FAEC Minutes, August 2, 2021

FAEC MINUTES 8/2/21
2:00 pm
ASB 431

Present: Naseem Choudhury (President, SSHS), Bonnie Blake ((Councilor-at-Large over 11, CA), Scott Frees (TAS, Vice President), Katie Cohen (Library), Donna Flynn (Councilor-at-Large under 11, TAS), Ken McMurdy (TAS Incoming Representative), Kim Lorber (Secretary), Lisa Lutter, (CA), Thierry Rakotobe-Joel (ASB), Mihaela Serban (SSHS), Ed Shannon (HGS)

 Guests: President Cindy Jebb, Interim-Provost Susan Gaulden

 Vote to bring meeting to order at 2pm

  INTRODUCTIONS

THOUGHTS FROM DR. JEBB
Thank you: for welcome to the College and the faculty’s efforts throughout the pandemic.

Thoughts: Fall plans, equity, what have we learned that we will wish to sustain. We need to be vocal and empathetic to trauma anyone may be experiencing. How can we soften this? We do not know what will come next from the State so we must remain adaptable. Student wellness is a great concern. There are two classes of students who will be experiencing their first courses on campus; we must make sure they know about resources available to them. Faculty should be accessible and approachable.

Resources: We will have a system to which we can provide our ideas of resources we would like to have. Are there wellness resources for faculty and staff as well as students? Can there be a centralized website that will be updated with all policies from OSS, The Counseling Center, etc. that can be highlighted on our Canvas pages that will always be up-to-date?

Compassion: Students may have had losses or other challenges they wish to discuss. The faculty will remain empathetic as always.

Anxiety: Many in the college community are experiencing anxiety. Everyone will have to submit vaccine information or be regularly tested. Many are concerned about family members.

Daily Digest: Can HR provide an updated vaccine webpage or something searchable as information in the Daily Digest cannot be searched.

Vaccines: The vaccine implementation team is working on vaccine verification. 1,400 of 4,000 students who will be on campus this fall have submitted documentation. We have a vaccination clinic and will extend the dates. We need to mitigate risk. There is a significant number of students who are waiting for final FDA vaccine approval. International students will be arriving on August 18th and will be able to get the vaccine on August 19th.

Dorms: 1,600 students have made deposits.

Choices: Ramapo has done a great job giving students and faculty choices regarding risk. Now that we have vaccines, some individuals will still be compromised or live with others who are, resulting in safety concerns and options about how we will deliver our courses.

What have we learned? Some schools and majors can go fully remote, some courses will use the hyflex model. Remote office hours worked well for many. Remote group discussions worked well. The hybrid models need to work for faculty and students (once a week in-person, for example). We need good hyflex trainers for future hyflex courses. We need class policies about not driving or having cameras off, wearing headphones for class privacy, etc. during class. This will be good to have on the Canvas website link with the Code of Conduct.

Laptop Upcycle Project: The contract is about to be signed and we should be ready to help students with laptops starting this fall. This will help those who did not have the electronics with which to best learn remotely.

New Satellite Programs Overseas: Dr. Rakotobe-Joel shared many live international experiences with his students; this could become a new type of course. Ben Levy can help.

Unified Policy for Medical Issues Like This: We have faced other medical issues besides COVID-19 in the past (accidents, illnesses, etc.). We adopted a medical withdrawal policy. Can there be a policy including more medical issues, so more students can exercise these options? Going forward, if someone cannot participate, students should get an OSS accommodation. We have a W (withdrawal policy) and a late withdrawal policy from all classes.

Remote Flexibility: If we continue to use hybrid and other remote course versions, we will need to assess learning across delivery formats.

Remote International Virtual Courses: Is it possible to have joint classes with another international university so students can study together? This will require Middle States approval.

Academic Integrity: Students need to be reminded to avoid plagiarism. While this is reviewed with freshmen, many other students are having issues. This reminder needs to be made more often (beyond classroom reviews).

Closing Remarks: Dr. Jebb said this is a good beginning and we need to be open to changes. We need to plan and then adapt. There is a lot involved and she is grateful for everyone’s efforts to be mindful of the various needs of all constituencies on campus. Dr. Gaulden noted more technology is being ordered to make sure we will be fully prepared for on campus teaching. Additional faculty surveys have resulted in more room kit requests.

Dr. Jebb’s Email: cjebb@ramapo.edu. Her door is always open.

Meeting adjourned at 3:00pm.

Categories: FAEC meeting Minutes 2021, RAMAPO FAEC