Meeting Minutes #181
Members Present: B. Avi-Itzhak, R. Boikess, E. Boling, C. Clauss-Ehlers, P. Gambarota, T. Gerhard, M. Haggblom, D. Kumar, P. Leath, K. McKeever (Chair), L. Nepomnyaschy, D. O'Connor, P. Panayotatos, J. Reed, L. Rodenburg, H. Sackrowitz, A. St. John, R. Schwarzschild, J. Shapiro, G. Springs, T. Szatrowski, J. Theiss, K. Thompson, G. Werlen, E. Williams, R. Wilson, T. Yang
Non-Members Present: G. Blimling, A. Calcado, K. Swalagin (Recording Secretary)
1. Call to Order and Chairperson’s Report - Ken McKeever, NBFC Chairperson
Council Chairperson Ken McKeever called the 181st meeting of the New Brunswick Faculty Council (NBFC) to order at 1:17 p.m. on Friday, May 13, 2011 in the Rutgers Student Center Graduate Student Lounge, College Avenue Campus. He said that next-year’s NBFC chair is Joel Shapiro. He said that he would send emails to department chairs whose NBFC members’ terms are expiring, but he also asked that members with expiring terms send an email to Joel Shapiro so he can update the online roster.
2. Approval of Agenda and Minutes
The Minutes of the April 1, 2011 NBFC meeting were approved. McKeever said he would like to move a procedural matter concerning the NBFC bylaws to the top of the agenda. The current meeting’s agenda so amended, it was adopted.
3. Amendment of Bylaws
McKeever said that Ken Swalagin, recording secretary of the NBFC, had volunteered to conduct this year’s election of the part-time lecturer and annual-appointee faculty members of the council. Swalagin said that Phil Furmanski’s office ordinarily does the election, but that he would do the election himself if the council would agree to suspend the restrictions on the subcategories required in the relevant section of the bylaws. Paul Leath moved removal of the “one from arts and sciences, and one from professional schools” and “one shall be a PTL and one shall be an annual-appointee” clauses from the relevant section of the bylaws. Robert Boikess seconded the motion. Robert Wilson read to the council the bylaw describing the process by which bylaws may be amended, including the requirement that a secret ballot be conducted to ratify any permanent change. The NBFC adopted the motion to suspend the restrictions to allow the top two vote-getters from the entire pool of eligible PTL and annual-appointee faculty to become the new council members in that combined category. Chair-elect Joel Shapiro will research the procedure for conducting the secret ballot to make the change permanent.
[Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Phil Furmanski was not present at the meeting. There was no administrative report.]
4. Chairperson’s Report, Continued
McKeever said that the NBFC Executive Committee needs to be informed of issues arising in the various faculty bodies, and asked that, as those issues emerge, that council members email the chair so they can be docketed on Executive Committee agendas. As an example, he cited the issue of taxation on summer salaries paid on grants. He then thanked everyone for their support.
5. Report on Rutgers’ Response to a Recent Open Letter from the AAUP Regarding “Anti-Semitism on Campus” – Gregory Blimling, Vice President for Student Affairs
Gregory Blimling, Vice President for Student Affairs, spoke about the recent controversy arising from an on-campus event titled “Never Again for Anyone,” sponsored by three pro-Palestinian organizations, and coordinated by BAKA: Students United for Middle Eastern Justice. Blimling described the event, and related protests and controversy, as well as Rutgers’ responses to various published statements from organizations outside of Rutgers, including the AAUP and the Zionist Organization of America. The discussion eventually expanded to include recent negative media attention surrounding fees paid to Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi, and use of student funds generally.
6. Report on Livingston Campus Construction Projects – Antonio Calcado, Vice President, University Facilities and Capital Planning
Tony Calcado, Vice President for University Facilities and Capital Planning, spoke about progress and planning of Livingston Campus construction projects. He also responded to questions from the council on construction-project funding, revenues, tax-related and environmental issues.
7. Report on the University Senate’s Recommendations on the “Ten-Year Rule – Paul Panayotatos, Chair of the University Senate, and Chair of the NBFC Faculty Affairs and Personnel Policy Committee
Paul Panayotatos, chair of the Rutgers University Senate, and chair of the NBFC Faculty Affairs and Personnel Policy Committee, spoke about the University Senate’s recently adopted report and recommendations on application of the “Ten-Year Rule” in promotions to full professor. [Note: This report is available online at http://senate.rutgers.edu/FPACOnS0917TenYearRuleApril2011AsAdopted.pdf.] Panayotatos said that he was disappointed that Phil Furmanski was not present, because Furmanski had agreed not to do anything on this issue until he had heard from the Senate, and that Furmanski was also not at the Senate meeting at which the report and recommendations were adopted. A question-and-answer period followed, which ended at 3:09 p.m., at which time McKeever noted Panayotatos’s tenacious work on this and similar issues, and the credit Panayotatos deserves for that work.
8. Nomination and Election of Chair-Elect
Dan O’Connor was the sole nominee for NBFC chair-elect (who becomes chair in academic year 2012-13). O’Connor spoke about initiatives he hopes to see realized during his term as chair, including commitment to students and faculty, centralized help for departmental excellence efforts, and exploration of more formal relationships with foreign universities. O’Connor was elected chair-elect by acclamation.
9. Old Business
There was no old business.
10. New Business
Paul Panayotatos noted that Paul Leath is retiring after many years of remarkable service to Rutgers. Leath received applause and well-wishes from the council.
11. Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at 3:19 p.m.
Minutes Written and Submitted by:
Ken Swalagin
Recording Secretary of the New Brunswick Faculty Council