Meeting Minutes #197

Members Present: M. Baykal-Gursoy, S. Bhuyan, R. Boikess, S. Cirignano, C. Clauss-Ehlers, S. Connolly, M. Cotter (Chair), J. Crowley, E. Curchitser, M. Doerfel, B. Chu (for D. Fishman), M. Gasparotto, M. Gliserman, P. Hirshfield, H. Janes, M-K Joo, M. Killingsworth, J-H Kim, P. Klein, D. Kruse, D. Kumar, X. Liu, K. McKeever, L. Morrow, R. Niederman, D. O'Connor, A. Pichugin, M. Schwander, T. Stephens, L. Struwe, L. Sun, T. Szatrowski, G. Taghon, B. Tesar, K. Thompson, A. Williams, E. Williams, J. Worobey

Non-Members Present: K. Swalagin (Recording Secretary) 

1.    Call to Order – Martha Cotter, New Brunswick Faculty Council (NBFC) Chair 
  
Council Chairperson Martha Cotter called the 197th meeting of the New Brunswick Faculty Council to order at 1:18 p.m. on Friday, September 21, 2014 in Room AB of Brower Commons, College Avenue Campus. 

2.    Approval of Agenda 
  
Cotter said that some of the time limits on the agenda could be extended. The agenda was approved. 
  
3.    Approval of Minutes of April 25, 2014 
  
The Minutes of the April 25, 2014 NBFC meeting were approved as distributed. Cotter asked members to notify Recording Secretary Ken Swalagin if they find errors in the minutes. 
 
4.    Chair's Report - Martha Cotter, NBFC Chair

NBFC Chair Martha Cotter's Chair's Report included comments on the following:

• a brief progress report on the Council, including:
  • currently 64 elected members, with 20 positions unfilled, including 7 in departments where the representative's term ended and no replacement was elected, and another 13 that did not have a member last year;
  • the need to fully activate the Council's committees;
    • the difficulty in finding suitable times and venues for committee meetings; 
    • and her suggestion that all committees meet in October, possibly over the lunch hour in the Brower Faculty/Staff Dining Room;
  • continued planning for this year's New Brunswick Faculty Council Teaching Conference;
    • comments by Martin Gliserman, who plans the Teaching Conference along with Monica Devanas, about the format and subject of the conference, which this year will be about technology;
  • an update on athletics financing following last year's Council report on that subject that was sent to Richard Edwards as well as President Barchi, and on which Barchi has said he will respond to the Council;
    • referral of this matter to the University Senate's Budget and Finance Committee, of which Council Member Mark Killingsworth is a member;
  • the New Brunswick Honors College, and the mostly faculty committee formed at the instigation of the NBFC, which has been meeting since March and had made a great deal of progress;
    • President Barchi's recent statements about his vision for the Honors College, and how they differ significantly from the committee's ideas;
    • apparent lapses in communication between the committee and the administration; and
    • the next meeting of the Honors Committee, which was scheduled for that afternoon, and which Cotter would leave the Council meeting early to attend, and on which Cotter would report back to the Council by email.

5.    Administrative Report

There was no administrative report at this meeting because there was no administrative liaison present to give one.

6.    Introduction of Committee Chairs, and Brief Organizational Committee Meetings

Committee chairs were introduced. Council members then assembled into committees and held brief planning meetings. 

[The Council reconvened approximately 20 minutes later, at 2:30 p.m.]

7.    Committee-of-the-Whole Discussion of the Draft New Brunswick Strategic Plan

On Peter Klein's motion, duly seconded, the Council moved into committee of the whole to discuss the draft New Brunswick Strategic Plan. Cotter said that she would be asking someone to volunteer as parliamentarian. Early in the discussion, Cotter left the meeting to attend the above-mentioned New Brunswick Honors College Committee meeting. Mark Killingsworth presided in her absence. At the end of the discussion, Killingsworth asked the Council members to send additional thoughts and suggestions about this subject to him and Martha Cotter.

8.    Old Business

There was no old business.

9.    New Business

Tom Stephens said that he had sent something to Martha Cotter about Ken Miller's memo to SAS-NB about having testing centers, and suggested that the Council may want to respond. Someone mentioned that large construction projects are complicating the parking situation in New Brunswick, and that the signage is not clear, resulting in vehicles being towed, and drivers incurring impound fees.

10.    Adjournment

This meeting of the New Brunswick Faculty Council adjourned at 3:11 p.m.

Minutes written and submitted by,
Ken Swalagin
Recording Secretary of the New Brunswick Faculty Council