The Arts & Sciences Council (ASC) meets regularly every academic year, including eight times during the 2005 to 2006 academic year. The notes from said meetings are found below:
March 16, 2006
Minutes: Arts & Sciences Council Meeting
Members present: Albert Alhadeff (AAH), Babs Buttenfield (GEOG) ASC Chair, Mel Cundiff (EBIO), David Ferris (CLHM), Todd Gleeson (Dean, A&S), Luis Gonzalez-del-Valle (SPAN), Lew Harvey (PSYC), Frank Hsiao (ECON), Peter Hunt (CLAS), Kelly Hurley (ENG), Alison Jaggar (WMST/PHIL), Keith Julien (APPM), George Keyworth (RLST), Christian Kopff (HONR), Kathleen Man (FILM), Onye Ozuzu (THDN), Martha Palmer (LING), Robert Schulzinger (HIST), Charles Stern (GEOL), Davide Stimilli (GSLL), Vittorio Trionfi (FRIT), Robert Tubbs (MATH), Jeffrey Weiss (ATOC), Cindy White (COM), Jennifer Wolak (PSCI), Shijie Zhong (PHYS)
Members absent: Douglas Bamforth (ANTH), Haiyan Lee (EALC), David Norris (IPHY), Hillary Potter (SOCY), Brenda Schick (SLHS), Patricia Sullivan (PWR), Mark Winey (MCDB)
Guest speaker: Susan Avery (Exec VC and Provost)
Observer: Jeff Dodge (S&G Record)
The Chair opened the meeting at 3:30 PM.
A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes of the February 16, 2006 ASC meeting. This motion was approved.
The Chair reported on the recent votes taken on incompletes. The first motion reads that the grades of incomplete assigned to courses in A&S be restricted to IF. It was voted on by the ASC and passed.
The second motion reads that the grades of IW and IF be eliminated and replaced with a grade of I. This motion was voted on by the FAS with the following outcome: 209 Yes, 59 No, and 0 Abstain. The Chair presented this motion to EPUS, whose chair offered an amended version to add the grade of Incomplete, an I. The current wording of the motion under consideration at BFA reads:
Moved, that the grade of “I” be added to the Uniform Grading Policy, with the following notation: I incomplete — regarded as F if not completed within a maximum of one year.
The ASC Chair accepted this version. It will be considered for campus-wide support.
The Chair commented on the ASC Task Force on the Colorado Challenge. It is headed by John Stocke (APS) and consists of 2 members of each division. The task force is holding bi-weekly meetings; a meeting in April will be attended by the dean and associate deans. A report will be given at the April meeting of FAS.
The Chair introduced Susan Avery who attended the meeting to answer questions from the faculty. A major concern expressed by some ASC members is the administration’s plan to add 100 faculty lines over the next 6 years. Some members believe that the plan could have an adverse effect on faculty in certain disciplines that are traditionally represented in universities. Another faculty concern is with the University’s occasional, but persistent, failure to honor commitments it has made to individual faculty members. Consequently, some of these faculty have left the university; and more generally many departments have suffered when top faculty were “raided.” Avery said that she is aware of the problems and made an optimistic remark by reminding faculty that UCB is “number one in the world” among public universities for citations in the earth sciences.
Avery brought up the October 2005 ASC vote to change the current deadline of a course from the 6th to the 10th week to be implemented in the spring. Avery questioned the vote in the context of her understanding that drop dates are decided on a campus level, and suggested that this matter be further discussed with BFA.
Avery left at 4:15 pm.
The Dean gave an update on the Residential Campus Initiative and reported that, at this time, no decisions have been made regarding academic programs. But it has been decided to modify those buildings where programs will be held.
Regarding the FTE initiative, the Dean commented that the call for proposals had been postponed to February 15 and 48 applications have been received. They are presently being reviewed and ranked.
The ASC Bylaws are currently being revised by the Executive Committee and the proposed changes where presented to the ASC. This version will soon be posted on the ASC website. The Chair asked members to discuss revisions with their departments and send suggestions to her. The FAS will vote on the new bylaws by email in April.
Lew Harvey (PSYC) who is in charge of the election of a new ASC chair, commented that there is no term limit for the election of a chair and that the present chair would be willing to serve again. He asked for additional nominations from the floor. He than declared the nomination as closed and all were in favor. The voting will take place at the meeting on April 6th.
The meeting adjourned at 5:10 PM.
February 16, 2006
Minutes: Arts & Sciences Council Meeting
Members present: Albert Alhadeff (AAH), Babs Buttenfield (GEOL), ASC Chair, Mel Cundiff (EBIO), David Ferris (CLHM), Luis Gonzalez-del-Valle (SPAN), Lew Harvey (PSYC), Frank Hsiao (ECON), Peter Hunt (CLAS), Kelly Hurley (ENG), Alison Jaggar (WMST/PHIL), George Keyworth (RLST), Christian Kopff (HONR), Haiyan Lee (EALC), Onye Ozuzu (THDN), Martha Palmer (LING), Davide Stimilli (GSLL), Patricia Sullivan (PWR), Vittorio Trionfi (FRIT), Robert Tubbs (MATH) Parliamentarian, Cindy White (COM), Jennifer Wolak (PSCI)
Members absent: Douglas Bamforth (ANTH), Todd Gleeson (Dean, A&S), Keith Julien (APPM), Kathleen Man (FILM), David Norris (IPHY), Hillary Potter (SOCY), Brenda Schick (SLHS), Robert Schulzinger (HIST), Charles Stern (GEOL), Jeffrey Weiss (ATOC), Mark Winey (MCDB), Shijie Zhong (PHYS)
Guest speakers: Deborah Coffin, Exec Director of Housing and Dining Services; Deborah Haynes, Director, Libby Residential Academic Program; Ronald Stump, VC Student Affairs
Observer: Jeff Dodge (S&G Record)
The Chair opened the meeting at 3:30 PM.
