MEETING OF THE
President Osgood called the meeting to order at 4:16 p.m. in ARH 302.
Minutes – Russell K. Osgood, President of the College
The minutes from the meeting on March 5, 2007, were approved as submitted.
Faculty Organization Committee Election – Sarah Purcell, Chair, Faculty Organization Committee
Purcell began the meeting by explaining the procedure for electing FOC chair and committee members. Voting and ballot counting took place throughout the meeting. Eric Simpson and Laura Sinnett were nominated for committee chair. A ballot with the committee member nominees will be distributed later in the week and the chairperson will be announced at that time.
Approval of Honorary Degree Candidates – Eliza Willis, Chair of the Faculty
Willis presented Angela Y. Davis, who has been selected to give the 2007 commencement address. Professor Davis is known internationally for her work as a social activist. She is a tenured professor in the History of Consciousness Department, University of California-Santa Cruz and received the distinguished honor of an appointment to the University of California Presidential Chair in African American and Feminist Studies in 1994. Davis is the author of several books including Women, Race, and Class. She is also a member of the Advisory Board of the Prison Activist Resource Center and is currently working on a comparative study of women’s imprisonment in the U.S., the Netherlands, and Cuba.
As a former classmate, Paula Smith spoke on behalf John Brady Kiesling’s nomination. Kiesling joined the Foreign Service of the U.S. Department of State in 1983 and subsequently held several significant diplomatic posts. He is known publicly for his resignation from the Foreign Service in 2003 to protest foreign policy under the Bush Administration, particularly the war with Iraq. Kiesling is currently a freelance writer/lecturer with a monthly foreign policy column in the Athens News. He is the author of Diplomacy Lessons: Realism for an Unloved Superpower, Potomac Books, 2006.
The faculty voted to approve Davis and Kiesling for honorary degrees.
Midwest Conference Constitution Proposals – Emily Moore, Grinnell College Faculty Athletic Representative, Midwest Conference (MWC)
The MWC has proposed a change to its Constitution due to a non-compliance ruling by the NCAA Membership Committee. Because the NCAA Constitution requires that presidents of member institutions have “…ultimate responsibility and final authority for the operation of the Division III member conference,” the proposal is that the following sentence (plus relevant additions and updates to its body) be added to the Preamble of the MWC Constitution “The Conference will be controlled by the presidents of the member institutions.” The faculty voted in favor of this amendment.
Moore brought a second proposal to the faculty which called for a change in the governance structure of the Midwest Conference. The proposal is that athletic directors be added as voting members of the MWC legislative body. The faculty voted against this amendment.
Distribution Requirements for Students Seeking “Special Opportunities” – Eliza Willis, on behalf of the Curriculum Committee
Willis provided some background information explaining that, although distribution requirements were dropped in 1970, minimum distribution requirements have been imposed upon students seeking special opportunities such as off-campus study, waivers of the residency requirement, and pursuit of double or independent majors. Bob Grey brought this issue to the faculty last year. The Curriculum Committee considered the matter and made a proposal but it was rejected.
The matter still raises two issues of concern to the Curriculum Committee: 1) Governance is at issue when distribution requirements are imposed without explicit faculty endorsement, and 2) Applying distribution requirements on a specific class of student may not be in keeping with the College’s commitment to a guided curriculum without core requirements. The committee has formulated three motions addressing the imposition of distribution requirements. Willis explained that the motions would be presented for a vote in succession until a motion carried. The motions follow:
1. Eliminate all divisional distribution requirements except for those students seeking to graduate without meeting the residency requirement.
2. Faculty would instruct the Off Campus Study Board, Committee on Academic Standing, and the Dean which distribution requirements to impose on students seeking to study off campus or those declaring a double or independent major.
3. Vote to endorse the distribution requirements as currently applied by the OCS Board, CAS, and the Dean.
Regarding the first motion, Willis explained that in last year’s discussion it was determined by the president that distribution requirements for those seeking to waive the residency requirements must remain in place due to financial reasons. If the second motion is adopted, distribution requirements would be specified in a separate motion to be considered at a subsequent faculty meeting.
Willis gave the chair to President Osgood and discussion ensued. It was pointed out that some courses under the EKI or in Concentrations are not counted under a particular division and therefore do not fulfill divisional distribution requirements. It was also determined that prior to conferring a degree, the College does not always have ways to enforce the distribution requirements that are currently being imposed on students seeking special opportunities.
A faculty member expressed hopes that if distribution requirements are eliminated advising will not change and faculty will continue to encourage students to take a broad spectrum of courses. Another faculty member suggested that criteria for the off-campus application process might include a statement explaining how a student’s four-year plan fulfills a commitment to a strong liberal arts education.
There was discussion about the effect that removing distribution requirements will have on the number of applicants for off-campus study. Bob Grey commented that the Off-Campus Study Board has not been performing a “gate-keeping role” and that a very high percentage of OCS applicants are accepted. Osgood commented that passage of the first option would, however, raise a financial issue if there were a significant increase in students studying off-campus and in such a case constraints on the number of OCS student leaves may need to be introduced.
Several faculty members spoke on behalf of the first motion, stating in essence that if “stealth” distribution requirements are being imposed on at least 50 percent of the students, then it is deceptive to claim that the College has an open curriculum. Another faculty member added that eliminating “backdoor” distribution requirements would make it possible to more accurately assess the success of our advising system and open curriculum in helping students attain a liberal education. Several faculty members spoke against the first motion.
President Osgood reported that in the last NCA accreditation visit, the distribution requirements applied to off-campus study and other special opportunities were used as evidence of the College’s commitment to a liberal arts education. This issue may re-emerge in future accreditation reports if the first motion is adopted.
Dean Swartz commented that if the first motion carries, he interprets it to mean that he would no longer have criteria for approving applications for double majors. He suggested that in that event, his approval might no longer be necessary for double major applications.
Following this discussion, the faculty voted by paper ballot (per request). The first motion carried with a 40-25 vote. This policy will go into effect beginning in the 2007-2008 academic year.
Report on Public Relations Discussion Groups – Eliza Willis
Due to time considerations, this report will be rescheduled.
Remarks – Jim Swartz, Dean of the College
Kathleen Skerrett has been appointed as Interdisciplinary Fellow under the EKI for the next three years.
Remarks – Eliza Willis
Willis thanked fellow members of the Honorary Degree Committee, Johanna Meehan and Elaine Marzluff, and Rachel Bly for their work in the selection process.
Willis reported that the Budget Committee is working on the salary recommendations. The procedure has been prolonged with the Personnel Committee’s involvement being added to the process.
Willis encouraged faculty to submit comments about “No Limits” if they have not yet done so.
Announcements and New Business
Brad Bateman announced that there were 66 applications for the Athletic Director position. Three candidates will be interviewing on campus in the coming weeks. Bateman encouraged faculty to attend the open fora that will be schedule during each candidate’s visit.
The meeting was adjourned by President Osgood at 5:27 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Angela Winburn
Secretary to the Faculty