RUTGERS UNIVERSITY SENATE
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
MINUTES
September 5, 2025 

MEMBERS PRESENT: Foster (Chair), Andrews, Boxer, Davis, Gordy, Haley, Kiss, Pierce, Purcell, Salas-de la Cruz, Schwartz

ALSO ATTENDING: K. Anderson (ITC Committee Chair), M. Dock (ABIDE Committee Chair) T. Cooper (University Senate Executive Secretary), C. Morales (FPAC Committee Chair), R. Quincy (ABIDE Committee Chair), S. Searcy (BOG Student Representative), T. Shinbrot (BFC Committee Chair)

The regular meeting of the University Senate Executive Committee was held on Friday, September 5, 2025 at 12:00 p.m. remotely via Zoom.

Chair’s Report– Lucille Foster, Senate Chair

Chair Foster called the September 5, 2025 Senate Executive Committee Meeting to order at 12:06 p. m.

Secretary’s Report– Taryn Cooper, Senate Executive Secretary

• The September 5, 2025 Executive Committee Agenda was approved.
• The June 6, 2025 Senate Executive Committee Minutes were approved.
• There were two policy updates:
  • 60.8.1 Employment Equal Opportunity- updated on an Interim Policy basis
  • 70.1.5. Rutgers University Digital Accessibility Policy– updated on an Interim Policy basis
• Communications announced:
  • New Senator Orientation: Fri. Sept. 13 from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
  • Senate Socials: To be determined
  • Senate Merchandise/Logo: To be determined
  • A Special Election will be held for Vice Chair during Senate Sept. 19 meeting
  • Website Roster Updates

Appointment of University Senate Parliamentarian

Vicki Hewitt was nominated by Chair Foster and approved to serve as Parliamentarian by the Executive Committee. Jon Oliver was also approved to serve if Vicki is unable to do so.

School of General and Professional Studies-Senator Haley’s Memo, NOI Proposal, Chancellor Conway’s Report , Chancellor Conway’s Memo to EC

An ad hoc committee will be convened to participate in discussion with the EVPAA, NBFC, and Provost of New Brunswick regarding the proposal. Chair Foster will draft and send an introductory letter outlining the Senate’s regulatory responsibilities to the EVPAA and Newark Chancellor.

EC Agendas- Process

The Executive Secretary reviewed the process for previous and current agenda determination. The Executive Committee decided to continue inviting the Chancellors in advance for the EC meetings. The Executive Secretary will update the email language when asking for upcoming agenda items.

Report from MADC Taskforce

Senator Haley reported that the Taskforce is working on developing a defense compact with peer institutions across New Jersey. Members of the Taskforce have met with President Tate and are in the process of scheduling a second meeting. The MADC website is also being developed and will be finished soon.

Due to time limitations and the presence of committee chairs, Chair Foster proposed without objection to move the welcoming of standing committee chairs up in the agenda above conversation on the Senate operational budget.

2025-2026 Committee Chair Positions

ABIDE: Malica Dock and Ronald Quincy
ASRAC: Robert Schwartz
BFC: Troy Shinbrot
FPAC: Christine Morales
ICAC: Natalie Borisovets
ITC: Katie Anderson and Tim Knievel
RGPEC: Enrique Curchitser and Monica Mazurek
SAC: Rachel Maeng Brown and Gary Santos Mendoza
USGC: Wendy Purcell

Senate Office Operational Budget

Chair Foster met with past Chair Jon Oliver, past Executive Secretary Vicki Hewitt, and Administrative Assistant Morgan Smith to discuss the operational budget. Chair Foster explained that the Senate does not have a budget, and the Senate operational budget is overseen by the Executive Secretary. Senator Boxer motioned for the Senate operational budget funds to be used for Senator Haley’s attendance to the BTAA Senate Leadership conference, which was seconded by Senator Schwartz and Senator Salas-de la Cruz. The Executive Secretary will have a meeting to discuss a budget for the Chair of the Senate to access after the operational needs of the office are met.

Standing Committees/Panels

Committee Report and Recommendations:

Ad Hoc Committee on Code of Conduct for Senate Virtual Meetings – Senator Katie Anderson, Libraries-Camden

Draft of Senate Code of Conduct for Senate Virtual Meetings

Charge: At the February 21, 2025 Senate meeting, the Senate adopted a recommendation that the Senate develop a code of conduct for University Senate virtual meetings. This ad hoc committee is charged with implementing that recommendation.

Outcome: The Executive Committee docketed this report for the September 19 Senate agenda.

Proposed Charge:

Cross-campus equity in student, faculty, and staff experiences, support, and recognition –Senator Paul Boxer, Faculty-Newark

Charge: (Note: This charge ideally will lead to the formation of an ad-hoc committee.) The goal of this charge is to commission an investigation into whether and how Rutgers has been ensuring equitable experiences across campuses — whether students are afforded equitable experiences inside and outside classrooms, whether staff are provided with equitable support and opportunities for advancement, and whether faculty have access to equitable resources for the scholarly enterprises of teaching and research. This investigation should review address all areas of campus life, including but not limited to on-campus living and dining options, to cultural and community events on campus, to library and computing resources, to faculty start-up and other internal research funding.

