February 15, 2022FAEC Meeting Minutes, Jan 26, 2022

FAEC MINUTES 01/26/22

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

Vote to bring meeting to order at 10:14am.

Minutes Approval: The 1/12/22 minutes and 1/19/22 were approved. 

FA PRESIDENT’S REPORT

Meeting with Provost: Discussed the matters brought up at faculty forum of the ongoing pandemic. Discussed dissemination of information on buildings status such as building’s HVACs. Importance of stressing to students that they have to wear an actual well-fitted mask, preferably N95 or KN95 masks. 

FAEC DISCUSSION

IT can provide webcams for classrooms if faculty request them. 

Discussion of changing times for the private shuttle from the college to NYC; it will impact some faculty who commute from NYC. Discussion of the college’s physical accessibility regarding public transportation. 

Discussion of OSS policy that faculty must submit their exams/quizzes in a digital form for alternative testing accommodations. Faculty are not allowed to provide paper copies of exams/quizzes. 

New Business: 

Discussion of adjunct faculty sick leave and how it is calculated. Discussion of sick leave for full time faculty and how it is calculated. How do earned sick days under the New Jersey Earned Sick Leave Law work? How many hours of earned sick time is used/deducted for each traditional one hundred minute class missed due to illness.  

Discussion of confusing messages regarding whether faculty is supposed to stay home or come in when they are ill. Discussion of lack of hybrid meetings for faculty required to quarantine to be able to participate.

Discussion of restrictions of hybrid or virtual summer courses, only online or in-person courses are currently allowed for this summer.

Rikki Abzug provided the report of the Faculty Assembly Representative to the Board of Trustees Human, Capital, and Financial Resources Committee. (see below)

FAEC Guests: None

Meeting adjourned at 12:13 am.

 

Categories: FA Meeting Minutes 2022, RAMAPO FAEC, Uncategorized

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January 11, 2022FAEC Meeting Minutes, Dec 1, 2021

FAEC MINUTES 12/1/21

 

Present: Naseem Choudhury (President, SSHS), Bonnie Blake (Councilor-at-Large over 11, CA), Katie Cohen (Library), Donna Flynn (Councilor-at-Large under 11, TAS), Ken McMurdy (TAS), Kim Lorber (Secretary), Lisa Lutter (CA), Thierry Rakotobe-Joel (ASB), Mihaela Serban (SSHS), Ed Shannon (Vice President, HGS), Jeffrey Ellsworth (Spring 2022 In-Coming Secretary, SSHS)

Guests: President Cindy Jebb, Interim-Provost Susan Gaulden

Vote to bring meeting to order at 10:05am.

Minutes Approval: The 11/17/21 minutes will be approved next week. 

FA PRESIDENT’S REPORT

FAEC Meetings: We will have our last meeting for the semester next week.

Incoming FAEC Secretary: Jeffrey Ellsworth attended in preparation for assumption of this role next semester.

Meeting with Provost:

P-Cards: Ramapo is changing its procurement process. P-cards are part of that. They have not been taken from anyone who has one and uses it. The TAS ordering process, specifically, had been handled by one person who is no longer there, leaving the lab faculty to learn the new system and order on their own.

College Audits: Audits are occurring throughout the college.

Awards to Students, Honorariums, etc.: Gift card prizes given to students are taxed, as are honorariums and more. Hence, we have been discouraged from using them.

William Paterson: During the Communications Meeting, finances were not discussed. Ramapo is still hiring for many positions, which suggests we are in reasonable financial health. In light of the dire financial circumstances at WPU, faculty would like more open discussion on the financial health of the College.

Future Series: These cannot be presented in a hybrid format nor can they be recorded and distributed without the external speakers’ organization approving and editing first.

 

FAEC DISCUSSION

 Provost’s Council Report:

 Future Series: Provost Gaulden noted that there were fewer students and faculty available for the Future Series due to other commitments. Since many faculty are teaching remotely, it is impossible for them to attend. In addition, it is challenging to attend a 1pm-2:15pm meeting on a teaching day.

 Task Force on Course Delivery Mode: Work has begun, but nothing to report yet.

 Removing Gender Specific Language in Documents: This is being explored.

 Removal From Class Policy: Work on revising  is nearly completed. This interim-suspension policy needs to be expanded to include all class activities including those off campus (off-campus work, campus trips, etc.). Naseem is part of this revision with David Nast.

 Faculty Burnout: Faculty have been asked to be supportive of students and staff. Many feel that this is the hardest semester of their career and are feeling overwhelmed while they are required to care for others. Can we survey faculty and staff to see how well they are managing? This will be difficult for all in the spring semester, too. Students’ needs require us to meet with them, even if unplanned, also keeping many from attending Common Hour events. Can we have a wellness survey for all in the College?

 December 15th Gathering: FAEC is exploring offering this.                                                                                     

Provost’s Emails: The breadth of information included is greatly appreciated. However, many faculty find that these emails have too much important information in one place. Is it possible to break up the emails by topic, and include searchable subject lines, while still providing all of the same information?

Unit Council/FAEC Faculty Discussion: Unit Council was extended from 60 to 90 minutes to allow 30 minutes for faculty discussion led by the FA unit representative. We need to encourage the use of this time for its intended purpose, as it is crucial not only for FA representatives to report out to the unit, but also to receive feedback that can be brought back to FAEC.

