September 16, 2005
Meeting of the Faculty Council and the General Faculty
Friday, September 16, 2005
3:00 p.m.
Hitchcock Multipurpose Room
Sonja Haynes Stone Center for Black Culture and History
Chancellor James Moeser and Professor Judith Wegner, Chair of the Faculty, will preside.
Agenda
2:30 Orientation of New Members
- Professor Joseph Ferrell, Secretary of the Faculty.
3:00 General Faculty and Faculty Council Convene.
- Welcome
- Professor Wegner.
- Chancellor’s Remarks and Questions from the Floor.
- Recognition of Hettleman
- Award Winners.
3:15 Comments from Student Leaders.
- Seth Dearman, President of the Student Body.
- Michael Brady, President of the Graduate and Professional Student Federation.
3:30 Budget Update
- Provost Robert Shelton.
3:40 Introduction of University Ombudspersons.
3:45 Re-accreditation & Assessment Update.
- Senior Associate Dean Bobbi Owen.
- Lynn Williford, Assistant Provost & Director of Institutional Research.
4:15 Faculty Forum on the Medical School: Faculty Roles and Rewards.
- Vice Dean Robert N. Golden.
- Discussion.
5:00 Adjourn.
Minutes
The Faculty Council of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill convened at 3:00 p.m. in the Hitchcock Multipurpose Room of the Sonja Haynes Stone Black Cultural Center.
The following 54 members of the Council attended: Alperin, Ammerman, Arnold, Barreau, Booth, Cairns, Chapman, Clemens, Couper, Dalton, de Silva, Degener, DeSaix, Dupuis, Eble, Foley, Gerber, Gilligan, Gulledge, Heenan, Howell, Huber, Jonas, Kamarei, Lastra, Leonard, Lin, MacLean, Marshall, Matthysse, McGrath, McIntosh, Mesibov, Morton, Murray, Papanikolas, Peirce, Perrin, Renner, Rock, Rogers, Rustioni, Salmon, Sandelowski, Selassie, Simpson, Sutherland, Sweeney, Templeton, Tobin, Weil, Weinberg, Wilson, Wissick. The following 28 members were granted excused absences: Bachenheimer, Bennett, Blocher, Connolly, Conover, Copenhaver, Ewend, Gasaway, Givre, Granger, Holmgren, Keagy, Klebanow, Martin, Matson, Miguel, Muller, Murphy, Smith, Strom-Gottfried, Sulik, Tauchen, Tiwana, Trotman, Vick, Wallace, Wolford, Yankaskas. The following four members were absent without excuse: Anton, Kagarise, Kramer, Taylor.
Orientation of New Members
Professor Joseph S. Ferrell, Secretary of the Faculty, presented an overview of faculty governance at Carolina for the benefit of newly-elected members of the Council.
Chair of the Faculty’s Remarks
Professor Judith Wegner, Chair of the Faculty, summarized matters of ongoing interest since the last meeting of the Council in April, 2005:
- The Council Committee on Fixed-Term Faculty has met and plans to contact members of the 2002-03 Task Force on Appointments, Promotions and Tenure for insight into the task force recommendations that led to creation of the committee;
- Work is progressing on preparation for the SACS reaccreditation visit which will take place in April;
- Fruitful contacts have been made with the Chair of the Faculty at North Carolina State University that have led to semi-annual meetings among the Faculty Executive Committee, representatives of the NCSU Faculty Senate, and the provosts of both institutions;
- Conversations have been initiated in the Faculty Executive Committee and the Tuition Task Force on issues of special interest to the financial needs of graduate students;
- A recent amendment to the State retirement system statutes has raised problems with continuation of the phased retirement program in its current configuration after next year;
- Decreased availability of on-campus parking has led to changes in policies for issuance of parking permits to retired faculty and staff.
Chancellor’s Remarks
Chancellor Moeser urged Council members who were unable to attend his State of the University Address to read the text of his speech, which can be found on the University website.
The Chancellor told of the University’s efforts to aid students and faculty of Tulane University who have been displaced by flooding and wind damage from Hurricane Katrina. He said that Tulane plans to reopen in the Spring semester.
Hettleman Awards
Chancellor Moeser presented the 2005 Hettleman Awards to:
- Aysenil Belger, Associate Professor Psychiatry and Director of Neuroimaging Research in Psychiatry
- Robert P. Goldstein, Associate Professor of Biology
- J. Christopher Clemens, Associate Professor of Physics and Astronomy
- Patrick D. Davison, Assistant Professor of Journalism and Mass Communication
Comments from Student Leaders
Mr. Seth Dearmin, President of the Student Body, spoke of the goals he has set for his administration. He mentioned faculty retention, teaching assistant salaries, improvements in academic advising, and encouragement of smaller class sizes as issues that he hopes to address.
Mr. Michael Grady, President of the Graduate and Professional Student Federation, also addressed the Council. He mentioned outreach and breaking down inter-disciplinary boundaries as topics he intends to emphasize.
Questions Raised by Council Members
Prof. Andrew Perrin (Sociology) asked about the status of a bill introduced in the State Senate that would enact the so-called “Academic Bill of Rights” (S 129). Prof. Wegner said the bill was referred to committee in the Senate and has not been set for hearings or discussion by the committee. She said that under the rules agreed to by both houses, only bills that have passed
one house and remain pending in the other are eligible for consideration in the 2006 session. S 129 does not meet that criterion. Prof. Wegner said that the Office of the President is closely tracking the bill.
Prof. Diane Leonard (Comparative Literature) asked why the AAUP does not have a more visible presence on this campus. Prof. Karen Booth (Women’s Studies) said that a group of faculty are now working on mounting a membership drive for AAUP.
