UpDate - Vol. 14, No. 23, Page 8
March 9, 1995
Senate approves reorganization of life sciences

     Three undergraduate degree programs were granted permanent status
and the reorganization of the School of Life and Health Sciences was
approved at Monday's meeting of the University Faculty Senate.
     Degree programs recommended for permanent status to the trustees
include the bachelor of science in biochemistry, the bachelor of arts
in history with a journalism concentration and the bachelor of arts in
earth science education.
     The resolution dividing the School of Life and Health Sciences
into the Department of Biology and the Department of Medical
Technology passed unanimously. Under the terms of the resolution, the
new Department of Medical Technology will be relocated from the
College of Arts and Science into the College of Nursing.
     In other business, the senate amended the class attendance policy
in the Faculty Handbook. Under the new regulations, the dean's office
of each college will verify students' absences due to their own
serious illness or to a serious illness or death within their
families. Previously, the Student Health Services provided letters
verifying illness of all types. If requested by the students,
supportive evidence of hospitalization, surgery or protracted medical
illness still will be provided to the deans' offices by the Student
Health Services.
     In the case of minor, short-term illnesses, students should
communicate directly with their faculty members, according to the
resolution.
     A number of revisions to academic majors and minors were passed
by the senate without discussion.
     Earlier in the meeting, Margaret Andersen, vice provost for
academic affairs, spoke to the senators about the allocation of funds
for temporary teachers. Indicating that the University had become too
reliant on temporary teachers, she said that a desirable goal was to
use available funds for full-time, regular faculty, while maintaining
the flexibility that temporary replacements provide.
     Andersen told the senators that the administration is not making
a budget cut in instructional funds, but it is changing how these
dollars will be spent. Two-thirds of the temporary instructional
funding is provided by funds released from vacant faculty lines, she
said, and, as these faculty positions have been filled, there is less
support for temporary instruction. Another goal is to have a more
direct return to the colleges of funds freed by sabbaticals, research
awards and other faculty achievements that provide funding for
released time.
     She said that having full-time, regular faculty teach courses is
advantageous because these faculty also advise students, conduct
research and provide service to their colleges and the University.
Meanwhile, some temporary teaching assistants will be moved to the
regular budget in the next fiscal year, she said, and the need for
temporary instruction also will be alleviated by the reduction in
first-year class size, a change that began in 1994 and is expected to
continue over the next few years.
     Andersen said discussions will be ongoing among the provost's
office, the deans and department chairpersons, the senate and the AAUP
on this subject.
                                                        -Cornelia Weil