Senate committee positions. A Mowrey/Buchanan motion to close nominations and elect unopposed candidates was passed without dissent. A Kevorkian/Wismer motion to extend nominations to fill open seats with At-Large members was passed without dissent. A Mowrey/Wismer motion to close nominations and elect unopposed candidates was passed without dissent.

XIII. Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 5:35 p.m. following elections.

Respectfully submitted,

Aimee L. Miller
Faculty Senate Secretary

Action Summary