December 5, 2014 H&S Senate minutes

Present: Brendan Murday, Hugh Egan, Maria DiFrancesco, Jen Tennant, Rebecca Plante, Wendy Dann, Matt Price, Matt Klemm, Jennifer Jolly, Carla Stetson, Paula Murray Cole, Kelley Sullivan

Absent: Claire Gleitman, Sharon Stansfeld (both on sabbatical), Dave Turkon

Guest: Dean Mike Richardson

Meeting started at 4:05pm

1)Minutes approved – 9 approved, 1 abstention

2)Announcements and updates

  1. Master Plan meeting update
  2. Abstract, No talk about what next building would be. How to make the campus “tell a story.” 1 academic building short of our needs. Proposed location for the next new building near fitness center. “Spines” of buildings/indoor tunnels across campus. Group said that Campus Center is bad space. But, is this really the need? Who should we be talking to? Who is in charge of what building comes next? How can we participate in this project? President’s Council? Gerald Hector? Can send email to . Brendan will inquire and report back to us at the next meeting.
  3. Faculty Council update
  4. Deb Harper talked about counseling center. Can’t serve the amount of students who are in need. At least 2 week wait time for intakes who are not high risk. 20 minute sessions. Would like 1 therapist for every 500 students (now 1 to 950). Over a ten-year period, only increased by 2.5 people.
  5. Keith McIntosh. Wifi – Park school, Williams, Whalen updated
  6. Forms going on to Workflow
  7. Provost Candidates
  8. The position is a marriage between Student Affairs and Academic Affairs

3)Peer Review of Teaching

  1. Politics
  2. Junior faculty could, but are not required to, participate in the review. Are there conflicts of interest?
  3. Going to ask for a response about “Faculty may also take into account any other aspect of professional performance in their letter of peer evaluation.”
  4. Math
  5. Could specify that assistant professors could do formative reviews but not summative ones.
  6. Approved. 12 yes, 0 no.
  7. Modern Languages and Literatures
  8. Approved. 12 yes. 0 no.
  9. Sociology
  10. In “Peer Review of Tenured Faculty,” add language: “However, candidates for full professor need to have classroom observations per H&S guidelines.”
  11. Conditional yes, with this revision and two minor wording changes. 12 yes. 0 no.

4)Scholarship statements for Full professors

  1. Executive committee has made minor changes
  2. Brendan will send this to chairs.
  3. Have four in hand and prepared to send to chairs.
  4. Hugh will be on sabbatical next semester, so Claire will take over then.

5)Mike Richardson discussing meetings with personnel committees

  1. Candidates are responsible for a lot of the process, but making sure that committee knows what department policies are, and that they are on top of making sure it is going smoothly.

Adjourned: 5:59pm