September 26th, 2023

 

Academic Senate

Plenary Meeting Minutes

Tuesday 26 September 2023

Hybrid – Zoom & Seven Hills

2:00 PM

 

OPEN FLOOR PERIOD:  2:00 - 2:10 PM

The Open Floor Period provides an informal opportunity for campus community members to raise questions or make comments directed to Senators, Senate officers or to university administrators. Please arrive promptly at 2:00 PM. Please limit comments to not more than three minutes per topic. We usually allow 5 minutes total, but extend this time today. Senators may make announcements under Item 3 below.

 

Chair Goldman announced the start of the open floor session at 2:01pm.

 

Sen. Brewer made an announcement about “Noche de Estrellas”

a bi-lingual astronomy event hosted by the Department of Physics & Astronomy. This was held on Thursday, September 28. See more information here: https://physics.sfsu.edu/event/noche-de-estrellas-4

 

CALL TO ORDER: 2:10 PM

 

Chair Goldman called the meeting to order at 2:10pm.

 

1. Approval of the Agenda for 26 September 2023

 

Sen. Drennan moved to approve the minutes as read. Ex Chair Albiniak seconded the motion. The agenda was approved as read at 2:13pm.

 

2. Approval of the Minutes for 12 September 2023

 

Sen. Musselman moved to approve the minutes as read. Sen. Holschuh seconded the motion. The minutes were approved as read at 2:14pm.

 

3. Announcements from the Floor

 

Sen. Pasion shared that SF State Transforms and CEETL have partnered to host a series of faculty write-ups, held on the first and third Tuesdays of the month at 1pm. They are also held on the second and fourth Fridays of the month at 3pm. More information below:

1st and 3rd Tuesdays 1-3pm hybrid (Lib 242, refreshments available)

2nd and 4th Fridays 1-3pm virtual

Interested parties may find more information here: https://ceetl.sfsu.edu/fall-2023-transforms-ceetl-faculty-writing-meet-ups

 

People may then RSVP here: https://tinyurl.com/TransformsWriting

 

4. Reports
   1. Chair’s Report

 

Chair Goldman gave notice that there are two presentations on today’s agenda. Chair Goldman expressed optimism that senate plenary meetings be two-way communication platforms: meeting attendees are invited to take information back to their home units and home units are, in turn, invited to bring issues of concern to the senate floor. Everyone has a role in the academic and fiscal issues we presently face. Chair Goldman also gave notice that the next Plenary meeting will be held on Oct 10 on Zoom only (7 Hills was not available to reserve that day).

 

No questions at this time.

 

1. 2. President’s Report

 

President Mahoney expressed hopefulness that everyone read her email explaining the tuition increase. She moved to dispel assumptions she has heard about this issue. The state is subsidizing the New West Campus Green construction, not students. The Cozen O'Connor study has brought important issues to light. The President noted that examples of problematic behavior not covered by Title IX still require our attention and care. She has formed an implementation team to explore the issue. Results of this team’s findings will be presented in a meeting in early 2024. She then moved to celebrate the work done by an exploratory group seeking to elevate black excellence in the CSU. SF State’s own Frederick Smith, Associate Vice President of Equity & Community Inclusion, is a part of this team.     More information about the exploratory group can be found here: https://www.calstate.edu/impact-of-the-csu/diversity/Documents/CSU-Blac…     

 

Sen. D’Alois offered news of an organization that connects older people with rooms to rent with students in need of housing. Who can she send this information to for students looking for housing?

 

President Mahoney advised Sen. D’Alois to send this information to Christopher Lujan, the Director of Food+Shelter+Success (christopherlujan@sfsu.edu).

 

No further questions

 

 

1. 3. Provost’s Report

 

Provost: offered a few quick updates. Faculty searches are underway, including in the College of Health & Social Sciences (HSS), The College of Business (CoB), and the College of Science & Engineering (CoSE). 26 total faculty searches will be completed. She also gave notice that over the past year, there have been 174 Retention, Tenure and Promotion (RTP) reviews. In other news, a study of the impact of tutoring on student retention found that 95% of student who tooak advantage of tutoring services returned for the following semester.

 

No questions.

 

1. 4. Standing Committee Reports

 

1. 1. 1. Academic Policies Committee

 

Sen. Chou gave notice that APC met last week to discuss policies surrounding grade forgiveness for graduate students. They bring an item to the floor: agenda item 7, Resolution in Support of Deepening and Re-Imagining the Senior Capstone, in first reading.

