Deans Council Meeting
Boardroom, BA 290
May 20, 2008

Attendance: Dr. Mary Hendrix, Dr. Hal Langford, Dr. James Klein, Dr. Brent Mangus, Dr. Allan Headley, Dr. Sharon Chambers, Dr. Deborrah Hebert, Stephanie Holley, and Cynthia Rhodes. Minutes taken and prepared by Cynthia Rhodes.

New Faculty Orientation – Dr. Chambers plans to forward a copy of the 2007-2008 New Faculty Orientation agenda to the Deans so that planning can be done for this year’s orientation session. Dr. Chambers also plans to survey the department heads to see what activities each department is planning for their new faculty. Several suggestions were made as to what deans would like to see included in the orientation session. The assignment of a mentor to each new faculty was viewed positively by Deans Council members. 

Post-Grant Management – Deans Council discussed issues related to post-grant management. According to Dr. Headley, some individuals are having difficulty with financial issues. Deans Council members recommended that an analysis was needed regarding the indirect costs distribution to support grant management. The Provost plans to review the grant funding disbursement allocations. Because grants and contracts is a priority for the System, Deans Council recommended that the university begin preparing an infrastructure that will support faculty for post-grant management.

Disability Services – (PDF Document) (PDF Document) Council members reviewed and discussed revised procedures relating to disability services. The revised procedures were tabled for further discussion at the next Deans Council meeting on June 3.

Residential Housing - During the summer, Residential Housing has a special summer rate for short stays for faculty, staff and new graduate students. The rate is $150.00 per week for a one bedroom furnished apartment at Prairie Crossing Apartments. A week is defined as Sunday through Thursday, as well as, other options. Residences may be able to leave their personal belongings in the room over the weekend if they are planning to return the next week. 

Enrollment Management – Some of the Enrollment Management staff have moved their physical office location. As a result of the move, freshman recruiters are now in the front of the Admissions office, and transfer recruiters and processors are located around the corner where all of the recruiters were housed previously.

The following dates were proposed for AY2008-2009:
October 11, 2008 – Fall Preview Day
November 15, 2008 – Transfer Day
March 7, 2009 – Spring Preview Day

Dean Holley presented an EMAS recruitment report (PDF Document) showing the percent of recruitment activity by source. Discussion was held regarding concern that some sources represented a lower percent than would have been expected. On the contrary, over 51% of fall admitted students were from Student Information System (SIS) applications. Council members felt the information reflected in the report was helpful in determining where recruitment efforts should be focused.

Summer Courses- (PDF Document) Because of escalating gas prices and low enrollments in on-campus, f2f courses, the Provost reminded Council members of the campaign to encourage enrollment in online classes and off-campus sites to maximize enrollment in this base-funding period.  Dean Holley and Randy Jolly will be launching an advertising campaign. The Provost requested academic deans to monitor student enrollment in their college’s summer courses.

Leave Request/Documentation – The Provost reminded Council members to submit their requests for leave as soon as possible and to utilize Leave Traq when requesting leave. Because several members are past due, Provost requested all leave requests be updated as soon as possible. 

Employee Holiday Schedule for AY 2008-2009 – The holiday schedule proposed by the President was presented to Council members.

Dean’s List – Currently the eligibility criteria for an undergraduate student to make the Dean’s List includes being registered for not less than 12 hours of academic work, not counting non-academic service courses, and maintaining a minimum semester academic grade average of at least 3.25. At the request of Dr. Mangus, discussion was held regarding the proposal to change the grade average criteria to that of 3.50. Deans Council members requested that the Registrar survey other institutions before any changes are proposed.

Customer Service – Several areas on campus have been identified needing improvement in the area of customer service. The “We Care” initiative has received valid complaints from customers. Employees who demonstrate poor customer service will be contacted and a plan will be discussed to allow the employee an opportunity to improve customer service. In the event that improvement is not achieved, planned action, as discussed with the employee, will be taken.

Deans Council members discussed the need for a new telephone system as the current system does not provide the options required by departments to provide quality customer service. It was requested that key departments be involved in the selection and implementation of a new phone system.