February 18, 2005

Members Present: P. Anderson, R. Barton, D. Borino, J. Cox, T. Crum, X. Du, S. Ehrmann, J. Emerson, P. Fisher, P. Fox, L. Frasier, G. Heberer, B. Hofland, C. Hyslop, L. Hyslop, J. Johnston, R. Kampf, A. Kincaid, J. King, P. Klem, M. Kuhl, J. Larson, J. Licht, K. Martin, C. McMullen, R. McNally, K. Miller, D. Moore, B. Murphy, S. Negrete, J. Newman, E. Nickel, S. Nielsen, L. Owens, M. Puccinelli, C. Pyatt, J. Rice, B. Robertson, S. Rombough, J. Rosenthal, S. Sanders, K. Schwandt, G. Skivington, G. Smith, P. Smith, G. Sundseth, G. Tenney, M. Urain, P. Warren

  1. CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 1:16 p.m. Chair Schwandt declared a quorum present. Two proxy votes were noted.
  2. WELCOME AND INTRODUCTIONS: Chair Schwandt welcomed everyone to Senate. Anna Kinkaid was introduced as the new Tech Prep Coordinator.
  3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: The minutes of the January 21, 2005, meetings were unanimously approved with the following corrections:
    1. Item VI. E., “May 3” needs to read, “May 6;“ and, “. . . the proposed Secondary Education program containing four endorsement areas (math, science, ESL, and early childhood education)” needs to read, “the proposed Secondary Education program contains four endorsement areas (math, science, social science, and career and technical education). Other new programs to be reviewed are special education, ESL, and early childhood. The Elementary program will be reviewed at that time.”
  4. SENATE CHAIR REPORT: Chair Schwandt provided a written report to Senate with attachments.
    1. Academic Affairs Reorganization – College-wide faculty/administration forums are scheduled for Wednesday, February 23 (Live) from 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m., GTA 130; and Friday, February 25 (IAV) from 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., HTC 123. Interested faculty may attend both sessions. Written proposals for discussion requested. Administrative Assistants Lori Gill and Chris Mitchell will be in attendance to provide accurate written statements of proposals which will be brought back to Senate on March 18. The pilot division program is set to begin Fall 2005. Topics for discussion include the following:
      1. Composition of the first pilot division(s) with 4-5 divisions proposed. Possible division ideas: Communications, Social Science/Humanities, and Math/Science.
      2. Duties of a Division Chair including reassign time at 12 or 15 workload units per academic year with duration of duties undertaken negotiated. Division Chairs would be tenured faculty within the division, elected by faculty within the division, and approved by the VPAA. Senate questions the necessity and history of requiring VPAA approval of Division Chairs. Chair Schwandt will seek clarification and report the findings to faculty.
      3. The job description and duties for Dean of Academic Support for Applied Science.
    2. Interim Accreditation Review – The follow-up accreditation review is scheduled for Wednesday, April 27. Two evaluation team members will request meetings with faculty, staff, and students. The written report and supporting exhibits will be provided by Dr. Cliff Ferry. Two campus forums will be scheduled in early April to prepare for the visit.
    3. Institutional Donations – Senate is reminded that all donations received on behalf of the college must be reported to the Foundation. Donations may include (but are not limited to) grants, gifts, contracts, cooperative agreements, sponsored projects, and physical property. Such reporting provides fast, accurate record-keeping for the institution and the donors.
    4. ADA Statements – ADA statements in class syllabi must be worded as follows: GBC supports providing equal access for students with disabilities. An advisor is available to discuss appropriate accommodations with students. Please contact the ADA Officer (Julie Byrnes) in Elko at 775-753-2271 at your earliest convenience to request timely and appropriate accommodations. ADA statements are not required for syllabi; however, those incorporating such statements must be aware of compliance issues. A generalized statement will protect the college and the instructor.
    5. Board of Regents –
      1. NSHE – The system is beginning to utilize its new title. The UCCSN officially became the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) last year. As material items containing the old designation (i.e., stationary, etc.) are being extinguished, the new title will become more widely visible.
      2. ARSA –
        1. The Textbook Committee Report was provided to the Senate. The report addresses the concern by students of high textbook pricing. Recommendations include careful consideration of bundling which hampers returns, consideration of cost when selecting texts, student notification of required new editions, and early submission of text orders.
        2. System Advising & Scheduling – System staff will develop a strategy and action plan to address issues regarding advising, class offerings, and scheduling to help students graduate in a timely manner and support retention. The initiative headed by Chris Chairsell will review institutions' surveys regarding advising and the structure of advising at each institution, and the responsibilities of students, faculty, and professional advisors. Chairsell stated all mandates will be funded and recommends advising stay in academics and student services. For scheduling purposes, UNR utilizes “Astra” software which is similar to Class Tracks software utilized GBC.
