UNL ACADEMIC SENATE MEETING MINUTES
Clifford Hardin Nebraska Center, East Campus
April 30, 1996
Presidents H. Douglas Jose and Peter Bleed Presiding
1.0 Call to Order
* President Jose called the meeting to order at 2:37 pm.2.0 Announcements
2.1 President Jose welcomed the new senate representatives and acknowledged committee chairs' service.3.0 Recognition of Executive Committee Officers and Retiring Members
* President Jose presented plaques of appreciation to officers Rusty White (resigned President Elect), Peter Bleed (President Elect), Fred Choobineh (Past President) and Phyllis Japp (Secretary). Jose also presented plaques to retiring members Joseph Luther, Rebecca Bernthal, and James Ford (ex-officio).4.0 Election of President Elect
* President Jose opened the floor for additional nominees. None given, the nomination was closed. With only one nominee, James Ford, English, was declared 1996-97 President Elect of the Academic Senate without balloting.5.0 Senior Vice Chancellor Leitzel
5.1 Senior Vice Chancellor Leitzel discussed the proposed three percent salary increase for faculty and staff on the UNL campus. UNK and UNO staff will also receive three percent; however, due to previous bargaining commitments, the faculty on both these campuses will receive four percent. Leitzel explained that the additional dollars needed for this one percent will come out of individual campus budgets and programs. The salary increase was presented at the April Board of Regents meeting and will be acted on during their next meeting scheduled for June 1.5.2 Leitzel listed the first seven priority projects for the university over the next fiscal year: 1) recruitment and retention of high ability students; 2) expansion of engineering program in Omaha and statewide; 3) distance learning in the state, including the proposed virtual university; 4) technology transfer and small business initiatives; 5) establishment of programs of excellence in the area of plants sciences; 6) deferred maintenance; and 7) scholarship access for financial need students. Discussion. Wise, Law College, inquired about a perceived pattern of salary differences between campuses. Leitzel said her understanding is that there were only a "few good years" at UNL, but other campuses did not receive double-digit increases during this same time period. Choobineh, Engineering, stated an exception was when the UNK campus came into the university system and received a substantial increase. President Elect Bleed said that the Faculty Salary Advisory Committee report drew attention to the need for increased benefits compared with UNL's peer institutions. Bleed also stated that the salaries for UNL have not been set in Lincoln since those "good years." Collective bargaining at UNO and UNK have driven the salary process. Vice Chancellor Leitzel agreed with this assessment.
5.3 Senior Vice Chancellor Leitzel reflected on her tenure at UNL and felt progress had been made during this time. Most notable were the areas of general education, expansion of the Honors Program, a greater infusion of technology in teaching and learning, and enhancement of outreach and research.
6.0 Approval of 4/2/96 minutes
* Corzine, Sociology, moved for approval of the 4/2/96 minutes. Seconded by Kennedy, Marketing. Minutes approved.7.0 Election of Executive Committee Members
7.1 President Jose turned the meeting over to President Elect Bleed. Bleed presented Jose with a plaque honoring his leadership during the 1995-96 academic year.7.2 President Bleed opened the floor for additional nominees for the office of Academic Senate Secretary. None given, the nomination was closed. Julie Albrecht, Nutritional Science and Dietetics, presented her statement of purpose. Bleed declared Albrecht the Secretary for academic year 1996-97 as no other nominations were presented for this officer position.
7.3 President Bleed opened the floor for additional nominees for three member seats on the Executive Committee. None given, the nomination was closed. Four nominees: John Bender, News & Editorials; Sharon Baum Kuska, Architecture; Gail Latta, Libraries; and Scott Swenseth, Management presented their statements of purpose. Kuska and Latta were elected to serve three year terms on the Executive Committee. Gary Zoubek, absent, who ran unopposed for the Extension Educator seat, was re-elected for a second term as an Executive Committee member.
8.0 Election of Committee on Committees Members
* President Bleed opened the floor for additional nominees. None given, nominations were closed. W. Max Kirk, Construction Management; Gargi Roysircar-Sodowsky, Educational Psychology; and Barbara Trout, Textiles, Clothing and Design, presented their statements of purpose. Kirk and Trout were elected to serve three-year terms on the Committee on Committees.9.0 Harassment and Discrimination Policy Document
* President Bleed declared an emergency motion to endorse the Harassment and Discrimination Policy document. Chouinard, Mathematics and Statistics, moved to override the emergency declaration. Pederson, Conservation and Survey Division, seconded but later withdrew due to a misunderstanding about the motion. Humes, Political Science, seconded. McShane, English, pressed for endorsement stating that the process had already dragged out for over ten years. Roysircar-Sodowsky and Zorn, CBA, also supported endorsing the document. A show of hands (14-53) was not enough to override the emergency status. Chouinard's motion failed. A voice vote approved endorsement of the document.10.0 Committee Reports
10.1 Executive Committee. Japp, past Academic Senate Secretary, presented the report for comment. The report was accepted.10.2 Faculty Salary Advisory. President Bleed, Chair of the Faculty Salary Advisory Committee, discussed salary recommendations put forth to Chancellor Moeser by this committee. Jensen, Psychology, stated his concern about UNL receiving a salary increase which was one percent less than the other campuses. Jensen questioned why tuition was not raised to accommodate the salary shortfall. Bleed stated that his committee is not involved with the issue of tuition. 10.3 Honors Convocation. Petr, CBA, was present for any questions from the floor and thanked committee members for their service, especially Karen Underwood for coordinating the Honors Convocation held in April.
