I. Minutes of previous meetings

The minutes of the March 7, 2006 meeting of the Faculty Senate were approved as presented.

II. Report of the Faculty Senate Chairperson

None

III. Report of the Student Senate President

Student Senate President Fayth Balsam commented on the meetings regarding the Academic Bill of Rights taking place on campus this Wednesday and Thursday. She invited Senators to attend.

IV. Report of the Graduate Student Organization

Graduate Student Association Representative Meaghan Shirk reported that the GSA is working on a handbook for incoming graduate students.

V. Report of the Administrative Officers

Provost Prabhu

Provost Prabhu commented that Dr. McNairy would be addressing the Academic Bill of Rights committee on campus this week. The meetings begin tomorrow at noon in Gordinier and continue on Thursday morning. Persons from other universities will be also be attending. Presenters will include two area professors, Dr. April Kelly-Woessner and Dr. Matthew Woessner, who have conducted related research and Dr. Frank Bremer. Dr. Prabhu also noted that an upcoming faculty forum is planned to address the new format for student orientation to be implemented in the fall of 2007.

VI. Faculty Emeritus

None.

VII. Reports of the Faculty Senate Standing Committees

UCPRC

First Reading:

(1) CHANGE IN COURSES/CURRICULA
Changes to the Economics Minor

GERC

Dr. Fred Foster-Clark brought comments in Dr. Ward's absence regarding the next Senate meeting that will be dedicated to Gen Ed discussion. He noted that survey responses requested at the last meeting are available in addition to the summaries circulated by e-mail. He also distributed a timeline highlighting key events in the Gen Ed program since the last major revision in 1988. He indicated that the April 4 meeting will be focused on discussion of major issues related to the curriculum proposal included in the GERC report brought to Senate on March 7. Questions were raised about the impetus for Gen Ed reform and what specific problems with the current program we are trying to address. It was noted that development of a curriculum plan was an integral part of the Ashville Institute on General Education attended by MU representatives in 2002. Another issue raised was a need to show assessment of our Gen Ed curriculum. Dr. Prabhu pointed out that regular review must be built into Gen Ed to meet accreditation requirements for Middle States. Discussion was held regarding a feeling that recent work relating to Gen Ed has lacked a sense of context or direction. It was noted that there is a need for a focused summary to communicate to faculty about the major issues. Dr. Foster-Clark responded that the intention for the April 4 meeting is to address a limited set of issues with the hope of building consensus. He also noted that information regarding assessment of the current program is available on the Gen Ed website. A concern was raised regarding a lack of correlation between the curriculum plan presented in the March 7, 2006 GERC report and the GETF "spokes and wheel" model presented in spring of 2005. Dr. Foster-Clark responded that the new proposal addresses information from the surveys like a lack of support for themed courses but strong support for counting a variety of first-year seminars but also overlapped the "spokes and wheel" model in four major points. Concerns were raised that Senate never completed consideration of the objectives for Gen Ed and that we are now trying to build a curriculum plan without clarity about the overall goals. Dr. Phillips recalled that Senate was hesitant to pass objectives that might dictate curriculum.

Dr. Börger-Greco distributed a proposal for ground rules to apply to the April 4 Senate meeting. A question was raised about the ability to extend the proposed 15-minute maximum to continue productive discussions. A Schaffer/DeCaria motion that up to three 5-minute extensions be allowed for each issue to be decided by the majority of senators upon immediate motion and vote was approved without dissent. Another question raised was whether the list of issues to be discussed would be distributed to Senate in advance of the meeting to allow for garnering departmental guidance. Dr. Foster-Clark indicated that these would be distributed following the GERC meeting on March 28. It was also asked whether the responses from the April 4 meeting would be returned to Senate prior to a new proposal from GERC. Senator Kruse commented that it is critical that Gen Ed not be so tightly integrated that transfer students encounter difficulty meeting the requirements. Dr. Foster-Clark responded that this is not expected to be a major issue with the proposals under consideration. A West/Schaffer motion to adopt the ground rules for the April 4 meeting of Faculty Senate as amended was approved without dissent. Dr. Börger-Greco noted that an invitation to the April 4 meeting would be sent across campus this week and that Senators should encourage colleagues to attend.

