FACULTY SENATE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Minutes of February 28, 2007
(unapproved)

The Faculty Senate Executive Committee met at 2:00 PM on Wednesday, February 28, 2007, in 567 Capen Hall to discuss the following agenda:

1. Approval of the Minutes of February 14, 2007
2. Report of the Chair
3. Presentation on the University Bookstore
4. Report on the Center for Academic Development Services
   Dr. Henry Durand, Associate Vice-Provost for Undergraduate Education
5. Executive Session
6. Adjournment

Item 1: Approval of the Minutes of February 14, 2007

The Minutes of February 14, 2007, were approved.

Item 2: Report of the Chair

The Chair announced that today was the final day for voting for the election of the next Chair of the Faculty Senate.

The Corrigan Committee continued its work yesterday evening with its second public hearing in the Center for the Arts.

Professor Finley, Vice-Provost for Faculty Affairs, responded to the resolution drafted at the FSEC meeting of January 31, 2007, concerning the Center for Teaching and Learning. She said she approved of it and that she had acted on the resolution before it was passed. Although unable to attend the meeting, she had contacted the Chair of the Teaching and Learning Committee (TLC), Professor Jensen, to brief him on the discussions and plans in place. She expressed excitement about the prospect of bringing together the [currently] disparate programs involving teaching and teaching resources at UB, and of promoting their increased collaboration and coordination. She wished to keep Professor Jensen as Chair of the TLC and invited him to serve on the search committee for the new position, “once it’s defined”, and had asked him to convey that information at the FSEC meeting.

Vice-Provost Finley also wished to correct a misunderstanding suggested by the Minutes of that meeting, namely, that there had been a “diminution of resources and staff” for the Center for Teaching and Learning Resources after reorganization had taken place. She insisted this was not true. After previous expenditures had been determined, Vice-Provost Finley had asked the previous director to submit a new budget request, and indeed to request more funding (because of increased costs); the director received 100% of what she had requested, and had not spent all the resources allocated to her. Thus, there had been an excess, rather than a diminution, of resources. The previous director had also received additional staff assistance. Vice-Provost Finley assured the FSEC that she and the University were committed to “having a really excellent, cutting-edge program” to help support faculty in their role as teachers. The vacancies at the heads of both ETC and CTLR present a “very exciting opportunity” to explore true collaboration between the units. Professor Nickerson added that the TLC will be involved in giving input into the description and scope of the job description for the new director. Vice-Provost Finley hoped a new director would be in place this summer so that programming could proceed “full steam ahead” this Fall.

Professor Brazeau inquired into the status of the resources currently in CTLR; Finley responded that once the new entity is resolved, it would be clearer to determine where the teaching support resources will be [re-]located; at present, they remain where they are, and they remain available.

Item 3: Presentation on the University Bookstore

Mr. Greg Neumann, Director of the University Bookstore, first gave a brief history of Follett’s Higher Education Group. The company was founded in 1873, ranks 12 ^th on Crains Chicago Business of the largest privately held companies in Illinois, 116 ^th on the Forbes list of the top 500 privately held companies in the country, and is the leading contractor of bookstore services and foremost suppliers of used books in all of North America. It currently operates over 720 bookstores across the U.S. and Canada and serves more than 4 million students and 300,000 faculty. Employing over 8,000 full- and part-time employees, Follett’s offers --- in addition to its extensive selection of specialty books --- campus apparel, gifts, software, and related campus merchandise. Mr. Neumann stressed that Follett’s values customer satisfaction, innovation, integrity, and accountability; its partnership with the academic community is critical, especially with regard to the adoption of books and in particular how they are used in the classroom, because this is, he argued, the key to students’ perceptions of value. Follett’s always welcomes comments and recommendation from students and faculty.

Mr. Adamczyk then explained the textbook adoption cycles. For the Fall 2006 and Spring 2007 semesters, the University Bookstore handled nearly 4,900 titles for more than 2,900 courses. Titles for the Fall semester are typically due by the end of March, those for Spring by the end of October. Ending inventory takes place roughly 4 weeks later, followed by textbook returns. Students returning books want the most for their returns, and the Bookstore tries to accommodate them in buying them at half price; however, this is only possible if the teaching faculty indicate in writing that the books will be used again in the following semester. Otherwise, wholesale prices apply, which are much less. Follett’s makes use of various resources in trying to keep prices down, for example, by tracking down used books for resale. The Used Textbook ration amounts to between 21-24% per semester; this, coupled with buy dollars paid out, represents total savings to students of roughly $1.4 million in each of the past two semesters.

