UNIVERSITY HOUSTON FACULTY SENATE MINUTES – January 21, 2009

President Chin called the January 21, 2009 Faculty Senate meeting to order in the Elizabeth D. Rockwell Pavilion of the M. D. Anderson Library at 12:15 p.m.

MEMBERS PRESENT:  [38]

MEMBERS ABSENT:  [12]

SEATS VACANT:  [3]

VISITORS: 

Renu Khator (University of Houston System Chancellor and University of Houston President), Jerald Strickland (Interim UHS Senior Vice Chancellor and UH Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost), Carl Carlucci (UHS Executive Vice Chancellor and UH Executive Vice President for Administration and Finance), Donald Birx (UHS Vice Chancellor and UH Vice President for Research), Elaine Charlson (UHS Executive Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and UH Executive Associate Vice President for Academic and Faculty Affairs), Ed Hugetz (UHS Associate Vice Chancellor and UH Associate Vice President for Planning and University Outreach), Marco Mariotto (Dean, Graduate & Professional Studies), David Bell (Assistant Vice Chancellor and Vice President, Academic & Faculty Affairs), John Antel (Dean, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences), Daniel Gardner (UHS Assistant Vice Chancellor for Planning & Initiatives), Elizabeth Anderson Fletcher (Associate Vice President for Research Operations), John Powell (Assistant to the Chancellor/President, Communications), Oscar Gutierrez (Assistant to the Vice Chancellor/Vice President for University Advancement), Barbara Stanley (Assistant to the Vice Chancellor/Vice President for Governmental Relations)

MINUTES:  The minutes for the December 10, 2008 Senate meeting were approved.

REPORT FROM AND DISCUSSION WITH THE FACULTY SENATE PRESIDENT:  Wynne Chin

Pres. Chin reported that the University Faculties Executive Council (UFEC) holds a mini-conference every two years.  Faculty and staff should expect an email announcement soon about this conference which is set to be held on Friday, March 27, at UH-Downtown.  The conference will focus on Student Success in Academics, Careers, and Engagement.  Abstracts to participate in the conference are due by Monday, February 16. 

Pres. Chin welcomed the new senators:  Michael Ahearne, BUS; Joe Charlson, ENGR; Tahir Hussain, PHA; Robert Palmer, LAW; and from CLASS David Phillips Harrell Rodgers, Christiane Spitzmüller, and Steve Wallace (who helped with the Investiture Planning). 

Dr. Don Foss was presented with a crystal trophy inscribed "With appreciation and in recognition of your service and contributions as Provost to the Faculty of the University of Houston."

Pres. Chin said a Provost has a tough job.  Dr. Foss was a great success as Provost.  Under his watch:  the Faculty Travel Award and the Scholarship Report were instituted, increases in promotion raises for faculty were made, the position of ombudsperson was created and filled, the QEP topic was picked, talks with Cornell Methodist & UH were held, a Northwest campus was pursued and the textbook policy and the 6 course drop policy were adopted.  Dr. Foss was announced as Provost on March 16, 2005, he took over on July 15, 2005 and made his first presentation at the Faculty Senate meeting on August 30, 2005.  This was excellent timing as the next Faculty Senate meeting on September 21, 2005 was cancelled due to Hurricane Rita, his last day as Provost was June 15, 2008 and Hurricane Ike happened on September 12, 2008.  A good leader makes a good Provost and the Faculty Senate appreciates the leadership provided by Don Foss.

A PowerPoint presentation in pdf format is available at http://www.uh.edu/fs/minutes/FS_President_Report_012109.pdf. 

RESPONSE FROM DR. FOSS: 

Dr. Foss accepted the award, saying that he was fortunate in working with excellent faculty leaders like Steven Craig, Joe Kotarba, Wynne Chin and Dan Wells.  It takes a good relationship between a Provost and faculty leaders to thrive at a university.  Dr. Foss thanked the tremendous group of people who worked around him, outside of the limelight.  The Associate and Assistant Vice Presidents who are so dedicated to the students and faculty at UH.  He added that he was fortunate to be preceded and followed by Jerry Strickland and he wished John Antel the best of luck as he steps into the role of Provost.  It’s a most interesting job, full of exciting opportunities to help the University community to go forward.

