March 2, 2021

 

ACADEMIC SENATE MEETING

MINUTES

Tuesday, March 2, 2021

ZOOM MEETING 

2:00 – 4:30 p.m.

 

Attendance:

Absences: 

Guests: 

 

OPEN FLOOR PERIOD:  2:00 - 2:05 p.m.

The Open Floor Period provides an informal opportunity for campus community 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: 2:05 p.m.

1.    Approval of the Agenda for March 2, 2021

·       Sen. Pierce made a motion to move agenda item #9 to first reading. Seconded by Sen. Way.

·       VOTE: motion was passed @ 2:07 p.m. 39/1/1 (Y/N/A)

2.    Approval of the Minutes for February 16, 2021

·       Approved as submitted @ 2:08 p.m.

3.    Announcements from the Floor - none

4.    Reports

·       Chair Report

·       New Senate week in review. Send any suggestions for improvement or items for the newsletter to Teddy. People who want to be added to the Senate listserv contact Mirna at senate@sfsu.edu. 

·       SFSU vaccination site is small, about 10% of which is reserved for the SFSU campus. Appointments should continue to grow. Included links in chat. 

o   https://news.sfsu.edu/campus-plan/covid-19-vaccination

o   https://covid-19.acgov.org/vaccines

·       Election season in the Senate – Opens next week through March 19^th. Election starts April 1^st. Please encourage colleagues to get involved, especially those who are struggling to connect. New staff spots are opening up as well. 

·       President Report

·       President Biden announced all adults should be able to be vaccinated by May 2021 

·       Acknowledging how hard this has been, but the availability of vaccines lead her to be optimistic 

·       State is restoring budget cuts from last year. Biden admin is pumping money into higher ed. Review University Budget Committee (UBC) presentation by VP Wilson for more information. Could have money to restaff after layoffs. 

·       How can we all help enrollments? Increasing retention will offset drops. Hoping to increase new student yield. 

·       Fall planning message out next week. Results from faculty survey and listening tours will be posted. Thanks to Senators Albiniak and Gerber for hosting listening tours. A staff survey will also be released later this week. 

·       Anticipating that we will have to wear masks and physical distance in the fall and that there will not be a full return to campus. 

·       Once we have the class schedule finalized we can move to plan for staff and services returning to campus as needed. Likely to be a hybrid approach for fall, which is complicated. 

·       Think about 5 things: 1) Continued health of the campus community; 2) Remember educational mission. What is the impact of remote learning on our students?; 3) Our role as engine of educational equity; 4) Our institutional health; 5) mental health of our students, faculty and staff. 

·       Funds are available for a safe and gradual return to campus. More inclusion in the process. 

·       Looking forward to thinking about Academic excellence, community engagement and student success rather than budgets. 

·       Provost Report

·       Challenges ahead, despite the restoration of our budget. But we are no longer in crisis mode and can carefully plan. 

·       Heard a lot of concerns and vision for the future of our campus after the directive memo. Meeting student needs for course availability, work of faculty during time of stress, support for high quality liberal education across disciplines. Want to keep this feedback in mind. 

·       On March 16^th, a budget presentation will be given in Senate with a focus on AA. Academic Resources website being updated to support budget transparency. We must understand our budget to collaborate towards our future. Still must weigh our spending across our needs: staff hiring, tenure-track hiring, instructional costs, administration, and operations. Must prioritize our spending. 

·       We must start with a shared set of principles and expectations then we can move more of the decision making to the colleges and departments. Otherwise, we’ll end up with inequities across the units. But while some decisions will still need to be made at higher levels in the institution, consultation is critical. 

·       Sen. Drennan – What does “on pause” mean with respect to the directive memo? Why not just shut it down and start from scratch?

o   Sen. Summit - Need to know where we are financially first. Need to build a sustainable budget but can’t do that until we better understand how much we saved this year and what our priorities are. 

o   Now that we’re not facing a 10% budget cut, we can now move some of the cuts to a longer time frame. Could move some things to a local level rather than across the board. 

o   Encourage people to bring questions in two weeks during the budget presentation in plenary. 

·       Standing Committees

o   Strategic Issues Committee

·       Policy on RSOs. 

·       Conversations about the Provost Directive

·       International programs

·       Employee evaluation resolution. Add language in reviews that acknowledges challenges due to COVID. 

