10.20.20 Senate Minutes

Establish a Quorum

A quorum was established, with 57 out of 87 Senators in attendance. 51 Senators responded to the quorum poll, plus 6 among panelists who could not use the polling tool.

Don Mulvaney, Senate Chair, called the meeting to order at 3:31pm. Chair Mulvaney gave attendees an overview of the basic procedures for the Zoom meeting format, and then began the meeting.

Approval of the minutes from the Senate Meeting of September 15, 2020:
No comments or revisions were suggested. Chair announced that the minutes were approved by unanimous consent.

Question: Herb Rotfeld (Harrison College of Business) - Because it's not been announced in a prior meeting that I could find, who are the members of the nominating committee? The nominating committee should be named by the 6th week of the fall semester and we are in the 10th week now.

Answer: Don Mulvaney (Senate Chair) – We do not have a membership yet. I’ll take care of that. Thank you for bringing this to our attention.

Remarks and Announcements

University Senate Chair: Don Mulvaney

The Chair introduced the officers of the senate, the Senate Parliamentarian Sidney Phelps, and recognized the Senate Administrative Assistant, Laura Kloberg.

The chair then noted the charges of the Rules and Steering committees, and encouraged faculty to volunteer for university committee service.  and organizing senate meetings. He encouraged faculty to go to the volunteering web page and express interest in serving on Senate Committees.  He also encouraged faculty to stay in contact with senate leadership with their concerns and comments.

Chair Mulvaney then moved to the recognition of resilience and innovation at Auburn University during the COVID era. This recognition item began in August. For October, the Chair recognized those who have served on committees and task forces charged with modifying and continuing University operations, including frontline staff and A&P employees.

Chair Mulvaney, closed his remarks by noting the pending action item on the agenda. He then invited President Jay Gogue to make remarks.

Auburn University President: Jay Gogue

President Gogue noted that he had a few items to address before he invited Board of Trustees Secretary Jon Waggoner to speak.

• At the most recent Board of Trustees meeting, the agricultural land swap mentioned at last month’s senate meeting (between AU and the USDA) was finalized.

• From the State capitol in Montgomery came good news that the fiscal year close found that tax revenues had increased which in turn increased contributions to the Alabama General Fund and the Educational Trust Fund.

• The AU Development foundation also reported fiscal year end numbers in which they exceeded their aggressive fundraising goals.

• The Nobel Peace Prize recently awarded to the UN World Food Program a proud moment for Auburn. AU is the only academic partner for the UN program, and our faculty are engaged with it.

• Auburn was recently ranked 20th among US Universities in terms of outreach and community service.   

• Research funding numbers have grown over 67% since last year, and that  is about a $60 million increase over 2019.

The president closed his remarks by thanking senate leadership for both its support, its input, and its criticism during difficult times. He then invited Jon Waggoner to speak.

Board of Trustees Secretary: Jon Wagoner

Mr. Waggoner gave an update on the BoT task force on building names and monuments. The task force was formed in the summer to address racial justice issues that reach board level. Before discussing the building naming deliberations, Mr. Waggoner noted that the board has

• authorized the creation of the National Panhellenic Council Legacy Plaza on the campus to celebrate the rich legacy of black fraternities and sororities at Auburn.

• Named the Student Center after Harold Melton, Auburn’s first African American SGA President.

• Resolved to improve the AU historical marker celebrating racial integration at Auburn.’

• Searched all AU properties across the state to locate any Civil War markers on university property.  One marker was found in Baldwin county, noting a Union Civil War encampment location.

Mr. Waggoner then discussed the task force activity on studying buildings and roads on campus reported to hold names of individuals with controversial racial histories. The task force members have all be given a copy of Dr. Dwayne Cox’s history of Auburn entitled The Village on the Plain. In addition, Greg Schmidt of the University archives researched and provided information to the task force on particular campus names that have been identified as potentially problematic.

The Board is developing a policy and process for evaluating building names and making renaming decisions. Mr. Waggoner noted that the Board knows it must act, and they want to be deliberate and carful with their decisions.

Mr. Waggoner closed by noting that the Student Center dedication will be on Friday November 20 at 2pm.

Auburn University Provost: Bill Hardgrave

The Provost made several announcements.

