1. ROLL

2. MOMENT OF SILENCE

The Senate observed a moment of silence in recognition of Diane Pugmire’s passing.

3. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES

Motion: Moved to approve the minutes from the October 15, 2009 meeting.
Made: Warren Hill
Second: Shelley Thomas
Outcome Changes were made to item 6 of the minutes: . . . a water tank on the hill above south of the Weber State "W." The city maintains that the bond is the driving force. The Senate approved the minutes with the above changes.

4. CONSTITUTIONAL REVIEW, APPORTIONMENT AND ORGANIZATION – Michelle Heward, Chair

First Reading - Executive Committee Elections PPM 1-13, Article B-II, Section 7.2

The constitution defines organizational unit as the academic colleges and the Library. The proposed change would guarantee the one senator from the Library a permanent seat on the Executive Committee. It was the consensus of the Constitutional Review, Apportionment & Organization Committee that the Library should be guaranteed a permanent position on the Executive Committee.

PPM 1-13, ARTICLE B-XIII. AMENDMENTS - Section 1. The Amending Process

Discussion and a vote of the above proposed amendment to the Faculty Senate Constitutional Bylaws will take place at the December 3, 2009 meeting.

The Constitutional Review, Apportionment & Organization Committee has the responsibility for apportionment. The following apportionment figures were presented to the Faculty Senate. The College of Arts & Humanities gained one Senate seat this year and the Goddard School of Business lost one seat.

Apportionment determined as follows:

Total number of faculty in college    X       Total Senate Seats Available

                      Total number of Faculty

Example (College of Science) 76    ÷    481   X    39   =    6.14

Motion made by the Constitutional Review, Apportionment & Organization Committee to approve the above apportionment figures for college representation on the Faculty Senate.
Outcome: The motion passed unanimously.

5. SALARY BENEFITS, BUDGETS & FISCAL PLANNING COMMITTEE

Salary Negotiation Team - Lloyd Burton, David Ferro, Cheryl Hansen

PPM 1-13, Article B-V, 4.10 - Committee on Salary, Benefits, Budgets & Fiscal Planning - A subcommittee shall serve under the direction of this Committee and represent the faculty in salary and related negotiations with the University administration. No two members of this subcommittee shall be from the same organizational unit. This subcommittee shall consist of the Faculty Senate chair, the chair of the Committee on Salary, Benefits, Budget and Fiscal Planning and a third member nominated by the Committee and approved by the Faculty Senate.

Motion by the Salary, Benefits, Budgets & fiscal Planning Committee to approve Cheryl Hansen as the third member of the Salary Negotiation Team.
Outcome: The motion passed unanimously.

6. CURRICULUM COMMITTEE – Erika Daines, Chair

Charge 6 - Provide a report on the recent history and current status of Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts degree-requirements at WSU. Recommend changes to the current university requirements for the Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts degrees that will promote a more natural fit of degree with major. (March 2010 deadline)

The complete proposal is posted online at http://faculty.weber.edu/senate/Curriculum%20Nov%2009/BA.BS%20Degree%20Proposal%2029Oct09.htm

The proposal is also available in the Faculty Senate Office.

Objective - The objective of this proposal is to create stronger and more meaningful degree programs.

• BA and BS degrees will be associated with specific major programs. A department may offer a major leading to a BA degree and a major leading to a BS degree.
• Majors leading to a BA degree require twelve semester-hours of foreign language or equivalent or six semester-hours of foreign language with further coursework equaling six semester-hours in the language arts beyond general education requirements.
• Majors leading to a BS degree require a minimum of twelve semester-hours of coursework, at least half of which must be at the upper-division level. This coursework must address the formulation of hypotheses, the collection of data and the empirical testing of theories through analytical or laboratory inquiry, or must address quantitative methods at a level that requires quantitative literacy.
• SI course requirement and list will be eliminated.

The Curriculum Committee approved the language requirement for the BA degree as follows: Majors leading to a BA degree will require twelve semester-hours of foreign language, consistent with the current BA language requirement or six semester-hours of foreign language with further coursework equaling six semester-hours in the language arts beyond the composition requirement in the general education core. Language arts coursework may include literature, creative writing, rhetoric, music composition, etc. . . The language requirement was approved by the Curriculum Committee with eight in favor of the motion and two opposed.

This proposal will do away with SI. The purpose of general education is to take an individual who is focused on a particular degree and expose them to other areas. If the general education course fits nicely with the major we should not penalize the student by requiring them to take an extra general education course. The BA/BS degree proposal was approved unanimously by the Curriculum Committee.

Discussion

- Time frame. There will be ample time for faculty to review the proposal before it come for a vote of the Faculty Senate.

- Double dipping is permitted. Majors leading to a BS degree will require a minimum of twelve semester-hours of coursework meeting these requirements, at least half of which must be at the upper-division level. By defining this coursework as part of the major, it is expected that the coursework will specifically complement and strengthen the major field of study and thus be of greater benefit to the student pursuing a BS degree. Departments have the option to specify coursework satisfying both the major requirements and general education requirements.