Delays in having all textbooks available by the beginning of the semester are due mainly to a short turn-around time in the summer, and an even shorter on between the Fall and Spring semesters; late adoption orders, changes in editions, and other factors (publisher errors, lack of used books, substitutions, and bundling of materials with different ISBN numbers) complicate the process.

Mr. Adamczyk cautioned faculty to order only those items which they actually plan to use in class, and to specify which are “Required” and which “Recommended” --- this would help the Bookstore order more accurately and, more importantly, save the students money. Faculty often over-order for courses, because the ratio of actual to estimated enrollment typically ranges from 85% (Fall 2004) to as low as 70% (Spring 2006). For reasons of cost efficiency, the Bookstore under-orders at about 70%; even so, they only sell about 73% of actual units available. Faculty can also negotiate with publishers to customize textbooks to include only the material needed --- this would help save students “a lot of money” as well.

The University Bookstore offers several advantages over online ordering. These include: one-source shopping for all required materials; pick-up and shipping options; guarantee of the right materials; easy and immediate refunds; financial aid transactions; several payment options, including UB Card; immediate buy; e-adoptions; financial support to the campus and employment of students on campus.

UB Student Assembly representative Christopher Mendoza emphasized that students prefer online ordering, despite problems of delays and availability, simply because the prices are far lower than those at the Bookstore. He objected to the fact that students are not notified as quickly as the Bookstore about what textbooks have been scheduled for course adoption. Mr. Adamczyk responded that once the Bookstore receives the majority of textbooks for a course, it will electronically post that information. It makes little sense to do so any earlier, since students wanting to buy from the Bookstore would not be able to until that point. SUNY Student Assembly Secretary Melody Mercedes countered that the information nevertheless helps prepare students in giving them an idea what range of money they will need to put aside for a coming semester’s textbooks. To her objection to bundling, Mr. Adamczyk answered that this results solely from faculty adoption decisions. Professor Nickerson agreed, and pointed out that the faculty need to be more aware not only of bundling practices, but also costs to students.

Item 4: Report on the Center for Academic Development Services

Dr. Henry Durand, Senior Associate Vice-Provost for Undergraduate Education, delivered a presentation on the Center for Academic Development Services (CADS). Its major unit areas are Academic Challenge and Enrichment program (ACE), the Cora P. Maloney College (CPMC), the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP), and Academic Support Programs. The major functions include individualized and targeted admissions, academic counseling and advising, academic enrichment and enhancement, CPMC courses and internships, and student support services.

The ACE program, directed by Assistant Vice-Provost Marita Daniels, is an individualized admissions and student support program designed for students who demonstrate strong academic potential for academic success, but who do not meet UB’s standard-score admission criteria. It provides ongoing support during the first two years of study at UB, including one-on-one advising, academic / financial / personal counseling, tutoring, career guidance, and the opportunity to participate in a peer mentoring program. ACE absorbed the former Individual Admissions and Collegiate Achievement programs.

ACE includes the Ronald E. McNair Scholars program, designed to encourage low-income, first-generation college students to consider careers in college teaching as well as prepare students for doctoral study. The McNair program provides eligible undergraduates with critical research experiences, faculty mentors, preparation for the GRE, development of professional skills, assistance with the graduate school application process, and support to travel and present at professional research conferences.

Student Support Services, directed by Dr. Jennifer Morrison, is also part of ACE. Like the McNair program, it is a federally funded TRIO program sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education. It is designed to assist low-income, first-generation students, as well as students with disabilities, by providing them with individualized advising and comprehensive academic support services to increase their retention and graduation rates.

