FAEC Minutes January 24, 2018

Faculty Assembly Executive Council (FAEC) Meeting Minutes January 24, 2018 ASB 008 Room 10:30am to 12:30am

Attendees: Roark Atkinson, Kim Lorber, Christina Connor, Kathryn Zeno, Tae Kwak, Eva Ogens, Donna Flynn (for Cristina Perez), Gladys Torres-Baumgarten

Excused: Renata Gangemi, Cristina Perez

Secretary:​ Hugh Sheehy

Guest: Stephan Lally​ and Jaime Velazquez

Meeting opened 10:30

1.     Minutes approved
2.     Learning Commons: There is some question of what the name of the Learning Commons will be, as well as how it will exist in relation to the library. For example, will the Learning Commons include the word “Library” in its name? If not, what is the rationale for excluding the word “Library” from the name? The current impression is that the Administration wishes for the library to sit, officially, within the Learning Commons; there is some concern that the current plans will diminish the function of the library for the sake of what President Mercer has described as a “transformative” vision. There remains a question of how this new construction will integrate the mission of the College; for example, unanswered questions of accessibility for the new buildings are in conflict with the College’s history of leadership in the field of disability accommodations.

A committee member noted that the current communication problems between Administration and Faculty regarding this project constitute yet another example of a failure of shared governance. A committee member stated that the Administration should operate more transparently in the interest of honoring the value of shared governance.

3.     Emergency Meeting of Board of Trustees: There was a meeting in which a two-year extension of President Mercer’s contract (now through 2021) at which protocol was muddled; the details of the contract extension remain undisclosed to the public.
4.     Mid-Career Reflection Requirement: It appears that the Deans hope to preserve their Schools’ independence with respect to advising students. Additionally, there is some concern that current Administrative goals for the Gen Ed program aim to standardize aspects of the curriculum in a manner contrary to the mission of the College and the liberal arts more generally.

There seems to be some confusion surrounding the meaning of “Mid-Career Reflection.” There may be some will among the Faculty to remove it from the Gen Ed.

FAEC votes to bring the issue to FA.

5.     HORC: “The formation of the Hybrid and Online Review Committee (HORC) is an outcome of recommendations from the Task Force for Online Learning (2017). HORC will become a standing sub-committee of ARC and will be comprised of elected or appointed faculty members from each of the academic units and the library. The purpose of HORC is to review and approve all new online and hybrid courses to ensure that they meet the criteria and benchmarks put forth in the Best Practices section of the Online Course Manual, revised in 2017. HORC will establish syllabi language and a checklist of criteria that a new online or hybrid course must meet before the syllabus can be approved by ARC and enter the course catalogue. HORC will also review and approve current online and hybrid courses at the request of and in consultation with faculty, conveners, and deans.

While it is the exclusive prerogative of the instructor, convening group, and school dean to determine the desirable format (traditional, hybrid, or online) of specific courses, the OHCR will review and approve all new online and hybrid courses to ensure that they meet the criteria and benchmarks put forth in the Best Practices section of the Online Course Manual, revised in 2017.”

Provided Michael Bitz and Stephen Anderson can prepare their presentation sufficiently in advance of January FA, it will be included on FA agenda for 1/31. If not, the presentation will be scheduled for February.

6.     Open Educational Resources: OER is a subscription service that would available through the Library. Rutgers is one New Jersey institution that subscribes. Doing so allows for considerable savings for students.

A committee member raised the question of how many Ramapo faculty would make use of these sources. A committee member raised the question of how carefully vetted the OER textbooks are. A committee member noted that if the College were to subscribe, there exists an infrastructure for helping students get information about and access to the OER texts. A committee member raised the question of the limitations of OER in terms of the currency of the textbooks. A committee member noted that ITS would need to be consulted about implantation concerns. A committee member noted that costs will have to be considered; costs will need to be considered against a number of factors, including faculty buy-in, and the documented effectiveness of OER.

SGA has drafted a charge for a Task Force to look into the value of subscribing to OER. FAEC confirmed its support of SGA’s exploration of this possibility.

12:30 Meeting adjourned

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