Steering Committee Report May 2022
It’s our pleasure to welcome newly-elected senators: Prof. Alisa Cercone, Lecturer, English; Dr. Carolina Chavez, Assistant Professor, Foreign Languages; Dr. Scott Litroff, Associate Professor, Music; Dr. Christi Saindon, Assistant Professor, Communication, Theatre Arts, and Media Production; Dr. Mark Schiebe, Associate Professor, English; and Dr. Julian Stark, Associate Professor, Biology. We are glad you are here and appreciate your service.
We also want to thank re-elected senators for their long-term commitment to shared governance.
We want to follow up on a question raised in March under New Business regarding maximum safety in case of a nuclear attack. Following the meeting, the President reached out to the senator who raised the question and the CDC guidelines about such an attack have been posted to the Public Safety webpage in a dropdown menu under Personal Safety Guidelines. There is no easy answer to this question, and we appreciate President Mangino’s efforts to keep our campus as informed as possible.
There have been some disruptions in recent Senate meetings in the chat, on mic and from the floor – because of that we ask senators and visitors to remember that the chair must recognize senators wishing to speak, and visitors may speak only by floor vote or specific invitation. The aim is to be orderly and respectful to all.
We thank all senators who participated in the recent Senate Effectiveness Survey, part of a three-year cycle of Assessment of Governance, recommended by Middle States. Special thanks go to Victor Fichera of the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment for his help in developing the survey and analyzing results. We will report the results at the May meeting, and next year, governance webpages will be assessed.
At the May meeting a resolution from the Pre-College Committee will be considered. The resolution proposes a policy for review of applications from departments for granting Credit for Prior Learning (CPL). Because this resolution aligns with the need for all us to think proactively regarding matters of retention and enrollment, we want to thank the Pre-College Committee and its chair, Phil Pecorino for their work.
At the May meeting, nominations for Committee on Committee will be taken. Service on this committee is crucial to the Senate – committees are populated and elections conducted by this committee’s work. As of this writing, three more nominees are needed. We urge our colleagues to step up and serve. In addition to CoC positions, elections will be held for all Senate officers: Steering Committee chair, vice-chair, and secretary; Senate Technology Officer, and Senate Parliamentarian. All senators are encouraged to run for these positions.
We want to heartily thank Rezan Akpinar for stepping up bravely to the role of STO following the departure of Dave Moretti. The technological demands of STO duties were new to Rezan and she uncomplainingly performed the duties because she knew there was a need. Thank you, Rezan!
2022 will see our first in-person Commencement of the ‘20s! We look forward to seeing our graduates and our colleagues and celebrating together.
With this meeting, another Senate session comes to a close, and the end of another academic year is coming, too. We expect that we will all reflect on a year of stresses and challenges, but also a year of growth, collegiality, and resolution.
Academic Senate Steering Committee ([email protected])
Dr. Steven Dahlke, Chair [email protected]
Dr. Jannette Urciuoli, Vice-Chair [email protected]
Dr. Zivah Perel Katz, Secretary [email protected]