The Cora P. Maloney College (CPMC), directed by Assistant Vice-Provost Letitia Thomas-Rogers, offers in addition to courses and internships three other major programs. One is the Collegiate Sciences and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP), directed by Ms. Shanna Crump-Owens. The program, funded by the NYS Department of Education, provides services and activities to enhance underrepresented and economically disadvantaged students’ entry into, and performance in, targeted areas of the sciences, technology, and licensed professions. The second is the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP), directed by Ms. Christine Wingo. Part of a SUNY-wide program, it provides student enrichment and support services, and is designed to increase the numbers of majors, retention and graduation, and graduate school acceptances of historically underrepresented minority students in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). The third is PSIP, the Public Service Internship Program, which seeks to encourage UB students to perform community service in exchange for education credit as part of their regular academic work.

STEM enrollment in CSTEP, LSAMP, and McNair currently totals about 300 students. Among the STEM Initiatives are the McNair Scholars Research Conference (one of the four largest of the 179 programs throughout the country); the Graduate Awareness Conference; the Celebration of Excellence; Professional Graduate Awareness Day; and proposals for a “Bridges to the Doctorate” grant, a GEM grant, and an NCUR conference.

The Educational Opportunity Program (EOP), directed by Assistant Vice-Provost William Coles,

has the mission to recruit and admit talented but disadvantaged students who would not otherwise have access to higher education. It also runs the CADS summer program, which provides 200-250 students a pre-college summer experience. Peer mentoring, counseling, and tutorial services are essential parts of EOP.

Advisement in CADS includes first contact, registration, major course selection, semester and mid-term review conferences, probation student advisement, social counseling, academic career workshops, financial aid advising; it offers advocacy with faculty, community agencies, the student judiciary, University Police, as well as advocacy in various academic and career-oriented functions. Advisors are required to see students five times per semester, and typically carry case loads of between 130-220, depending on the area.

In total, CADS admits about 20% of the undergraduate population, and provides its services to almost 3,000 students. To handle this load, CADS has 29 full-time and professional staff, 8 academic year adjunct faculty, 2 graduate teaching faculty, 113 tutors and supplemental instructors, 86 peer mentors, 8 graduate advising assistants, 2 graduate research assistants, 17 undergraduate student assistants, 6 community service student assistants, and 37 Summer Program faculty and staff. It works with 19 different budgets and over $5 million in operating funds, and monitors close to $25 million in merit/scholarship and need-based financial aid.

Item 5: Executive Session

 

Item 6: Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 3:50 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

Robert Hoeing,
Secretary of the Faculty Senate


Attendance (P = present; E = excused; A = absent)

Chair: P. Nickerson (P)
Secretary: R. Hoeing (P)
Architecture & Planning: GS. Danford (P)
Arts & Sciences: M. Churchill(P), J. Woelfel (P), K. Tekeuchi (P), D. Street (P)
Dental Medicine: R. Hall (A)
Education: T. Schroeder (A)
Engineering & Applied Sciences: S. Batalma (P), S. Dargush (A)
Public Health & Health Professions: P. Horvath (P)
Law: J. Milles (A)
Management: W. Lin (P)
Medicine & Biomedical Sciences: William Fiden (E), M. Dayton (A), James Springate (P), J. Hasset (A)
Nursing: P. Wooldridge (P)
Pharmacy: G. Brazeau (P)
Social Work: B. Rittner (A)
SUNY Senators: W. Baumer (P), H. Durand (P), H. William Coles III (P), P. Bradford (E)
University Libraries: JA. Volpe (P)


Guests:Satish Tripathi (Provost), L. Finley (Vice-Provost, Faculty Affairs), L. Labinski (PSS), B. Burke (EDAAA), D. Berg (EDAAA), M. Daniels (Assistant Vice-Provost, ACE Advising), Dr. J. Morrison (Student Support Services) Dr. L. Thomas-Rogers (Daniel Ackers Scholars), C. Walters (Director, Ronald E. McNair Scholars), S. Crump-Owens (CADS/CSTEP), C. Wingo (LSAMP), L. Skompinski (Student Affairs Director), M. Mercedes (SUNY Student Assembly), C. Mendoza (UB Student Assembly), G. Neumann (University Bookstore), B. Adamczyk (University Bookstore), N. Safe (University Bookstore), S. Fox (University Bookstore), M. Cochrane (The Reporter)

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