Western Illinois University Faculty Senate met March 31.
Here is the agenda provided by the senate:
SENATORS PRESENT VIA ZOOM: J. Albarracin, D. Banash, M. Bean, B. Bellott, J. Choi, S. Cordes, S. Czechowski, G. Delany- Barmann, R. Filipink, J. Franken, D. Hunter, I. Lauer, T. Lough, M. Maskarinec, D. Oursler, B. Perabo, C. Pynes, J. Robinett, M. Stinnett, F. Tasdan, E. Taylor, K. Zbeeb (via teleconference) Ex-officio: Billy Clow, Interim Provost; Heather McIlvaine-Newsad, Parliamentarian
SENATORS ABSENT: R. Sawhney
GUESTS VIA ZOOM: Martin Abraham, Jobu Babin, Greg Baramidze, Steve Bennett, Mark Bernards, Tom Blackford, Ginny Boynton, Katrina Daytner, Dennis DeVolder, Jack Elfrink, Spencer Foust, Denise Gravitt, Robert Hironimus-Wendt, Bob Intrieri, Ruth Kelly, Bill Knox, Richard LaFlam, Jessica Lin, Angela Lynn, Sue Martinelli-Fernandez, Jenny McGarry, Kristi Mindrup, Deb Miretzky, Russ Morgan, Jill Myers, Rafael Obregon, Lorette Oden, Renee Polubinsky, Rob Porter, Tim Roberts, Susan Stewart, Bill Thompson, Heriberto Urby, Araceli Villagomez, Tara Westerhold, Gregg Woodruff
As the Faculty Senate opened its first ever Zoom meeting, Chairperson Pynes asked attendees to mute their microphones as they entered the meeting and make sure that their full names appeared under their pictures rather than an acronym or abbreviation. Chairperson Pynes also alerted everyone that he had made it so that all chat communication in Zoom for non-moderators (ExCo) would be public to everyone.
I. Consideration of Minutes
A. March 3, 2020
MINUTES APPROVED AS DISTRIBUTED
II. Announcements
A. Provost's Report
Interim Provost Clow thanked everyone for working through the incredibly weird and strange turnover process in the last two weeks as courses have all had to be converted to online. He stated that while there have been lots of bumps in the road, it has begun very well. The administration is still working on getting computers or software access for a small number of students. Interim Provost Clow said the administration has been trying to respond to issues as they come up on a case-by-case basis, and the Registrar’s office has been trying to get everything going for fall registration.
Interim Provost Clow announced that Terri Hare is retiring today as Director of the Financial Aid office. He said she has helped the office to get through the last couple of weeks and get issues sorted out as best as possible so that the office will be able to do a good job moving forward. Interim Provost Clow expressed his appreciation for her many years of service to WIU.
Senator Hunter asked if the Corbin-Olson computer lab could be kept open for the remainder of spring semester since he has some students for which it is their only computer access. Interim Provost Clow replied that there are no plans at this point to shut it down; it is the one access point that the University plans to keep open to make sure that students have what they need.
C. Student Government Association Report
(Araceli Villagomez, SGA representative to Faculty Senate)
Ms. Villagomez announced that SGA will still hold its elections. Petition forms for 2020-21 SGA positions are available on Purple Post. Students have until 4:00 p.m. on April 10 to submit completed petition forms. A candidate meeting will be held virtually on April 12, and voting will take place from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on April 20-24 through PurplePost. Election results will be available at 4:30 p.m. on April 24.
D. Other Announcements
1. Interim President Martin Abraham
Chairperson Pynes asked for attendees to type their questions to Interim President Abraham in the public chat box for Zoom. Interim President Abraham stated that when he arrived at work last Monday and found that there had not been any major disasters, he was grateful. He has been surprised that things have gone as smoothly as they have so far. He knows there have been challenges but thinks everybody has rallied around the faculty and staff, and a lot of good things are being done in a short amount of time. Interim President Abraham stated that while the University has had some good success in supporting its students so far, there is still a lot more that is being worked on; challenges continue, and the University is making an effort to continue to work through these issues and try to move things ahead to keep students in class, faculty teaching, and enable students to register for fall and summer classes.
Senator Filipink asked, on behalf of a constituent, what role the Strategic Planning Committee is playing at this point. Interim President Abraham responded he is not sure they are doing much right now; with the current activities going on, they are somewhat dormant temporarily because the University is dealing with crisis issues. He said that this is still something that will need to move forward, but it is difficult to move forward very deliberately at this moment.
Senator Albarracin asked how many students are currently on campus and if some do not need to be here. She wonders if the administration is encouraging students who do not need to be on campus to go home. Interim President Abraham responded that at the last count – which has remained stable for several days – 318 students were living in the residence halls. The administration does not know how many live in rental apartments around town, but that could be a reasonably decent number as well. Interim President Abraham thinks the administration has been pretty clear across the board in suggesting that students who do not need to be on campus should be home if they have the opportunities and resources to be successful in their studies there. He thinks the students on campus believe they need to be here in order for them to be able to get food, stable lodging, and access to resources; additionally, they may have a job in Macomb.
Chairperson Pynes asked, on behalf of a constituent, why the Board of Trustees meeting was cancelled. Interim President Abraham responded the business they wanted to do was not going to be able to be completed; there was only one action item, so it was decided to see what could be achieved that needs to be achieved to serve students and come back with a different agenda at a later time.
Senator Tasdan asked if recent numbers are available for fall enrollment and how this situation is being handled under the current circumstances. Interim President Abraham responded that this morning about 1,350 students were registered for fall. He said this is 1,350 above where the University was last spring at this time because last year registration was not opened up this early for fall. Interim President Abraham does not believe that data relative to last year will be predictive at this point because so much has changed as a result of the coronavirus and the way registration is being done, so it will not be a meaningful comparison. He added that the University will continue to push forward with registration as best as possible.
Senator Czechowski asked what kind of thought has been given to graduation in May or at a later date. Interim President Abraham responded that this is high on the administration’s agenda. He has asked a very small group of individuals to help make these decisions and is expecting a couple of ideas for things that might be feasible. Interim President Abraham has a meeting scheduled with SGA President Colton Markey and hopes to be able to meet with a larger group of students in the near future. He anticipates that the University will survey graduating seniors with a couple of potential options for graduation and ask if they would participate in such an event; after responses have been gathered, the administration will move forward. Interim President Abraham stated that one option is a virtual event in the second or third week of May; if students like this idea and think it could be delivered in a meaningful way, there might be the opportunity of an in-person ceremony at a later date as well. Interim President Abraham told senators that all options are on the table at this point. He is determined to find an appropriate way to honor WIU’s graduates with a meaningful type of ceremony.
