THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT SAN ANTONIO

DOCUMENTS AND PROCEEDINGS OF THE GENERAL FACULTY
SUMMARY MINUTES OF THE FACULTY SENATE MEETING OF
SEPTEMBER 12, 2000

The first Regular Meeting of the Faculty Senate for the academic year 2000-2001 was held in room 4.03.08, John Peace Library Building, on September 12, 2000 at 3:30 p.m. with Dr. Patricia Harris, Chair, presiding.

1. Call to order and taking of attendance

   Present: Raul Aranovich, Deborah Armstrong, Ron Alexander, Ron Ayers, Guy Bailey, Mark Blizard, John Bretting, Russell Briner, Ruben Cordova, Mansour El-Kikhia, Keith Fairchild, Patricia Harris, Wanda Hedrick, Kellye Jones, Michael Kelly, James McDonald, George Negrete, Jeanne Reesman, Thomas Ricento, Walter Richardson, Jr., Deborah Schwartz-Kates, Raydel Tullous, Arturo Vega, Diane Walz

   Absent: Sos Agaian, Robert Hiromoto (excused), Louis Mendoza, Sandy Norman, Kent Rush, R. K. Smith, Anthony Van Reusen (excused

   Total members present: 24
   Total members absent: 7

2. Minutes of the April 11, 2000, meeting were approved.

3. Reports
   1. Provost - Dr. Guy Bailey
      
      1. Dr. Bailey reported that major activities of the Provost's Office include:
         • Laying the foundation for the transition to research status as an institution. The support of the UT System, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, the State Legislature, and the City of San Antonio is stronger than ever.
         • Expanding student success efforts:
           • College advising center being put in place
           • 10 learning communities up and running
           • Freshman Seminars running
           • Expanded supplemental instruction activities
         • Organizational changes in the Office of the Provost, largely in response to the SACS Site Visit:
           • Institutional Analysis (now called Institutional Effectiveness) reports to the Office of the Provost
           • Office of Admissions and Registrar reports to the Office of the Provost
           • A centralized Office of Catalogs was established in order to increase accuracy and efficiency with the publication of the catalogs.
           • The responsibilities of the Office of International Programs have been reassigned. The Division of Bicultural-Bilingual Studies has assumed responsibility for the American Language Institute; Dr. James Almazan, Vice Provost for Research and International Initiatives, will negotiate and sign international agreements; and, the Office of Multicultural Programs will work with the international students.
         • Initiative to enhance formula funding by ensuring the accuracy of reports to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
         • Salary compression studies:
           • Staff study for FY 2001 complete
           • Lecturer study complete
           • Equity studies complete (two areas where gender discrimination exists)
           • Faculty study for FY 2001: Dr. Bailey distributed an Executive Summary of the Report by the Ad Hoc Committee on Faculty Salary Compression Model. He stated that the Committee had done a remarkably good job. He said that the Faculty Senate could accept the recommendations of the Committee, which would then be implemented or the issue could be studied further. In order for the adjustments to become effective with the October 1, 2000, paycheck the recommendations would have to be accepted quickly. The Committee did recommend some things slightly different from last year so if an extended discussion is needed, there could be a special meeting of the Senate. Particularly Recommendations Five and Seven reflect changes from the previous study. The Provost's Office has also asked the Office of Institutional Effectiveness to provide data on the correlation of the merit ratings and the amounts of merit increases. So the compression study has had a positive effect in several ways.
      2. Dr. Bailey reported on work that needs to be done in conjunction with the Faculty Senate during academic year 2000-2001:
         • Budgetary planning for the next biennium needs to begin prior to the next legislative session
         • The merit evaluation process needs to be overhauled
         • Selection of a private contractor for the evaluation of administrators
         • Completion of initial academic restructuring
      3. Dr. Bailey distributed a series of memoranda related to the situation in the Division of Mathematic and Statistics

         Dr. Raul Aranovich asked if anything had been done to handle foreign faculty visas and green card applications at UTSA rather than continuing the agreement with the UT Health Science Center.

         Dr. Bailey replied that they are considering hiring and training a part-time person to handle the faculty visas.

         Dr. Aranovich asked why the Office of International Programs was disbanded, since there would now be a staff person to work with visas.

         Dr. Bailey responded that they felt the various responsibilities of that office could be handled more efficiently in other areas.