A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes of the January 19, 2006 ASC meeting. This motion was approved unanimously.
Lew Harvey (PSYC), who was designated by the executive committee to preside over the election of a new chair, commented that, according to the bylaws, there is no term limit and the current chair can be re-elected. At the March 16th meeting he will solicit nominations for the election to be held on April 6th.
The Chair introduced the following guest speakers: Ron Stump, VC Student Affairs, Deborah Haynes, Director of Libby Residential Academic Program, and Deborah Coffin, Exec Director of Housing and Dining Services to discuss the Residential Campus Draft Report. It was remarked that the Residential Campus Study Group was charged by Chancellor DiStefano to study the merits of developing a residential campus for the University of Colorado at Boulder. Among the recommended objectives is the creation of a residential environment that would be attractive to non-first year students, integration of intellectual and academic activities into residence hall programming, the expansion of current RAP models to new halls and to engage more faculty in the concept.
Concerns expressed by faculty members included the cost involved – how it will affect tuition and dormitory fees; the type of faculty willing to move into residential halls and a solution if the project fails. A major concern was that the report contains no stated problem that the initiative will address. The Chair asked the members to email additional comments to her which would then be forwarded to Ron Stump.
The Chair announced that UCB’s Annual Campus Diversity Summit, “Diversity 911,” will be held on Feb 21-23 in the UMC. Students, faculty and staff are invited to attend.
The Chair reported that the BFA approved the course repetition by a vote of 13-12 and that the policy will be reviewed again in three years.
The Chair reported that current A&S membership on BFA is in violation of BFA Bylaws. Article II Section 4 states that no more than 2 members of any department may serve at any one time as voting members of the BFA. Current A&S membership of the BFA is in violation of this rule, since the ENG dept. is represented by 4 members, and PWR has 5 members. The Chair notified BFA Chair Jerry Hauser about this violation and asked that it be remedied in the upcoming elections.
The motion on incompletes is currently voted on by faculty of A&S and reads as follows:
That the grades of IW and IF be eliminated, and replaced with a grade of I, which appears on the transcript for a period of up to one year. In the event that no letter grade is assigned within one year, the I grade is regarded as F.
The ASC Chair (Buttenfield) and BFA Chair ( Hauser) presented the motion to EPUS on Feb 10. Following a discussion, EPUS Chair RL Widman offered an amended version. The ASC Chair accepted the new version, which reads as follows:
Add the grade of Incomplete, an I, which appears on the transcript for a period of up to one year. In the event that no letter grade is assigned within one year, the I grade is regarded as F.
The motion was forwarded to BFA on Feb 13 for consideration of campus-wide support when it returns to EPUS.
The Chair announced that she has been asked to serve on the Search Committee for the provost’s position and asked members for input what they are looking for in a provost.
The Chair will invite Susan Avery, Exec VC and Provost, to attend the next ASC meeting in March to discuss campus matters that faculty is concerned about.
The meeting adjourned at 5:00 PM.
January 19, 2006
Minutes: Arts & Sciences Council Meeting
Members present: Douglas Bamforth (ANTH), Babs Buttenfield (GEOG) ASC Chair, Mel Cundiff (EBIO), Jeff Dodge (S&G Record), Todd Gleeson (Dean, A&S), Lew Harvey (PSYC), Frank Hsiao (ECON), Peter Hunt (CLAS), Kelly Hurley (ENG), Alison Jaggar (WMST), George Keyworth (RLST), Christian Kopff (HON), Haiyan Lee (EALC), Kathleen Man (FILM), Brenda Schick (SLHS), Robert Schulzinger (HIST), Charles Stern (GEOL), Davide Stimilli (GSLL), Vittorio Trionfi (FRIT), Robert Tubbs (MATH), Parliamentarian, Cindy White (COM), Jennifer Wolak (PSCI), Shijie Zhong (PHYS), Luis Gonzalez-del-Valle (SPAN)
Members absent: Albert Alhadeff (AAH), David Ferris (CLHM), Keith Julien (APPM), David Norris (IPHY), Onye Ozuzu (THDN), Martha Palmer (LING), Hillary Potter (SOCY), Patricia Sullivan (PWR), Jeffrey Weiss (ATOC), Mark Winey (MCDB), Shijie Zhong (PHYS)
Observer: Jeff Dodge (S&G Record)
The Chair opened the meeting at 3:30 PM.
A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes of November 17, 2005 ASC meeting. This motion was approved unanimously.
The Chair pointed out that the major topic on the agenda would be the discussion and voting on three motions on incompletes. But before starting on this topic, she commented on the following items:
The Dean has contacted departments requesting nominations of outstanding students who might qualify for the Jacob Van Ek award
At the Executive Committee meeting it was decided to submit executive summaries of ASC meetings to ASC members so that faculty of their corresponding departments can be informed of the activities taking place at the ASC. These summaries will be prepared by the Chair and sent out shortly after a meeting.
Regarding the Task Force on the Colorado Challenge, the Chair noted that the first meeting would take place in a week to 10 days.
The Chair also reminded everyone that a Chancellor’s Open Forum will be held on Tue, Jan 31 in the Chapel and all are welcome to attend.
