NORTHEASTERN
Minutes
of Faculty Council Meeting
Friday, November 9, 2007
A. Call to Order
The meeting was called to order by President Craig Clifford in
SL129.
There was ITV access at
Council Members in attendance: Sarah Brick Archer (Library, for Hobbs), Ernst Bekkering (Business & Technology), Ron Cambiano (Education), Denise Deason-Toyne (Business & Technology), Jennifer Edwards (Liberal Arts), Rhea Johnston (Education), Mike Rogers (Liberal Arts, for Savage), Bill Rosener (Business & Technology), Thomas Salmon (Optometry), Amy Aldridge Sanford (Liberal Arts), Dan Sisk (Science & Health Professions),
Council Members in attendance in
Frank Zeigler (Guest)
Council Officers in attendance: Craig Clifford (President), Lallie Scott (Vice President), Linda West (Secretary/Treasurer).
Guests: Fritz Laux (Business & Technology)
Invited Presentations
[Council will set aside time at the first of
each meeting
to visit with President Williams, VP Academic Affairs Bigbee and/or VP
Administration Cherry should they be able to attend.]
A. Committees and Standing Reports
1. Minutes of 10/5/07
meeting
Minutes of the
April meeting were approved. The motion was made
by Deason-Toyne, seconded by Rosener and passed.
2. Spending Report
The only expenditure so far has been for the
telephone.
B . Old Business
1. Committees being formed to make
recommendations to VP Bigbee on promotion and continuing employment and
Faculty Handbook review - Update
Bekkering will chair the Promotion and
Continuing Employment committee. He will establish a Blackboard
site. The Council set a deadline of February 22, 2008 for
recommendations from the committee.
2. Administrative Restructuring Review - Update (Clifford)
Council is to submit five names for the
committee. Three will be
selected. The committee will form soon.
3. Resolutions sent on SS# use and Class Sizes
(Clifford)
4.
Feedback given to Martha Albin on Option
Enrollment period (Clifford)
Clifford received 17-19 responses about the Option Enrollment period and sent
them on to Martha Albin. Responses contained suggestions for
making the process better.
5. General Education Task Force - Update
(Sanford)
The Task Force has approved a survey instrument. They will pilot
it in December and make it available in January 2008.
C. New Business
1. Update on concerns expressed about Japanese students academic performance - Mayrene Bentley
Bentley reported that the person in charge of the ESL program has seen no change in TOFEL scores. He would like suggestions from faculty to address the problem. It was suggested that he be invited to speak to Council.
2. Comments on Merit Pay
program - Mike Rogers
Rogers questioned whether
there is a change this year in how money is distributed. Have
percentages been different in the past? It was reported that
committees were used in Science and Math to distribute the money.
There does not appear to be uniformity across Colleges. Most
often the distribution is made by Deans and Department Chairs in Colleges. The factors involved in evaluation were
discussed. More information is needed.
Bentley initiated a discussion
of the need for an evaluation instrument that is similar to the one
used for faculty teaching face to face classes. It was pointed
out that faculty evaluations for promotion and tenure include data from face to face evaluations,
but those teaching online classes do not have the same data.
Methods of evaluation were discussed.
Because instructor evaluations
effect faculty tenure, promotion and merit raises, Faculty Council
recommends that online instructors be evaluated in the same way as face
to face instructors and that an instrument be in place for use in
Spring courses. A motion was made that an instrument be submited
to Faculty Council and upon approval be forwarded to the Academic
Council for use in Spring 2008. The motion was made by Bentley
and seconded by Deason-Toyne. The motion passed.
4. Visit to BA Campus (A-206; 8:30 to 12:00
noon, Thursday, November 15, 2007) - Craig Clifford
Clifford will visit with faculty on the BA campus and welcomes comments from BA faculty.
D. Other Business
1. Faculty
Meeting in Spring.
Clifford asked about having a
separate meeting of the faculty called by the President of the
Association in the Spring. There were questions about the need
for another meeting.
2. December Reception
Clifford proposed a December 7th
meeting of Faculty Council and reception for past President Yeutter and
the faculty. Meeting will take place at 2:30 pm with the reception to follow. The
Science Lab lobby was suggested as a location for the reception.
It was also suggested that money for refreshments might come from VP
Bigbee's budget since Faculty Council does not have funds to purchase
food.
The meeting adjourned at 4:01 p.m.
Submitted by Linda West, Secretary-Treasurer
11/28/07
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