Governance Meeting of Thursday April 13, 2017

Little Theater, Roosevelt Hall

The Meeting was called to order by Dr. Lloyd Makarowitz, Presiding Officer, at 1:00 p.m.

I. Approval of the Minutes of March 2, 2017.

  1. The minutes of March 2, 2017 were approved.

II. Report of the President: Dr. John Nader

A.Excelsior Scholarship: The Excelsior Scholarship will provide free tuition at SUNY institutions for families who earn up to $100,000 annually beginning in fall 2017. Farmingdale State College (FSC) is going to investigate how this scholarship will affect current and incoming students. High school principals, guidance counselors, and teachers will be invited to FSC for information on the program. This scholarship could present capacity issues. If the number of applications increases, there may be an opportunity to renovate existing structures and develop new facilities. Campuses will be given authority to increase tuition, but this increase will only apply to students who are not covered under the Excelsior Scholarship.

B.SUNY Budget: There is a significant amount of money in the SUNY budget for maintenance work. FSC has been awarded $8 million, the largest allocation among the colleges of technology.

C.Construction: Many building projects are in the planning phase or are under discussion.

a.Details on the first phase of the Great Mall project will be communicated shortly, including information on parking changes. This project will take place over two summers.

b.The women’s softball facility will be renovated.

c.The Melville Road project is moving forward in collaboration with the Town of Babylon.

d.There will be a meeting with state representatives of the Construction Fund regarding budget delays for the Conklin Hall renovation. The expected completion date is June 5-6.

e.Books ‘n’ Beans will provide additional food service. The price for this project is higher than originally anticipated.

D.Hiring: Searches are underway for the Vice President of Administration and Chief Financial Officer and the Vice President of Development and Philanthropy. Finalists will be visiting FSC next week for meetings with campus departments. Appointment dates are anticipated for June 1.

E.Commencement: Two honorary degrees are being awarded at commencement this year. The morning ceremony will honor Stanley Bergman, the CEO of Henry Schein. The afternoon ceremony will honor Leland Melvin, former astronaut.

F.Library hours: Library hours will be extended until 1:00 a.m. May 8-11 and May 15-18. Additional extensions of library hours will be investigated for the future.

III. Report of the Acting Provost: Dr. Laura Joseph

A.26 summer research awards were awarded to faculty in support of scholarly activities.

B.19 Students First Campus Grants were awarded for teaching, applied learning, and co-curricular development.

C.10 flipped classroom awards and 16 best practices certifications were allocated through 4Pi grants.

D.All faculty are invited to submit proposals for hybrid course development by the June 15 deadline.

E.The Enrollment Management Task Force will oversee capacity issues.

F.Plans are moving forward for the Nexus Center for Applied Learning and Career Development. This Center will increase the number of applied learning experiences and job placements. A search for the Center’s Executive Director is underway.

G.Gonca Altuger-Genc is the Director of the new MS in Technology Management program. 20 students are enrolled in this program to date.

H.20 new faculty searches were completed this semester. 10 additional searches are underway.

I.A new policy will be established to provide consistency to issues of faculty compensation for credit-based internships.

J.The CTLT Annual Conference will be held on May 5.

K.Annual assessment reports are due June 16.

L.The deadline for submitting Applied Learning courses for spring 2018 is April 18.

IV. Reports of Standing Committees

A.FEC: Dr. Lloyd Makarowitz

a.Members of FEC will be participating in 2nd round of interviews for Vice President of Administration and Chief Financial Officer and the Vice President of Development and Philanthropy.

B.Promotions: Dr. Matilde Fava

a.Deliberations for promotional candidates have been completed. Candidates included 8 Associate Professors, 4 Full Professors, and 1 Librarian. Interviews were reinstated for this process: Each candidate was interviewed for 10 minutes, followed by 5 minutes of discussion. All interviews followed the same format, reviewing candidates’ teaching, scholarship, and service achievements. The committee found this process to be very helpful.

C.CPRA: Dr. Richard Vogel

a.FSC’s strategic plan is being revised. SWOT surveys were administered and results are being analyzed. The new plan will be presented at the first fall governance meeting. The mission statement is also being revised.

D.Bylaws: Dr. Fran Cherkis, motion on FEC composition

a.Proposed changes to Bylaw 10.2.2b:

  1. Change I
  2. Original wording: “Two members from each School (Arts and Sciences entitled to four members) and one member at large.”
  3. Proposed changes: Two faculty members from each school...one faculty member at large.
  4. Discussion followed. Did not receive unanimous vote and will be brought to the floor for a simple majority next meeting.
  5. Change II
  6. Original wording: “Eleven members, nominated by individual members of the faculty, are elected by the faculty for a term of three calendar years. No more than one member from a department may serve concurrently.”
  7. Proposed changes:“Eleven faculty members, nominated by individual members of the faculty, are elected by the faculty for a term of three calendar years. No two members from the same department can serve concurrently. This includes the elected members , appointed members, voting and non-voting members (e.g. senate and alternate members).
  8. Discussion followed. Did not receive unanimous vote and will be brought to the floor for a simple majority next meeting.

E.Curriculum: Prof. SerdarElgun

a.The Curriculum Committee received over 250 CCPs this year. The Committee is going to work throughout the month of May. Deadlines for CCP submissions will be moved earlier. Fall 2017 submissions are due October 6 and spring 2018 submissions are due March 9.

b.A Curriculum Committee email will be established and will be placed on the governance website along with additional information.

F.Multicultural Committee: Dr. Sarbjit Singh, Gala on 4/19

a.The Annual Gala will be held on April 19, 4-7 p.m.

V. Old Business - none

VI. New Business - none

Reports of Other Committees and Organizations

  1. Faculty Senate: Prof. Lou Scala
  2. The next Faculty Senate meeting will be held on April 20 at SUNY Canton. Details will be shared at the next governance meeting.
  3. Bargaining Unit, UUP, Dr. Vicki Janik
  4. The new issue of theUnifier has been published. The Union president was at the most recent Union meeting. Updates are available on the website.
  5. From the floor.
  6. Information on March for Science events on Long Island.

The meeting adjourned at 1:50 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Megan Margino, Secretary