University Faculty Senate
 
The Senate Newsletter
 
April 20, 2004

 

Greetings! Well, I GUARANTEE that we will have our first snow-free Senate Meeting of 2004 on April 27. If I am wrong, I will step down as Chair of the University Faculty Senate! Best wishes to everyone as you prepare for the end-of-the-semester and end-of-the academic-year rush.

 

The University Faculty Senate functions as the voice of the faculty in the formulation of policies concerning the academic mission of the University.  In addition, it exists to serve the needs of all faculty.  Please let us hear from you about problems that need a solution or concerns that require attention.  Send your suggestions to me at cxb7@psu.edu.  

 

The final meeting of the University Faculty Senate for this academic year will take place on Tuesday, April 27, 2004, at 1:30 p.m. in 112 Kern Building.  The Senate welcomes visitors to this plenary session.  Members of the University community who are not senators and who wish to address the Senate on an item of business on the day’s agenda must seek permission from the Senate before Friday noon, April 23, 2004.  Please contact the Senate Chair through the Executive Secretary, Susan Youtz (scy1@psu.edu).  Presentations may not exceed five minutes.

 

The Senate Agenda is posted on the Senate’s Web site one week prior to each Senate meeting.  The April 27, 2004, Agenda is available on the Web at the URL http://www.psu.edu/ufs/agendax.html. Senate meeting minutes (The Senate Record) are also available on the Senate Web site at the URL http://www.psu.edu/ufs/recordx.html approximately three weeks following the Senate meeting.

 

For information on how to submit major, minor, option or course proposals, the Guide to Curricular Procedures is available on the Web from the URL http://www.psu.edu/ufs/curriculum.htm.  The April 13, 2004, Senate Curriculum Report is available from the URL http://www.psu.edu/ufs/bluex.html.

 

Thank you, 

 

Christopher J. Bise

Chair, University Faculty Senate

cxb7@psu.edu

 

 

For your information…

Each year, the Faculty Senate’s Student Life Committee recognizes outstanding undergraduate students who are graduating with highest distinction and who plan to enroll in graduate study. This year, there are six recipients of the John W. White Graduate Fellowship. Each student will receive a $1000 award. The John White Fellowship is one of the oldest and most enduring fellowships at Penn State. The award was established in 1902 by James Gilbert White to honor his father, Rev. John W. White of Milroy, Pennsylvania. The award recipients will be recognized at an Awards banquet later this month.

Serving on this year’s review committee were Carol Smith, chair of the Senate Committee on Student Life and a Health and Human Development Senator, Richard Yahner, a Student Life committee member and Senator from Agricultural Sciences, and Senate Executive Secretary Susan Youtz. Anna Butler provided staff support to the committee.

The 2004 Fellowship recipients are:

  • Lee Bassett will graduate this spring as a Schreyer Honors Scholar with a B.S. in Physics and minors in Astronomy and Astrophysics and Mathematics. Lee won this year’s Annenberg Marshall scholarship to pursue graduate studies at Cambridge University in the United Kingdom. Lee is an accomplished pianist and enjoys surfing and fencing.

  • BoRa Elizabeth Jin will graduate as a Schreyer Honors Scholar with a B.A. in English. For the past two years BoRa has worked for Residence Life as a resident assistant and has written articles for Research/Penn State Magazine. In the fall BoRa will attend the University of California, Berkeley School of Law. She will pursue studies in public interest law and social justice.

  • Clint Keithley will graduate as a Schreyer Honors Scholar with a B.S. in Finance. Clint is a member of the men’s tennis team. He was recognized as the 2004 recipient of the McCoy Award recognizing outstanding achievement in academics and athletics. In the fall Clint will enroll in a three-year master of architecture program at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

  • Jared Melzer will graduate as a Schreyer Honors College Scholar with a B.S. in Kinesiology. In the fall, Jared will enter a master’s program at the University of Texas Austin where he will study sport management in the department of kinesiology. While at Penn State, Jared has held internships with athletic operations and administration and with the Hudson River Park Trust.

  • Adam Numis will graduate as a Schreyer Honors Scholar with a B.S. in Chemistry and a Psychology minor. Adam will attend Harvard Medical School in the fall. Adam has done volunteer work with the Special Olympics, Second Mile and Read Across America. His adviser is Professor Anne Andrews.

  • Laura Tach will graduate as a Schreyer Honors Scholar with a B.A in Sociology and minors in statistics, African-American Studies and Information Systems and Statistical Analysis. Laura has worked with Professors George Farkas and Stacy Rogers. She will start the joint Ph.D. program in Sociology and Social Policy at Harvard this fall.

    Congratulations to these outstanding students.

 

 

SENATE MEETING AGENDA

APRIL 27, 2004

 

The agenda for the final Senate Meeting of the 2003-2004 academic year consists of several reports of interest to the University faculty, particularly:

Presentation by Athletic Director Tim Curley
(Informational)
Mr. Curley will speak on the subject of “The Integration of Intercollegiate Athletics in the University Community.” He will respond to questions after his presentation.

Proposal for Revising the Intercultural/International Competence Requirement
(Legislative)
The Senate Committees on Curricular Affairs and Undergraduate Education will present this legislative report. The Committees recommend replacing the current Intercultural/International Competency requirement (3 credits) with the following two requirements: United States cultures (3 credits) and International Cultures (3 credits) for baccalaureate students. Associate degree students will continue to have a three-credit requirement. These requirements may be fulfilled by double-counting with other General Education courses. Principles of implementation will be presented.

Revision of Senate Policy 67-00, Athletic Competition
(Legislative)
The Intercollegiate Athletics committee proposes changes to the minimum numbers of credits required by semester in residence for student athletes. These proposed revisions continue to surpass those required by the NCAA and Big Ten conference.

Revisions to the Faculty Senator Representation Ratio
(Legislative)
The Senate will vote on this legislation to change the representation ratio from 1:20 to 1:25.

Paid Parental Leave for Faculty
(Informational)
This report, jointly sponsored by the Faculty Affairs and Faculty Benefits Committees, gives major changes to HRG 18, based on studies showing that tenure-track and tenured women are disproportionately disadvantaged, both personally and professionally, when they have children. The revision to the policy extends benefits in ways that will be presented at the meeting.

Promotion and Tenure Summary 2002-2003
(Informational)
This annual informational report presented by the Faculty Affairs Committee tracks cohorts by location, gender and minority/non-minority designation entering the tenure-track over a seven year period.

Report on Fall 2003 Campus Visits
(Informational)
This report discusses findings from the Senate Officers’ visits to eight campus locations.

Faculty Salaries, Academic Year 2003-2004 and Report on Salary Equity, Academic Year 2003-2004
(Informational)
The Senate Committees on Faculty Benefits and Intra-University Relations will present two informational reports on faculty salaries. Tables for the Faculty Benefits report comparing Penn State salaries with other universities may be found at http://www.psu.edu/president/pia/planning_research/reports/facultybenefits/salaries2003.pdf.The salary equity report includes data from the Pennsylvania College of Technology and offers comparisons across various Penn State colleges.

Trends and Patterns in the Use of Full and Part-Time Fixed-Term Faculty
(Informational)
This informational report sponsored by the Intra-University Relations Committee provides data on the use of part-time and non-tenure-line faculty at Penn State, CIC and other universities. The report discusses the implications of the use of such faculty for academic life at Penn State and concludes with a series of questions for the Senate and the larger University to consider.

Report on Spring 2004 University Park Visits
(Informational)
This report discusses findings from the Senate Officers’ visits to five units.

Status of Construction
(Informational)
The University Planning committee will sponsor an informational report on six construction projects at non-UP locations.