Chairperson Pynes related that he has been asked if the President can address summer and fall activities for students. Interim President Abraham responded that the University is open for summer registration right now; about 550 students have registered for summer classes so far. He related that Governor Pritzker has just extended the stay-at-home order for Illinois through April 30, so that means that early summer activities will not happen, but he does not know yet about activities that are scheduled later in the summer. Interim President Abraham told senators that no summer activities have been cancelled yet by the University, but other groups have started cancelling events that were to have been held on the WIU campuses this summer. He added that the situation continues to evolve as everyone learns more about the direction things are going.
Senator Zbeeb asked if the University plans to invest in VMware software to enable students to access the computer labs. Interim President Abraham responded that this subject has not yet come up. He stated that if Senator Zbeeb has a specific idea, Interim President Abraham would be happy to share it with University Technology.
Senator Cordes remarked that even before the stay-at-home order there was some discussion about putting more orientation pieces online, either before students arrive on campus or during summer orientation week. He asked if there are any online meetings, games, or entertainment that can be offered to students online. He added that some universities are putting concerts online for the benefit of their students at this time. Interim President Abraham responded that online orientation is moving forward, but he does not know whether putting programs or concerts online has been discussed specifically. He thinks it is a good idea but is not sure where that might stand at the moment. He thinks the administration might be able to take this topic up and move forward in some areas.
Parliamentarian McIlvaine-Newsad asked if there are plans to try to encourage students to complete the 2020 census using their Quad Cities or Macomb addresses. Interim President Abraham thinks the University may be sending a note out to students tomorrow to remind that that the census is due April 1 and that they should list the address where they reside while attending university.
Chairperson Pynes asked on behalf an audience member if the President could address the change in advising and why advisors were not informed during the process. He added that faculty do not have a good understanding of what has changed in advising but they have heard that something is different. Interim President Abraham related that when the decision was made in the fall to develop an Enrollment Management division, and continuing into discussions in the spring, there was talk about modifying the advising processes, at least within the discussion group. He suspects perhaps these discussions did not make their way out to the broader community of advisors as much as he would have liked, and the basic process may not have been communicated very effectively. Interim President Abraham related that advisors in the University Advising and Academic Support Center will be working exclusively with first-year students – new students enrolled for the first time as incoming freshmen; all other advising will be done the same way it has already been done, with the programmatic advisors working with existing students. He stressed that existing students will be able to continue to work with the advisors they already have, while transfer students will work with advisors in their programs who can communicate to them what kinds of courses quality and how they can move forward into their majors as efficiently as possible. Interim President Abraham related that the objective is to work with incoming freshmen in an intensive way because they will be interacting with virtual advisors who will look at their high school activities and courses and put them into the right WIU courses to be successful at this stage. He stated that this was the real change that was made, and it was not intended to be confusing or done without a lot of communication with current advisors. He stated that since the University is running of out of time to get first-year students enrolled, it was thought that a decision needed to be made whether to go forward with this idea at this time. Interim President Abraham said he made the decision based on the information presented to him and the availability of the groups of advisors that could provide the best opportunity to bring the most students to registration; this is the reason the change was made at this stage, perhaps without as much input as he might have liked.
Chairperson Pynes related that a member of the audience asked if there is a procedure to allow faculty access to the Malpass Library in order for them to check out teaching materials such as books and DVDs so that they can take them home or to their office to use this semester and through the summer. Interim President Abraham thinks faculty could get access to the Library at this point if they needed it by virtue of asking their department chair to make a call to the Office of Public Safety to get them into the building, and he would hope that Library faculty or staff would be accessible. He related that certain individuals on the Library staff were very reluctant to be on campus as the coronavirus threat expanded, which is why the decision was made at that time to close; although he recognizes the benefit of having the Library open, staffing challenges did not allow for it to be adequately supported. Interim President Abraham thinks there may be a way to get access to the Library if it cannot be done through existing processes in place; he has made a note to look into whether a specific mechanism can be developed and will talk to Interim Library Dean Jeanne Stierman about staffing opportunities so that if faculty need access there can be arrangements made so they can take advantage of those resources. Chairperson Pynes related that when he worked at Middle Tennessee State, library student workers would deliver books to the various campus buildings that faculty ordered online. He thinks there may be two issues – getting access to teaching materials from the Library and depositing books at the Library – and he wonders if there could be a way to develop something like this in the future so that if a faculty member wanted to put course material on reserve, it could be done through campus mail. Interim President Abraham will ask Interim Dean Stierman to think about ways this is facilitated currently, and she may reach out to faculty to get their input. Senator Cordes pointed out that all of this has happened ad hoc, but as the Library has encountered situations with undergraduate or graduate students they have made arrangements to get the materials to where the students need to be. He noted that there are currently no student workers at the Library to man the front desk, let along take things across campus for delivery. He thinks Chairperson Pynes’s idea is a great one, but right now the Library does not have student help money to cover the Library, let along start another service. Senator Cordes thinks such a discussion should be opened, especially under the current conditions which are so unique and have necessitated special procedures to access materials, but in the past this has not been discussed in the Library Dean’s Council because there have not been sufficient personnel to consider it.
Chairperson Pynes related that a member of the audience has asked if there is a procedure on how to address summer internships. Interim President Abraham replied that he does not know at this time.
Chairperson Pynes said a senator has asked if online course delivery may have to be continued into the fall semester. Interim President Abraham responded that the administration is aware this may be a possibility but has not made plans for this yet.
Senator Albarracin asked if the administration is concerned that international students may go back to their homes and not be allowed to return. She also asked if the administration is aware if they want to go back. Interim President Abraham acknowledged that international students are in a very bad spot currently; they are kind of stuck wherever they are and probably could not get home if they tried. He knows that there are international students currently residing in Macomb, but he does not know where they all are or whether they have all the resources that they really need. He thinks the University needs to try to identify these students and make sure that they safe, secure, and have the resources that they need. Interim President Abraham stated that international students that did go back to their home countries will not be able to return to WIU right now and may not be able to come back in the fall. He does not know where travel and visas will stand at that point, but there are no visas currently being issued, so the University is potentially looking at no new international students for the fall on campus. Interim President Abraham told senators the administration is trying to make contingency plans around this possibility, but there is only so much that they can do.
Senator Albarracin asked if international students could be offered computers because she knows of some who are unable to do work online. Interim President Abraham has also had international students raise that concern with him, and University Technology has 40 Chromebooks that students can borrow at no charge. He added that students have to sign a document promising to return to the computers at the end of the semester.
