RUTGERS, THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY
UNIVERSITY SENATE

MINUTES: Regular Meeting of the University Senate

DATE: January 23, 2026

TIME AND PLACE: 1:10 p.m., Remote via Zoom

PRESENT: Alam, K. Anderson, C. Anderson, Andrews, Apel, Ardeshna, Asch, Doug Baker, Barbarello Andrews, Bhuyan, Boison, Borie-Holtz, Borisovets, Boxer, Bridgeman, Brown, Carney-Waterton, Carter, Chintala, Clarke, Collick, Cooper, Crooks, Curchitser, Dane, Dastjerdi, DeMatteo, Dixit, Dock, Ebert, Economou, Emmons, Everett, Everts, Fang, Fatahzadeh, Fenker, Fine, Flynn, Fortuna, Foster, Galego, Giraud, Gittelman, Gong, Gordy, Gower, Grachan, Graham, Granadeiro, Greenbaum, Guo, Gurbuzbalaban, Gursoy, Haberl, Haley, Haviland, Hecht-Colsoy, Hennessy, Horan, Householder, Hussain, Ivasyuk, Kaback, Keates, Kettle, Khan, Kiss, Knievel, Kustka, LaMorte, Ladell, Limata, Luciano, Lutz, Maeng Brown, Maliga, Markowitz, Mazurek, McCarthy, McKeever, Morales, C. Morton, P. Morton, Ntiwunka-Ifeanyi, O’Connor, Oberle, Oluwadare, Parikh, Paris, Parna, S. Patel, Pentecost, Pichugin, Pierce, Pintar, Pontes, Purcell, Quevado, Quincy, Rabinowitz, Ramachandran, Ramirez Polo, Reynolds, Robles, Rodriguez, Rossman-Murphy, Russ, Saleh, Saltzman, Samavat, Schafer, Schwartz, Scott, Sergel, Shah, Shaikh, Shinbrot, Salman Sirajee, Sloan-Power, Smith, Spiero, Stimson, Suh, Szatrowski, Tirino, Torres, Wagner, White, Wolfe

EXCUSED: Afanador, Bachmann, Campbell, Dinnall, Easley , Hayes, Jordan-McKinney, Mao, Pichardo, Ramenzoni, Salas-de la Cruz, Wirtenberg

ABSENT: Abdelfattah, Adya, Agyemang, F. Ahmed, B. Ahmed, Ameri, Amjad, Anderson Eloy, Anner, Arbuthnot, Askew, Barone, Behrmann, Berkowitz, Bond, Bredehoft, Brigham, Burkheimer, Chiricolo, Choron, Conway, Cortez, Cotter, Cuitiño, Davis, DiGiovanni, Feldman, Friedman, Georgiou, Godoy, Gould, Green-Mercado, Griffin, Halkitis, Hisham Hamawy, Hart, Hatefi, Hoffman, Hussain, Javanmard, Johnson, Kaye, Kayyal, Kelly, Ketankumar Patel, Khan, Khatal, Kilmurray, La Vigne, Lawson, Lee, Lehman, Lei, Leibowitz, Lemish, Lobman, Maerhofer, Maganti, Mahajan, Mattis, Mbadugha, McArdle, Moulton, Murphy, Murtha, Nickitas, O’Connell, Oliver, V. Patel, G. Patel, Pradhan, Reshamdalal, Robson, Rosa, Rosales, Rubin, Santos Mendoza, Sarath, Sayde, Schroth, Scott, Searcy, Shah, Shapiro, Smith-Jackson, Sorbat, Sow, Span, Spiegel, Sriram, Starkweather, Caterine Stubin, Syed, Takhistov, Tate, Tewfik, Tillis, Truschke, Van Ryzin, Vuppala, Wade, Weiss, Yang, Y. Zhang, H. Zhang, Zhou, Zwick, Özel

CALL TO ORDER, DETERMINATION OF A QUORUM, AND CHAIR’S REPORT– Lucille Foster, Chair

Chair Foster called the meeting to order at 1:10 p.m. Chair Foster announced that Senator Brian Householder is serving as Parliamentarian for the January 23, 2026 Senate meeting.

