Southeastern Louisiana University Faculty Senate
Meeting Minutes
Wednesday, 7 February 2007
Alumni Center
I. Senate President Peggy Gonzalez-Perez called the meeting to order at 3:05 p.m. in the Alumni Center. Membership Secretary Mary Sue Ply called roll. Senators absent were Beard, Echols, Hines, Jacobsen, Lee, Matzke, Nichols, Noto, Rushin, Urick, Weaver, White, Williams, Yeargain.
II. Minutes from the 17 January 2007 meeting were unanimously approved.
III. Old Business
A. Dr. Gonzalez-Perez recognized Senator Bancroft to present Resolution
2006-07:12 on Emergency Lighting [ADDENDUM A].
1. Senators read the resolution. Senator Bancroft made the motion to accept the resolution and Senator Ramsey seconded the motion.
2. Senator Holt-Ochsner asked how much this would cost? Senate
President Gonzalez-Perez responded that the resolution is just
a recommendation. The administration will decide the next step,
including determining the cost of the project. The resolution passed.
B. Senator Bancroft was called on to present Resolution 2006-07:13 on
Pedestrian Safety [ADDENDUM B].
1. Senators read the resolution. Senator Bancroft made the motion
to accept the resolution and Senator Wyld made the second.
Senator Bancroft said that, in response to an email from Senator
Ramsey, he was adding a clause to the resolution. This clause
asks for changes in the marking of streets because one-way and
two-way streets are not clearly marked. Senator Ply asked for
an example of this problem, and Senator Ramsey described one.
Senator Bancroft added In the United States, two-way roads use solid white lines in the shoulder stripes. One way roads have a solid white line at the right-side shoulder and a yellow solid line at the left-side shoulder.
2. One senator asked if these streets were University
property? Dr. Crain answered yes, that the University would be
responsible for paying for this. Senator Shwalb asked if this issue was covered by the clause asking for crosswalk changes?
Dr. Crain responded that signs have been posted at crosswalks to
make them safer, but not all of the issues in the resolution have
been addressed. The resolution passed as amended.
IV. New Business
A. Senate President Gonzalez-Perez said that she had received several emails on the subject of recycling. She introduced Senator Kleiner to speak on the matter.
1. Senator Kleiner said that the recycling bins for white paper and cans have been removed from the library and many other locations. She wants to see if they can be brought back, especially since Hammond has a city recycling center.
a. Senator Naquin said that she had called the
Maintenance Department about the bins to be placed
in the Kinesiology building. She was told that
there was no one to pick up the items for recycling. She
added that many universities promote recycling.
b. Senator Holt-Ochsner said that she serves on the
University’s Beautification committee. One problem with
the bins was that people did not properly separate items. It
became too costly to separate items in addition to the costs for recycling. Senator Naquin said that this is a problem that could be worked on, even if it requires education. She said that many universities have found a way to use recycling to generate funds.
c. Senator Prescott said that the bins should certainly go
back into the computer labs, which produce a lot of wasted paper, and department offices, which are constantly producing shredded paper. She asked if this
might be a project for the Student Government Association?
2. Senator Kleiner said that her Environmental Sociology class was
going to do something for Earth Day, which would be a good time to raise awareness on the campus.
a. Senator Muller said that the campus needs to do more than
just put out bins, and that community awareness also needs to be raised.
b. Senator Naquin added that the local chapter of the Sierra
Club might be interested in assisting with a start-up on Earth Day (April 22).
c. Senator Trowbridge said that Michael Green used to have
some sort of environmental club on campus. The club bought the bins and then turned their collection over to contractors who no longer handle recycling.
d. Senator Mitchell said that this would be a good time to
look into ways to do more things electronically so that
far less waste paper is produced.
3. Senator Kleiner made a motion to send the issue to committee.
Senate President Gonzalez-Perez sent the matter to the Budget Committee.
B. Senator Gonzalez-Perez introduced the subject of Classroom Safety.
She has received emails from faculty who have felt threatened by students and have had some problems with the Judicial Affairs process. Dr. Crain
asked to address the senators.
