M111317

Faculty Senate Meeting Minutes
Monday November 13, 2017
3:30 - 5:00 CH 126
Summary of Action
 Voted to choose “option 3” as outlined in the proposal that describes the make-up of the University Committee so that it includes the 7 college committee chairpersons + 2 at large, non-tenure track faculty at Associate or Full level, ex officio: Grad Dean, and 1 non-voting student representative. The vote passed with 4-opposed.  The revised FAR form that includes Uniscope was approved by majority vote with 2 abstentions. I. Call to Order II. Informal Statements and Proposals
None
III. Approval of the Minutes
Minutes approved
Mention made from floor to watch spelling of names and avoid abbreviations of names.
IV. President's Report a. Abillity Ally training - needs to be completed by end of the year. In person classes available through MyTraining portal on MyWSU; Online sessions available through Bb – use selfenroll option, see link on senate page. b. KBOR meeting @ WSU on Nov 15. Thoughts from senate floor were requested for issues to share with KBOR – none were offered. c. Joint UP/USS meeting held last week, another is planned for spring. Issues discussed included non-salary based incentives in lieu of raises. It was stated that a cross campus survey would be conducted. Discussed ongoing development of service standards. Discussed game-day parking challenges. Campus police are part of this meeting and police shared details about handling these changes. You can register to get text messages about game day parking restrictions. Discontent regarding health quest – send complaints to benefits@kdheks.gov.
IV. Committee Reports a. Gen. Ed. Committee – considering requests regarding 120 hour exceptions and whether it is time to open a dialogue about revising general education guidelines. b. Rules committee – Still have two openings.
V. New Business
a. Non-Tenure Track promotion policy (1st Reading )
i. Summary document with implementation details ii. FAQs iii. Full policy text
Dr. Bardo and PET are eager to take a look at these policies. Submission due by March 23. There will be an opportunity for non-tenure track faculty to go up for promotion in the spring. Department review deadline April 20. College review deadline May 18. Q- Is the administration expecting an up or down vote from the senate? A Yes. Q – Has this policy been shown to the non-tenure track faculty who this affects? A – Yes, they sit in this senate and had members on the committee that put this policy together. Q – What is the proportion on non-tenure members on the proposed University Committee? A- Trying to establish the fairest arrangement.
Discussed which option of the proposed compositions of the University Promotion Committee was favored by senate.
Voted to choose “option 3” as outlined in the proposal, which includes 7 college committee chairpersons + 2 at large, non-tenure track faculty at Associate or Full level, ex officio: Grad Dean, and 1 non-voting student representative. The vote passed with 4-opposed.
VI. Old Business a. Revised FAR form with Uniscope (2nd reading) – Discussion focused on section IV “positive risk taking.” A motion was forwarded to approve, motion was seconded and the senate voted in favor with 2 abstentions. The new FAR form is anticipated to come into effect for calendar year 18. b. Coaching and Corrective Action (2nd reading) - Discussion focused on the scope of this policy and how it pertained to faculty with operational positions and how “Leadership” is defined as it is used in the policy. Q – How is “at-will” defined with respect to faculty? A“At will” applies to faculty in their non-faculty roles, such as administrative roles. Concerns were raised from senators regarding wording under “Involuntary Separation” which stated that “Any employee, including tenured faculty, who is charged with and/or convicted of a criminal offense may be immediately separated from University employment….” The objection was the inclusion of “tenured faculty” in this statement. It was decided to have another reading of this policy before voting. c. Investigative Leave (2nd reading) A motion was made to close debate and the move was seconded. Concerns were then raised about the section describing the procedure to be followed. Specific concerns included issues of barring a faculty member's access to office, e-mail and other resources during an investigation. Further discussion regarding the invoking of confidentiality on employees being investigated took place. In response, it was stated by general counsel's office that this does not apply to legal advice. Concerns persisted on the senate floor about language regarding confidentiality being imposed on an employee under investigation. The prior motion was voted on and the failed to pass. VII. Meeting Adjourned 4:58.