Minutes for November 20, 2009 Meeting

Present:: Marianne Gaunt, Natalie Borisovets, Eileen Stec, Rhonda Marker, Myoung Wilson, Mark Winston, Vibiana Bowman Cvetkovic, Judy Gardner, Ryan Womack, Triveni Kuchi, Sara Harrington, Jim Niessen, Helen Hoffman, Tom Izbicki, Jackie Mardikian, Tom Glynn, Mei Ling Lo, Jeanne Boyle, Linda Langschied, Karen Hartman, Elizabeth Leister, Melissa De Fino, Ann Watkins, Gene Springs, Ron Becker, Stephanie Bartz, Li Sun, Kayo Denda, Rebecca Gardner, Mary Fetzer, Francoise Puniello, Caroline Caviness, Mary Beth Weber, Marty Kesselman, Kevin Mulcahy, Bob Sewell, Jane Sloan, Tao Yang, Wen-Hua Ren (remote), Bobby Tipton (remote)

The meeting was called to order at 9:30 a.m.

1. Adoption of the Agenda

The meeting came to order at 9:30 a.m. The agenda was approved.

2. Introduction of New Faculty and Guests

One new faculty member was introduced: Gene Springs, Business Librarian, Kilmer Library.

3. Approval of the Minutes - June 5, 2009

The minutes were approved.

4. Unfinished Business

There was no unfinished business to discuss.

5. New Business

By-laws changes (R. Marker)

Rhonda Marker thanked the Rules of Procedure Committee (ROP) for their hard work revising the faculty by-laws. ROP requested the faculty's approval on the following changes to the by-laws:

Various style changes
Various minor changes
Substantive changes
- Add description of duties of Parliamentarian. [III.4]
- Add "AUL for Digital Library Systems" to USC membership. [VI.2.b]
- Eliminate the two alternate members of the Committee of Review to meet the "not to exceed four members" mandated by University policies. [VII.3]
- Add "AUL for Planning and Organizational Research" to Planning and Coordinating Committee membership. [VII.4]
- Reduce the membership of the Rules of Procedure Committee from six to five. [VII.5]
- Add the Committee on Scholarly Communication (CSC) to the list of standing committees, with elected members' terms to be 2 years. [VII.6 & VII.7]

A question was asked about the voting rights of appointed members of committees to which Gaunt responded that both elected and appointed members have equal rights unless the bylaws specify otherwise. Discussion followed about the definition and role of the digital librarianship representative to the CSC, and how it fit into the committee's charge. Other questions arose about the charge and responsibilities of the committee. Sara Harrington made a motion to remove items 6a and 7 from the by-laws, reorder item 7 to reflect that removal, and vote on these items at a later time after further discussion. The motion was approved.

Kevin Mulcahy moved to vote on the changes to the by-laws, excepting items 6a and 7. The motion was seconded. Marker called the vote. It was approved.

Tom Izbicki made a motion to extend the CSC as an ad hoc committee until further discussion. The motion was seconded. Marianne Gaunt called the vote. It was approved.

Debrief on "Building the Faculty for the 21st Century" (M. Gaunt)

Gaunt and Mark Winston gave an overview of "Building the Faculty for the 21st Century," a university program on diversity held on November 5^th. A handbook was distributed, "Increasing Faculty Diversity: a Handbook for Deans, Department Chairs, and Members of Faculty Search Committees." Discussion focused on the potential for the libraries to participate in the university's initiative for clustered, or targeted, hiring and the role of the search committee in the process of recruiting a diverse faculty. This may require further discussion.

6. Report of the University Librarian (M. Gaunt)

No open forum was scheduled for the end of the faculty meeting. Due to the late invitation, Jim Neal from Columbia was unable to come. He will come instead in February to discuss the future of research libraries and the 2CUL program between Columbia and Cornell.

The August 2009 issue of Research Library Issues was devoted to the changing roles of library liaisons. This will be a future discussion for library faculty.

The budget for this year is not as bad as anticipated, but with the new governor and state revenue shortfalls, state institutions are preparing for cuts. This year the libraries' cuts will come from operations and collections. Next year, positions that are already frozen will be given back.

The last part of the dean's review is Monday, November 23^rd at 11:00. Executive Vice President Furmanski will meet with the faculty and cabinet to discuss the process, then the cabinet will be excused so that Dr. Furmanski may speak with the faculty in private.

7. Report of the Faculty Coordinator (V. Cvetkovic)

A theme has emerged of trying to increase communication and create a sense of clarity within the councils and committees. The Planning & Coordinating Committee (P&CC) will work closely with ROP to that end. P&CC will create a handbook for incoming chairs and elected members. The committee is currently working to establish guiding principles for how we work as a faculty, and is drafting a collective research statement and an instructional mission statement. Vibiana Bowman Cvetkovic commended the work of ROP on the changes to the by-laws.

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