 Adler Center: There has been no heat for approximately a month. On Monday, faculty were asked if they would like a new classroom, but new classrooms have not yet been assigned. There is no budget for more space heaters. Faculty are wearing outdoor wear in their offices and in the classroom, as are students.

 

PRESIDENT’S REPORT

 Thank you: President Jebb appreciates everyone’s passion and efforts regarding student care. This has been a tremendous success. Honors students were very happy with the semester and their relationships with their faculty.

 Future Series: The next event in the series will take place tomorrow from 1-2:15 in the Pavilion. Dr. Jebb suggested that some speakers might also be able to participate in other campus activities (or classes). Although the future series presentation can not be hybrid for various reasons, can the subsequent Reflections component be hybrid so more faculty and others can attend?

 Trenton: Budget priorities were shared for more OSS and student support services (academic and counseling). Dr. Jebb also asked for greater equity of support for student costs across the NJ colleges. A request for a sustainable public transit link to Ramapo College was also made. Dr. Jebb will continue to cultivate relationships and raise awareness of Ramapo College, specifically inviting state representatives to visit our campus and meet with students.

 William Paterson’s Layoffs: This Ramapo College faculty concern was shared with President Jebb.

 Wellness at Ramapo College: We share the President’s concern about the wellness of students and appreciation for the efforts of faculty. We are also concerned about overall faculty and staff wellness. Faculty have found this to be an extremely difficult semester. Teaching is more demanding due to the increased number of students who require additional help and support.

 Teaching Challenges In-Person: It is hard to learn students’ faces with the masks. The in-person and hybrid model is very hard to navigate for those new to the model. We are still in the pandemic, which continues to weigh on everyone. Many faculty feel great stress trying to catch up, as much time is spent helping students who are struggling and overwhelmed. This contributes to faculty stress.

 Pandemic Protocol Adherence: President Jebb is grateful for everyone’s adherence.

 Support for Faculty and Staff: What can be done to help? One example is fixing the heat in Adler, a source of additional frustration. Provost Gaulden referenced a webinar she recently attended. Faculty are not just teaching and helping as they always do, but also dealing with the students’ stress as well as their own due to the pandemic and other factors. At times, we cannot attend other events or meetings because we are so committed to meeting our students’ needs. Faculty have their own family and medical issues. The kindness message is very much appreciated about students, but more validation of faculty and staff experiences would be beneficial.

 Communications Meeting: Chairs were close together with people eating, raising concerns about virus transmission. Some in-person people left, and many did not attend but would have had there been a hybrid option. Can chairs be spaced farther apart and can people not eat during the meetings? Can these be shared as hybrid presentations?

 Scheduling Events: Literature had a good evening series for many years. Reference was made to general education requirement for extra curricular component to AIID 201 Studies in the Arts & Humanities.  T. It would be helpful to identify events a semester in advance so the match between general education categories and relevance can be shared with all faculty teaching these courses instead of researching matching experiential opportunities, individually.

 The Importance of Being Earnest: Dr. Jebb was blown away by the talented students’ performances.

 Higher Education: The stakes are high during such a divisive time in society beyond the pandemic. We will have students who began their educational lives during the pandemic who will need assistance in catching up with what they experienced remotely versus in person.

PROVOST’S REPORT

 ESL Tutor: The ESL tutor’s hours have been doubled due to a survey done by Provost Gaulden.

  National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) and Faculty Survey of Student Engagement (FSSE): Anonymous faculty and student surveys will be coming in the spring, with additional components for faculty and students about academic advisement. There will be specific questions for students and others for faculty.

 Provost’s Emails: The important information is transparent and detailed. Is it possible to break it into smaller missives with searchable subject lines? The Provost’s website will break things down into topics.

 Meeting adjourned at 12:06pm.

 

 

Categories: Uncategorized

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January 11, 2022FAEC Meeting Minutes, 11/17/2021

FAEC MINUTES 11/17/21

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

Vote to bring meeting to order at 11:02am.

Minutes Approval: The 11/10/21 minutes were approved. 

FA PRESIDENT’S REPORT

Communications Meeting: Naseem attended.

Provost’s Council: Lisa Lutter will represent FA (in place of Naseem) at the 11/30 meeting.

FA Discretionary Funds: We have $700 for this academic year, which is reduced from past years. FAEC will plan a morale-boosting event for faculty in the spring. It would be nice to incorporate some type of recognition for faculty who have recently retired.

Unit Council Announcement: Encourage faculty to engage in President Jebb’s Future Series activities, which are outlined on the Strategic Planning website:

https://web.ramapo.edu/president/strategic-planning-2021-2022/

The next event, focusing on The Future of Society: Conflict, Culture, & Character, will take place in the Pavilion on Thursday, December 2nd, from 1:00-2:15.

 

FAEC DISCUSSION

Next FAEC Meeting: We will meet next after the Thanksgiving break on 12/1/21.

FA Minutes Approval: The minutes approval process will be streamlined, in keeping with Robert’s Rules of Order. It is not necessary to hold an official vote to approve the minutes. Rather, there will be an opportunity to offer corrections, and otherwise they are approved.

FA Elections: Candidates for FA President and Secretary are to be elected via Qualtrics vote after presenting (briefly) at the 12/1 Faculty Assembly meeting. Interim-Secretary for Spring 2022 will be Jeff Ellsworth as Kim Lorber is stepping down. Ken McMurdy has put his name forward for FA President.

