RUTGERS UNIVERSITY SENATE
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
M I N U T E S
September 6, 2019

MEMBERS PRESENT:  Boikess, Borisovets, Dasari, Gillett , Gould, Hunter, Kane, Oleske, Oliver (Chair), Parsa, Thompson

MEMBERS EXCUSED:   Matto, Stopyra, Van Stine

ALSO ATTENDING:  R. Kaye (Faculty Representative to the Board of Governors), B. Lee (SVP for Academic Affairs), M. Mickelsen (Senate Executive Secretary), B. Paskhover (Faculty Representative to the Board of Trustees),  M. Spiegel (Faculty Representative to the Board of Trustees)

The regular meeting of the University Senate Executive Committee was held on Friday, September 6, 2019 at 12:00 p.m. in Room 202 at Cook Student Center, Cook Campus.

1.    Chair’s Report – Jon Oliver, Senate Chair

Senate and Executive Committee Chair Jon Oliver called the meeting to order at 12:07 p.m. His Chair’s Report included the following:

• He welcomed members in attendance and expressed his excitement about his new role as chair;
• He thanked Peter Gillett and Mary Mickelsen for their support during his transition from Vice Chair to Chair;
• He asked for approval of Peter Gillett as Senate Parliamentarian – approved unanimously;
• Gave a short update on the new Senate webiste;
• Chancellor Strom’s outreach regarding the possible merger of New Jersey Medical School and Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and the Senate’s future role in that process;
• Recognized James Oleske’s remarkable contribution to Rutgers, NJMS, and the children of Newark in light of his retirement from effective November 1st, however this was his last Executive Committee meeting.

2.    Secretary’s Report – Mary Mickelsen, Executive Secretary of the Senate

• Agenda: The meeting agenda was approved
• Minutes: The Minutes of June 7, 2019 Senate Executive Committee Meeting were approved as distributed by the Executive Secretary.
• Communications:
  • President Barchi’s Response to the Senate’s report and recommendations on Charge S-1803 on A Policy Relating to Student Posting of Faculty-Owned Documents.
  • It was noted that the following polices have been updated/added in the University Policy Library:
    • University Policy 60.1.11: Alcohol and Other Drugs Policy
    • University Policy 60.3.10: Vacation for Staff Members (Excludes FOP Units)
  • The following changes to the 2019-2020 Senate and Executive Committee Meeting Schedule were noted
    • “Home” Executive Committee meetings will be held at the Cook Student Center as well as the Busch Student Center – see linked schedule for changes
    • The RBHS-Newark “Away” Executive Committee meeting will be held on December 6 at the Stanley Bergen Building
    • Chancellor Brian Strom will deliver the RBHS Campus Report at the January 24 Senate Meeting
    • Chancellor Christopher Molloy will deliver the New Brunswick Campus Report at the December 13 Senate Meeting
  • Follow-Up on the proposed charge to Evaluate University Policy 60.3.5 – Sick Time and Sick Leave and determine if it mirrors/reflects current state law and make appropriate recommendations, submitted by Brian Everett, Camden Staff Senator, at the June 7, 2019 EC meeting.
    • UHR and OGC is currently working with State officials on possible changes to the New Jersey Earned Sick Leave Law. Senior Vice President for University Human Resources Vivian Fernandez anticipates being able to speak to the EC at the October meeting along with a representative from OGC to answer any questions.

3.    Parliamentarian Report – Peter Gillett, Senate Parliamentarian

Gillett gave a brief overview of the new Senate voting procedure in which clickers will be utilized effective at the September 20 meeting. There was much discussion surrounding the implementation. It was decided the clickers will be used in conjuction with raising hands for voting.

4.    Administrative Report – Barbara Lee, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs

Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Barbara Lee presented an administrative report, which included comments on:

• The Presidental Search Committee has been formed with the following Town Hall Meetings scheduled:
  • Paul Robeson Center, Essex Room, Newark Campus – September 11
  • New Brunswick, Location TBA – September 12
  • Camden, Location TBA – October 2
• Update on the Class of 2023
  • First year and transfer student enrollment was over 13,000
  • Record number of applications at 45, 200
  • 65% minority of first year students
  • Average SAT scores in New Brunswick and RBHS was 1318
• 3 new building have been opened
  • New Brunswick Performing Arts Center
  • RWJ Barnabas Health Athletic Performance Center
  • Honors Living and Learning Center
• $250M in Fundraising through the Rutgers Foundation
• New grant from NJ state to support the VOCA grant to help victim services on all 4 campuses
• Policy currently being drafted regarding consensual relationships between faculty and students to be sent to the Senate for consideration within the next few weeks
• University Librarian Review Committee is moving forward

Senior Vice President Barbara Lee then responded to questions on the above topics and the following issues:

• the transition from Sakai to Canvas;
• the numbers of international students entering the class of 2023;
• the selection process for the Presidental Search Committee and composition of the Presidental Candidates

5.    Standing Committees/Panels  

Appointment of the University Commencement Panel (UCP) – Peter Gillett, Chair of the UCP

The Executive Committee appointed the following senators to the UCP:

• Executive Secretary of the Senate (non-voting): Mary Mickelsen
• Vice Chair of the Senate (chairs the UCP): Peter Gillett
• Four Faculty Senators
  • Tenure-Track: Ann Gould (New Brunswick) and Gloria Bachman (RBHS)
  • Non-Tenure-Track: Joseph Markert (Newark)
  • Part-Time Lecturers: Jose Torres (Camden)
• One Staff Senator: Tynisha Coleman (RBHS)
• One Alumni Senator: Houshang Parsa
• Two Student Senators: Valentine Lamar (Newark) and Monsef Oukil (New Brunswick)

The Executive Secretary will issue a call for volunteers from the Senate for the Chancellor’s Commencement Committees.

