In an effort to improve communication between ECS/UAS and faculty colleagues, the Executive Committee of the Senate (ECS) at its August 17, 2022, retreat reaffirmed a recommendation from August 12, 2021, that each week, a general message will be sent out to all faculty. This message will highlight the immediate past ECS/UAS meeting and give a preview of the upcoming ECS/UAS meeting. In particular, the highlight will summarize the key agenda items and provide context on the key votes; the pros and cons will be summarized and the key arguments for each highlighted. Herein are the highlights of the ECS meeting of February 17, and a preview of the ECS meeting of February 24. Meetings of the ECS are restricted to members of the ECS, their alternates, and others whom the ECS may invite, pursuant to SG 1.01.7.2. Meetings of the UAS are open pursuant to SG 1.01.6.2.
Highlights of ECS Meeting of February 17, 2023
Chair’s Report:
- The theme of the 2022-23 UAS Newsletter is Lakers Ready for Equity and Sustainability. The deadline to submit an article to Chair Ngassa is March 15.
- The Academic Policies and Standards Committee (APSC) unanimously approved the Kirkhof College of Nursing (KCON) proposal to be allowed to waive the prior learning credit limit and apply up to 32 credits for passing the NCLEX/RN exam at the discretion of the Unit for the RN to BSN students.
- The Winter 2023 faculty forum will be held on March 14 and 15 and the topic will be faculty workload. Some potential questions to reflect on include the following: What does faculty workload mean to you? Do we have inequities in faculty workload across units and across the university? What are the effects of class size on workload? How do we credit faculty for “nonstandard” assignments? How is reassigned time or release time earned? What is an ideal faculty workload? More information on signing up to attend the virtual sessions will be shared soon.
Provost’s Report:
- A vigil was held on Wednesday, February 15 for those impacted by the earthquake in Turkey and Syria. Many thanks to all those who assisted and continue to assist to show support for our faculty, staff, and students, with ancestral ties to the affected regions.
- In light of the shooting at MSU, the President is inviting everyone to two campus safety briefings on Thursday, February 23. At the Grand Rapids DeVos Center Campus, the safety briefing will take place at 1:00 p.m. in the Loosemore Auditorium. At the Allendale Campus, the safety briefing will take place at 3:00 p.m. in the Louis Armstrong Theatre at the Haas Center for Performing Arts.
- Accreditation reviews for the master’s programs in public administration and speech-language pathology have concluded.
Student Senate President’s Report:
- A vigil was held for the MSU community following the State of the Student Body address on Thursday. There was an impressive turnout. Students signed banners for MSU. Processing these events may be delayed in some and not resolved over the weekend. Students are supporting each other.
New Business:
- The faculty lead for the Teach-In, Karen Gibson, shared some feedback about the 2022 Teach-In and some recommendations for future Teach-Ins.
- The Faculty Personnel Policy Committee (FPPC) recommendation to allow the Assistant Vice President for Human Resources to designate a representative to serve as ex-officio, non-voting member was supported with recommendation to UAS.
- The FPPC proposal to amend SG 3.07.C by allowing faculty to request unfairly prejudicial comments be redacted in the LIFT surveys was supported with recommendation to UAS.
- The LIFT-MC Memo on Review and Feedback on Modifying Open-ended Questions on LIFT Forms will be back on the ECS agenda of February 24.
- The LIFT-MC Memo on Review and Feedback on Monitoring Response Rates will be back on the ECS agenda of February 24.
- The GC recommendation on independent study compensation was reviewed and this is planned to be an agenda item at the ECS summer retreat.
- The GEC recommendation on creation of subcommittees was reviewed. GEC proposed that no change is needed at this time and ECS thanked GEC for its work.
For more details on the above items, please go here.
Preview of ECS Meeting of February 24, 2023
- LIFT-MC Memo on Review and Feedback on Modifying Open-ended Questions on LIFT Forms
- LIFT-MC Memo on Review and Feedback on Monitoring Response Rates
- Discussion on GVSU Parking
- Discussion on Downtown Living and Learning Center
- Discussion on Active Shooter Response
- Faculty Facilities Planning Advisory Committee (FFPAC) Memo on Facilities Services Membership
- FFPAC Memo on Wayfinding Issues in Building Interior Spaces
- Affiliate Faculty Advisory Committee (AFAC) Memo on Affiliate Faculty Contract Length
Please, feel free to reach out to your ECS representative from your College/University Libraries to provide input on any ECS agenda item that you may like to weigh in on.
Thank you for your continuous interest in faculty governance.
Sincerely,
Felix N. Ngassa
Chair of ECS/UAS 2022-2023