 

No questions.

 

1. 1. 2. Campus Curriculum Committee

 

Sen. D’Alois gave notice that CCC brings an item to the floor for second reading, the proposed Minor in Disability Studies. Guest Martha Kenney, Department Chair and Associate Professor in the department of Women and Gender Studies, will speak in support of the resolution. CCC gave additional notice that they bring an item for first reading, a Distance Education Authorization for the MA in International Relations.

 

No questions

 

1. 1. 3. Faculty Affairs Committee

 

Sen. Holschuh gave notice that FAC has no items to bring to the senate. However, Sen. Holschuh provided a few updates. FAC continues to work on an optional template to accompany the new bylaws policy. FAC is also exploring the role of chairs who are simultaneously Associate Professors in the RTP process. She invited comments and recommendations about this last topic.      

 

No questions.

 

1. 1. 4. Strategic Issues Committee

 

Alaric: gave notice that SIC does not bring new items to the floor. They continue to discuss the state of the budget and the campus instructional continuity policy.

 

No questions

 

1. 1. 5. Student Affairs Committee

 

Sen. Olsher gave notice that SAC does not bring new items to the floor. However, SAC held a discussion with Dr. Dai To, Associate Vice President for Disability Access and Student Well-Being. There has also been growing clarity around student fees (with help from the student fee advisory committee). This is good. They are also looking into the impact of low enrollment on instructionally related activity funding.

 

No questions.

 

INFORMATIONAL ITEMS

An informational item is a statement announcing the completion of a process, carried out in accordance with Senate policy, and requiring formal notification of the Senate at its conclusion.

There are no informational items today. We will be using parts of today’s meeting to instruct Senators in processes and procedures.

 

 

CONSENT ITEMS

A consent item is one deemed by the Chair to be non-controversial, requiring no debate. Any Senator may call the item to the floor, in which case it is considered as new business in first reading. If no Senator calls it to the floor, it is considered approved. It may be read into the record, or we may move directly to the next agenda items.

There are no consent items for today.

 

 

CONTINUING BUSINESS

Continuing (once called Old) Business involves items returning to the Senate, usually in Second Reading, but occasionally still in First Reading. Items in Second Reading belong to the Senate as a whole rather than to an individual or committee. Comments on Second Reading items should be confined to those for or against or proposing specific amendments. We ordinarily limit each speaker to three minutes. Senators may yield their time to non-Senators if needed. Amendments and the final document are passed or not passed by majority vote.

5. Recommendation from the Campus Curriculum Committee: A new Minor in Disability Studies, in second reading. You may find documentation at this link: Minor in Disability Studies (sfsu.edu). There are also documents in our iLearn and Box folders, including notes on responses to questions that arose during first reading.

 

Chair Goldman reminded senators and guests that this comes to the senate in second reading. Senators may speak for or against the item. Senators may also propose a specific amendment to the item. He summarizes the process.

 

Sen. D’Alois brought item 5 to the floor. Sen. D’Alois noted the helpful feedback offered during the item’s first reading. The senator explained that the minor anticipates 15 to 20 students per year, growing to a possible 100 after 5 or 6 years. The item proposes one internship with an option to add another as programmatically needed (as approved via a review process). Many courses meet GE requirements. Adding EXCO courses (Experimental College) would take away from the goal of the minor.

 

Dr. Kenney spoke in support of the resolution and explained that the Department of Women and Gender Studies (her department) will be housing the minor in Disability studies. She stated that SF State has been a leader in the disability right movements. Many faculty and students use the resources offered by the DPRC. Students interested in this topic have made their own ad hoc list of campus courses that apply a disability perspective in some way or another. Her group’s response was to formalize this. This impetus comes from the students themselves. 

 

Sen. Hellman Offered his support for this. This minor reflects well on the campus and our social justice mission. Paul Longmoore (professor of History at San Francisco State University since 1992 who became director of the Institute on Disability in 1996) would be proud.

Sen. Erickson offered his support. Given the stated cuts, will there be challenges when launching this?

 

Dr. Kenney shared that there are no challenges. The planning group anticipated the budget cuts and factored this into their planning. She explained that enough classes have been planned (many of which satisfy GE reqs) to prevent bottlenecks for students.

