121008 mins

President Chin called the December 10, 2008 Faculty Senate meeting to order in the Elizabeth D. Rockwell Pavilion of the M. D. Anderson Library at 12:15 p.m.

ARCH: M. Sabatino
BUS: W. Chin, R. Keller, K. Newberry, C. Pirrong
CLASS: A. Bencomo, M. Haun, J. Kotarba, D. Mazella, M. McHenry, J. Middents, D. Montoya, J. Sposato, G. Trail
EDU: M. Clarke, A. Warner
ENGR: A. Kamrani, R. Willson
LAW: S. Chandler
LIB: M. Bennett, D. Camille, S. Ferimer
NSM: P. Copeland, A. Ignatiev, G. Johnson, T.R. Lee, D. Wells
OPT: R. Manny
PHA: S. Sansgiry
TECH: K. Greenwood

CLASS: E. Brown-Guillory, A. Gordon, W. Herendeen, M. Hernandez, P. Howard, G. Jowett, A. Kugler
EDU: C. Craig, J. Freiberg (w/notice)
ENGR: S. Chellam, Y.L. Mo, K. Mohanty
GCSW: A. Achenbaum (w/notice)
HRM: S. Barth
LAW: M. Duncan, P. Linzer
NSM: K. Kadish, M. Rea, J. Subhlok
OPT: S. Quintero

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), Grover Campbell (UHS Vice Chancellor and UH Vice President for Governmental Relations), 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), Marco Mariotto (Dean, Graduate & Professional Studies),Ed Hugetz (UHS Associate Vice Chancellor and UH Associate Vice President for Planning and University Outreach), David Bell (Assistant Vice Chancellor and Vice President, Academic & Faculty Affairs), Daniel Gardner (UHS Assistant Vice Chancellor for Planning & Initiatives), Elizabeth Anderson Fletcher (UH Associate Vice President for Research Operations), Agnes DeFranco (UH Assistant Vice President for Undergraduate Studies), John Powell (Director, Communications), Jeanne Downey (Assistant Librarian, University Libraries),

MINUTES: The minutes for the November 19, 2008 Senate meeting were approved.

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

Pres. Chin reported: (1) The polls for the Faculty Senate election were opened. (2) The next Faculty Senate meeting will be held on January 21, 2009. (3) He thanked the Senators, whose terms will end on December 31, 2008, for their service, including Elizabeth Brown-Guillory, Wyman Herendeen, Jonathan Middents, George Trail, Kishore Mohanty, Peter Linzer and Sam Quintero. (4) Pres. Chin recognized people who have contributed to the Faculty Senate Enhancement Endowment and who will be listed as the Founder Members on a plaque to be displayed in the new Senate space. He noted that any amount is welcome, but to become a Founding Member, one must contribute $1,000 by December 31, 2008. (5) Pres. Chin encouraged all Senators to attend the open forums for the Provost candidates. He urged them to forward all comments on the finalists to the Executive Committee.

At its December 4, 2008 meeting, the Faculty Senate Executive Committee passed a resolution to make the Chair of the Research Council a member of the Executive Committee for a period not to exceed two years while a joint task force explored ways for the two governance bodies to work together. Sen. Chandler moved to amend the resolution to just calling for the task force. After a brief discussion and a friendly amendment from Sen. Ignatiev that Sen. Chandler accepted, the Faculty Senate voted unanimously to approve the following:

"Beginning immediately and extending for a period not to exceed two years from the passage of this resolution, the Chair of the Research Council
shall serve as a non-voting member of the Senate Executive Committee. During this time a joint task force will be formed to explore ways for the
Research Council and Faculty Senate to work together."

Dr. Khator reported that Provost Strickland had just returned from a meeting in San Antonio in which the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools announced that the University of Houston has been accredited for another ten years until 2018. Dr. Khator thanked everyone for their hard work. She said the credit for this achievement belongs to the faculty. She also praised the Provost, his office and staff who have all done a fabulous job. She noted that during a recent visit the former Provost of UT-Austin said that UH had the best QEP he has ever seen.

Dr. Khator encourage faculty to attend the December 12 Board of Regents subcommittee meeting as several of the proposed "Breakthrough Solutions" would be discussed. One of the Regents wanted to know how many hours a faculty member is in the classroom. Drs. Strickland and Gardner were putting together a presentation to explain what faculty members do in a week. It is far more than just lecturing for a class. As one person pointed out, "If a legislator spends about ten hours a week on the floor of the legislature, what does he/she do the rest of the time?" She added that one of the "Solutions" recommended separating the teaching and research budgets. How could that be possible? How does UH separate the budgets for time spent with graduate students on research projects versus the classroom? Research and teaching are co-mingled.

