MSU FACULTY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES January 24, 2001 PRESENT: Morrill, Sherwood, Kommers, Linker, Leech, Benham, Larsen, Jost, Harkin, Nehrir, Mooney, McClure, Locke, Lansverk, Levy, Bond, Jelinski, McKinsey, Lynch, Prawdzienski, Butterfield, Scott, Griffith, Carlstrom. ABSENT: Young, Hatfield, McDermott, White, Anderson, Peed, Howard, Stewart, Lefcort, Weaver, Bogar, Francis, Fisher. The meeting was called to order at 4:10 PM by Chair Ron Larsen. A quorum was present. The minutes of the December 6, 2000, meeting were approved as distributed. Chair's report - Ron Larsen. - The Board of Regents met in Helena January 18-19. So far, the regents have done a good job of advocating for the university system in the legislative session. - Topics of discussion during the Regents' meeting included: - The proposed policy regarding ownership of electronic course materials was clarified. The policy applies only to courses, not to materials faculty put on the web to support existing on-campus courses. At the request of Faculty Council leadership, the proposal will not be voted on until the March meeting. - Ron Sunsted presented the BOR request for legislative funding of the university system, as well as Racicot's proposal and Martz's proposal. With predicted increases in energy costs, the pay plan and inflation, the Governors' proposals fall far short of needs. - The meeting between regents and faculty leaders focused on graduate education. MSU faculty member Lee Spangler gave a short presentation on Op Tech and its integration of MSU graduate students into the technology economy. The presentation was well-received by the regents. - Problems created by residency requirements for graduate students were discussed, and beneficial changes to the current policy may be considered. - John Amend is drafting a memo to the regents outlining issues to be considered regarding the graduate program. He will bring it to Faculty Council for comment. - President Gamble is on record with the Commissioner of Higher Education and the regents stating that he won't try to maintain parity with UM. - The review of administrators has been discussed with President Gamble. He would like to have it done, keeping in line with his philosophy of the importance of assessment to improvement. - It is suggested results of the review be reported by groups: department heads and directors; assistant and associate deans and deans; and administrators above this level. The three groups will provide anonymity while giving an indication of the effectiveness of administrators by level. There was consensus by Faculty Council that this approach is acceptable. - Because of personnel issues, the statements provided by administrators to be published on the web will be called "Statements of Accomplishments, Responsibilities and Goals" or something similar. - Ron and John Sherwood, Chair Elect, met with President Gamble today. Items discussed include: - Faculty are encouraged to use WebCT. Who owns electronic materials when they are created using webCT? - Records of IDC expenditures, recharges, and internal allocation of funds are expected to be more available to faculty. - The President will attend Faculty Council the first Wednesday afternoon he's in town. - There will be some kind of occasion at MSU marking the transition to a new president, probably at next fall's state of the university message. - If possible, there will be one or two PEC/UGC Steering Committee retreats this spring. The president would present his vision and priorities, and then particular issues would be addressed. - The President was asked how two new positions in Chemistry/Biochemistry fit into the policy regarding reversion of faculty lines. The issue will be discussed further. - It appears Faculty Handbook Section 200 has been approved. Faculty Council is awaiting written notification. - The President has met with both the Long Range Planning Committee and the Strategic Planning and Budget Committee. He is also considering what the mission for a multi-campus MSU will look like. - The reviews of administrators will be sent to administrators reviewed and to administrators above the individual, through the President. Nominating Committee report. - Five faculty have been nominated for one position on the Long Range Planning Committee: Bill Brown (Bus), Janis Bruwelheide (Educ), Duane Griffith (Ag Econ/Econ and Extension), Rocky Ross (CS), and Lori Ryker (Arch). By written ballot, Bill Brown was elected. Strategic Planning and Budget Committee report - Peter Kommers. - The committee met today. The charge has been to develop principles for planning, to be implemented no earlier than 2002. The committee was not charged to deal with the FY01 budget. - Assistant VP for Administration and Finance Craig Roloff reported that the FY 2002 budget deficit could easily be $5.5 million, even with a modest tuition increase. The deficit is due to increased utility costs, raises, inflation, and other factors. - What, then, should be the response of SPBC? Deficits of this magnitude will shape the institution. Some committee members feel there should be an "emergency plan" of priorities as a step toward a more deliberate plan. This plan would deal with pending deficits. - President Gamble's planning principles have been identified from his interview as candidate for President and from interviews with the press. Two of them are 1) linking the budget to a strategic plan and priorities, and 2) living within the means of the institution. - During discussion by Faculty Council members, it was pointed out that Council recommended early in Fall Semester that deans develop contingency plans for best and worst budget scenarios. It does not appear this has happened. - Retention of students would ease the budget shortfall. A substantial percentage of students leaving MSU have a GPA of 2.8 or higher. As there was no further business, the meeting adjourned at 5:00 PM. Joann Amend, Secretary Ron Larsen, Chair