Prof Karen Booth (Women’s Studies) asked for comment on the current status of the Western Civilization major proposed for funding by the Pope Foundation. The Chancellor said that he understands that conversations are continuing with representatives of the Pope Foundation for support of several existing programs, but he had no new information to report.
Budget Update
Provost Robert Shelton briefed the Council on the outcome of the 2005-06 state budget. He said that state support now accounts for about 22% of the University’s total budget. Other revenue sources, particularly contracts and grants, have continued to grow while State support has remained relatively flat. He said that in 2005-06 Carolina has to absorb $6.3 million in unallocated budget cuts and $600,000 in targeted cuts. The net effect was a 1.75% reduction in State budget funding in the Division of Academic Affairs, a 2.5% reduction in Health Affairs, and a 2.5% reduction for administrative support units. On the positive side, Carolina received $8.9 million in enrollment increase funds. No budget cuts were assigned to the University Libraries. Additional funding from campus-based tuition was meager this year. In 2004-05, tuition increases generated $22.8 million. This year, that funding
source yielded $4.6 million, of which 40% was allocated to need-based student aid, some for increasing teaching assistant salaries, and $900,000 for graduate student tuition remission. Only a little more than $900,000 was available for faculty salary increases. He said that these figure speak only to campus-wide tuition increases; additional funds are available to several of the professional schools who have obtained permission to increase tuition for graduate and professional students enrolled in their programs.
The Provost said that the Tuition Advisory Task Force has met twice this semester and plans at least two more meetings. He intends to bring its recommendations to the Board of Trustees at their November meeting.
The Provost reported on several other items:
- Outreach and assistance for victims of Hurricane Katrina are being coordinated by Lynn Blanchard, Director of the Carolina Center for Public Service.
- Alice Poehls has been chosen as the new Registrar as of October 3. Ms. Poehls is now registrar at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
- The search committee for dean of the School of Law is being chaired by Dean Michael Smith of the School of Government.
- The search committee for dean of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication is being chaired by Dean Bernadette Gray-Little of the College of Arts and Sciences.
- The search for Equal Opportunity/Americans with Disabilities Act (EO/ADA) officer is being chaired by Vice Chancellor Peggy Jablonski.
- Vice Provost Jerry Lucido is working with a small group to draft a resolution for adoption by the Board of Trustees to implement the recent special provision allowing institutions to grant in-state tuition status to out-of-state students on full scholarships.
With respect to the last item mentioned, Prof. Perrin asked whether the effect of this reclassification is not to shift funding of athletics scholarships away from the Educational Foundation and onto general University funds. Chancellor Moeser replied that the greatest benefit will be enjoyed by academic scholarships such as the Morehead Scholars, Robertson Scholars, and perhaps
others. Of the 100 out-of-state admission slots set aside for full scholarship students, 65 are designated for academic scholarships and 35 for athletic scholarships.
Introduction of University Ombudspersons
Chancellor Moeser introduced Mr. Wayne A. Blair and Prof. Laurie Mesibov who have been appointed to jointly head the University Ombuds Office. Mr. Blair emphasized four characteristics of the Office’s work: (1) strict confidentiality is observed, (2) no records are kept, (3) the Office is neutral; it does not advocate for either party, and (4) the Office reports directly to the Chancellor and is therefore independent. Mr. Blair said that although the Office does not keep records, they do compile aggregated data as a means of tracking trends, especially negative ones, that can be brought to the attention of the responsible decisions makers for redress. Prof. Mesibov said that she and Mr. Blair are experiencing a full range of faculty, staff, and administrators seeking their services. In response to a question from Prof. Leonard about interaction with the EO/ADA Office, Mr. Blair said that the Ombuds Office may refer an inquirer to EO/ADA or point out other options. He also said that the Office is not limited to referrals; the Ombudspersons may take active steps to resolve a situation.
Faculty Forum on the Medical School
Prof. Ross Simpson (Medicine), speaking on behalf of the Faculty Executive Committee, said that the Agenda Committee was asked to schedule this topic as one means of bridging the academic culture gap between Academic Affairs and the School of Medicine. He emphasized that the Medical School is not a homogenous organization, but one divided between Basic Sciences, where the emphasis is on research, and Clinical Services, where the faculty’s principal job is caring for patients.
Prof. Simpson introduced Vice Dean Robert Golden, who presented a detailed explanation of a new compensation plan being implemented for the Basic Sciences departments. Details of the plan are documented in a PowerPoint presentation attached to these minutes.
Reaccreditation and Assessment Update
Senior Associate Dean Bobbi Owen (Arts and Sciences) reported that the 400-page compliance portion of the SACS report was delivered to the review team last week. There is another 1,000 pages of documentation. Now, attention will be turned to the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP), which is due February 1. There will be a series of campus-wide forums to share this plan with the community and to solicit comments and assistance. The Internal Review Committee will visit the campus April 11-14, 2006. The Committee will be led by Dr. Michael Adams, President of the University of Georgia. The lead QEP evaluator will be Dr. Edward Ayers, Dean of the College and the University of Virginia, and Dr. Richard McCarty, Dean of the College at Vanderbilt University. The compliance report will not be released to the public until accreditation has been reaffirmed, which presumably occur in December, 2006.
General Discussion
Several members of the Council expressed concern at the growing difficulty of getting to and from work on campus due to the increasing scarcity of parking spaces, even in Town-operated Park & Ride lots. This was said to be especially troubling for new faculty.
Adjournment
Its business having concluded, the General Faculty and Faculty Council adjourned at 5:00 p.m.
Joseph S. Ferrell
Secretary of the Faculty