Dr. Khator announced that the UH System had hired Barbara Stanley as Assistant Vice Chancellor for Local Governmental Relations. The Chancellor/President suggested the Faculty Senate invite her to make a presentation.

Dr. Khator said the economy is not good and will affect Texas soon. The Greater Houston Partnership (GHP) estimates that over the next year, Houston will lose 45,000 jobs. How does this University prepare for hard times? Dr. Khator is presenting the case to the legislature and anyone else who will listen that UH needs to be a top tier university. The GHP recently passed a resolution that it states it wants the University of Houston to be the next top tier university in Texas.

Grover Campbell, the UHS Vice Chancellor and UH Vice President for Governmental Relations, said it is a great time to be in Texas. He added that isn't just a bumper slogan. He pointed out that California has a $17 Billion deficit and 37 states have deficits in their state budgets. Texas is expected to start its legislative session in January 2009 with a $10 Billion surplus. That's the good news. The bad news that money is gone with about half of going into the Rainy Day Fund (which takes a two-thirds vote of both the House and Senate to access), $4 to 4.5 Billion going for property tax relief, and Health and Human Services needs $1.5 Billion to maintain services.

Mr. Campbell stated that money will be a topic for this legislative session. The next Economic Forecast should be made on January 8, 2009. That will be a revenue estimate which the Comptroller will continue to update throughout the session. General politics will be an issue, such as the race for Speaker of the House. At present 11 candidates are running for the position. A year from March, there will be primaries for all State positions. Tuition deregulation will also be a hot topic

Mr. Campbell said the UH System has an impressive legislative agenda that is dominated by UH's Tier One Initiative. He noted that legislators began pre-filing proposed legislation right after the November elections and his office is already tracking over 100 bills. The legislative session begins on January 9. Mr. Campbell suggested that when faculty contact their State Representative and Senator that they thank them for their consideration of making UH a Tier One University. Faculty may keep informed by visiting the Governmental Relations website at http://www.uhsa.uh.edu/gov/ or they may send Mr. Campbell an e-mail (GCampbell@uh.edu) to join his mailing list.

Dr. Khator thanked Mr. Campbell for the update. She added that the UHS Governmental Relations website is a model website.

Dr. Khator distributed the "November Update (http://uh.edu/about/offices/president/pdf/President_Newsletter.pdf)," her newsletter about UH-UH System activities and issues, including Strategic Dialog on UH Goals and Strategies, Emergency Response, UH Budget Planning and the Economy, Enrollment Management, UH System Initiatives, Searches, Transportation and Parking, SERCC Building, Legislative Session, Fundraising, and Making UH a Friendly Place to Commute.

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 gave an update on (1) Dean Searches - the search for a Dean for the Honors College has been narrowed to two candidates. It is unclear if they will be conducting final interviews by telephone or in person. The search for the College of Architecture Dean will begin within a week and the College of Pharmacy Dean search will continue in the new year. (2) Dean Reviews will begin in the Spring. The Deans of CLASS, HRM, LIB, and OPT will be reviewed. An additional staff person has been recruited to assist with the logistics. (3) Events - the Faculty Recognition Dinner will be held on Thursday, March 5, 2009 at the Hilton Americas, the Endowed Chair Reception will be Wednesday, April 8, also at the Hilton Americas, and the Faculty Awards Reception will be held Wednesday, April 22, at the UH Hilton. (4) Fall graduations will be held on December 19 & 20. Faculty are encouraged to attend these events.

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

Dr. Birx provided an overview of the research activities at UH. His PowerPoint report is available on-line at [http://www.uh.edu/fs/minutes/Research_Report_for_FS_Meeting_121008.pdf]. He began by discussing funded or sponsored Research and Development expenditures from 1999 to 2006. Dr. Birx noted that in 2007-2008 there was a surge in proposals which impacted 2008 with increased funding. The greatest growth in Research Awards was from State funding sources, around 25%. Department of Defense, Department of Education and NASA account collectively for only 3% of UH's research funding. The National Science Foundation (NSF) increased proportionally to its budget increase while the National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding remained flat, but so did its budget. Dr. Birx said UH's opportunities for research funding change over time. He noted that on the path to doubling its research funding in five years, UH has hit its first goal by increasing 12%. He added that the targets get more ambitious, so everyone needs to work to meet the future goals. Other campuses receive roughly $10 million per year in research funding.

