ACADEMIC SENATE
MEETING
MINUTES
TUESDAY, February 16, 2010
SEVEN HILLS CONFERENCE CENTER, NOB HILL ROOM
2:00 - 5:00 p.m.
OPEN FLOOR PERIOD: 2:00 - 2:10 p.m.
The Open Floor Period provides an informal opportunity
for faculty members to raise questions or make comments directed to Senate
officers or to university administrators.
Please arrive promptly at 2:00 p.m.
CALL TO ORDER: 2:10 p.m.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Chair Whalen:
Nominations are
encouraged for the VP of Advancement Position
Senator Davila:
March 4, 2010 Day
of Action
AGENDA ITEM#1—Approval of the
Minutes for the February 2, 2010. The minutes were approved.
AGENDA ITEM #2—Approval of the
Agenda for February 16, 2010. The agenda was approved.
AGENDA ITEM#3— Report from
Government & Community Relations Representatives Derek Aitken & Lisbet
Sunshine. Representative Aitken gave a presentation on activities related to
the State budget and called for volunteers to speak to legislators in their
local offices on Fridays.
AGENDA ITEM#4— Report from
Barry Rothman, Chair, Strategic Issues Committee & Kate Hellenga, Chair,
Student Affairs Committee:
Proposed Online Education Policy. Chairs Rothman and Hellenga reported
on the online teaching effectiveness and course evaluations and a Proposed
Online Education Policy. The report included a history of the development of
interest in online teaching effectiveness and course evaluations. Chair
Hellenga clarified that the method, not the content, of the evaluations was of
concern. There are inconsistencies cross-campus in the method of evaluation,
which creates concerns for RTP evaluations. Financial, ecological and labor
expenses of the current system are approximately $130,000 per semester.
Efficient deployment of an online course evaluation system could save a
significant amount of resources. Current research suggests that there is no
significant degradation in the value of online evaluations. Online evaluations
for courses and for teaching effectiveness may be foundational to developing
Online Education. Chair Rothman addressed the history and named key people who
have been involved in the development of the Proposed Online Education Policy.
Chair Rothman also encouraged more feedback and guidance, and introduced Maggie
Beers, Director of Academic Technology. Director Beers gave a report on the
current usage of iLearn by campus faculty and students. Director Beers answered
AGENDA ITEM#5—Recommendation
from the Curriculum Review and Approval Committee: Proposed Certificate in
Immigrant Literacies, 1st Reading—proposal to be heard no later than
3:00p.m. CRAC Chair Shrivastava introduced the Proposed Certificate and English
Department Chair, Beverly Voloshin, who introduced faculty members Maricel
Santos and Gail Weinstein. Profs. Santos and Weinstein introduced the Proposed
Certificate and answered questions from the floor. Senator Hellman moved to
place the item in 2nd reading. The item was moved to 2nd
reading. Senator Rehling moved to replace the word “reward” with “acknowledge”
on page 2, line 5. The amendment
passed. As amended, the Proposed Certificate was passed.
AGENDA ITEM#6— Recommendation
from the Academic Policies Committee: Proposed Policy on the Requirements for
the Baccalaureate Degree:
Discussion Restricted to Section II, 1st Reading. APC Chair
Hellman introduced the Proposed Policy on the Requirements for the
Baccalaureate Degree: Discussion
Restricted to Section II, which covers upper division options, which are the
topical perspectives option, the integrated studies option, and the study abroad
option. Concerns were raised about the requirement to meet the three “domains
of knowledge” in the study abroad option. Senator Rehling moved to suspend
Robert’s Rules of Order to allow for discussion of both Sections I and II. The
motion failed. Senator Rehling moved to amend the agenda to a new Item 9:
Baccalaureate Degree Policy, Section I in 1st Reading. The motion failed.
AGENDA ITEM#7— Recommendation
from the Academic Policies Committee: Proposed Academic Calendar for Summer
2011, 1st Reading. APC Chair Hellman moved the item on behalf of the
Academic Policies Committee.
AGENDA ITEM #8--Recommendation
from the Academic Senate Executive Committee: Proposed Resolution in Support of AS 2919-09/Fiscal and
Governmental Affairs (FGA) Call for Adequate and Sustainable Funding in Support
of Higher Education, 1st Reading. At-Large Senator Yee moved the
Proposed Resolution.
AGENDA
ITEM #9—Adjournment—no later than 4:05 p.m.