DECEMBER 2, 1999
The first meeting of the Student Senate for 1999-00 was convened in 25 Law Building, Minneapolis campus, on Thursday, December 2, 1999, at 11:40 a.m. Coordinate campuses were linked by telephone. Checking or signing the roll as present were 29 voting student members and 1 non-member. Mr. Reid LeBeau, Student Senate Chair, presided.
Reid LeBeau congratulated Men's Football Coach Glen Mason for being named Big 10 Coach of the Year. He then reminded students that there will be a Student Forum on Academic Integrity on December 7 from 1 - 3 p.m. in 25 Law Building.
Reid LeBeau, as Vice President of the Student Legislative Coalition (SLC), reported that Joas Petithomme is the newly-elected SLC President. Lobby Day has also been set for Wednesday, February 23, 2000, and student support and enthusiasm in needed for this event to be successful and to favor the University's request this year.
The SLC has had a few problems this year in terms of administration, communication among members, and record keeping. To combat these issues executive board members have been working on increased communication, a self-audit is being performed, and an executive director has been appointed. With the departure of Suzanne Perl, SLC's professional lobbyist, SLC is considering hiring a student lobbyist to fill this position.
REID LEBEAU, Vice President
STUDENT LEGISLATIVE COALITION
DISCUSSION:
Reid LeBeau presented the agenda and asked for any questions.
A student suggested that the wording for bullet one be amended to "...on behalf of the students of the University of Minnesota."
Reid LeBeau accepted this as a friendly amendment. With no other discussion, a vote was taken and the motion was approved.
APPROVED
Jason Reed, SSCC Chair and MSA Executive Committee member, reported that MSA has been dealing with the Student Service Fees Committee. Last Tuesday, a motion was made to rescind the slate, but it failed. The slate will then be presented to GAPSA next Monday for approval. The 10th Avenue Bridge Circulator is now running. According to MSA Vice President Matt Clark, 6 people were needed per ride to be successful, but the response has been double that amount. MSA is also discussing the U-Pass issue.
Sabeen Altaf, the GAPSA representative to the SSCC, stated that GAPSA will be voting on the Fees Committee slate on December 6.
Chaz Rice, Morris SSCC member, said that the chancellor candidates are visiting campus. Yesterday, Samuel Schuman, the current Interim Chancellor, had his visit as an applicant. The search committee for a permanent director of admissions and financial aid recommended that the search be placed on hold. The interim chancellor agreed so the position will be filled on a temporary basis. Morris students are ready to lobby for Phase II of the Science renovation this year. Finally, last year first-year seminar students had a lobby on the mall to free Mumia Abu-Jamal.
Crookston and Duluth did not report since they were not connected for the meeting.
Jason Reed, SSCC Chair, said that this committee is the executive committee of the Student Senate. This fall the committee has been focused on academic misconduct charges. Information has been presented from athletic administrators and there will still be a few meetings with head coaches and team captains in the next few weeks.
Additionally, the committee has been looking into the Graduation Proficiency Test (GPT) for second languages. The committee is looking into removing the GPT as a graduation requirement. Arguments for this are that no other Big Ten institution requires a second year of a foreign language, let alone a GPT, and that the fourth semester exam of a second language consists of all four parts of the GPT. A letter has been drafted to the CLA Committee on Second Languages and an update will be proved at the February Student Senate meeting.
Reid LeBeau reported that the problems in the athletic department have been a focus this fall. A Forum on Student Academic Integrity has been scheduled for December 7. Panel members include President Yudof, Professor Fred Morrison, Jason Reed, Barbara Van Drasek, and a Regent still to be named. The purpose of the forum is for students to provide their views on what they would like to see happen in terms of academic misconduct. Since this issue affects all students, student opinions need to be heard.
Also being discussed is a change in the orientation for next year's senators from a few hours in the Twin Cities to a possible road trip.
