October 7, 2016
Meeting of the Faculty Council
Friday, October 7, 2016 from 3:00 p.m to 5:00 p.m.
Kerr Hall, 2001 (Eshelman School of Pharmacy)
Live-stream link to join meeting via telephone or computer: https://bluejeans.com/211414236
Final agenda
3:00 p.m. Call to order
- Professor Bruce Cairns, chair of the faculty
3:05 p.m. Chancellor’s remarks
- Chancellor Carol Folt
3:20 p.m. “Diversity syllabus” Part II: Inclusive Classrooms
- Professor Rumay Alexander, chair of the Community and Diversity Committee and interim director of diversity and multicultural affairs; Professor Viji Sathy (Psychology); and Professor Kelly Hogan (Biology)
- Advance reading for Faculty Council members (login with your ONYEN) and PowerPoint (here as a .pdf)
4:00 p.m. Chair of the Faculty’s remarks and announcements
- Ms. Eliza Filene, Faculty Council undergraduate representative
- Mr. Alex Mitchell, Heels for Homes student project coordinator
- Ms. Rachel Gogal, chancellor’s fellow (LiveSafe presentation and here as a .pdf)
4:10 p.m. Resolution 2016-10. On Appreciation for UNC-Chapel Hill Faculty Years of Service [Amended]
4:20 p.m. Faculty Athletics Committee and Faculty Athletics Representative Reports 4:45 p.m. Open discussion Watch a video of the meeting at https://bluejeans.com/s/4tyf6. The Faculty Council of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill convened on Friday, October 7, 2016, at 3:00 p.m. in Kerr Hall, 2001. The following 62 members attended: Aikat, Anksorus, Ansong, Arnold, Bangdiwala, Baumgartner, Berkowitz, Berman, Boettiger, Cairns (Chair of the Faculty), Chapman, Cravey (AAUP representative), Cuddeback, Dobelstein (Retired faculty representative), Duqum, Edwards, Felix, Filene (Undergraduate student representative), Fisher, Furry, Gilchrist, Gilland, Giovanello, Hannig, Hastings, Hobbs, Hornstein, Hunter, Ives, Jabati (Undergraduate student representative), Jaramillo (Graduate student representative), Jones, Kang, Kireev, Kris, Lee, A. Levine, C. Levine, Malloy, Mayer-Davis, McBride, Melehy, Mizzy, Moracco, Parise, Perelmuter, Persky, Pruvost, Pukkila (Retried faculty representative), Renner, Salyer, Savasta-Kennedy, Scarlett, Song, Steponaitis (Secretary of the Faculty), Sturm, Tepper, Tuggle, Wallace, Weight, Willett and You. The following 34 members received excused absences: Ammerman, Babb, Brewster, Cox, Coyne-Beasley, Daughters, Dean (Provost), Drake, Driscoll (AAUP representative, Estigarribia, Estrada, Fry, Hall, Halladay, Hill, Joyner, Khan, Kim, Koonce, Larson, Lithgow, Lundberg, Mayer, Metz, Nelson, Neta, Osterweil, Rini, Thorpe, Upshaw, Welty, Williams, Yaqub and Zvara. The following members were absent without excuse: Mauro and Platts-Mills. Call to order Professor Bruce Cairns (Surgery), chair of the faculty, welcomed members of the Faculty Council. He noted that Provost Jim Dean was unable to attend the meeting. Chancellor’s remarks Chancellor Carol Folt welcomed the faculty, and commented on the cast she was wearing. She said that students have made up stories about hurting her wrist dunking a basketball or that she is testing a new bionic arm invention for the School of Medicine. The chancellor said that she would keep her remarks brief because she had to leave the meeting early to go to a dedication ceremony for the new Arts and Sciences Foundation building in downtown Chapel Hill. The chancellor expressed concerned for those impacted by Hurricane Matthew. The administration has reached out to other universities to offer assistance. She thanked the faculty for their offers of support. The chancellor reported that she and Executive Vice Provost Ron Strauss have been meeting with the Global Leadership Council to develop a global strategic roadmap to improve upon the University’s international reputation. The council is developing 200-250 undergraduate study abroad scholarships, many of which will target Carolina Covenant scholars and students receiving need-based financial aid. They have also developed a program to assist students with obtaining passports. The University will celebrate its 223rd birthday on October 11 this year. Steve Farmer, vice provost for enrollment and undergraduate admissions, will be the featured speaker. The chancellor invited the faculty to attend. The chancellor said that UNC-system President Margaret Spellings’ inauguration will take place on October 13. The event is ticketed and will take place at Memorial Hall. She encouraged the faculty to watch a live-stream of the event and noted that this event marks the first time since President Spangler’s inauguration in 1986 that a UNC President has chosen Chapel Hill to host the event. Chancellor Folt said that she is planning a trip to Spain with David Routh, vice chancellor for university development, to accept a substantial gift for the University. On October 4, Jill McCorkle visited the campus to receive the 2016 Thomas Wolfe Prize. She gave a lecture that highlighted the work of her