FAEC Minutes 9/18/2019

Faculty Assembly Executive Council [FAEC] Meeting Minutes

Date: Wednesday, September  18, 2019 | Location: A220  | Time: 10:30 am to 12:00 pm

Attendees: Kathryn Zeno, Tae Kwak, Donna Flynn, David Ohi, Christina Connor, Eva Ogens, Scott Frees

Guest: Meredith Davis, Communication Arts and Ashwani Vasishth

Secretary: Nakia Matthias

1. FAEC Minutes Approved

2. RCNJ President Search

FAEC suggests that faculty get ahead of the search for the new college President to ensure that the composition of the committee is representative of the faculty and their interests.  Vice Chair of the RCNJ Board of Trustees, Susan Valerio, whose term expires on June 30, 2020, will be the Chair of the President’s search committee. FAEC recommends that the search committee select candidates for the position whom have a proven record of fundraising at their former institution.  Additionally, despite existing procedures for search committees and the selection of senior administrators and officers, FAEC recommends that the college assemble a faculty and staff led team rather than an external search consultancy.

3. Summer Reading Committee  – Meredith Davis, CA 

Concerns were raised regarding the summer reading criteria selection process.  Submissions are anonymous and criteria are not well defined. In the past anonymous submissions have included works that promote racism.    Currently the committee includes representatives from CSI, the student body, The Center for Student Success, and faculty. The Committee recommends texts for summer reading which are then passed onto the Office of the President and the President’s cabinet.  In the past texts have been chosen by the President’s cabinet and the President based on consideration of whether the work will meet parents’ approval and whether The College can secure the author of the work to speak at the convocation ceremony. The President has been informed of the committees’ discontent with the 2019 summer selection and the author’s speech during convocation.  Questions were raised about the process for selection of the summer reading text and its breach of academic freedom among faculty and ultimately shared governance. Faculty should have more of a say in the choice as to whether the book is included in their syllabus. Suggestions for selecting future summer reading convocation speakers include evaluation of the speaker’s expertise, accomplishment, and  commitment to the subject matter or themes presented in the summer reading selection. Furthermore, it was recommended that authorship of the summer reading text should not be a requirement for an invitation to speak a t the convocation. The summer reading selection is a curricular decision requiring some clear conception from faculty regarding the work’s objectives and goals, as well as its inclusion in course syllabi.  The selection of the summer reading process and convocation speaker is an agenda item for the Oct. 2, 2019 faculty forum.

4. Ashwani Vasishth

The faculty should be making a push for the cabinet to be held accountable for decisions they have taken which have resulted in the need to cut funds from programs and services at the College. There is a need for a town hall meeting between the Cabinet, faculty, and students.  The matter of the funding shortfall for The Learning Commons and the Data Science major are not at the fore of the concerns regarding the need for capital. There has been a 30% budget cut in academic affairs, student jobs, and faculty-student research have been cut without justification. There must be an explanation about the need for capital that is driving these decisions. There is concern that prioritization of a Data Sciences Program and building The Learning Commons over installing new classrooms is misguided decision making.  It was suggested that the decision-making process should be opened up to ensure that faculty have a voice in how the cabinet acts on funding matters. There is a need to understand why the Cabinet labeled RCNJ’s financial shortfall of $3.1 million a $6 million “crisis” in the Spring 2019. The faculty should have access to the data that caused the Cabinet to present this information as the driving force behind the need to make sweeping changes to programs.  

The Provost must explain why 3 +1 needs to take effect within a one year span of time or at all.  Faculty must consider its options for the nature of participation in the proposed program as well as whether they will participate at all.  The provost must also consider that with the 3+1 program students will require more remediation resulting in the need for more curriculum than already exists.

Meeting Adjourned at 12 pm

Categories: FAEC MEETING MINUTES 2019, RAMAPO FAEC