Faculty Senate Minutes, 13 June 1995

MINUTES

FACULTY SENATE MEETING

13 June 1995

Chairperson D. Eidam called the meeting to order at 3:05 p.m. in Myers Auditorium of mcComsey Hall. All departmental senators except the Business Administration, Chemistry, Counseling and Human Development, Elementary and Early Childhood Education, and Music Departments attended.

Minutes

Senate approved the 2 May 1995 meeting minutes. Senator K. Bookmiller noted a correction to the 1994-1995 Faculty Senate Annual Reports. She said the Cooperative Education Report on page 7 omitted the fact that the Political Science Department participates in the Cooperative Education Program.

Reports

Chairperson's Report

Chairperson D. Eidam noted and senate approved the following corrections to today's agenda: Item XVI becomes Item IX and item XV becomes Item X. Senate shifted the remaining items downward accordingly.

Eidam distributed the latest capital campaign data (See Attachment A). In the Fall, senate returns to Chryst Hall. Eidam said that the food setup may not be done by the time senators arrive for the Fall meetings. Since there will be no class after senate meetings, he suggested that senate return to circular seating.

Eidam gave senators a copy of the proposal that senate passed last year regarding how to conduct elections (See Attachment B). Under the voting procedure, there is only a need for one ballot. Eidam previously sent senators a form calling for nominations for openings on senate committees (See Attachment C). In late August he will send all professors an updated "Notice of Fall Elections" indicating the positions for which senate is seeking nominees (for the current "Notice", see Attachment D).

In the Fall, Senator J. Piperberg, Chairperson D. Eidam, and any additional volunteers will do the actual tallying of votes. According to Roberts Rules of Order, when there is a tie vote, the tie is broken by flipping a coin. Senate approved the voting procedure. Senators will do preferential voting, ranking the candidates in the order of their preference. For an opening on a committee, do not put down only one person. Instead put down everyone a senator is willing to have on the committee in the order of his/her preference. If a senator does not want a candidate on a committee under any circumstances, do not write that candidate's name down. Nominations are open now and will also be accepted on the floor at the 5 September 1995 meeting.

Eidam mentioned that senate is losing E. Ottinger as a senator. He chaired the Outcomes Assessment Committee since its beginning. Senate is losing R. Clark who chaired many committees. Finally, senate is losing its Vice Chairperson, S. Luek, who served in senate in many capacities for 17 years. She was chairperson of the honors Committee since its inception. Eidam said it has been a privilege for senate to work with all three.

Administrative Officers

President

President J. Caputo announced a council of trustees meeting scheduled for Wednesday, June 14, 1995. MU will submit the most recent senate recommendations for faculty emeritus status to the council of trustees. Caputo said MU would in the future try to expedite the process of approving faculty for emeritus status.

The enrollment for the summer is up for both graduate and undergraduate courses. That is certainly a good sign. For this summer, faculty chairs were more careful in selecting the course their department offered. MU also advertised more than it has in the past. The MU staff also helped by visiting the various shcool districts.

Caputo said that Harrisburg was close to making budget decisions. The Pennsylvania state system of higher education has good support among the leadership of the General Assembly. In any case, Caputo predicts that Mu's budget next year will be tighter than last year's. However, the budget allocation is unlikely to throw MU into a crisis. The key is how Governor T. Ridge responds to SSHE requests. If he changes nothing from his February budget proposal, that will be serious for us. MU will face a tough road over the next four years.

MU dropped in enrollment substantially two years ago and suffered considerable financial dislocation. This year the admissions office has admitted about 150 more students than we had planned. Caputo said the increase was not planned but that MU was more popular than we had been. He hopes the increased enrollment in the Summer and Fall indicate a trend away from declining enrollment.

Caputo said that senators had heard about criticisms of the SSHE from Representative Lawless, a graduate of West Chester University. He may have hit a resonant chord with some of his criticisms; but his criticism of sabbatical leaves, travel, etc. is unlikely to be well received in the general assembly. He has also attacked the tuition remission plan for employees. The Lawless proposed legislation will be difficult for the assembly to pass. However, there appears to be a vague general dissatisfaction with public higher education.

Vice-President for Academic Affairs

Provost F. McNairy's announcements focused on the implications of several aspects that when analyzed together, require the University to become more frugal within its existing resources. Those forces include (1) the anticipated budget allocation from the governor, (2) the new System budget formula, (3) the Board of Governor's policy on enrollment bands, (4) the increase in enrollment projected for the Fall semester, (5) the Board of Governor's most recent directive regarding the freeze on the complement, and (6) the 7 percent maximum on the number of part-time adjunct faculty that we may hire.