Task Force on Course Delivery Modes (TFCDM): Most faculty representatives have been identified. Unit Council votes will happen today if they have not already been held. It is important to emphasize that this will be a bi-directional role with information being transmitted between faculty and the TFCDM.

Spring 2022 FA Meetings: Will most likely be hybrid but with strong encouragement to participate in-person. Seating will be generous and hopefully in the whole Pavilion. Hybrid meetings bring many logistical challenges and require a high level of coordination with facilities, media, etc.

Faculty Engagement Expectations: It could be useful to have a thoughtful discussion with the Administration/President Jebb about faculty engagement. Faculty are, in general, very engaged, but our unique schedules and obligations can make it difficult to attend regular meetings and engage in more traditional ways. Expectations for faculty engagement should take into account such considerations.

Fireside Chats: Clarification of these would be beneficial, as there is some confusion now with the President’s Future Series.

Release Time:  As Naseem will soon be working with a newly elected President to begin serving at the end of Spring 2022, she will discuss with the President and Provost release time for some FAEC members.

Meeting adjourned at 11:59am.

 

 

Categories: Uncategorized

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November 17, 2021Faculty Assembly Minutes, November 3, 2021

Faculty Assembly Minutes 

November 3, 2021

Guests:  President Cindy Jebb, Provost Susan Gaulden, Angela Cristini (Interim Vice President Institutional Advancement and Executive Director Ramapo College Foundation), Elizabeth Brand: Jack Richardson Award

Presenters: Naseem Choudhury (President, SSHS), Katie Cohen (Library), Mihaela Serban (SSHS), Ed Shannon (HGS), Christina Connor (Library)

Meeting began at 1:05pm

Assembly Minutes: October minutes will be approved via Qualtrics. 

Faculty Assembly President’s Report.
Moment of Silence in Memory of Bernard Roy, our recently deceased colleague.
Food Services: Dining hall services are being explored; an email will come regarding decisions made.
Course Delivery Working Group:  This is being coordinated and charged by Provost Gaulden; this will be a fast-working committee.
Dean Searches: Two dean searchers are in process. Thanks to Dean Peter Campbell for his service to CA. The Library/Learning Commons Dean is being searched for as well.
FAEC: FAEC is working to establish better communication with SGA and RGA via regular meetings, etc.

College President’s Report

Student Appreciation: Dr. Jebb wanted to share students’ feedback of gratitude for what we do and our caring.
Moment of Silence: Dr. Jebb thanked this body for the moment of silence for Dr. Bernard Roy this week and also the great Mahwah and campus support of Asha Mehta and her family at the ceremony for her husband.   In those moments when we come together, we are stronger; these unhurried moments are important.
Remembrance Day: This is today.
Founders Day: Founders, pioneers, veterans, and alumni will be coming next week.
State Funding: In the 1990s funding was 75% and now we receive 25% from New Jersey. While Dr. Jebb continues to make the case with the State we need to take matters into our own hands to use all of our talents and passions for the Needs Statement Process to be presented by Angela Cristini.
NJASCU Report: The report shares how the 7 state schools, and Ramapo, specifically, contribute to the community. Look at the report. The 7 schools annually give back to the state $6.1 billion. Every billion invested by the state comes back as $16 billion. There are many important facts available about how the state colleges contribute, and, Ramapo, particularly. These details provide a strong case as to why the state should support us.

Provost’s Report

Thank you: Provost Gaulden wanted to thank us for all we do and much good news received this semester. The nursing graduation rates were the highest in the state despite working during a global pandemic. IS THIS THE correct award
COPLAC: Students attended this and also attended the NDAC (SP??) conference in Florida.
Founders Day: There will be another opening event at the Learning Commons. It will be a CRW Scavenger Hunt. In addition, faculty scholarship will be on display.
Thanksgiving for International Students: Many will remain on campus and they will receive meals while the cafeteria is closed.
Searches: Three searches are ongoing: the Dean of CA, the Dean of the Library/Learning Commons (a position that was re-elevated to the dean level), and the Director of the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies. These positions are posted on the HR jobs website. Based on the Strategic Plan, there will be two dean searches for permanent deans for HGS and TAS next year.
Pre-Strategic Plan Process: There will be many opportunities next semester to participate in strategic plan meeting forums to provide input. Come prepared and bring your opinions and feedback. The first will be 11/15. This will be announced shortly.
Spring 2022: This will be taught as we did pre-pandemic.. Fewer than 10% of our courses will be online. Vaccines are required to attend in person. Students have to be compliant with our policy.. There is a Leave of Absence policy for one semester; they can come right back the following semester; if a longer leave is needed, students will need to reapply.
Course Delivery Task Force: This will be charged; recommendations will be received soon as we will be developing the Fall 2022 schedule soon so it can be visible by March and ready for registration in Fall 2022. Members of the task force will be responsible for bringing bi-directional information, sharing what is happening in the task force with us and bringing our questions back.