students, teachers and mentors during her time at Carolina. The chancellor was moved by Ms. McCorkle’s statement that “the liberal arts is the backbone of our humanity and what gives us hope on any dark day.” The chancellor visited the Title IX office earlier in the day and thanked the staff for their work. She also met with Professor Blossom Damania (Microbiology and Immunology), who has recently been named vice dean for research at the School of Medicine. During that meeting the chancellor received an update on Professor Jean Cook’s (Biochemistry and Biophysics) efforts to diversify graduate education in the School of Medicine over the past eight years. Over that time, Ph.D. candidates from underrepresented groups increased by more than 200 percent. Chancellor’s question period Mr. Malik Jabati (Undergraduate student representative) asked the chancellor for an update on the proposed student fee increase for the Kenan-Flagler School of Business. Chancellor Folt said that discussions about increasing the student fee are still at the beginning stages. She said that for a fee to be approved, the proposal would have to go through the Student Fee Committee and the Board of Governors. Professor Marcia Hobbs (Medicine) said that despite recommendations from the Committee on Fixed-Term Faculty, many fixed-term faculty are not receiving longer contracts at the time of renewal. She said that the recommendations are not being taken seriously in all parts of campus, and she asked if the chancellor and provost would lend their support. Chancellor Folt said that the recommendations have been taken seriously, but the University does not have enough money to meet its current budget. She said that Provost Jim Dean has been meeting with deans to discuss a long-term budget strategy. She said that the University will have another $15 million budget cut in the spring. If fixed-term faculty are to receive longer contracts, the budget cycle will have to be changed to accommodate long-term planning. “Diversity syllabus” part II: Inclusive classrooms Professor Rumay Alexander (Nursing), chair of the Community and Diversity Committee, introduced Professor Viji Sathy (Psychology and Neuroscience) and Professor Kelly Hogan (Biology). She noted that Professor Sathy and Professor Hogan led a Carolina Conversations program on inclusive classrooms two weeks prior to the Faculty Council meeting. Their presentation was intended to summarize what they learned from the program and to demonstrate tips for making students more engaged in the classroom. Professor Hogan asked the Faculty Council members to reflect on a time when they did not feel included in an academic environment. None of the Council members volunteered to share their experience with the group. Then the presenters asked the Council members to think about how the question was posed and why no one felt comfortable sharing their answer The presenters said that defining an inclusive classroom requires moving away from assumptions that students are lacking the ability to achieve and rethinking learning environments and course design. Course design includes how the syllabus is written, how often assessment is used to gauge performance and how projects are assigned. Course facilitation includes thinking about how questions are posed in a way that incorporates many responses from diverse voices. Professor Sathy described the Carolina Conversation on September 19, 2016. They explicitly stated their goals and expectations for the session, set some rules for the discussion and made time for people in the room to get to know each other. They used index cards and Poll Everywhere technology to provide an alternative means of participation for introverted students. They hosted small group and large group conversations and used everybody’s ideas to think about how students, faculty and staff can support more professors in creating inclusive classrooms. The presenters set ground rules for discussion to “not assume, be mindful, be flexible and extend yourself.” They reminded participants to be forgiving. They recommended a book titled “To my professor,” which is a collection of essays from students talking about the kinds of things that they wish their professors knew. The asked the Faculty Council to break into small discussion groups and answer the prompt “I wish my students knew that one of the challenges I face supporting diverse students in the classroom is ___.” The presenters instructed the Council members to swap their cards and read one of them aloud from each group. The Faculty Council members came up with the following list: “push back from majority white students, especially males,” “time pressure for content,” fear of “doing more harm than good by saying the wrong thing so sometimes I don’t say anything,” fear of “accidentally saying the wrong words and causing offense,” “find[ing] it difficult to talk about diversity when I myself am not a member of a recognized