A&S Faculty Meeting - April 14, 2016

1. Approval of A&S Faculty Meeting minutes from March 17, 2016

Dr. Julie Laskaris moved approval of the minutes of March 17, 2016. Dr. Laz Lima seconded. With no further discussion, the minutes were approved by voice vote.

2. Approval of Actions of Academic Council from April 5, 2016

Dr. Bill Ross moved approval of the actions of Academic Council from April 5, 2016. Dr. Beth Crawford seconded. With no further discussion, the actions were approved by voice vote.

3. Honors Convocation and 31st Annual Student Symposium – April 15, 2016

Dean Skerrett reminded faculty that on Friday, April 15, the Honors Convocation and 31st Annual Student Symposium will take place.  This is the largest Student Symposium we have ever had with more than 364 students scheduled to participate.  This is also the largest number of faculty mentors ever involved.  Dean Skerrett commended Symposium Coordinator Dr. Cindy Bukach for her outstanding efforts.

4. Merit Outcomes & Salary Recommendations – Dean Skerrett

Dr. Ben Broening, Associate Dean, gave a presentation on merit outcomes and salary recommendations.   Dr. Ben Broening, Associate Dean, gave a presentation on merit outcomes and salary recommendations.  He stated that the Dean’s office is committed to transparency in allocation of merit scores and systematic allocation of merit-based salary awards.  The dean noted the importance of the increase in promotion bumps this year and the ongoing commitment of the University’s Budget Office to benchmarking faculty salaries by rank against reported salaries of our peers (top 50 national liberal arts colleges).  Dean Skerrett observed the importance of presenting year-over-year data so that A&S faculty members gain a clear understanding of how merit and benchmarking investments are made.  In response to a request made last year, Dean Skerrett presented data that compares average salary by gender and rank.  She noted that the Dean’s office has strived to achieve gender parity for male and female faculty members across all ranks for individuals under fifteen years in rank.

5. Race & Racism at UR Project – Dr. Nicole Maurantonio

Dr. Nicole Maurantonio, Associate Professor of Rhetoric and Communications, gave a presentation on the Race & Racism at UR Project. Dr. Maurantonio showed faculty the website that houses the pilot project—memory.richmond.edu—and noted that Dean Skerrett has hired a Project Archivist to assist with this initiative.  The Project Archivist Irina Rogova has been appointed as a librarian.  The recent visit by Dr. Craig Wilder has increased excitement about this ongoing project.  Dean Skerrett noted that she plans to appoint the first Humanities Postbaccalaureate Fellow Victoria Charles this summer, who will pursue research in connection with the Race & Racism at UR Project.

6. Preliminary Report from the Ad Hoc Committee on Promotion – Dr. Sheila Carapico

Dr. Sheila Carapico, Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on Promotion, presented a preliminary summary of findings of the Survey on Promotion and Triennial Review. During her presentation, Dr. Carapico discussed the robust response rate and the fact that a representative sample has been gathered. Dr. Carapico presented data from the School of Arts & Sciences Dean’s Office regarding associate professors’ years in rank by division. Dr. Carapico spoke about findings suggesting that associate professors find expectations for promotion unclear, and many report a lack of mentoring to promotion, although faculty are not necessarily calling for more.

Dr. Kathrin Bower, a member of the Ad Hoc Committee on Promotion, presented a motion to extend the work of the Ad Hoc Committee on Promotion. Dr. Yvonne Howell seconded. With no further discussion, the motion passed.

7. Strategic Planning Process – Dr. Jan French

Dr. Jan French, President of the Faculty Senate and Steering Committee Co-Chair, updated A&S Faculty on the Strategic Planning Process. In particular, the Strategic Planning Committee’s website was presented at: https://strategicplan.richmond.edu/. Dr. French encouraged everyone to please provide feedback on the mission statements, values statements, vision statement, and the themes, which will, in the future, become the basis for working groups.

Dean Skerrett thanked everyone for their contributions to faculty governance over the past five years.

The meeting adjourned at 5:00 p.m.