The Arts and Sciences Council, September 18, 2018, 3:30-5:00

Meeting Minutes

Representatives present: Daniel Appelö, APPM; Christine Brennan, SLHS; Barbara Buttenfield, GEOG; Brian Cadena, ECON; Cathy Comstock, RAPS; James Cowell, LING; Françoise Duresse-Stimilli, AAH; Erica Ellingson, APS; John Gibert, CLAS; Jim Goodrich, BCHM; Paul Gordon, HUMN; Saskia Hintz, GSLL; Kwame Holmes, ETHN; Janet Jacobs, WGST; Daniel Jones, HNRS; Joanna Lambert, ENVS; Ramesh Mallipeddi, ENGL; Matt McQueen, IPHY; Stephen Mojzsis, GEOL; Lonni Pearce, PWR; Mike Radelet, SOCY;  Patricia Rankin, PHYS; Evelyn Shih, ALC; Ted Stark, THDN; David Stock, EBIO; Tim Weston, HIST; Deborah Whitehead, RLST; Masano Yamashita, FRIT;

Representatives not present: Juan Herrero-Senes, SPAN; Michaele Ferguson, PSCI; Julie Lundquist, ATOC; Ding Xue, MCDB

Also in attendance: David Brown, Rolf Norgaard, Hillary Potter, Kristy Tiampo, Jim White

Stephen Mojzsis called the meeting to order at 3:31PM.

Chair’s remarks, Stephen Mojzsis

Professor Mojzsis welcomed the representatives to the new academic year and introductions were made. The representatives were asked to find department replacements when unable to attend meetings.

The representatives were asked to share the goals and purpose of the ASC with their departments. The Academic Futures Report noted some faculty members feel faculty governance has undefined rolls and communication from ASC representatives can help change that view.

The ASC will continue to reach out to student government and welcome their representatives to the monthly meetings.

Last year, the ASC bylaws were changed to include the chair of the BFA and a faculty governance representative from CMCI as ex-officio members of the ASC; the ASC will also reach out to other colleges.

The search for the new CU president is underway; see the link below to follow the search committee’s progress.

Dean’s remarks, Jim White

Patricia Rankin and William Kaempfer have been named as co-chairs of the Provost Committee on Academic Reorganization that will be looking at the structure of the College of Arts and Sciences and providing advice to the Provost.

Rolf Norgaard is chairing an ASC ad hoc committee on instructors. Mr. Norgaard will report on the committee later in the meeting.

Carla Ho-a and Ann Schmiesing have been chosen as co-chairs of the Financial Futures Initiative.

Enrollment on campus is up and expected to continue for a few years as Colorado is graduating more high school seniors. Approximately 9 percent of Colorado high school graduates come to CU Boulder. The state of Colorado mandates that we have no fewer than 55 percent Colorado students; the fewer Colorado students we have, the fewer out-of-state students we are able to accept. The College of Arts and Sciences has taken a proactive stance to recruit more students, especially within the state. Daryl Maeda, the new Associate Dean for Student Success is keyto the recruiting effort. Employers are telling the college they want liberal arts graduates, the departments are promoting the advantages of a liberal arts education and countering the false narrative that colleges such as engineering are the only path to lucrative employment.

Dean White is working with Clint Talbot, Director of Communications on this year’s theme “The Value of a Liberal Arts Education.” Six to eight messages will go out to students, staff and alumni on this theme.

Dean White is working with the Associate Deans in Old Main on, among other things, student retention.

The College’s 43 degrees program was a well attended success. The event educated freshmen to opportunities in Arts and Sciences. It also gave students a chance to meet in an interdisciplinary way.

Hillary Potter, the new Associate Dean for Inclusive Practice was introduced; new personnel also include David Brown, Divisional Associate Dean for the Social Sciences, Lily Board, Assistant Dean for Advising and a search is underway for a new dean for Advancement.

Changes made to the by-laws of the ASC in 2017/2018

The term limit of the ASC chair has been changed to 3 one year terms (from 2) to align more closely with other position terms. In addition, the chair of the Boulder Faculty Assembly and the chair of the CMCI Faculty Council have been made ex-officio members of the ASC.

Task Force on Instructors, Rolf Nordgaard

This task force is a collaborative effort between the Dean’s Office and the ASC. The charge of the task force is: The Task Force shall examine the status and function of instructors and senior instructors in the context of the undergraduate mission of the College of Arts and Sciences.

The College has not thought deeply, consciously and proactively about the role of teaching faculty on the campus. [Information on the committee, including committee members and the committee timeline, follows the minutes.]

The Committee hopes to submit a report well before the end of the academic year so there will be time for discussion and response.

The committee does not wish to be seen as representing the pleadings of a special group; the interest is to serve the college. The focus of the committee embraces the work of the college and will ask, “What kind of teaching does an R-1 institution deserve?”

The College’s Strategic Plan, the Campus’ Academic Futures document

Professor Mojzsis encouraged the representatives to review the Academic Futures document and send comments. The Executive Committee will draft a response taking into account any feedback received.

Update on the implementation phase of the A&S Strategic Plan, David Brown

Associate Dean Brown started with an overview of the year-long SPC process.  The vision the committee developed, The College of Arts & Sciences cultivates critical, creative, and compassionate thinkers was at the forefront of the committee’s work.  The committee developed 3 strategic imperatives that focused on culture, teaching and research.  In February and March, the committee stopped meeting to present the strategic imperatives to the campus and solicit feedback.  The document was presented to the dean and the ASC and is posted on the web.

AD Brown reviewed the Strategic Plan for the representatives. The SPC did not want to propose a specific way to implement; they now turn over the plan to the ASC to consider adoption.

Professor Mojzsis, on behalf of the ASC Executive Committee, recommended the Strategic Plan go out to the Chairs and Directors of A&S for discussion, comments and collection of data including a discussion of tactical implementation of the strategic plan.

Professor Mojzsis opened the floor for comments; discussion revolved around funding, prioritization and alignments with other pending reports.

The assembled representatives voted unanimously to release the document to the Chairs and Directors for a formal period of feedback.

Report from the ASC Executive Committee Meeting

  • The Planning Committee is working with AD Maeda on the feedback from the departments on the functioning of the Academic Advising Center
  • The Personnel Committee is providing informational meetings to new chairs about the tenure and promotion process.
  • The Budget Committee is looking at the base budget and the continuing course fees problem.
  • The Diversity Committee is working with the Curriculum Committee on first year seminars and working to get Gen Ed credit when appropriate.

The meeting was adjourned at 5:00PM.

Minutes approved October 10, 2018   

Submitted by Janice Jeffryes