FACULTY SENATE
Minutes of December 3, 2002 - (approved)
E-MAIL: ZBFACSEN@ACSU.BUFFALO.EDU

The Faculty Senate met at 2:00 p.m. on December 3, 2002, in the Center for Tomorrow to consider the following agenda:

1. Approval of the minutes of the minutes of November 5, 2002
   
2. Report of the Chair
   
3. Report of the President/Provost
   
4. Report on the NCAA certification - Barbara J. Ricotta
   
5. Second Reading re Web-grading - William H. Baumer
   
6. Vision of the new School of Public Health - Maurizio Trevisan
   
7. Report of the SUNY Senate meeting in Purchase, NY - Marilyn McMann Kramer
   
8. Old/new business
   
9. Adjournment
   

Item 1: Approval of the minutes of November 5, 2002

The minutes of November 5, 2002, were approved as distributed.

Item 2: Report of the Chair

Chair Cohen announced that there's been a call for nominations for two University senators and chair of the Faculty Senate. Elections will be held next year, and all members of the voting faculty are eligible. University senators are different from faculty senators in that they represent UB at SUNY Senate meetings, which are held three or four times a year to deliberate matters relevant to the State University system. Marilyn Kramer's report on the fall meeting at Purchase will illustrate the breadth of topics covered.

The Educational Programs & Policy Committee just submitted their report on the potential advantages and disadvantages of students having to declare majors when they enter UB. They cite two major advantages:

• Declaring a major early allows freshman to identify with a group of similar students, which can create a group environment and support system
  
• Freshmen with majors will be in contact with advisors who know the program well and keep them in touch with requirements and expected performance
  

There are concerns associated with this proposal, however:

• The effect of declaration of major on teaching responsibilities and staffing should be considered
  
• As a student leaves a major, a successful advising-out process requires advisors who are familiar with other programs and advisement services at UB
  
• Some students will have little or no idea which major to pick. A "bundled" major in an area that overlaps several majors might be useful (e.g. social sciences)
  

UB's schools of Engineering and Management are cited as exemplary models that admit students to a major as freshmen.

Professor Schack said that the topic had been discussed on the College of Arts & Sciences Chairs' ListServ, and that all expressed opinions had been negative. He recalled that there was a general belief that the proposal was guided by a misunderstanding of causality. Just because many students who pick a major early succeed doesn't mean that students who have to pick a major early will succeed. It's likely that this is more a case of correlation than causation. Students who pick a major early generally are more focused and have a notion of what they want. Another area of concern was that students forced to pick a major early might be more discouraged about staying at UB if their decision doesn't work out. There was also a general feeling that the proposal is un-academic, because students in the arts and sciences should be encouraged to get a broad education early and focus more in their junior and senior years. The examples given in the EPP Committee's report are professional schools where students are admitted with a focus and then refine that focus as they progress. That's very different from students who come with a general interest in the arts and sciences.

Item 3: Report of the President/Provost

None

Item 4: Report on the NCAA certification - Barbara J. Ricotta

Barbara Ricotta, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs, reported on UB's participation in the NCAA certification process. She is chair of the steering committee overseeing the process, which is designed to ensure integrity in intercollegiate athletic operations. Colleges and universities must meet NCAA standards regarding governance and rules compliance; academic integrity; fiscal integrity; equity, welfare and sportsmanship. There are tough sanctions for institutions that fail to address and correct problems. UB organized a steering committee with four sub-committees to focus on the NCAA Operating Principles.

• Principle 1 is "The Governance and Commitment to Rules Compliance operating principles ensure the athletics program is an integral part of the institution and operates in compliance with the ideals of the NCAA."
  
• Principle 2 is "The Academic Integrity operating principles seek to ensure the integrity of the academic experience for student-athletes is maintained with that of the University and the NCAA."
  
• Principle 3 is "The Fiscal Integrity operating principles focus on fiscal management and financial stability of the intercollegiate athletics program and the assurance that they are conducted in accordance with the policies of the University and NCAA Constitution 6.2."
  
• Principle 4 is "The Equity, Welfare & Sportsmanship operating principles focus on the University's commitment to gender and minority equity, student-athlete welfare, and sportsmanship."
  

A component of the current certification process was to evaluate whether there was progress relating to a recommendation made during UB's initial certification in 1995. The NCAA had then requested a comprehensive plan to address minority and gender deficiencies. A plan was submitted and approved in 1996.

The steering committee and the four sub-committees found UB to be in substantial conformity with all of the NCAA operating principles. An NCAA Peer Review team recently conducted a site visit here and is expected to deliver its decision on the current certification process around April 2003.

UB's complete self-study response is on the Division of Athletics Web site at http://www.ubathletics.buffalo.edu/certification/.

Chair Cohen said that he had met with the Peer Review team and that they were concerned about whether faculty members understood and were comfortable with UB's athletic programs. The NCAA representatives were interested in whether athletes were having a "university experience" that prepared them for something other than athletics when they leave the university.

