Recap of University Senate's Oct. 19 meeting

October 29, 2015  


Here is a recap of the University Senate's meeting held Oct. 19:

President Daniels' remarks

President Mitch Daniels provided an overview of the newly launched “Ever True: The Campaign for Purdue University,” which will focus fundraising efforts across three priorities: “Place Students First,” “Build on Our Strengths” and “Champion Research and Innovation.” The goal is $2.019 billion raised by 2019, the 150th anniversary year of Purdue’s founding and the 50th anniversary year of alumnus Neil Armstrong’s walk on the moon.

Promotion and tenure document

J. Stuart Bolton, chair of the Faculty Affairs Committee and professor of mechanical engineering, presented for discussion a resolution of endorsement for a faculty promotion and tenure policy for the West Lafayette campus that was approved by the Board of Trustees on Oct. 9. The most recent document reflects changes proposed by a team of three faculty members from the Senate Faculty Affairs Committee and the Office of the Provost.

The document highlights "an active role in mentoring, advising and supporting the academic success of students and postdoctoral scientists" as part of the tenure and promotion process. The document also states that "Accomplishment in discovery may also extend to guided inclusion of undergraduate students in faculty research activity that results in published work, scholarly presentations, patents and entrepreneurial activity."

During discussion, Deba Dutta, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs and diversity, answered questions about how the policy would affect the way individual colleges, schools and departments handle promotion and tenure. Dutta said that individual units would have time during the implementation phase to clarify their own processes. He also noted the need to roll out the policy in a phased manner so faculty hired under past guidelines would be assessed appropriately.

The Senate is expected to vote on the resolution at its Nov. 16 meeting.

Income share agreements

Steve Schultz, the University's legal counsel, and Brian Edelman, chief financial officer and treasurer at Purdue Research Foundation, provided a presentation on Purdue's income share agreement initiative. Purdue Research Foundation announced in August that it would begin a formal solicitation process to find a partner firm to establish and manage income share agreement (ISA) funds, a proposed new way to help Purdue students pay for higher education. 

Schultz reported that PRF has reviewed seven "expression of interests" proposals from potential ISA providers. PRF has selected and is now finalizing a contract with a partner firm and working on the program design.

Edelman said a pilot of 100-300 students on the West Lafayette campus could begin as early as this spring to provide funding for students for 2016-17.

The presentation is available here.

Unifying senates of Purdue University Calumet and Purdue University North Central

Kirk Alter, Senate chair; John Niser, chair of the Hospitality and Tourism Management Department at Indiana University–Purdue University Fort Wayne; Feng-Song Wang, associate professor of biology at Purdue Calumet; and Janusz Duzinkiewicz, associate professor of history at Purdue North Central, discussed the history, process and challenges of ongoing work to develop a new constitution for unifying the PNC and PUC senates before the campuses combine on July 1, 2016, to become Purdue University Northwest.

The Intercampus Faculty Council, which is responsible for the coordination of legislative and policymaking actions of the various faculty governing bodies at Purdue system-wide, has been working with both campuses' senates. PUC and PNC faculty leadership are working on a March 2016 timetable to develop a plan for shared governance.  

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