To examine how the University is using its resources, the administration has formed three task forces with faculty representation. The first task force will conduct a cost analysis of our general education program. We designed a general education program with specific goals and expected outcomes; however, our program was designed under a different budget system within the governor's office as well as a budget formula within the System.

The second task force will analyze our academic master schedule to determine if our schedules will meet student demand and need. It will examine our use of time, course replication, space use, enrollment patterns within departments and other aspects which influence our ability to offer courses to our students.

The third task force will first determine what informational data elements currently exist that are needed for planning within the University, who has access to those elements, and through what means one obtains such critical information. It will also generate a list of informational data elements that must be added to our current system. The task force is important to assure that the University uses as much information as possible as it engages in normal day-to-day operations, as well as short and long-range planning. All three task forces must have their work completed by December 1. The reports from the task forces will be shared with the academic community.

MU's budget is based upon student FTE which declined two years ago. To recoup from that decline and to simultaneously regain our enrollment so that we maximize our allocation from SSHE, the Office of Admissions has worked very hard to secure the new student enrollment. To ensure that Millersville's allocation from the formula is not decreased, it is also imperative that we maintain an enrollment that approaches the maximum permitted in the enrollment band established by the Board of Governors. Because we anticipate 150 students more than we planned and because we must address the demand for seats among our currently enrolled students, class sizes will need to be increased across the board. Specifically, in the 1995 Fall Semester, enrollments in W, Perspectives, and Spoeech courses will be increased to a maximum of 30 seats. Composition and Advanced Writing courses will be increased to 23, maximum. Appropriate courses will be relocated to larger classrooms when possible. Faculty are encouraged to examine alternative approaches to addressing the objectives for thos courses which originally were designed for smaller enrollments. Some may question why we don't hire more adjuncts to teach. Because of the 7 percent maximum on adjuncts and the new complement freeze, hiring more faculty is not an option that is available to us at this time.

The Provost has charged the Registrar, Deans, and Department Chairs to work together to build a master schedule for 1996-97 that corresponds with student need for general education, major, and service courses. Simultaneously, the President has charged all administrative units to examine their productivity and to use more efficient means of functioning.

Provost McNairy introduced Associate Vice-President for Academic Affairs J. Stager who distributed a handout with charts and tables on MU's enrollment history (see Attachment E). Stager said the handouts were prepared for recent SPARC, Dean's Council, and PAC meetings. the handouts give a sense of where we have been, where we are now, and where we think we will be next year. Chart I shows a 25 year history of full-time, part-time, and graduate student enrollments. The figures for 1995 are projected as of 19 May 1995. MU has recovered from a drop in enrollment that began in 1992.

Page 3 shows MU's Undergraduate Enrollments as full time equivalents. This Fall's projected figure of 5,845 is at an all-time high level. The reason is we have more full-time students projected for the Fall. there has been a good new admission yield. Since the June-January program was discontinued last year, students who come this Summer will be allowed to continue this Fall. More students are coming this Summer with the goal of continuing in the Fall than in the past. We also have an increase in returning students over last year.

MU has 1776 paid deposits from new students as of right now. it also usually has about 150-200 no shows. Currently, MU must create schedules for 1776 new students. new student orientation starts next week and the schedules must be ready for the students.

Page 4 shows one problem for MU--a decline in part-time students. Even though the toal headcount was larger four years ago than it is projected to be this year, MU has seen a steady decline in part-time students. The same phenomenon holds true for the state and nation. MU thinks the ACE program and a stronger marketing campaign will result in a levlling off of the decline in part-time students. the increase in 1995 Summer enrollments argues well for maintaining part-time enrollment in the Fall.

Page 5 shows the full=time equivalent students for Fall, Spring, and the academic year. A Board of Governors policy says that MU may not exceed 5743 full time equivalent students for the academic year on the high side nor go below 5291 on the low side. If we go above 5743, our funding is affected. The ideal to maximize our resources is to get as close to the 5743 number as possible. MU is projected to hit the 5700 mark this academic year. MU will set targets for the future to reach the ideal. Admissions is not an exact science. MU is projecting about 271 FTE graduate students for the 95-96 academic year.

Page 7 shows regular admits, freshman, and total new students. MU has increased the number of transfer students. Pages 9, 10, 11, and 12 show the number of majors in each of the academic areas. Page 13 shows MU's undergraduate student/faculty ratios; they are a measure of instructional faculty productivity. The librarians and service faculty are not included. Divide the total student FTE by the total faculty FTE to get the student/faculty ratio. MU's ratio was over 19 in 1988 and now is less than 18. The ratio rose from 1993-94 to 1994-95 as enrollments increased. Page 15 shows the number of sections that have been offered on campus in the Fall and Spring. This Fall MU will offer a high number of sections compared with the last five years.