No other questions. Chair Goldman moved to put the resolution up for a vote. Chair Goldman explained that voters may vote for, against, or abstain. Rick launched the ballot. 

 

The motion was passed.

 

Chair Goldman offers thanks to the committee and departments.

 

 

NEW BUSINESS

New Business items are brought by a committee or individual to the Senate in First Reading, during which open discussion and debate may occur. We ordinarily limit each speaker to three minutes. Senators may yield their time to non-Senators if needed. The item is then returned to the Committee for further revision, to be brought back as Continuing Business in Second Reading.

6. Recommendation from the Executive Committee: Resolution on Faculty Trustee Attendance at Academic Senate Meetings, in first reading. Notifies the CSU Board of Trustees that Faculty Trustee Yee-Melichar has been formally invited to Academic Senate meetings, including the Plenary.

 

Vice Chair Harvey brought the item to the senate floor. He then explained the value of the institutional memory held by people who have been in the senate.

 

No other comments were raised.

Sen. Olsher seconded the movement of the item to its second reading. The motion was put to a vote.

 

The motion was adopted. The item was brought to second reading.

 

Sen. Hellman offered his full support for the resolution.

 

Vice Chair Harvey offered that a resolution is a statement of principle that benefits the shared governance body as a whole. Faculty Trustee Yee-Melichar’s wisdom benefits this body. This is a statement of the senate’s principles.

 

Vice Chair Harvey moved to raise the resolution to a vote. David H seconded the motion. The resolution was put to a vote.

 

The motion was adopted, and the resolution passed.

 

Chair Goldman moved to break for 5 minutes.

 

Chair Goldman moved to reconvene the meeting at 3:16pm.

 

7. Recommendation from Academic Policies Committee: Resolution in Support of Deepening and Re-Imagining the Senior Capstone, in first reading. (Title links to draft in box.com.) Reminds us that all programs are required to have a capstone experience and makes recommendations to align this with experiential learning in the University Strategic Plan.

 

Sen. Chou brought the resolution to the floor.

 

Discussion was had about the history and drafting particulars of the resolution. The first whereas clause lists a date of 2015. Concerns were raised about the hidden costs of cap stone projects. The APC was excited by the resolution because it situates CEETL (an interdisciplinary resource) as a space to discuss ideas and best practices that are also cost effective. Many departments were consulted about best practices.

Chair Goldman observed that there is now an opportunity to bring this back next time for second reading. He recommended that the resolution be distributed to the Chairs Council.

 

Chair Goldman offered his thanks to the APC.

 

 

8. Recommendation from the Campus Curriculum Committee: Distance Education Authorization for MA in International Relations, in first reading. https://nextbulletin.sfsu.edu/courseleaf/courseleaf.cgi?page=/programadmin/135/index.html&step=tcadiff

 

Sen. D’Alois brought the item to the senate floor. Sen. D’Alois offered a summary of the DEA, emphasizing its positive impact on adult learners. However, a question was raised during CCC discussions: If passed, will this resolution allow students to take these classes while they study abroad?

Discussion was had about this question. Students may take one online class per semester during their study abroad.

 

 

PRESENTATIONS

 

9. Dylan Mooney, Chair of Staff Council, “Staff Council Update.”

 

Chair Mooney: explained the makeup and activities of the Staff Council. He gave notice that there will be Staff Welcome event on October 4 on the Administration Building patio. He gave further notice of project the council is working (e.g. awards for faculty, feedback surveys, and the filling of vacant seats). A proposal of a staff garage sale was floated. People were invited to reach out to the Staff Council for more information: AskStaffCouncil@sfsu.edu

 

10. Dr. Anoshua Chaudhuri, Senior Director, Center for Equity & Excellence in Teaching & Learning (CEETL), "A CEETL Update."

 

CEETL Senior Director Chaudhuri described her professional background and enthusiasm for this new role. She then described 8 opportunities for faculty to engage, via workshops and events. See all the events here: https://ceetl.sfsu.edu/courses

 

Sen. Erickson offered his support and thanks to CEETL.

 

Adjournment: Time definite 3:38 PM

 

Ryan Gurney

Secretary

 

Attendance

 

Guests

POST-PLENARY FLOOR PERIOD

This is ordinarily an informal opportunity for senators and guests to meet, exchange information, or follow up on items or questions emerging from the meeting. It will ordinarily run for thirty minutes from the end of formal business, but not beyond 5:00 PM, if people remain online or in the room.