2011-2012 FACULTY SENATE
California State University, Sacramento

AGENDA
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Foothill Suite, Union
3:30- 5:00 p.m.

 

 

MOMENT OF SILENCE

 

            RICHARD CLEVELAND

            Emeritus Faculty, Mathematics

 

OPEN FORUM

 

 

REGULAR AGENDA

 

FS 11/12-109/Flr        MINUTES OF MARCH 15, 2012 – REGULAR MEETING

 

INFORMATION ITEM

 

            Select Committee Update

            Background information can be found at Attachments C, E, F, K

 

FIRST READING

 

FS 11/12-110/EX       ACADEMIC INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY STRATEGIC GOALS, ADOPTION OF

 

The Faculty Senate recommends University approval of the document titled “Academic Information Technology Strategic Goals” which includes:

 

a)      The “Role and Core Values” associated with the need for academic technology that supports excellence in teaching and learning and in the quality of the student experience.

b)      Goals that focus on the “Teaching, Learning and the Student Experience” (section I).

c)      Goals that focus on “Academic Priorities in the use of IT Resources”

(section II).

d)     The commitment to “Consultation and Collaboration in the Decisions Regarding Academic IT” (section III).

e)      The development of a strategic plan that specifies the process for the “Assessment and Evaluation” of progress towards meeting goals specified in sections I and II (section IV).

Attachment A – AIT Memo; Attachment A-1 – AIT Strategic Goals


FS 11/12-111/EX       ACADEMIC INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY STRATEGIC PLAN, REFERRAL TO AITC TO DEVELOP

 

The Faculty Senate charges the Senate’s Academic Information Technology Committee (AITC) to develop and bring to the Senate a recommended strategic planning process that will provide for:

 

a)      The ongoing assessment of the goals specified in Sections I, II and III of the “Academic Information Technology Goals” document,

b)      The modification of these goals, as needed, to reflect changes in technology and pedagogy, and

c)      Recommendations, as appropriate, towards achieving these goals.

 

FS 11/12-112/

GSPC/EX                  POLICY ON GRADUATE LEARNING GOALS/OBJECTIVES, ESTABLISHMENT OF

                                   

Background

 

Recently, the College of Engineering and Computer Science underwent a review of its graduate programs.  The first recommendation to the Faculty Senate by the program review team said, in part, that the Senate should “[c]larify and/or develop University graduate learning outcomes, and graduate assessment policies and procedures.  This recommendation was referred to the Graduate Studies Policies Committee (GSPC) on December 29, 2011.  A couple of years prior, GSPC had developed Graduate Learning Goals (GLGs) to be considered for adoption by the Faculty Senate, as a companion policy to the Baccalaureate Learning Goals adopted by the Senate, but the Executive Committee declined to forward them to the Senate for its consideration.

 

Purpose

 

Just as the Baccalaureate Learning Goals were adopted to guide and support undergraduate programs, Graduate Learning Goals can offer similar guidance and support.  In particular, GLGs can assist in program review, in the Instructional Program Priority (IPP) process, and in program improvement as units consider various means of better meeting student needs.

 

Rationale

 

When learning objectives have been discussed in relation to graduate programs in the past, the varied nature of the programs has been cited as a problem in writing common objectives across disciplines.  For example, a Master of Arts in Literature may not share many common objectives with a clinical Master of Science in a health related field.  With doctoral programs added into the mix, the variety is only greater.  However, it seems reasonable to suggest that each graduate program could define its own set of learning objectives, specific to the level of study and to the discipline, which are clearly more advanced in content than those defined for related undergraduate work.  For some programs, these might already be defined, at least in part, by external accrediting agencies.  Such defined objectives could also form the basis for assessment plans within graduate programs and offer foci for future academic program review teams.

 

Proposed Policy

 

The Faculty Senate recommends that graduate faculty be required to establish, for the programs in their purview, Graduate Learning Goals/Objectives, and assessment components associated with them, to be submitted to Academic Affairs within one full academic year of approval of this policy.  The Faculty Senate further recommends that in developing graduate learning goals/objectives, faculty may consult the information submitted in the Instructional Program Priorities (IPP) process, the Graduate Learning Goals recommended by the Graduate Studies Policies Committee (see attachment), and/or the Lumina Foundation Degree Qualifications Profile in framing their learning goals/objectives and assessment components.  (http://www.luminafoundation.org/publications/The_Degree_Qualifications_Profile.pdf) 

 

                                    Attachment B

 

 

SENATE SPRING SCHEDULE

 

The Faculty Senate meets routinely the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Thursday of each month, from 3:00-5:00 pm, in the Foothill Suite, University Union, unless notified otherwise

 

The Faculty Senate meets on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month, on an as needed basis.

 

The second Organizational Meeting of the 2012 – 2013 Senate, for election of next year’s Senate leadership, will occur on March 29. The 2012-2013 Senate will meet from 3:00 pm – 3:30 pm (approx.) and the 2011-2012 Senate will meet and continue with regular business immediately following adjournment of the 2012-2013 organizational meeting.