Chairperson Pynes relayed a question regarding studio and lab courses: will they be offered at all if the University must go to a fully online format for fall semester? Interim President Abraham responded that the administration has not gotten very far yet on planning for the fall; they know that this is a possibility, but they do not know how real a possibility it is yet. He added that the administration is still trying to deal with issues associated with spring semester; they will be planning for the fall semester, but he does not have a lot of answers yet.
Chairperson Pynes asked, on behalf of a member, if students know that there are Chromebooks available and what the most efficient way might be to make sure that those who are in need are notified of this resource. Ms. Villagomez does not think a lot of students know what is going on in general. She said students generally only know what is going on in their classes or their class groups. She suggested that SGA might need to do a mass email to keep in touch with students, especially in regards to those who are still on campus. She knows a couple of international students who are living in Macomb, but she is not sure how much they know about what is going on right now. Ms. Villagomez related that students have a really vague sense that the federal government is trying to figure out what is best for everyone to do. Chairperson Pynes asked if Ms. Villagomez has a recommendation on the best way to get information out to students. Ms. Villagomez thinks email might be best; she checks her email a lot since she must communicate with her professors that way. She thinks the Covid-19 webpage is also being used by students. She also thinks social media – Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook – would also be a good method of communication because students frequently use these. Interim President Abraham remarked that the University has been trying to be very active on the WIU Facebook page, and a lot of questions have come from there. He related that at least three people spend most of their time responding to those questions, and he believes it has been a good source of information. He added that the University has also been monitoring the other formats as well as trying to respond across the University as they are able.
Senator Lauer related that he posted Interim President Abraham’s most recent message to the University on Western Online. He wonders if the President’s video message could be uploaded to the course management software so that it would be easier for students to have access to it when they log into their online classes. Interim President Abraham responded that he does not know. Chairperson Pynes asked if the video is on the University’s YouTube page; Interim President Abraham believes that is where it was posted. Chairperson Pynes thinks anybody should be able to embed this as an announcement into their online course. Chairperson Pynes asked Senator Lauer if he thinks it should be one of the main announcements that pops up for everyone to see upon login. Senator Lauer replied that might be a good idea because students who are engaged and working through their classes are accessing the course management software, which is why he posted the link there which he got from the YouTube page. He suggested this could be a simple gateway before accessing classes and should be able to be embedded on the opening screen.
Ms. Villagomez asked what students should do with books they need to return to the Library. Senator Cordes replied that there is a box outside of Malpass Library for returning books. Interim President Abraham asked what students should do who are not on campus. Senator Cordes replied that procedures have changed three times since the stay-at-home order was issued, and he cannot say what the policy is today. He recommends calling the Library’s access services; they typically will accept returned books through the mail, after which the materials will be thoroughly disinfected. Senator Cordes thinks that once a policy has been formulated it should be distributed to students, faculty, and staff. Chairperson Pynes remarked that if students return books through the mail they should choose the Media Mail option because it is significantly less expensive. Senator Cordes stated that only students who live farther away than 40 miles from campus are allowed to mail books back at this time. Senator Albarracin thought that students could return books to any library in WIU’s network; for instance, she has returned books in Macomb that were checked out from the University of Illinois/Champaign-Urbana. She thinks students could go to any university library to return books checked out at WIU. University Professionals of Illinois (UPI) President Bill Thompson replied that students can drop books off at any iCARLI library drop box. Chairperson Pynes suggested that a list of those libraries be added to the WIU Library webpage.
Senator Robinett remarked that the University Bookstore sent out an email to students on March 20 about procedures for returning textbooks that were rented for this semester. Ms. Villagomez remarked that she has not seen this email. Senator Robinett related that University Bookstore Manager Jeff Moore has indicated that as the semester end nears, the Bookstore will send out reminders to anyone with book rentals that they are due back on whatever date is ultimately chosen. He said that the Bookstore will be using email, social media, and their website to let students know how and when to return them. Senator Robinett stated that currently about 900 students have book rentals, and about 1,600 books have been rented out for this semester. He added that traditionally books are due May 8, but no one will be charged if they do not turn them in by that date; the Bookstore has indicated they will work with students.
Senator Czechowski asked if the University has a hotline phone number where students can call for questions or an email address for students to write to. Interim President Abraham responded that questions should be directed to -19@wiu..
III. Reports of Committees and Councils
A. Council on Admission, Graduation and Academic Standards (CAGAS) (Mark Bernards, Chair)
1. Pass/Fail Policy Proposal
Chairperson Pynes related that some faculty have emailed him concerns about how this policy would work for students, and he has passed them on to CAGAS. Dr. Bernards told senators that CAGAS had a long, productive, and collegial discussion last Thursday, March 26. He said CAGAS’s primarily concern was students facing issues related to access to computer software and the internet, as well as time disruptions due to Covid-19. He said CAGAS wanted to craft something generous without encouraging students to slack off. Dr. Bernards observed that the policy is very broad in looking at a Pass as being anything greater than a D-. He pointed out that it would be the student’s decision whether to choose Pass/Fail for their class(es). He also noted that within the policy there are a number of caveats. Dr. Bernards related that Registrar Angela Lynn surveyed departments and found that a couple of them would be willing to accept a passing grade as a prerequisite for this semester only for courses that normally would require a C+, C, or C-, but many departments would not agree to do that. Chairperson Pynes asked if this waiving of the prerequisite would only be for this semester; Dr. Bernards confirmed this is correct. He stated that students should know that if they choose Pass/Fail for a class taken this semester, it may not count toward a future class that requires a C+, C, or C- prerequisite.
Dr. Bernards related that CAGAS engaged in an extensive discussion about whether it is possible to indicate within WIU’s system something that would show whether a class was graded Satisfactory as opposed to Pass. He said Registrar Lynn thinks this will be possible to code, but there are different criteria across departments; for example, Nursing requires a minimum of C+, while other programs require a minimum of C and many require a C-. He explained that because of this lack of consistency, CAGAS felt it would be best to adopt a simpler policy. Dr. Bernards related that Registrar Lynn discovered that WIU’s proposed policy is in line with many peers in Illinois, and the state of Illinois is far ahead of peer institutions in Wisconsin, Iowa, and other states in adopting similar policies. He said schools in the University of Illinois and Southern Illinois University systems are considering policies, as are Illinois State and Northeastern; Eastern Illinois University and Northern Illinois University have already adopted policies.
