Faculty Meeting Minutes
May 16, 2018
Gannett Auditorium
MINUTES
President Philip A. Glotzbach called the meeting to order at 10:03 a.m.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
President Glotzbach asked if there were any corrections to, or comments regarding, the minutes of the Faculty Meeting held April 27, 2018. Hearing none, he announced the minutes were approved.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
President Glotzbach welcomed everyone to the best meeting of the year, noting that our second largest class (669 students) is graduating this year. This is the time of year when we celebrate many things; one such celebration was the first ever Stoles and Cords ceremony held earlier in the week. This ceremony was a celebration of students of color, international students, LGBTQ students, and first-generation students, and they received stoles and cords. The best part of the whole ceremony was that each student picked a mentor - many were faculty and some were staff members - to acknowledge the difference that person made in the student’s lives. President Glotzbach thanked Cerri Banks, Dean of Students and Vice President for Student Affairs, for her leadership in this event.Thereupon, President Glotzbach introduced Mary Lou Bates, Vice President and Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid, who provided an admissions update. VP Bates reported that we are two weeks past our May 1 enrollment deadline and are currently 12 deposits short of our goal. Our goal is 650 on campus, 36 in London, and a summer melt projection of 60, for a total target enrollment of 746; right now, we are at 734. This year's class target is 30 larger than last year due to the large graduating class. VP Bates stated that our spring yield on accepted students receiving financial aid increased by about 1 percent, from 28 percent last year to 29 percent this year. Our spring yield on students not receiving financial aid, however, dropped significantly (3 percentage points), from nearly 12 percent last year to 9 percent this year. As a result, there is a significant difference in the yield on students receiving aid and students not receiving aid.
VP Bates stated that we are about 50 students short of our goal after the May 1 deadline. Her office has been busy contacting students who expressed an interest in staying on our wait list. To date, her office has made over 200 calls and has enrolled 33 students. The number of students on the wait list who were not seeking financial aid was small; after phoning all those students, they then began to phone students who did indicate a need for financial aid. As a result, we are going to over-expend our original financial aid budget in order to meet our enrollment target. We have committed an additional $800,000 in first year financial aid, and as we make those final enrollments, that number is likely to increase.
With regard to statistics of the class, VP Bates reported that the class is 63 percent female and 37 percent male. The percentage of domestic students of color is 24 percent, which includes 9 percent African American students. Last year, her office felt that it hadn't made progress with regard to the number of African American students, so her office initiated a project to work very closely with African American applicants in our pool whose financial aid applications were incomplete to assist them in completing their financial aid applications, otherwise they would not have been able to be considered for admission. Dean Bates also reported that we have enrolled 40 OP students, which meets our goal and includes 27 HEOP and 13 AOP, including 3 Kettering scholars. We have also enrolled 4 Filene scholars, 7 S3M scholars, and 14 Porter scholars, which has been renamed Porter-Wachenheim Scholars due to additional funding received from the Wacheheim family to support increasing our enrollment of Porter math-computer science scholars.
In this second year of being test optional, VP Bates reported that, for most of our applicants, 73 percent wanted their testing considered, compared to 74 percent last year; of those admitted, 76 percent wanted their testing considered, compared to 77 percent last year; and 64 percent of the students who have enrolled wanted their testing considered, compared to 65 percent last year. The median SAT on the students who enrolled and submitted is 1,330, compared to 1,300 last year; the ACT median is 29 for this year and last year.
VP Bates concluded by thanking everyone for all their time and support for the many on-campus recruitment activities. We had a record 160 participants this year for our Discovery program for under-represented students and a 45 percent yield on those who attended. As we look ahead to the class of 2023, we are tracking consistently with recent years. Admissions will once again host two summer open houses to be held on July 9 and July 27 and invited any one on campus to attend the BBQ picnic lunch.
