September 10, 1999
Meeting of the General Faculty and the Faculty Council
September 10, 1999, 3:00 p.m.
Assembly Room, 2nd Floor, Wilson Library
Chancellor William O. McCoy and Professor Richard N. Andrews will preside.
Agenda
ACT 3:00 Memorial Resolutions
- Michael K. Hooker, Professor of Philosophy
- Edgar H. Alden, Professor Emeritus of Music
- James W. McKinnon, Richard Harter Fogel Professor of Music
INFO 3:10 Chancellor’s Remarks and Question Period
- Chancellor William O. McCoy invites questions or comment on any topic.
INFO 3:25 Presentation of the Hettleman Awards
INFO 3:30 Remarks. Nicholas P. Heinke, Jr., Class of 2000, President of the Student Body
INFO 3:40 Report on the State of the Faculty. Professor Richard N. Andrews, Chair of the Faculty
INFO 3:55 Faculty Council Procedures. Professor Joseph S. Ferrell, Secretary of the Faculty
INFO 4:05 Report on the Opening of the Fall Semester. Vice Chancellor Sue Kitchen
ACT 4:20 Faculty Grievance Committee Report. Professor John Schopler, Chair
- Resolution 99-6. Encouraging the Faculty Grievance Committee to Offer Mediation Services.
INFO 4:30 Board of Governors Study of Faculty Compensation and Tuition
- Provost Richard J. Richardson
INFO 4:45 Report on the UNC Public Service Center. Professor Nicholas Didow, Acting Director
ACT 4:55 Res. 99-7. In Appreciation of the Administration of Professor Thomas J. Meyer as Vice Provost for Graduate Studies and Research. Presented by Professors James L. Peacock, III, Tomas Baer, and Leon Fink.
ACT 5:00 Adjourn
Joseph S. Ferrell
Secretary of the Faculty
KEY:
ACT = Action
INFO = Information
DISC = Discussion
Minutes
Attendance
Present (56): Ammerman, Angel, Bender, Black, Blackburn, Bluestein, Bolas, Bowen, Boxill, Bromberg, Bynum, Clegg, Collins, Cordeiro-Stone, Cravey, Devellis, Drake, Fink, Gasaway, Grossberg, Harrison, Huang, Janda, Johnson, Ketch, Kopp, Kupper, LeFebvre, Lubker, Ludlow, Margolis, Marshall, McCormick, McKeown, Meehan-Black, P. Molina, Moreau, Nord, Otey, Panter, Pfaff, Plante, Raab-Traub, Raasch, Rao, Raper, Rosenfeld, Savitz, Steponaitis, Straughan, Strauss, Topal, Vaughn, Vevea, Walsh, Weiss.
Excused absences (21): Adler, Carl, De La Cadena, Debreczeny, Elvers, Fishman, Hooper, Kalleberg, Kallianpur, Kaufman, Kjervik, Melchert, A. Molina, Moran, Postema, Schaller, Sekerak, Taft, Thorp, White, Williams.
Unexcused absences (8): Assani, Covach, Eckel, Graham, Graves, Haskill, Madison, Slatt.
Memorial Resolutions
Professor Douglas Long (Philosophy) presented a memorial resolution for the late Michael K. Hooker, Professor of Philosophy and eighth Chancellor of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Professor Thomas Warburton (Music) presented memorial resolutions for the late Edgar H. Alden, Professor Emeritus of Music, and the late James W. McKinnon, Richard Harter Fogel Professor of Music.
[The full text of the memorial resolutions will be found on the Faculty Governance web site.]Chancellor’s Remarks
Chancellor McCoy, referring to the memorial resolution for Chancellor Hooker, said that when he last met with the Council in April, he had no idea he would be returning under such sorrowful circumstances. Although he is serving as interim chancellor, the work has his full attention and he is making decisions and acting as if the job were permanent. It is his objective to make decisions and provide assistance in ways that will be most helpful for the long term.
Participating in the return of students to campus after the summer was an experience Chancellor McCoy had not had for about 45 years and it was fun. He enjoyed a visit to Freshman camp where he was encouraged to learn how to dance the booty. He does not think he earned a very good grade. He complimented Prof. Joel Schwartz (Political Science) for his speech at the Freshman convocation. Fall Fest was highly successful. He was pleased at this year’s planning efforts. All freshmen had permanent quarters assigned when they arrived, for example.
