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The Arts and Sciences Council, September 19, 2013, 3:30-5:00, UMC 247

Meeting Minutes

Representatives present: Michela Ardizzoni, FRIT; Reece Auguiste, FILM; Daniel Barth, PSYC; Paul Beale, PHYS; Giulia Bernardini, HUMN; Jack Burns, APS;  Brian Catlos, RLST; Cathy Comstock, RAPS; Bert Covert, ANTH; Damian Doyle, PWR; Francoise Dureese, AAH; Amma Ghartey-Tagoe Kootin, THDN; Phillip Gilley, SLHS; Weiqing Han, ATOC; Asunción Horno-Degado, SPAN; David Jonas, CHEM; Daniel Jones, HONR; Daniel Kaffine, ECON; Catherine Labio, ENGL; Greg Odorizzi, MCDB; Mark Pittenger, HIST; Mike Radelet, SOCY; Matthias Richter, ALC; Elizabeth Root, GEOG; Rob Rupert, PHIL; Greg Tucker, GEOL; Beverly Weber, GSLL; Bianca Williams, ETHN

Representatives not present:  Cynthia Carey, IPHY; Diane Conlin, CLAS; Vanja Dukic, APPM; David Grant, MATH; Alison Jaggar, WGST; Susan Moore, SLHS; Bhuvana Narasimhan, LING

Also in attendance: Steven Leigh

The meeting was called to order at 3:37 pm.

Catherine Labio thanked the assembled representatives for attending and introductions were made.

The minutes of the April 18, 2013 meeting were approved, 28 yes, 1 abstention.

Dean’s Remarks, Steven Leigh

Dean Leigh acknowledged the recent storm and wished the best for the representatives.

The Academic Quality Initiative that was developed last year by the ASC’s Planning Committee has been important to the college this summer in planning for this academic year; all the chairs and directors have a copy and initiatives have been made to align with it. What was most impressive about the initiative to Dean Leigh is that it is selective and focuses on items that are pedagogically important and items that elevate the University’s research profile. On September 10, US News and World Report’s college rankings came out and ���������� Boulder’s ranking went up 11 points, taking the college from 97th to 86th. This appears to be, in part, due to the increase in smaller classes and the raised SAT scores of incoming students. The Esteemed Scholars Program has contributed to the quality of the college’s incoming students.

The University of Colorado will soon be using a common application.

The Shakespeare Festival exceeded projected ticket sales this year by $100,000.

Last year the college had fewer students than projected which caused 1.5 million dollars to be removed from the continuing budget. This year there is a projected 0.7 percent increase in students. A primary goal for the college will be to improve the 6-year graduation rate from 68 percent to 80 percent; Dean Leigh will ask the Planning Committee to work on this. An improved graduation rate has pedagogical as well as financial advantages. Currently, the college doesn’t know who the students that leave the university are, statistically; are they in-state or out-of-state; are they in RAPS or not?

The campus has predicated a shortfall due to an increase in scholarships and unanticipated compliance issues. Storm clean-up will also affect the budget. Dean Leigh asked the faculty to pay attention to their students, some of who have issues with attendance due to the storm.

The Office of Contracts and Grants (OCG) hired A & S’s Budget and Finance Director, Cynthia Husek over the summer and she has already made positive changes in that office. Ms. Husek has been replaced by Amy Lavens.

Dean Leigh is working with the arts departments to develop a School of Fine Arts, an interdepartmental program of fine arts.

Professor Labio and Dean Leigh met recently and talked about the ad hoc committee to consider the core curriculum that was created by the ASC at the February 2013 meeting. This committee will likely be made up of ASC members and people from outside the ASC. Its charge will be to recommend whether the core should be changed and to make recommendations for the establishment of a regular review process for the core. Depending on the recommendations of the ad hoc committee, another committee could be appointed later to work on making specific recommendations towards revising the core.

Dean Leigh would like to work more with the Diversity Committee this year. He would like the ASC to work on issues that will determine where we are as a college in 20 years; he also has a committee of chairs and directors whom he’s asked to work on issues in the  two to three year time span.

Shelly Bacon and Peter Freitag have taken over for Elizabeth Guertin on an interim basis in the Academic Advising Department. There will be a national search for a new Director of Advising. Advising has been moving away from the departments and there will be discussions on whether or not this is a positive trend.

In response to a question, Dean Leigh said the College of Environmental Sustainability isn’t currently a priority as the college is putting its efforts into the new School of Fine Arts; setting up a new school takes a lot of faculty time and the college can’t afford to work on two at the same time. The School of Fine Arts will provide a valuable template for developing the next new school. 

Chair’s Remarks, Catherine Labio

ASC representatives are members of standing and ad hoc committees. The ASC only meets eight times a year so, as a body, it is difficult to accomplish much without active committees. There are many issues from last year that the ASC can follow up on.