FAEC DISCUSSION
Faculty Assembly Elections: Nominate yourself or someone else. Send names by 11/17 and presentations will be at our last faculty assembly of the semester; voting will happen via Qualtrics after. We need an interim secretary for Spring 2022 as Kim Lorber is stepping down. This is a non-voting and non-tenure required position.
Faculty Assembly Bylaws: Ed Shannon (Vice President of FAEC, HGS) gave a slide presentation of a variety of general and minor changes to the Faculty Assembly bylaws.
For revisions please see the updated By laws document on the FA website: https://www.ramapo.edu/fa/

NEEDS STATEMENT PROCESS, Angela Cristini (Interim Vice President Institutional Advancement and Executive Director Ramapo College Foundation) and Claudia Esker (Assistant Director, Grants & Sponsored Programs)
Needs Statement Process: Fundraising has long been the responsibility of the College’s President and some others seek funding and donations. Dr. Jebb would like us to change the way we raise money at Ramapo so we can involve, faculty, deans, and staff. We can explain our projects better than anyone else.  We need to work across divisions, faculty with staff, for integrated proposals for centers or programs. That is what this is about. Funding can be sought for an existing center or program and to create proposals if there are needs. Priorities will need to be developed. Research, students, and course work might all be needed to be involved. Ex: Establish a center to address health care and wellness. How do we take this to donors?  These proposals will be evaluated and the final decisions will be made by President Jebb as to which to do first. This will not cost the College anything. Faculty asked about the additional time expected of them to participate in this process and remuneration.
Jack Richardson Memorial Award,  Elizabeth Brand: This is a faculty award; nominations can be made by someone else or oneselfThere will be a link in the Daily Digest.

 

Meeting Adjourned at 2:17pm.

 

 

 

 

 

Categories: Uncategorized

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November 10, 2021FAEC Meetings Minutes, November 3, 2021

FAEC MINUTES
11/3/21

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

Guests: President Cindy Jebb, Interim-Provost Susan Gaulden

Vote to bring meeting to order at 10:04 am.

Minutes Approval: The 10/27/21 minutes were approved. 

FA PRESIDENT’S REPORT

Role of Faculty Assembly President: Questions brought to FAEC are addressed with the relevant campus constituencies.

Dean Searches: This semester there are ongoing searches for the Dean of the Library and the Dean of CA. Next year there will be national searches for the TAS and HGS deans (as both are currently interim deans). The deans of SSHS and ASB are permanent deans.

Provost Council: Provost Gaulden announced the dean searches and one for the Director of the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies as Michael Riff is retiring.

Course Delivery Modes Working Group: Representatives of FAEC and SGA will meet with Provost Gaulden tomorrow to discuss composition of the working group as well as timeline and other issues.

Provost’s Council Policies: Revised version of Policy 300T dealing with online/virtual delivery will be available soon for review.  Provost’s Council is in the process of updating all of its policies to align with current practices.

All-College Meetings During FA: The All-College Sabbatical Committee is scheduled to meet during FA, and there are many such examples. This is a difficult problem to address, but it must be addressed so that faculty are not excluded from participating and voting at Faculty Assembly.

FAEC DISCUSSION

IT Report: 3 weeks ago Bonnie and Thierry met with Rob Doster.

DUO: We have been using DUO to allow remote VPN access. The use might be expanded for library access when off-campus.

Banner Upgrade: Banner’s current 2008 system is being upgraded to Oracle. There might be some disruption in the availability of Banner on 11/20-21. Rob will make the announcement. ITS might consider connecting Canvas to the Registrar’s system for final grades. There are ways to make this connection. This is in the works to avoid faculty manual grade entry.

Office Laptops Instead of Desktops: ITS is considering replacing each faculty office desktop with a laptop and docking station. This would lead to higher utilization by faculty who also work from home. This may require a phased in process.

Faculty Handbook: Faculty Assembly voting was reviewed.

PRESIDENT’S REPORT

Economic Impact of NJASCU: President Jebb shared positive data from Trenton about the impact of Ramapo College, as well as the other six NJASCU schools, on the State economy. Ramapo was recognized as the 2nd highest in lifetime return on investment (career-long earning gains vs tuition).

Needs Statement: We need to focus on this approach to raising capital, as we are unsure of the State’s future contributions to the College’s budget. The State provided 70% of our budget in the 1990’s, and now provides only 25%.

Evening Dining Facilities for Faculty: Provost Gaulden followed up with The Pandemic Assessment Team, which is reviewing the Birch Tree Inn policies. It is likely that $11 to-go meals will be made available for faculty this semester. The policy will change for next semester based upon the recommendations of the Pandemic Assessment Team.

Search Committees: It would be great to have broader participation on search committees. Provost Gaulden recalled Nicole Morgan Agard’s (Chief Equity & Diversity Officer) email from last year which sought anyone interested in serving on a search committee. Diversity in search committees is the goal. Provost Gaulden puts together a first proposed committee, which is then reviewed by Nicole with various considerations in mind (such as whether someone is serving on another search committee, balancing of ranks, etc.). 

Remembrance Day: This is being held today and is a very important tradition at our College.

Founders Day: Founders and pioneers will be invited.

Be Kind: It is important that we all take a moment to breathe.

PROVOST’S REPORT

Learning Commons: 7 of 9 tenants are under the purview of AA

Course Delivery Working Group: The present planned composition of the working group (subject to change) includes: 2 deans, 2 FAEC members or designees, and 1 faculty member from each unit (including  the Library). Tenure is not required of faculty but they must be tenure track and not temporary. In addition, the Chair of the Graduate Council, a designee from the Office of the Registrar, a CSS representative, a representative from International Education, another from EDIC, one from OSS, and a non-voting representative from SGA (who may not be included in every meeting if sensitive topics, such as personnel issues, arise) will be included. The goal is to finalize the membership by 11/10 or 11/17 at the latest. In order to implement changes in Fall 2022, a first draft from the working group would be needed by the end of January or early February. The process will be deliberative and comprehensive. There might not be enough time to implement it in the fall, in which case we will target Winter 2022/Spring 2023 implementation.