Interim President Abraham said he needs for Faculty Senate to come up with a policy because every public university in Illinois will have one, and WIU will not want to be an outlier on this issue. He very much supports developing a policy and is pleased that CAGAS and Faculty Senate have taken this up and have made good progress. Interim President Abraham’s concern is with a set of outcomes that is not consistent with giving students a passing grade. He explained that if a student is given a P grade and that student understands the impact on their particular major, then if the student next year changes majors that impact will suddenly change. He is concerned about this impact going forward if there is not a consistent statement about what a Pass means across the entire university. Interim President Abraham said that while he does not have a particular question or concern as to what is defined, his concern is that Faculty Senate defines a uniform standard.
Chairperson Pynes expressed confusion because at WIU a D- or above gets a student college credit for a course; the problem stems from different programs requiring particular levels of proficiency, such as needing a C in Math or a C+ in Nursing to move forward in their programs. He stressed that if this policy is adopted, it will need to be communicated to students that before they make the decision to choose Pass/Fail they need to discuss their decision with the department that the course is in. Chairperson Pynes stated that part of the responsibility of faculty is to communicate the repercussions of this policy. He recognizes that this is not a change in policy forever; it is a change in policy for only one semester to deal with a situation that none of these students envisioned – finishing the second half of all of their classes in alternative formats. He pointed out that there is a standard in place – that a D- gets a student college credit – but whether it allows a student to move on to the next Nursing, Engineering, or Math course, for example, is a different standard. He thinks it is hard to come up with a policy that addresses multiple standards.
Interim President Abraham said he understands what Chairperson Pynes is saying and agrees that it would be hard to do that, but he thinks that, for the benefit of students and for one time only, it is in the University’s best interest to be able to state that a Pass grade will count or will not count and do that to the maximum extent possible across the University. Dr. Bernards pointed out that the policy states pretty clearly that the P grade earned in Spring 2020 will count for General Education, major, and minor course requirements. Interim President Abraham said it would be fine to state it this way, as long as it is consistent across the board and is clear and explainable.
Dr. Bernards stressed that the caveat CAGAS wants students to understand is that this is not a license to stop working on their classes since departments have particular requirements and students may be interested in getting licensure in their disciplines following graduation. He said students need to understand that settling for a P grade just because it is a policy may not be in their best interests; if they need a C+. C, C- or better, they should work toward that. Dr. Bernards noted that if a student is in a hard spot, this gives them a way to get through this semester without withdrawing, without losing the value of their tuition, and without jeopardizing their potential graduation since these classes will count for graduation outside the 12 elective hours.
Chairperson Pynes pointed out that faculty will assign students regular grades; if a student wants the grade changed to Pass/Fail, it will happen at the level of the Registrar and not at the faculty level. Senator Hunter asked if the faculty member will be notified that a student is requesting a grade change. Chairperson Pynes replied that faculty will not generally be notified; faculty will assign students the grades that they have earned. Dr. Bernards confirmed that faculty will not be notified if a student opts for a Pass/Fail grade; the Registrar’s office just makes the conversion, which is consistent with the University of Illinois/Champaign-Urbana policy for credit/no credit.
Senator Filipink asked why majors and minors would not be allowed to make these kinds of decisions themselves. He noted that while the policy says that major and minor course requirement can be fulfilled with P grades, at the bottom of the policy it states that these “Might not meet course requirements,” which he thinks speaks to Interim President Abraham’s concerns. He wonders if the University would not be better off letting the different programs make that decision rather than establishing a blanket policy. He thinks Interim President Abraham’s statement grows out of the policy saying that P grade semester hours will count for major and minor course requirements while also telling students that they might not meet course requirements or prerequisite requirements, and the President would like for this to be consistent. Senator Filipink asked if it would be better to allow majors to make decisions themselves as to whether a P grade would count going forward; he thinks departments or schools should decide if they want to waive their requirements to allow students to meet prerequisites with a P.
Registrar Lynn related that she emailed all departments and schools to ask them to provide information as to whether they would allow a P grade if they have specific requirements for graduation or prerequisites. She said only a couple indicated that they would accept a P for prerequisites in place of a C+, C, or C-. Registrar Lynn suggested that in order to be consistent across the board, the policy could state that if a student is in a program that requires some sort of grade threshold for specific classes for prerequisites or for graduation requirements, a P grade will not meet those requirements unless a department/school specifically requests it after the fact. She thinks this would provide consistency; departments and schools will not accept a P to meet prerequisite or graduation requirements. Senator Filipink agrees with Registrar Lynn that it should be clearly explained, but he thinks the way the policy is worded is not that clear.
Senator Perabo suggested that the caveat stating that the change to Pass/Fail cannot be reversed after May 20, 2020 be eliminated so that departments could have more time to deliberate about what would count or not. Chairperson Pynes said he agrees that once departments start to have conversations about this, their views might change given what else happens throughout the semester.
Senator Zbeeb stated that if the P/F policy is applied consistently across the board, it will probably work for some programs and not for others. He suspects the School of Engineering might have problems with its Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) accreditation, so he thinks the University should be careful when making decisions across the board. He would support each school or department determining if this would work for their specific programs. Senator Zbeeb thinks it would be tough for Engineering to do this because they require a C or above in their courses, and he would not want them to have a bad accreditation because of this.
Chairperson Pynes pointed out that even if a student got a D- in an Engineering course, the student would still get three hours of college credit; if the student were to transfer to another major, they could still count those hours, so the debate is not about whether the P is consistent in that regard. He explained the issue is whether a P grade will satisfy threshold criteria for certain disciplines. Chairperson Pynes noted that a similar discussion occurred when Faculty Senate was considering plus/minus grading and trying deciding if a C- represented a C. He said the question is whether different departments, schools or programs want to allow a P to count for a C+, C, or C-. Chairperson Pynes pointed out that every institution in North America will make policies to handle this crisis, so he does not think that any of WIU’s programs will lose accreditation over this one semester.
Senator Hunter thinks the policy should specify that the student, in consultation with the instructor, may request a Pass/Fail grade because instructors can explain the details and implications of this decision and might even make a recommendation that the student make this decision if it is for their betterment. Senator Hunter thinks that if the recommendation goes back to the instructor rather than the grade being primarily handled by the Registrar’s office, he would be more comfortable with the policy. Chairperson Pynes pointed out that traditionally when a student wants a course to be graded P/F it is their decision and not up to the instructor. He pointed out that instructors do not have Pass/Fail on their syllabi; there is a University-wide Pass/Fail policy which states that if a student achieves a D- or higher they pass the class. Senator Hunter understands that a grade can be converted to a Pass/Fail, but if it is not in their best interests, he thinks that students should have that conversation with someone knowledgeable in the discipline so that they can get some forewarning and perhaps prevent 15 students coming back to CAGAS in the fall because they did not realize the implications of this decision. Chairperson Pynes thinks that any successful policy will require that students be advised as best they can be.
