Author: jmstew2

Faculty Governance Around Campus

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Kristin Wendland, Emory College of Arts and Sciences, reported that ECAS faculty members are considering proposed bylaws revisions that would:

  • Replace GovCom with a College Faculty Senate comprised of 23 voting and 7 non-voting members;
  • Reform standing committees;
  • Reduce meetings to twice yearly and change format;
  • Revise the appeals process for committee and senate decisions.

Angela Amar, School of Nursing, presented updates in strategic plan initiatives, a branding retreat, new program and curriculum revisions, efforts to enhance diversity, and Ebola education opportunities.

Provost’s Remarks – January Faculty Council Meeting

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Provost Claire Sterk discussed new faculty seminars that will be offered to Emory trustees at their February board meeting. Nine Emory professors will present a series of educational sessions to provide the experience of “what it is like to be a learner, to be exposed to different ways in which faculty can teach, to get a sense of what it takes to prepare a class,” she said. The second part of the seminar will focus on “the value of the topic being discussed, what’s the social impact, how does it contribute to the public good, how does it link to public scholarship?”

Ebola Advisory Task Force

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Dr. David Stephens, Director of the Division of Infectious Diseases and Chief of Medicine for Emory Healthcare, spoke about the work of Emory’s Ebola Advisory Task Force, which he co-chairs with S. Wright Caughman, CEO of the Robert W. Woodruff Health Sciences Center and chairman of Emory Healthcare. The task force was created to advise the University President on issues and policies rapidly unfolding around the ebola viral disease epidemic, including biosafety, infection control, preparedness and response; research, education, communication and ethics; and institutional policies on travel. Dr. Stephens said plans are being explored to host a forum about Ebola research opportunities. In the spring semester, an academic discussion group will be held for the Emory community to examine the ebola virus through a multidisciplinary lens, including its impact upon business, law, religion and ethics, said Dr. Debra Bruner, Robert W. Woodruff Chair in Nursing, who is on the Emory Ebola Advisory Task Force.

Emory’s Global Strategies

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Phillip Wainwright, Vice Provost for International Affairs and Director of the Halle Institute for Global Learning at Emory, spoke about Emory’s Global Strategies. Central goals include:

  • Initiatives that position Emory as a university noted for its global impact, and
  • Integrating Emory’s international community into the life of the university.

Sexual Assault Response Training

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During a Title IX presentation, Associate Vice Provost Lynell Cadray, who leads Emory’s Office of Equity and Inclusion, recommended a plan to provide sexual assault training to all Emory faculty and staff, to be implemented over the next three years. The plan would offer guidance, for example, on when and why faculty and staff are required to report sexual misconduct, what steps to take if a student confides that they were a target of sexual assault, and when and how to refer a student for counseling or support services. Faculty council members voted to approve a motion to support mandatory university-wide sexual assault training for all Emory faculty and
staff. Training will be provided to all new faculty and staff hires starting January 2015. Current faculty will be provided an online training module, with classroom trainings to be made available to current staff.

Provost’s Remarks on Emory’s Values

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Provost Claire Sterk urged further discussion about the role of Emory faculty in promotion and tenure. “What should Emory’s practice be, what should Emory’s culture be?” she said. “This is a very important conversation and one that I actually think is perfect for the Faculty Council as a governance body to explore.” Sterk added that she and President Wagner have been in conversation with Emory deans to “to really think about Emory’s values and how those translate into what Emory stands for.” She anticipates additional discussion with the Council about “faculty quality and student quality and the student experience.” She stated: “I personally feel that at times we separate the two too much. But the reality is if we really want to have an identity as an institution, we need to start putting those two together.”

Faculty Governance in University Promotion and Tenure

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Yount updated the Faculty Council on the work of the University Promotion and Tenure Task Force, which convened from April through October to explore opportunities for greater faculty governance in university-level promotion and tenure processes. The committee examined promotion and tenure decision-making through a document review of 15 peer universities and interviews with 10 faculty chairs, including an examination of issues such as the size and composition of committees, selection of faculty representatives, term lengths, and leadership. Please contact your unit representative for further information about the results of this document review. Draft resolutions will be presented in November for further discussion in January, as needed.

Visit from Chair of Board of Trustees John Morgan

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John Morgan, chair of the Emory Board of Trustees, described what drew him to Emory as a student and, more recently, in service to the university as a trustee and benefactor during the Oct. 21 meeting of the Faculty Council. An Emory alumnus and business executive, Morgan (67OX, 69B) was elected board chair in November 2013, succeeding Ben F. Johnson III, who had served as chair since 2000. Morgan’s goals include enhancing communication within the Emory community, strategies that support the efficient use of resources, and building the university’s endowment. Among the trustees, he hopes to nurture a culture of trust, dedication, commitment, and personal responsibility. “The trustees’ purpose is really to support and to build the conditions right for the faculty to be able to advance learning and to teach, and for our students to have the environment they need to learn and thrive,” Morgan says.