Behrend Faculty Council Meeting Minutes

October 30, 2024, 8:00 a.m.
114 Reed

  1. Call to Order
  2. Approval of Minutes
    1. Correction: Kyeiwaa pointed out that some of her comments for the IEDC committee were in the wrong section. This was adjusted.
    2. Motion to Approve: Motion made and seconded by Matt.
  3. Leadership Team Updates
    1. Campus Updates
      1. Ralph provided substantial campus updates during open sessions last week.
      2. Ralph is available to answer any specific questions.
    2. Updates from Greg Filbeck
      1. Tiffany (Petricini) is leading the AI Task force.
      2. Qi will work with Dean Lewis and the Undergraduate Studies on faculty training opportunities related to retention issues.
    3. Exam Makeup Center
      1. Disability Services: No longer handling makeup exams for students without documented disability due to capacity issues.
      2. Faculty Responsibility: Faculty members are now responsible for scheduling and proctoring makeup exams.
      3. Disability Accommodations: Disability Services continues to offer exam services for students with disability accommodations.
  4. Committee Updates
    1. Academic Computing Committee
      1. Visibility of Laptop Loaner Program: Discussion with Jim Serafin from IT.
      2. Committee's Future: Concerns about the potential dissolution of the committee.
      3. Importance: Regular communication with IT is crucial due to the changing technological landscape and faculty needs.
      4. Recommendation: Maintain Academic Computing as a distinct committee.
      5. Podium Technology Upgrades: Hardware upgrades scheduled for older podium technology in NICK and OBS buildings.
      6. Web Labs and Remote Software:
        1. Discussion on how to serve special needs students using remote software.
        2. Concerns about regional campuses being asked to do too much remote teaching, affecting instructional quality.
    2. Athletics Committee
      1. Next Meeting: Scheduled for Monday. Updates to be provided next week.
    3. Undergraduate Curricular Committee
      1. Proposals: All submitted proposals have been reviewed and approved.
      2. Training Module: Sarah Whitney is holding a CIM training module.
      3. Career Paths and Degree Paths: Collaboration with Career Services and StratComm to develop degree programs for students who do not complete their degree here.
    4. Faculty Affairs Committee
      1. Progress: Making progress on all charges. 
      2. No new updates to report.
    5. Research Committee
      1. Sabbatical Reviews: Reviews have been submitted. Follow-up needed to confirm the use of a rubric and the announcement timeline.
    6. Scholarship and Awards
      1. Announcement Preparation
      2. Lisa and Kim have been working on the announcement for faculty nominations.
      3. The nomination period will start on November 1 and run until January.
      4. Christy sent out an email requesting volunteers to help edit student questions to avoid overlap. Two volunteers have agreed to assist.
    7. Undergraduate Studies
      1. Survey Results and Reporting
        1. The team revisited past survey results and is working on a report for the Faculty Council, Faculty Senate, and Board of Directors.
        2. Access to survey results from incoming first-year students was granted by Andrea Konkol.
        3. The focus is on identifying potential risks of non-retention, particularly in areas like math and writing.
        4. A pilot program is being considered to address these issues early on.
      2. Summer Online Courses
        1. Discussions with Sarah Whitney provided insights into the current process and strategies for online courses.
        2. Upcoming discussions with John Gunnell from the eLearning Initiatives Office to gather more information and support for faculty.
      3. Faculty Resources for Retention
        1. Plans to work with Qi to set up resources for faculty aimed at improving retention and sharing best practices.
    8. Student Life
      1. Parking and Transportation Survey
        1. A survey conducted in May 2024 focused on parking and transportation.
        2. Mike Lindner attended the meeting to provide expertise.
        3. Identified actionable feedback, including underutilization of the campus shuttle and potential reconfiguration of parking lots (ALMY and AMIC).
      2. Awareness Campaign
        1. Discussed the need for an awareness campaign about the campus being a walking campus.
        2. Consideration of including this information in first-year (freshman) seminars.
      3. Parking Ticket Revenue
        1. Clarified that parking ticket revenue goes back into student programming.
        2. Suggested adding this information to the parking tickets for transparency.
      4. Food Services Survey
        1. Need to rerun the food services survey due to significant changes at Bruno's.
        2. Plans to set up a joint meeting with the Student Government Association (SGA).
    9. IEDC Committee
      1. International Faculty Affinity Group (IFEN)
        1. A board has been formed to plan events, aiming for self-sustainability.
        2. Meeting to discuss committee alignment with the Chancellor's Committee.
    10. Constitutional Reform Committee
      1. Drafting the Constitution
        1. The committee has been meeting biweekly to finalize a draft constitution.
        2. The goal is to improve faculty governance by increasing accountability and transparency.
        3. The next meeting is on November 6, with plans to circulate the draft to faculty for feedback.
  5. Faculty Senate Updates
    1. Multi-Year Contracts for Non-Tenure-Line Faculty
      1. Senate voted on a resolution to restore multi-year contracts for non-tenure-line faculty across Commonwealth Campuses.
