Minutes for May 2, 2022

Chancellor Rebecca Blank called the online meeting to order at 3:30 p.m. with 152 voting members present (109 needed for quorum). Memorial resolutions were offered for Professor Emeritus Glen Cain (Faculty Document 3018), Professor Emerita Sharon Dunwoody (Faculty Document 3019), Professor Jennifer Reed (Faculty Document 3020), Professor Emerita Karen Steudel-Numbers (Faculty Document 3021), Professor Emeritus Steve Kornguth (Faculty Document 3022), and Professor Emeritus Henry Schutta (Faculty Document 3023).

Chancellor Rebecca Blank thanked everyone for their flexibility in adapting to changes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Free PCR and antigen testing will continue to be offered through the end of the semester; employees and students can pick up 2 home kits per week. The university will consult with public health and infectious disease specialists and change current policies if it becomes necessary. Commencement ceremonies will be Friday evening on May 13 at the Kohl Center and on Saturday May 14 at Camp Randall when Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield will give the keynote address.

The Center for World University Rankings placed UW-Madison 27^th world-wide and 20^th nationally in the 4 areas considered: education, employability, faculty status, and research. Professor Monica White (Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, District 107) was awarded a Carnegie Fellowship, and Professor Dietram Scheufele (Life Sciences Communication, District 3) and Professor Shannon Stahl (Chemistry, District 48) were inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Students received a prestigious Truman Scholarship and four of the highly competitive Goldwater Scholarships.

There were three finalists for CALS dean and the hiring decision will be announced soon. Rob Cramer was named Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration. Interviews for the five Chancellor finalists were held this week.

Chancellor Blank reflected on her time here at UW-Madison. She received a standing ovation after her comments.

Professor Eric Sandgren also attended his last Faculty Senate as chair of the University Committee. He acknowledged Professor Erica Halverson and Professor Sue Babcock, who are also cycling off the UC. New UC members will be Professor Chiao-Ping Li (Dance, District 33) and Professor Ellen Zweibel (Astronomy, District 46), each for 3-year terms, and Professor Michael Bernard-Donals (English, District 55) will be an interim member for one year. Chair Sandgren noted that his three priorities for the UC: administrative burden, support for diversity initiatives, and strengthening shared governance, gained strides this year. The faculty senate accomplishments include improving the way the academic calendar is constructed and rolled out, adding language to ensure that electronic meetings are in compliance with Robert's Rules, changing passing periods to make it easier for students to travel to evening exams, and cleaning up many outdated or unclear sections of faculty legislation.

The minutes of the April 4, 2022 meeting were approved by consent. Also approved by consent were the appointment of Professor Kurt Paulsen (Planning & Landscape Architecture, District 22) to the Campus Planning Committee and changes to Faculty Policies and Procedures (FPP), standardizing membership information for the Officer Education Committee and the Committee on Undergraduate Recruitment, Admissions and Financial Aid (CURAFA) (Faculty Document 3024). Professor Rob Streiffer (Medical History & Bioethics, District 82) presented the Officer Education Committee annual report for 2018-2021 (Faculty Document 3025), Professor John Mackay (Philosophy, District 66) presented the Immigration and International Issues Committee annual report for 2020-2021 (Faculty Document 3026), Professor Dante Fratta (Civil and Environmental Engineering, District 35) presented the 2021-2022 annual report for CURAFA (Faculty Document 3027), Associate Dean Greg Downey presented the name change of the Department of Afro-American Studies to the Department of African American Studies (Faculty Document 3028) and University Committee member Erica Halverson, presented the spring 2022 Faculty Committees Election Results (Faculty Document 3029). There were questions on the Immigration and International Issues Committee report, no questions for the other reports.

University Committee member Lauren Papp moved approval of a proposal to change Emeritus/Emerita to Emerit in Faculty Policies and Procedures (Faculty Document 3017). The motion was approved. Professor John Mackay, (Philosophy, District 66) moved approval to add a postdoctoral seat to the Immigration and International Issues Committee (Faculty Document 3030). The motion was approved. University Committee chair Eric Sandgren moved approval to amend Faculty Policies and Procedures by including university staff in relevant sections (Faculty Document 3031). The motion was approved. University Committee member Fernando Tejedo-Herrero moved to clarify meeting dates for the Faculty Senate by adding the specific months in Faculty Policies and Procedures (Faculty Document 3032). The motion was approved. University Committee member Erica Halverson moved approval of amending the beginning term date for members of the Honorary Degree Committee (Faculty Document 3033). The motion was approved.

Chancellor Blank adjourned the meeting at 4:27 pm.