Lastly, he is working on setting up a President's Forum for next year. It would be a meeting of the campus presidents from each campus to brainstorm problems and solutions, as well as funneling more issues to the Student Senate.
President Yudof began by noting a series of changes that have been made. In terms of athletics, Academic Counseling has been moved to the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost. Athletics has also been shifted to Tonya Brown's Office and the office will probably convert to a Vice President for Administration. An interim athletic director will also be appointed in a few days.
He noted that students continue to have problems finding affordable parking on campus, accessing financial aid through PeopleSoft, and that Coffman closing is an inconvenience, but last issue will be a great asset for future students. On a positive note, the football team is going to the Sun Bowl in El Paso.
Q: Why are student season tickets for athletic events higher here than at other Big Ten schools?
A: I did not realize this, but I will look into it since it is important to get students at these events.
Q: Is the company that develops PeopleSoft taking responsibility for its recent problems?
A: Yes and it has promised the University some added functionality. Once problem is that PeopleSoft is the only company developing this type of software and therefore, if the institutions push too hard, then there is the prospect that the software will never be completed.
Q: How do you feel about recommendation 11 from the Student Academic Integrity Committee (SAIC) report which states that contact between athletic officials and admissions or professors should only be in writing?
A: Athletic officials who visit professors can place undue pressure on the professors. The University would like to have someone from Academic Counseling contact professors instead of coaches. On admissions decisions, it is clear that the University recruited some athletes who had no reasonable prospect of graduating from the University. Admissions personnel need to be shielded from undue influences.
Q: How can this be enforced?
A: Only admissions personnel can admit students. As was stated at the press conference, anyone can dial 911-YUDOF to deal with enforcement.
Q: The Student Legislative Coalition (SLC) has set Lobby Day for February 23. What can SLC and students do to ensure a successful request?
A: Students are very influential at the Legislature. Student groups should get together, become familiar with the request, and then meet with legislators. Many parts of the request are key to the future success of University programs, such as a new art building. Other pieces are for increased health and safety on campus. Students need to remember not to underestimate their influence and to ask their parents to write letters on their behalf.
Q: In the budget request it states that after four or six years each of the campuses is going to have to provide 15% for future buildings. This has raised concern at Morris since this will make expansion very difficult. Why has this been included?
A: This provision is included because when people now request buildings there is no restraint because someone else is paying for it. By having campuses pay 15%, it makes people more accurately and modestly appraise their needs and increases funds for other projects. For units that do not have the resources, then the University will look at their base budgets. Also, the 15% can include philanthropic contributions.
Q: During the union drive last spring, the Unions sent graduate students copies of an internal University report showing that the University ranked ninth in the Big Ten in terms of graduate assistant compensation packages. Since that time there have been some token raises yet health insurance costs have skyrocketed. Overall, not much has changed. Do you feel that this ranking is acceptable, and if not, what steps should be taken to rectify the situation?
A: This ranking is not sound for the University since we are dependent on the quality of graduate students for research and teaching. As far as insurance, the University does not control the rates. There is a committee looking into cost savings that might be seen if the University separated itself from the state system. Dean Christine Maziar will be setting aside $50 million from a recent settlement to create a fellowship matching program. Dean Maziar also understands that it is a disgrace for University graduate students to be so low in the ranks and is therefore under general instructions to find other ways to increase compensation.
Q: What is happening with the Student Service Fees lawsuit?
A: This lawsuit is a first amendment challenge because students say that they are being involuntarily required to support organizations whose goals they do not agree with. Initially, I was pessimistic that the Supreme Court would uphold the Wisconsin plan on mandatory fees. After reading the oral arguments, I am more optimistic since it seems that the justices are beginning to see that the mandatory fee is not much different from tuition. If the Supreme Court rules against mandatory fees, it will probably be declared unconstitutional on narrow grounds. It would then be up to each institution to make sure that internal processes do not favor one ideological viewpoint over another. It will be hard to make changes until their ruling is made.