REPORT FROM AND DISCUSSION WITH THE INTERIM UHS SENIOR VICE CHANCELLOR AND UH SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRS AND PROVOST:  Jerald Strickland

Dr. Strickland reported that (1) the new Provost will take office on February 1.  (2) The Deans Searches in Pharmacy and Architecture are progressing.  William Monroe has been named Dean of the Honors College. (3) The Dean Review in Optometry is in the process of organizing as is the Review for the Dean of the Library.  (4) The Fall Graduation Ceremonies were outstanding.  Dr. Strickland thanked all the faculty who attended.  (5) Spring enrollment is currently up around 2% or 600 students.  (6) Budget Hearings for the colleges are set to begin on February 4.  The scheduled has been shared with Al Warner, Chair of the Budget & Facilities Committee, which provides a Senator to attend each hearing.  Dr. Strickland said he encourages the Senate to participate in the hearings and see the transparency of the process. (7) The Faculty Senate asked for a series of talking points on the University's priorities for the legislative session.  This information is being shared, but everyone must remember to act as private citizens when contacting their state legislators.  No state property may be used for any political activity,

Dr. Strickland said his impression of the Faculty Senate is that it has been improved significantly due to its leadership.  To show his appreciation, the Provost presented Wynne Chin with a wine bottle stopper with a UH logo.

REPORT FROM AND DISCUSSION WITH THE UHS VICE CHANCELLOR AND UH VICE PRESIDENT FOR RESEARCH:  Donald Birx

Dr. Birx said he wanted to add his appreciation for the work done by Drs. Foss and Strickland.  He noted that there is always a lot of activity on the second floor.

Dr. Birx stated that he wanted to give everyone a heads up on the initiatives the University is using:  UH Energy, UH Health, UH Stars and UH Arts.  Dr. Birx said Dr. Khator will meet with the Energy Advisory Council on January 28.  The Council is composed of Industry leaders and CEOs.  He added that meetings with interested faculty will follow, so be watching for that announcement. 

Dr. Birx noted that the Chancellor wants UH to be Tier I and to double research funding over the next five years.  Deans have plans and proposals put together on UH Energy. They tried to bring faculty in on this process.  UH will try to frame all these plans within the named groupings.  To accomplish the Chancellor’s objectives will require quite a few faculty hires on the Energy or Health tracks.  Dr. Birx asked everyone to picture what these changes mean and use them as models to follow in planning new initiatives and hires.  He encouraged faculty interested in Energy to come to the meeting once it is announced.

FAREWELL ADDRESS BY THE 2008 FACULTY SENATE PRESIDENT: Wynne Chin

Pres. Chin said he wanted to offer thanks for his time as President of the Faculty Senate.  He said that he got off to a rough start with Dr. Khator, who came by his office the day before she officially started as Chancellor/President.  Pres. Chin stated that he was on the phone when he saw a woman peek into his office.  He kept talking and after a few minutes the woman peered in again.  Then he realized that he was keeping Dr. Khator waiting and finally invited her into his office.  Pres. Chin thanked Dr. Khator for her patience then and throughout his presidency.  Pres. Chin also thanked the members of the President's Cabinet, the Student Government Association officers, especially David Rosen, Sam Dike and Jonas Chin; and the Staff Council officers, especially Keith Kowalka and Sandy Coltharp.  He also thanked the Executive Committee, especially Dan Wells for keeping him on track, and the Senate staff.

Pres. Chin noted that the Faculty Senate had run well in the past year.  He credited coordination, having the right person doing the right thing at the right time, cooperation, working together for common goals; and commitment, the Executive Committee stepped up to cover the work.  He added that communications is the glue for a good cohesive and agile team.

Pres. Chin stated that he had a few regrets, including not moving into the new Senate Offices in the Library; not getting a Faculty/University Club in place; not establishing greater communication between Senators and their faculty constituents; not establishing an even stronger commitment of trust and cooperation with the administration, which will keep improving; not getting more funding for the Senate Enhancement Endowment, which will help the Senate with future community engagement activities like lectures; and not instituting the Information Technology Planning and Policy Committee.