Senator Banash recommended that senators keep in mind the scope of the problem. Senator Banash teaches two sections of ENG 280, a Gen Ed writing course, and GH 101. He related that the vast majority of his students are sticking with their courses, are up to the challenge, and will do pretty well in his classes. He suspects most of his students will get grades well above passing for the most part, but there are a couple of students in each class (one in one course and two in the other) who are undergoing extraordinary changes in circumstances, perhaps not doing as well as they would have, and will not quite be able to get over the edge in the online format. He asked if the intention is to craft a policy to recognize the challenges being experienced by those students who are trying to stick with their coursework. He suspects there will be a very small number of students who take advantage of the Pass/Fail option, but he agrees that it is to the University’s advantage to retain those students, give them a pass this one semester, and help them through this transition. Senator Banash pointed that if classes are held in person next semester, this can all be sorted out, and if they must be online the University can come up with better policies and students will know what they are in for.
Senator Zbeeb asked how the policy would affect students’ GPAs. Registrar Lynn replied that it will not affect GPA at all unless a student fails because P grades will not count toward GPA. She added that there are also no honor points associated with the P grade. Registrar Lynn explained that if a student is enrolled in 12 s.h., with 9 s.h. being regular letter grades and one course graded P, the GPA will only be comprised of those three regularly-graded classes. Senator Zbeeb asked if the policy will penalize students who want to improve their GPAs and recommended that the decision be up to the student; Chairperson Pynes assured him that it will be.
Senator Bellott thinks that “may” should be changed to “must” in the caveat “For P grades earned in Spring 2020 only, General Education, major and minor course requirements may be fulfilled with those P grades, and the semester hours of P grades accumulated in Spring 2020 will not count against the 12 semester hour maximum of general elective Pass/Fail credit allowed for graduation.” He thinks it seems confusing that the policy states that the P grade will count for students’ majors but will not be allowed for their next class. Senator Bellott can foresee students being confused about this if they are not allowed in the next course in their sequence, even if they have excellent advising. Chairperson Pynes pointed out that departments and schools cannot be forced to have the same standards. He compared it to some departments wanting C+ to be their threshold while others wanted C- to be the threshold once the University went to plus/minus grading. Senator Bellott suspects that students may say they will take a P because they think it will let them into the next course because the policy reads as if the requirements may be fulfilled with those P grades. Chairperson Pynes pointed out that the last bullet point – “Might not meet course requirements, or future course requirements, that have a minimum grade specified” – indicates that P grades may count for credit but may not satisfy requirements. Senator Bellott thinks this is confusing. Chairperson Pynes said one reason that the University cannot force departments/schools to live with the P grade is because they have academic freedom.
Senator Robinett expressed concern about the one-week turn around for the Pass/Fail decision (May 13-20). Chairperson Pynes said another person has asked if there are any institutions making pass/fail decisions for graduate-level courses. Dr. Bernards replied that the University of Illinois/Urbana-Champaign has made this available for some of their non-professional programs, but that is outside the scope of CAGAS’s purview. Chairperson Pynes pointed out that the WIU Graduate Council would have to make those decisions.
Ms. Villagomez agrees with Senator Bellott’s point that students will be confused by the policy. Chairperson Pynes asked if it would help to move the last bullet point (“Might not meet course requirements, or future course requirements, that have a minimum grade specified”) to be the first bullet point so that students will see that a P grade may count but will not count if there is a threshold. Interim President Abraham asked what the response should be to students who change majors next year if a course counts this year toward their major but will no longer count then. Chairperson Pynes responded that if students change majors there will probably be at least one course that they will only get 3 s.h. of credit for anyway; if a student switches from Engineering to English, there would be nothing that the Engineering course(s) could count for other than 3 s.h. toward electives. Interim President Abraham pointed out that there are areas where major courses overlap amongst different programs; Math courses, for example, are counted as major courses in some of the Engineering disciplines. Chairperson Pynes believes that no policy will be perfect and take into account every possible scenario; some students will find themselves three hours short if they pick Pass/Fail at this point.
Senator Perabo reiterated her suggestion to eliminate the bullet point “Cannot be reversed after May 20, 2020.” She believes that if this statement is removed, a lot of departments and schools may want to revisit their decision over the summer. She suspects people may want the opportunity to discuss what they will and will not count at a departmental level, and if this statement is removed it would provide some leeway for departments/schools to change their minds and determine how they want to handle sticky situations. Senator Robinett suggested that perhaps time can be built in at the front end. He understands the value of letting students see their grade before making a decision, but if his department had an indication that a student in a core class in one of the RPTA programs was considering choosing the Pass/Fail option, they would have the opportunity to reach out to them to warn the student what might happen. He stated that advisors seeing this choice after the decision has already been moved forward will prevent the student receiving advice to consider not changing to P/F. Senator Robinett stated that if advisors saw on May 1 that a student was intending to make this decision, they could reach out to the student and inform them that this decision would result in them retaking the class, for example. He believes that allowing departments to work with students before the change is made may save a lot of headaches and hassle down the road.
Chairperson Pynes observed that senators are presupposing the grades in this context are a perfect indication of what students actually know. He can imagine a student who under normal circumstances would meet the grade threshold but under these unusual circumstances did not meet the graded threshold, but who is still proficient enough to move on to the next course in a sequence. He thinks the grades received this semester are not a perfect indication of whether a student is prepared for their classes. He pointed out that students may be prepared, but there is no way to know, and this is a one-semester change only.
Chairperson Pynes related that Robert Hironimus-Wendt asked if students also change catalogs when they change majors. Registrar Lynn replied that students remain under the catalog of when they started at the institution unless they move into a major that is not available in that catalog. She added that there are also some parameters allowing students to move up to a newer catalog if they want to. Chairperson Pynes stated that this choice may be a burden that students must decide whether to resolve. He expects most students may only choose Pass/Fail for one or two classes rather than their entire class schedule.
Senator Czechowski asked if changing to Pass/Fail will affect students’ graduate school applications. Chairperson Pynes remarked that this question came up in the top-read blog in philosophy, and the consensus was that everybody is in the same situation and knows this is happening across the country. He does not think it will affect graduate school applications because WIU will not be an outlier in this.
Senator Albarracin expressed surprise that departments would not be flexible in these extraordinary circumstances. Chairperson Pynes thinks this is why Senator Perabo recommended giving extra time for departments/schools to think about their decisions and digest the ramifications going forward.
