1. Approval of
Academic Council meeting minutes from March 1, 2016
Dr. Michelle Hamm
moved approval of the minutes of March 1, 2016. Dr. Bill Ross seconded. With no
further discussion, the minutes were approved by voice vote.
2. New Course
Proposals
GERM 445 was
brought to the floor as a new course proposal. Dr. Elena Calvillo motioned to
approve. Dr. Linda Boland seconded. With no further discussion, GERM 445 was
approved by voice vote.
3. Revised
Course Proposals
MLSC 204 was
brought to the floor as a revised course proposal. Dr. Jon Dattelbaum motioned
to approve. Dr. Linda Boland seconded. With no further discussion, the revised
course proposal was approved by voice vote.
4. Econ Course
Proposals
Dr. Ben
Broening, Associate Dean, informed Academic Council that course proposals for Econ
234, Econ 368, Econ 315, and Econ 215 were approved by RSB at their previous faculty
meeting.
5. Proposed
Changes to B.S. Degree Requirements
Dr. Todd
Lookingbill, a member of the Ad Hoc Committee to Review the B.S. Degree
Requirements, presented the Revised Proposal from the Ad Hoc Committee. The full document is attached to the agenda.
Dr. Todd
Lookingbill motioned that Academic Council approve and endorse proposal 1, and
advance the proposal to A&S Faculty Meeting for a vote. Dr. Mike Kerkchove
seconded.
Dr. Bill Ross
and Dr. Michelle Hamm voiced their concerns that parameters for advanced
quantitative courses were not specified.
Dr. Hamm argued that, without these parameters, Academic Council would, in
future, need to debate them in every instance when a department advances a new
course to meet the requirement. Dr.
Lookingbill said that the Ad Hoc Committee had endeavored to negotiate a list
of criteria or types of advanced quantitative methods, but no one list
satisfied everyone. The Ad Hoc Committee
considered that a department would make a case that a proposed new course
satisfied the advanced quantitative requirement in a manner appropriate to
current practice in the discipline.
Dr. April Hill spoke
in favor of the revision. She observed
that the new requirement would give flexibility to departments to adapt their
curricula to best scientific practices in their fields. This would allow departments to develop
appropriate pathways for all students that include up-to-date advanced
quantitative courses that prepare them appropriately for graduate or
professional degrees.
Dr. Nicole
Sackley argued that Academic Council did not have authority to approve the
proposal. She urged that only the
A&S Faculty meeting should vote on the proposal to revise the degree
requirements. [The Guide to Faculty Governance, c IV, section 3 a. (added December
2005) requires approvals of revision to educational programs, including
degrees, to be approved and endorsed by Academic Council. Dean Skerrett confirmed that the Guide to Faculty Governance remains in
force until June 15, 2016.]
Dr. Mike
Kerckhove proposed a friendly amendment to the motion, adding to the end of
Proposal 1 this clause: “appropriate to scientific inquiry.” Todd Lookingbill accepted the amendment as
friendly.
After
discussion, the members voted by show of hands:
Approve: 10
Oppose: 3
Abstain: 10
Dr. Linda Boland
requested that the vote be recorded for the A&S Faculty Meeting.
6. Upcoming
Registration Advising—Libby Gruner
Dr. Libby
Gruner, Associate Dean and Director of Advising, updated Academic Council on
upcoming registration advising.
7. Workshop on
Influence of Race/Gender in student evaluations, April 8—Libby Gruner
Dr. Libby Gruner
reminded Academic Council that Dr. Chavella Pittman will be with us on April 8
for two faculty development workshops. In the morning, the session will be for
faculty who are interested in learning about the influence of faculty’s
marginalized statuses on classroom dynamics. A fuller description is given
below.
In the
afternoon, there will be a workshop for department chairs and members of
T&P, as described below.
Time and place
for both workshops will be coordinated.
8.
IQS/SMART/URISE—April Hill
Dean Skerrett welcomed
Dr. April Hill to Academic Council as new program coordinator for Integrated
and Inclusive Science programs. Dr.
April Hill gave a summary of the Integrated Quantitative Science (IQS) course
and the Science, Math, and Research Techniques (SMART) courses. These courses have been developed over the
past decade with multi-million dollar grants from the HHMI. After three HHMI grants, we are now taking
steps to institutionalize our interdisciplinary science and inclusive science
initiatives.
9. Proposal for
Registration Changes—Susan Breeden
Susan Breeden,
Registrar, presented to Academic Council a Proposal for Registration Changes,
which is attached in full.
Dr. Bill Ross
expressed concern that this proposal would drastically increase email volume.
Dr. Dan Palazolo
suggested modeling three classes instead of two in the first round, to see if
this would relieve concerns.
Dr. Linda Boland
echoed Dr. Beth Crawford’s suggestion that seniors—who are going to be put in
the class anyway, if they need it to graduate—should be put in the courses they
need before registration begins.
Susan Breeden
thanked the members for their feedback and informed Academic Council that this
proposal has also been taken to SGA for student feedback.
10. Creating
Equity By Design
Dean Skerrett
spoke about Creating Equity By Design, which is attached to the agenda. She
asked that Academic Council be thinking about this document, especially with
President Crutcher’s Strategic Planning Process underway. She asked Academic
Council to consider where their department and the University of Richmond fit
in with the overall landscape of higher education in terms of
equity-mindedness, and to use this document to begin conversations about diversity,
equity, and inclusion in their academic programs.
Dean Skerrett
observed that she and Associate Dean Wang have shared this resource with
programs that are engaged in Academic Program Review. She invites all programs to have
equity-mindedness as a focus of their self-reflection and program review.
11. Lecture
Budgets and Program Planning
Dean Skerrett
updated Academic Council on lecture budget and program planning. The process will be simplified this year to
reduce bureaucracy. Instead of submitting budget proposals in late April for
lectures and visitors during 2016-2017, the dean will allocate an amount based
on the 4-year average of each department’s prior expenditures on lecturers.
This allocation will appear as a temporary budget in the department.
Academic Council
can revisit with the new dean whether to continue the simplified process.
In addition,
Dean Skerrett reminded Academic Council that Kevin Creamer had suggested setting
up a Box so that departments can engage in collaborative planning regarding
lectures and visitors.
The meeting adjourned
at 11:45.