Rationale: Rutgers is a large, comprehensive university comprised of four Chancellor-led units (CLU) across three geographical regions. Although the CLUs differ in size and scope, all co-exist under the banner of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, and all share the mission of promoting higher education with a commitment to scholarly excellence. Students enroll in Camden, New Brunswick, and Newark with the expectation that they will receive the best educational experiences and services possible. Staff and faculty take jobs in Camden, New Brunswick, and Newark with the expectation that they will receive the best support possible with the capacity to be recognized for their efforts in promoting the university’s mission. Rutgers is one university – and thus it is critical that Rutgers ensure equity across those three very different campuses.

Outcome: The Executive Committee approved the formation of an ad hoc committee to investigate the charge with a deadline of September 2026. The Executive Secretary will request nominations from each campus’s faculty counsels and current sitting Senators.

Proposed Charge:

Guidance for Promotions to Tenure During Uncertain Conditions of Federal Funding- Senator Adam Kustka, Faculty- Newark and Senator Paul Boxer, Faculty-Newark

Charge: Consider developing guidance for promotion and tenure committees within schools and colleges related to supporting faculty in disciplines where federal funding is traditionally expected during the course of the pre-tenure period as a key marker for advancement.  Chairs, deans, and others involved in supporting pre-tenure faculty on their pathway to tenure can make use of this guidance when advising junior faculty in those disciplines on ways to demonstrate and sustain scholarly excellence in the absence of federal funding for research and related activities.

Rationale: Politically motivated changes to the level and categories of federal funding available to support scholarly activities across multiple disciplines, including the health, natural, and social sciences as well as the arts and humanities represent a new challenge to university researchers. At Rutgers, in disciplines where federal funding typically has supported scholarly activities, tenure-line assistant professors have been expected to secure or show significant progress toward securing federal funding for their own independent work. Yet we are now facing a time of significant scarcity and uncertainty regarding the availability of such funding across most disciplines and the federal grant criterion for tenure may not be tenable at this time.

Outcome:  The Faculty and Personnel Affairs Committee was issued this charge with a deadline of September 2026.

Proposed Charge:

Student Email Addresses and Email Aliases – Senator Brian Everett, Staff-Camden

Charge: Examine the number or variety of email addresses assigned to individual students upon their admission to Rutgers University. Determine if each email address type (NetID@rutgers.edu, NetID@scarletmail.rutgers.edu, FirstName.LastName@rutgers.edu, NetID@CampusUnit.rutgers.edu ) for students without further action needing to be taken by students, and, determine if various Rutgers platforms, such as Navigate, list student contact emails with email addresses that will be received by a student’s main email profile. Determine if these discrepancies are due to aligned platforms, or, the Rutgers Personal Contact Information’s Directory Listing.

Rationale: Academic advisors have noticed that student emails listed in Navigate, the main student success platform, lists some student emails in the following format: NetID@rutgers.edu Academic advisors have found that emails sent to students following that format, instead of NetID@scarletmail.rutgers.edu, go unanswered. Previous discussions in the Senate in recent years have focused on student emails given the number of aliases students receive and whether or not they are all known by students, and if they’re all programmed to be forwarded to a main account that is actually used. Some of the known email address formats are: NetID@rutgers.edu NetID@scarletmail.rutgers.edu NetID@ChancellorUnit.rutgers.edu FirstName.LastName@rutgers.edu FirstName.LastName@ChancellorUnit.Rutgers.edu As a further example, I looked up myself in the Rutgers Directory, and it lists my email as being be99@camden.rutgers.edu, but in Outlook, I use brian.everett@rutgers.edu and sometimes I see that students email both versions of my email address to make sure I received their message.

Outcome: The Student Affairs Committee was issued this charge with a deadline of September 2026. Chair Foster will consult with Admissions to get more information.

Proposed Charge:

The Executive Committee substituted the original proposal with the following:

Enhanced Legal Support for International Students, Faculty, Staff, and Scholars – Senator Francisco Quevedo, Faculty-Newark/NB

Charge: All international support offices at Rutgers University face significant challenges in managing the complex and evolving demands of immigration matters. Seek to explore pathways to support the International Students and Scholars Offices and Rutgers Global to be better resourced in Immigration matters, perhaps in the form of an in-house attorney, by networking with Rutgers Immigration Community Assistance Project (RICAP), and/or through additional specialized training. Evolving demands can sometimes lead to misinterpretation which can cause disruption to our international faculty, staff, and students. Examine the extent in which faculty, staff, and students have equitable access to immigration resources across all Rutgers campuses.

Rationale: Recent cases indicate that the ISSO, OISS, OIS, and Rutgers Global may require enhanced legal resources to handle immigration matters.

Outcome: The Access, Belonging, Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity Committee was issued the amended charge with a deadline of September 2026.

Proposed Charge:

First Day Course Material – Senator Francisco Quevedo, Faculty-Newark/NB

Charge: Under this title, First Day Course Material, introductory classes (i.e., Intro to Marketing) present students with a rather compulsory charge ($109 for Intro to Marketing) without allowing them or the professor to choose more accessible alternatives. I would beg the Committee to look into this practice to see if it is widespread, and to consider if it is denying them the right to choose, and to act accordingly.

Rationale: Students should have the right to choose, and not be charged in a compulsory fashion, considering that they can find second-hand textbooks or other alternatives. The students’ complaints must be considered.

Outcome: The Executive Committee declined to issue this charge; the proposer will be alerted of charge S-2401-1: Automatic Textbook Billing under the Student Affairs Committee which addresses the issue.

Old Business

None

New Business

None

Adjournment

The Executive Committee adjourned at 2:51 p.m.

Minutes prepared by: Taryn Cooper, Executive Secretary of the University Senate