Q: Have you taken any or plan to take any action on recommendations 11 and 12 which deal with contact between coaches and admissions officers or professors?
A: Action will be taken but only after receiving advise from the Faculty Consultative Committee (FCC) and others. There should never be any contact between a coach and a sexual harassment victim. In terms of grades, zero contact would also seem to apply, although some people are concerned that this would isolate the coaching staff too much from the faculty. Therefore, precise language might need to be created for what can and cannot be discussed to eliminate coercive contacts and overt intimidation. If students have any suggestions for language and implementation, this should be forwarded to the President's Office.
Q: What steps are being taken to advertise the Sun Bowl to students?
A: On December 8 there will be an on-campus celebration with free food. At the same time information on flights and tickets will also be available.
Q: Will there be discounted prices for students?
A: I would hope so to get as many students there as possible.
Q: There has been some discussion ut changing the Animal Scien epartment and eliminating a vestock from the St. Pau mpus. What is the current position on this and how can students learn without hands on training?
A: At one time, a soccer field proposal called for five less acres for animals, without the loss of an animals. The soccer stadium was then moved and nothing more was ever mentioned. The campus and department work wonderfully as it is, so there are no plans to change.
DRAFT
Senate Committee on Educational Policy
Classroom Expectations Guidelines
Preamble
All students at the University have the right to a calm, productive, and stimulating learning environment. In turn, instructors have a responsibility to nurture and maintain such an environment. Lively, even heated, discussion is not disruptive behavior. Both instructors and students have a fundamental obligation to respect the rights of each other and an equally fundamental obligation to respect the instructional setting as a place for civil, courteous behavior.
Teaching and learning are vital to the mission of the University. The University believes teaching responsibilities to be of primary importance for its instructors (faculty, graduate teaching assistants, instructors, teaching specialists, etc.) such that performance by instructors shall be taken into consideration in determining salary increases, tenure, retention, and promotion.
I. Expectations of the University:
1. Provide clean and appropriate classrooms and facilities. People using the classrooms also have an obligation to help keep them clean and in order. See III(7) and IV(8).
2. Provide sufficient and suitable classroom, laboratory, and other instructional space.
II. Expectations of Departments/Divisions:
1. The course descriptions published in University catalogs and in the Course Guide must be consistent with the content of the actual course taught. Descriptions should make it clear that courses evolve, and content may vary somewhat with the individual instructor. Course descriptions in the course guide should also inform students if there will be specific requirements for out-of-class activities (e.g., "this course will involve three field trips to be scheduled on Saturdays.")
2. All instructors are expected to provide course descriptions for the course guide.
3. Courses should be offered on a schedule, or frequently enough, that permits students to graduate in a timely fashion. All departments are to have a four-year graduation plan in place; they need also to have course offerings that support it.
4. Classes are to be offered at standard times. Abuse of standard class periods leads to inefficient use of classrooms and is disrespectful of students and faculty: students are forced to be late to other classes, and faculty access to classrooms they need is reduced. See http://www1.umn.edu/usenate/policies/semclasses.html (1(a)) and, for the Twin Cities, see http://www1.umn.edu/usenate/policies/TCclassschedule.html.
5. Any unclaimed final examinations or other major submitted student work should be retained by the department for at least one semester so that they may be reviewed and/or claimed by students.
6. Departments must maintain records of grades in courses for 10 years. Faculty leaving the University must give all grading records to the department.
7. Departments should communicate with faculty about these expectations.
8. Departments should communicate with the Classroom Management Office about problems in classrooms.
III. Expectations of Instructors:
1. Instructors are responsible for clearly communicating the course objectives at the beginning of each course. Class activities should be directed toward the fulfillment of these objectives and student performance should be evaluated in relationship to these objectives. If an instructor changes the course requirements or materials, students should be given timely notice consistent with the magnitude of the change (e.g., a few days for an additional article to read; some weeks if a research paper is to be added). See also #9, following.
2. Instructors are responsible for informing students in their classes of the methods to be used in determining course grades.