        3. Handbook Revisions – The Board approved the Open Meeting/Public Records Policy and the Notice of Non-Reappointment and Notice of Termination for Non-Tenured Faculty (Except DRI). Both policies were provided to Senate.
  5. COMMITTEE REPORTS:
    1. Academic Standards – Oral report; information only. The following candidates have been recommended for approval of the following non-traditional credits: Tracy Openlander, 9 credits; Brad Pope, 9 credits; Brandon Fowler, 15 credits; Debbie Okuma, 3 credits.
    2. Adjunct Faculty – No report
    3. Assessment – Written report; information only. The committee provided an update to the all-day assessment workday of the committee and a synopsis of the procedure undertaken. The committee is presently discussing the integrative seminar waiver policy. This item will be brought forward at the next Senate meeting.
    4. Budget and Facilities – Written report; information only. The committee presented the allocation of equipment monies to Senate. All funds must be expended by awarded departments by June 30.
    5. Bylaws – No report.
    6. Compensation and Benefits – Written report; information only. A comparison of the Administrative and Faculty proposals concerning workload was presented. Online instruction continues in negotiation. As currently proposed by Administration, credits for online classes would be worth 1.25 workload units if there are at least 21 students in the class with a class cap of 30 at the 50% refund drop date. Compensation & Benefits Committee will be developing a counter proposal.
    7. Curriculum and Articulation – Written report; action. Senate unanimously approved the following:
      1. COM 113 was removed as a requirement for the 2-year nursing program. COM 113 or THTR 221 was added to the RN/BSN program.
      2. Course descriptions for Physical Education and Agriculture were presented.
      3. MATH 152 was changed to STAT 152 and SPAN 204 was changed to SPAN 212 to comply with common course numbering.
      4. AM 148, ANS 211, BUS 201, ART 392, MATH 352, NRS 150, SPAN 401 were approved as new course additions.
      5. The Rangeland/Livestock Management concentration was added to the BAS degree program.
    8. Department Chairs – No report.
    9. Distance Education – No report.
    10. Faculty and Administrative Evaluations – Oral report; information only. The committee is in the process of revising student evaluation forms. Faculty and Student input is strongly requested. Committee members and students have suggested a mid-term evaluation, to be followed by a final evaluation. There is concern regarding the content of the questions for required courses. Senate requested the committee research the feasibility of connecting student evaluations with faculty goals. A draft will be presented at the next full Senate meeting.
    11. Library – No report.
    12. Personnel – Written report; information only. The committee is continuing discussion on duties/responsibilities of the Personnel Committee in the areas of recruitment and hiring of full-time faculty and administrative faculty personnel, faculty tenure and sabbatical leave. A majority of committee members, including the Chair Puccinelli, have agreed to retain their positions with the committee for the next academic year. A brief update on present hiring committees was provided.
    13. Student Relations – Written report; information only. Continuing proposals for the separation of the Students Relations and Scholarship Committees were brought forward. Student Relations Committee will focus on assisting student projects through the SGA, promoting and organizing college functions that would benefit students such as orientation, and the annual President's Awards Ceremony. The Scholarship Committee would be a subcommittee of Student Relations composed of six members who would be available to help with at least one Student Relations Committee project during the year. Faculty input as to specific duties and projects for Student Relations is welcome.
  6. FOUR YEAR COMMITTEE REPORTS:
    1. BAS – Written report.; information only. Digital Information Technology and Agriculture are two new emphases to the program.
    2. BAIPS – Oral report; information only. Five students were admitted to the program: four in Social Science, and one in the AHA (Arts & Humanities Administration). Prerequisites for the program are under considerable discussion. Suggestion was made to change the prerequisites of INT 301 to English 102, Math 120 or higher, and 40 credits. The committee recommends similar prerequisites for the integrative seminars.
    3. BSN – Oral report; information only. The program held its first BSN Community Advisory Luncheon. Admission applications for Fall 2005 are currently in process.
    4. BSW – Oral report; information only. Twelve students from GBC have applied for admission to the UNR BSW program. Determination should be made within the next three weeks. The GBC Social Work Association is making plans to attend the “Grassroots at the Legislature Day.”
    5. Elementary and Secondary Education – No report.
  7. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: No unfinished business was brought forward.