• A Faculty Awards announcement will be coming soon. There are many awards involved, and the huge slate of worthy nominations was tough for the committee. He congratulated the winners and said a link to the announcement would be posted.

• The Parental Leave policy for AU is now in place.

• AU has partnered with Regions Bank to offer financial literacy programs to students, faculty, and staff at AU. These workshops, seminars and webinars are free.

The Provost then discussed the issue of pass/fail grading. The Office of the Provost had been asked to consider Pass/Fail grades as an option for students for fall semester. Pass Fail grading will not be considered for the Fall because;

• The percentage of A’s for fall 2020 is higher than in the previous five fall semesters

• F’s are about the same and C’s and D’s are lower.

• Auburn has extended the drop date to the last day of the semester, Nov. 24.

• Few students took advantage of it for spring 2020.

• Pass/Fail can cause problems for graduate school applications

The floor was then opened for questions. (4:00pm)

QUESTION:  (Richard Seals). Is the start date for Spring 2021 Still January 6?
ANSWER (Provost Hardgrave) – As of now, yes. A final decision will be made at the end of December.

QUESTION (Tony Moss, Senator, Biological Sciences): How do we get involved with the Regions Bank Financial Literacy Programming?
ANSWER: (Provost Hardgrave): I will provide a link in the meeting chat area.

QUESTION: (Susan Youngblood, Senator, English) – Will the Board of Trustees address the possibility of a recommended building name change being opposed by the State? Will the Board commit to change and pay any fines or will they drop the renaming?
ANSWER (Jon Waggoner) – The Board has not yet addressed that part of the policy. It’s a complex legal issue.

QUESTION (Joseph Molnar, Rural Sociology): Was the new parental leave policy approved by HR and legal?
ANSWER (Provost Hardgrave): Yes. It is approved and they have all signed the policy.

Action Item

Replacement Members for Senate Committees

Presenter: Greg Schmidt, Senate Secretary, chair of the Senate Rules Committee

Secretary Schmidt presented one replacement candidate for a vacancy on the Retention Committee

• Melissa Patryka to replace Tyler Mardindale – term through 2022.

There was no discussion on the candidate. The senate then voted on the replacement.

QUESTION: (Robert Agne, Senator, Communication and Journalism: Can you provide a link to the committee volunteering page?
ANSWER: (Greg Schmidt): A link will be placed in the meeting chat.

Pending Acton Item

Proposed revisions to the Faculty Handbook

Presenter: Dr. Kamden Strunk, Chair, Faculty Handbook Revision Committee

Dr. Strunk presented two sets of proposed changes to the faculty handbook. The two sets of proposals will be voted upon separately at the November meeting.  All proposed revisions are available to be viewed from a link from the Senate agenda.

The first set of changes were those recommended by the Teaching Effectiveness Committee and Dr. Strunk invited member of that committee to explain them.  The proposed changes clarify and modify the use of Student Evaluations of Teaching (SETs) for faculty annual review, and for tenure & promotion decisions. The open-ended comment mandate is retained, but numerical data inclusion in faculty review is optional. Proposed revisions also set a minimum response rate of 30% for inclusion in evaluation review processes and establish an external evaluations of teaching process.

Katie Boyd and David Martin of the Teaching Effectiveness Committee then gave context for why the recommendations were made. Research shows that numerical data is neither accurate nor reliable.  Summative measures also are shown to impact minorities, women, and people with different sexual orientations in a more negative way.

QUESTION: Kimberly Garza (Senator, Health Outcomes Research and Policy) – Will schools be able to modify the AU Evaluate tool and use their own evaluations?
ANSWER (Todd Steury, Chair-elect): can address that one. So as of right now, there aren't any plans to change the way that the student evaluations are administered. Currently units are required to ask the eight questions that we are currently using, however units can add questions as they see fit. That is possible within the AU evaluate system. So as of right now, things will continue as before.