President Glotzbach thanked VP Bates for her report. He emphasized that this is really an important moment in our history because this is the first time we have had to work this hard to enroll a class. As VP Bates reported, we have our numbers for the class for on campus and for the London program; we have not, however, accounted for projected summer melt. The more alarming fact is that we had to increase our financial aid offers and, at this point, we do not know exactly what the total overage will be—it could be in the range of $1.2 to $1.5 million. In addition to this, we are also facing another budget issue next year because of an increase in our health insurance costs. For next year's budget, we are going forward with the board with a balanced budget and the same parameters that we have presented.
President Glotzbach questions whether this is just a blip or is it a trend. We have been celebrating the increases in our number of applications for a protracted period; at the same time, we have seen the percentage of students requesting financial aid increase and the percentage of students not requesting financial aid decrease. Our financial aid model has been consistent over time with 42-44 percent of our students receiving need-based financial aid with 58-56 percent of families paying the full cost. It now looks like we are closer to 48-49 percent of students needing financial aid. We are now nearing the $70,000 mark in our comprehensive fee, which means more families will not be able to afford to pay that. We knew this moment was coming—we didn't know exactly when—so we will have to make some significant adjustments in how we do our financing to account for the increase in financial aid expenses. President Glotzbach stated that we will work very hard over the summer and will come back in the fall to continue this work.
President Glotzbach then provided a brief investment report, which relates to an item on the meeting’s agenda. He reminded everyone that, at the conclusion of the work of the Task Force on Divestment, he committed to report annually on efforts from the Investment Committee to identify “green” investment opportunities that both meet our investment objectives and represent alternatives to traditional investments, and more recently, focusing on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) parameters. Investments meeting these criteria are not that easy to find; however, the Investment Committee has identified several investment opportunities, one of which we are still awaiting to enter. President Glotzbach reminded everyone that once such a fund is found, oftentimes there is a waiting period of up to a year. The Investment Committee did invest $5 million in Generation Investment Management, a growth equity strategy firm with ESG considerations at the heart of its investment philosophy. It is a long-term investment fund interested in integration of sustainability research and alignment of the values of their clients, and includes investments in solar, insulating materials, LED lighting, electric vehicles, smart transportation, bio materials, etc.
President Glotzbach also reported that the Investment Committee reaffirmed its willingness to consider ESG factors in future investment decisions. He also reminded everyone that the members of the Investment Committee are volunteers who are in the financial services industry who make their living investing money for other people. They volunteer to serve on this committee because they care about the College. Some of these members are trustees, some are not, some have been parents, some have been on the Board, and some are not on the Board. The members of this committee have donated over $25 million to the College because they want to support the College; if you include former members of the Investment Committee, such as Ed Wachenheim and Arthur Zankel, that number grows to almost $75 million. These are individuals who not only care about the College and invest their time, but they also invested their treasure in us.
Thereupon, President Glotzbach provided a brief update on the search for the new Vice President of Finance and Administration. He reported that the search committee has met and held an open forum to receive comments and advice from the community. Based upon the meetings and the feedback received, the search committee decided to change the initial search agent and instead use Storbeck and Pimentel for this search. This change should not delay the search schedule.
President Glotzbach then reminded everyone that we are at the beginning of the construction of the first phase of the Center for Integrated Sciences. While this is a very good moment, it will cause a lot of disruption, dust, and noise. Information concerning the construction will be announced on a regular basis.
Thereafter, President Glotzbach introduced Professor Jeff Segrave, who provided an update on the Campus Campaign. Professor Segrave announced that we are now officially in the midst of planning the launch of the Campus Campaign, which will formally launch on campus in the fall. A celebratory event, similar to the one held for the last Campus Campaign, is being planned to kick off this new Campus Campaign. Professor Segrave reminded everyone that the Campus Campaign is a very important part of the larger campaign called Creating our Future - the Campaign for Skidmore, which launched its public phase in New York City last fall. Professor Segrave serves on the executive committee of the Campus Campaign along with Associate Registrar Sharon Clemmey, Professor-emeritus Terry Diggory, Associate Professor Tim Harper, and Associate Professor Karen Kellogg. Historically, the Campus Campaign focuses primarily on community engagement and participation. To date, nearly 40 volunteers from departments across the campus have been recruited to help in this effort. It was noted that the participation rate from faculty and staff for the last Campus Campaign was 78 percent. This is a truly remarkable accomplishment and a testimony to the quality of our community, and it is hoped that we will match or exceed this participation rate in this new Campus Campaign. Professor Segrave concluded by indicating that further information will be forthcoming over the summer and to contact him or any of the members of executive committee with any questions. President Glotzbach thanked Professor Segrave and the other members of the committee and reported that we are approaching the goal set for this fiscal year of $160 million.