 

Meeting adjourned at 12:07pm.

 

 

 

Categories: FAEC meeting Minutes 2021, RAMAPO FAEC, Uncategorized

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November 1, 2021FAEC Meeting Minutes October 20 2021

FAEC MINUTES 10/20/21

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

Guest: Chris Romano (Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs)

Vote to bring meeting to order at 10:03am.

 Minutes Approval: The 10/13/21 minutes will be approved next week. 

 FA PRESIDENT’S REPORT

 SGA/RSA: Naseem and Ed are working to establish a regular meeting schedule with both groups.

 SGA: Naseem attended the SGA general meeting. Covid messaging was discussed. Students were surprised to hear that they were not automatically notified if/when a classmate tests positive. 

Percentage of Vaccine Exemptions: Naseem will ask Provost Gaulden for the percentage of unvaccinated individuals on campus who have exemptions.

 Class Notification of  COVID-19 Positive Cases: The Pandemic Assessment Team has so far declined to enact such a policy. Naseem will speak with President Jebb, as many comparable schools are doing this successfully in addition to their other contract tracing efforts.

 Faculty Dining: Faculty who teach evening classes have no way to purchase a meal between classes. Policy originated prior to the employee vaccine mandate.  FA is asked to provide data (#of Faculty, FT/PT etc). This is not FA responsibility and a quick survey of faculty does not include staff, nor is it reliable. Naseem will discuss this with President Jebb.

 FAEC DISCUSSION

 FA Minutes: It is most helpful if faculty respond and vote with the first Qualtrics invitation. This will be discussed in FA.

 Family Day: We need to reach out to different departments across the College to see how volunteers might be able to help with Family Day and other events on campus in the future. This was a very successful event and can become even better!

 By Laws: A revised document was reviewed. In order for the Bylaws to be passed, they must be presented to the FA at the Nov. 2021 FA meeting, to be voted on at the December meeting. 

 IT Meeting: Bonnie and Thierry met with Rob Doster. 

 Course Delivery Mode Working Group: In order to implement findings for the Fall 2022 schedule, a February report would be necessary. Given the transformational nature of a new course delivery mode policy, perhaps this would be a good opportunity to enact the Dynamic Protocol for shared decision-making from the report of the Task Force on Shared Governance. Naseem will discuss this with Provost Gaulden.

 

CHRIS ROMANO (Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs)

 Spring Student Housing: Every student living on campus has to commit now to their spring plan. The day registration opens on 11/8, students not living on campus will be invited to declare their intentions. 1,640 students are currently living on campus and it is expected the number of students will increase in the spring. It is possible to have 2,000 total residential students.

 Students and Vaccinations: Students must be fully vaccinated in order to register for spring in-person courses. Chris and Provost Gaulden sent a joint email reminder to all students, which was shared with deans. Text message reminders have also been sent out by EMSA. About 500 students still need to be vaccinated. Faculty can help by encouraging their students/advisees to start the process ASAP. Students who are not yet vaccine compliant do NOT have a hold on their account, but rather will receive an error message when they try to register for an in-person course. Health Services is responsible for evaluating exemption requests.

 Family Day: $5,000 is the usual sales amount at the BookStore . This year’s Family Day sold $25,000. There was a great deal of Ramapo pride and energy. How can we highlight student achievement during Family Day? We can start by meeting with SGA President Anjali Patel at FAEC and then expand the discussion. SGA is primarily responsible for organizing Family Day events.

 Faculty Scholarship: Can current projects and research be maintained in a central place?

 Alumni Achievements: How can we highlight more of the achievements of our graduates?

 Learning Commons: It opens today!

 

Meeting adjourned at 12:07pm.

 

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October 19, 2021FAEC Meeting Minutes Sept 29, 2021

FAEC MINUTES 9/29/21

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

Vote to bring meeting to order at 10:08am.

 Minutes Approval: The 9/22/21 minutes were approved. 

FA PRESIDENT’S REPORT

 Naseem attended Provost’s Council, Shared Governance, and Board of Trustees meetings.

 Provost’s Council:

 Revisions to By-laws: Provost’s Council will have representatives from the five schools and the Library, as well as SGA, EMSA, ITS, International Studies, EDIC. We should encourage Unit representatives to give updates.

 Course Delivery Modes: Virtual delivery (synchronous/asynchronous) may be available for winter and summer sessions. It will not be available in Spring 2022. The Provost may charge a Faculty Assembly task force to make recommendations about future course delivery modes.

 Used Name Policy: This is being encouraged and supported.

 Vaccinated Students: Faculty should not ask students if they are vaccinated. Students can be told that they cannot attend face-to-face classes unless they are vaccinated or have a Ramapo approved exemption. A standard statement for advisors and others can be crafted for faculty to include in their advisement email.

 Meeting With President Jebb:

 Discussion: Many topics were addressed.

 Faculty Not Wearing Masks: SGA expressed student concerns that some faculty members are not wearing masks and/or not enforcing mask rules.  Students should be advised to discuss such concerns with the faculty member, or bring them to their SGA representative, Convener or Dean if they desire anonymity. 

Meeting Frequency: Under the previous administration, the College President met more frequently with the FA President/Vice-President. President Jebb has been asked to resume this schedule.

Unit Council Visits: President Jebb may begin these in the Spring.

EDIC Training: This was discussed.

October 7: Reflections will be held in-person only.

