Steering Committee Chairperson Dr. Steven Dahlke called the second regularly scheduled meeting of the Academic Senate to order at 3:10 PM.

I. Attendance:

46 votes were recorded at the time attendance was taken; 62 members of the Academic Senate were present during the meeting.

II. Approval of the Agenda:

A motion was made, seconded, and adopted 54-0-0 to approve the current agenda.

III. Consideration of minutes of the September 10, 2019 meeting of the Academic Senate (Attachment A):

A motion was made, seconded, and adopted 53-0-0 to approve the September 10, 2019 minutes (Attachment A of the September 10, 2019 Agenda).

IV. Communications from:

1. Interim President Lynch
   
   The Senate received Interim President Lynch's September 2019 Report. To see the full report, visit the Academic Senate Website.

Interim President Lynch first updated the Senate that he attended the Council of Presidents at the University and that at this point there are no updates on the search for a President of QCC. Interim President Lynch then spoke to his report, highlighting the Cabinet's hard work on all aspects of the Strategic Plan.

2. University Faculty Senate Liaison to the College

Dr. Emily Tai reported that the minutes from the last plenary are not yet posted but included an election for the Executive Committee and the introduction of the Chairs of UFS committees. If senators are interested in reading more about the UFS committees, they may refer to the UFS website.

There was a subsequent discussion between Senator Clingan and Interim President Lynch about the search for a new president of the College. Senator Clingan informed the Senate that the Chancellor plans to continue the practice of closed searches without open forums with the candidates. Interim President Lynch remarked that the secrecy can help protect a strong and diverse field of candidates by shielding their candidacy from their current employers, but acknowledged that the searches should be as open and transparent as possible.

3. Senate Steering Committee Report

The Senate received the Steering Committee report. For the full report, visit the Academic Senate Website.

The Steering Committee welcomed new registrar Emiko Sanchez, who unfortunately was not present, and thanked the Chairs and Secretaries of the Standing Committees: there was a remarkable 100% participation in the organizational meetings. Particular thanks go to David Moretti for the assistance with Cascade. The Steering Committee received all but two of the annual reports. Committee Chairs and members should email the Steering Committee with any questions they may have. The Steering Committee urges faculty to respond to the survey about the Academic Master Plan and to relay any ideas about creative and reliable faculty to participate in the working groups; the Academic Master Plan gives faculty a chance to create the future of the college. Chairperson Dahlke also informed senators about the email from Jo Pantaleo about the lecture sponsored by the Faculty Diversity Committee. The speaker is Lilia Melani who will discuss the lawsuit brought by the CUNY Women's Coalition against CUNY in 1973. The Steering Committee also noted the Transfer Resource Center's request that on October 21 faculty wear t-shirts from their alma maters as part of National Transfer Week.

V. List of Graduates for August 2019 (Attachment B) is presented as an information item

VI. Annual Reports from the Standing Committees of the Academic Senate are presented as informational items

These reports included the Committee on Assessment and Institutional Effectiveness, the Committee on Course and Standing, and the Committee on Student Activities.

VII. Monthly Reports of the Committees of the Academic Senate

These reports included the report from the Committee on Food Insecurity (informational item). Senator Tai reported on the pantry's hours, reminded Senators that the pantry is always open by appointment, and informed the group about the Committee's efforts to reach out to other organizations for support.

The following votes are from the Committee on Curriculum (Attachment C).

1. A motion was made, seconded, and adopted 58-0-3 to approve two new Engineering courses, ET-581 and ET-756.

2. A motion was made, seconded, and adopted 53-1-9 to approve course revisions for MT-341, ET-574, ET-580, and ET-585.

3. A motion was made, seconded, and adopted 57-0-6 to approve program revisions for Engineering Technology A.S. in Computer Science and Information Security (A.S./B.S. Dual/Joint Degree Program with John Jay).

4. A motion was made, seconded, and adopted 59-0-4 to approve program revisions for Engineering Technology Internet and Information Technology A.A.S. Degree Program.

5. A motion was made, seconded, and adopted 62-0-1 to approve program revisions for Physics A.S. Degree in Liberal Arts and Sciences.

VIII. Old Business

1. A motion was made, seconded, and adopted 39-15-7 to approve the Revised Religious Observance Policy (Attachment D).

Senator Pecorino thanked those parties who gave input on the proposal. Interim President Lynch voiced his opposition to the proposal, citing that OAA already provides students with the relevant information. Senator Pecorino spoke again in favor of the proposal citing the problems with the current protocol in terms of notifying students of their rights.

2. A motion was made, seconded, and adopted 41-11-8 to approve the Proposal for Faculty Access to College Email Lists (Attachment E).

Vice President Newcomb spoke in opposition of the proposal, reviewing her rationale. Interim President Lynch also spoke in opposition of the proposal, suggesting that the subject be deferred to the next President. Senator Pecorino spoke on behalf of the FEC in favor of the proposal.

IX. New Business

1. Dean Michael Pullin reported on the new proficiency index that will be used to place first time students in the spring of 2020. CUNY predicts that this index, which is calculated using high school GPA, Regents, and SAT scores, will result in the more accurate placement of students. At the College, Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, and Admissions are meeting regularly to plan for changes in placement procedures.

The meeting was adjourned at 4:00 PM.