Faculty Meeting Minutes
March 5, 2021
Michael Orr, Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs, called the meeting to order at 3:32 p.m.
DOF/VPAA Orr welcomed everyone back to the second Faculty Meeting of the semester, acknowledging that we are approaching the one year anniversary of the COVID epidemic and pointing out that we have been holding faculty meetings via Zoom since cancelling the March faculty meeting a year ago. DOF/VPAA Orr noted that we have had some challenges recently and had to raise the COVID alert level as a precautionary measure. After recognizing the impact on teaching, advising, and mentoring caused by the increased numbers of students in isolation or quarantine, DOF/VPAA Orr expressed his thanks and appreciation for all the work everyone is doing in these challenging times. He then briefly reviewed the procedures to be followed during the Zoom meeting, including the process for voting, and requested that anyone wishing to contribute to the meeting use the raise hand feature so that they could be called upon to speak.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
DOF/VPAA Orr asked if there were any corrections to, or comments regarding, the minutes of the Faculty Meeting held February 5, 2021. Hearing none, he announced the minutes were approved.
OLD BUSINESS
There was no old business.
NEW BUSINESS
Promotions Committee
On behalf of the Promotions Committee, Professor Barbara Black introduced the following Motion (see attached):
MOTION: The Promotions Committee moves thatthe following edits be made to the Faculty Handbook (Part One, VIII, F. 2. vi.鈥攑. 132). [Deleted language is struck through. New language in bold.]
vi. All full-time faculty and those holding shared appointments in the departments concerned and in at least their third year of service (in ranks defined in Part One, Article VI [Appointments to the Faculty], Sections A [Tenure-Track Appointments] and E [Non-Tenure-Track Appointments], number 2b [Artist or Writer-in-Residence] shall be consulted and shall write letters to the Chair. The Department Chair must also request letters from Program Directors and from other Department Chairs if the candidate has offered courses in other programs or departments.In consultation with the candidate, the Department Chair may request letters from program directors and other chairs if the candidate鈥檚 affiliation with, or contribution to, another program or department has been especially consequential. If the candidate holds a proportional appointment, colleagues from both departments/programs must evaluate the candidate. Individuals writing letters of evaluation for the candidate shall clearly state whether they do or do not recommend promotion, and why, according to the criteria for continued service. The Chair鈥檚 letter shall present the Chair鈥檚 individual position as well as the department鈥檚. All these letters shall be forwarded to PC.
There were no informational questions raised. The Motion will lie over until the next Faculty Meeting.
Committee on Educational Policies and Planning
On behalf of the Committee on Educational Policies and Planning, Associate Professor Feryaz Ocakli introduced the following Motion (see attached):
MOTION: CEPP moves that Student Ratings and Feedback surveys (i.e., all-college quantitative forms and departmental long forms) be administered online in Spring 2021 and the results made available to instructors only; and that individual instructors may share the results of their Student Ratings and Feedback surveys at their discretion.
Professor Ocakli explained the rationale for the Motion, noting that CEPP has concluded that a return to the pre-pandemic policy on Student Ratings and Feedback for the spring semester is not advisable. The floor was then opened for discussion.
During the ensuing discussion, a number of points were raised, including the likelihood that pre-tenure faculty would be more impacted by this motion than other faculty members, the possibility that reviewers of tenure or promotion files may make assumptions about candidates based on whether or not evaluations were included in their files, the diminishment of student voices during the tenure and promotion process if evaluations are not included, a concern that the lack of student ratings and feedback surveys will also impact evaluations carried out by department chairs/program directors and faculty colleagues who are not members of ATC or PC, whether the timeline for promotion would be affected by the lack of evaluations during the pandemic, and a concern about requiring the administration of departmental long forms if they are only for the instructor鈥檚 benefit.
Following discussion, a motion was made and seconded to suspend the layover provision of the Motion. After CEPP explained the reason for the suspension of the layover period, the motion to suspend the layover period was voted on and passed by majority vote.
Thereupon, the Motion was voted on and passed by majority vote (after voting results were tallied over the weekend).
PRESIDENT鈥橲 REPORT
President Marc Conner began his report by reminding everyone that it has now been a month since our student, Samantha Sasenarine 鈥�21, passed away. A moment of silence in remembrance of her passing was observed. President Conner then indicated that details will be forthcoming with regard to an appropriate memorial and commemoration during commencement.
