Full Minutes
Rebecca Kneedler, Chair of the Faculty Senate, called the
meeting to order at 3:15 p.m. in Minor Hall Auditorium. She
introduced Muriel Poston, who is the American Council of Educaton
Fellow from Howard University in residence this year at the
University of Virginia, and she asked all of the Senators to
introduce themselves.
I. Overview of Faculty Senate Work for 1995-96 and 1996-97
Rebecca Kneedler provided an overview of the Faculty Senate
work for the year 1995-96. Projects undertaken included: the revision
of the grievance procedures (carried out by a committee chaired by
Ken Elzinga); the revision of the laws of governance for the Faculty
Senate (carried out by a committee chaired by Dan Larson); and a
review and critical discussion of the Self-Study (carried out by the
Executive Committee). Prominent among the changes in the rules of
governance were (a) the creation of the position of a chair-elect,
(b) the redistribution of voting and representation across
departments, and the reduction in the number of committees from ten
to four (the remaining committees are Grievance, ROTC, Executive, and
Academic Affairs).
Rebecca Kneedler outlined two goals for the current year. The
first is to create a flow of information among Senators and between
the Senate representatives and their constituents -- using email,
faculty meetings, and the Senate meetings as contexts for discussion.
She also noted that the Senate can and should occupy a pivotal
position in facilitating productive communication between the faculty
and the administration. The second is to focus on several key areas
of interest -- in particular, faculty salaries, graduate student
support, and faculty diversity.
II. Report of President John T. Casteen
John Casteen reported that the University of Virginia continues
to be one of a very few public universities in the top rankings, but
noted that the University's top ranking is precarious. The three
public universities in the top rankings -- UVa, Michigan, and the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill -- have carried out, or
are in the process of carrying out, strong capital campaigns. John
Casteen stressed the importance of our campaign to the maintenance of
the quality of the University.
Concerning graduate programs, John Casteen questioned whether
it was right to attract and train large numbers of graduate students
for jobs that do not exist. He envisioned increased funding for
graduate students to come from private sources, not from state
support.
The level of state support for the University will push 13% by
the end of this fiscal year. In the past, state support for the
University has been as low as 11% and as high as 29%. John Casteen
stressed that, in the long run, it is necessary to secure financial
autonomy from the state.
Mr. Casteen stated that faculty salaries are a top priority,
with a second priority being scholarship support for students. He
discussed the dynamics of hiring and retention at UVa and other
educational institutions in Virginia, especially during times of
financial crisis. To maintain its strength the University needs to be
able both to attract faculty from other comparable institutions and
to protect our own faculty (especially those at the Associate level)
from being raided. He said that, with regard to state funding for
salaries, what we need is double what was given last year; what the
state is currently offering is half of what was given last year.
John Casteen discussed the state's motivations for instituting
the delayed payroll plan. As a consequence of the action, the state
is now in the difficult position of having to come up with both this
year's pay raise and next year's pay raise in the same year. Colette
Capone and Leonard Sandridge have worked hard on this issue.
Representatives Emily Couric and Mitch van Yahres have called upon
the legislature to rectify the problem.
The capital campaign is two-thirds of the way toward reaching
its goal. The University is currently conducting a series of regional
kickoffs -- 30 in this country and 10 outside the country. A number
of areas of the campaign that were initially held back for some time
will now begin to be "folded in" to the campaign. The Shannon Center
also needs to raise money and is in the process of defining its
program and priorities. These priorities are likely to include
supporting collaboration across disciplines, assisting younger
faculty, assuring the quality of visiting committees, and bringing in
guests.
John Casteen posed the question of what to do about faculty
salaries in the short run. The strategy is to use non-state funds to
support those areas which have been disadvantaged by the lack of
state money and by the ways in which private monies move. John
Casteen had just attended a meeting with the Council on Higher
Education and discussed the use of bond issues and other measures. He
is also pressing for the return of the lottery funds that were
diverted from education.
A Senator asked what the Harrison bonuses were. John Casteen
answered that they were one time faculty salary bonuses taken from
revenues generated by a fund given by Harrison. Some 70 bonuses were
paid on September 1st in amounts ranging from $2,700 to $3,500. John
Casteen noted that the University intends to continue the
program.
III. Working and Action Items
Rebecca Kneedler announced that the Academic Affairs Committee
has taken on the issue of the evaluation of teaching as one of its
primary projects. Ben Ray, from the Academic Affairs Committee,
reported that the Committee was studying the results of a recent
survey of teaching evaluation across the University. Methods for
evaluation vary widely. Some schools have instituted extensive
programs with significant incentives. The Academic Affairs Committee
plans to bring the "best practices" to the Senate in order to discuss
possible proposals for teaching evaluations. The Committee will work
to develop proposals with strong incentives that recognize excellent
teaching and that support the Teaching Resource Center. The Committee
encourages input from the Senators and their constituents.
The request from the Curry School of Education for approval of
a Master of Education and Doctor of Philosophy degree in Educational
Policy Studies was discussed. A motion to approve the request was
made, seconded, and passed 33-0.
The issue of the honor system was briefly discussed. Rebecca
Kneedler reported that the Executive Council is inviting Jim Tybur
(the student Chair of the Honor Committee) to its next meeting. One
question on the agenda is whether there is a role for the Senate to
play with regard the facilitation of the honor system.
Rebecca Kneedler opened the meeting to discussion of any
further issues.
A question was raised as to how the recipients of the Harrison
salary bonuses were decided upon. Ray Nelson and Peter Low explained
that the Chairs were asked to make nominations, which were forwarded
to the deans. The deans' recommendations were forwarded to a
committee appointed by the Provost (which virtually replicated the
Provost's Promotion and Tenure Committee) and Peter Low made the
final approval. The number of nominations and awards per school was
based on the relative number of faculty in each school.
It was aksed whether there is any reason why tenure and
promotion dicisions could not be made public before the belated
announcement in the June issue of Inside UVa. The different policies
in different schools with regard to announcements of tenure and
promotion dicisions were discussed. Some schools do make
announcements once approval is made by the Provost, but before it is
made by the Board of Visitors, and Peter Low did not see any reason
why this should not happen.
The meeting adjourned at 4:30 p.m.
Submitted by Susan McKinnon, Secretary to the Faculty Senate