- There is a slight chance that a few degrees would need to increase the level of credits for a particular major. The increase to the major would not supercede 123 credit hours. The Registrar’s Office is looking at how many SI course are built into the requirements for the major. They are estimating 75 to 80 percent of the major programs include SI courses within their program.

- There are a number of classes that do not have the SI designation, but could count within the major as fulfilling the proposed requirement for courses with substantial emphasis on experimental, analytical, or statistical methods in required lower and upper division coursework within the major program of study leading to a BS degree. The language and intent of this proposal needs to be made clearer.

- A department could offer both a BA and BS degree, but the degrees would have to be fundamentally different and distinct from each other.

- Each department and each major will determine what courses are meaningful for the major. The program change would come from the department to the Curriculum Committee.

- Currently about 20% of our students seek BA degrees.

- One of the concerns of the subcommittee was to give back to departments some of the credit hours that they have lost, and make the major more meaningful.

- Questions for departments (1) If this proposal were to pass what departments would opt to eliminate the BS option? (2) Look at all program that now presently offer a BS degree and see how they will be affected by this proposal, and how many could fulfill the requirement without adding additional courses. (3) After departments look at BA and BS degrees currently offered some departments may find a group of majors that don’t fit either the BA or BS degree very well.

- Two options for the BA degree, Majors leading to a BA degree will require (1) twelve semester-hours of foreign language, consistent with the current BA language requirement or (2) six semester-hours of foreign language with further coursework equaling six semester-hours in the language arts beyond the composition requirement in the general education core. Language arts coursework may include literature, creative writing, rhetoric, music composition, etc.

- The Foreign Language faculty have approved a proposal to change their lower division four-credit hour sequence to a three-credit hour sequence making the first year sequence six credit hours.

- Departments should look at national standards for their major.

- The subcommittee did not want to make the BS degree the default degree.

- This proposal may encourage more Weber State students to study a second language.

Curriculum

Clinical Laboratory Sciences - Program Change - Clinical Laboratory Sciences BS Degree; Course Proposals - CLS Simulated Laboratory I - CLS 4411, CLS Simulated Laboratory II - CLS 4412, Course Deletions - Working Laboratory Theory I - CLS 4401, Working Clinical Laboratory Theory II - CLS 4405, Applied Working Laboratory I - CLS 4442, Applied Working Laboratory II - CLS 4446

Geography - Course Proposal - The Science of Global Warming: Myths, Realities and Solutions - GEOG 1400; Gen Ed Physical Science Course Proposal - The Science of Global Warming: Myths, Realities and Solutions - GEOG 1400

Motion by the Curriculum Committee to approve the above curriculum from Clinical Laboratory Sciences and Geography as stated above.
Outcome: The motion passed unanimously.

Gen Ed Course Renewal - Life Science

Zoology - Human Biology - ZOOL LS 1020

Sociology & Anthropology - Biological Anthropology - ANTH LS/DV 1020

Microbiology - Elementary Public Health - MICRO LS 1153, Principles of Microbiology - MICRO LS 2054

Botany - Plant Biology - BTNY LS 1203, Plants in Human Affairs - BTNY LS 1303, Principles of Life Science - BTNY/MICRO/ZOOL LS/SI 1370, Environmental Appreciations - BTNY LS 1403

Motion by the Curriculum Committee to approve the gen ed life science course renewal for the above stated courses from Zoology, Sociology & Anthropology, Microbiology and Botany.
Outcome: The motion passed unanimously.

Zoology - Animal Biology - ZOOL LS 1010

Clarification on learning outcomes. After the Curriculum Committee reviewed the physical science gen ed renewal courses some changes were made to the forms so that the proposals would be more uniform, and easier for the non-science committee members to read. Some of the departments who were going to submit life science proposals were already working on their proposals before modifications were made to the forms. The learning outcomes for Animal Biology - Zool LS 1010 were addressed, but in a slightly different format.

Motion by the Curriculum Committee to approve the gen ed life science course renewal for Animal Biology - Zool LS 1010.
Outcome: The motion passed unanimously.

7. OTHER ITEMS

Survey on final exam days. The Faculty Senate chair will write up the results of the survey and get that information to the Faculty Senate.

Budget, Provost Vaughan - It appears that we will be taking four million dollars out of the academic colleges this year and the up coming academic year. Enrollment is up to just over 23,000 students. This has been a daunting task for the colleges to face. Two thirds of the Weber State budget is in Academic Affairs. The overall budget cut by the University is in excess of 12 million dollars with Academic Affairs taking about a third of the cut. About two million of the cut was handled through central funding. There has been a 1.6% decline in faculty positions. Program elimination is being discussed. Before a program is eliminated the Executive Committee would need to make a recommendation. Some preliminary revenue numbers will be given out in December. The revenue numbers will be update in February and then some decisions will be made.

Weber State received five commendations from the Northwest Accreditation Team: (1) Hospitality (2) Campus Appearance (3) University Community Moral, (4) Progress on Adjunct Faculty, (5) Progress on General Education.

ADJOURN

The meeting adjourned at 4:25 p.m.