Faculty Meeting Minutes

September 10, 2021

Michael Orr, Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs, called the meeting to order at 3:33 p.m.  He welcomed everyone to the first Faculty Meeting of the new academic year and expressed the hope that everyone had had a successful first week of classes.  Given the stresses and challenges of the last academic year, DOF/VPAA Orr also hoped that everyone had had a chance to decompress and recharge over the summer.  He then acknowledged that planning for the fall semester had become much more complicated and time consuming than anticipated at the beginning of the summer, due to the rise in the delta variant.

DOF/VPAA Orr then reminded everyone of the procedures to be followed during the Zoom meeting, noting that everyone would be muted during the meeting, that closed captioning was available, and that voting would take place through theSpring.  He requested that anyone wanting to speak during the meeting use the raise hand function, as he is unable to monitor the chat function while managing the meeting. He then reminded everyone that Faculty Meetings are open to members of the staff as well as SGA student representatives. 

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

DOF/VPAA Orr asked if there were any corrections to, or comments regarding, the minutes of the Faculty Meeting held May 19, 2021.  Hearing none, he announced the minutes were approved.

OLD BUSINESS

There was no old business.

NEW BUSINESS

Affirmation of the College’s Diversity and Inclusion Statement

Joshua Woodfork, Vice President for Strategic Planning and Institutional Diversity, called on Janet Casey, Associate Dean of the Faculty, and Anita Jack-Davies, Deputy Chief Diversity Officer, to read the College’s Diversity and Inclusion Statement (http://www.skidmore.edu/diversity/about.php).  VP Woodfork provided some background about the statement, noting that it is considered a living document, and indicated his willingness to talk with departments and programs about the ideals espoused in the statement.  DOF/VPAA Orr then invited the faculty to signal their acclamation of the Diversity and Inclusion Statement by virtual applause. 

Faculty Executive Committee

On behalf of the Faculty Executive Committee, Associate Professor Jason Ohlberg introduced the following Motion (see attached):

MOTION:  The Faculty Executive Committee moves that the 2021-2022 Faculty Handbook be adopted.  The following link takes you to the 2021-2022 Faculty Handbook (showing tracked changes) as well as handbooks from previous years: http://www.skidmore.edu/dof-vpaa/faculty-handbooks.php

Professor Ohlberg reminded everyone that the updated version of the Faculty Handbook includes all the changes approved by the faculty during the last academic year as well as some housekeeping changes. There being no discussion, the Motion will lie over until the next meeting.

PRESIDENT’S REPORT

President Conner welcomed everyone to the first faculty meeting, noting that he had hoped that this meeting would have been his first in-person faculty meeting.  He then stated how much he had enjoyed running into so many faculty members on campus these last few weeks and finally getting to meet so many individuals in person.  He acknowledged the remarkable effort that has gone into making it possible for all our students to return to campus to take classes in person, especially given the ongoing COVID challenges. He hoped that everyone had had a fantastic summer.  President Conner reported that he had done a fair amount of Skidmore-related travelling in June and July, and had met many friends of the college, including parents, donors and board members, and been able to tell them about all the things that we have been accomplishing and still aspire to accomplish.

President Conner then provided an update on COVID planning, as we continue to adapt and respond to the changing situation.  Currently, the college has achieved a vaccination rate above 98% for both our students and employees.  This is phenomenal, as it not only protects our campus, but also furthers our community’s contribution to the national and global fight against COVID.  Classes are being held in person, and while we are asking everyone to mask indoors, students are very happy to be back in the classroom.  President Conner noted that the college has just completed two full rounds of COVID testing for the whole community; over 4,200 tests were administered, and, to date, there have only been a total of 6 positive cases, of which 5 are still active.  As was the practice last year, testing and other data is posted on the college’s COVID dashboard and will continue to be updated as new information is received.  President Conner reported that many other liberal arts colleges, in New York and elsewhere, have not started out as well as we have; some started out well in mid-August but then had an alarming rise in cases.  Skidmore continues to set the standard in terms of all the multiple steps we are taking to ensure our community’s safety.  President Conner stated that, as we are now learning to live with this pandemic, we know we are going to have cases, but our goal is to keep those numbers as low as possible with health and safety guiding every decision.