The Online Instruction Committee has already met and David Jonas spoke briefly on that committee’s past work and goals. The Committee wants to follow up on what was decided last year; defining online courses, departmental review and insuring they are equivalent to regular courses. The committee also looked at the possibility of some kind of residency requirement. It is possible with an increase in online courses that a student in a major that doesn’t require many classes in that major, could come from a community college, receive a degree from ���������� without setting foot on campus. The committee wants to know how last year’s resolution has been implemented.

Dean Leigh has brought the Online Committee report to Anne Heinz, Dean of Continuing Education and Richard Nishikawa, Assistant Dean of Curricular Affairs. One of the main concerns is the labeling of the courses and whether or not the computer system can handle that. The college also has contact hour requirements that are making labeling the online courses difficult. The committee will look at this and continue discussions with Dean Leigh. Department review and transfer credit articulation will be important.

Professor Jonas asked the ASC representatives if they wanted to consider a residency requirement with online courses; there was no opposition.

CSU’s Global Campus has not generated any graduates from its multi-million dollar investment. 

The University of Colorado is currently not offering credit for Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) of which there are 2 in A&S, in Physics and English. 15,000-20,000 students are enrolled. MOOCs provide exposure to the ���������� Boulder campus but there is no revenue model. The Online Instruction Committee was formed because they want to address the issues before more online courses are developed. The committee wants to do what’s right for the university and alumni. Rob Rupert of the Curriculum Committee told the ASC representatives how the Curriculum Committee has been following up on the Online Instruction Report. From the report: “The Curriculum Committee is also charged with creating and providing departments with guidelines for online instruction, including acceptable methods of evaluating student work and performance.” Dean Nishikawa has requested syllabi from instructors who have been teaching in the summer pilot program and Darna Dufour, Associate Dean of Faculty and Administration has been talking to Michele Jackson, ASSETT Director, about best practices and when the committee has the information it will develop recommendations for reviewing online courses to help the departments and standardize the review process. The Curriculum Committee would also like the ASC to revisit recommendations that were brought to the ASC a year ago. Professor Labio thanked the representatives who have already agreed to serve on a standing or ad hoc committee. Over the summer, committees were formed with a variety of members from each academic division. As per the by-laws, the ASC also has an Executive Committee, which consists of the chairs of the standing committees and the chair of the ASC. Professor Labio would like that committee be up and running soon since the Executive Committee sets the agenda and appoints committee members. Professor Labio would also like to include chairs of ad hoc committees in the Executive Committee, at least on an informal basis for this academic year. The matter can be discussed at a future meeting and, if appropriate, formalized in the bylaws at a later date. There were no objections.

Committee lists will be sent out shortly; committees are asked to meet and choose a chair as soon as possible. If anyone is interested in being a member of any particular committee, including the ad hoc Core Review Committee, please contact Professor Labio or Janice Jeffryes.

One of the roles of ASC representatives is to disseminate information to the respective departments. Drafts of the minutes of each ASC meeting will come out within a week of the meeting to allow for faster dissemination of information.

Professor Labio invited representatives to provide suggestions regarding  guest speakers and subjects they would like to see discussed by the ASC. The Executive Committee will factor in these suggestions as they set the agendas of future meetings.

In the meantime, Professor Labio asked representatives if they would like to hear from the Implementation Committee of the new College of Media, Communication, and Information. With the permission of the ASC, she will invite Merrill Lessley, chair of the Implementation Committee and Chris Braider, director of Journalism and Mass Communication to keep the ASC updated at a forthcoming ASC meeting. Other possible topics for future meetings include the condition of the campus after the floods and the library.

A message from Jerry Peterson, President of the Phi Beta Kappa Alpha Chapter, was distributed. PBK members in particular are encouraged to contact Professor Peterson..

The Honor Code, Megan Petersen, Director of Faculty Relations

The Honor Code Office is a student run office and is currently working on making the process of filing an Honor Code grievance easier. A handout was distributed giving general information. Plagiarism is the most common violation; faculty don't always report incidents when they happen and delays make it more difficult to investigate. There are 2 different forms. The Accusation Report Forms is used when a student denies that he/she has violated the Honor Code; this goes to the Honor Code Council and an investigation will begin. The second form is the Violation Report Form; this is used when, after a student is confronted, the student accepts responsibility. The Honor Code Council will then consider non-academic sanctions.

The Honor Code Office wants to provide students with due process and a student is presumed innocent until proven guilty. It was recommended, to protect faculty members, that academic sanctions are not given until the student is found guilty of an Honor Code violation. A number of the assembled representatives felt they are in the best position to determine guilt. Other faculty members use the Honor Code office only if they are unsure of a violation.

When a student has an accusation that brings them to the Honor Code Office a second time (or the 1st time for a graduate student), suspension or expulsion is considered.

The Honor Code offers seminars on writing papers properly and on ethics. Janet DeGrazia, CHBE, (Janet.Degrazia@colorado.edu) is the faculty advisor. Ms. Petersen encouraged the representatives to call the office or visit the website for more resources.

The meeting was adjourned at 5:00 pm.

Minutes submitted by Janice Jeffryes