The Dean commented on the Residential Campus initiative. A task force consisting of faculty and students has prepared a draft report. The report describes, for instance, what might be accomplished by renovating dorms, stating the pros and cons of the initiative. A report will be published in 2 to 3 weeks. This report will be distributed and discussed at the next ASC meeting on Feb 16th.
Regarding recent racial incidences, the Dean reported that a group of faculty and students met to discuss the possibility of establishing a curriculum that might address this issue. More meetings will be held to discuss this.
The Dean commented that a request for supplemental merit allocations will be addressed at the upcoming Budget Committee meeting. This applies only to salaries within the college. The Budget Committee will also study the salary level of classified staff within the college, even though salaries are generally determined by the State. It has been noted that salaries for staff are at the lower end of the stated ranges and, consequently, trained and experienced personnel have been lost.
The Chair then referred to Motion #1 and Motion #2 on Incompletes from the Executive Committee, which read as follows:
Motion #1
That grades of Incomplete assigned for courses in Arts & Sciences be restricted to IF, in accordance with the Uniform Grading Policy:
IF incomplete failure – regarded as F if not completed within a maximum of one year.
Justification: Passage of this motion re-establishes the distinction between student requests for extra time to complete a course, and requests to withdraw from a course. ASC voted Oct 2005 to extend the deadline for withdrawing without need of petition, from 6 to 10 weeks (will begin Fall 2006). After week 10, students may still withdraw from a course by petitioning the Dean’s office. This motion places responsibility on the student to decide if they actually intend to complete the work for the course when they request an incomplete grade, but still preserves options for withdrawing. Other Colleges and Schools (e.g., Business, Engineering, Architecture and Law) have an “IF-only policy” in force.
ASC member voted on this motion with the following results:
Passed by ASC 19 January 2006 20 in favor, 1 opposed, 1 abstention
Motion #2
That the following proposed change to the Uniform Grading Policy be carried forward to be considered for support by BFA, and to the CU Faculty Council to be considered for approval system-wide:
That the grades of IW and IF be eliminated, and replaced with a grade of I, which appears on the transcript for a period of up to one year. In the event that no letter grade is assigned with one year, the I grade is regarded as F.
Justification: At present a grade of Incomplete (either IW or IF) remains permanently on the transcript; when a final grade is assigned, the IW or IF symbol stands alongside the grade. The goal is to eliminate the stigma of having an IF appear on students’ permanent record once a course is completed. Additionally, this motion requests simplifying and unifying the IF-only policy in all Schools and Colleges. As it is a request to change the Uniform Grading Policy, ASC wants to hear from all voting A&S faculty. Voting for or against this motion determines whether the request goes forward to BFA and CU Faculty Council. It does not change the outcome of the vote on Motion 1.
This motion passed with the following results:
13 in favor, 6 opposed, 0 abstention
The motion will be distributed for A&S full faculty (email) vote the week of 23 Jan, with ballots to be returned by 6 Feb (at least 10 business days will be given for voting).
Members agreed to table a third motion, Motion #3, since it requires additional information from the registrar. It reads as follows:
Motion #3
That the following proposed change to the Uniform Grading Policy be carried forward to be considered for support by BFA, and to the CU Faculty Council to be considered for approval system-wide:
Once a letter grade is assigned to replace the Incomplete, the I disappears from the student’s transcript and is replaced by the letter grade. If no grade is assigned, the I is replaced by F.
Jerry Peterson, President of Phi Beta Kappa, a national honor society, talked about the fellowship awards that are available to students who have demonstrated outstanding scholastic abilities. Graduating seniors of CU may receive awards of $7,500 and each department in A&S may nominate up to two students each year.
The meeting adjourned at 5:00 PM.
December 8, 2005
Minutes: Faculty of Arts & Sciences Meeting
Members present: Gordon Brown (MATH), Babs Buttenfield (GEOG) Chair of ASC, Diane Conlin (CLAS/AAH), Mel Cundiff (EBIO), Todd Gleeson (Dean, A&S), Lew Harvey (PSYC), Frank Hsiao (ECON), Alison Jaggar (WMST), Christian Kopff (HON), Polly McLean (WMST), Richard Nishikawa (Asst. Dean, A&S), Hillary Potter (SOCY), Brenda Schick (SLHS), Davide Stimilli (GSLL), Vittorio Trionfi (FRIT), Robert Tubbs (MATH), RL Widmann (ENG)
The Chair opened the meeting at 3:35 PM.
A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes of the A&S faculty meeting on April 28, 2005. The minutes were approved unanimously.
The Chair reported on a suggestion made by a faculty member to have a brief summary of ASC meetings prepared and sent out to members of the executive committee who would discuss major ASC issues with their departments and keep them informed of current issues.
The Chair mentioned that she will have a complete ASC membership list with new and continuing members prepared before the beginning of the fall semester 2006.
Regarding the Revision to the College Drop Policies, dated Nov 29, 2005, the Chair commented that Elizabeth Guertin (Dean’s office) will implement the change of dropping the current deadline of a course from the 6th to the 10th week. She further commented that the first 5 bullets of the document are in accordance with the Uniform Grading Policy and are forwarded to the BFA for consideration as a campus wide policy. The 6th bulleted item has been taken off in the revised version and will be further discussed under “New Business.” The 7th bulleted item which was approved by the ASC is not in accordance with the Uniform Grading policy and requires further discussion with the EPUS group in Feb 2006.