·       Change of University Research Council name and charge. 

o   Academic Policies Committee

·       More changes in online education policy as trends and issues emerge.

·       Meeting as EPC next week regarding curriculum and course standards policy. Certificate discontinuance. 

·       Grad admissions policy sent to GC.

·       Continued issues around the Academic Calendar. 

·       Two other grad policies being revised. 

o   Curriculum Review and Approval Committee

·       Four items today. 

·       Met with Provost about program development. 

o   Faculty Affairs Committee

·       Revisions to Sabbatical policy to better align with CBA and be more efficient. Should either the university-level review or the college-level review be removed. 

·       Discussing request by President to be removed from the RTP process. May recommended a removal of President from process unless adjudication needed upon a dispute. 

o   Student Affairs Committee

·       BIPOC resolution back in first reading. Gave thanks for the student members for their work on the resolution. 

·       Met with Dean Way to discuss grading policy options for this semester

·       Drops for non-payment policy in discussion. 

Consent Agenda 

5.    Recommendation from the Faculty Affairs Committee (FAC): Temporary Modification of Academic Senate Policy #S20-241 Policy Resolution on Retention, Tenure and Promotion,consent item.

·       Sen. Rubin moved the item– minor revisions due to errors in the version that was passed last year. Three different word changes. Section 1.8 needs to clarify that the policy is effective this academic year. 

o   Date that the policy was effective was not clear. 

·       Chair Albiniak asked if there was a request to debate – none was voiced. 

·       Endorsed by General Consent @ 2:42 p.m.

Old Business

6.    Recommendation from the Executive Committee (Ex Comm): Excused Absences Policy—second reading. 

·       Vice Chair Wilson moved the item.

·       Guest Nicole Bolter spoke to the item. Change in title. Lines 25-26 were also modified to be clearer about serious illness. Extended absences moved to multiple absences. 

·       Sen. Bloom – Point of information: Line 5-6 refer to the lack of a policy on attendance. Where is that present? Answer (Sen. Way): This was added in response to issues with international students. There is no campus-wide or system-wide attendance policy. 

·       Sen. Bloom asked to have the language changed. Sen. Gerber pointed out that as the item is in second reading a motion is needed. 

·       Sen. Bloom made a motion to revise line 7: Substitute “attendance policy” for “guidelines” on line 7 so that it reads “… make themselves aware of each faculty member's attendance policyby carefully reading the syllabus. “ Sen. Wilczak seconded. No objections raised. 

·       VOTE: Amendment passed  45/0/3 (Y/N/A) @ 2:49 p.m.

·       Sen. Bloom: Propose a motion to add underlined language to lines 38-40: “Students who realize after enrollment that they will have extended or multiple absences are responsible for consulting with the faculty member to see whether it will be possible to complete the course requirements within the first two weeks of the semester.” Sen. Way seconded. 

·       Sen. Hulick made a friendly amendment to move the language to earlier in the sentence as it seems to refer to a student completing the course requirements in the first two weeks of the semester. “Students who realize after enrollment that they will have extended or multiple absences are responsible for consulting with the faculty member within the first two weeks of the semester to see whether it will be possible to complete the course requirements.”

·       Sen. Hines spoke in opposition. What if the student must miss after the first two weeks?

·       Sen. Bloom feels it allows students to look at their calendar and be sure they have identified when they have absences at that point. 

·       Sen. Hulick spoke again in opposition. There can be unknown events throughout the semester. 

·       Sen. Bloom argued that students should be encouraged to identify their absences at the start of the semester and decide whether they can continue. 

·       Sen. Nielsen – made a motion for a friendly amendment: “Students who realize after enrollment that they will have planned extended or multiple absences are responsible for consulting with the faculty member within the first two weeks of the semester to see whether it will be possible to complete the course requirements. 

·       VOTE: Motion for Bloom//Hulick/Nielsen amendment passed. 34/9/6 (Y/N/A) @ 2:56 p.m.

·       VOTE: Main motion vote: Motion passes. 45/0/3 (Y/N/A) @ 2:57 p.m.

 

7.    Recommendation from the Curriculum Review and Approval Committee (CRAC): New Certificate in Climate Change Causes, Impacts, and Solutions—second reading.

·       Sen. Hines moved the item. 