President Conner then provided an update on the racial justice initiative, which continues to be a top institutional priority.  He reported that we are working on a complete summary and assessment of what we accomplished last year, including what priorities remain and where we fell short of our goals. This year, there will be new efforts and new areas of focus.  We are currently engaging students on issues of trans-identity, as well as engaging in events and issues in the City of Saratoga Springs.   President Conner commented that he was very excited about our team of professionals working on diversity and inclusivity issues, including Dr. Anita Jack-Davies; Chris Barnes, the new Director of the Office of Student Diversity Programming; Carlos Navarro, the new Director of the Office of Leadership Activities; and Adrian Bautista, the new Dean of Students and Vice President for Student Affairs.  President Conner commented that he continues to be inspired by the work that we all do concerning diversity and inclusivity, including the annual affirmation of Skidmore’s commitment to diversity.

Providing an update on the campus master planning initiative, President Conner reported that the architectural firm, Ayers Saint Gross, continues to gather information about our campus and conduct detailed listening sessions with all Skidmore constituencies.  Once the information gathering phase is completed, they will report back to us what they have heard to see if it matches with our sense of the campus.  President Conner reminded everyone that this is an important moment for the College as we will be determining the shape of our campus for the future and ensuring that the campus is aligned with our strategic goals and priorities.

Thereupon, President Conner introduced two new members of President’s Cabinet: Adrian Bautista, Dean of Students and Vice President for Student Affairs, and Cary Anne Zucca, Collyer Vice President for Advancement.  Both Dean Bautista and Vice President Zucca offered greetings and provided brief comments.

Thereafter, Mary Lou Bates, Vice President and Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid, provided an update on the Class of 2025:

• The class totals 728, selected from a record applicant pool of 11,200;
• Of the class, 410 students participated in one of our pre-orientation activities, and 26 are participating in the London program;
• The class comes from 39 different states and 24 countries other than the United States;
• 56 percent of the class attended public or charter school; 44 percent attended a private or parochial high school;
• 56 percent of the class identify as female; 44 percent identify as male (though there are individuals in the class that do not identify as male or female but Federal government regulations require that we report male and female numbers only);
• 49 percent of the class applied, accepted, and enrolled early decision;
• 26 percent of the class self-identified as domestic students of color;
• 8 percent of the students are international, which is down from recent years; last year, 9 percent of the students were international while 11 percent of the class were international 4-5 years ago;
• 6 percent of the class are dual citizens;
• 10 percent of the class are first generation or the first in their family to go to college;
• 11 percent of the class come with a former family ties to Skidmore;
• 54 percent of the class are receiving grant assistance from Skidmore, and 12 percent of the class are Pell-eligible.

Dean Bates reported that our budgeted class target was 708, and thus, we are opening about 20 students above our target. In terms of financial aid, we are approximately $500,000 over our allocation for financial aid for the first year class.  However, it is projected that we will be about $750,000 under budget for the sophomore through senior classes due, in part, to Federal Government funding that will go directly to students.  Overall, we project to be about $500,000 over what was budgeted for net tuition revenue for the first-year class.

Dean Bates closed by sharing some of the many talents for the incoming class.  Although the pandemic has limited the students’ ability to engage in activities, internships, and travel, many were incredibly resourceful and creative in filling their time.  Many of the students have made a considerable commitment to volunteerism and community service throughout high school, and have been politically active, working in recent elections and engaging in voter and immigration rights.  They come from culturally rich and diverse backgrounds and speak many languages at home other than English.  They have listed over 75 different clubs and organizations that they led, founded, or participated in in high school, and many have held leadership roles in their schools and communities.  They are involved in all areas of the arts and hold athletic achievement and recognition, including selections to All Star teams at the state and local level. They are a wonderfully talented, energetic, eager and diverse group of students and are happy to be at Skidmore.

Following Dean Bates’s report, President Conner provided details on the college’s employee reduction project, which has been discussed in multiple formats and meetings for the past two years.  He reminded everyone that our faculty-to-student ratio is higher than most of our peer and aspirant schools, and as we look at our current staffing levels, we are facing an annual budget deficit in the coming years that is not supportable. Addressing the projected budget deficit is a board-level priority. As a result, Skidmore needs to reduce its employee base by approximately 10 percent over the next five years, of which one-third are anticipated to be faculty positions and two-thirds staff positions.   President Conner stated that, since we are able to reduce our workforce over a period of five years, we hope to reduce our staffing levels over time through attrition. Thus, when a position becomes vacant, the college will evaluate that position according to our overarching strategic priorities to see if it can be absorbed, combined, or reconceived based upon our college-wide strategic goals.  President Conner noted that a 10 percent reduction in our workforce of about 1,000 equates to about 100 positions over a 5-year period, or about 20 per year.  He further stated that each vice president in her or his division will be responsible for planning, forecasting, and responding to trends in their field in determining whether a position should be filled or eliminated as positions become vacated.  