Academic Policies

Senator West previously presented proposed changes to language in the Governance Manual regarding the Distance Learning Course Approval Process. A question was raised regarding how the specified maximum 33% face-to-face time for Blended Courses was established. The concern was that up to 66% of coursework could be shifted to online formats without being addressed as distance learning. It was noted that this value was determined by the MU Online Advisory Group and is not under Senate review. However, the issue at hand is for the Governance Manual to reflect current practice.

Additional discussion was held regarding whether UCPRC/GCPRC is the best format for reviewing these proposals. Senator White commented that UCPRC/GCPRC have been charged with serving this role for one year after which the approach will be reconsidered. She noted that these committees have representation from across the schools and that the burden is on members to be aware of issues of approval across their school. It was also noted that members of these committees generally include at least one with expertise in the area of distance learning. A Igyor/Bookmiller motion to approve the changes to the Distance Learning Approval Process was approved with one dissenting vote.

VIII. Reports of the Faculty Senate Special Committees

None.

IX. Proposed Courses and Programs

Second Readings (1) NEW UNDERGRADUATE COURSE

ART 368: Collage, 3 credits.
This proposal relates only to ART 368 and not ART 568 as was indicated on the distributed documentation. The proposal passed without dissent.

(2) NEW GRADUATE COURSES

EM 601: Principles & Practices of Emergency Management, 3 credits
EM 603: Technical & Professional Writing for EM Personnel, 3 credits
EM 605: Social Dimensions of Disaster, 3 credits
EM 607: Emergency Mental Health & Trauma, 3 credits
EM 614: Natural Hazards Primer, 3 credits
EM 615: Emergency Preparedness for Industry, 3 credits
EM 653: Theoretical Perspectives & Methods Applied to EM, 3 credits
EM 693: Field Experience Practicum, 3 credits
EM 616: Terrorism, WMD & Homeland Security, 3 credits
EM 617: EM Issues in Communication & Mass Media, 3 credits
EM 618: Humanitarian Responses to International Disasters, 3 credits
EM 629-632: Special Topics Course, 3 credits
EM 689: Independent Study, 1-3 credits


Discussion of these courses focused on mechanisms of ensuring integrity in dissemination of an entirely online degree. Dr. Fischer responded that these issues are relevant regardless of instructional format. He commented that persons expected to enroll in this program are likely to be employed in EM fields and that completion of the degree will require significant commitment. It was noted that there are safety nets that faculty can use to evaluate work submitted online. Also, it was pointed out that instructors would be interacting with students enough to identify red flags. Dr. DeSantis commented that the Graduate Studies admission process involves significant review of the applicant. It was suggested that inclusion of at least some face-to-face experiences would be beneficial for students as well as address some of these concerns. Dr. Fischer responded that although these experiences are valuable, they represent a significant financial hurdle. A DeCaria/Saunders motion to approve all the proposed EM courses simultaneously was approved without dissent.

(3) NEW GRADUATE PROGRAM

Master of Science in Emergency Management including 24 required credits (EM 601, 603, 605, 607, 614, 615, 653 and 693) and 6 elective credits (EM 616, 617, 618, 639-632, 689). The proposed program was approved without dissent.

X. Report on Institutional Review Board

Dr. Inese Wheeler shared with Senate that formation of the Millersville University Institutional Review Board (MUIRB) for the Protection of Human Subjects was undertaken to ensure that Millersville meets national standards. Information is now available online and board members are willing to speak to research methods courses. All research involving humans must come to the IRB through the Graduate Studies office. She noted that anonymous surveys that do not address any sensitive issues could be excepted. Dr. Wheeler requested that individual departments forward any area-specific guidelines to be linked to the MUIRB website. It was confirmed that function of the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) remains unchanged. Additional discussion was held regarding student research and work completed prior to the MUIRB formation.

Dr. DeSantis noted that the MUIRB is intended to be protective of faculty and Millersville. He also reminded Senate of the recent appointment of Ryan Sauder as Director of Grants and Sponsored Research to assist faculty with academic grant writing. He further informed Senators of an upcoming forum on research practices to be held May 5.

XI. Other/New Business

Senator Schaffer announced an upcoming symposium to be held April 11-12 regarding internment of Japanese Americans and Japanese Canadians during World War II. In addition, students taking Social Justice and Public Policy will be presenting at a public discussion series on The Demands of Social Justice. He invited faculty to join in these events and encourage student attendance as well.

XII. Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 5:50 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Aimee L. Miller
Faculty Senate Secretary

Action Summary