·       Guest Laura Burrus spoke to the item by introducing the certificate and summarized its goals. Courses form four different colleges, no new courses, should draw students in. 

·       Sens. Hennessey, Hines, Rubin & Nielsen spoke in favor of the motion. 

·       VOTE: Motion passes 51/0/1 (Y/N/A) @ 3:08 p.m.

8.    Recommendation from the Curriculum Review and Approval Committee (CRAC): Graduate Certificate in Enterprise Cybersecurity—second reading.

·       Guest Rufus Sayeed addressed question from last meeting about resource issues. He noted that ISYS deactivated three courses in the past three years (about one a year) so overall they are not adding new courses. 

·       Sen. Hines spoke in favor

·       VOTE: Motion passed. 47/0/3 (Y/N/A) @ 3:11 p.m.

9.    Recommendation from the Student Affairs Committee (SAC): Resolution on Prioritizing in the Recruitment, Hiring and Retention of Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) Staff, Faculty and Administrators—second first reading. 

·       Sen. Chen introduced the item, summarized some of the changes from the version brought to the floor in the previous meeting.  

·       Sen. Carillo – yielded time to Dae P, a student member of SIC. Pointed out that this is only a start and much more needs to be done. 

·       Sen. Way - why are we back in first reading? Response - The committee was not sure which direction they wanted to go and felt it was easier to go back to first. 

·       Sen. Hulick – Concerned about language about hiring. Not always a lot of time to consider have a hiring committee for lecturer appointments.  

10.Recommendation from the Executive Committee (Ex Comm): Resolution Affirming Shared Governance and Budget Transparency in Times of Crisis—first reading (time approximate 4:00pm)

·       Moved to item #11 and came back to this at 4:17 p.m.

·       Chair Albiniak handed the “gavel” to Vice Chair Wilson.

·       Chair Albiniak spoke to the item. 

·       Sen. Hulick – provided alternative wording for resolved 9.

·       Sen. Harvey - That the Academic Senate of SF State strongly urge continuing support for, and advancement of, shared governance as a central element of decision-making on campus and on issues of the budget at all levels (ESPECIALLY budget priorities)

·       Sen. Goldman – Part of the purpose is to strengthen and reaffirm …? Still need to look into the issues in the directive but we now have more time.

·       Sen. Harvey – 

·       Sen. Woo – Hard to focus on one thing. But need to have more shared governance around budget priorities, and give more power to the departments to make decisions. Need to address the loss of TT faculty. How do we measure service? What about the importance of community service and can it be better valued? 

·       Sen. Drennan – add (insert after #2?) WHEREAS service, including participation in shared governance, represents a significant investment of faculty and staff time and labor, often without garnering credit toward tenure and promotion;  revise (6) RESOLVED That the Academic Senate of SF State urge that service be considered an essential element of, *and acknowledged as a significant part of*, faculty and staff workload so that all individuals of our campus community can contribute and participate in shared governance at all levels *while maintaining reasonable and appropriate workloads in teaching and professional development and growth*;

·       Sen. Stowers  - need something that encourages us to understand how we got to this place. There have been herculean efforts to put into place systems that are required for us to plan to move forward. Also, UBC has become an invaluable resource for budget literacy and transparency and asks for support of the efforts that are already being made. Can’t continue to talk about generalities.

New Business

11.Recommendation from the Academic Policies Committee (APC): Proposed changes to F20-264, Online Education Policy—first reading. 

·       Sen. Stowers moved the motion. 

·       Sen. Beatty spoke to the item. Policy was revised in three places from that in the fall. 1) Defined Learning Management System (LMS). 2) Added section about student workload using Carnegie unit where by 1/3 of class expectations are met in class and 2/3 are met out of class. There is a challenge in asynchronous sessions with this definition. Encourage faculty to work with CEETL for help in designing their courses to meet the requirements. 3) Recording synchronous class sessions requires notification of students and they must have an option to de-identify themselves. Recordings can only be used by themselves for class purposes Students can’t capture audio, video or chat using their own devices by executive order. Some students do have accommodations through DPRC and may be allowed to record. 

·       Sen. Bloom – Can someone use a different LMS? Can that language in the policy be broadened to avoid specific LMS? 

·       Sen. Gerber – Is it required to use iLearn? No, but it is the only one LMS supported by Academic Technology. Faculty are not required to use iLearn. 