Dr. Strunk then to the second set of proposed revisions. He described these revisions as technical changes to address contradictions and clarify processes.  The first proposed change centered around the time frame for and the documentation for those who wish to present their cases in a shorter timeframe. By striking “exceptional” from “exceptional and well-documented,” contradictory and unnecessary language is removed. The next change struck language that appeared to disallow faculty who receive a letter of non-continuation in their sixth year from applying for tenure in their seventh. The next set of changes had to do with what happens when there are not eligible faculty in a department to vote on tenure and promotion. Proposed changes allow for faculty from outside of a department to serve as departmental voting faculty. The next proposed change clarifies the question of what it means to “make available” to tenure and promotion candidates the letters of the committee, department head, and individual faculty members.  The revision recommends “provide copies” instead of “make available.” The final recommended change clarifies that there is no non-continuation letter threat to someone who is denied tenure in their fifth year. This resolves a conflict with earlier sections of the handbook.

QUESTION (Michael Stern, Economics): Dr. Stern challenged the notion that some of the proposed changes were non consequential and argued that allowing faculty from other departments to participate in departmental proceedings introduces conflicts into the handbook. 
ANSWER (Kamden Strunk)” As currently written, the handbook allows a department head in cases of too few eligible voting faculty to unilaterally pick people to represent the faculty in proceedings. The intention of the changes were to state that it should be done with the consent of the people in the department.
Dr. Stern again stated an objection to allowing an external faculty to participate in departmental proceedings or contribute to summary letters. He compared the proposal to allowing an external letter writer to participate in departmental proceedings.  
QUESTION: (Gilad Sorek, Senator, Economics): Dr. Sorek stated that in small units, the situation of too few eligible faculty for proceedings is not uncommon. He strongly suggested that the issue be discussed further with input from himself and other faculty in small units.

Information Item

FBI Cybersecutity Announcement

Presenter: Dr. Robert Norton (Poultry Science)

Dr. Norton reported on a public service announcement from the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security. The agencies report that predatory journals are being used by foreign operators and nations to sow misinformation and foment distrust around US elections. The misinformation targets national, state and local elections. The agencies want academia to be aware.

Task Force Subcommittee for Recruitment and Enrollment

Presenter: Dr. Joffery Gaymon, Vice President Enrollment Services

Dr. Gaymon encouraged everyone to visit the task forces website for details. https://auburn.edu/equitytaskforce/

Shen then moved to discuss the four objectives that were identified to help with diversity and enrollment were:

• Increase Black Student Enrollment

• Increase Aid Allocated to Black Students

• Improve the Racial Climate

• Improve Retention and Graduation Rates of Black Students

To achieve these goals the task force has proposed or implemented a number of changes. Auburn has moved to pilot a flexible admissions model that does not necessarily rely on SAC/ACT scores. This includes allowing for writing, resume, and non-cognitive variables to be considered.  Scholarship allocations have shifted to include need/ non-merit based considerations, and PLUS Scholarship awards have been increased. The task force is also working to document and celebrate the history of diversity at Auburn, to conduct a new diversity climate study in 2021, and to develop an “inclusive language guide” and toolkit.

QUESTION: Ashley Ludewig (English) – What is the rubric for assessing writing samples from admissions applicants and who is evaluating the writing?
ANSWER: Joffery Gaymon – Internal staff in admissions evaluate writing. Many staff are involved in the process and the task force is willing to share the rubric with English faculty for their input.

Update from the SGA

Presenter: Hays Kassen, Vice President, SGA

Mr. Kassen is serving for President Ada Ruth Huntley in the Auburn University Senate. He began by highlighting the mission of the SGA, its organization, and its role on campus. He then touched upon the 2020/21 SGA Executive Team Goals in relation to

• Student Metal Health

• Food Insecurity

• Foreign Language Exchange Program

• Cultural Competency

• Civic Engagement

• City Partnerships

• Late Night Ride Share Program

• Improving the Auburn Answers Website

• Student Involvement in Auburn University COVID-19 planning and actions

• Responding to the current National Racial Reckoning

Mr. Kassen closed his presentation by noting a recent SGA resolution entitled Commendation of Auburn Faculty for Rapid Response to COVID-19 Solutions. He encouraged faculty to read the resolution.

Unfinished Business

• None.

New Business

• None.

Adjournment

Motion to Adjourn (Seconded) 5:07pm

The motion carried and Chair Mulvaney adjourned the meeting at 5:00pm

Respectfully Submitted,
Greg Schmidt
Secretary, University Senate

Attendance