For the future Pres. Chin pledged not to get in the way of Sen. Wells.  He also promised to continue to improve communication infrastructure of the Senate, including streamlining the Faculty Senate newsletter, develop a new Senate website that provides more functionality, establish a system to allow faculty to customize information, and help improve faculty involvement in University Governance.

Pres. Chin presented the gavel to Sen. Wells, wishing him good luck as the new Faculty Senate President.  Pres. Wells presented Sen. Chin with a gavel and plaque inscribed, “In appreciation of his visionary leadership and investment in the future.”  Sen. Chin was also given a giant golden piggy bank in honor of his establishing the Senate endowment and a miniature "clubhouse" for his work on the Faculty/University Club.

INAUGURAL ADDRESS FROM THE 2009 FACULTY SENATE PRESIDENT:  Dan Wells

As I look forward to my term as Faculty Senate President, I feel very fortunate to have worked with Wynne Chin for the past year, because of his inclusionary style, I feel relatively well prepare for the tasks ahead.  As I believe there is strength in continuity and purpose of mission, I hope to build on the past successes of the Faculty Senate.  I also hope to maintain the continuity established this year by working very closely with the now President-elect Mark Clark.

This year promises to be full of challenges.  While the University remains determined to reach to the next level of excellence, the economic downturn we have seen recently, will pose many obstacles as we move forward.  As many of you know the state financial projections for the next biennium are dismal. In addition, the state legislature will strongly consider tuition Re-regulation and possible even a freeze on tuition levels.  The Governor has said publically that the prospects of investing in additional Tier One Universities this year are unlikely.   These obstacles, while real, should not discourage our University from reaching higher.  I pledge to work with all UH constituents as well as the local community leaders to insure that UH continues our struggle for excellence.  

            As the Faculty Senate develops its priorities for the upcoming year, I hope to sharpen our focus on several items I believe central to our mission as the voice of the faculty and the engine of the University.  First, we need to improve our own faculty governance structure to make more effective use of our own faculty resources.  To this end I have tasked Wynne Chin and the Committee on Committees with the job of revaluating our basic structure.   We will be looking toward forming a more integrated governance structure that will be more responsive and unified.

            We need to reach out to our primary teaching mission as well, looking for new ways to improve student success. The Educational Policy and Student Affairs Committee chaired by David Mazella, is already working on a series of new and continuing initiatives.   In addition, with the Faculty Senates of the other UH System Universities, we are sponsoring a Conference on Student Success to be held at UH-Downtown March 27th.

            As both individuals and as a faculty, we need to do a better job of reaching out to our local community, as well as our state legislators. This year I will propose several new initiative in this area, beginning with a conference this fall tentatively titled, "Energy:  From Campus to Community and Back”.  This conference will be coordinated through our Scholarship and Community Committee, chaired by Suzanne Ferimer, and will look at ways the that the faculty and the community can form partnerships in the areas of sustainability, alternatives energy, Green initiatives, Energy efficient housing, and community revitalization. 

            As always, the Faculty Senate will be looking for ways to improve the existing environment for current and future faculty members, as well as, ways to be more inclusive in the process of shared governance.  The Faculty Affairs, chaired by Jerry Freiberg and the Budget and Facilities Committees, to be chaired by Al Warner will be working on a number of new initiatives in this area.  In addition to the Committee Chairs, I also look forward to working with Michelangelo Sabatino FS Secretary and at large members of the FS Executive Committee Ruth Manny and Adriana Kugler.

            In closing let me say that …..  despite gloomy economic forecasts, the Faculty Senate stands ready to help move the University forward by forging stronger alliances with the administration, staff and students, as well as community leaders.  I look forward the challenges the year brings.

FACULTY SENATE COMMITTEE REPORTS are available at http://www.uh.edu/fs/FS_Cms_Reports_012109.html.

The meeting adjourned at 1:45 p.m.