Thereafter, President Glotzbach acknowledged three administrators who are retiring this year, who collectively have given over 50 years of service to the College:
- Paul Calhoun, who came to Skidmore in 2006 as the Harder Chair and became Dean of Special Programs in 2011. While serving as Harder Chair, Dean Calhoun taught business strategy and created the course entitled “Presenting a Brand Called Me”. In Special Programs, he moved to get a handle on the financials of that operation and made some very positive changes. He has supported local arts programs and strengthened and augmented the work of the Special Programs division to help to move a lot of projects and initiatives into the academic year.
- Barbara Beck, Associate Vice President for Finance and Administration and Chief Human Resources Officer, who came to Skidmore 21 years ago. While most of the work she has done is behind the scenes, she has led her division through the changes in employment law and expectations, supported the formation of a staff organization, and oversaw a comprehensive staff survey.
- Michael West, Vice President for Finance and Administration and Treasurer, who came to Skidmore in 2004 from Trinity College. VP West has led his division for 14 years with balanced budgets and “clean” audits. He has provided visionary leadership in management of our physical plant and oversaw the investment over $200 million in our physical plant and capital projects, including Northwoods, Dining Hall renovation, Zankel Hall, Filene, Saisselin, Scribner Libary, Sussman Village, the CIS. He also served as Board liaison to the Budget/Finance and Infrastructure, Audit and Risk, and Investment Committees and has seen our endowment increase from $155 million to nearly $380 million. During the recession of 2008 when many colleges and universities across the nation were laying off employees (including faculty members) and cutting back in ways that were very difficult, through VP West’s leadership, we did not lay off a single full-time employee nor did we reduce salaries or compensation. We certainly made adjustments, but we came through that difficult time in very good shape – due in large part to his prudence and humane management. Of all the CFOs President Glotzbach has worked with, VP West was the best in understanding that the educational mission of the College is at the heart of all that we do. On many, many occasions, he was able to find additional funds to support an initiative in Academic Affairs or Student Affairs that was important to the Dean and to the College.
Thereafter, President Glotzbach opened the floor for questions and comments. One faculty member raised a concern regarding the general salary adjustment, which he believed has not really kept much above the inflation rate for some time, and questioned whether President Glotzbach envisioned an increased rate in future general salary adjustments or whether there is a long-term plan to fundamentally increase salaries. President Glotzbach stated that he believes the college has tried hard in the past to increase faculty salaries and has looked at AAUP data to benchmark faculty salaries with our peer and aspirant schools. While there may be some financial challenges next year, when Cabinet begins its work on the budget, that is one of the parameters they consider, and we will do the best we can do.
One faculty member raised a question as to whether a faculty member, if arrested off campus, would be required to report the arrest. President Glotzbach stated that he was not of aware of any such policy; however, he did state that those arrests are usually public records and that any potential action taken by Human Resources would depend upon the nature of the arrest and whether there was a conviction.
DEAN OF THE FACULTY AND VICE PRESIDENT FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRS’ REPORT
Crystal Moore, Interim Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs, did not provide a formal report.
CONFERRAL OF DEGREES AND HONORS
A. Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science Degrees. Dave DeConno, Registrar, read the following resolutions into the record (see attached):
RESOLVED, that the faculty of Skidmore College recommend to the Trustees the granting of the Bachelor of Arts degree to 393 students of the Class of 2018 to be awarded on May 19, 2018.
