UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA
Minutes of the Ninety-Ninth Meeting
November 15, 1996
The ninety-ninth meeting of the Faculty Assembly of the University of North Carolina was held in the Board Room of the General Administration Building in Chapel Hill on November 15, 1996. The meeting was called to order by Chair Peter Petschauer at 1:05 with 44 delegates in attendance. After introducing new members of the Assembly and thanking Lolly Gasaway for her work on the Directory, he turned the meeting over to President Spangler for his report.
President Spangler's Report
President Spangler spoke to the assembly on issues of budget, retirement, summer programs, public office, teaching awards and endowed professorships. (A copy of President Spangler's remarks is attached.) As part of his report, he asked Mr. Richard Robinson to discuss Open Meeting issues.
Richard Robinson's Report
Mr. Robinson reported that the current situation is the result of a compromise with the North Carolina Press Association. The compromise is an attempt to balance what the press sees as the public's right to know and what the campuses see as confidential. The greatest concern is that the current guidelines discourage the appointment of faculty to key committees because their presence makes the meetings open to the press. A Board of Governors subcommittee will be looking into possible changes.
Several members of the Assembly voiced concern that the current arrangement encourages the formation of committees made entirely of administrators, limits the involvement of the faculty in key areas of resource reallocation and budget, may hamper the involvement of SPA employees, impinges on the functioning of the University and restricts academic freedom. They urged President Spangler to convey this concern to the Board of Governors as they consider the issue.
Q. Michael Pearson(UNCC): In issues of privatization, is consideration being given to whether or not the external organizations that would bid on services provide adequate health care and other benefits to their employees?
A. President Spangler: It is not the goal of the State Legislature to do away with health care. There may have to be action taken to ensure that these benefits are provided. There is a great deal that remains to be seen because there has been so little outsourcing.
Q. Pearson: Can the chancellors make the decision to outsource or will General Administration?
A. Spangler: General Administration intends to do little directly. There are state laws and other regulations that may be required in these situations. The General Administration will work to see that laws, regulations and guidelines are met, but the campuses will have freedom within that framework.
Following President Spangler's remarks, Dr. Linton provided a presentation on the Review of UNC Organized Research Centers and Institutes. The presentation highlighted the contributions made by these Centers and the criteria that is being used to determine if there is redundancy. The study shows that the centers are generating revenues from sources outside the state and are contributing to the wellbeing of the groups they are designed to serve. The centers that will be discontinued are those that appear to have outlived their original usefulness.
Chair's Report
The Chair is meeting with the faculty senates on each campus to communicate the activities of the Faculty Assembly, hear the concerns of the senates, and watch the governance process in action. In the original visits, it has been possible to observe a great deal of diversity in approach.
The Presidential Search process is on schedule. A great deal of effort on the part of many of the faculty helped keep the reference to academic experience in the final document and those who provided support are to be commended. The Chair continues to remind the Board of Governors of the role that faculty should play in the process, but the search is continuing on its original plan.
The Early Retirement Committee met earlier in the day and is submitting recommendations to President Spangler.
The Post Tenure Review Committee is still meeting, as well. The Executive Committee supports teaching centers as a way of focusing on the formative aspect of Post Tenure Review. Additionally, if we have post-tenure review, the should be a way to obtain training for chairs. This training should be centrally located for broad issues and there should be a local component for campus specific issues. Several of the committees will be addressing different aspects of the post-tenure review issue.
The next meeting will be the 100th meeting of the Faculty Assembly. The Assembly will invite former chairs, former Presidents of the university system, and members of the Board of Governors to attend and join the Assembly in a brief celebration.
Dr. Petschauer reminded the Assembly that the committees are the life blood of the body and thanked the Assembly for their work.
The Afternoon Plenary session was adjourned at 2:25 and the members met in committee.
EVENING PLENARY SESSION
The session was called to order at 7:10 PM with 43 delegates in attendance.
STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS
Planning and Program(Dan Noland)
All UNC institutions, except The School of the Arts, must have a minimum of two 70-day semesters starting with the 1997-98 year. General Administration is waiting for campuses to report on the advantages or disadvantages of a 160 day school year. The Committee was interested in knowing if each campus has faculty representation on the committee that sets the calendar and which schools have early senior exams.
The reported enrollment of students in the UNC System is 1400 FTE below estimates. This is the fourth year in a row that actual student enrollment has been below projections. Although high school graduation rates are down and the economy is strong, there appears to be a weakness in the projection model. There was some concern that three of the four schools that were significantly under projected enrollment were historically minority institutions.
The Comprehensive Plan for higher Education Enrollment has reduced the ten-year projection of increased enrollment down to 33,065, almost all of which will occur after 2001. UNC's current focus for dealing with the increase is to get legislative support for distance learning and summer school.
The Board of Governors is also considering the report on academic advising. This report is to be part of the biennial surveys, and schools which exceed 33% dissatisfaction score will be closely scrutinized.
Workload information is being collected and will be used for such decisions as equity funding.
There is continued discussion in the Committee regarding how the quantitative focus of the Legislature and General Administration may affect the quality of education. Issues surrounding distance learning will be considered. The Committee will look into policies requiring the sixteen campuses to establish standards for admitting home schooled students.
