The UAF Faculty Senate passed the following at its Meeting #142 on March 5, 2007
MOTION:
=======The UAF Faculty Senate moves to amend the minimum grade requirement for graduate students as follows:
[[ ]] - Deletion
CAPS - AdditionUAF Catalog, 2006-2007, Page 176:
How to Earn a Graduate Degree
General University Requirements
• Grades and Grade Point Average (GPA)
You must have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 (B) in the courses identified on your Advancement to Candidacy form to remain in good standing and in order to graduate. You must earn a[[n A or B grade]] (3.0) OR BETTER GRADE (no P grades) in 400-level courses; a (2.0) C grade will be accepted in 600-level courses for the purposes of satisfying degree requirements, provided you remain in good standing.
• Deficiencies
Your advisory committee may require that you remedy certain deficiencies in your program. Your committee will determine early in the program both how to remedy the deficiencies and the minimum level of performance required of you. Graded undergraduate courses taken to remedy a deficiency must receive a grade of (3.0) B or better. Deficiency courses are not listed on the Advancement to Candidacy form.
UAF Catalog, 2006-2007, Page 178:
Advancement to Candidacy
Advancement to candidacy formally establishes your specific degree requirements and should be done as soon as possible after qualifying. At the latest, you should submit your application for advancement to candidacy one semester before you are awarded your degree. If you are completing your programs primarily during the summer sessions, you should submit your application the summer session before you are awarded your degree.
The finalized Graduate Study Plan should be the basis for completing the Advancement to Candidacy form. The GPA for all courses listed on the Advancement to Candidacy form must be ≥3.0, and no graduate courses with grades below (2.0) C, or undergraduate courses with grades below (3.0) B, can be used.
Admission to graduate study does not imply advancement to candidacy for a degree. The graduate advisory committee has the option of refusing to recommend a student to candidacy.
EFFECTIVE: Fall 2007
RATIONALE: These changes clarify that the minimum requirement is a 3.0 B grade rather than a B- for all 400 level courses and a C (2.0) grade rather than a C- for all 600-level courses. Student must still maintain a 3.0 overall GPA for the Advancement to Candidacy. Individual departments may choose to establish different criteria or to petition the requirements for a particular student
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The UAF Faculty Senate passed the following at its Meeting #142 on March 5, 2007:
MOTION:
=======The UAF Faculty Senate moves to endorse the “Report of the Developmental Education Implementation Task Force to the Vice-Chancellor for Rural, Community and Native Education on Recommendations for Improving Developmental Education at UAF.”
EFFECTIVE: Immediately
RATIONALE: The task force report, besides providing a historical overview of actions to highlight and improve developmental education delivery at UAF, signals that the Department of Developmental Education is charged with spearheading immediate and long-term activities and requires appropriate funding levels to accomplish those activities. The report’s eight (8) recommendations sketch what the Department of Developmental Education needs to address for its own hiring and internal review in order to achieve data-gathering goals, to implement effective pedagogy, to integrate student support services, and to interface curricula so that departments work together for student success.
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The UAF Faculty Senate passed the following at its Meeting #142 on March 5, 2007
MOTION:
=======The UAF Faculty Senate moves to amend the Grade Error Policy (2006-2007 UAF Catalog, page 75) to add clarification that this in not an appeal of an academic decision.
[[ ]] - Deletion
CAPS - AdditionGrade Error Policy
A grade, other than an incomplete or deferred, submitted by your instructor after a course is completed, is your final grade and becomes part of your permanent academic record. Your grade will not be changed unless your instructor made a legitimate error in calculating the grade. If you believe an error has occurred contact your instructor. Grading errors must be corrected within 30 class days after the beginning of the next regular semester, and must be approved by the instructor's department head and dean. THIS IS NOT AN APPEAL OF AN ACADEMIC DECISION.
EFFECTIVE: Immediately
RATIONALE: Wording that clarifies that this is not an appeal of an academic decision is needed.
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The UAF Faculty Senate passed the following at its Meeting #142 on March 5, 2007
MOTION:
=======The UAF Faculty Senate moves to amend the Transfer credit policies, stated on page 32 of the 2006-2007 UAF Catalog, as follows:
[[ ]] = Deletion
CAPS = AdditionTransferring Credits
4. Any student who has completed a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution will be considered to have completed the equivalent of the baccalaureate core AND THE ASSOCIATE OF ARTS CORE when officially accepted to a baccalaureate degree program OR ASSOCIATE OF ARTS PROGRAM at UAF. FURTHER, THOSE STUDENTS WILL ALSO BE CONSIDERED TO HAVE COMPLETED THE EQUIVALENT OF THE COMMUNICATION, COMPUTATION AND HUMAN RELATIONS REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ASSOCIATE OF APPLIED SCIENCE AND THE CERTIFICATE.
