College of Arts & Sciences Faculty Meeting

April 28, 2006

Meeting Minutes

College divisions

The faculty of the College of Arts & Sciences adopted three motions concerning the creation of divisions in the College:

1.) The faculty of the College of Arts & Sciences embrace the concept of divisions as outlined in the CASFC meeting minutes of April 17, 2006. The division structure is the best way to begin to address the administrative, research support, and advocacy needs in the College without fragmenting the major disciplines.

The vote on this motion was: Yea = 28; Nay = 1; Abstain = 0.

2.) The faculty of the College of Arts & Sciences favor the creation of divisions along the lines of Model I outlined in the CASFC meeting minutes of April 17, 2006. A strong division chair, with the help of support staff, can best address the needs of the College. Division chairs shall be elected by members of the division.

The vote on this motion was: Yea = 26; Nay = 2; Abstain = 0.

3.) The six divisions outlined in the CASFC meeting minutes of April 17, 2006 will serve as the starting point for creating divisions in the College. The academic units will collaborate with the dean to design the divisions. The division structure is voluntary; no discipline will be forced into a division.

The vote on this motion was: Yea = 26; Nay = 0; Abstain = 0.

Amendments to Bylaws

The bylaws of the College have not been amended since they were adopted by the faculty on October 31, 2003. The College of Arts & Sciences Faculty Council recommended a number of amendments to eliminate inconsistencies and contradictions, to reflect new governance structures and the vision of the faculty, to allow for new voting technologies, to facilitate committee assignments, to update the tenure and promotion process, and to strengthen faculty governance. The proposed amendments were discussed. The Faculty of the College are to vote on the amendments via paper ballot.

Faculty Retention

The problem of faculty retention was discussed. There seem to be both systemic and individual reasons for attrition. Systemic reasons include: rising housing costs in the area; uncompetitive salaries for the high caliber faculty we pursue; administrative loads placed on junior faculty; lack of support staff; and a gap between research expertise and expectations and university support for that research.

Prepared by Thomas Smith