Mānoa Faculty Senate Executive Committee
Minutes of April 27, 2009

Present: Crookes, Crosby, Hilgers, Keil, Ross, Tiles, Wakayama

3pm

1 Minutes of previous meeting were approved as amended.

2 Chair’s report (on ACCFSC meeting, and on MET meeting). Presidential Candidates will be here for two days each. There will be open meetings on Oahu and there will be meetings of the ACCFSC with them. Candidate meetings will also be broadcast to the neighbor island campuses.

3 Review of standing committee closing reports

SEC members will look these over prior to the Faculty Senate meeting. Chairs of standing committees will briefly summarize at that meeting.

4 CAPP resolution to approve a BS in Computer Engineering, along with the full proposal for the new degree will be added to the May 6, 2009 agenda.

5 CAB is working on revisions to the UHM regulations (M3.101) governing reorganization proposals (consistent with System regulation A3.101, but for Manoa). Faculty Senate should see a draft even if it is not final; then it must be reviewed by VC Cutshaw’s office.

6 Results of SEC Election were certified.

7 Request for Senators to Serve on WASC Thematic Teams

SEC has received a request from the VCAA’s office for senators to work on WASC-related essays, but this is a lot of work and the request is being submitted at short notice at the end of the academic year, and possibly only 11-month faculty can be active. Many faculty senators are coming to the end of their period of service, and the committee which assigns senators to committees will not meet during the summer. Thus it is difficult to respond, and SEC will communicate this to the VCAA.

8 Draft report from CSA on “multiple economic impacts on UHM international students”.

A document on this topic was forwarded to SEC from CSA. SEC will review it and discuss at next meeting.

9 Class sizes. Preliminary indications are that the administration is targeting class sizes in general for economic reasons, but they are not looking at the 1500 classes that have 20 or fewer students, and are looking at the 500 classes that are Writing Intensive, which do have caps of 20. (One may consult the “MAPS” reports that are available through UH System Institutional Research Office.) However, writing intensive classes were agreed as part of General Education which in turn comes under Faculty Senate; alterations in such a matter are also a faculty workload issue. SEC was informed about these developments. SEC will try to point out to the administration that moves on this topic must go through faculty governance channels.

4pm meeting with Chancellor Hinshaw

The Chancellor began the meeting by giving us a brief report on viral transmission in regard to swine flu and HI govt intention to passively screen visitors.

SEC communicated to the Chancellor about instructors who have been employed for longer than five years (full-time) and who have received notification of non-renewal. The union position is that such individuals cannot be let go in a summary fashion. SEC believes that different deans have acted in different ways, and that union issues have not been fully thought through by the administration. The Chancellor defended administration actions and assured us that in her communications with the UHPA President she had not been informed of any union complaints in this area (following the terms of Article 13 of the union contract). She and/or VC Cutshaw will attend informational meetings with union leaders this week on campus.

SEC expressed concern that the initial promises of integrity and transparency made about the prioritization process were not delivered on. SEC has heard many expressions of frustration from within the committees doing the work, even while it is felt that the conversations were useful. Yet many feel that the differences between input into the prioritization process and the recent tabulations of priorities at the VC level are questionable. SEC proposed that the prioritization now be done properly, de novo. SEC also reminded the Chancellor not to simply try to implement findings from this process directly July 1; and suggested that the Chancellor put out an interim summary statement to the faculty before the end of the academic year about this process.  SEC also suggested that the Chancellor try not to move too fast. She agreed though at the same time identified issues that were repeated as ones on which she thought she could go forward, and spoke in terms of broad themes that she was seeking to identify through this process, particularly ones in reference to which Manoa could be strengthened. She also emphasized that the Legislature was an audience for such a report and proposals, and currently did recognize Manoa’s distinctiveness.

Adjourned 5:15 pm

Respectfully submitted,
Graham Crookes