Executive Council Meeting
June 6, 2007, 2:00 pm, UW2 327
Present: Constantin Behler, Steve Collins, Bill Erdly, Kevin Laverty, Alan Leong, Nancy Place and Mike Stiber
Absent: Carol Leppa
Guests: Tom Bellamy and Steve Holland
Adoption of Agenda
Agenda was adopted, with adjustments.
Approval of EC minutes of May 24, 2007
EC minutes of May 24, 2007 were approved unanimously.
Reports of Officers
The GFO Bylaws have been ratified by faculty vote and the new structure will be implemented with the new academic year. The ballots to select the members of the Campus Council on Promotion, Tenure and Faculty Affairs went out on June 1, there will be a total of seven seats on the Council, this election will elect five members. The terms of two of the EC representatives will expire, Carol Leppa and Alan Leong. Steve expressed appreciation for their service to the EC. Suzanne Sikma will replace Carol Leppa as EC representative for Nursing. Kevin's term as an ex-officio member is also coming to an end. Steve thanked Kevin and expressed a debt of gratitude to him for his campus leadership as Chair and Vice Chair of the GFO and in many other capacities.
Mike also expressed his appreciation for the service of the EC members and presented the EC with hand crafted ceramic coffee mugs.
Mike initiated a discussion on cross-campus double majors.
EC discussion:
Motion:
The EC endorses in principle the idea that students should be able to double-major across UW campuses. The EC directs the GFO Chair to work with the Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs during the summer to prepare a background document on structural impediments to students earning double majors across UW campuses. This document should include possible remedies to impediments that prevent students from other campuses from earning second majors at UWB and should be presented to the EC during an early fall 2007 meeting. Steve called the motion, Constantin seconded, the motion carried.
The EC reviewed the new "Distribution List" and "New Program" documents which develop procedures to ensure proper routing and communication with all internal constituents. These forms will help standardize EC business across the campus. The New Program form will also help to provide a standard outline for the Tri-campus Curriculum review of all new undergraduate majors, minor and concentrations. One area that needs to be clarified in this process is when the Chancellor's approval and resource allocation is approved for the proposals.
Old Business
Steve Holland presented the EC with a "Proposal for an Accounting Option". The new option in Accounting for Business students at UWB will start Autumn 2008. This proposal has added detail on the budget in response to the EC request, the total incremental cost per FTE is estimated to be $8500. Funding per FTE should come from tuition and state subsidy, the funding estimate is based on faculty lines, staff lines, start-up costs and library costs. Rationale for the program demonstrates the need in the region for well-educated accountants and includes ethics as a strong component of the program, supporting the mission of the Business Program and UWB. The EC deliberated and determined that the proposal would be considered as a full proposal, rather than a NOI (proposed at the last EC meeting).
Motion:
The EC endorses forwarding the Business Program's Accounting Option to the UW Registrar for Tri-campus review. Steve called the motion, Kevin seconded, the motion carried.
Reports of Committees
A. Curriculum Committee
Constantin presented the EC with a report from the Curriculum Committee on criteria for the UW Writing Requirement under the General Education and Basic Skills Requirements. Students must complete 10 credits of writing-intensive ("W") courses, in addition to any program requirements. W courses are available in a wide range of programs. The Curriculum Committee came to a consensus that the UW grade requirement of 0.7 was too low for UWB to accept as a standard. The EC agreed with this determination and raised the passing grade to 2.0.
Motion:
The EC endorsed the attached (Attachment I) UWB General Education and Basic Skills Requirements, Writing (W) Requirement. Kevin called the motion, Steve seconded, the motion carried.
B. Faculty Affairs - no report.
C. Instructional and Research Support Committee - no report.
D. Strategic Planning and Budget - no report.
E. Student Relations - no report.
Reports from Programs
No reports.
New Business
The EC reviewed the attached (Attachment II) resolution drafted by Steve on the new campus. The resolution, if approved will be sent to Ana Mari Cauce and Lee Huntsman, co-chairs of the UW Working Group, to the UW Senate and to the UWB faculty.
Motion:
The EC endorsed the attached EC Resolution on the New Campus. Steve called the motion, Kevin seconded, the motion carried.
The EC reviewed the attached (Attachment III) Budget Resolution. The EC would like to have a stronger role in the development process of the UWB budget.
EC discussion on the 2007-09 UWB budget:
Motion:
The EC endorses the attached EC Motion on the 2007-09 Biennial Budget. Steve called the motion, Kevin seconded, the motion carried.
This agenda item was discussed and a motion made under the Curriculum Committee Reports.
Meeting adjourned at 4:00 pm.
Last EC meeting until Autumn Quarter 2007.
Minutes submitted by Barbara Van Sant, reviewed by Mike Stiber.
Attachment I
General Education and Basic Skills Requirements
Additional Writing Requirement
UWB students must complete 10 credits of writing-intensive ("W") courses, in addition to any program requirements. These may be courses designated in the quarterly Time Schedule with the comment "WRITING." See below for the criteria which are used to determine whether a course qualifies as a W course.
W courses are available in a wide range of programs. Although you shouldn't wait until the last minute to meet the W-course requirement, it was originally intended that at least some of your writing-intensive courses should be courses in your major, providing you with writing instruction and practice in your chosen area of study.