The floor was then opened for questions and comments. Discussion ensued concerning the employee reduction project, specifically with regard to the progress that has been made over the last 18 months (approximately $1 million to date, with an additional $500,000 to $1 million in reductions to be made each year over the five year period), the possibility of flexibility in terms of the reduction target for faculty and staff as progress is made, and the financial reductions realized when a senior faculty member retires and is replaced by an assistant professor.  A comment was made to consider increased staffing for departments or programs that are understaffed versus others that may be able to downsize. Further comments were made that some current vacancies have contributed to the stress and pressure that is felt by faculty and staff during this past year. A concern was also expressed that the college may lose more employees if individuals feel overworked due to reductions in staffing levels.

DEAN OF THE FACULTY AND VICE PRESIDENT FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRS’ REPORT

DOF/VPAA Orr began his report by thanking everyone for all of the work that has gone into launching the semester with so many students present on campus. Numerous faculty and staff have contributed to our ability to open on schedule and to have a very successful beginning to the semester, despite increased concern regarding the rise of the Delta variant.  Dean Orr noted that during the affirmation of the diversity and inclusion statement earlier in the meeting, VP Woodfork had drawn attention to the ways that we are being challenged by our students. With that in mind, DOF/VPAA Orr acknowledged that a student protest had been organized today concerning queer and trans students, especially queer and trans students of color. He described the protest as a call for institutional change from our students, and indicated that senior leadership is seeking to engage with these students and respond to their concerns.

Thereupon, Sarah Delaney Vero, Interim Human Resources Director, provided an update on the New York State HERO Act, which will require changes to our COVID preparations and planning for the semester.  Ms. Vero reported that earlier this year, the New York State Legislature passed the Health and Essential Rights Act, known as the HERO Act, which requires all businesses and institutions to implement a prevention plan to protect against the transmission of airborne infectious diseases in the workplace. The Act is activated when the Commissioner of Health designates an airborne infectious disease as a highly contagious communicable disease that presents risk of harm to the general public.  This past week, Ms. Vero stated, the Commissioner of Health designated COVID as a highly contagious communicable disease under the provisions of the Act.  The implications of this designation on Skidmore are rather minor because, under our current yellow status, we are already following all guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and the New York State Department of Health.  Ms. Vero then highlighted a few of the changes that will be implemented next week, including the requirement that all employees complete a daily health screening form, and view a training video.  The designation by the Commissioner of Health is in effect through September 30, but will most likely be extended as most of New York State continues to be in a high transmission category. 

Next, DOF/VPAA Orr commented that his office had already issued numerous COVID-related emails to faculty regarding teaching, classrooms, and syllabi. He reminded faculty that a repository had been created on theSpring to house all of the different communications from the Dean of the Faculty’s Office concerning COVID.  DOF/VPAA Orr emphasized that in-person instruction remains our highest priority in order to provide the full academic experience to our students.  At the same time, however, the college recognizes that any individual who is sick needs to remain at home.  Thus, it is appropriate for anyone that needs to remain at home because of illness or for caregiving purposes, to pivot temporarily to teaching remotely.  Faculty are asked to notify their department chair and the Dean of the Faculty’s Office if remote teaching becomes necessary. DOF/VPAA Orr stated that, while we are encouraging faculty to handle office hours in person as well, he recognized that some offices are very small and faculty members may be anxious about sharing their office space with others. He indicated that, in such cases, remote technologies could be used for advising appointments and office hours. More broadly, at this time, the college is not anticipating the need for all faculty to pivot to remote instruction.  The COVID logistics working group has been discussing potential plans for the Thanksgiving break if the Delta variant remains prevalent, including increased surveillance testing for students returning to campus or other strategies to mitigate any concerns or risk. DOF/VPAA Orr then reminded everyone that, while the college is in yellow status, approval for events, such as visiting lectures and receptions, require approval from his office, and can be obtained by contacting either Pat Fehling, Associate Dean of the Faculty, or himself.  Departmental meetings, normal college business gatherings, and routine classroom activities, including field trips, do not require special approval. 

