October 19, 2017 Minutes

Staff Advisory Council Meeting Agenda

October 19, 2017 (ZSR Library Auditorium)

9:00 to 10:30 am

Guest Speaker:  Michele Gillespie (Dean of the College, Presidential Endowed Chair of Southern History), shared a glimpse into how the academic side of the university operates with a description of the Dean’s Office and an explanation of tenure and why it is so important.

• You can view the presentation here.
• The College is just one area of the Provost Office.
• The College includes 5,234 undergraduate students, 481 permanent faculty, 100 non-permanent faculty and 100 staff.
• Currently completing growth for Wake Downtown with no further plans to expand enrollment.
• 29 academic departments – some small and some large, with chairs appointed by the Dean
• Provost – chief academic officer
• Permanent Faculty – tenure/tenure track (69% – this has been constant for WFU for a long time) and non-tenure track (20% – teaching professors)
• Non-permanent Faculty – (11%) visiting, adjunct, post-docs – filling in for permanent faculty that are doing something else, administrative, sabbatical, etc.
• Tenure/tenure track – Assistant Professor – hired for 6 year review period, evaluation of teaching and scholarship (publications and service) – advisory committee from Dean’s Office recommends tenure after this period and review of work during this period – then Dean recommends to Provost – then Provost recommends to the Board of Trustees to grant tenure – lots of guidelines at every level in the process because of the importance of the decision. Then Associate Professor – must then apply for full professor-has to demonstrate cutting edge scholarship as a senior faculty membership – once approved, then they will be a full Professor.
• If a teaching position is open, it depends on the position itself whether or not a tenured professor from another school will be tenured when hired at WFU – pretty rare – at times do hire higher level professor in departments but would advertise those positions that way.
• Non-tenure track – Teaching Professors – love teaching but not interested in pressure of scholarship needed for tenure track – teaching load is a little more (evaluated on teaching and service).
• Faculty also have special titles – Honorifics, Faculty Fellowship, Endowed Chairs and Professorships, Emeritus – others Lab Managers, Post Docs and Teaching Assistants.
• Why Tenure? To protect Academic Freedom – unfettered teaching and research, free search for truth and its exposition

Questions Posed to Dean Gillespie:

• Why would you leave after receiving tenure? Maybe your dream school wants you.  Your spouse may move and you follow.  Really good people can leave to go anywhere.  We do a very good job of retaining – we invest so much in our faculty.  We do everything in our power to help them be successful in tenure.
• How often are professors reviewed? Reviewed annually even after tenure – for merit evaluation.  Also review requests for leaves.
• What happens when a professor goes beyond academic freedom? Work with HR, meet with them and work with them.  Will protect freedom of speech because it is the right thing to do, but we may not sanction what they say.
• How many full sections/classes are taught by graduate students? Public speaking and laboratories.  We have several that are teaching assistants but not the lead professor.
• What is the demographic breakdown of the faculty? Close to ½ and ½ male/female – more male full professors – could do better in diversity (need to move the needle – asked all departments to complete a diversity action plan that they are now working to put in place.)
• Do most faculty aspire to be in administration – no. As a faculty member you have so much freedom (thought, time) – administration is not that way.  Administration is a way though to support the mission of our University and engage with other groups that care about our school.
• What incentive is there for a professor to do their best after granted tenure? A professor cares so much about a discipline and what it brings to the world, they are wired to do the best they can to promote their field/discipline.

Standing Committee Goals and Report-Outs

Each committee reported on their goals for the year.  See the presentation for further information.

Outside Committee Report-outs

Capital Planning Advisory – The committee discussed projects ongoing through-out campus.

Faculty Senate – The Senate discussed student code of conduct changes, spent major time talking about what significant disruption meant

Parking & Transportation – The committee is reviewing options to ease frustrating parking concerns.

Tree Advisory – The committee is reviewing dangerous trees, capable of falling on power lines – over-whelming number presented to committee to review as dangerous – discussed obtaining an outside company to come in and review instead of just taking them all down.

DIPC – did not meet

Finance Advisory – did not meet

Poverty Task Force – did not meet

Prof Development – did not meet

Campus Rec Advisory Board – Our SAC representative was not able to attend.

Raffle winner – Paige Meltzer – gift card to Bookstore