Minutes for Meeting of Truman Chapter of AAUP, 1/30/04
(Peter Rolnick & Judi Misale, temporary secretaries)
Faculty Present: David Robinson (presiding), Kathryn Kuhlman, Peter Rolnick, David Gruber, James Harmon, Diane Johnson, Tom Marshall, Judi Misale, Mike Ashcraft, Sylvia Macauley, Jan Grow, Martha Bartter, Arnie Preussner, Peter Ramberg (invited guest)
Miscellaneous:
As a courtesy, David Robinson will send a note to the University President, notifying her each time new AAUP minutes have been posted to the web.
The Enrollment Committee, which initially didn't have any faculty members on it, now has a faculty member on it (Debra Cartwright, Business & Accountancy).
Faculty Senate Budget Committee: The committee consists of:
Garry Gordon (as VPAA),
David Rector (as University Budget Director),
Scott Fouch (Business & Accountancy--accountant),
Candy Young (SS--political scientist)
Terry Olsen (SS--economist)
Keri Bodensteiner (LL--communications)
The committee has had at least one meeting, and hopes to present something to the FS and to the Faculty in general. The charge, terms of office, and membership for this committee will be revisited by FS in Fall 2004. David Gruber will look into what kind of AAUP budget training is available, and David Robinson will forward that information to the chair of the FS Budget Committee, if appropriate.
Proposed Sexual Orientation Policy: Currently, in the General Bulletin, under “Notice of Nondiscrimination,” there is a paragraph saying:
...university ... complies with federal and state laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, age, or handicap ...
In the following paragraph, it says:
Discriminatory practices based on reasons not expressly stated in the policy, such as sexual orientation, veteran status, disability, marital status, and bankruptcy, which are not related to educational or job requirements, are prohibited...
We understand the proposal currently going to the Board of Governors from the Student Senate as a request, basically, that sexual orientation be “promoted” from the second paragraph to the first paragraph. The AAUP Redbook is clear about supporting such a statement, and sentiment in the meeting was also very strong in that direction, so our AAUP chapter (David Robinson, president) will send a letter to the Board of Governors supporting the Student Senate Resolution, with copies to all Faculty Senators (in case this resolution makes a stop at FS during its journey).
Faculty Representative to Division Heads meetings: Tom Marshall, Arnie Preussner, and David Robinson will draft a letter to the Division Heads and the VPAA asking if they would be open to having any faculty at Division Heads meetings.
Summer School & Interim: At the most recent FS meeting, the VPAA presented some data having to do with summer school. The VPAA said that he was working on a more thorough evaluation of the summer school program, including a statement of its purpose and an assessment of how well it was serving that purpose. In the ensuing discussion at Senate, the VPAA said that the primary purpose of the summer school program was to serve students. Discussion in the AAUP meeting noted that, in previous discussions, the VPAA had said that the decision to make changes in the summer school program was budgetary, and therefore those changes did not go through UGC. Our lengthy discussion indicated that, to this point, the Truman Chapter of AAUP is dissatisfied with and skeptical about information being presented about the summer school program, and urges fuller disclosure. Specific issues and questions that came up include the following:
We would like to see more consistency in statements of, and actions based on, the purpose(s) of the summer school program and the interim program.
We need some clarity on who should judge whether a person can or cannot teach a certain course in 2.5, 5, or 8 weeks.
We recall an early reason given for the plan for 8-week sessions was its pedagogical superiority; however, now there seems to be new push to develop more interim and on-line courses.
Required Teaching of Intelligent Design in K-12: In the Missouri State Legislature, House Bill 911 on Standard Science Education would require, among other things, that equal time, equal number of pages in textbooks, etc., be given to the teaching of Intelligent Design and Darwinian Evolution. Peter Ramberg discussed some of the language of the bill, and asked us some questions to help us focus on how this issue does or doesn't relate to AAUP. Though the bill applies specifically to K-12, it affects Truman AAUP in the following ways. First, there is the general issue of academic freedom; since Truman’s MAE program must support state K-12 teaching, there is an implication that Education and Science Faculty would have to prepare future teachers to teach according to HB911. Second, there is the issue of governance; how a particular topic (such as biology) should be taught is primarily the domain of the faculty with expertise in that discipline. If this bill becomes law, it will certainly affect the preparation of the majority of our incoming students, and it will determine the books that some students will use and that our MAE faculty will have to work with. In addition, though the bill is carefully constructed to hide this feature, it may still imply some crossing of the boundary between church and state. David Gruber and Peter Ramberg will work on a letter to the Index alerting Faculty of the issues raised by this bill, and urging them to get involved. (Later, the officers decided to offer the letter to the Kirksville Daily Express, as well.)
Sick Leave Policy: David Robinson talked to Maureen Slaughter, Head of Human Resources, about the numbers now appearing on faculty pay stubs announcing the number of sick days accrued (a feature of the new Bannerweb accounting system). Maureen explained that regular, full-time faculty receive nine (9) days per year of sick leave. They get it during sabbaticals, but not when on leave. The policies regarding other types of absences (e.g., funerals) are addressed in the sick-leave policy (available on the university website), but for faculty, different divisions seem to have different policies about when sick days should be claimed or not claimed. At the end of the discussion, we were collectively still somewhat confused about this and other issues regarding sick leave. Maureen sent word that she would be glad to speak with us about the rules and regulations on sick leave, so this could be part of a future meeting. Until then, David gave us this formula: divide the total number of hours accrued on your pay stub by 8; that will give days accrued. Divide again by 9, and that result should roughly equal your number of years at Truman, minus any official sick days you’ve taken during that time. If there is some gross discrepancy, go see Maureen.
Treasurer’s Report: James Harmon reported a balance in our treasury of $332.35. This includes an outstanding check in the amount of $52.50 (President Dixon’s gift membership in AAUP, perhaps not yet used).
Meeting was adjourned, and members went joyfully to their respective life events. Thanks to all who participated.