Faculty Meeting Minutes

November 1, 2019
Gannett Auditorium

MINUTES

Michael Orr, Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs, called the meeting to order at 3:36 p.m.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

DOF/VPAA Orr asked if there were any corrections to, or comments regarding, the minutes of the Faculty Meeting held October 4, 2019.  Hearing none, he announced the minutes were approved.

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

Committee of the Whole was held to discuss the Motion being brought jointly by the Appointments and Tenure Committee (ATC) and the Promotions Committee (PC) to couple promotion to Associate Professor with tenure and to allow faculty members to count up to two years of previous full-time teaching employment towards eligibility for tenure.  Associate Professor Kendrah Murphy was appointed as chair of the Committee of the Whole.  A 20-minute time limit was set and extended for an additional 15 minutes.  At the conclusion of the Committee of the Whole, Professor Murphy rose and reported that a discussion on ATC’s and PC’s motion was held. 

OLD BUSINESS

Appointments and Tenure Committee and Promotion Committee

A motion was made and seconded to direct that the following Motion that was introduced at the last Faculty Meeting be referred back to ATC and PC for further revision (see attached):

MOTION: to couple promotion from Assistant Professor to Associate Professor with tenure and to allow a faculty member to count up to two years of previous full-time teaching employment towards eligibility for tenure. Faculty may stand for tenure and promotion to Associate Professor as early as the fall of their fourth year of service at the College but no later than the fall of their sixth year. Faculty members denied tenure and promotion will be given a terminal year of employment.

Following discussion about any potential layover of the Motion at the next Faculty Meeting, the Motion to refer back to ATC and PC was voted on and passed with all in favor.

Faculty Executive Committee

On behalf of the Faculty Executive Committee, Professor Kendrah Murphy read the following Motion that was introduced at the last Faculty Meeting (see attached):

MOTION:  The Faculty Executive Committee moves to amend the Faculty Handbook (Part Two, I, Article II) by naming the Dean of the Faculty/Vice President for Academic Affairs as the Presiding Officer of faculty meetings.

A point of order was raised concerning Faculty Handbook language allowing for alternate means of voting when electronic polling equipment is unavailable. There being no further discussion, the Motion was voted on and passed with all in favor.

NEW BUSINESS

There was no new business.

REPORTS

Presidential Search Committee

Professor Barbara Black and Associate Professor Corinne Moss-Racusin, representing the faculty members of the Presidential Search Committee, provided an update on the confidential presidential search.  Since the last update at the October Faculty Meeting, the search committee has been conducting reference checks and agreed upon which candidates would move forward.  Professors Black and Moss-Racusin indicated that in-person interviews with the finalists will be conducted over the course of the next few weeks and the Committee will recommend 2-3 finalists for the Board to consider. Following questions regarding the aspects of the search process, Professors Black and Moss-Racusin reminded everyone about the importance of the confidentiality of the search process and suggested that any questions regarding the search be directed to the chairs of the search committee. They also encouraged anyone with any concerns or questions to be posed to the finalists to reach out to any of the faculty members on the search committee to ensure that their voices are heard.

PRESIDENT’S REPORT

Although he is not involved in the search process, President Glotzbach reminded everyone of the necessity for a highly confidential search process to ensure that we attract the best candidates for the position. Skidmore would be an outlier if the search process was not guaranteed to be confidential and we would surely lose candidates.

Thereupon, Professor Eric Morser, Director of Civic Engagement and the Bridge Experience, announced that this year’s Skidmore Cares Open House will be held on December 6, 2019 immediately following the faculty meeting.  As one of the three team leader coordinators for Skidmore Cares this year, he  reminded everyone that President and Marie Glotzbach started Skidmore Cares in 2006 to give Skidmore faculty and staff a chance to contribute to the broader community beyond campus.  Since then, Skidmore Cares has raised over $90,000 for community causes and distributed to local non-profit agencies more than 28,000 items of food, provisions and school supplies to assist folks in need throughout Saratoga County.  He concluded his remarks by showing a video that demonstrated the impact that Skidmore Cares has had on the local community. 

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

With the 5:00 pm hour approaching, DOF/VPAA Orr did not give a report but invited everyone to attend the post-Faculty Meeting reception held immediately following the Faculty Meeting in the Gannett Lobby.

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 4:57 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,