3. Instructors are responsible for informing students of any requirements related to course attendance and participation.
4. Instructors are responsible for informing students of any special attendance requirements for each class taught. This includes, insofar as possible, specific dates, times, and places of additional outside-of-class work such as field trips, study sessions, or extra class meetings, and whether or not attendance at these additional activities will be reflected in the grade.
5. Instructors are responsible for evaluating and returning examinations and other student work with sufficient promptness to enhance the learning experience. Instructors should specify a time frame for retaining student work (e.g. homework, midterm exams, etc.) during the semester. Term papers and comparable projects are the property of students who prepare them; instructors who desire to retain a copy for their own files should state their intention to do so. (It is permissible for a faculty member not to return examinations, but students must then be permitted to review the exam in order to request clarification of a grade.) Instructors are strongly encouraged to provide sufficient graded feedback early in the term and before the deadline for withdrawing from classes to enable students to assess their progress in the course.
6. Instructors are expected to meet their classes at the scheduled times and be prepared for all class sessions. When instructors know in advance of conflicts with particular class dates, they are responsible for working with their unit to make appropriate alternate arrangements. Instructors are also expected to honor class periods; to consistently run longer than the class period is disrespectful or students who may have a class the next hour and it is disrespectful of faculty who are scheduled to teach in the room the next hour.
Instructors are also required to adhere to Senate policy concerning in-term and final exams: Exams during the term may NOT be offered outside of the regular class time unless there is notice in the class schedule. (See http://www1.umn.edu/usenate/policies/semclasses.html, Section 1(b).) Final examinations must be offered at the time established by the schedule (but can be changed if certain criteria are met) and it may not be offered during the term (e.g., the last day of classes). (See http://www1.umn.edu/usenate/policies/semclasses.html, Section 4, particularly (d), (e), and (f). See also Section 5 about students who are granted absence from a final exam.)
7. Instructors are expected to leave the classroom and its equipment in good order (e.g., clean the blackboards, chairs straightened, electronic equipment shut off). Students may be requested to help neaten and straighten a classroom and furniture. Keeping a classroom in good order includes taking away or disposing of everything one came in with, such as pop cans/bottles, food containers/wrappers, newspapers, etc.
8. Instructors are expected to schedule and keep a reasonable number of office hours for student conferences. Office hours should be scheduled at times convenient to both the students and instructors with the additional option of prearranged appointments for students when there are schedule conflicts. The minimum number of office hours is typically to be agreed upon by the teaching unit.
9. During the first class session of the term, instructors should:
-- Introduce themselves and any teaching assistants
-- Provide a detailed syllabus containing, at a minimum, the following information:
About the Instructor:
Instructor's name
Office location
Office hours
Phone number(s)
Fax number
Email address
Preferred method of contact (phone, email, fax, etc.)
About the Course:
Course title
Course designator
Course number
Number of credits
Day, time, and place of class meetings
Brief description of the course
Required and recommended materials and the location of the materials
Course goals, objectives, and expectations
Course prerequisites
Schedule of assignments, papers, projects, etc.
Criteria for grading and grading standards (definition of grades)
(see http://www1.umn.edu/usenate/policies/gradingpolicy.html)
Make-up exam policy
(see http://www1.umn.edu/usenate/policies/semclasses.html, Section 4 (d)
to (f) for Senate policy on final examinations and Section 5 (b) concerning
mandatory make-up exams for certain students)
Senate student academic workload policy (see
http://www1.umn.edu/usenate/policies/grades&acadwork.html, last
paragraph)
Statement on accommodations for students with disabilities (1)
Statement on classroom conduct (2)
Statement on academic misconduct (3)
Statement regarding sexual harassment (4)
For sample statements that can be used on a syllabus, go to www. _______. Syllabi may also include this web site, rather than the statements. Note, however, that Senate policy requires on every syllabus language about the meaning of grades, student academic workload, and the penalty for cheating.