·       Sen. Harvey – Line 199 - recording class sessions. What if a professor asks for permission and gets it? How could they then use it? Could a consent form be developed? 

12.Recommendation from the Curriculum Review and Approval Committee (CRAC): Revised Degree Title for the BA in Family and Community Sciences—first reading.

·       Sen. Hines moved the item. 

·       Guest Gus Vouchilas spoke to the item - Program prepares students to work with families in the communities so the proposed revised title is clearer. 

·       Sen. Hulick – spoke in favor. 

13.Recommendation from the Curriculum Review and Approval Committee (CRAC): New Certificate in Ethnic Studies Empowerment—first reading.

·       Sen. Hines moved the item. 

·       Guest Associate Dean Esquibel spoke to the item– the certificate proposed to support incarcerated youth. Would fulfil the Golden four and make it easier for a formerly incarcerated person to enter the CSU after they are released. 

·       Sen. Hines – really something for the campus to be proud of. Wonderful collaboration. 

·       Sen. Bloom – How is this different that other programs approved in the past year? Could the title be changed to differentiate it? She gave the example of “The Praxis of Ethnic Studies:  Transformative Empowerment.”

·       Sen. Le – Very innovative and speaks to our mission. 

·       Sen. Ramirez – Brought up the issue of finances. How would incarcerated youth finance it? 

·       Sen. Nielsen – Support but would like to hear more about finances. 

 

Presentations

14.Presentation by Guisselle Nunez, Associate Vice President of Strategic Marketing & Communications, and Katherine Lynch, Senior Associate Vice President of Enrollment Management, “SMC’s Road Ahead with an SEM Update” (time approximate 3:30-3:45)

·       Sen. Bloom – Will surveys target specific areas of excellence on campus such as ETHS?  Nunez – will squeeze in as much as they can without getting survey fatigue.

15.Presentation by James Martel, CFA Chapter President, “Update from the CFA: Toward a Student, Staff and Faculty Based University” (time certain 3:45-4:00)

·       Three areas he’ll speak to. 1) CFA issues re: directive memo. 2) Context for concerns; 3) Alternative view of how decision making might move in a more democratic manner. Directive memo moves decision making away from faculty. Decentralized planning needed. General enrollment targets could allow for small classes. A 3:3 teaching load shouldn’t need to be justified. If there is a full professor who isn’t pulling their weight, then they should be made to do more service or research rather than teach a fourth course. Faculty research and RSOs. By undermining research funding we are shifting work to lecturer faculty. There are a variety of models for how universities are run. President Martel reviewed the history of the development of the university system. Feels the CSU is moving towards a profit model. Brought up monies that were supposed to be sent on lecturer faculty and moving them to the tenure-track but were not. This led to a lack of confidence in the administration. Pointed out the huge percentage increase in administrators over a short time. The CFA is moving to a decentralized model by developing the department rep system. Wants the administration to adopt something similar where the faculty are in control, perhaps coordinating through the Senate. 

·       Sen. Drennan – healthy that we’re having these debates. Bleeding tenured faculty and have to figure out a way to fix that. How can we increase hiring of T/TT faculty? She posted a CFA link that explains the circumstances (https://www.calfac.org/post/where-money). Can we get the earmarked money back that we didn’t use for that purpose? Pres. Martel supports that effort and would like some of them to be lecturer conversions. 

·       Sen. Harvey – How can the CFA and Senate work together to address the items Pres. Martel brought up? Answer: Institutionalize the relationship between the Senate and CFA by having members of each group on the other. Also want to work with other unions. 

·       Sen. Way – As a former union activist in the CFA, she knows there are other ways to hire lecturer faculty into tenure-track positions. There are ways to write job descriptions to make it easier to hire lecturer faculty into tenure-track positions. Pres. Martel doesn’t want it to happen without a concerted effort, recognizing that it may or may not happen otherwise. 

·       Sen. Bloom noted that GCOE is still at a 4-4 teaching load. Their Dean at the time did not request it. Can the faculty of the college request that they be moved into a 3-3? Workload is not equitable. Called on the CFA and Senate to work with them to address the problem. Pres. Martel believes the crisis is an opportunity to re-conceptualize the university. 

16.Adjournment at 4:30pm