FACULTY MEETING 

MAY 15, 2001 
GANNETT AUDITORIUM

MINUTES

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

The minutes of the April 27, 2001 meeting were approved as written. 

PRESIDENT’S REPORT

President Studley made a few brief remarks on the conclusion of the successful year in order to keep the meeting as short as possible.  Julianne Traylor ’68, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of Amnesty International USA, would be meeting with students and faculty on May 17.  She will receive an honorary doctoral degree at Commencement.  

DEAN OF THE FACULTY’S REPORT

Dean Berman said that the following members of the faculty have received special awards and fellowships:

• Michael Arnush, Classics Department – Recipient of National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Research Grant.
• Jordana Dym, History Department – Fellowship to attend New York University seminar, “Ancient Cities and Modern Urbanism.”
• Michael Ennis-McMillan, Sociology – Awarded research and resident fellowship, University of California, San Diego, Center for U.S./Mexican Studies.
• David Karp – Grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to assist in campus judicial reform.
• Murray Levith, English Department – Fellow at Shakespeare Institute in England.
• Linda Simon, English Department – Scholarship in Residence at New York University.
• Mason Stokes, English – Fellow at the DuBois Institute of Afro-American Research at Harvard in Fall ’01. 

Dean Berman recognized and thanked those chairs who are concluding their terms at the end of this academic year:   

• Ruth Andrea Levinson, Education Department who will be replaced by Susan Lehr.
• Margaret Pearson, History Department who will be replaced by Tad Kuroda.
• Sarah Goodwin, English Department who will be replaced by Terry Diggory.
• Joan Douglas, Psychology Department, who will be replaced by Mary Ann Foley. 
• Mehmet Odekon, Economics Department who will be replaced by Sandy Baum.
• Aldo Vacs, Government Department who will be replaced by Ronald Seyb. 

Dean Berman also shared the following:

• Tom Denny will head the Skidmore in London program during the 2002 spring semester.
• Robert Linrothe will head up the Skidmore in India Program. 
• Sarah Goodwin will run the newly-created Skidmore Program at Regents College for early admission students during the Fall 2001 semester.  

Dean Berman thanked his staff and members of the Dean’s Office for their valuable support in his first year. 

CONFERRAL OF DEGREES

Ann Henderson read the following four resolutions: 

RESOLVED, that the Faculty of Skidmore College recommend to the Trustees the granting of the Bachelor of Arts degree to 305 students of the Class of 2001 to be awarded on May 19, 2001. 

RESOLVED, that the Faculty of Skidmore College recommend to the Trustees the granting of the Bachelor of Science degree to 159 students of the Class of 2001 to be awarded on May 19, 2001. 

RESOLVED, that the Faculty of Skidmore College recommend to the Trustees the granting of the Bachelor of Arts degree to 26 students of the Class of 2001 upon satisfactory completion of the degree requirements by August 31, 2001. 

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 2001 upon satisfactory completion of the degree requirements by August 31, 2001.  

A motion to accept the above resolutions was made and seconded.  There was no discussion, and the motions carried with all voting in favor.  (See Attachment A.)

Jon Ramsey read the following two resolutions: 

RESOLVED, that the Faculty of Skidmore College approve Departmental Honors for four students from the Class of 2000 and 129 students from the Class of 2001—as presented at the May 15, 2001 Faculty Meeting. 

A motion to accept the resolution was made and seconded.  It carried with all voting in favor. 

RESOLVED, that the Faculty of Skidmore College approve three students from the Class of 2000 and 113 students from the Class of 2001 for cum laude distinction; for magna cum laude distinction one student from the Class of 2000 and 38 students from the Class of 2001; for summa cum laude distinction 19 students from the Class of 2001 as presented at the May 15, 2001 faculty meeting. 

A motion to accept the resolution was made and seconded.  It carried with all voting in favor. 

Professor Michael Mudrovic read the following resolution on behalf of the External Master of Arts Committee: 

RESOLVED, that the Faculty of Skidmore College recommend to the Trustees the granting of the Master of Arts degree to four students.  Of these, one student receiving the Master of Arts degree will do so contingent upon completion of all degree requirements by August 31, 2001.  (See Attachment C.) 

Mary Angela Ivancic Jaworski
Polly Parkinson
Rodney David Shively
Tracy Marie Sturtevant 

The motion carried with all voting in favor. 

Joanna Zangrando read the following motion for the University Without Walls Committee: 

RESOLVED, that the Faculty of Skidmore College recommend to the Trustees the granting of the Bachelor of Arts degree to seventeen students and the Bachelor of Science degree to eleven students:  (See Attachment D.) 

The motion carried with all voting in favor. 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

• Dean Berman announced that the following faculty members were promoted to full professor: 

Gove Effinger, Department of Mathematics
Alice Dean, Department of Mathematics
Catherine Golden, Department of English
Hugh Foley, Department of Psychology. 

• Jon Ramsey, Dean of Studies, encouraged the faculty to participate in “Conversations on Faculty Advising” on Wednesday, May 16.  This one-day conference will have a panel involving Skidmore faculty and faculty from other colleges.  Advising goals and concerns will be explored as the college shapes the future of faculty advising at Skidmore.
• Professors Sandy Baum and Susan Kress asked the faculty to contribute generously to the faculty/staff scholarship fund.  Skidmore has a lot less money for financial aid than other institutions that our prospective students consider, and this need-based scholarship will help improve the quality of the student body.
• President Studley stated that she looked forward to seeing the faculty at Commencement.  

The meeting adjourned at 11:00 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,

 

Claire Demarest
Executive Secretary
Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs and
Dean of the Faculty