University Committee Meeting Minutes 2015-01-26

approved February 2, 2015

Draft minutes for January 26, 2015

Present: Broman, Fair (chair), Meyerand, Petty, Wendt
Absent: Edwards

1. Meeting called to order: 12:30 PM
2. Updates and announcements: 
a. UC will meet next week in 54 Bascom.
b. WARF/UC lunch will be February 24.
c. Shared governance (Assembly, Congress, Senate) meeting: February 9
d. Fair called attention to recent stories in media on hostile and intimidating behavior. 
3. Minutes of the meeting of January 12, 2015, approved.
4. Discussion: System Faculty Representatives
a. Petty briefed the UC on most recent faculty representatives meeting. 
b. Petty proposed formalization of faculty representation to UWS to replace what has historically been an ad hoc process resulting in poor Madison participation. Ample discussion about importance of continuity and campus connections. 
5. Modification to definition of academic staff: Fair provided background and rationale. Discussion, including relation to dual roles. Consensus acceptance with minor revisions.
6. Petty moved and Wendt 2nd to convene in closed session pursuant to Wis. Stats. 19.85(1)(c) and (f) to discuss personnel matters. Motion passed: 1:00 PM.
a. The UC considered and unanimously approved one tenure clock extension.
b. The UC considered and unanimously approved one dual role waiver.
c. The UC considered and unanimously approved one leave of absence and resultant tenure clock extension.
d. The UC considered a request from OHR for a faculty member to serve on a search committee. Consensus that this search not at level requiring faculty participation.
e. The UC discussed membership for the DAAC. 
f. The UC discussed possible composition of an advisory committee on hostile and intimidating behavior. 
7. Wendt moved and Meyerand 2nd to reconvene in open session. Motion passed: 1:26 PM. 
8. VCRGE update (Marsha Mailick)
a. Mailick distributed and discussed “Proposals & Awards FY09-FY14” showing trends in research funding. This will be shared with other units as well and presented at a future Faculty Senate meeting.
b. Mailick reviewed the suite of funding programs that exist to assist faculty and increase proposal success rates, including graduate fellowships, the fall competition, recruitment and retention, matching, bridge, and UW2020.
c. Mailick and the UC discussed operational guidelines for the inaugural URC.
d. The UC asked Mailick about the impact of a division named “social studies” as opposed to “social sciences.” The nomenclature does have an impact on funding and it would be worthwhile to consider in greater detail.
9. Provost update (Sarah Mangelsdorf): 
a. Mangelsdorf and the UC discussed logistics for joint meeting on February 9.
b. Mangelsdorf and the UC discussed the diversity forum. A feedback mechanism (such as an online survey) was suggested.
c. Fair called attention to essay on compliance in NY Review of Books.
d. The UC briefed the provost on their discussion on UWS faculty representation.
e. Mangelsdorf updated and briefed the UC on AAU sexual assault survey. Discussion.
f. Mangelsdorf provided brief updates on ongoing searches. 
g. Ample discussion of timetable schedule.
10. Graduate Appointments update (Wendy Crone): Crone distributed and discussed “Anticipated Changes in Graduate Assistantship Appointments,” focusing on changes since last presentation to UC. Implementation date has been pushed back to July 1, 2015. Project still moving ahead at same rate, but system updates required postponement and fiscal year start date critical. Focus groups with various constituencies will be conducted. Ample discussion. 
11. Chancellor update (Rebecca Blank)
a. Blank updated the UC on the diversity forum. Discussion. 
b. Blank reported on applications, which are significantly increased over same point last year in all categories, including underrepresented students.
c. Blank provided an update on the current status of the biennial budget, expected levels of cuts, and possible flexibilities. In addition to the cuts themselves, issues of concern include changes to base, cost to continue, and capital expenses. Impacts will be felt across every school and college in terms of layoffs, increased time to graduation, and provision of services. 
12. Meeting adjourned at 3:18 PM.