Chairperson Pynes said that in addition to his recommendation to move the last bullet point up, he would also recommend numbering the bullet points so that they can be referred to more specifically when speaking about the policy to students. Chairperson Bernards suggested that the paragraph between the first two bullet points and the last four be changed to a numbered item as well.
Registrar Lynn suggested that it might be helpful in the first bullet point when saying a student “may elect to have an undergraduate course of D- or above designated using the Pass/Fail grading option,” that the “may” be changed to “might.” Senator Lauer suggested using “might” or “might not” instead so that students are alerted that they need to be very careful about making this decision. He also suggested reversing the order of all the bullet points so that the caveats at the bottom go first before the student even sees the P option. He said that in this way students would read that it might not meet course requirements, will not be included in GPA, and the other warnings before being alerted to the Pass/Fail option. Dr. Bernards pointed out that this policy is intended to be something of a relief for students, and starting with the caveats and exceptions would not communicate the relief that CAGAS wants students to feel if they are in a hard spot.
Registrar Lynn remarked that the policy as currently written says that P grades will not count toward anything but general electives. She explained the point of this proposal was to say the University would let P grades count unless students have classes that require a specific minimum grade, in which cases they would not count unless the student’s department/school makes an exception to that rule. Registrar Lynn added that she did not receive the department information until after the proposal was drafted, so it is basically additional information reinforcing the need to get more specific about letting students know up front about what is and is not allowable or advised.
Regarding the deadline, Registrar Lynn told senators that this process will be 100 percent manual. She explained the system automatically will not let students choose a P grade right now, and the P grade normally cannot be counted toward anything but general electives, so every piece of this policy will have to be done manually. She thinks that at this point, before grades come out, students may be in panic mode and might jump to a decision to take a Pass grade before they realize what their final grade might end up being; they might then regret that decision, and the Registrar’s office would end up coding the Pass grade and then reversing it. Registrar Lynn stated that a one-week deadline was consistent with what other institutions are doing. She added that her office will also be conferring degrees shortly after May 20, so they need to have some sort of point where it can be said that these grades are final. She remarked that an individual could decide five years from now that they want their transcript to look different, but there needs to be a deadline for how long is appropriate for students to be able to make those decisions. Chairperson Pynes related that a member of the public asks if this policy is consistent with the University of Illinois’s policy. Registrar Lynn replied that it is closest to the University of Illinois/Chicago because they accept a D.
Senator Bellott asked if a lot of departments/schools do not accept the P as a prerequisite. Registrar Lynn replied that there were a number of departments where it was not applicable, partly because teacher education crosses so many departments/schools. She stated that, for the most part, if programs had a standard grade for the prerequisite, they would not accept a P. She added that there were only two who had some sort of threshold and said they would accept a P.
Chairperson Pynes remarked that if no one objects to the report, it passes; if objected to, it can be returned to the table by a motion, and if tabled it would return to the next meeting agenda. He asked when Registrar Lynn would like to see the policy finalized by. Registrar Lynn replied that students are asking about Pass/Fail already.
Chairperson Pynes asked if Senator Perabo was satisfied with the response about the May 20 deadline. Senator Perabo asked if the deadline could be firm for graduating seniors and not firm for others and whether this would address the Registrar’s concerns. Registrar Lynn stated that departmental decisions are a separate issue from a student having a P grade on their transcript. She clarified there is no deadline for departments to decide they will accept a P grade; the deadline applies only for students changing their grade.
Senator Filipink asked if it would fix some problems if the second policy bullet point – regarding P grades earned in Spring 2020 only for General Education, major and minor course requirements – would break out the references to General Education and to major/minor course requirements into two separate sentences while also incorporating the fourth bullet point that P grades “might not meet course requirements, or future prerequisites, that have a minimum grade specified.” Registrar Lynn replied that the issue with some classes is that they are directed Gen Ed, so they might be double dipped and count in both places. Senator Filipink stated that if the courses are specific to Gen Ed and do not apply to major/minor, that might be a way to parse this out.
Interim President Abraham asked if anyone has spoken to advisors about this proposal. Registrar Lynn replied that she sent information to departments/schools and advisors and heard back from some advisors. Dr. Bernards added that an advisor serves ex-officio on CAGAS and weighed in on the proposal.
Chairperson Pynes summarized the two friendly suggestions for changes to the proposal that have not been made into formal amendments. Chairperson Pynes said his suggestion was to move the fourth bullet point to the first bullet point since it is the thing everyone is most concerned about. Chairperson Pynes likes Senator Filipink’s suggestion, but he thinks the key to any policy that is approved is that students are advised and told to pay attention to the policy.
Senator Bellott objects to the policy because he wants to see what the final policy with changes would look like. He remarked that Ms. Villagomez thinks students will be confused by it, and he thinks senators need to take that into account. He would like to see greater clarity in the second bullet point. Chairperson Pynes said the second bullet point cannot be clarified because it will be contingent upon departments. Senator Filipink asked if he should make a formal motion to amend the proposal. Chairperson Pynes stated that if Faculty Senate wants a policy that can be announced soon, it has to decide on it today; otherwise, the policy could not be approved for another two weeks. He stated that the policy can be fixed on the floor or sent back to CAGAS, but trying to solve whether departments/schools think a P grade should count as a prerequisite is not something Faculty Senate can decide; departments and schools must make that decision on their own. Chairperson Pynes pointed out that University policy says a passing grade of D- or higher earns university credit. He stated that senators should decide whether students can just take the 3 s.h. of credit if they get a C- in a course in which they might have normally gotten a B and do not want to take the GPA hit. He would really like to see Faculty Senate figure out something today because the sooner students know, the better.
Interim President Abraham suggested that if language is used that says these courses would normally fulfill General Education requirements and not normally fulfill major requirements, it would give pretty good direction to students about what they are doing in terms of their decision whether to accept a Pass/Fail grade. Chairperson Pynes pointed out that the fourth bullet point at the bottom already does that. He pointed out that programs often have overall GPA requirements, so students might be able to get a D in one course and still get through, so that does not actually fix the problem either. He remarked that the problem is that departments are not uniform, so senators need to ask themselves what policy can be crafted to help students pass with a D- and articulate that some departments/schools will not allow C+, C, or C- requirements to be met with a P grade.