A. Dr. Crain said that, as he reminded the Faculty Senate
Executive Council, there were similar problems in 2005. At that time, a memo was sent to remind faculty of how to deal with
disruptive students, and Milas Love addressed the senate. Dr. Crain said that he could resend the memo for new faculty or anyone who has forgotten what the process is. He reminded senators that the university takes this issue very seriously. If the judicial process is not working, specific cases should be brought to his attention.
1. Senator Naquin asked if Dr. Crain could review what should
be done because she knew of individuals who had been physically threatened and harassed.
2. Dr. Crain said that when a faculty member fears for her
safety, she should get out of harm’s way (even if that means
dismissing class), go to a safe office, and call Campus
Police. This does not happen often, and faculty members
should use their own judgment, but faculty safety is of
paramount concern to the administration.
B. Senator Ramsey said that this problem is a consequence of the
discipline problems that are occurring in grades K-12, and of students who view a C grade as unacceptable. Dr. Crain said that what we are seeing is similar to what is happening in elementary and secondary schools. But, we are not those schools, and we do not have to put up with those behaviors. It is incumbent on us to teach appropriate behavior. This subject, in fact, has been added to the new Orientation class. It is a teacher’s right to be able to maintain decorum in the classroom, and the administration will support that right. If a faculty member has a problem that is not being properly addressed, it should be brought to the administration’s attention. The university can send students away.
1. An unnamed Senator said that there are actually two issues:
disrespectful students and personal safety issues. She has received repeated messages on her answering machine from a disgruntled student. His behavior could be one step away from accosting her in the halls or parking lot. She was constantly scared, wondering what he would do next, and did not feel safe in her office.
a. Dr. Crain responded that this is a problem with the open
environment of a university, and faculty members
should always err on the side of caution. If the student
has a self-identified disability of some sort, then the
university can act. It is difficult to act if the university
has not been made aware of the problem, but faculty are
never to put themselves at grave risk.
b. Senator Prescott said that she is a member of CART
(Crisis and Response Team). The group presented a proposal to the Center for Faculty Excellence on how to de-escalate and defuse situations. Many problems could have been minimized if they had been handled better. There are many knowledgeable people on campus who can teach these techniques. Senator Ply concurred that workshops on classroom management techniques could be held by the Center for Faculty Excellence.
c. Senator Coxe said that there needs to be a way to tell
students what are the official expectations for behavior.
d. Dr. Crain said that this is made very clear in the Student
Code of Conduct. The new Freshman Success Course exposes them to this material. Our responsibility is to educate students and prepare them for the world of work, and that includes proper behavior.
C. Senator Muller said that this matter did not need to go to committee
because the administration is aware of the problem. It might be useful for Dr. Crain to re-send the memo on procedures for dealing with behavior problems.
1. Senator Naquin argued that it should go to the Faculty Safety committee because faculty are being physically threatened.
2. Senator Nelson said that it did not need to go to committee, but that Dr. Crain’s memo should be sent directly to all faculty members. This information can be included on course information sheets.
3. Dr. Crain said that the “infamous blue memo” states that classroom decorum is a component of class attendance. He can certainly expand that section. Dr. Crain stressed that the administration cannot deal with problems that it does not know about, and if these problems have been reported and the process to solve them is not working, then he or Senate President Gonzlaez-Perez needs to be notified.
4. Senator Burns said the issue does not need to go to committee. The university has rules in place; it is just that people need to be made aware of them. He suggested that the information could be disseminated like the safety reports that faculty read and initial each month.
5. Senator Shwalb said that a memo does not change anything. It certainly does not change student behavior. But a committee could make recommendations about what can be done.
D. Senator Burns made a motion not to send the issue to committee.
Senator Bancroft seconded the motion. The motion passed. The issue did not go to committee. Senator Burns asked if we needed a resolution to ask Dr. Crain to send the additional memo on how to handle problems. Dr. Crain said he would just agree to do this. Senator Bostic added that this information could also be put on the agendas of departmental meetings.
V. Announcements
A. Due to illness, Senator Yeargain did not present the BOS/FAC report.
B. Senator Gonzalez-Perez reminded everyone to send items of new business to the Executive Council by 28 February,
C. The next meeting is scheduled for 7 March 2007.
D. The meeting was adjourned at 4:05 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Rebecca Hite
Recording Secretary