minority,” “not all forms of student identity and diversity are visible to faculty (e.g. first generation, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation) and it often seems inappropriate to ask,” and “the climate created by my department chair is one of fear, intimidation and supporting the status quo.” The presenters said that they engaged in a similar exercise with students at the Carolina Conversation event, and asked them to respond to the prompt: “I wish my professor knew that I feel included when __ and I don’t when __.” The students said they felt included when they are “allowed to ask questions to … classmates without interrupting a lecture,” when there’s dedicated time for peer interaction, when they are called upon with notice, when the teacher is willing to discuss disagreement in a welcoming and kind way, when professors seek input from the class during lectures, when students have the chance to interact with the professor outside of class, when professors recognize students outside of class, when pronouns are asked and respected, when assigned readings are written by diverse authors, when professors make eye contact and ask direct questions, and when professors take time to learn names. Students at the Carolina Conversations event reported not feeling included when the class is lecture style with little discussion, when the professor only uses PowerPoint slides to lecture, when there is little community-building in the classroom, when the professor instructs students to form their own discussion groups and some get left out, when professors project an identity on to students based on the way they look, when faculty assume students’ gender identities and sexual orientations, when faculty generalize about Christians or Republicans and conservatives, when faculty quickly move forward in lecture because he or she assumes everyone is following, when faculty assume students have the resources to buy all of the course materials and textbooks, and when international students are treated differently from their peers. At the conclusion of the Carolina Conversations event, the presenters asked what students could do to support faculty who are trying to create inclusive classrooms. Many of the students encouraged faculty to boost participation in classes by asking for feedback in class. Professor Heidi Kim (Pharmacy) asked how to address proper gendered pronouns without making students feel uncomfortable. The presenters responded that a best practice would be to ask students in a private setting what they would prefer to be called. Faculty could ask students to complete a background form that asks them for their preferred pronoun and the pronunciation of their name. Professor Nancy Fisher (Microbiology and Immunology) asked how she might be able to share this presentation with her colleagues. Professor Cairns said that the video of the live-stream will be posted on the Faculty Governance website, and the video can be shared. Chancellor Folt said she had to leave for an event, but she reiterated her appreciation for the presentation and the Carolina Conversations event. Professor Cairns thanked Professor Hogan and Professor Sathy for their presentation and work on promoting inclusive classrooms. Chair of the Faculty’s remarks and announcements Professor Cairns invited the Faculty Council to join him at University Day on October 11. He reminded the faculty that University Day is a tradition started by the faculty in 1877, and it is a time for faculty to celebrate the people here. He ceded the remainder of his time for announcements. Mr. Alex Mitchell, Heels for Homes student project coordinator, invited faculty members to become involved with Habitat for Humanity in Orange County. He noted that Habitat for Humanity’s mission is to build affordable houses for people who are struggling to afford a home in Chapel Hill. He thanked Chancellor Folt for supporting their work in the North Side neighborhood, where university workers had lived for generations before it became unaffordable. Ms. Eliza Filene (Undergraduate representative) announced that Student Government is launching a Pit Teacher program that will feature faculty members giving lectures at lunchtime in the Pit. Ms. Rachel Gogal, chancellor’s fellow, discussed LiveSafe, a new safety app for people on campus. The app can help users connect with campus police more quickly and track user’s whereabouts. Mr. Charles Streeter, chair of the Employee Forum, announced a campus-wide food drive that will take place during the month of October. He encouraged the faculty to make donations to the drive. Resolution 2016-10. On Appreciation for UNC-Chapel Hill Faculty Years of Service Professor Tim Ives (Pharmacy), chair of the Faculty Welfare Committee, presented Resolution 2016-10. Professor Ives explained that the version of the resolution that is being presented to the Faculty Council is an amended version of a resolution referred to