         Dr. Walter Richardson, Jr. asked Dr. Bailey to repeat the deadlines for the faculty salary compression adjustments.

         Dr. Bailey replied that, if the adjustments were to be reflected in the October paychecks, the salary compression study would have to be implemented very quickly. If the adjustments did not become effective until November, there would not be any loss of money since the salary increases would be retroactive.

         Dr. Ron Alexander asked what would be the advantage or disadvantage of proceeding with the implementation of the recommendations now and, at a later time, studying the report closely for adjustment in the future.

         Dr. Bailey agreed that, whatever the decision about implementation of the recommendations, the report would need to be discussed further because it raised larger issues that need to be dealt with. He stated that the main effect of implementing recommendation seven would be that the payouts would be a bit lower at the upper end and a few more people would be affected.

         Dr. Mansour El-Kikhia asked for the amount of money that was involved.

         Dr. Bailey replied that the allocation for compression adjustments for the current fiscal year was $275,000. This would be in addition to any funds available for merit increases.

         Dr. John Bretting stated his concern that looking at the number of years with an institution versus the number of years within a discipline across peer institutions could result in very different calculations. If someone is hired as an assistant that is technically 10 years into their career, they would inflate salaries upwards relative to people coming right from graduate school. Yet in comparison where they should be rated with their peers within the discipline versus the institution, they might fall short of a comparable salary.

         Dr. Bailey responded that the compression study would not address those problems.

         Dr. Raydel Tullous made a motion to accept the Report of the Ad Hoc Committee on Faculty Salary Compression Model.

         Dr. Arturo Vega stated that that report should have first been presented to the Faculty Senate since the committee is an ad hoc committee of the Senate.

         Dr. Keith Fairchild, Chair of the Committee, stated that the committee did not make radical changes to the Compression Model because the committee had to complete its work during the summer and was, therefore, unable to obtain faculty input. He agreed that additional improvements need to be made and that the work of this year's committee should begin immediately.

         The motion to accept the Report of the Ad Hoc Committee on Faculty Salary Compression Model passed.