EFFECTIVE: Immediately
RATIONALE: The catalog already states that a student transferring in with a Bachelor’s degree has met core requirements for the Baccalaureate. Since the core (for AA) or the communications, computations and human relations (AAS and Certificate) requirement are less than the core for the Baccalaureate Degree, it is logical to state that those requirements have also been met. This motion will help alleviate the large number of petition received for these situations.
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The UAF Faculty Senate passed the following at its Meeting #142 on March 5, 2007
MOTION REFERRED BACK TO COMMITTEE:
=====================================The UAF Faculty Senate moves to approve a policy on Retention of Course Records.
Retention of Course Records
The classroom records pertaining to course work of any student that have not been returned to the student must be retained by the instructor for a period of one full semester (excluding summer session) after the semester in which the course was completed. These records may include but are not limited to: exams and answer sheets, homework, course papers, term papers, essays, laboratory reports, and other assignments submitted by the student in order to fulfill the requirement of the particular course.
Classroom records of any instructor for the purpose of evaluation of grade must also be retained for a period of at least one full semester (excluding summer session) following the semester in which the course was competed. These records may include but are not limited to: syllabus, class attendance, complete list of student’s performance in all relevant course work, paper work related to the determination of a grade, and a record of final grades.
In case of any dispute or grievance process initiated by the student all the above records must be retained until the end of the process. Any records or copies of records that are required for program review, accreditation purposes, or any other audit as mandated by the university may be retained for a period as deemed required by the process.
After the retention period, all records may be destroyed or properly discarded.
EFFECTIVE: Fall 2007
RATIONALE: The University does not have any policies or regulations regarding the retention of course materials, which has led to confusion among the faculty and has resulted in different retention practices and polices across the disciplines. This proposed motion will help alleviate the confusion and provide a uniform retention policy across all disciplines. The one-semester guideline is what was suggested by UA General Counsel as a reasonable policy to accommodate grade appeals. This policy should be added to the faculty handbook.
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The UAF Faculty Senate passed the following at its Meeting #142 on March 5, 2007
RESOLUTION
ON
April 3rd Advisory Vote
WHEREAS, The Constitution of Alaska states that “all persons are equal and entitled to equal rights, opportunities, and protection under the law” (Article 1, Section 1); and
WHEREAS, discrimination against faculty and staff on the basis of marital status and other statuses is expressly prohibited by the University of Alaska Board of Regents Statement of Non-discrimination; and
Whereas, the UAF Faculty Senate affirms the importance of complying with university non-discrimination policies as well as upholding our State’s Constitution; and
Whereas, the voters of Alaska on April 3, 2007, will decide whether to place a proposed Constitutional Amendment on the ballot in 2008 that would “prohibit the state, or a municipality or other subdivision of the state, from providing employment benefits to same-sex partners of public employees and to same-sex partners of public employee retirees”; and
WHEREAS, the Constitutional Amendment, if passed would render the Constitution internally inconsistent, simultaneously asserting and denying equal rights, opportunities and protection under the law; and
WHEREAS, the Constitutional Amendment, if passed, would compel the university to deny financially interdependent partners (FIPs) health insurance benefits, tuition waivers, faculty housing, library cards, and other opportunities and benefits currently offered other similarly situated persons under university policy; and
WHEREAS, the aforementioned consequences would prohibit the university from complying with its own policies of non-discrimination as well as require the university to violate both the spirit and the letter of the Alaska Constitution as it was written; and
WHEREAS, the Faculty Senateaffirms thatproviding insurance and other benefits to FIPs is a valuable way to recruit and retain excellent faculty and staff; now
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, That the UAF Faculty Senate is opposed to the April 3rd Advisory Vote and to any proposed Constitutional Amendment that would abridge the rights of faculty and staff; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the UAF Faculty Senate commends the University of Alaska statewide administration for its ongoing support of financially interdependent partner (FIPs) benefits.
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The UAF Faculty Senate passed the following at its Meeting #142 on March 5, 2007
MOTION:
=======The UAF Faculty Senate moves to amend the Governance Coordinating Committee (GCC) Procedures to add the Joint Committee on Student Success as a Standing Committee. The GCC Procedures shall be amended as indicated below.