the Faculty Welfare Committee last spring. The amended resolution takes into account the process that is currently in place to recognize EHRA-non faculty and SHRA staff employees. The amended resolution proposes that EHRA faculty be recognized alongside other employees at the 20 Year Society and requests that they are also recognized with similar certificates and gifts at certain milestones. Professor Jan Hannig (Statistics and Operations Research) asked who would pay for the certificates, gifts and additional guests at the 20 Year Society banquet. Professor Ives (Pharmacy) responded that the language in the resolution allows for the details to be worked out among the Office of Faculty Governance, Office of Human Resources and the Academic Personnel Office. The resolution passed unanimously. Faculty Athletics Committee and Faculty Athletics Representative reports Professor Lissa Broome (Law), faculty athletics representative, gave an overview of the role of the Faculty Athletics Representative (FAR). The chancellor appointed her to serve as FAR on July 1, 2010. She underwent a five-year review in 2015, and the review committee recommended that she be reappointed to a second five-year term. Professor Broome explained that every NCAA institution is required to have a FAR. At Carolina, the FAR advises the chancellor and the athletics director, and she acts as a liaison to the faculty. The FAR’s areas of focus include the academic success of student athletes, compliance with Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) rules and the student-athlete experience. The FAR represents the University before the ACC and participates in NCAA activities. Professor Broome said she works very closely with the Faculty Athletics Committee, and she attends a lot of meetings in order to understand developments in different areas of collegiate athletics. Professor Broome noted that prior to 2010, the FAR did not have regular meetings, but rather met with bodies as needed. Some of the more recently created bodies that the FAR attends are the Athletics Process Review Group (successor to the Student-Athlete Academic Initiative Working Group) and a student-athlete academic success group that involves the Registrar’s Office, the Academic Support Program for Student Athletes and the compliance office. The FAR has also been recently involved in reviewing student-athletes’ enrollment patterns. Professor Broome said that Carolina hosted the ACC governance representatives here for the first ACC fall governance meeting of the season. Professor Broome also attends the NCAA national convention and has been active in all of the SACS accrediting reviews and the ongoing NCAA investigation. Professor Broome explained the acronyms in her report. The Graduation Success Rate (GSR) is a four-year rate that contains information about student-athletes who entered Carolina in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008. The GSR measures the graduation rate within six years of the year that they entered. The GSR only includes student athletes who received athletics-related financial aid during their first year on campus. A number of students who are active student-athletes are not included. Professor Broome explained that the GSR is a NCAA construct, and it does not penalize schools if a student transfers from an institution or leaves to pursue a professional career. Carolina’s overall GSR is 85 percent. The Federal Graduation Rate (FGR) is collected by the Department of Education, and the FGR for our student-athletes (those who received financial aid in their first year) is 72 percent compared with 90 percent for all Carolina students. Professor Broome explained that this percentage is significant because it is the one area where we can compare our student body to student-athletes. We have an 18 percent gap that has widened because the overall student body’s graduation rate has increased from 81 percent from the first year this data was collected up to 90 percent. Professor Broome noted that we now have a program called Complete Carolina to reach out to students who left school without getting their degrees and to assist them with earning their degrees. Some of the students who left Carolina may have gone to another school and graduated, but Complete Carolina offers financial aid through the Educational Foundation for those who didn’t graduate. The Academic Performance Rate (APR) is a NCAA metric based on the academic eligibility, retention and graduation of student-athletes receiving athletically-related financial aid. If a team is below 930, they are ineligible for postseason competition in the NCAA. If a team at Carolina has an APR that is below 960, they meet with a group that includes the FAR, academic support personnel, their coach and their sport administrator to create an APR improvement plan. Last year, seven teams were in the top 10 percent of their sport in Division I for APR. They included women’s