   2. Senate Chair - Dr. Patricia Harris
      Dr. Harris stated that this year would be one of transition with much to be done. She reported on several procedural issues:
      1. Appointments to fill Senate vacancies: As a result of restructuring, and the fact that the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences did not hold elections for new Assembly members last year, there were three divisions that lacked representation. Roberts' Rules is silent on the issue of how to fill vacancies, except in the officer ranks. The nature of the issues that the Faculty Senate will address this year makes it especially important that all divisions be represented. Thus the Chair made the following appointments to fill out the Senate membership: Dr. James McDonald from the Division of Behavioral and Cultural Sciences; Dr. Thomas Ricento from the Division of Bilingual-Bicultural Studies; and Dr. John Bretting from the Division of Public Administration. In addition, the Chair appointed Ron Alexander as an alternate to serve in place of Tony Van Reusen while Dr. Van Reusen recuperates from surgery.
      2. The Senate needs to make appointments to grievance panel: A call for nominees that went out in the summer was unsuccessful. Every senator needs to submit a nominee from their division to constitute this year's grievance panel. Senators should submit their nominees to Sandy Pottorff, Staff Assistant to the Faculty Senate.
      3. The Senate needs to move quickly to reconstitute its four ad hoc committees: the Ad Hoc Budget Committee; the Ad Hoc Committee on Administrator Evaluation; the Ad Hoc Committee on the Course Evaluation Instrument; and the Ad Hoc Committee on the Faculty Salary Compression Model. During last meeting of the Senate, Dr. Fairchild urged the membership to move quickly to reconstitute the ad hoc committees. All previous ad hoc committee members were asked if they would agree to serve for an additional year. All but one, a member of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Course Evaluation Instrument, agreed to serve for an additional year. If there is no objection, the terms of the existing members of all four ad hoc committees will be extended. Approved.
      4. Two individuals, Dr. Betty Travis, chair of the UT SYSFAC and Dr. David Johnson, Executive Vice Provost had requested ex officio member status from the Senate. Dr. Michael Kelly noted that it would be necessary to amend the bylaws to grant ex officio status to these individuals. The requests were withdrawn.
      5. Dr. Harris proposed referring the matter of needed changes to faculty governance policies and procedures to the Academic Policy and Requirements Committee. The Committee will be charged to examine the question of what changes can be made, and what changes need to be made in which governance-related documents as a result of restructuring. The Committee will make a preliminary report to the Senate at a special October meeting on the scope of the changes necessitated by restructuring, and regarding what parties should participate in designing the changes. The Committee should take into account prior work done by the University Assembly Ad Hoc Committee on Bylaws and Shared Governance. Receiving no objections, the referral of the examination of the nature and scope of needed bylaws changes to the Academic Policy and Requirements Committee stands approved.
      6. Dr. Harris proposed referring the matter of revisions of the current faculty merit system to the Academic Policy and Requirements Committee. The Committee will be charged to examine the question of what changes should be made to the faculty merit and incentives system, and how the changes should be carried out. The Committee will make a preliminary report to the Senate at its November meeting on these questions. The Committee should take into account the work of the SACS Task Force on Faculty Rewards and Incentives System. Receiving no objections, the referral of the examination of the nature and scope of needed changes in the faculty merit and incentives system to the Academic Policy and Requirements Committee stands approved.
      7. Dr. Harris proposed referring the matter of revisions of the current system for the evaluation of teaching effectiveness to the Teaching Effectiveness and Development Committee. The Committee will be charged to examine the question of what changes should be made to the current system of assessing teaching effectiveness, and how the changes should be carried out. The Teaching Effectiveness and Development Committee will explore what role the Ad Hoc Committee on the Course Evaluation Instrument should play in creating these changes. The Committee will make a preliminary report to the Senate at its November meeting on these questions. Receiving no objections, the referral of the examination of current methods for assessing teaching effectiveness to the Teaching Effectiveness Committee stands approved.
      8. Dr. Harris reported on the need for the University to create a Campus Core Committee on the Advancement of Women, to comply with the 1997 recommendations of former Chancellor Cunningham, and to follow-up on the recommendations of the UTSA Ad Hoc Committee on Women Faculty Issues. Neither of these reports discuss whether the committee should be elected or appointed. Dr. Harris recommended appointing a special committee to determine how best to select members of the Campus Core Committee on the Advancement of Women. If there are no objections, the Senate will appoint a special committee to determine how best to select members of the Campus Core Committee on the Advancement of Women. The Committee will consider whether members should be elected or appointed and what the parameters of a system of election should be. The Committee will present its proposal to the Senate at the special October meeting. If there are no objections, the creation of the special committee stands approved.

         Dr. Harris requested nominees for appointment to the committee. The following Senators were nominated and appointed to the Special Committee on the Selection of Members of the Campus Core Committee on the Advancement of Women: Dr. Kellye Jones, Dr. Betty Travis, Dr. Arturo Vega, and Dr. Diane Walz.

      Dr. Harris provided additional information regarding matters the Senate will consider in upcoming meetings:

      • At the special October meeting, the Ad Hoc Committee on Administrator Evaluations will present its report on the evaluation of Dr. Christopher Borman, Director of the Division of Education, and discuss plans for upcoming administrator evaluations.
      • The Chair will ask Marilyn Mott, who chairs a committee of NTT faculty members, to present a report to the Senate on NTT faculty concerns related to teaching evaluation, rewards and incentives. If she agrees, Dr. Mott will present her report at the special October meeting.
      • At a future date, the Senate will consider the matter of developmental remedies for faculty whose Periodic Performance Evaluations yield unsatisfactory reviews. The Chair will attend a conference on Faculty Roles and Rewards in early February and I will present information from that conference at the February Senate meeting. That conference includes a pre-conference assembly on Post-Tenure Review.
      • The Senate will once again take up the matter of the grievance policy language.
      • In addition to the special October meeting, there will be special meetings during the Spring semester.

      Dr. El-Kikha asked what would happen to the Faculty Senate relationship to the University Assembly.

      Dr. Harris responded that the Academic Policy and Requirements Committee would review that issue.

      Dr. Vega noted that the revised Faculty Senate Bylaws currently awaiting approval would be a good starting point for the Committee.

   3. Committees

      Nominating Committee - Dr. Ron Alexander
      Dr. Alexander requested nominations from the floor for all positions. Dr. Tullous withdrew her nomination for Chair of the Graduate Council and nominated Dr. Deborah Armstrong. Dr. Keith Fairchild also withdrew his nomination for Chair of the Graduate Council.