  8. NEW BUSINESS: No new business was brought forward.
  9. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS:
    1. Carl Diekhans – (This item was presented at the beginning of the meeting to meet the schedule of the Vice President.) VP Diekhans addressed Senate on issues surrounding the GBC Bookstore. It is admitted that the issues should have been handled differently. A printer failure when the Follett computer IP address was dialed d prevented internet orders from being retrieved. Phyllis, Bookstore Manager, immediately contacted Follett headquarters in Chicago which had closed early due to severe weather. Replacement equipment was ordered the next day and installed on Monday, January 24, wherein internet orders were immediately retrieved and processed. Several additional circumstances unfortunately hampered quick resolve of the service issues. Both store clerks were on sick leave, one choosing to terminate her employment with Follett, which lead to a large backlog of voice mail messages. Lack of communication between Phyllis and David Frazier of Follett in Reno further prevented quick response. Frazier was in the store from 01/31-02/02 to assist Phyllis in completing the approximately 80 internet orders. Some orders were unfortunately lost. To prevent future difficulties, a second printer has been ordered and spare parts will be kept in inventory. Phyllis was provided with training to retrieve orders from an external computer. The bookstore receives approximately 350 electronic orders every semester which is equivalent to that of TMCC. Follett is inviting faculty to a luncheon to speak with David Frazier and develop a better working relationship. Dates for the luncheon will be released as soon as arrangements are finalized.
      1. By contract and choice, UPS will remain Follett's delivery agent. GBC customers must be aware that the second day air option listed on the Follett website is not available in this service area. Follett will see to removing this option from their website for GBC. In addition, customers must be aware that UPS can only deliver to a physical address. Orders containing post office boxes will be delivered to the nearest GBC campus where the customer will be required, at an extra shipping charge, to claim their package.
      2. The availability of used texts will always be precarious and the customer must keep this in mind especially when ordering online. Follett prefers to stock and sell used texts due to profit margin.
      3. Text prices can change multiple times a semester.
      4. Follett will ship texts in quantities similar to past business history.
      5. Debit cards/check cards have an immediate charge to an account; however, credit transactions to accounts can take up to five working days to be completed.
      6. The GBC Bookstore operates on a no receipt, no refund policy. Customers using Amazon.com or a similar online book-seller for their purchases in order to secure the best price need to be aware that when asked for the reason of return, Follett will not accept returns due to the customer securing a better purchase price outside the bookstore.
      7. Understandably, students want to make certain that their course will actually run prior to purchasing the text(s). Late purchasing, however, can lead to unexpected set backs and students should be aware of this. Earlier ordering by instructors may prevent some misunderstandings.
    2. ClassTracks – Dr. Garry Heberer spoke briefly to Senate regarding the usage of ClassTracks scheduling software.MS Internet Explorer must be used to access the program at https://ct.gbcnv.edu. Login user password, “BestWest” is low level and read only; this password is limited and cannot access some features such as exporting data to Excel (higher-level password is available upon request). The program is an excellent tool for advising with point and click, user-friendly access.
    3. College Community Center Remodel – Foundation Director Summer Ehrmann provided Senate with a virtual tour of the proposed College Community Center. Project funding is entirely from Foundation donations. All pledges will be in place by October of 2005 with construction is scheduled to begin spring of 2006.
    4. Grants Committee – GBC Grant Writer Jeannie Rosenthal provided Senate with information regarding the formation of the Grants and the Grants & Projects Committee. There are presently three grants up for review mid March. Upcoming projects include the Great Basin Festival, the Great Basin Indian Archive, guest lectures, Idea (the institutional art and literary magazine), the summer concert series, the Native American Market, and the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering humanities speaker. Additional Input from faculty regarding priorities for lectures, speakers, workshops, etc. that would tie into curriculum and support courses and faculty agendas would be appreciated.
    5. 2005 Summer School – Summer school will run from June 27 – August 5. Faculty interested in teaching summer school should contact their Department Chair who will coordinate with Continuing Education Director Pat Warren.
    6. Refreshments in March – The Foundation volunteered to bring refreshments for the March full senate meeting.
  10. PUBLIC COMMENT:
    1. Foundation Dinner Dance – Foundation Director Summer Ehrmann invited faculty to attend the Annual Foundation Dinner Dance on February 26 at the Elko Convention Center. GBC Faculty and Staff are offered an additional 10% discount on the purchase of tickets.
    2. Community College Conference – The Community College Conference is going to be at Western Nevada Community College for one day only, Friday, April 22, 2005. The theme for this year's conference is, “Promoting Quality Education in Nevada's Community Colleges.” Nominations for the, “Teaching Excellence Award,” are needed and can be sent to Janie Moore.
    3. Newmont Mining Company – Newmont will be interviewing GBC students on March 16. The company is offering a $2000 sign-on bonus and will hold jobs for students until schooling is complete.
  11. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 3:16 p.m. Senate will convene on Friday, March 18, 2005, at 1:15 p.m. in GTA 130.