The Chair mentioned that the Colorado Challenge, which was initiated by Dean Gleeson, will move from a document status to an action plan. Current members of the Task Force are: John Stocke (APS) who will act as chair, Bill Woods (MCDB), Cindy White (COM), Sven Steinmo (PSCI), Marty Bickman (ENG), and Paul Beale (PHYS) as Director of Honors. A final report will be given at the A&S Faculty meeting scheduled for Apr 27, 2006.
The Chair reported that Barbara Todd from the Registrar’s Office gave a presentation on web-based grading which will allow faculty to enter student grades online via a secure connection. This pilot plan will be launched before finals of next spring after it has been tested by a selected group of faculty. It will become available for all faculty in the fall of 2006.
The Chair further reported on motions and resolutions approved by the BFA, which include a motion to approve definition of an undergraduate credit hour, moving fall break from the 8th/9th week of classes to the week of Thanksgiving, and a resolution on annual increases in library acquisitions funding.
Dean Gleeson reported on the budget situation saying that the budget is currently balanced which allows the College to hire more faculty than in the last 2 years. After referendum “C” passed, the President announced that instate tuition will go up by between 1.1 percent and 2.5 percent. No guaranties can be made about faculty raises but the first estimate of the merit increase is 3 percent.
The Dean informed the ASC members of an initiative to create a residential campus giving sophomores and juniors the opportunity of living in residential halls that offer small classes, study rooms, computer labs and advising for students. The plan, which expands over a time period of 20 years, also includes the remodeling of existing residential halls. A task force has been set up to study the proposal and to implement a plan outlining phases and costs involved.
The next item on the agenda were reports given by chairs of the ASC committees on their activities of the fall semester. Robert Tubbs (MATH) chair of curriculum, reported that the committee is in the process of reviewing courses in the QRMS and Written Communication areas of the Core to see that they continue to meet the goals of the core area to which they are assigned.
Presently, the Committee on Academic Community and Diversity does not have a chair and the ASC chair reported on its behalf. The committee is still trying to explore possible issues that it might pursue such as fundraising, scholarships, and childcare.
Christian Kopff (HONR) Chair of the Grievance committee reported that its committee acts in an advisory capacity to the Dean. The committee has dealt with 2 grievance cases this semester and 2 additional cases will be done in the coming semester.
Lew Harvey (PSYC), Chair of the Personnel Committee, commented that this committee consists of 13 members. A total of 58 personnel actions are being handled this year (27 comprehensive reviews, 17 tenure, and 17 promotions to full professor cases). The Personnel Committee is also engaged in the nomination of the honorific title of College Professor of Distinction. A total of 13 pre-nominations have been received of which 8 nominations are being closely considered.
Mel Cundiff (EBIO), Chair of the Planning committee, commented that the committee is involved in the physical space on campus and the chair serves on the Information Technology council and the Boulder Campus Planning Commission. During this semester no significant activities have been taken place.
As far as “old business” is concerned, the Chair remarked that a list of ASC faculty who are eligible to vote has been completed. This list will be used when FAS vote by email. The Chair is presently in contact with someone who can build a secure website. Recommendations for the revision of the by-laws will be submitted by the executive committee in the spring.
Topics under “new business” include the “Proposed Revision of Course Drop Policies and Deadlines”. A revision of this document, dated November 29, 2005, no longer contains the 6th bulleted item, which read “That the pilot Course Forgiveness policy not be extended beyond spring term 2006. Approved by ASC on October 20, 2005.”
This revised version has been forwarded to the BFA for consideration as a campus-wide policy. The Academic Affairs Committee of the BFA prepared a motion for adoption of the Course Repetition as a Permanent Policy, which reads as follows:
BOULDER FACULTY ASSEMBLY, MEMORANDUM
TO: BFA Executive Committee
FROM: BFA Academic Affairs Committee, RL Widmann, chair
DATE: November 28, 2005
SUBJECT: Course Repetition as Permanent Policy
The BFA Academic Affairs Committee presents the following motion adoption by the Boulder Faculty Assembly:
Moved, that the Boulder Faculty Assembly accept a permanent policy on Course Repetition for the University of Colorado Boulder campus. The policy is stated below. UCB permanent policy on Course Repetition
November 2005
- Eligibility and number of credit hours:
- Students at the University of Colorado at Boulder campus may retake courses under this Course Repetition policy.
- Undergraduate students who receive a grade of D+ or lower may repeat up to through 10 hours of course credit taken on the Boulder campus or through Boulder Continuing Education any time before graduation.
- Graduate students who receive a grade of C+ or lower may repeat one single course (whether undergraduate or graduate level) taken on the Boulder campus or through Boulder Continuing Education. Graduate students must repeat the course within a year and a half (i.e., three consecutive fall/spring semesters) or before graduation, whichever is first.
- Grade point average calculation for University of Colorado at Boulder:
- The original earned grade remains permanently on the UCB transcript. The original grade earned, upon completion of the course again for a letter grade in the A-F scale or as P/F, will be removed from calculating the grade point average only for the UCB campus.
- The repeated grade under this Course Repetition policy will be the grade used for calculation by UCB in credit hours and grade point average even if the repeated grade is lower than the original grade.
- Restrictions on Course Repetition:
- Undergraduate students who have earned D+ or lower and graduate students who have earned C+ or lower in the original course through academic dishonesty may not use this Course Repetition policy to recalculate the UCB grade point average.
This policy should be reviewed in three years.
The Chair asked members to take this notice of motion back to their departments for discussion and to subsequently contact their corresponding representative on the BFA to let them know of their opinion on this topic.
Rob Tubbs, chair of the curriculum committee, commented that the grading of IW and IF has been discussed with members of his committee and they prepared two motions, one of which reads in part:
“That the grades of “IF and IW” be eliminated, and replaced with a grade of “I”….
