Executive Council Meeting
February 7, 2007, 9:00 am, UW2 327
Present: Constantin Behler, Steve Collins, Bill Erdly, Kevin Laverty, Alan Leong, Nancy Place and Mike Stiber
Absent: Carol Leppa
Guest: Tom Bellamy
Adoption of Agenda
Agenda was adopted.
Approval of EC minutes of January 10, 2007
EC minutes of January 10, 2007 were approved.
Reports of Officers
Steve updated the EC on the proposal to revise the UW Handbook by adding language clarifying the definition of a "campus". The UW Senate passed the legislation to revise the UW Handbook that was presented to it by the Faculty Council on Tri-Campus Policy. It will now go to the President for his review and to a special "code" committee on the UW Handbook, where it may be revised to ensure consistency with the handbook language. After this, it will come back to the Senate Executive Committee, which will review any recommended changes and possibly make further revisions on its own. Once out of the SEC, it will come back for an up-or-down vote in the Senate and, if approved, go before the full faculty for a vote. Steve will give a presentation to the UW Senate on UWB to address some concerns that faculty have expressed about UWB and UWT and their relationship to UWS.
Steve notified the EC that Donna Kerr had resigned as Secretary of the Faculty and that Gerry Philipsen is the new Secretary of the Faculty, he has expressed an interest in meeting with the UWB faculty to assess how he can best serve our interests.
Action item: Steve will draft the GFO By-laws with revisions for the EC to review.
Steve will call a GFO faculty forum to discuss the Senate legislation on defining a campus, academic planning at UWB and the ASTP Group's Discussion Paper and Data Analysis on the opportunities for UWB to expand its offerings in science, math, and applied science. A forum would open discussion on all the new proposals submitted during Phase I and II of the academic strategic planning process and the faculty voice could be heard on the ASTP report. The ASTP Discussion Paper presented the data but gave no recommendation for future action. The EC expressed the need to set up a process for decision-making on strategic planning issues and a way to communicate to the faculty those decisions.
Mike will be scheduling a meeting with the GFO Faculty Council on Promotion and Tenure for the purpose of assessing the committee process for review of tenure cases to insure that the UWB process is in full compliance with the UW Handbook.
Reports of Committees
A. Curriculum Committee
The Curriculum Committee is meeting to review curriculum. An EC discussion ensued about the BCUSP prefix on lower division courses. There is disagreement in some programs on BCUSP being used for all lower division courses. It has been called into question whether math and some science courses should be designated by course descriptions, like BMATH or BPHYS. The EC will request a review by the Curriculum Committee on this matter to look at lower division in relation to the rest of campus and develop a cohesive plan for the future.
B. Faculty Affairs - Faculty Affairs Committee has not met Winter Quarter.
C. Instructional and Research Support Committee - Instructional and Research Support Committee has not met Winter Quarter.
D. Strategic Planning and Budget
Alan reported on the Strategic Planning and Budget Committee meeting on February 5. The committee met with Chancellor Olswang to discuss the Chancellor's proposal to serve Snohomish, Island and Skagit Counties and UWB's Budget Status Report. Vice Chancellor Bellamy also met with the committee to go over Academic Affairs budget development, FTE formulas and program budgets. Alan told the EC that the committee is meeting in March to define the scope of their authority and get clarification from the EC on the role of this committee.
E. Student Relations
Student Relations Committee is meeting February 12, the agenda will include commencement planning and a review of the freshman and sophomore admission criteria. Steve will meet with the committee to ask that they appoint a faculty representative to work with Student Affairs in reviewing freshman admissions that need evaluation beyond the first tier admission criteria.
Reports from Programs
CSS - Bill Erdly reported that the BA in Applied Computing is moving forward and that he is working with Robert Corbett processing external reviews.
Education - Nancy Place announced that the Education Program will submit 2 new endorsements to the State, a Secondary and Reading endorsement. The program will be hiring 3 new faculty members.