      2. The resolution has full Senate support, but its implementation depends on top administration.
      3. Discussion on the current status of multi-year contracts at Behrend and other campuses.
    2. Medicare and Medicaid Health Savings 
      1. New Option for Higher Deductible Plan:
        1. Previously, individuals on Medicare and Medicaid couldn't have a health savings account.
        2. A new option now allows them to have a higher deductible plan.
        3. More information about benefits will be available by November.
    3. Admissions Policy and Testing
      1. Extension of Test-Optional Policy:
        1. A resolution was passed to extend the test-optional policy for one more year.
        2. Data shows no adverse effects on student performance with or without standardized tests (SAT, ACT).
        3. One college wants to look at the data more intently.
        4. General consensus favors eliminating the standardized test requirement, except for one college.
  6. Committee Reports and University Initiatives
    1. Tenure Flow and Sustainability Reports:
      1. Various reports, including tenure flow and sustainability, were discussed.
      2. Sustainability report focuses on University-specific initiatives.
    2. ERISA and Half-Semester Courses:
      1. Committees are working on introducing more half-semester courses to help students who drop and lose credit.
    3. Education Committee:
      1. Investigating the impact of delivery modes (face-to-face, online, hybrid) on student success.
    4. Salary Discrimination Study:
      1. Department of Labor study on salary discrimination focused on University Park, not Commonwealth Campuses.
      2. Discussion on whether salary differences are significant among peers.
    5. Global Engagement in P&T Process:
      1. Adding global engagement recognition to the Promotion and Tenure (P&T) process.
    6. Impact of Optimized Teams:
      1. University planning committee is examining the impact of optimized teams, especially at Commonwealth Campuses.
  7. Update on Behrend Senate Letter to University Senate
    1. Jason sent letter to University Senate President on October 14
      1. The letter has been moved to various committees for discussion.
      2. One committee is focusing on how to handle outliers and whether punishments are proportional to the tasks.
      3. Letter was also forwarded to Kathy Bieschke – no response yet.
  8. Accelerated Programs
    1. Introduction to Accelerated Programs:
      1. Aim to allow students to complete existing programs in a shorter timeframe without changing program requirements.
      2. Example: MBA program reduced from two years to one year by combining courses and making some required.
    2. Pilot Programs:
      1. Programs like Political Science, Psychology, MIS, and Digit are part of the pilot.
      2. Goal is to ensure students can complete courses in a timely manner without increasing costs.
    3. Logistical Challenges:
      1. Ensuring course availability, scheduling, and capacity to handle accelerated students.
      2. Testing the feasibility of the accelerated program to avoid misleading students.
    4. Potential Impact:
      1. If successful, the program could attract a different population of students willing to forego the traditional university experience for a faster, cost-effective education.
  9. Discussion on Student Qualifications for Accelerated Program Admission
    1. Concerns and Suggestions
    2. Qualification Control:
      1. There is a need to control the qualifications for students entering the program.
      2. Concerns were raised about students enrolling based on the price tag without having the necessary capabilities.
      3. It was suggested that students should be required to have a certain number of AP credits to qualify.
    3. Agreement
      1. The idea to move forward with qualification control was agreed upon.
      2. It was acknowledged that students cannot simply opt-in without meeting specific criteria.
    4. Next Steps
      1. The discussion points will be presented to the faculty at the next meeting.
  10. Liaison for State Appropriations
    1. Proposal
      1. Liaison Introduction:
      2. Amy Bridger mentioned a liaison between Penn State and the State of Pennsylvania who can help with appropriations for projects.
      3. The liaison is willing to conduct a Zoom meeting with the faculty senate to explain the process and explore funding opportunities.
  11. Council Feedback About Hosting Appropriation Session
    1. Recording the Session:
      1. It was suggested to record the Zoom meeting to accommodate faculty members who cannot attend live.
      2. Recording would allow faculty to watch at their convenience, ensuring broader participation.
      3. Written Summaries:
        1. Concerns were raised about the effectiveness of recorded sessions.
        2. It was proposed to circulate written summaries with key bullet points for faculty to review and respond to.
    2. Decision
      1. The council agreed to proceed with organizing the Zoom meeting.
      2. Efforts will be made to ensure at least 10 faculty members attend live.
      3. The meeting will not be scheduled at 8:00 a.m. to maximize attendance.
  12. Miscellaneous
  13. Adjournment
    1. Motion to adjourn was moved by Dave and seconded by Matt.
    2. The meeting was adjourned.