Abstract of April 22, 2013, Faculty Senate meeting

Karen Stout, Faculty Senate president, called senators to order at 4:04 p.m. Senators accepted the Senate minutes of April 8, 2013, with minor corrections, and the standing committee minutes.

Announcements:

President Stout:

  • introduced Timothy Fitzpatrick, Music, sitting in for Milica Jovanovich this quarter
  • welcomed Allison Giffen and Rae Lynn Schwartz-DuPre who announced that applications are due April 25 for the Women Studies Director. Faculty are directed to send an email to Giffen or Schwartz-DuPre if they are interested in helping to reconceptualize the program possibly to include gender studies and masculine studies
  • AS President Ethan Glemaker provided a statement regarding a conflict around a “tribal disco” event recently held on campus, which can be read here: http://aspresidentblog.blogspot.com
  • concerns about the Humans vs. Zombies game should be addressed to wwuhumansvszombies@gmail.com
  • system issues are being addressed which have prevented gender marker changes from appearing on class rosters as of yet
  • faculty are alerted to potential journal publication and academic conference scams that are proliferating. See a recent New York Times article.

Provost Riordan:

  • budget priorities in Olympia will delay the Carver Academic Facility renovation, a major setback especially for Kinesiology labs and affected academic and athletic programs
  • a SMATE lab will be named after Irwin Slesnick, a former faculty member
  • Alaska Air has donated 150,000 air miles in travel credits to faculty
  • Provost Riordan reported on the immense gratitude of Korean War veterans who attended a memorial ceremony at Big Rock Garden Park this week. Retired Sociology Professor George Drake hosted South Korean Governor Kim Moon Soo, other Korean dignitaries, and members of the Lummi Nation at the event.

Dan Boxberger, FLR:

  • reported from Olympia that reconciliation over the Senate and House budgets is unlikely to happen before Sunday evening when the legislative session is scheduled to end.

Steve Garfinkle, UFWW President

  • reported that Chuck Lambert was elected UFWW President and Sandra Alfers Vice President. Karen Stout will serve as UFWW Director of Communications
  • in response to concerns that have been expressed as to whether Western can afford the faculty collective bargaining agreement, Garfinkle used information from the Operating Budget Greenbook to demonstrate that in spite of recent positive steps the investment in faculty salaries as a percentage of the operating budget remains below previous historical levels.

PRESENTATION: Prevention of Violence on Campus.

Randy Stegmeier, Police Chief/Director of Public Safety; David Sattler, Psychology, Emergency Management Committee; Gayle Shipley, Director Environmental Health and Safety, emphasized the importance of community awareness and preparedness in preventing acts of violence and suggested that knowing how to react in an emergency could mean the difference between safety and serious physical injury. Faculty are encouraged to show and discuss an 8-minute video (available at http://www.emergency.wwu.edu) and include language in their syllabi about preventing violence on campus. Additional information about training sessions is available on the site.

DISCUSSION: NTT Service on the Faculty Senate.

Senators discussed options that would allow NTT faculty to serve on the Senate without breaching the collective bargaining agreement, which requires NTT faculty are paid for their service. Service is seen by many NTT faculty members as an opportunity for professional development.

CONSTITUENT CONCERNS:

Senators asked:

  • if there is a policy in place about funding tablets for pedagogical use in the classroom
  • for clarification about the reframing of GURs
  • if progress can be made to align the Bellingham school calendar with Western’s calendar.

Senators adjourned at 5:59 pm.

APPOINTMENTS AND ELECTIONS – Jackie Caplan-Auerbach, Officer

The Faculty Senate online elections have been completed with one vacancy remaining in Area B. Orientation for new Senators will take place on Monday, May 20 at 3 pm in OM340 preceding the regular Senate meeting at 4 pm.