IAS - Constantin talked about the ongoing discussions in IAS around new majors and the program structure. There is dialogue internally about how IAS may be organized and governed in the future if different program tracks are taken, an interdisciplinary track and a more traditional set of majors. The ASTP report has generated discussion on math, science and engineering programs at UWB and how IAS could be involved in this development.
Business - Alan reported that Business is currently meeting with Community College advisors and faculty for information sharing.
Information Item
A. FTE formula (Tom Bellamy)
Tom has worked with program directors over the last several months to analyze UWB's use of FTE formulas to fund faculty and staff in academic programs. The EC reviewed the data presented in the formulas on the current status of academic program funding. Tom informed the EC that the results of the analysis show there is no unfairness in the base. The formula is working well to sustain competitive and equitable funding across programs, with minor adjustments made at the unit level each year.
B. Report on freshman admissions (Tom Bellamy)
Tom reported on freshman admissions, from a summary of projected results of freshmen applications, UWB should meet it's target enrollment of 175 students.
C. Report on budget priorities from AC/EC retreat (Mike Stiber)
Mike reported on some of the budget priorities from the AC/EC retreat:
D. By-laws revision
Steve will draft the new By-laws revision.
New Business
A. ASTP Group report (Mike Stiber)
Mike called the motion for the EC to recommend that the UWB Administration use the ASTP report as part of its model for planning for and evaluation of new majors, minors, concentrations, etc. Kevin seconded the motion. Discussion of the motion follows:
3. The EC shall use this document as part of its analysis and decision-making with respect to new majors, minors, concentrations, and other academic programs in its ongoing academic strategic planning.
4. The EC recommends that the UWB Academic Programs use this document for planning for and evaluation of new majors, minors, concentrations, etc.
5. The EC recommends that the UWB Administration use this document for planning for and evaluation of new majors, minors, concentrations, etc.
Motion:
The GFO Executive Council, having reviewed the January 15, 2007 report of the Applied Science
and Technology Planning (ASTP) Group, makes the following observations and recommendations:
1. Congratulations to the ASTP Group on an impressive job.
2. We endorse the talking points outlined in the report.
3. The EC shall use this document as part of its model for analysis and decision-making with respect to new majors, minors, concentrations, and other academic programs in its ongoing academic strategic planning.
4. The EC recommends that the UW Bothell Administration use this document as part of its model for planning for and evaluation of new majors, minors, concentrations, etc.
The motion carried as amended.
B. Proposal for second-tier freshman admissions review (Tom Bellamy)
Tom distributed Discussion Notes for the Freshman File Review: Setting Standards for Tier 2 Review. Tom discussed the projected results of freshman applications as of February 2007. UWB continues to get applicants, with a total of 438 admits, we should have about 175 enrollees. The Tier 2 standards have a slightly higher cutoff than last year, which is a good sign. He would like to see the EC delegate as much authority as possible to Student Affairs for review of the freshmen admissions, with EC or a faculty member designated to consult with Student Affairs on applicants that are not offered admission based on Tier 1 review. Student Affairs holistic review will help determine pending applicants that do not pass the Tier 2 review and will discuss with an appointed faculty member for decision-making. The EC will delegate the appointment of a faculty member to the Student Relations Committee.
Motion:
The EC endorses the recommendation for Tier 2 Review. Mike called the motion, Constantin seconded the motion and the motion carried.
C. Transfer admission requirements approved by AC on 1/18/07 (Hung Dang)
Tom outlined the transfer admission requirements that were approved by the Academic Council in January. The requirements stated in the document align with the least stringent criteria of programs at UWB, in this case, IAS.
Motion:
The EC endorses the University Minimum Admission Requirements with the following amendments:
1. Student Affairs must communicate that all transfer applicants must meet the University's minimum admission requirements.
2. The UWB programs may only set higher requirements than the University's minimum admission requirements, with GPA requirements varying with the programs.
Mike called the motion, Constantin seconded the motion and the motion carried.
D. March Faculty Forum (Mike Stiber)
A Spring Quarter GFO Faculty Forum will be planned.
Minutes submitted by Barbara Van Sant