RESOLVED, that the Faculty of Skidmore College recommend to the Trustees the granting of the Bachelor of Science degree to 207 students of the Class of 2018 to be awarded on May 19, 2018.
RESOLVED, that the Faculty of Skidmore College recommend to the Trustees the granting of the Bachelor of Arts degree to 31 students of the Class of 2018 upon satisfactory completion of the degree requirements by August 31, 2018.
RESOLVED, that the Faculty of Skidmore College recommend to the Trustees the granting of the Bachelor of Science degree to 17 students of the Class of 2018 upon satisfactory completion of the degree requirements by August 31, 2018.
The total number of graduates of the Class of 2018 is 669 as follows: 21 for January completion, 600 for May completion, and 48 for August completion.
There was no discussion, and the resolutions were voted on and passed with all in favor.
B. All-College and Departmental Honors. Ron Seyb Associate Dean of the Faculty, read the following resolutions into the record (see attached):
RESOLVED, that the Faculty of Skidmore College approve College Honors for members of the Class of 2018, as presented at the May 16, 2018, Faculty Meeting: 36 students for summa cum laude distinction; 107 students for magna cum laude distinction; and 71 students for cum laude distinction. (Note: including January 2018 graduates, 219 of 669 students [32.75%] in the class of 2018 will receive College Honors).
RESOLVED, that the Faculty of Skidmore College approve Departmental and Program Honors for 200 students from the Class of 2018, as presented at the May 16, 2018 Faculty Meeting. (Note: including January 2018 graduates, 205 of 669 students [30.6%] in the class of 2018 will receive Departmental or Program Honors; 23 students will receive honors in two majors).
There was no discussion, and the resolutions were voted on and passed with all in
favor.
OLD BUSINESS
Office of the Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs
Interim DOF/VPAA Moore read the following Motion, as amended, that was introduced
at the last Faculty Meeting (see attached):
MOTION: The Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs moves to change the language in the Faculty Handbook regarding promotion.
Interim DOF/VPAA Moore reminded everyone that the proposed changes in language regarding
promotion were developed in an effort to align institutional rewards with institutional
demands and needs. She thanked all the colleagues who attended the open forums in
the Weller Room and for all the emails she received. Interim DOF/VPAA Moore noted
that this topic has illuminated a lot of issues and advised that if the faculty votes
to postpone this motion, she will withdraw the motion as she does not think it is
fair for a new incoming dean to have to contend with this issue.
The floor was, thereafter, opened for discussion:
- A reminder was made that the Faculty Workload Working Group discussed faculty workload more broadly a few years ago and did made changes to Section VIII (A) of Part One of the Faculty Handbook which added extensive language talking about the various criteria and standards for reappointment, tenure, and promotion. Is the language in the subject Motion meant to be a change in the current practice or what is currently in the Faculty Handbook or just to clarify the criteria? Is the language in the subject Motion meant to assume that the Promotion Committee will continue to decisions similar to the ones that CAPT has been making or an attempt to change the way their make promotion decisions? Should changes be made in the way candidates are brought up for promotion? Is this change in language being brought to help recruit faculty into service roles? Maintaining the teacher-scholar model as it pertains to promotion is imperative as it is really the only moment after tenure that faculty can show their teacher-scholar achievements.
- A reminder that there is a real problem with faculty serving as department chairs after tenure getting delayed in their promotions. The Dean’s Office has made offers in the past to free up course releases for service/leadership responsibilities, but all those offers were declined. Given our limited resources, the current proposal represents the best solution for recognizing service/leadership responsibilities.
Thereupon, Professor Bill Lewis indicated that he did not support this Motion and
has prepared an alternative motion. A motion was made and seconded to postpone discussion
of the original Motion indefinitely. As requested during discussion, Professor Lewis
reviewed the motion that he is considering presenting as an alternative motion.
Discussion was held on the motion to postpone discussion of the original Motion.