The ASC was informed later on that a college cannot “eliminate” a grade and cannot add a new grade without full faculty vote. It was recommended that the motion be reworded so as to be in accordance with the Uniform Grading Policy and that the reworded motion be presented to ASC at the next meeting in January 2006.
The meeting adjourned at 5:00 and was followed by a reception
November 17, 2005
Minutes: A&S Council Meeting
Members present: Douglas Bamforth (ANTH), Babs Buttenfield (GEOG), ASC Chair, Mel Cundiff (EBIO), David Ferris (CLHM), Todd Gleeson (Dean, A&S), Lew Harvey (PSYC), Frank Hsiao (ECON), Michael Huemer (PHIL), Peter Hunt (CLAS), Alison Jaggar (WMST), Keith Julien (APPM), Christian Kopff (HONR), Haiyan Lee (EALC), Kathleen Man (FILM), David Norris (IPHY), Martha Palmer (LING), Robert Schulzinger (HIST), Charles Stern (GEOL), Davide Stimilli (GSLL), Robert Tubbs (MATH), Parliamentarian, Jeffrey Weiss (PAOS)
Members absent: Albert Alhadeff (AAH), Luis Gonzalez-del-Valle (SPAN), Kelly Hurley (ENG), David Mapel (PSCI for Jennifer Wolak, Onye Ozuzu (THDN), Hillary Potter (SOCY), Brenda Schick (SLHS), Patricia Sullivan (PWR), Rodney Taylor (RLST), Vittorio Trionfi (FRIT), Cindy White (COM), Mark Winey (MCDB), Shijie Zhong (PHYS)
Guest speaker: Barbara Todd, Registrar’s Office
Observer: Jeff Dodge (S&G Record)
The Chair opened the meeting at 3:30 PM.
A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes of Oct 20th ASC meeting. This motion was approved.
The Chair commented on the revised changes to the “Proposed Revision of Course Drop Policies and Deadlines,” as approved by the ASC on Oct 20 and by the Dean’s Office on Oct 26. An excerpt of this document reads as follows:
We, therefore, propose the following changes:
On October 20, 2005 the five bulleted items above were approved by the Arts and Sciences Council to be implemented for three years. A report on the number of course drops under this new policy is to be presented to ASC in the fall of the third year. At that time, ASC will vote on whether to implement the above as permanent policy.
- That the pilot Course Forgiveness policy not be extended beyond spring term 2006.
Approved by ASC on October, 20, 2005.
The Chair reported that the Course Forgiveness program, in the context of Bill Kaempfer’s Task Force on Course Forgiveness, will be discussed and voted on by the BFA at their next meeting with the purpose of making it a permanent policy.
Some members were in favor of this policy meanwhile others were strongly opposed. The Chair recommended that faculty contact the BFA representatives of their department to discuss the Course Forgiveness program prior to the voting.
The next item on the agenda was the “ASC Task Force on the Colorado Challenge,” and the Chair made the following comments: In August 2004, Dean Todd Gleeson issued a Colorado Challenge, asking departments to deliberate upon establishing a higher set of expectations in curricula, examinations, grading, and instruction. An update to the Colorado Challenge distributed April 2005 emphasized that the Colorado Challenge is a call for action. In the spirit of realizing action, the Arts & Sciences Council Chair will form the ASC Task Force on the Colorado Challenge. The Task Force will work through the remainder of AY 05-06 to move the Colorado Challenge from the proposal stage into an action plan. The Task Force will deliver a report describing the current status of Colorado Challenge activities, highlighting model activities demonstrated to improve academic quality, instruction strategies that motivate students to succeed, and a proposal for college-wide guidelines on academic rigor at all levels of instruction. Professor John Stocke (APS) will chair the Task Force whose 6 members will be drawn equally from Natural Science, Social Science and Humanities Divisions. Babs Buttenfield (ASC Chair) will serve ex officio.
Dean Gleeson gave a report on the budget and mentioned that departments have received a significant amount of funds, amounting to a total allocation of $300,000. Departments can decide on how to use these funds. An additional amount of money will become available that may be used, for instance, for the renovation of major labs and facilities. The Budget Committee will decide how to prioritize these funds.
The Dean commented on the “Residential Campus” a model that has been proposed by Chancellor DiStefano. It would give CU freshmen and sophomores the opportunity of living in a residential hall that offers small classes, study rooms, computer labs, and advising for students. The plan also includes the remodeling of existing residential halls, such as Kittredge, which would include study halls for small groups of students as well as faculty offices. A task force has been set up to study the proposed residential campus and to implement a plan outlining phases and costs involved.
The Chair introduced Barbara Todd from the Registrar’s Office to give a presentation on web-based grading which will allow faculty to enter student grades online via a secure connection. This application will be uploaded to SIS every 12 hours and students will be able to see their own application. This pilot plan will be launched a few weeks before finals of next spring after it has been tested by a selected group of faculty. It will become available for all faculty in the fall of 2006.
Rob Tubbs, Chair of the Curriculum Committee, commented that the grading of IW and IF has been discussed extensively with the members of the curriculum committee and they had concluded that the available data do not support the position that the IW is being abused. Nonetheless the curriculum committee is proposing changes to the way the college handles incompletes. After some discussion, the ASC members prepared two motions and voted on it with the following results:
Motion 1 –
That the grades of “IF and “IW” be eliminated, and replaced with a grade of “I”, which converts automatically to an “F” after one year, if the coursework is not completed and another grade assigned.