Professor Bennett mentioned a New York Times article that referred to UB's using celebrities and other entertainment fare to bolster attendance at football games. She asked whether this had been successful. Dr. Ricotta said that we were able to meet the NCAA requirement for sold tickets per game. Director of Athletics Bob Arkeilpane explained that this was not reflected in actual attendance, however. There's currently a proposal to change the requirement to an average 15,000 per game actual attendance effective August 2004, but waivers could be added that would affect the actual total. UB's actual average attendance, which has been growing, is now close to 12,000 over five home games. Football is the only Division I sport with an attendance requirement.

Professor Adams-Volpe, chair of UB's Intercollegiate Athletics Board, reported that the average GPA for all UB athletes is 2.778. Nearly 50 percent are honors athletes with grade averages of 3.0 or higher. Professor Malone, who formerly served as UB's Faculty Athletics Representative to the NCAA, added that UB's athlete population closely follows the overall UB student body in distribution of majors.

Item 5: Second Reading re Web-grading - William H. Baumer

Professor Baumer, Chair of the Faculty Senate Grading Committee, read the current version of the Web Grading proposal, which had been revised at last month's first reading. It now states:
The University at Buffalo Faculty Senate endorses the transition to web grading as of the Fall 2002 semester with these conditions and qualifications:
1. All course instructors shall submit their grades via web grading.
2. Course rosters with submitted grades shall be returned electronically to instructors upon their submission of course grades. [These rosters should be formatted for efficient printing.]
3. Rosters with submitted grades for all courses in their departments shall be transmitted electronically to department chairs who request this.
4. Department chairs may appoint a department staff member as department grade recorder authorized to review grade submissions for department courses and enter course grades if necessary.

The motion passed without further discussion.

Item 6: Vision of the new School of Public Health - Maurizio Trevisan

Maurizio Trevisan, Interim Dean of Social and Preventive Medicine, reported on UB's newly formed (by reorganizing/renaming existing departments) School of Public Health & Health Professions. The School's mission is to train public health practitioners and researchers; focus research efforts on WNY and NYS community issues; and utilize and develop state of the art technologies to improve health, health care delivery, and quality of life of individuals and communities.

School goals to accomplish its mission include:

• Engagement of the community
  
• Implementation of changes in the education process
  
• Active collaboration with other schools within UB
  
• Creation of opportunities for interdisciplinary research efforts
  
• Creation of networks to translate innovative ideas and research findings into actions with individuals, institutions and community organizations
  

A new school is being created because there's a widely recognized need to train public health and health professionals in order to meet the changing health care needs of our communities. To be successful, it needs to:

• Create an environment where health profession disciplines are not seen as individual entities, but as important pieces of an integrated system
  
• Focus on the health of both individuals and populations, with emphasis on prevention and wellness, and to develop and sustain an efficient and integrated system of health care delivery that ensures adequate access to all segments of the population
  
• Focus these efforts on clearly identified needs and delivery strategies that are based on scientific evidence
  
• Train and educate in a common environment through a curriculum that focuses on common values based on scientific principles
  

The School is an appropriate offering for UB, which has a longstanding, successful tradition in public and allied health. There's already a broad array of health-related programs with a strong research and public service orientation. Nearby affiliated institutions such as Roswell Park Cancer Institute have a strong commitment to the prevention and treatment of major causes of death and disability. Western New York needs a coordinated, population-focused approach to health care, because the region is facing many challenges in terms of health issues and the educational needs of our public health and other health professionals.

The proposed organizational structure of the School of Public Health & Health Professionals has a dean and four associate deans who oversee programs in Epidemiology, Biostatistics, Behavioral Sciences, Exercise & Nutrition Sciences, Rehabilitation Science, and Public Health Practice & Health Policy. There will also be an Environment & Society Institute, Center for Assistive Technology, and a Center for Population & Public Health Genetics. Other centers/institutes will be created based on available expertise and relevance.

A core curriculum will be developed from a public health and population perspective. Proposed areas of focus include wellness and prevention, evidence-based practice, health disparities, and the broader society implications of disease.

There are 33 schools of public health in the U.S., and several other institutions are in the process of creating new schools. UB's will be different by being the only one to combine public health with health-related professions.

Professor Churchill asked whether our School would have any involvement with alternative medical treatments. Dean Trevisan said it would be evidence-based, so popular treatments might be subjected to scientific study.

Professor Hull asked how the Behavioral Sciences program will relate to existing social science programs such as psychology. Dean Trevisan said that the School of Public Health's program would deal with health outcomes. CAS's courses will provide much broader coverage of the disciplines. He doesn't expect much duplication of course content.

Professor Nickerson said the School's plans are sure to be expensive and asked how it will be financed. Dean Trevisan said he realizes that a big part of his job will be to seek funding. He's optimistic, however, because a consultant affirmed that UB is well-positioned to attract the required financial support.