Implementation of the First Year Initiative is off to a fine start. The summer reading program was very successful and participation in the living and learning program has exceeded all expectations. The first year seminars are being very well received. Chancellor McCoy and some members of the Board of Governors visited Prof. David Halperin’s seminar on Abrahamic religions and were very impressed with the quality of the discussion.
Chancellor McCoy noted briefly the work of the committee chaired by Provost Richardson that is undertaking a study of faculty salaries in response to a legislative directive that the Board of Governors address that subject on a system-wide basis.
The University’s budget shortfall, which initially seemed to amount to over $11 million, has been reduced to $6.8 million, largely as a result of a decision to use for that purpose additional overhead funds that had formerly been retained by General Administration. Chancellor McCoy has been working with the Chancellor’s Cabinet, the Dean’s Council, the University Priorities and Budget Committee, and the Budget Committee to put in place policies and procedures that will avoid problems of that nature in the future. He thinks we need to have clarity in our planning process and agreement as to the extent and sources of funds that are discretionary in the sense that they are not already committed to specific uses.
Hettleman Awards
The 1999 Philip and Ruth Hettleman Prizes for Artistic and Scholarly Achievements by Young Faculty were presented to Prof. Mark Peifer (Biology), Prof. Allen Anderson (Music), Prof. Michael McFee (English), and Prof. Yue Xiong (Biochemistry & Biophysics).
Remarks by the President of the Student Body
Professor Andrews introduced Nicholas Heinke, President of the Student Body. Mr. Heinke spoke of his thoughts about how students can work with faculty to further the University’s principal aims of teaching, research, and service. As for research, students can help push for renovations of laboratory buildings such as Venable Hall and for new facilities. From the student viewpoint, mentoring is a very important part of the teaching mission. He encouraged faculty members to find ways to communicate to students on a personal level. Finally, students and faculty can cooperate in reaching out to the people of North Carolina.
Mr. Heinke introduced Vicky Eckenrode, Managing Editor of The Daily Tar Heel. Ms. Eckenrode said that the DTH has made a commitment this year to increase communication between the newspaper and its readership, including the faculty. The Faculty Feedback Board is one means of doing that. She invited faculty who have an interest in participating to make that interest known. The board will meet with a DTH editor four times each semester to discuss matters of mutual concern.
Chair of the Faculty’s Remarks
Prof. Richard N. Andrews, Chair of the Faculty, presented his third State of the Faculty Address. He began by observing that this year opens with a widespread sense of unease among the faculty stemming from (1) flux and uncertainty at the upper levels of administration, (2) a painful and embarrassing budget shortfall, (3) the failure of the General Assembly to provide for our capital needs, (4) major changes and reorganizations in several of our academic units, most notably in the College of Arts and Sciences and the School of Medicine, and (5) new external demands ranging from large challenges such as the information-technology revolution to mundane bureaucratic burdens such as post-tenure review.
Nevertheless there is much to affirm on the positive side. The quality of our undergraduates continues to rise. We are beginning to implement an exciting series of initiatives designed to enhance the quality of the undergraduate intellectual experience. We have obtained important new funding to support our graduate students. Our faculty continues to attract more and more outside funding for research. We are about to inaugurate the Carolina Center for Public Service, and we have the satisfaction of teaching and conducting research in an institution that has a strong sense of civility and intellectual community and that is considered one of the five best public institutions in the nation.
Prof. Andrews emphasized three priorities that he believes to be most important for the upcoming year: (1) to strengthen our ability to compete successfully to recruit the best of the next generation of scholars to our faculty; (2) to successfully recruit outstanding candidates to our senior administrative leadership positions; and (3) to continue to build processes for campus-wide decision-making that are rooted in shared understanding and trust. He elaborated on each of these. [The full text of the address will be found on the Faculty Governance web site.]