PASSED 12 For, 7 Against, 0 Abstentions
Motion 2 –
Once a letter grade is assigned to replace an incomplete, the “I” disappears from the student’s official transcript.
PASSED 12 For, 5 Against, 1 Abstention
The meeting adjourned at 5:00 PM.
October 20, 2005
Minutes: A&S Council Meeting
Members present: Albert Alhadeff (AAH), Doug Bamforth (ANTH), Babs Buttenfield (GEOG), ASC Chair, Mel Cundiff (EBIO), David Ferris (CLHM), Luis Gonzalez-del-Valle (SPAN), Lew Harvey (PSYC), Frank Hsiao (ECON), Alison Jaggar (WMST), Christian Kopff (HONR), Haiyan Lee (EALC), Kathleen Man (FILM), Martha Palmer (LING), Brenda Schick (SLHS), Davide Stimilli (GSLL), Patricia Sullivan (PWR), Rodney Taylor (RLST), Vittorio Trionfi (FRIT), Robert Tubbs (MATH), Jeffrey Weis (PAOS), Cindy White (COM), Shijie Zhong (PHYS)
Members absent: Todd Gleeson (Dean, A&S), Michael Huemer (PHIL), Peter Hunt (CLAS), Kelly Hurley (ENG), Keith Julien (APPM), David Mapel (PSCI) for Jennifer Wolak, David Norris (IPHY), Onye Ozuzu (THDN), Hillary Potter (SOCY), Robert Schulzinger (HIST), Chuck Stern (GEOL), Mark Winey (MCDB)
Guest Speakers from the Boulder Library Administration: Susan Anthes and Yem Fong
Guests from A&S: Elizabeth Guertin, Richard Nishikawa
Observers: Jeff Dodge (S&G Record), Jerry Hauser (COM) observer
The Chair opened the meeting at to order at 3:30 PM.
A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes of the Sep 22nd ASC meeting. This motion was approved.
The Chair reported that the University was investigating replacing the current SIS system. Bobby Schnabel, V Provost & Assoc VC, who is chairing the committee, is considering the university’s options. A decision is due in the spring of 2006.
Regarding Standing Committee reports, Lew Harvey (PSYC), Chair of the Personnel Committee, commented that this committee consists of 13 members. A total of 58 personnel actions will be handled this semester (27 comprehensive reviews, 17 tenure, and 17 promotions to full professor cases). As far as the procedure for the nominations of the honorific title of College Professor of Distinction is concerned, the committee will solicit nominations from departments unknown to the candidate.
At the invitation of the Chair, Susan Anthes and Yem Fong from the Boulder Library gave a presentation on the process used for the recent $600,000 cut in journal subscription and reported on the policies that are applied to either cancel or to keep subscriptions of these publications. Susan Anthes mentioned that some departments have expressed their priorities, but these priorities may be in conflict with another department. For instance, IPHY wanted to keep a particular journal meanwhile EBIO wanted it cut. In this instance, the conflict was resolved by keeping the journals. Interdisciplinary journals are used by various departments, which make it difficult to decide what to keep or to cut. Decisions are based on the usage and the impact factor. It is planned to establish a policy whereby a journal subscription can be maintained in one format only and, most likely, it will be in the electronic format as compared to paper copies.
After the presentation, the Library visitors left the meeting. Copy of the BFA resolution on annual increase allocation for Library was distributed and discussed. The resolution reads as follows:
BOULDER FACULTY ASSEMBLY, MEMORANDUM
- TO: BFA Executive Committee
- FROM: BFA Libraries Committee, Mark Dubin, Chair
- DATE: September 14, 2005
- SUBJECT: Resolution on Annual Increase Allocation for Library Materials
[INTRODUCTORY INFORMATION: Based on the past few years, the projected publishers’ inflationary increase for AY 06-07 is expected to continue to be about 8 percent. The budget increase to the Libraries in this same period has been approximately 4 percent. The shortfall between these two percentages for AY 06-07 would be approximately $330,000. Historically, this shortfall has caused journals to be cancelled and fewer monographs to be purchased.]
The BFA Libraries Committee presents the following resolution for adoption by the Boulder Faculty Assembly:
RESOLVED: The BFA requests that the Libraries annual increase allocation for materials acquisitions costs be indexed to at least the actual annual publishers’ inflationary increase, without negative impact on the remainder of the libraries increases, noting that the projected publishers’ inflationary increase for AY 06-07 is 8 percent (approximately $667,000). AND that this is the highest priority of the faculty, recognizing that it will impact other high priority items.
Members opposed this resolution based on the possibility that these funds could be taken out of faculty salaries, for an undetermined length of time, and with no accountability on the part of the library. The resolution was discussed with a recommendation that ASC members summarize for BFA members in respective departments in order to inform the upcoming BFA vote. Christian Kopff (HONR) who represents the ASC on the BFA will inform the BFA that the ASC does not support the resolution as written.
The Chair opened the discussion of the proposed revision of course drop policies and deadlines and summarized the responses she had received by email on this topic. Strong feelings for and against the 12 week issue were expressed. People were in favor of allowing students to drop a course electronically without petition or approval. When asked what should go on a transcript if a student drops a class, Elizabeth Guertin, Asst. Dean, responded that it should be a “W.” One suggestion from the floor proposed identifying the week a course is dropped, for instance “W8″ for week 8. She further commented that in the Fall of 2004, 412 students dropped a class beyond 6 weeks of which 359 cases were approved. In the Spring 2005, a total of 349 students dropped a class of which 313 were approved. Those cases not approved were petitioned during the last week of classes, when the student did not perform well, or changed his/her major. Exceptions were made in compelling circumstances.