A faculty member indicated that she would like to a change in the culture where faculty
can provide more support to each other and recognize that that there are several pathways
for a faculty to be successful at Skidmore. Another faculty member indicated that
postponing the Motion stifles the discussion and preferred to debate the merits of
the motion and eventually vote on the Motion. Other faculty indicated support in
postponing the Motion given the split of CAPT and the arrival of the new dean. Another
faculty member indicated his support of postponing the Motion indefinitely as the
subject motion stifles the decision the faculty made in approving the changes to the
Faculty Handbook brought by the Faculty Workload Working Group.
Following discussion, the motion to postpone indefinitely the original Motion was
voted on and passed by majority vote.
Thereafter, Professor Bill Lewis introduced the following Motion (see attached):
MOTION: That the revisions to the faculty handbook voted by the faculty on April 25, 2014 be evaluated during the 2018-19 academic year by the Promotions Committee and that this inquiry include significant input from the faculty as a whole.
The Motion was seconded. Thereupon, Professor Lewis made a motion defer the layover
period and vote on the motion. A point of clarification was made whether the vote
to approve the motion to defer the layover period was a simple majority or 2/3 majority.
With the consent of the group, approval of the motion to defer the layover period
will require a simple majority. Thereupon, the motion to defer the layover period
was voted on and passed by majority vote.
The floor was then opened for discussion of the Motion introduced by Professor Lewis.
Several faculty members indicated their support for the Motion, some with reservations.
One faculty member indicated his opposition to the motion, specifically charging a
new committee with the responsibility for reviewing the revisions to the Faculty Handbook
made several years ago. He offered a friendly amendment that instead of charging
the Promotions Committee with this work that FEC should work with the Dean to come
up with a new ad hoc committee to review the promotion language and that review both
the membership of the committee and the specific charge. The friendly amendment was
rejected.
Thereafter, a faculty member indicated his support for the spirit of the motion but
was uncomfortable with the Promotion committee being responsible for reviewing the
changes to the Faculty Handbook made by the Faculty Workload Working Group and that
perhaps the Motion was unnecessary given that the changes to the Faculty Handbook
called for a review of these changes in five years.
Thereupon, after further discussion a friendly amendment was made and accepted to
include the language “under the leadership of” after the 2018-19 academic year. Further
discussion was held in which some faculty indicated they could not support the motion,
even if the Promotions Committee was just leading review, and some faculty indicated
that any review should include the voice of pre-tenure faculty. Other concerns were
voiced in that if the Motion was defeated, the review of the changes to the Faculty
Handbook made by the Faculty Workload Working Group would be delayed by a year.
Thereupon, the Motion presented by Professor Lewis, as amended, was voted on and defeated
by majority vote.
Faculty Executive Committee
On behalf of the Faculty Executive Committee, Associate Professor Greg Gerbi read
the following Motion, as amended, that was introduced at the last Faculty Meeting
(see attached):
MOTION: The Faculty Executive Committee moves to approve changes to the Faculty Handbook related to faculty governance as follows:
- Remove Part Two, section II, F1 (page 209-210).
- Remove the subsubsection heading: Part Two, section II, F2 "Faculty Governance Committees"
- Relabel Part Two, section F as "Faculty Governance Committees"
- Relabel section headings in Part Two, section F so that committees are labeled "1" to "15" rather than "a" to "o".
- Add a new subsection D to Part One, section VII (Rights, obligations, and responsibilities of all faculty; page 112). The text of this subsection is below and is an edited version of what was previously in Part Two, section II, F1.
Associate Professor Gerbi reviewed the reasons for bringing the motion and shared
a short PowerPoint presentation that called into question whether there would be a
service mandate at all; could the mandate be different; should governance service
be separated from other important service; which committees should be included; and
where should the mandate be in the Faculty Handbook? The presentation also included
information on the different types of service and college committees and issues not
included in the proposal , such as the overall burden on service responsibilities,
addressing uneven distribution of burden; compensation/reward for service work by
nontenure track faculty or tenure-track faculty; and efficiency or effectiveness of
our committees.