DOF/VPAA Orr also indicated that there has been ongoing discussion of the impact of COVID on evaluating faculty for reappointment, tenure, and promotion. He stated that this is an area of great concern, recognizing that COVID has had multiple different impacts across the gamut of faculty responsibilities of teaching, scholarship, and service. It has also had widely differential impacts on individuals, depending on their personal circumstances. He noted that recent research has shown that COVID has tended to have a significantly greater impact on women and faculty of color, with an unequal distribution of emotional labor across the faculty. He then invited the chair of the Appointments and Tenure Committee (ATC), Associate Professor Sara Lagalwar, to say a few words. Professor Lagalwar reported that she had met with DOF/VPAA Orr and Pat Fehling, Associate Dean of the Faculty, to discuss how the pandemic is affecting different groups of faculty very differently, as well as how it has affected the various cohorts of faculty that are coming up for tenure differently, depending on where they are within their pre-tenure trajectory.  Based upon these discussions, ATC, along with the Dean of the Faculty’s office, will hold separate meetings with the different cohorts of faculty that are coming up for tenure, along with their department chairs and program directors, to allow the chairs and directors to engage in discussions regarding the impact COVID has had on their tenure-track faculty.  Professor Lagalwar encouraged anyone with any questions, concerns, or suggestions to reach out to any member of ATC.

Thereupon, DOF/VPAA Orr provided an update on last year’s hiring requests and replacement for faculty positions.  He reminded everyone that last year, due to the hiring freeze, no searches for vacant tenure track lines or continuing lines were approved.  As we begin to move forward in making decisions on which tenure lines should be filled, DOF/VPAA Orr reported that he has had discussions with the Faculty Executive Committee (FEC) on creating an advisory group of faculty that can work in tandem with his office to evaluate and provide advice to determine which positions should be replaced, taking into account different competing interests that come into play when evaluating comparatively the requests for replacement lines. DOF/VPAA Orr hopes to be in a position to move forward with constituting the advisory committee in the near future.

DOF/VPAA Orr then provided an update regarding the comprehensive salary review that was announced at the final faculty meeting of the last academic year.   The college has contracted with an outside consultant firm, Segal Consulting Group, and has begun the early stages of this work.  Segal Consulting has expertise in compensation assessments for non-profits, especially compensation for staff and faculty in higher education institutions, and is skilled in both internal equity analyses and external assessment and peer benchmarking.  The scope of the work will encompass both faculty and staff compensation and will include topics such as market assessment and internal salary equity, titles, and ranks.  DOF/VPAA Orr announced that he is working with FEC to constitute a small faculty advisory group to assist in this process and to provide input and counsel as we look at the composition of our peer and aspirant groups for benchmarking purposes.  As part of this process, there will be additional opportunities for discussion groups to provide input as well.  The goal, over the next six months, is to develop a clear plan of action for addressing concerns, and to develop an approach and a structure for addressing those concerns and any real or apparent inequities.

Thereupon, DOF/VPAA Orr announced the tenure and promotion decisions that were approved by the Board of Trustees during their May 2021 meeting.

• Daniel Peterson, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, awarded tenure
• Marketa Wolfe, Associate Professor, Department of Economics, awarded tenure
• Melora Wolff, Associate Professor, Department of English, awarded tenure
• Sarah DiPasquale, Department of Dance, awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor
• Sandra Goff, Department of Economics, awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor
• Margaret Greaves Ozgur, Department of English, awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor
• Christopher Mann, Department of Political Science, awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor
• Jason Ohlberg, Department of Dance, awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor
• Oscar Perez Hernandez, Department of World Languages and Literatures, awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor
• Minita Sanghvi, Department of Management and Business, awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor
• Kurt Smemo, Environmental Studies and Sciences Program, awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor
• Christopher Vecsey, Neuroscience Program, awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor
• Timothy Wientzen, Department of English, awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor
• Leigh Wilton, Department of Psychology, awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor
• Juan Navea, Department of Chemistry, promoted to Professor
• Rachel Roe-Dale, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, promoted to Professor
• Michael Emery, Department of Music, promoted to Distinguished Artist-in-Residence
• Erika Pujic, Department of Dance promoted to Senior Lecturer
• David Read, Department of Computer Science promoted to Senior Lecturer

A virtual congratulatory round of applause was then given. 

DOF/VPAA Orr then introduced the new faculty members for this academic year (see attached for complete list). At the conclusion of his remarks, a virtual round of applause was given for the new faculty. 

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 5:14 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,