Q. Rabinowitz: Is anyone looking at possible negative results of the 150-day year.
A. It is assumed that the responses on the advisability of the 160-day year will include some comment.
Faculty Governance(Gordon Mercer)
The Committee continued to design a questionnaire to determine problems and prospects in faculty governance on the various campuses. This survey will help set future agendas for the Committee. The Committee reviewed AAUP guideline on faculty governance and added questions about faculty evaluation of administrators, faculty input on budget and terms of office for department administrators. The Committee discussed and recommended that North Carolina Senate Speaker Pro Tem and the Speaker of the North Carolina Hose of Representatives be invited to meet with the Faculty Assembly. Their visits could be sequenced over the next two meetings or could be at or at the 100th meeting celebration. Peter Petschauer was asked to act on this recommendation. It was recommended that visiting faculty senate chairs bring descriptions of their administrative review procedures and that establishing a systematic system of administrative review be discussed as related to the UNC University System. Other areas of faculty governance on campuses will be reviewed.
Academic Freedom and Tenure(Ken Chambers)
The Committee heard an update from Judith Stillion on the status of the Post Tenure Review Committee. Three issues were aired: (1)The review should be developmental rather than punitive. (2)The University of North Carolina Code should not be altered. (3) The term Post Tenure Review of Performance was acceptable to the Committee. The Committee drafted a resolution on performance review of permanently tenured faculty. After considerable discussion and amendment, the resolution was passed by the Faculty Assembly. (A copy of Resolution 96-3 is attached.)
Myra Cain provided an update on the transfer agreements with the community colleges. The Committee did not feel that there was a need for any action on the matter at this time. The Committee began a discussion of the two-tiered employment pattern (tenure track and non-tenure track, part-time/adjunct) and agreed to continue the discussion at the next meeting.
Professional Development(Bonnie Kelley)
Dr. Jasper Memory shared the report on the Establishment of the UNC Exchange program and Dr. Richard Linton answered questions on the Report on Organized Research Centers and Institutes, and Public Service Units in the UNC system. The chair shared the final report from the peer Review Conference at Black Mountain and reported on meeting with the Advisory Board of the Institute for College and University Teaching.
The Committee discussed bringing a resolution on Teaching Centers but decided to send out a survey to gather information on existing and nonexisting Centers to accompany a resolution at the next meeting.. Survey questions were formulated for Provosts and Carolina Colloquium Steering Committee members.
The Committee submitted a resolution on the professional development for Department Chairs. The resolution was adopted.(A copy of Resolution 96-4 is attached.)
Budget(Laura Gasaway)
The Faculty Involvement in University Budgets study and resulting chart has been revised as per faculty senate responses to an inquiry from the Budget Committee chair. Several campuses have been able to involve their faculties in campus-wide budget planning activities based on the comparative data from all 16 schools. A final chart will be mailed to the head of Faculty Assembly delegation from each campus. The chart will be revised each fall by the same mechanism: a letter from the Budget Committee chair to the Faculty Senates and Councils soliciting changes , compilation by the Budget Committee, and distribution at the November meeting.
A summary of the 1997-99 budget Request was distributed to the delegates with a brief explanation. The Committee met with Kennis Grogan from the GA staff who explained the budget request and answered questions. The Committee appreciates his clarity and willingness to provide information.
Additionally, the Committee met with Dr. Don Caughill who explained the new funding model. The Committee suggests that the Assembly invite Dr. Caughill to present the new funding model at the February meeting.
Following the report, there was discussion of the potential for controversy that can result from the salary increases that were rewarded for teaching. Dr. Carroll pointed out that the General Administration is working with the Board of Governors to persuade the legislature to increase salaries in general. The sum for rewarding teaching was in addition to regular merit raises and was in line with the desire to recognize teaching activities.
Faculty Welfare(James Nicholl)
The Committee began to study the question of extending employee benefits to domestic partners (either same sex or opposite sex). Kitty McCollum briefed the Committee regarding existing examples of universities which provide such health care benefits. Private institutions or self-insured public institutions find it feasible to do so. The Committee polled the Faculty Assembly and determined the members' interest in continuing to study this issue. It will continue to study the issue and ask McCollum to provide additional information at the February meeting.
Dr. Stillion discussed the recommendations of the Early Retirement Committee. There are a number of recommendations and each campus will retain autonomy within general UNC guideline during a trial period. This committee will finish its work by December 20 with an examination of the costs of the proposals.
John Dervin, President, Association of Student Governments and the student member of the Board of Governor's Presidential leadership Statement Committee, requested a Faculty Assembly resolution encouraging continuing faculty and student involvement in the residential search process. The Resolution was passed . (A copy of Resolution 96-5 is attached.) The Committee suggests that Gurganus, Kelley and Petschauer be among those serving if the Board responds positively to the resolution.
Dr. Petschauer has agreed to work to get minutes of the Faculty Assembly and Board of Governors meetings distributed to all sixteen institutions libraries for public access. It was suggested that time and money could be saved by distributing it electronically, but it must be distributed by hard copy until all campuses are on-line.
The Committee asked McCollum to bring information regarding feasibility of changing the date for switching health plans from October 1, either to July 1, to correspond with the state fiscal year, or to January 1, to correspond with the income tax year and the NC Flex Plan year.
Old Business
Dr. Roy Carroll has shared copies of Resolution 95 xxx on Environmental impacts with the Chancellors, but hasn't reported back. Dr. Pearson noted that surveys and other requests for response are accomplished more systematically and efficiently by e-mail.
New Business
Henry Ferrell asked if there was information available in some data base that would enable us to look at number of administrators in 1986 compared to the number in 1996. Wilson asked that changes in administrative salaries be compared to changes in academic salaries.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:30.