EFFECTIVE: Immediately
RATIONALE: The Governance Coordinating Committee passed a resolution calling for a Joint Committee on Student Success. Committee members agreed that a collaborative, shared leadership among administrators, students, faculty, and staff is a key component to creating campus environments that foster student success. The GCC Procedures call for amendments to be approved by a two-thirds vote from each of the three governance bodies: ASUAF, Faculty Senate, and Staff Council.
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Deletions - [[ ]]
Additions - CAPS
UAF GOVERNANCE COORDINATING COMMITTEE
PROCEDURES
ARTICLE V Committees
Sect. 1 The standing committees of the UAF Governance Coordinating Committee shall include:
JOINT COMMITTEE ON STUDENT SUCCESS
Sect. 2 A. Standing committees shall have at least one representative from each of the governance constituencies, exception will be made when agreed upon by all constituencies.
B. Terms of all committee members will be one year for students and two years for faculty and staff.
C. Committee chairs will be elected from and by the respective committees.
D. Committee chairs shall forward committee business to the UAF Governance Coordinating Committee for disposition, except when limited by University of Alaska regulations.
E. Policy items from the standing committees must be forwarded to the individual governance bodies for action.
F. In addition to the committees' specific charges, the primary responsibility of the committees are formulation and oversight of university-wide policies under the purview of each committee.
G. Committees will meet as needed during the academic year to fulfill their duties.
H. The chairs of the standing committees will report recommendations at the [[monthly]] UAF Governance Coordinating Committee meetings.
Sect. 3 Standing Committees Charges
A. JOINT COMMITTEE ON STUDENT SUCCESS
THE CHARGE OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE ON STUDENT SUCCESS SHALL BE TO:
1. CREATE A CAMPUS ENVIRONMENT THAT FOSTERS STUDENT SUCCESS.
2. WORK COLLABORATIVELY TO RECOMMEND STUDENT-FRIENDLY POLICIES, PRACTICES AND COMPLEMENTARY PROGRAMS THAT PROMOTE AND ENHANCE STUDENT SUCCESS AT UAF.
3. EX-OFFICIO MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE SHALL INCLUDE A REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE CHANCELLOR'S CABINET AND THE PROVOST COUNCIL.
Sect. 4 Ad Hoc Committees may be established as demand warrants.
Sect. 5 The Governance Coordinating Committee will receive reports from other committees outside its control who are also concerned with campus issues. Examples include: police advisory board, technology board, one-card committee, and any other committee deemed relevant to faculty, staff, and students.
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The UAF Faculty Senate passed the following at its Meeting #142 on March 5, 2007
RESOLUTION TO NAME THE NATURAL SCIENCES FACILITY
THE
PAUL B. Reichardt BuILDING
WHEREAS, Paul Reichardt has served UAF in many roles for 35 years in a manner deserving of the University of Alaska’s greatest admiration and respect; and
Whereas, Paul Reichardt has served as Professor of Chemistry from 1972-1990; and
Whereas, Paul Reichardt has served as Dean of the College of Natural Science from 1990-1998; and
Whereas, Paul Reichardt was instrumental in planning the building of the Natural Sciences Facility and getting the funding from the State Legislature necessary for the furnishing of the Natural Sciences Facility; and
Whereas, Paul Reichardt served as Director of the Museum, 1993, and was very supportive of the UA Museum of the North’s expansion project and the fund raising campaign; and
Whereas, Paul Reichardt has served as Interim Provost, 1993, and from 1998 to present as Provost demonstrating a commitment to graduate and undergraduate education; and
WHEREAS, Paul Reichardt helped develop UAF 2005 and produced UAF’s Academic Development Plan that resulted in useful and practical guidelines for a variety of endeavors helping establish a basis by which decisions about programs, budget and space assignments are made and helps us to obtain state funding; and
WHEREAS, Paul Reichardt, while Provost, led significant UAF efforts resulting in 2006 institutional reaffirmation of accreditation with no subsequent reports, a relatively uncommon event among institutions of higher education; and
WHEREAS, Paul Reichardt has served on various Statewide Committees, and other university committees representing the interests of UAF faculty to the administration of UAF and statewide; and
Whereas, Paul Reichardt has established the Academic Leadership Institute where faculty, staff and administrators spend time studying and talking about academic leadership; and
Whereas, Paul Reichardt hasbeen one of UAF’s most consistent and significant donors, donating $139,711.10 since 1974; and
WHEREAS, the UAF Faculty Senate wishes to acknowledge the outstanding service rendered to the faculty and the University by the work of Paul Reichardt as he concludes his term as Provost, now
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, That the UAF Faculty Senate respectfully requests that UAF’s Natural Science Facility be named for Paul B. Reichardt as an acknowledgement of his exemplary service and philanthropy to the university.
ⓒ UA