Committee Reports

Academic Standards Committee

Chairperson J. Piperberg said the committee met last week. It upheld the dismissal of about 8 students out of a total of approximately 60. The other students were approved to enroll in the Fall. There were 5 or 6 students who were readmitted under the academic amnesty policy, the first time that has happened. Piperberg will submit a final report later in the Summer when he receives a complete set of data.

Undergraduate Course and Program Review Committee

Committee chairperson C. McLeod introduced two new courses under the two meeting rule:

COMM422:

Advanced Audio Production Technique, a new three credit hour course effective Spring 1996 if approved

BIOL318:

Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy, a new four credit hour course effective Spring 1995 if approved

University Honors Program Committee

Chairperson S. Luek said the Honors Program approved the recent comprehensive evaluation of itself. The committee voted that the Honors Program will maintain two student members and add an alternate. The information will be transmitted to senate. The committee also approved as honors courses: Psychology 227, Development of the Child and Adolescent, Biology 471, Cell Biology, and Geography 101, The Global Environment.

Faculty Emeritus

Senate unanimously recommended Charles L. Van Gorden for Associate Professor of Mathematics Emeritus status (See Attachment F).

Proposed Courses

Under the three meeting rule, senate approved three courses:

GEOG321:

Urban Settlement Patterns: Past, Present, and Future, a new three credit hour Perspectives course to be first offered in the Spring of 1996.

PSCI341:

Urban Settlement Patterns: Past, Present, and Future, a new three credit hour Perspectives course to be first offered in the Spring of 1996.

HPED175:

Wellness: Concepts for Health and Fitness, a new three credit hour General Education course to be first offered in the Fall of 1995.

Under the one meeting rule, senate approved one course:

THEA217:

Theatre Appreciation, a three credit hour existing course seeking General Education and C status effective Summer of 1995. The course number is changed from the previous 317 to the new 217.

Business

Composition of the New Senate Standing Committee

At its 2 May 1995 meeting, senate approved an AD HOC Policies Review Committee proposal to create a new standing committee (see page 3792 of the 2 May 1995 minutes). At the 2 May meeting, senators raised questions about the composition of the new Admissions, Advisement, and Student Affairs Committee. Chairperson D. Eidam sent senators two options for electing the committee members through the mail (see Attachment G>). Attachment G shows the current Student Affairs Committee, the description of the new committee, and two options for the composition of the new committee. K. Sanchez will not transfer to the new committee but all other members of the old Student Affairs Committee will transfer. Senator D. Hutchens moved alternative number 1 from Attachment G as the transfer procedure for electing the composition of the new committee. Sneate passed the motion.

The Educational Leadership Program

Senator F. Erickson said the Educational Foundations Department originally placed the proposal on the agenda last February. Because of a question concerning the approval process of one course in the program, the program was withdrawn at that time. Now the course descriptions are correct and Erickson seeks senate's approval of the program. He distributed the replacement pages for the Educational Leadership Proposal (see Attachment H). Senate passed the proposal for the program.

Motion to Change the 3-Meeting to the 2-Meeting Rule

Senate considered a motion to change the 3-meeting to the 2-meeting rule for course approvals (See Attachment B, page 3796, of the 2 May 1995 minutes). The motivation is to speed up the approval process. when a course is challenged, it is normally challenged at the first meeting after it is proposed; it rarely is challenged at the third meeting. Senate passed the motion. Chairperson D. Eidam said that 30 days from now all numbers relating the meetings to challenge a course go down by one.

A Proposal on Admission to Advanced Studies for Teacher Preparation Students

Course Proposal

Senate approved ANTH320: Archeological Method and Theory, a new three credit hour nongeneral education W. course effective Fall 1995.

A Proposal for an Option and Minor for Archeology

J. Evans distributed the Archeology Option and Minor proposals at the 2 May 1995 senate meeting (See J. Evans for the proposals). Senate passed the proposals.

Social Work and Gerontology Course Counting

Senate considered a Social Work Department proposal for an exception to the general rule that courses from the major department cannot count as general education courses (See Attachment A of the 2 May 1995 minutes). Senate passed the proposal.

Graduate Course Approval

Senate approved BIOL662: Molecular Biology, an existing graduate course that would change from three to four credit hours effective Fall 1995.

Senate adjourned at 4:15 p.m. The next meeting will be Tuesday, 5 September 1995, from 4:00 - 5:45 p.m. in Chryst 210.

Respectfully submitted,

Marvin Margolis, Secretary
Faculty Senate

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