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SEPTEMBER 3, 2004
Present: B. Sauls (Chair), D. Boucher, C. Brooks, J. Dolhon, H. Fedrick, B. Pavlac, M. Rose, L. Sterling.
Guests: Fr. O’Hara, Fr. Grimes
The meeting convened at 2PM in SFCC 115
A. The Chair welcomed Fr. O’Hara and Fr. Grimes and asked them to comment on what they saw as issues needing Council attention during the coming year.
Fr. O’Hara noted feedback from the Middle States visit last spring stressed three issues the College needed to address:
· Faculty Governance
· The Core Curriculum
· Academic Appointment
Fr. Grimes distributed a summary of sections of the College Self-Study and the Middle States Report relevant to each issue. This material served as the focus for subsequent discussion that raised the following points:
· The current faculty governance structure at King’s produces a clear disconnect between faculty voting groups and academic divisions. Communication is hindered, both among the faculty and between the faculty and administration.
· Fr. Grimes noted that the present Core Curriculum is 21 years old. In fact, he noted that of the 10 individuals present in the room, only 2 were at King’s when the Core went into effect; furthermore, more than half the current King’s faculty were hired after the Core was approved. Our present curriculum does not reflect the input of the majority of current King’s faculty. Some Council members noted that if revisions of the curriculum are to reflect cutting-edge trends in higher education, those trends need to be identified.
· The Academic Appointment needs to be looked at. Council members agreed it might be useful to investigate analogous policies other institutions use to accomplish the same goals as the Academic Appointment. It is important to remember, however, that the King’s system must be considered in the context of the current quota system for academic ranks. The present quota system is here to stay, at least for the immediate future. Some Council members noted that given quota restrictions, the Academic Appointment serves it purpose, and the College has an honorable record of fulfilling the commitment implied by awarding the appointment.
B. Dr. Pavlac agreed to continue as Chair of the Academic & Professional Affairs Committee. The continuing agenda item for that committee is faculty governance. Dr. Boucher agreed to continue as Chair of the Committee on Curriculum & Teaching. That committee has three major issues pending from last year: (a) the Core curriculum, (b) student evaluation of teaching, and (c) policies governing the use of online courses at King’s.
Council Chair noted that membership on several committees is still incomplete, and that more active recruitment of faculty is needed. Dr. Rose commented that someone from the Business School should be encouraged to fill the one unfilled seat on Council. Dr. Boucher suggested that perhaps one way to increase faculty willingness to serve on committees would be to tie such service to credit-bank compensation. Several Council members agreed such a proposal might be beneficial.
C. The Chair announced plans for upcoming faculty meetings. For the September 24th meeting, faculty will meet in their respective voting groups and discuss the present governance proposal put forth by the A&P Committee. Feedback will be funneled to the A&P Committee for a revision of the proposal to be presented early in the Spring semester. The topic for the October faculty meeting will be the Core Curriculum.
Next Council meeting is September 17th at 2PM in SFCC 115.
The meeting adjourned at 3:30 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Charles Brooks
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