REPORT OF THE SECRETARY – Taryn Cooper, Senate Executive Secretary

• Agenda: The meeting agenda was approved, without objections.
• Minutes: The minutes of the December 12, 2025 Senate Meeting Minutes were approved as distributed by the Executive Secretary without objections.
• Administrative Response
  • There was a response emailed the same morning of the January 23, 2026 Senate meeting. The response is to the Resolution on the Alternative Route to Policy Changes, but it will be included in the Secretary’s report for next month.
• Communications
  • Provost Roundtable discussion is taking place during today’s meeting
  • Entitlement letters were sent to deans on Tuesday January 20, 2026. Senate Office staff are meeting with HR for staff/lecturer elections set for February 3, 2026
  • Spring 2026 Senate Social will be held February 27, 2026 12:00 – 2:00 p.m. at the Rutgers Club
  • Senator Brian Householder is announced as today’s Parliamentarian
  • Reminder to log in to the Senate website for attendance and voting access
  • Email Morgan Smith regarding attendance and committee activities

PROVOST’S ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION – Sandra Richtermeyer, Camden Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs; Jeffrey Robinson, Newark Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor; Jeffrey Carson, RBHS- New Brunswick Provost; Patricia Fitzgerald-Bocarsly, RBHS- Newark Provost; Jason Geary, New Brunswick Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs

COMMITTEE REPORTS/RESOLUTIONS: The report will be presented/summarized by the committee chair, then will be discussed, and acted upon by the Senate. Substantive amendments to these reports should be given to the Senate secretary in writing prior to or at the time the amendment is moved.

Committee Report and Recommendations

University Structure and Governance Committee – Wendy Purcell and Patricia Morton, Co-Chairs

Information only : Report on S-2329: Senate Role in the Policy on Policies Process and Procedures

USGC was charged as follows:

Study and provide recommendation to increase University Senate’s role on the Policy on Policies in the matters related academic affairs, educational and research matters.

USGC co-chair and Senate Vice Chair Wendy Purcell presented the report to the Senate for information only.

Committee Report and Recommendations

Instruction, Curricula, and Advising Committee and Student Affairs Committee – Natalie Borisovets (ICAC), Alexander Pichugin (ICAC), Gary Santos Mendoza (SAC), Rachael Maeng Brown (SAC),Co-Chairs

Report on S-2304-2 Common Hour Exams

ICAC and SAC were jointly charged as follows:

Review the experiences of students, faculty, and staff with common hour exams at Rutgers University. Make any appropriate recommendations.

Senator Lisa Rossman-Murphy presented the charge and recommendations to the Senate. The recommendations were adopted.

Committee Report and Recommendations

Rutgers MADC Taskforce Update Report – Paul Boxer, Anna Haley, Heather Pierce, Co-Chairs

Senator Anna Haley presented a verbal update to the Senate that included continuing planned meetings with President Tate, a recent meeting with General Counsel William Castner, and planning a Constitutional Convention Meeting for the universities associated with the NJ-MADC.

OLD BUSINESS

None.

NEW BUSINESS

None.

SENATE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE REPORT 

Senator and Vice Chair Wendy Purcell reported on the January 9, 2026 Executive Committee meeting.

REPORTS OF THE REPRESENTATIVES TO BOARDS OF GOVERNORS AND BOARD OF TRUSTEES 

Chair Foster reported that the Board of Governors had not met yet. Senator Heather Pierce reported a presentation was given during the Committee on Academic and Student Affairs meeting by the new Senior Vice President of Enrollment Management.

REPORTS OF CAMPUS FACULTY AND STUDENT LIAISONS 

Senator Christine Rohowsky-Kochan reported that the RBHS faculty counsel have not met since the last Senate meeting. Senator Zara Wilkinson reported that the Camden faculty counsel have not met since the last Senate meeting but Senator Wilkinson has been in touch with the Chancellor’s office about scheduling a spring town-hall style conversation with the Chancellor and Camden Faculty and Staff. Senator Anna Haley reported that the New Brunswick faculty counsel will be meeting next Friday and are working on several initiatives with the Chancellor and various offices. Senator Bram Spiero reported for Newark students.

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting adjourned at 3:15 p.m.

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

 

 

 

Committee Meetings

Academic Standards, Regulations & Admissions Committee Meeting

No location or time for this committee meeting

Budget & Finance Committee Meeting

No location or time for this committee meeting

Faculty Affairs & Personnel Committee Meeting

No location or time for this committee meeting

Information Technology Committee Meeting

No location or time for this committee meeting

Instruction, Curricula & Advising Committee Meeting

No location or time for this committee meeting

Research, Graduate & Professional Education Committee Meeting

No location or time for this committee meeting

Student Affairs Committee Meeting

No location or time for this committee meeting

University Structure & Governance Committee

No location or time for this committee meeting