      POST-MEETING ELECTION RESULTS

      Officers and Executive Committee:
      Patricia Harris, CRJ - Chair
      *Ron Ayers, ECO - Chair-Elect
      *Raul Aranovich, FL - Secretary
      *Art Vega, SPS - Parliamentarian
      Keith Fairchild, ECO - CoB
      *Wanda Hedrick, EDU - CoEHD
      *Sos Agaian, EGR - CoE
      *Louis Mendoza, ECPC - CoLFA
      *George Negrete, EPS - CoS
      *John Bretting, PAD - CoUPP
      *Deborah Armstrong, LS - Chair, Graduate Council
      
      Academic Freedom and Tenure Committee:
      Ron Alexander, CoEHD
      *Robert Hiromoto, CoS
      *Amy Jasperson, CoLFA
      Kellye Jones, CoB
      Tom Ricento, CoEHD
      *Raydel Tullous, CoB
      Bennie Wilson, CoB

      Academic Policy and Requirements Committee:
      Juan Gonzalez, CoB
      *Sandy Norman, CoS
      Rivta Nummikoski, CoLFA
      *Deborah Schwartz-Kates, CoLFA
      Raydel Tullous, CoB
      Anthony Van Reusen, CoEHD
      Esther Wheeler, CoS

      Nominating and Elections Committee:
      *Sos Agaian, CoE
      *Ron Alexander, CoEHD
      *John Bretting, CoUPP
      Keith Fairchild, CoB
      *Wanda Hedrick, CoEHD
      Steve Levitt, CoLFA
      Walter Richardson, Jr., CoS

      Teaching Effectiveness and Development Committee:
      *Deborah Armstrong, CoS
      Aaron Cassill, CoS
      Eugene Dowdy, CoLFA
      *James McDonald, CoLFA
      Sandy Norman, CoS
      *Betty Travis, CoS
      Raydel Tullous, CoB

      University Curriculum Committee:
      Raul Aranovich, CoLFA
      Ron Ayers, CoB
      Russell Briner, CoB
      Eugene Dowdy, CoLFA
      Connie Lowe, CoLFA
      *Louis Mendoza, CoLFA
      Rebecca Petersen, CoUPP
      Tony Van Reusen, CoEHD
      *Art Vega, CoLFA
      Sandy Welch, CoB
      Kathy Wohlert, CoB

      *Newly elected members

   4. Other

      None

4. Consent Calendar - Graduate Council
   1. Recommend Approval of Revisions to the Bylaws of the Graduate Council -Approved
   2. Recommend Approval of Master of Arts in Museum Studies - Approved
   3. Recommend Approval of Ph.D. in Business Administration - Approved
   4. Recommend Approval of Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering - Approved
   5. Recommend Approval of 2001-2003 Graduate Catalog Revisions - Approved
5. Unfinished Business

   None

6. New Business
   1. Dr. Ayers said that faculty feel that the use of social security numbers as identification numbers compromises their privacy. Faculty would like to have the University assign unique identification numbers for all business activities except payroll. Dr. Travis replied that the UT System Faculty Advisory Council is reviewing the social security issue and will work with the Chancellor's Office to make changes. This has been an issue of concern on many of the campus.
   2. Dr. Ayers stated that there have been faculty complaints about not being able to work with the assigned computer in their offices due to not having administrative privileges. Faculty are not able install software or download software from the Internet but must be instead placed on an Information Technology waiting list to have software installed.

      Dr. Travis noted that there are copyright laws that force Information Technology to install the software.

   3. Dr. Aranovich noted that there had been discussions previously about privacy issues and asked if there was a committee formed to review these issues. Dr. Bailey responded that privacy laws are very lenient to employers in terms of computer files and does not believe it would be feasible to discuss developing a privacy policy
   4. Dr. Aranovich requested that the Senate review the issues of the Office of International Programs. He stated that the current arrangement is not satisfactory in many respects and the situation affects faculty and their teaching functions, as well as students.

      Dr. Harris requested that Dr. Aranovich send her information about this office so it could be determined if there was a need for an ad hoc committee to be put together by the Senate.

7. Meeting adjourned.

Comments or questions to spottorff@utsa.edu