Arts and Sciences Senate
Minutes
September 26. 2011

I.  Approval of Tentative Agenda:  approved.

II.  Approval of minutes from April 25, 2011:  approved

III.  Time Vectors (M. Aronoff)

• Presented a proposal for new class meeting times in the Fall and Spring semesters beginning Fall 2012.
• Classes start on the hour or on the half hour.  Graduate class meeting times already start on the hour or half hour so the new system causes fewer conflicts for grad student TA’s.
• Very early class start times have been shifted.  Classes start at 8:00 a.m. on all days.
• A few of the goals are to increase the number of class meeting times, improve the usability of class meeting times, increase campus life time slots to two, simplify class starting times, etc.
• Need to work on Lab schedules.
• The total number of usable class meetings times would increase by one.
• There are positive features as well as negative features (see the proposal).

IV.  President’s Report (E. Mendieta)

• Have attended meetings with Interim Dean Axel Drees and Interim Provost Nancy Squires during the summer and early fall to consult on Shared Service Centers.
• Have requested that the University Research Committee follow up on some complaints about research criteria in databases that serve humanities.
• Met with the new Provost.
• Welcomed the new senators to the A&S Senate.
• Make sure you inform your departments of what is being discussed at the Senate meetings.

IV.  Report from the PTC (N. Landsman)

• Dr. Landsman is the new Chair of the Promotion and Tenure Committee.  The previous chair, Dr. Gary Matthews, prepared the 2010-2011 report.
• From September 2010 through June 2011, the PTC acted on 26 cases.   Fifteen cases were for promotion from asst. professor to assoc. professor with tenure (one was a case of tenure only for an individual already hired as a full professor without tenure).  Five were cases of promotion from assoc. professor to full professor and five were new appointments with tenure (one at assoc. professor and four at full professor). 
• The PTC agreed with the departmental recommendation in 23 of 26 cases.

V.  Report from the FRRPC (H. Silverman)

• Dr. Silverman thanked Joan Kuchner, who has retired, for her dedicated hard work on the Senate as well as on the FRRPC.
• The committee met regularly last year.
• Completed Senior Lecturer Award Title procedure and finalized the constitutional articulation of the A&S Standing Committee on Senior Lecturer Selection Committee (SLSC) (the new name that will be changed in the Constitution after three Senate meetings).  There was discussion on the title change.
• Established Status of SBSH membership on the Senate.
• Worked on “Non-Salaried and Courtesy Appointment Nomenclature Consistency”.  Will supplement Guidelines for Cross-Disciplinary Secondary Academic Appointments of Regular FT SB faculty.
• Completed multiple revisions of Guidelines of “Academic and Research Responsibilities of Tenured Faculty in Arts and Sciences Senate Constituencies at SBU”.  Would like the endorsement of the full A&S Senate.

Amendment to adopt with a friendly amendment that this document be directed to the PTC to be recommended to the University Senate to be adopted as policy.   B. Selvin suggested that the document mention more than “newspapers” and to add a new bullet.  Vote to adopt with friendly amendments:  all in favor with one abstention, none opposed.

• Worked on “Governance Consultation on Potential Academic Program Mergers, Closures, or Significant Structural Changes” document.  The full A&S Senate will be asked to comment on this document.  If approved, it then should go to the University Senate for its review.  Please send comments to either Hugh Silverman or Eduardo Mendieta.

 Suggestion to include a paragraph in the beginning with less detail in “II.  Criteria for Review and Evaluation…..”.  Vote on the sense of the senate on having the committee review the document with re-writes:  All in favor, none opposed, no abstentions.

• New Website location for FRRPC decisions, actions, and key documents:  www.stonybrook.edu/frrp.

Motion was made to accept FRRPC report:  all in favor.

VI.  Report from the College of Arts and Sciences (Interim Dean Axel Drees)

• Budget situation for 2011/12:   Getting somewhat better.  Over the past three years the college budget has been reduced by about $10M.  Been able to cope with budget cuts.  Radical hiring freeze with very little replacement hires which has saved the college approximately $8M.  CAS has lost 44 faculty, 31 staff, 82 TA lines and 25 lecturers.  Cut down on spending, travel, stipends, etc. with a savings of approximately $200K.  Bringing in more revenue with winter/summer sessions.  In light of SUNY 2020, CAS was able to start about 20 searches for faculty level positions, split between new initiatives and critical replacement hires.  Voluntary separation will results in a savings of about $1M to the base budget. 

Shared Service Centers:

• Have to function with reduced staffing level.  This is part of the 50 Forward project initiated by the President.  Brings a potential for new services (e.g., new IT specialists).  In close communication with faculty groups, staff, the senate, departments, etc.
• Basic principle is to optimize the scale of the administrative operation which will increase efficiency by providing a group of programs with specialists in budget and procurement issues, human resource issues and student administration.
• The Fine Arts have become the pilot project.  Administration of the Arts and the Theatre Arts Department has merged; this step is near completion.  Now at the level of doing job descriptions and performance programs.  About to draft a Memo of Understanding between all involved parties. Over the course of the year the administration of the Music Department will be integrated into the SSC.
• The implementation process of the SSC for the Humanities is under development.
• The final SSC is expected to be in place earliest by 2013/14.
• Discussion on floor regarding pros and cons.  Why not see how the SSC with the Art and Theatre Arts department goes before implementing a SSC in Humanities?  Need some measure of success and failure. 

VII.  Old Business:  no old business.

VIII.  New Business:  no new business

Meeting adjourned at 5:15 p.m.

Submitted by:

Laurie Theobalt
Secretary