Professor Bennett commented that many areas in Western New York have a high incidence of health problems and asked whether any of the School's departments had a map showing the locations of high-risk localities. Dean Trevisan replied that no map currently exists, but the School will be collecting morbidity data and mapping it.

Item 7: Report of the October SUNY Senate meeting at Purchase, NY - Marilyn McMann Kramer

Professor Kramer's report on the October 17-19, 2002, meeting that she and Professors Durand and Nickerson attended had been postponed from the November Faculty Senate meeting.

The Friday morning session was highlighted by a talk by trustee Randy Daniels, who is politically influential as Vice-Chair of the SUNY Board of Trustees and NYS Secretary of State. He said he has a passion for public education and expressed his concern that faculty should hold students to very demanding standards. His priorities are access to and diversity in education. He said the Board still supports General Education and will advocate for program funding, although next year's SUNY budget will limit what can be done.

At another session, questions were raised about SUNY's creation of the Neil Levin Institute for Graduate Studies in International Affairs. There was concern that this new unit would siphon money and faculty away from other SUNY institutions, but Chancellor King later explained that the Neil Levin Institute will offer courses for credit and issue certificates, but it will not grant degrees. Funding will come primarily from philanthropy. The New York business community wanted this institute to honor Neil Levin for his role in the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

The Chancellor acknowledged that overcrowding is a problem at many, but not all, SUNY schools. He suggested that overcrowded institutions might have to address that problem by limiting enrollment.

At the Friday afternoon session, David DeMarco overviewed SUNY's budget operation and described how the Board uses the Budget Allocation Process to adjust the enacted budget. SUNY's estimated all-funds budget for 2002/03 is $7.2 billion.

A SUNY task force on fiscal policy reported that they will recommend that the state should increase its funding over time but should not decrease its percentage of support. They also want tuition to be indexed annually, differentiated tuition for university centers, reasonable fees that are set in an open and consistent manner, and an annually adjusted TAP that covers said fees.

Senator Maureen Dolan, on behalf of the Senate Operations Committee, presented that group's Survey of the Campus Budget Process, which was endorsed by the Senate. President Hildreth will request that Chancellor King send the report to campus presidents.

Professor Nickerson noted that Trustee Daniels's talk was significant because he's the first trustee to address the SUNY Senate since their vote of no confidence in the Board.

The meeting was adjourned at 3:30.

Respectfully submitted,

Will Hepfer
Secretary of the Faculty Senate

Present:
Chair, M. Cohen
Secretary: W. Hepfer
Parliamentarian: D. Malone
Architecture: G. S. Danford, H. Steiner
Arts & Sciences: W. Baumer, H. Bennett, J. Campbell, M. Churchill, T. Gregg, E. Hull J. Ludwig, A. MacPherson, AJ. Mendoza, A. Monteiro, R. Salvi, E. Scarlett, E. S. Schack, E. Seeman, E. Segal, R. Woodward
Education: H. Bromley
Engineering: S. Braynov, J. Jensen, D. Malone, T. J. Mountziaris, R. Nagi,
Health Related Professions: G. Farkas, C. Golyski, S. Nochajski
Informatics: F. Tutzauer
Law: L. Swartz
Management: S. Gunn, M. Trivedi
Medicine & Biomedical Sciences: J. Hassett, J. Izzo, J. Leddy, K. Mahran,
Nursing: P. McCartney
Pharmacy: G. Brazeau
Social Work: B. Rittner
SUNY Senators: J. Adams-Volpe, M. Kramer, P. Nickerson
University Libraries: S. Bartl, J. Dickson, CA Fabian, J. Hopkins

Guests:
D. Longenecker, Reporter

Excused:
Dental Medicine: M. Donley, L. Ortman
Education: J. Almasi
Medicine & Biomedical Sciences: J. Canty

Absent:
Arts & Sciences: B. Bono, S. Bruckenstein, A. Cadenhead, M. Chen, D. Eddins, G. Finnegan, H. Luo, J. Pappas, A. Petrou, J. Ringland, C. Smith, V. Watrous
Dental Medicine: D. Garlapo, J. Zambon
Education: R. Stein
Engineering: R. Mayne, R. Sridhar, S. Thevanayagam
Institutional/General: O. Mixon
Law: I. Marcus, R. Reis
Management: J. Boot, W. Lin
Medicine & Biomedical Sciences: A. Aquilina, A. Baer, R. Fenstermaker, W. Fiden, B. Flynn, J. Fudyma, C. Granger, C. Hershey, T. Langan, G. Logue, R. Morin, B. Murray, N. Nielsen, J. Novak, M. Paroski, G. Snyder, J. Yeh
Nursing: E. Perese
Pharmacy: K. Boje
Social Work: S. Green
SUNY Senators: H. Durand

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