Senator Zbeeb suggested that for the fourth bullet point, the words “and departmental/school” be added before requirements. Dr. Bernards said that this section is stating that if a student takes a P, it might not meet the graduation requirement in some departments and might not meet prerequisites. He responded to Senator Perabo’s comments by clarifying that departments/schools could go back and say that would accept a P toward graduation or advancement in future. He believes that by keeping “might” in this section it allows for wiggle room by departments, depending upon how things turn out. Dr. Bernards suggested that instead of “Might not meet course requirements,” this bullet point could say “Might not meet course or graduation requirements” – or certification in the case of teacher education where they have to have a C- and a P will not suffice. He thinks moving the fourth bullet point to the first bullet point and numbering the bullets will be okay.
Senator Albarracin remarked that the University of Illinois policy makes a distinction between credit/no credit and pass/fail. Registrar Lynn explained that the University of Illinois’s version of pass/fail is called credit/no credit. She said their threshold is that an A through a C- counts for credit and a D+ through an F is no credit. Registrar Lynn said that at WIU a student with a D gets three hours of credit; the University of Illinois says if a student selects the credit/no credit option, they would get 0 s.h. for anything below a C-. She pointed out that WIU has satisfactory/unsatisfactory (S/U) classes, such as internships, which are defined in the undergraduate catalog because of their nature; an internship could not really receive a letter grade because a student either successfully completes it or they do not. Registrar Lynn said that this similar to the University of Illinois, but WIU’s language is a little different. Her concern with the current proposal is that there are limitations of time and resources to get new information out. She related that CAGAS tried to work with existing grading and policies and just tweak them with an exception to grades that already mean something on students’ transcripts. Registrar Lynn summarized that the University of Illinois calls credit/no credit what WIU calls pass fail, and they call pass/fail what WIU calls satisfactory/unsatisfactory. Senator Albarracin remarked that the University of Illinois policy says that credit/no credit classes may be used to fulfill majors/minors and Gen Ed. She thinks it is a joke to tell students that they can receive a Pass/Fail grade that serves no purpose and will not count for GPA, for departmental requirements, or for anything. Senator Albarracin does not agree with this at all. Dr. Bernards thinks part of the distinction between WIU and the University of Illinois is that U of I only gives credit for a C grade or higher whereas WIU’s P grade goes down to a D-, which is where it runs into the sticky point of departmental requirements. He related that one option CAGAS discussed was to have an S for a C grade or higher and a P for grades at the D level, but the issue became that there are discrepancies across the University about what defines a Satisfactory – C+ in some departments, C in others, and C- in still others. He said CAGAS felt the P grade would be more efficient. Dr. Bernards stated that he appreciates Senator Albarracin’s concern and does not want anyone to feel like this policy is a joke.
Ms. Villagomez asked if students should be advised to drop the class instead of taking a P grade which will not meet departmental requirements to graduate. Registrar Lynn replied that this depends on the individual student. She explained that the student would have to retake the class if the department does not accept the P grade as meeting a specific requirement, such as for a grade of C or better. She stated that a W grade has implications from a financial aid standpoint depending on how many other withdrawals the student has had.
Senator Zbeeb asked how faculty determine whether a student passes their class – does the faculty member assign a D or C and then decide if the student passes. Chairperson Pynes responded that the faculty member does not decide if the student passes; that happens at the Registrar level. He added that faculty just assign grades. Senator Zbeeb said that if he gives a student a D-, D, or C grade, he is defining whether that student passes. He does not see the advantages to the proposed policy. School of Computer Sciences Director Dennis DeVolder suggested perhaps the policy should require that students make their decisions in consultation with their advisors. Chairperson Pynes said this is more parentalism than he would normally like, but if the issue is protecting students he is not opposed to this.
Senator Banash emphasized that the idea of the policy is to bring relief to a minority of students who are doing well and sticking with their classes but would take a hit on their GPA or may have just been thrown for a loop. He thinks this policy may go a long way toward retaining those students, which will likely be a small number, and will act as some recognition on the part of the University. Senator Banash has gotten emails from A students who, because of family and other issues, may receive a B or a C and are very worried about their GPAs. He thinks senators should keep the emphasis on bringing relief to these students and try to get something through today.
Registrar Lynn pointed out that the policy states in the middle paragraph that “Students who consider selecting the Pass/Fail grading option should consult carefully with their academic advisor or faculty within their discipline.” She said CAGAS discussed copying the advisor so that they can know what decision was ultimately made, but she does not think this should be the first time that advisors hear that students are thinking about this course of action.
Chairperson Pynes asked Senator Filipink to repeat his suggested change to the policy. Senator Filipink replied that he suggested breaking out General Education from major/minor in the second bullet point, changing “may be fulfilled” to “might be fulfilled” in the part discussing majors/minors, and adding the language from bullet point #4. Dr. Bernards thinks the issue of trying to separate out major/minor/Gen Ed is that there is significant overlap in some cases, which would make this difficult. Registrar Lynn said this was her concern with this change as well. She thinks the important thing is the consultation with advisors. Dr. Bernards thinks that if the University is going to provide relief, the policy should say that P grades will count, but there are caveats affecting moving forward with other classes. Senator Filipink said this is what he was trying to get at: that the General Education requirements would seem to be the least problematic and that flexibility would be given to departments/schools on the question of majors and minors. Dr. Bernards said he does not see the distinction between “may” and “might.” Senator Filipink replied that “may” is considered more permissive than “might.” He added that “may” could be interpreted as “can.”
Senator Bellott said his concern would be relieved if the policy would require advisors to reply to the student’s email saying that they support the student’s decision after consultation or they do not support the student’s decision because the advisor has not been consulted yet. He said this way there would be some kind of check that says the student has talked to an advisor and knows that a P grade will or will not count. Dr. Bernards asked if this could be solved by changing “should consult carefully” to “must consult carefully.” Senator Bellott said this would solve the issue for him.
Senator Albarracin asked why WIU cannot do what the University of Illinois does: if a student gets a B- and does not want that to affect their law school career, for example, the student would get a passing grade, and the course would still count toward their major. She said if the student were to get a D, they would get credit but it would not count toward their major. She said that WIU could say that if a student gets a P, it will count for everything, but if not then the student could choose the other option. Chairperson Pynes explained the reason the policy is written this way is because the University already has catalog copy addressing pass/fail grades.