President Conner then acknowledged that the month of March always tends to be a busy and challenging month during the academic year, and that this is especially true this year. At the same time, he indicated that he had recently been struck by how robust the intellectual life of the College continues to be, highlighting a number of recent and upcoming events and lectures, including the Steloff lecture given by Kwame Anthony Appiah on identity and understanding, the Zankel lecture given by Elizabeth Esch on race and work in America, the interview of cultural critic, Saidiya Hartman of Columbia University, the juried student art exhibition in the Schick Art Gallery, the upcoming panel discussion with Cornel West and Robert Goerge, and the upcoming faculty panel on global views of the U.S. after the Trump presidency.
Thereafter, President Conner discussed the recent shift in the Covid alert levels. He explained that while the total number of positive cases is an important consideration, it is only one factor in the decision-making process; trend lines, predictive metrics, and the number of cases in Saratoga County are some of the additional factors that go into the decision-making process. He explained that in the previous week there had been an increase in the number of positive cases during testing and that the concern was that there could be additional active cases as more tests came in. Given the lag between when tests are administered and the results received, as well as uncertainty surrounding the more contagious variants of the virus, the decision was made to raise the COVID alert level from 2 to 3 out of an abundance of caution. After the following week鈥檚 testing resulted in only a few positive cases, the decision was made to lower the COVID alert level. Currently, there are 13 active cases on campus, but 6 of those are expected to come out of isolation over the weekend. There are still a large number of students in quarantine, but half of those students will be coming out of quarantine shortly as well. These sorts of considerations and clear communications will continue to be the norm in our ongoing management of COVID on campus.
President Conner then reported on the recent Board of Trustees鈥� meeting. He noted that the major themes for this meeting included attention to this year鈥檚 and next year鈥檚 budget. As a result of the combination of budget savings, the GSA freeze, the hiring freeze, careful expenditures, and crucial government relief, we are anticipating a balanced budget for this year. The Board was quite cognizant of what a remarkable achievement this is, given that a number of the Trustees sit on other higher education boards and have lots of connections in higher education and are aware of the struggles of other schools. President Conner stated that, in comparison to many of our peers, the College is well positioned for next year as well, while acknowledging that all of the financial challenges that we were facing prior to COVID still exist. President Conner then reported that the new board committee on diversity, equity and inclusion was very active at the February meeting and emphasized how much its work is being integrated with the other board committees. In addition to the Campus Master Planning project being a topic at the board meeting, a plenary speaker, David Feldman, a prominent economist of higher education at the College of William and Mary, gave a presentation on the economics of higher education, including such topics as the discount rate, financial aid models, enrollment management, and endowment. Following his presentation, the next day the Board discussed higher education finances in the wake of COVID with Professor Feldman.
Thereupon, President Conner provided an update on plans for this year鈥檚 Commencement. At this time, we are planning to hold commencement in person on May 22 as originally scheduled, hopefully at SPAC. At this time, due to venue restrictions, it is anticipated that family members and guests will be unable to attend. However, while that announcement has elicited disappointment, the majority of parents seem to understand and support the situation. It is anticipated that Commencement will be live streamed for parents, families, and friends who are not able to attend. The students are overwhelmingly positive about this and we are happy to be giving them something to which they can look forward. More information will be forthcoming in the coming weeks.
Addressing the Campus Master Planning project, President Conner reported that the College will be partnering with Ayers Saint Gross, one of the top higher education master planning firms in the country. The Steering Committee will consist of President鈥檚 Cabinet plus Joerg Bibow, the vice-chair of the Institutional Policy and Planning Committee (IPPC). The Task Force, co-chaired by Pat Fehling, Associate Dean of the Faculty, and Dan Rodecker, Director of Facilities, will include Mark Youndt and Erika Wojcik, as the faculty representatives; Amy Tweedy, as the staff representative; Joshua Woodfork, representing diversity (pending appointment of a new deputy chief diversity officer); Levi Rogers, representing sustainability; Gail Cummings-Danson, representing student affairs; and one student representative. This work will take about 15 months to complete with a goal of presenting a finished master plan for Board approval in May, 2022. President Conner reiterated the goal of this planning is to help us think about the future shape and scope of our campus, and to participate in a robust and