Nadine Kaslow and Gray Crouse reported on the work of the Class and Labor II committee. They presented some of the data they had collected regarding faculty class and labor issues, including gender equity in salary and tenure-track positions, though noted that their findings are preliminary at this point. The next step for the committee is to analyze the qualitative data gathered from focus groups in more detail, and finish gathering and analyzing the quantitative data related to their faculty survey. The committee will return to the Faculty Council in the fall when all the data have been analyzed and interpreted, and a final report will be available in November with comprehensive findings and recommendations.
Author: jmstew2
Vote on University Tenure, Promotions, and Appointments Committee (TPAC)
Following the March Town Hall discussion, the Faculty Council voted unanimously to support new processes to guide faculty governance in university-level promotion and tenure reviews and to nominate a writing committee to continue drafting the details of the new process. The newly endorsed processes include:
- Forming a Tenure, Promotion, and Appointments Committee (TPAC)
- Electing a faculty chair of TPAC
- Implementing consistent, transparent review processes for TPAC
- Implementing an advisory vote by TPAC elected faculty to the President/ Provost and Board of Trustees (BOT)
- Implementing an advisory memo from TPAC elected faculty to the President/ Provost and BOT
A writing committee will begin work in the summer of 2015, and implementation of the new process is tentatively scheduled for the spring of 2016.
Culture of Assessment
Jason Hockenberry presented an update from the Learning Outcomes and Assessment (LOA) Committee, introducing David Jordan and Nancy Bliwise, experts that could speak to the culture of assessment. David Jordan discussed the federal requirements for assessment and accreditation, as well as more specific regional standards. He commented that he believes we should move away from talking about assessment primarily in terms of accreditation requirements. Instead, he suggested that we focus on our teaching, our learning, improving our methods of assessment, and building a better culture of assessment. Nancy Bliwise provided a brief summary of Emory’s last accreditation experience. Jason Hockenberry appealed to the Faculty Council to spread the word and to recommend faculty with expertise or the desire to develop expertise in program-level learning assessment who could serve as LOA committee members.
Provost’s Remarks
In her closing remarks, Provost Claire Sterk highlighted the recent accreditation review of the Carlos Museum and the self-study review of Oxford College conducted in the fall. A self-study review of Emory College of Arts and Sciences will also be released soon. Provost Sterk commented that it was a good practice to have a mix of both internal and external reflection and review.
Faculty Mediation Training Update
Michael Sacks and Kathryn Yount delivered an update on the upcoming faculty peer mediation training. A mediation training has been scheduled for May 13-16, and will be led by Professor Timothy Hedeen, the faculty ombudsperson at Kennesaw State University and a professor of conflict management. Most schools and colleges at Emory will have a faculty delegate present at the May training, with other schools and colleges have committed to send a representative to the December training. At this point, Emory does not have consistent services for voluntary mediation within the schools, so these trainings will provide a network of trained faculty neutrals who can serve as the first point of contact within each school. Faculty who will serve as neutrals on the new standing committee for faculty peer mediation also will be trained in May.
Town Hall on Faculty Governance in University-Level Promotion and Tenure Review
The March Faculty Council meeting closed with a 45-minute Town Hall discussion of faculty governance in university-level promotion and tenure (UPT) review. Kathryn Yount led the Town Hall, beginning with a review of previously approved UPT processes and UPT processes currently under consideration by the Faculty Council, which included an elected faculty chair, consistent and transparent review processes, as well as an advisory vote and advisory memo to be sent to the Provost/President and directly to the Board of Trustees. Professor Justin Remais also presented an assessment of the proposed processes from the Task Force on Shared Faculty Governance, which found the proposal to be in strong alignment with the principles of faculty governance that the University Faculty Council adopted earlier this year.
President’s Remarks on Open Expression
President James Wagner sought the perspectives of Faculty Council members on academic expression and free expression. Wagner framed the conversation with examples including the “elective and self-imposed restrictions” that individuals might occasionally make to facilitate discussion during difficult conversations, as well as issues raised by Commencement speaker Salman Rushdie, who as University Distinguished Professor gave a Feb. 15 public lecture at Emory focused on freedom of expression and “The Liberty Instinct.” “Is there such a thing as responsibility in free expression?” Wagner asked, soliciting comments from Faculty Council members. “In other words, are there limits to the practice of free expression that should be imposed from time to time to ensure a better practice of academic freedom and the safety of those who engage in it?”
Principles of Faculty Governance
The Council approved a motion for revisions to the faculty handbook that provide a list of principles as guiding values across the university. The principles were developed after extensive deliberation of a task force for faculty governance, led by Associate Professor Justin Remais, and conversations of the task force with faculty across the university. These principles develop and reaffirm the set of fundamental principles for faculty governance, said Kristin Wendland, of the Department of Music. John Bugge of the Emeritus College listed the principles: interdependence, inclusiveness, transparency, communication, accountability, being democratic, deliberativeness, consistency, collegiality, fairness, recognition, and plurality.
Faculty Governance in Unit Assessment
Jason Hockenberry, associate professor in the Rollins School of Public Health, gave an update on his committee’s work thus far on proposals to create a “culture of assessment” in response to the U.S. Department of Education and Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) feedback from Emory’s recent successful conclusion to the reaccreditation process by SACS. The goal, Hockenberry said, is to move assessment from a box-checking report to strategic planning and setting aspirational goals. “The Department of Education is looking for meaningful assessment — not designing a syllabus or tests, but can you say what Emory students look like one, two, three years out when they’ve gone through a given program? They’re interested not so much in what students learn entering and exiting the program but what happens after, what they’ve done with it,” he said. Hockenberry’s committee is looking for more faculty members to join, particularly those with program assessment expertise. The committee will make recommendations to the provost’s office on creating the culture of assessment.
Standing Committee on Faculty Mediation
The Faculty Council approved the creation of a Standing Committee on Faculty Dispute Resolution, which would provide informal, voluntary, faculty-led mediation services and training in conflict resolution for Emory faculty. The vote followed recommendations presented by Sheryl Heron, professor of emergency medicine, and Michael Sacks, associate professor in the practice of organization and management, who co-chair a special committee approved last semester to explore the creation of a process for faculty to address and resolve interpersonal conflicts and organizational challenges. The standing committee’s mission will be to “assist faculty with resolving conflicts that arise from everyday work life before these conflicts become formal grievances,” according to the report given by Dr. Heron and Dr. Sacks. “This initiative is an important opportunity for transformative cultural change,” says Council Chair Kathryn Yount.