Issues/Proposed Charges

Proposed Charge to Faculty and Personnel Affairs Committee (FPAC) on Senior Leadership Searches – Submitted by Jon Oliver

Proposed Charge:  Investigate the processes used by Big10 and AAU institutions to identify senior leaders and recommend best practices at Rutgers.

Background: The integration of UMDNJ and legislation that created RBHS in 2013, restricted the President of the University from also having the role as New Brunswick Chancellor and brought major changes to the senior leadership structure of the university. The Senate’s role in shared governance and its role advising the President might serve the Rutgers community well by providing input in the hiring process for Chancellors and possibly other senior leaders. School bylaws often provide for faculty, student, and staff input into search committees used to recommend new Deans, but our present policies do not appear to require similar arrangements for more senior leaders.

Oliver summarized the charge and its background. After much discussion the charge was amended to the following:

Investigate the processes, including those used by the Big 10 and AAU institutions, to identify senior leaders and recommend best practices at Rutgers. FPAC is asked to respond to the Executive Committee by February 2020.

Proposed Charge to Instruction, Curricula, and Advising Committee (ICAC) on Grade Inflation – Submitted by Karen Thompson

Proposed Charge:  Investigate the extent of grade inflation at Rutgers over the past 20 years. Determine what factors contributed to whatever grade inflation exists and make recommendations to rectify any improprieties.

Background: Senator Thompson referenced the following article as background: “The Fruits of Commodification” by Ed Burmila

Thompson summarized the charge and its background. After much discussion the charge was amended to the following:

Investigate the extent of grade inflation at Rutgers over the past 20 years. Determine what factors contributed to whatever grade inflation exists and make any apprpriate recommendations. ICAC is asked to respond to the Executive Committee by February 2020.

Issue regarding the possibility of White Labeling at Rutgers – Submitted by Karen Thompson

Senator Thompson sent the following article to Executive Secretary Mickelsen on July 16, suggesting the Senate may want to take a closer look at Rutgers practices around “White-Labeling”. Mickelsen discussed the issue with Senate Chair Jon Oliver, Vice Chair Peter Gillett and Sr. Vice President for Academic Affairs Barbara Lee. SVP Lee conferred with Rich Novak, Vice President for Continuing Studies and Distance Education, and after which replied with the following response:

Dear Mary, Thank you for contacting me about Karen’s concerns. I spoke with Rich Novak about this. As often happens, his alleged quote was mangled and taken out of context. But more importantly, Rutgers’ relationship with Trilogy, the company cited in the Inside HigherEd article, is only for a non-credit coding “boot camp’ that DOCS has run for the past five years. And there is no “white-labeling” at Rutgers, to my knowledge.

In developing the coding boot camp, Rich and his colleagues consulted with faculty in our School of Communication and Information, who reviewed the course content, suggested and made changes in the curriculum, and specified the qualifications of the individuals who teach the coding noncredit courses. Trilogy courses are NOT credit-baring courses and are NOT offered by any degree-granting unit at Rutgers. Furthermore, Harvard, Northwestern, and Georgia Tech are among 45 universities, including Rutgers, that participate in Trilogy coursework for noncredit courses. Faculty at these universities reviewed the curriculum and maintain oversight, meeting quarterly to ensure that the curriculum is appropriate for students learning coding (which involves creating apps for iOS and Android devices and coding websites).

Faculty who teach in the coding bootcamp are screened, hired, and evaluated by DOCs, just as adjunct faculty who teach non-credit courses are. A very large proportion of coding bootcamp graduates either land well-paying jobs or are promoted within a few months of completing the course.

It sounds to me as though the author of the Inside HigherEd article misunderstood Rich’s comment and conflated his “bootcamp” comment with a practice (white-labeling) that, to my knowledge, does not exist at Rutgers.

Thank you for alerting me to Karen’s concern, and please feel free to share my response with her. Sincerely, Barbara

The committee discussed the issue presented by Senator Thompson and concluded issuing the following charge to the Instruction Curricula and Advising Committee was appropriate.

Consider whether or not it would be appropriate for Rutgers to have a policy on white-labeling. ICAC is asked to respond to the Executive Committee by November 2019.

9.  Agenda for the September 20 Senate Meeting

• • Regular Senate Meeting with President Barchi’s “President’s Address”, followed by a question-and-answer period
  • RBHS Faculty Member of the Executive Committee
  • Newly Tenured Faculty Luncheon during the Faculty Caucus

10.  Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 2:47 p.m.

Minutes written and submitted by,

Mary Mickelsen
Executive Secretary of the University Senate