10. Instructors are obligated to report suspected academic misconduct to their department.
11. Instructors are obligated to take steps to have removed from class students who disrupt the educational process because of discourteous, threatening, harassing, aggressive verbal or other behaviors.
IV. Expectations of Students:
1. Students are responsible for all class meetings and materials, including any information contained in the syllabus. Students are expected to attend all meetings of their courses. They may be excused from class, however, to participate in religious observances and for approved University activities. Instructors must be notified at the beginning of the term about such planned absences.
Students must attend the first class meeting of every course in which they are registered, unless they obtain approval from the instructor before the first meeting. Otherwise, they may lose their place in class to another student. (See http://www1.umn.edu/usenate/policies/semclasses.html, Section 3.)
2. Students are expected to do their own work. If it is determined that a student has cheated, he or she may be given an "F" or an "N" for the course, and may face additional sanctions from the University. (See http://www.gen.umn.edu/courses/1137/conduct.html, Subd 1, Scholastic Dishonesty, and http://www1.umn.edu/usenate/policies/gradingpolicy.html, Section II (2).)
3. Students are responsible for being on time and prepared for all class sessions.
4. Students are responsible for meeting all course requirements, observing all deadlines, examination times, and other course procedures.
5. Students are responsible for seeking help when needed.
6. Students who need special accommodations are responsible for working with the instructor at the beginning of the course, and with the relevant University offices.
7. Students may not make commercial use of their notes of lectures or University-provided materials without the express written consent of the instructor.
8. Students are responsible for helping straighten up a classroom at the end of a class period, if requested to do so by the instructor. Keeping a classroom in good order includes taking away or disposing of everything one came in with, such as pop cans/bottles, food containers/wrappers, newspapers, etc.
DISCUSSION:
Reid LeBeau said that this document was discussed by the Student Senate Consultative Committee (SSCC) a few weeks ago and was now being brought for comments from student senators.
With no discussion a vote was taken and the motion was approved.
APPROVED
Mike Sweeney, a member of the Student Academic Integrity Committee (SAIC), said that he, along with Barbara Van Drasek, are the students members. The committee also has six faculty and administrators. The SAIC were appointed at the beginning of the year not to look at what happened, but to suggest changes that could be made to prevent future problems. Interviews were held with athletic department administrators, faculty, and students. A large number of the changes that the committee recommended were implemented by the President once he read the investigators report.
Q: Did President Yudof enact recommendation 12?
A: I am not sure which ones specifically were or were not enacted. Most recommendations dealing with reporting lines for athletics and academic counseling were implemented.
Q: Why did the SAIC recommend that the vice presidency be solely concerned with student development and not include athletics?
A: This recommendation was not an attack on McKinley Boston, but simply a clarification of the position. When the position was originally created and someone who had previously been an athletic director was moved into the position, it created the appearance of a super athletic director. For many people at the University, this created the appearance of a conflict of interest. The committee also felt that Athletics, Academic Counseling, and Compliance should not all be reporting to the same individual. Now, Compliance reports to the General Counsel's Office, Academic Counseling is part of the Executive Vice President and Provost's Office, and Athletics reports to Tonya Brown.
Barbara Van Drasek then stated that student development and athletics used to be separate, and was recently combined as an experiment under McKinley Boston's term.
She said that the action recommended from the SAIC is to change the Twin Cities Campus Assembly Bylaws in regards to the Intercollegiate Athletics Committee (ACIA). The SAIC recommended that a new Faculty Oversight Committee be established, whose duty would be to oversee the academic performance and compliance of student athletes. The Assembly Steering Committee (ASC) has also recommended that a second committee be formed, similar to the current ACIA, to assume other duties besides compliance.
Jason Reed stated that what has been reported in the Minnesota Daily is not accurate so students should read the Bylaw amendments for the correct duties assigned to each proposed committee.
NONE
11. NEW BUSINESS
NONE
12. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 1:02 p.m.
Rebecca Hippert
Abstractor