Future Seminars: Conversations about core values will be introduced. These will inform future directions of the College. Naseem will work with the administration to include as many people as possible in these seminars.

November Faculty Assembly: This will be set up in the Pavilion with a Webex kit.

         In-Service: Today’s program will be presented with the Webex chat function disabled.

Board of Trustees Meetings:

Faculty Masks: The SGA President and a representative brought up faculty and staff  not wearing masks. (See above.)

Financial State of The College: This was discussed.

 

FAEC DISCUSSION

Common Misconceptions: Perhaps it would be useful to have an orientation for students about elements like mask wearing, the role of the deans, etc. Some students have shared their understanding that deans tell faculty what grades to give, etc. They are experiencing the same stresses we are and clarification for new students at Ramapo would be helpful.

Shared Government Meeting: This was a good opportunity to begin working on improving shared governance under the new administration. SGA and RSA representatives attended. President Jebb discussed her plan to hold a series of seminar style meetings, focused on core values and the future of the College, which will contribute to the new Strategic Plan in Fall ‘22. She will seek to engage as many people as possible.

Staff: We would like to see this body better represented across campus. They do not have a voice in many aspects discussed and implemented across campus.

Spring 2022: Faculty Assembly will be hybrid next semester. Venue requests will continue to include a Webex kit and a larger meeting space. The chat function will be off with a 90 second to 2 minutes time limit. Hands should be raised to pose questions.

COVID-19 Alerts: Who is informed if someone in a class has COVID-19?

 

Meeting adjourned at 11:48am.

Categories: FAEC meeting Minutes 2021, RAMAPO FAEC, Uncategorized

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September 30, 2021FAEC Meeting Minutes, Sept 15, 2021

FAEC MINUTES
9/15/21
ASB 135

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

Guests: Chris Romano (Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs)

Meeting began at 10:10 with a quorum of 7 out of ten members present (Lisa Lutter & Thierry Rakotobe-Joel arrived via webex at 10:13).

MINUTES:

• September 8 minutes will be passed at the next meeting.

Presidents report 

• OUTDOOR SPACES:
  -The administration has identified several outdoor spaces for teaching and meeting.
  -There were some questions as to whether these spaces will meet the needs of faculty.
• REFUSE COLLECTION:
  -The administration has clarified: suspension of refuse collection was not a result of staff shortages. Rather, staff is stretched thin to keep up with COVID cleaning protocols.
  -We noted that smoother communication of that fact would have been beneficial. FAEC will continue to request better and more complete communication of such matters in the future.
  -Some issues remain uncertain:
  • Unclear access to garbage bags and cleaning supplies
  • Some schools seem to have information on garbage bags and cleaning supplies; others do not.
  • Some offices are reporting that garbage is still being collected.

• SCHEDULE SPRING 2022:
  -Traditionally (pre-COVID) only M/W/R courses were supposed to be hybrid. However, it seems that in practice that in some schools M/ R & T/F courses have been offered as hybrid. 
  • We need some clarity on this.
  • As of now, faculty who wish to remain  off campus in Spring need Deans’ permission to do so.
  • We are not aware how difficult such permission will be to obtain. We are not aware of the criteria. 
  • Other questions regarding the schedule:
    • will summer courses be offered in all 6 modalities? Or will they be restricted to the current spring options? What are the economic consequences of limiting summer options? 
    • Also, regarding Spring schedule: there is confusion regarding communication from Deans. Some Deans have written to their faculty regarding the modalities. Some Deans have only communicated to conveners. 
      • Some schools are hearing different options than the 3 modalities identified by the Provost. 
    • Also, regarding Spring schedule: currently, Webex /synchronous is not an option for Spring. What does that imply for snow days? It would seem that if Webex /synchronous is not available for the regular schedule, would it also not be a snow day option?
• STATE OF THE COLLEGE:
  State of the College will be in person
• FA in-service will be hybrid. Or at least, we agreed to reserve a room to retain the option of a hybrid meeting to accommodate those attending State of the College in person.
  
• DIVERSITY EQUITY INCLUSION:
  Regarding the Diversity training 9/15, we encourage better communication to avoid dating conflicts with religious observances. For a mandatory event, if one date conflicts with a holiday, it could be helpful to communicate that. Perhaps highlighting the May event as being scheduled to avoid the date conflict would have made faculty feel more included. Or perhaps we need to alway schedule 3 sessions, the calendar being as difficult to manage as it is.

NEW BUSINESS

• PRINTERS IN OFFICES:
  Faculty have been told not to print in our offices. Toner & paper will no longer be provided.
  We suggested that we express to the Provost and the president that printers and printing represent a legitimate teaching supplies issue. Perhaps something other than an “all or nothing” printer policy can be considered.

ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT AND STUDENT AFFAIRS: 

• At 11 am, Chris Romano joined us via Webex for our first enrollment meeting of the year. Chris reported:
  • Tomorrow the files will be frozen
  • We are at 99% of our undergraduate enrollment goal and 98% of our graduate goal.
  • There are 400 more students living on campus than we aimed for.
  • Student conduct on campus has been good so far.
  • Planning for next year’s enrollment and on campus living has begun.
  • Chris reported that Pre-Covid, 2700-2900 was the absolute maximum number of students who could be housed on campus. 
  • Many beds are set aside for COVID safety and potential quarantine.
• We discussed Open House / Admitted Student events:
  • Open House attendance has dropped in COVID. The college has increased Saturday tours.
  • Currently Open Houses are being treated as a general introduction to the campus. 
  • Admitted students days are smaller in COVID, faculty are being asked to appear at Admitted Student day, as that is a better use of faculty as presenters. 
• We discussed program growth:
  • Currently 150 high school students are taking classes here at Ramapo
  • 4+ 1 applications are going up; programs that can offer 4+ 1 are growing
  • Some 4+ 1 programs have been created via agreement with another colleges (i.e., Ramapo undergraduates are “guaranteed” a “+1” Masters acceptance at the cooperating school.
  • There was discussion as to whether or not there will be new procedures to help humanities students and programs grow
• Deadline for housing in spring 11/1
  • Currently 33% of our students live on campus 66%Pre-COVID it was about 50-50.  We would like to get back to that.
  • We discussed the viability of increasing commuters and not increase the on-campus population, as that may be more cost effective.

EMeeting ended at 11:58

 

Categories: Uncategorized

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September 30, 2021FAEC Meeting Minutes, Sept 22, 2021

FAEC MINUTES 9/22/21

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

Guests: Virginia Galdieri (Assistant Vice President, Human Resources and Benefits Administration); Janet Faber (Assistant Director, Employee Relations & Faculty Services (AFT) )

 Vote to bring meeting to order at 10:07am.

 Minutes Approval: The 9/8/21 and 9/15/21 meeting minutes were approved. 

FA PRESIDENT’S REPORT

 Spring 2022 Course Schedule: Provost was asked to reconsider not having the virtual option. Questions were asked about Winter and Summer courses, too. Spring 2022 will be hybrid, online, or in-person. There will be no Webex synchronous or asynchronous courses. There are specific guidelines for online courses; recorded asynchronous lectures cannot be used. Traditional online is without meetings or face-to-face.

 Printer Paper: Refuse collection has been clarified to the faculty via Provost’s email. Printers remain in offices; some units have a budget for printer cartridges, others do not. Paper will be provided.

 Faculty In-Service Next Week: The hybrid meeting will be run by the bylaws and handbook committees/taskforce. This will be for faculty only in ASB 136 and via Webex. The meeting will be at 1:15pm after the noon-1pm State of the College by Dr. Jebb.

 DEI Training 9/15/21: This was discussed.

FAEC DISCUSSION

COVID-19 Contact Tracing: Faculty have concerns about contact tracing when a student in their class tests positive for COVID-19. 

Does the faculty member have an obligation to disclose to the students that someone who attended the class tested positive? We need more clarification on these issues.

HR/ER GUESTS (Virginia Galdieri and Janet Faber)

Faculty Handbook Update: Committee  meetings have resumed.  Handbook revisions will be discussed at the Faculty In-Service. Janet will reach out to Rachel Budin to organize committee updates. There is nothing new to report since the last FAEC presentation. This was not worked on during the summer.

Promotion/Reappointment Software: This would be great instead of Google docs. This was discussed in the past and would be welcome if future submissions will be electronic.

Contact Tracing Concerns: Contact-tracing issues (see above) were brought to the attention of the guests. One consideration is whether students in the class are all masked; another is whether there was “close contact.” This could be difficult to assess and problematic for various reasons. Pandemic Assessment Team will discuss this further and provide clarity.

NEW BUSINESS

Faculty Assembly Meetings in the Spring: The meetings will be in-person or hybrid. We will follow Dr. Jebb’s guidelines. Staff is required to be in-person.

Unit Council: Will be fully face-to-face next semester.

Convening Groups: The meeting mode will be determined by each group.

Elections: ITS liaisons are Bonnie Blake (CA) and Thierry Rakotobe-Joel (ASB). Most FAEC representatives are finishing their terms so elections will be held.

 

Meeting adjourned at 11:58am.

 

 

Categories: FAEC MEETING MINUTES 2020, FAEC meeting Minutes 2021, RAMAPO FAEC, Uncategorized

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September 30, 2021Faculty Assembly Meeting Minutes, Sept 1, 2021

Faculty Assembly Minutes (draft)
September 1, 2021
1:00pm
ASB 135 and Webex

 

Presenters: Naseem Choudhury (President, SSHS)
Meeting began at 1:05pm

Assembly Minutes: April 28, 2021 minutes will be approved via Qualtrics.
Minutes Approved: Apr 7, 2021 meeting minutes were approved (105 yes, 6 abstentions)

Guests: President Cindy Jebb and Interim-Provost Susan Gaulden

Faculty Assembly President’s Report:

Welcome back to Faculty Assembly: Naseem welcomed us back to the new normal until we return to our pre-COVID-19 world. Approximately 160 faculty participated remotely. This is a new experience having both in-person and remote participants.
Guest Welcome: Naseem gave warm welcomes to our esteemed guests President Cindy Jebb, Board of Trustees President Susan Vallario and SGA President, Anjali Patel.

College President’s Report:

Dr. Jebb thanked the faculty for everyone’s work in getting ready for this semester.
Student Engagement: We have two classes of students who have spent limited if any time on our campus. We must be especially attuned to all of our students as we focus on learning challenges during the past 18 months and the new incoming students.
 – Difficult discussions happened in Convocation and these should be continued in the classroom.
Dr. Jebb’s Impressions of Key Concerns: Dr. Jebb’s first impressions are our commitments to each other and our focus on our students and their well being. She would like to address needs at the ground level. This involves everyone. We need to diversify and expand our revenue streams. We need everyone’s creative ideas, in writing, to pursue, with faculty advocacy.
Best Practices on Remote Learning and Teaching: President Jebb will share a report with us she has shared with Provost Gaulden.
Invitation to Share Ideas: President Jebb welcomes meeting with us, going for a walk, having lunch, etc.

