Faculty Council
Wednesday, February
9, 2005, 12:00 p.m.
Cohen House, Esther
M. Cohen Dining Room
Present: Ed Akin, Jose Aranda,
John Casbarian, Vicki Colvin, Marj Corcoran, Rebekah Drezek, Lynne Huffer
(Speaker), Nancy Niedzielski, Bob Patten (Deputy Speaker), Caroline Quenemoen,
Patricia Reiff, and Herb Ward. Absent: Steve Crowell, Donald Morrison, Matteo
Pasquali, and Mark Wiesner. Guests: Bill Wilson.
(1) Minutes: The minutes were
approved from the January 26, 2005 business meeting.
(2) Report from Undergraduate
Curriculum Committee: Bill Wilson, Committee Chair, presented issues currently
being addressed by the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee. The first topic
discussed was the English competency exam that is administered to incoming
students. Deficiencies identified
with the current process include:
a) Exam is administered
during O-week without adequate emphasis communicated by Student Advisors as to
the importance and consequences of the exam.
b) Social activities and
student acclimation during O-week hinder academic and intellectual performance
on exam.
c) Administrative problems
including limited classroom and staff resources and inconsistency in grading
and scoring create a burden on the English department.
d) Students who fail the
exam are required to take a remedial English class without the opportunity to
retake the exam, appeal the decision, or place out of the class after mastering
the necessary skills.
e) The same exam is used as
a graduation requirement, which enables some students to skip the exam their
incoming year and postpone it until right before graduation.
After detailed
discussions, recommendations for future action included:
a) Speaker to discuss the
English competency exam with the Provost and the President.
b) Undergraduate Curriculum
Committee to speak with the Dean of Undergraduates.
c) Help make the Rice
Community aware of the need to increase the commitment to writing in the
curriculum.
d) Continue evaluations of
other models and competency exams.
Wilson wrapped up his
presentation by informing Faculty Council that the Undergraduate Curriculum
Committee has been approved to serve as the avenue to resolve any disputes
regarding distribution course substitutions.
(3) Transition Issues
for Governance Reform:
The second vote on the
two governance reform proposals is scheduled for Monday, February 28,
2005. Provided that these
proposals pass, Faculty Council will be required to address transition issues
pertaining to the new P&T and Senate structure. Faculty Council will be creating an ad hoc committee that
will work with the election sub-committee to concentrate on transition
items. A recommendation was made
to add a discussion of the transition plan to the General Faculty Meeting
scheduled for March 16, 2005.
(4) Report from
Faculty Council Sub Committees:
Each committee is
requested to make a brief presentation summarizing the work of their
sub-committee at one of the remaining Faculty Council business meetings. Each Committee Chair will work with the
Executive Assistant to schedule time on the upcoming agendas.
(5) Adjournment: The meeting was
adjourned at 1:15 p.m., with the next Faculty Council business meeting
scheduled for February 22, 2005.
Sarah Holloman
Executive Assistant