Brief discussion followed concerning the inclusion of following sentences that were
the subject of concern discussed at the last faculty meeting:
At times when they are not in their mandated service period, tenure-track faculty
(after their first few years at Skidmore) are expected to perform college-level service
in other ways: for example, as department chairs or program directors, on the committees
listed below, or on other college committees. Faculty may volunteer to, but are not
expected to, serve on more than one committee at a time.
Following discussion, Associate Professor Gerbi indicated that FEC has agreed to strike
that text from the Motion.
Lengthy discussions were had concerning the removal all of the IPPC subcommittees
except for CIGU from the mandated committee service; suggestions that more analysis
should be done with regard to service more broadly; requests for more details/numbers
concerning service more broadly; the difficulty committees that are not mandated service
committees are having in recruiting tenure-line faculty to serve; and questions surrounding
what the operational definition of “governance” and whether separating mandated governance
from other college service is necessary. Based upon the discussions, Associate Professor
Gerbi indicated that FEC wished to withdraw its Motion.
Investment Working Group
On behalf of the Investment Working Group, Associate Professor Pat Oles read the following
Motion, as amended (see attached), that was introduced at the April 4, 2018 Faculty Meeting:
MOTION: The faculty urgesendorses the recommendations of the Investment Policy Working Group.
Recommendations
1. Promote broader community engagement by expanding membership on the investment
committee or developing an advisory council that includes faculty, staff, and students.
2. Allocate 5% of the endowment to ESG fund(s) and or impact investments by 7/1/2023.
3. Permit alumni and donors to direct contributions to ESG investments (without encumbering
routine future reinvestment).
4. Work with other colleges and universities, foundations, and investment advisors
to develop best sustainable investment practices.
5. Allocate an amount equal to 1% of endowment takeout (increasing endowment takeout by approximately .05) to a revolving
fund dedicated to accelerating campus sustainability projects.
7. Consider increased direct ownership of equities to facilitate shareholder engagement.
6. Make regular reports on investment committee progress toward sustainable investment goals (e.g., at community meetings, faculty
meetings, and on the web).
Associate Professor Oles reviewed the changes made to the initial Motion noting that
the Investment Working Group is now seeking an endorsement of the recommendation as
opposed to acting upon them. He further reviewed the changes that were to the recommendations
and the reasons for doing so.
The floor was thereafter opened for discussion. Several faculty members indicated
their support for the Motion or against the Motion. Discussion was held concerning
the reason for not suggesting that fundraising practices be aligned with our institutional
priorities; concern for how evolving institutional values could potentially constrain
our investment strategies in the future; the feasibility of allocating an amount equal
to 1% of endowment takeout and increasing endowment takeout by approximately .05 percent
to a revolving fund dedicated to accelerating campus sustainability projects at a
time when the institution is already investing in sustainable projects; and whether
the faculty wants the board to consider this issue one of the top priorities, along
with others such as diversity and inclusion,
The question was called. A motion was voted on and passed by majority vote to terminate
discussion and vote on the Motion. Thereupon, the Motion was voted on and passed
by majority vote.
NEW BUSINESS
There was no new business.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
- Paul Calhoun, Dean of Special Programs, announced the second Skidmore faculty residency co-sponsored by the Center for Leadership, Teaching, and Learning and the Office of Special Programs has been awarded to Associate Professor Ben Bogin. He thanked Associate Professor Grace Burton and Michelle Paquette-Deuel, Associate Director of Academic Programs and Residencies for their work in selecting the faculty resident.
- Paul Calhoun, Dean of Special Programs, encouraged everyone to pick up a Summer at Skidmore brochure and highlighted some of the nearly 100 events scheduled throughout the months of June, July, and August.
- President Glotzbach invited everyone to attend the annual Commencement reception to be held at Scribner House on May 18, 2018.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:25 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,