The Chair asked members to vote on the bulleted items as described in the document provided. Lew Harvey (PSYC) made a friendly amendment to move the drop date to the 10th week. The majority of members were in favor and it passed.
Subsequently, members voted on these items with the following results:
- That the deadline for dropping individual courses with a “W” grade during the fall and spring terms without petitioning the dean be changed from the sixth week of the term to the tenth week of the term.
- 13 in favor, 5 opposed, and 2 abstained.
- That the deadline for dropping individual courses with a grade of “W” during the summer session without petitioning the dean be adjusted proportionally.
- 13 in favor, 5 opposed, and 2 abstained.
- That the course instructor’s signature not be required to drop individual courses until after the ten-week deadline.
- 10 in favor, 7 opposed, and 3 abstained.
- That the current paper processes for dropping individual courses be replaced by giving students access to the course drop function in theexisting web registration system and allowing students to drop a course via the web without petition or approval until the deadline requiring a petition to the dean.
- 13 in favor, 5 opposed, and 1 abstained.
- That the petition processes currently available to students to request to drop a course after the deadline due to extenuating circumstances be maintained in the individual dean’s offices.
- 19 in favor, none opposed, and none abstained.
- That the pilot Course Forgiveness program not be extended beyond spring term 2006.
- 18 in favor, 1 opposed, and none abstained.
- That during their undergraduate career students be allowed to drop one course, which has a maximum of 6 credits, without petition or approval up to the last day that classes are taught for the semester and that this one late drop be coded as such in the student’s academic record by the Registrar. For example, the one allowed late drop might be coded “LW” on the record. This should allow easy tracking and facilitate programming to monitor student’s use of this option.
- 15 in favor, 2 opposed, and 2 abstained.
These changes are to be implemented as a three-year pilot program. During the pilot period, Elizabeth Guertin will monitor the number of drop petitions forwarded to her office along with acceptance rates and reasons for rejection. In the fall of the third year of the pilot program, ASC will review the pilot and Elizabeth’s statistics and vote at that time to continue the policy, modify it, or terminate it altogether.
A vote was taken to apply bullets 1 thru 5 to the pilot program only.
14 in favor, none opposed, 1 abstained.
The meeting adjourned at 5:10 PM.
September 22, 2005
Minutes: A&S Council Meeting
Members present: Barbara Buttenfield (GEOG), ASC Chair, Mel Cundiff (EBIO), Jeff Dodge (S&G Record), David Ferris (CLHM), Todd Gleeson (Dean, A&S), Luis Gonzalez-del-Valle (SPAN), Lewis Harvey (PSYC), Frank Hsiao(ECON), Michael Huemer (PHIL), Peter Hunt (CLAS), Kelly Hurley (ENG), Michele Jackson (COM), for Cindy White, Keith Julien (APPM), Christian Kopff (HONR), Haiyan Lee (EALC), David Mapel (PSCI), Rolf Norgaard (PWR) for Patricia Sullivan, Martha Palmer (LING), Hillary Potter (SOCY), Brenda Schick (SLHS), Bob Schulzinger (HIST), Charles Stern (GEOL), Davide Stimilli (GSLL), Rodney Taylor (RLST), Vittorio Trionfi (FRIT), Rob Tubbs (MATH), Parliamentarian, Shijie Zhong (PHYS)
Members absent: Albert Alhadeff (AAH), Douglas Bamforth (ANTH), Kathleen Man (FILM), David Norris (IPHY), Jeffrey Weiss (PAOS), Mark Winey (MCDB), Onye Ozuzu (THDN), Alison Jaggar (WMST)
Guest Speaker: Adrian Del Caro (GSLL)
The Chair called the meeting to order at 3:30 PM.
A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes of the Aug 25th ASC meeting. This motion was approved.
The Dean reported on the budget saying that the college and the campus have an excess of temporary funds. Yet the campus has a continuing fund which is dependent upon the outcome of referendums C & D and future tuition details
The stipend for lecturers will increase in January 2006 by 2.5 percent. In the future these stipends will be increased each January at the same rate as the faculty raises for the year. He further noted that $200,000 has been transferred to departments for their operating budget which represents a 10 percent increase in operating funds. Also, new faculty being hired will receive $3000, up from $1500, to cover moving expenses.
If referendums C & D pass and tuition increases are granted, the campus will increase the number of tenure track faculty by 100 FTE over the next five years.
The next item on the agenda was a presentation given by Adrian Del Caro (GSLL) to discuss the Early College Initiative. CU has been in partnership with the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation for many years and was approached in the Spring 2005 to find out if the campus is interested in establishing an “early college high school.” This program is designed to provide students with opportunities to obtain college credit in high school and to prepare high school graduates for a college education. This initiative is particularly designed for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. These students would either be at risk of leaving high school before graduation or would not have had an opportunity to fulfill their potential. Considering the physical and demographic requirements to create an early college high school in Boulder, Del Caro pointed out that Casey Middle School would be most suitable where the Hispanic and low income population is roughly three times the city average. Its goal is to encourage at-risk, first generation students to attend college by constructing a pipeline from K through 16.
As requested, a pre-proposal has been submitted to the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation. This initiative presents an opportunity for the ASC to set a direction. As Del Caro pointed out, ownership of this project is necessary and, as an example, a number of departments could be engaged by providing a compatible curriculum. He further commented that, if students are captured early enough and exposed to the 3Rs of rigor, relevance and relationships, they can be persuaded.
