After the University of Delaware March 4 Faculty Senate meeting came to order, Provost Robin Morgan opened her comments by announcing that both the Academic Affairs Committee and the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees have approved the creation of a graduate college.

“We can expect the full Board of Trustees to have a resolution at the May public meeting endorsing this action that has been taken by the Executive Committee on its behalf,” Morgan said. “So the next step is to elect the counselors.”

In February, the Senate approved a draft version of bylaws and organizational structure for creation of the graduate college. A vote by the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees was needed to move forward.

Morgan also mentioned two upcoming events on campus. On March 14 and 15, there will be a public event dealing with hate speech called "Speech Limits in Public Life: At the Intersection of Free Speech and Hate.” On April 17, in the Rodney Room of the Perkins Student Center, Robert Sellers will discuss diversity, equity and inclusion in the faculty recruitment and promotion process. Sellers is the vice provost for equity and inclusion, chief diversity officer and the Charles D. Moody Collegiate Professor of Psychology and Education at the University of Michigan.

Morgan thanked UD faculty members who participated in recent Decision Day event. The first one was Saturday, March 2, and there will be two more Decision Days on April 13 and 27. UD Decision Days are open house events for prospective students and their families to learn more about the University. For most colleges and universities in the United States, May 1 is the deadline for students to accept offers of admission for fall 2019.

“These events are really critical for showing students what opportunities are here,” Morgan said. “Talking to faculty, I know as a parent, was very instrumental in where I sent my children, and so thank you to everybody and please thank your colleagues for participating.”

Following a few questions from senators, Morgan gave information on projected enrollment numbers for the incoming first-year class and when dean searches will begin for the College of Arts and Sciences and the new graduate college.

Faculty Senate President Chris Williams followed up on Morgan’s announcement about the graduate college by discussing in more detail the election of council members for the graduate college. Nominations for faculty awards including the Mid-Career Faculty Excellence in Scholarship Award, the Alison Award and the Excellence in Scholarly Community Engagement Award will be accepted through March 15, he added.

Williams also noted that the general faculty meeting will be postponed until May and a summary of the progress on the budget will be available.

The Senate voted and approved the consent agenda, which contained 38 changes to existing programs. Senators also voted on five resolutions. The Senate approved resolutions to disestablish the master’s degree in Entrepreneurship and Design and to revise Faculty Handbook section 3.1.1 on Freedom of Inquiry and Expression and section 3.4 on the use of Academic Analytics, which removes use any analytics software not readily accessible to all faculty members from any Academic Program Reviews. On two other handbook matters -- section 4.2.3 on the Distribution of Published Materials on Campus and section 4.2.1 on Academic Freedom -- the Senate voted to send the resolution back to the committee for review.