Grades required
A grade of 2.0 or higher is required. Courses may not be taken on the satisfactory/not satisfactory (S/NS) grading option.
Overlap with other requirements
W courses may overlap with any other requirement except the 5-credit English composition course. The courses you use to satisfy the W-course requirement may also count toward your major, a minor, Areas of Knowledge , and/or the Q/SR requirement. In theory, one course could count toward all five requirements.
Many students transfer courses which required enough writing to qualify as W courses. A "W" usually means that a course requires either several short papers or a term paper with a required revision. If you think you have transferred a course that should count as a W course, consult your adviser.
Postbaccalaureate students are not required to complete the additional writing requirement.
Optional W courses
Some courses in the Time Schedule have the notation, "OPTIONAL W COURSE." In these courses, the professor will explain the writing requirements for those students who wish to receive a W. Students who complete the additional requirements will receive Ws on their transcripts; the other students in the course will not.
Many students make special arrangements to have a UW course count toward the W-course requirement, even though it is not designated as a W course in the Time Schedule.
If you are taking a course that requires extensive writing, you can discuss with the professor the possibility of earning a W for the course. Some professors are not familiar with the W-course criteria ; it is a good idea to print out the criteria below and take the list with you. The professor can, if he or she chooses, decide to make the course a W course after the quarter has started; each student will then automatically receive a W.
It is also possible for you and the professor to make an arrangement in which you alone will complete the extra work required to meet the W-course criteria. For example, a 10-page paper is not sufficient to meet the W-course criteria; but a 10-page paper which is graded by the professor and then rewritten by you and resubmitted does meet the W criteria. Professors can award Ws to individual students in a course; there is a place to mark Ws on the grade sheet they submit for the class at the end of the quarter. Any course which is posted with a W on your transcript can count toward the additional-writing requirement.
If you have already completed a UW course that you feel satisfied the W-course criteria below, you can petition to have a W posted on the course. Print and use the W-Course Petition form.
NOTE: The W petition is only for UW courses already completed. For UW courses in progress, read "Ws by special arrangement" above. For transfer courses, see your adviser.
On the W petition form, you will describe the writing assignments you completed in the course. You must supply documentation: either the instructor's signature on the petition form, or the course syllabus describing the writing requirements, or the graded papers. The petition and documentation are submitted to your program advisor; you can return and pick up the course syllabus or your papers a few days later. If the petition is approved, a W will be posted on your transcript.
Whether or not a course qualifies as a W course depends on how the course is taught that particular quarter, so there is no permanent list of W courses, and W courses are not indicated in the General Catalog. Each W course is indicated in the quarterly Time Schedule with the notation "MEETS WRITING REQUIREMENT" OR "OPTIONAL W COURSE."
Writing is communicating. One of the most valuable skills you can develop during a university education is the ability to write well. It is a skill universally valued by employers and graduate and professional programs, not to mention the instructors of your undergraduate courses.
In college courses, your papers will not normally be summaries of what you have learned in class but further in-depth exploration and investigation of topics discussed in lecture. In your papers you will be allowed to develop your own ideas and interpretations. In fact, much of your university education will occur not in the classroom, but in the research and writing of papers required by your courses.
As you write, you will practice organizing your thoughts into logical, persuasive arguments. Allow time to rewrite and revise your writing. Review the comments instructors write on your papers and use what you've learned in your next paper. Work at improving your writing, and you will notice that your analytical and verbal-communication skills also improve.
A W course must require 10-15 pages of graded, out-of-class writing, in the form of a longer paper with a required revision OR two or more short papers.
Guidelines
Attachment II
EC RESOLUTION ON THE NEW CAMPUS
WHEREAS the University of Washington Bothell (UWB) was planned and sited in its present location in order to provide access to the greatest number of students in the rapidly growing areas of north King and south Snohomish Counties, including areas on the east side of Lake Washington, and
WHEREAS approximately half of the population growth used by the Higher Education Commission Board to establish the need for a new campus in Everett comes from the same area as that for which UWB was planned, and
WHEREAS the Faculty of UWB is committed to providing access to higher education for all qualified students in the region, and
WHEREAS state and university funding for program growth at UWB has always been dependent on student demand, so that new programs could be added only when a sufficient number of students enrolled in such programs, and
WHEREAS special funding is necessary for program development and start-up to support the timely growth of new majors (funding independent of steady-state operating funds), and
WHEREAS splitting enrollment across multiple sites in close proximity will require a different funding model to ensure a comprehensive range of majors at each site, and
WHEREAS the Executive Council of the GFO has, in cooperation with the UWB administration, initiated a process for campus-level strategic planning for new majors and academic programs that will provide more choices for students while responding to needs of employers and priorities of the faculty;
BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED THAT THE FACULTY OF UWB
Attachment III
EC Motion on the 2007-09 Biennial Budget
Having reviewed the academic portion of the 2007-09 biennial budget for UWB, the EC is resolved to take a neutral position, neither endorsing nor disapproving the budget proposal. In arriving at its position, the EC expresses the following concerns:
The EC asks that in future:
Passed in the EC on June 6, 2007