Due to lack of time, the last 2 agenda items, Standing Committee Reports and Discussion of Proposed Revision of Course Drop Policies and Deadlines, could not be discussed and had to be postponed for the next ASC meeting.
The meeting adjourned at 5:00 PM.
August 25, 2005
Minutes: Arts and Sciences Council
Members present: Albert Alhadeff (AAH), David Brown (PSCI) for Jennifer Wolak, Babs Buttenfield (GEOG), Chair of ASC, Mel Cundiff (EBIO), David Ferris (CLHM), Todd Gleeson (Dean, A&S), Luis Gonzalez-del-Valle (SPAN), Lewis Harvey (PSYC), Frank Hsiao (ECON), Michael Huemer (PHIL), Peter Hunt (CLAS), Kelly Hurley (ENG), Michele Jackson (COM), for Cindy White, Alison Jaggar (WMST), Keith Julien (APPM), Christian Kopff (HONR), Haiyan Lee (EALC), Kathleen Man (FILM), David Norris (IPHY), Onye Ozuzu (THDN), Hillary Potter (SOCY), Robert Schulzinger (HIST), Charles Stern (GEOL), Rodney Taylor (RLST), Vittorio Trionfi (FRIT), Robert Tubbs (MATH), Parliamentarian, Jeffrey Weiss (PAOS), Mark Winey (MCDB)
Members absent: Douglas Bamforth (ANTH), Martha Palmer (LING), Patricia Sullivan (PWR)
The Chair opened the meeting at 3:30 PM.
A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes of the April 14th ASC meeting. This motion was approved unanimously.
The Dean gave an update on a number of issues and mentioned that nominations for the President’s Teaching Scholars program are due by November 18. No more than 2 nominations are expected from within from within the college.
The honorific title of “College Professor of Distinction,” which was approved by the ASC last fall, goes into effect this year and the Personnel Committee will accept nominations until October 1st. It is expected that there will be about 30 nominations from within the college.
The Dean further reported on the searches that will be conducted:
William Wei (HIST) is leaving the university and a search will be initiated this fall to replace him as Director of the Sewall Residential academic program. Dennis Van Gerven will return to the department of ANTH and a new director for Honors will be hired this fall. Associate Dean Joyce Nielsen is being reviewed for reappointment.
The State funding we have received for buildings will be applied to renovate certain areas of Hellems and the Ekeley Building.
President Brown has established a new alcohol policy which states that no university funds can be used for the purchase of alcohol.
The Dean mentioned that a number of lecturers and instructors supplement their income by teaching many additional courses each year, some of them as many as 12 to 14. By doing this, the quality of education is adversely affected. It is recommended to limit this activity by teaching only one additional course per semester.
The Dean also announced a new background check policy:
As part of the application process when hiring new personnel, the legal and financial history of will checked. There was some discussion as to how, and if this policy would be applied to graduate students who have contact with children.
During the summer months, four break-ins on servers occurred which were caused by software shortcomings when required patches were not installed.
Regarding the Churchill case, the Dean reported that a Tenure Review Committee has been set up, also called the “Estes Committee” since it is chaired by General Howard Estes. The purpose of this committee is to investigate and evaluate the procedures the University employs in tenure decisions and not the principle of tenure itself.
Recruitment:
Since the financial situation of the university has improved, the college will be able to hire 45 new tenure-track faculty this year. The Dean expects that during the next 2 year all vacant lines will be eliminated.
The Dean further noted that a new sexual harassment policy was issued by the campus and emphasizes the obligation that harassment cannot be tolerated.
A Residential Campus Task Force was established by the Chancellor and is co-chaired by VC of Student Affairs Ronald Stump and Dean Todd Gleeson. Its purpose is to investigate the possibility of moving the campus towards a more residential model so that more students would live in residential halls.
Many departments in the “humanities” are concerned that the escalating cost of journals will prohibit the university library from purchasing monographs and books. This is an issue the libraries will need to address in the near future.
The Chair mentioned that the Committee on Committees needs 3 new members and asked the council for volunteers. Mark Winey (MCDB), Alison Jaggar (WMST) and Mel Cundiff (EBIO) agreed to serve and all members approved their election.
The next agenda item was a “Proposed Revision of Course Drop Policies and Deadlines” composed by Dean Gleeson and Asst. Dean Elizabeth Guertin. It is proposed that the present drop date of 8 weeks be extended to 12 weeks, a policy that most universities follow. It would allow students to experience the course and to correct their behavior. By eliminating faculty signatures it would become an electronic process. With an early drop date, students are forced to request the Course Forgiveness process. The Course Forgiveness policy has not been eliminated and it will be further discussed this semester.
The Chair asked the members to discuss the proposed revision with their departments. To facilitate this discussion, a copy will be sent electronically to faculty members. This topic will be further discussed at the next ASC meeting in September.
The Chair commented on an on-line voting mechanism. A list of faculty eligible to vote has been set up and the next step will be to build a secure website. It still has to be determined who can build this website.
The Chair will invite Barbara Todd from the Registrar’s Office to the next ASC meeting to talk about web-based grading by informing members in detail about this topic.
The Chair and Rob Tubbs, Chair of the Curriculum Committee, mentioned that the core curriculum review is underway.
Regarding a review of the ASC Bylaws, the Chair will ask the Executive Committee and Associate Chairs to take a look at it to make sure that they are still current.
The Chair commented on the Colorado Challenge by stating that we as a council have the opportunity to move it forward. She will ask the Committee on Academic Community and Diversity to consider possible actions which they might be able to take.
The meeting adjourned at 5:00 PM.