Provost’s Report

New Faculty Welcome: We have 3 new faculty members this year. Another faculty member was hired last spring. Five faculty members were hired last year. We welcome all to our Ramapo community.
Thank You: Provost Gaulden thanked everyone for our hard work and for supporting and listening to our students. Many offices were thanked: the Registrar’s Office, the Provost’s Office, Facilities, and more.
International Education Office: 20+ international students successfully arrived at Ramapo College and will live on campus this year. It was a very challenging process and they all arrived vaccinated.
Student Used Names: Look for Provost Gaulden’s email. Make sure to confirm students’ used names are being used.
In-person Courses: We have approximately 80%, who will be having some form of in-person education. Approximately, 300+ students were deregistered from their in-person courses because they did not provide their COVID-19 vaccination information. We have a melt of approximately 30 students.
Mask Mandate Reminder: Remind students to wear their masks. If a student does not have their mask, they should go to the Public Safety Office. The bookstore also sells them.
Virtual Office Hours: These met our students’ needs well last year. Students might be a bit hesitant to meet in person. Virtual office hours will work well, again, but some students may wish to meet in-person with their in-person professors.
Course Modification App: Thank you to Dr. Scott Frees for creating a program that makes adding courses much simpler than the Banner’s 8 step method. Deans, unit secretaries and conveners are being trained.
Spring 2022: We will set up the schedule this month. Course delivery modes will be in-person, online, and the previous hybrid version.
In-class Eating: Students should not eat in the classroom; they can take a sip of water but should keep their masks on except for a brief moment.
Teaching Modalities: Might the remote synchronous/asynchronous courses become integrated as a permanent teaching models? Was the decision for course delivery data driven? The Provost said 53% of the courses are on campus and 80% were interested in coming back. We will return to our 3 modes for now and explore options for the future.
Course Schedule from Spring 2020: This last in-person course schedule will be the template schedule used for change to craft Spring 2022. If a convening group has a compelling reason and data demonstrating students prefer remote courses, discuss this with your Dean.
Study Abroad Programs: Faculty led study abroad programs will be happening this year but only to level one and level two countries. Everyone traveling will have to be vaccinated, including individuals who have exemptions now. Some students are attending existing international programs and they have signed a waiver.

Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs: Dr. C. Romano  

Enrollment: We enrolled 98% of expected undergraduates and 97% of the graduate student goal.
Housing:  We have exceeded our goal for residential students.. We have approximately 1,300 students who have not been on our campus before.
Student Athlete Advisor: An NCAA Faculty Athletic Representative, an athletics faculty advisor, is required to comply with athletics requirements. If interested, contact the Provost’s Office.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

GECCo (Dr. Sarah Carberry, Chair): The deadline is 10/15 (same as ARC). Questions can be sent to the Curriculum Assessment Teams (CATs). Email gecco@ramapo.edu.
We have 3 continuing GECCo coordinators. We will have a Qualtrix vote for the others.

 ARC (Dr. Stephen Rice, Chair): Meetings will begin next week at 11am. There will be new forms with fillable PDFs. One change to the submission procedure is to send all proposals for GECCo, WAC, and ARC to arc@ramapo.edu. ARC will review all submissions and organize them by committee; this will help ARC know the volume of work for the academic year. There will also be fillable forms for new programs and the ARC checklist. In a few weeks a new ARC manual will be posted.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Nicole Morgan Agard (Chief Equity and Diversity Officer)  

• Office of Equity, Inclusion and Compliance (EDIC): Faculty must take this training. It was offered in May  and will be again on September 15.
  
• State Grant for Multicultural Center: Ramapo received $250,000 from the State and many events are being planned.
  
• Multicultural Center: Feedback from all stakeholders will be sought.
  
• BIPOC Welcome back reception to be held on Sept 23, 2021 @ 4:00
  
• Latinx Heritage Month: September 20th at 1:15pm, Dr. Jebb will read the opening statement. There will be a movie screening of Coco from 8-10pm on the Laurel lawn.
  
• EDIC film: EDIC will be showing The Hate You Give. Nicole will lead the discussion. All other films will be made available for students to view independently in advance of the discussion.

Black Lives Matters’ College Colloquium on Race, Social Justice, and Representation. Dr. John Peffer discussed that this will be available to all students, remotely and in-person. See information here: https://www.ramapo.edu/ca/blmcolloquium/

Used Name Policy: Dr. Emily Leskinen and Dr. Leah Warner brought to the FA’s attention the confusion regarding the used name policy implementation. There seems to be a delay in the implementation of the policy due to Banner 9 update issues. Provost and CTO will work to resolve this as quickly as possible.

Faculty support is appreciated. If someone has a used name, do not use their old/dead name. Dr. Leskinen will send an email to be distributed to all faculty to inquire about names in advance of the class meeting. The form can be used for manual name changes, which can be shared with students: https://ramapo.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6WfGGEGxfLEXjeJ

New Business
TITLE IX Policy: Dr. Ann LePore discussed this evolving policy and suggested that the college consider expanding the resources offered to students in this statement. 

 Meeting Adjourned at 2:33pm.

 

 

 

 

 

Categories: Uncategorized

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