At her investiture, Dr. Khator talked about one of Research's primary thrusts being Energy. Dr. Birx said UH has four areas that fit under Energy: Subsurface Resources, Energy Conservation and Environmental Sustainability, Renewables and Alternatives, and Systems Integration. There is an advisory group made up of CEOs of energy companies and a faculty leadership team. The UH Wind Alliance is part of this group. Wind is expected to have a major impact in energy supply. Dr. Birx said a 501 C3 is being set up with UH as the lead and general manager.

Dr. Birx said the Science-Engineering-Research-Classrooms Building is a prototype for the approach UH will use -- grouping core facilities and cluster hire faculty. Funding has been arranged to finish the building by working in phases. There are requirements to be in SERC, including being in the top quartile of research at UH and generating $350 per square foot. Dr. Birx noted that most researchers generate around $200 per square foot. He said there are 900 to 1,000 faculty at UH; of that number 338 do some form of funded research. Approximately 38 researchers generate $53 million of the $80 million research funding. Dr. Birx estimated that 30 faculty generate $350 per square foot.

Dr. Birx talked about the various research clusters, including UH Arts which John Antel, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences is putting together; UH Stars will feature strong, stand alone programs that achieve national excellence but may have not have anything to do with funded research; and Undergraduate Research which shows student success and research go hand in hand

Dr. Birx stated that UH needs to work on research funding start-up packages. Funding for FY09 has already reached $3.5 million and soft commitments are up to $2.5 million, so alternative ways of funding must be found. Cluster hiring is going to be critical to the University. Over the past five years, ENGR and NSM have lost tenured and tenure-track faculty, especially in the areas that traditionally generate research funding. In reviewing peer institutions, it was discovered that factors in research growth include multidisciplinary centers, targeted faculty hires, investment in infrastructure and outside research partnerships.

Dr. Birx said he is still working on the IDC reallocation formula. He has taken advice from a lot of people. At present, Research put a small tax on IDC funds. The challenge for Research is to take dollars and put them where they will have the best return. The process is to slowly move resources to these promising areas.

There have been a number of changes in the Research Office. It is a distributed model to put support as close to faculty as possible.

Sen. Willson reported on: (1) The committee wanted to acknowledge the new administration for getting the SERC building moving forward and for planning renovations and communicating with the faculty. There are some exciting plans for new buildings in the works. (2) The committee will be looking at Salary Data to study long term trends for faculty who stay at UH. Sen. Copeland will be heading that work up. (3) There has been some discussion of problems with faculty email. BFC is looking into the situation.

The committee worked hard this semester on filling all the committees due to a few resignations from different committees. In addition to preparing the slate, the Committee on Committees Chair met with the Provost to clear up some problems with Academic Affairs committees. The Provost has not made new appointments to the Athletic Advisory Committee for several years, there are some operational questions with the Health Professions Advisory Committee, and the proposal for reconstituting the Information Technology and Computing Committee has been stalled for over a year. Dr. Strickland agreed to look into the problems.

Sen. Greenwood noted that less than 20% of the faculty had participated in the 2008 Preference Survey for serving on University Standing Committees. She urged Senators to talk with their colleagues and ask them to fill out the 2009 survey when it is made available in the Spring.

Sen. Mazella reported that (1) the Committee is working very closely with a number of ongoing efforts, such as Student Success. The subcommittee, which is part of the Task Force, is working on an inventory of current practice on how UH gets students in the door, through the institution and out into the community. The idea is to see how well UH is doing in helping students to succeed. (2) The Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP). EPSAC will be getting a report on how the first round of proposals, how funding was allotted and what improvements need to be made in the process before the next round. (3) EPSAC will also be working on the Voluntary System of Accountability (VSA) to look at the possible instruments to assess learning outcome.

Sen. Clarke said the Committee brought forward a plan for an Assistant Professors forum designed to help bring untenured faculty into the faculty governance process. The Executive Committee supports the idea and took it to the administration which also approved the plan. The process will move forward in the Spring.

Sen. Copeland, who assisted with the official ballot count, delivered the results:

Coalition of Intercollegiate Athletics: Delegate: Joseph Kotarba, CLASS; and Alternate: Katy Greenwood, TECH
Committee on Committees: Damon Camille, LIB; Katy Greenwood, TECH; Randall Lee, NSM; Sam Quintero, OPT;Sujit Sansgiry, PHA; and Jeffery Sposato, CLASS
Members-at-large: Adriana Kugler, CLASS and Ruth Manny, OPT
Secretary: Michelangelo Sabatino, ARCH
President Elect: Mark Clarke, EDU