Chairperson Pynes said he has heard no objection to his suggestion regarding moving the fourth bullet point and numbering the bullets and to the suggestion from Senator Filipink. Senator Bellott pointed out that he objected earlier. Chairperson Pynes said he would like for the policy not to have to come to a formal vote if possible and that senators just accept the CAGAS report. Senator Bellott agreed that if “should” is changed to “must” in regards to advising, he would not object. Registrar Lynn said she envisions a streamlined process whereby she would create some sort of form that could be emailed to the Registrar’s office. She said the form will lay out what counts and what does not so that it would be clearer than just a standard email. Chairperson Pynes said he would like to know what “must consult an advisor” means. He asked if the advisor would be required to send an email to the Registrar on behalf of the student. Senator Bellott would envision that when the student sends the email to the Registrar asking for the Pass, the advisor would be included on the email and would reply with whether the consultation has taken place. He added that if the advisor indicates the consultation has not taken place, the Registrar’s office would email the student reminding them of this requirement before the grade change can be made. Chairperson Pynes remarked that this sounds like a lot of work for the Registrar’s office. Senator Bellott replied that he wants to protect students’ careers. Registrar Lynn said she would build into the form some sort of check off for the advisor because the University does not want students making this decision on their own without considering the ramifications.
Chairperson Pynes asked Senator Filipink if he still wants the second bullet point to be split if this change is made to require consultation with an advisor. Senator Filipink replied that he is more comfortable but think his suggestion would make it clearer to students that the fourth bullet point, which Chairperson Pynes wants moved to the top of the bullet points, is operational. He thinks the way the sentence currently reads will make students think, as Interim President Abraham took it, that major/minor course requirements will be fulfilled, then this would be pulled back with the bullet point stating that P grades might not meet course requirements. He stated, however, that if there is an understanding on the part of the Registrar, and if it can be communicated clearly to students that major/minor course requirements might not be fulfilled by a P grade, then Senator Filipink does not want to hold the policy up today from being approved. Chairperson Pynes stated that Senator Bellott’s change to the advisor statement can be a friendly amendment, and this somewhat alleviates Senator Filipink’s concerns.
Senator Zbeeb remarked the policy says a P grade will not affect students’ GPAs, but he wonders about the Fail grades. Chairperson Pynes replied this is consistent with WIU’s current policy; an F affects GPA but a P does not. Senator Zbeeb asked how the overall GPA numbers would be affected. Chairperson Pynes responded that it counts as 0 s.h.
NO OBJECTIONS TO POLICY WITH CHANGES Motion: To extend the meeting for 15 minutes to 6:15 p.m. (Lauer/Filipink)
APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY BY VOICE VOTE
Motion: To move Old Business to be considered next (Lauer/Filipink)
MOTION APPROVED BY ROLL CALL VOTE 20 YES – 0 NO – 0 ABSTENTIONS
IV. Old Business (Reordered)
A. Proposal to Merge the Department of Accounting and Finance with the Department of Economics and Decisions Sciences to Create a New School
Chairperson Pynes recalled that the last time this proposal came before Faculty Senate, it did not pass, in large part because of voting issues. He stated that this time all faculty members in Unit A in both departments have voted unanimously to approve creation of the new school. Chairperson Pynes said Faculty Senate is very excited that all faculty members got to voice their support by voting. Gregg Woodruff , Chair of the Department of Accounting and Finance and Interim Chair of the Department of Economics and Decision Sciences, said the faculty of the two departments are coming together, working well, and trying to determine opportunities to leverage resources to do the best for their students.
Motion: To approve the proposal (Hunter/Tasdan)
Senator Tasdan asked what the name of the new school will be. Chairperson Woodruff replied t hat faculty voted to name it the School of Accounting, Finance, Economics, and Decision Sciences.
MOTION APPROVED BY ROLL CALL VOTE 20 YES – 0 NO – 0 ABSTENTIONS
III. Reports of Committees and Councils (Continued)
B. Council on Curricular Programs and Instruction (CCPI)
(Steve Bennett, Chair)
1. Curricular Requests from the Department of Accounting and Finance
a. Requests for New Courses
i. ACCT 343, Intermediate Accounting III, 3 s.h. ii. ACCT 352, Management Accounting II, 3 s.h. iii. ACCT 372, Tax II, 3 s.h.
Ms. Villagomez asked about the topic of Tax II. Chairperson Woodruff replied that the course deals with the taxation of business entities, corporations, and partnerships.
NEW COURSES APPROVED
b. Requests for New Emphases
i. Accountancy: Management Accounting
ii. Accountancy: Taxation
NEW EMPHASES APPROVED
c. Request for Change of Major
i. Accountancy
Proposal to Merge the Department of Accounting and Finance with the Department of Economics and Decisions Sciences to Create a New School
CHANGE OF MAJOR APPROVED
2. Curricular Requests from the Department of Economics and Decision Sciences
a. Requests for New Courses
i. DS 489, Seminar in Contextual Business Analytics, 3 s.h.
ii. ECON 312, Economics of Cannabis, 3 s.h.
iii. ECON 479, Microfinance in Action, 3 s.h.
iv. ECON 488, Experimental Economics, 3 s.h.
Senator Lauer expressed confusion about the Student Needs to be Served, which states that “We believe that students would benefit from a course taught by industry executives that provides hands-on case study experience.” He wonders if the course is actually taught by industry executives rather than by WIU faculty. Economics and Decision Sciences professor Jessica Lin replied that the department has several faculty that do consulting work for industry. She said it should perhaps have been worded “industry experts” rather than “executives.” She added that the department does have a member of industry teaching as an adjunct in the Quad Cities. She stressed that the department wants persons with industry experience to teach the course. Chairperson Woodruff added that the Quad Cities adjunct faculty member has a doctorate.
NEW COURSES APPROVED
b. Requests for Changes to Majors
i. B.A. in Economics
ii. B.B. in Economics
CHANGES TO MAJORS APPROVED
3. Curricular Requests from the Department of Engineering Technology
a. Request for Change of Major
i. Construction and Facilities Management
CHANGE OF MAJOR APPROVED
The remaining items were not considered due to lack of time and will be placed on the March 31 Senate agenda.
4. Curricular Requests from the School of Law Enforcement and Justice Administration
a. Requests for New Courses
i. EM 441, Disaster Management, 3 s.h.
ii. EM 465, Evacuation Planning and Response, 3 s.h.
iii. EM 480, Senior Comprehensive Exam, 0 s.h.
iv. EM 491, Emergency Management Internship Summary, 3 s.h.
b. Requests for New Minors
i. Emergency Management - Operational (for non-EM Majors)
ii. Emergency Management - Tactical (for non-EM Majors)
iii. Emergency Management - Operational (for EM Majors)
iv. Emergency Management - Tactical (for EM Majors)
c. Request for Change of Major
i. Emergency Management
V. New Business
A. For the Good of the Body – None
Motion: To adjourn (Filipink)
The Faculty Senate adjourned at 6:13 p.m.
http://www.wiu.edu/faculty_senate/meetings/Minutes%203-31-20.pdf
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