fencing, women’s golf, women’s volleyball, gymnastics, women’s tennis and men’s swimming and diving. The ACC honor roll is calculated each year for student athletes. Professor Broome included a list of students with a 3.0 or greater grade point average (GPA) for the most recent academic year. In 2015-16, a record-breaking 356 student-athletes made the ACC honor roll. Professor Layna Mosley (Political Science), Faculty Athletics Committee chair, presented the committee’s annual report. She explained that the committee’s membership had changed from nine to 12 members as a result of a resolution that the Faculty Council passed last year. The committee now has broader representation and is better able to handle its workload. This committee also has a number of non-voting consultants, including advisors, the athletic director, student-athletes and the director of the Academic Support Program for Student Athletes. Professor Andrew Perrin (Sociology) and Professor John B. Stephens (Government) are vice chairs of the committee. Professor Mosley explained that each committee member is assigned to a team and a topic area. The topics include academics, admissions, advising and student-athlete welfare. Recently, the committee has been focused on the time demands that student-athletes face. The committee met monthly last year and had an end-of-year retreat. Committee members gathered data related to the topic areas, and staff experts attended the meetings to answer questions. When the topic of admissions was discussed, the committee invited Steve Farmer, vice provost for enrollment and undergraduate admissions, to talk about the relationship between admissions and academic performance. The committee has discussions about legislative changes coming to college athletics and how these may affect our student athletes. Last December, a lot of students in the marching band and on the football team missed a final exam because the football team traveled to the ACC finals during exam week. The committee discussed how faculty should handle these types of absences. The committee also hosted a couple open forums last year that were not as well attended as in previous years. Professor Mosley gave an update on the Committee on Collegiate Athletics at UNC, a committee that was created by Faculty Council Resolution 2015-6. The committee is led by Professor John B. Stephens (Government), and it recently held a forum on time demands for student-athletes. Professor Lee Berkowitz (Medicine) thanked Professor Lissa Broome for her work. He asked if she felt like the FAR workload was sustainable. Professor Broome responded that the job entails a lot of work but not all of it requires new preparation. Professor Hassan Melehy (Romance Studies) asked Professor Mosley how often she is approached by student-athletes who feel that they are not getting the best education because of their sport’s time demands. Professor Mosley replied that some students achieve better with time constraints because the structure imposed creates more discipline. She hears concerns about the ability of student-athletes to take part in extracurricular activities and take advantage of study abroad. She said that some high achieving students have requested more services from the Academic Support Program from Student-Athletes. Professor Jay Smith (History) asked Professor Broome why there isn’t more detailed information available about the FGR, and why information about the academic performance of special admissions candidates is not disclosed in the report. Professor Broome (Law) said that she provided three pages of FGR data that is disaggregated by team, race and ethnicity. Professor Mosley replied that she served for six years on the Committee on Special Talent. She said that the members have spent a lot of time talking about the relationship between academic performance and admissions criteria. The committee goes into closed session to receive information about student-athlete performance and class selections. She said that the committee would not want to report academic performance based on the tier system used for special admits because of concerns about reliability and labeling students. Professor Smith said that he feels that it would be easy to protect students’ anonymity and that having access to data on special admits’ academic performance would allow the faculty to more easily compare their performance with students who are not admitted through the special admissions process. Professor Charlotte Boettiger (Psychology and Neuroscience) announced that the Board of Governors is in the process of collecting feedback on their strategic plan. She encouraged the faculty to provide input through the survey that was emailed to them. Adjournment Having completed its business, the Faculty Council adjourned at 5:00 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kathryn Turner Vincas P. Steponaitis
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