Report of the Faculty Grievance Committee
Professor John Schopler (Psychology), Chair of the Faculty Grievance Committee, presented the Committee’s annual report. In response to the Committee’s suggestion in its 1998 annual report, the Council encouraged the Committee to look into the matter of providing mediation by trained mediators as a means of resolving grievances. The Orange County Dispute Settlement Center has agreed to provide this service without charge for a two-year trial period. If the trial period proves successful, the Committee will seek permanent funding. Prof. Schopler moved adoption of Resolution 99-6 which endorses the Committee’s recommendations concerning mediation. The resolution was adopted without dissent.
Report on the Opening of the Fall Semester
Vice Chancellor Sue Kitchen highlighted some of the changes that have been made in an effort to get students ready to be good learners. There have been major changes in the orientation program to give it a stronger academic focus and a stronger focus on Carolina traditions and values that give a clear indication of our position on alcohol abuse. Research done by the Highway Safety Research Center was especially useful in the latter regard. We distributed over 1,000 CCI computers through the orientation program. Improvements are being made in the Cashier’s Office, and for the first time in several years housing was in place for all entering and returning students.
Associate Vice Chancellor Cindy Wolf-Johnson reported on the Summer Reading Program and Living/Learning Program. The Summer Reading Program asked each entering student to read There Are No Children Here by Alex Kotlowitz. Students were then invited to participate in a discussion group about the book. Over 1,000 students participated in the discussion groups. The Living/Learning Program has attracted 140 students. Fourteen faculty associates are working with them for an average of eight hours each week. We also have three graduate and six undergraduate mentors.
Board of Governors Study of Faculty Compensation and Tuition
Provost Richard Richardson reported on the work of a committee he is heading that is conducting a study of faculty compensation. The 1999 General Assembly directed General Administration to study faculty compensation throughout the System. The committee is charged to look at our faculty salaries and benefits in comparison with peer institutions, to determine whether there are differentials that must be addressed, and to make recommendations as to how to address the need. [A transcript of the Provost’s remarks will be found on the Faculty Governance web site.]
Report on the UNC Public Service Center
Prof. Nicholas Didow, newly appointed Director of the Carolina Center for Public Service reported on the establishment of the Center and described its mission. He put the Center’s creation in historical perspective by recalling President Edward Kidder Graham’s commitment of the University to service to the State. “Write to the University when you need help” was our motto in 1916. Louis Round Wilson later recalled that the University thought of itself in those days as a “telephone central” which connected those interested in being served to those in the University community who could provide that service. President Graham’s early commitment has borne fruit over the years through such University activities as the Institute of Government, the Area Health Education Centers, the Morehead Planetarium, the Ackland Museum, the APPLES program, and many others. As effective as these activities have been, there are still gaps in the University’s public service mission. The Center for Public Service exists to bridge those gaps. Prof. Didow pointed to four major gaps that he hopes to address. There is a perception gap between how much public service the University is doing and how much people across the State know about. The Center must tell the story of service intentionally and effectively. There is an information gap within the University itself between existing expertise in service activities and convenient, accessible, and reliable information about that expertise. The Center will be a gateway for learning about public service at Carolina both for members of our own community and for those outside. There is a coordination gap between the public service interests of our faculty, staff and students and the coordination required to engage those interests. The University can improve coordination of our resources to address social problems and the Center will be a place with a comprehensive view of how that might be done. Finally, there is an incentives gap between faculty and staff with strong interests in public service activities and the rewards for engaging in them. The Center will create and support such incentives.
Resolution in Appreciation of Prof. Thomas J. Meyer.
Prof. James L. Peacock moved adoption of Resolution 99-7 expressing the faculty’s appreciation of the administration of Professor Thomas J. Meyer as Vice Provost for Graduate Studies and Research. Prof. Peacock mentioned in particular Prof. Meyer’s effectiveness in raising awareness of research and graduate studies among members of the General Assembly. Prof. Lawrence Grossberg (Communication Studies) supported the resolution but would have liked to see it express regret that the administration saw fit not to reappoint Prof. Meyer as vice provost. Prof. Lawrence Kupper (Biostatistics) expressed his special appreciation to Prof. Meyer and to Dean Linda Dykstra for their work in helping the University attract and retain good graduate students. Resolution 99-7 was passed unanimously.
Adjournment.
The business of the General Faculty and Faculty Council having concluded, the meeting was adjourned at 5:03 p.m.
Joseph S. Ferrell
Secretary of the Faculty
