The Academic Council met at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, November 1, 2000, in the Deans' Conference Room of Derryberry Hall with Dr. Gretta Stanger, Chairperson, presiding.

The following members of the Council were present:

Dr. Winston Walden
Dr. Virginia Moore
Dr. Marvin Barker
Dr. Jack Armistead
Dr. Don Elkins
Dr. Rebecca Quattlebaum
Prof. Rebecca Tolbert
Ms. Alicia Toline
Ms. Tara Neil
Mr. Clark Downum
Prof. Charlene Mullins
Dr. Bruce Greene
Dr. John Harris
Dr. Mark Stephens
Dr. Curtis Armstrong
Dr. Jann Cupp
Dr. Harry Smith
Dr. Roger Haggard
Dr. Linda Null
Prof. Ray Jordan
Dr. Katherine Osburn
Dr. Corinne Darvennes
Dr. Kurt Eisen
Dr. Brian O'Connor
Prof. Ken Hunter
Dr. Gretta Stanger

Also attending as resource persons were Dr. Srini Ramaswamy, Dr. Darrell Garber, and Dr. Gene Talbert.

The following members of the Council were absent:

Dr. Roy Loutzenheiser
Mr. Joseph Woodson
Dr. Jeff Roberts
Dr. Ed Griggs
Prof. Darlene Franklin
Prof. Gloria Russell

SUMMARY OF PROCEEDINGS

1. Approved the agenda.

2. Approved the minutes of the October 11 meeting as corrected.

4. Approved a recommendation from the Admissions and Credits Committee to revise the catalog under the heading of "Academic Dismissal."

5. Approved a change in the student teaching requirements to require students to pass the Praxis II examinations prior to student teaching.

6. Approved the appointment of a subcommittee to study the preparation of graduation materials.

7. Received copies of the new Vision Statement.

8. Endorsed a proposal for the establishment of a School of Interdisciplinary Studies and Extended Education.

PROCEEDINGS

Professor Hunter MOVED approval of the agenda, and Professor Tolbert SECONDED the motion. Dr. Stanger said the agenda was revised prior to the meeting to include a change in the requirements for student teaching as Item No. 5. Under Such Other Matters, Dr. Stanger said she would add the announcement of the appointment of a subcommittee, and Dr. Barker will have an item also. The agenda was APPROVED as revised.

Approval of the Minutes of the October 11 Meeting

Dr. Smith MOVED approval of the minutes of the October 11 meeting as posted on the Academic Council website, and Dr. Osburn SECONDED the motion. Dr. Stanger noted that under the Summary of Proceedings, Item No. 7 should read "Received an Update on the Regents Degrees." On page 3 of the minutes, it should be noted that the Master of Music proposal will be forwarded to the University Assembly, not the Administrative Council. The minutes were APPROVED as corrected.

Master of Computer Science Proposal

Dr. Srini Ramaswamy, Interim Chairperson of the Department of Computer Science, introduced the proposal for a Master of Science in Computer Science. Dr. Null MOVED approval of the proposal, and Professor Hunter SECONDED the motion.

Dr. Ramaswamy cited reasons for proposing this degree as student need and the recruitment of new faculty. Such a program would help graduate students in other departments also. The stated proposed salary for a new faculty member would be required whether or not this proposal is approved and should not be a factor in the decision. Professor Hunter pointed out that this program fits well with the goals in the new vision statement. The proposal was APPROVED by a unanimous vote.

Referrals from the Admissions and Credits Committee

As an informational item, Professor Tolbert reported that the Admissions and Credits Committee approved removing the following statement from the 2000 Undergraduate Catalog under Physical Education, Marching Band, and Military Science: "Once enrolled, a student may not drop a required physical education course." This statement was probably added when the P.E. requirement was 6 quarter hours, but it is no longer needed.

Professor Tolbert said academic dismissal, which requires students to stay out of school for four years, was put back into place at the same time we initiated "Academic Fresh Start." The Admissions and Credits Committee is finding that many of our academic dismissal students have 90 or more hours at Tennessee Tech and should not have to be out for four years, and they are not candidates for "Academic Fresh Start." Professor Tolbert said the Admissions and Credits Committee recommends replacing this statement on pages 49-50 of the catalog: "If a student is suspended a third time, the student is dismissed. Dismissal is automatic denial for readmission to the University for a period of at least four years." The Committee would replace the above statement with the following:

If a student is suspended a third time, the student remains out of school for two calendar years. The student may wish to enroll at a community college and earn an associate's degree. A student may wish to remain out of school for four calendar years and then apply for "Academic Fresh Start": This is an opportunity to start your academic career over.

Professor Tolbert MOVED approval of the Admissions and Credits Committee's recommendation, and Professor Hunter SECONDED the motion.

To improve the wording of the recommendation, Dr. O'Connor offered the following as a SUBSTITUTE MOTION. Professor Tolbert, the Mover, and the Seconder agreed to the following new wording since the meaning was not changed:

If a student is suspended a third time, the student will be denied enrollment in the University for a period of two calendar years. The student may wish to enroll at a community college during that time. If a student remains out of school for four years, the student is eligible to apply for "Academic Fresh Start," which allows the student to begin a brand new academic career.

The Council voted unanimously to APPROVE making the substitute motion the main motion. The vote on the main motion to change the section on "Academic Dismissal" in the catalog was APPROVED by a unanimous vote.

Change in Requirements for Student Teaching

In presenting the request from the College of Education to change the requirements for student teaching, Dr. Gene Talbert said the federal government is now requiring schools to publish their pass/fail rates on the Praxis II examinations as one of the indicators of the quality of teaching preparation programs. Because TTU currently requires that all students take the Praxis II examinations, not that they pass the tests, prior to graduation, our rates will be lower than those schools that require students to pass the tests prior to student teaching. The pass/fail rates would look especially bad when reported by quartiles. Approval of this recommendation would change the requirement from a student taking the test prior to graduation to passing the test prior to student teaching, and thus prior to completing the program. The change would go into effect for those who will be student teaching in the Fall 2001 term.

Dr. Moore MOVED approval of the recommendation, and Professor Tolbert SECONDED the motion. Dr. Null suggested that the English Qualifying Exam also be required prior to student teaching, and Dr. Talbert responded that it is required but sometimes transfer students run into problems. The motion was APPROVED by a unanimous vote.

Such Other Matters

Appointment of a Subcommittee

Dr. Stanger reported that she had appointed a subcommittee composed of Brian O'Connor, chairperson; Gloria Russell; Roy Loutzenheiser; Joseph Woodson, student; Jann Cupp; Curtis Armstrong; Charlene Mullins; Yvonne Gribble, Assistant Director of Records and Registration; Denise Hensley, undergraduate graduation office; and Sheila Kendrick, Graduate School office. This subcommittee will study the preparation of graduation materials.

Distribution of the Vision Statement

Professor Hunter distributed copies of the Vision Statement for those who needed it. The Statement was previously distributed to the Faculty Senate and to the academic deans in the Deans Council. This statement does not require approval of any body but is a vision of where this president wants to lead the campus. The committee was advisory to the President to generate ideas about where we want to go, and much of it is based on the vision committee appointed by President Volpe, so there has been a lot of faculty input into the Statement.

School of Interdisciplinary Studies and Extended Education

Dr. Barker said he was seeking the endorsement for a new academic administrative unit called the School of Interdisciplinary Studies and Extended Education. It would be a mechanism for different academic units to come together to develop quality baccalaureate degree programs to respond quickly to an educational need without going through a lot of bureaucracy. The programs would still be routed through the Curriculum Committee and the Academic Council.

Dr. Barker read from the tenure policy the requirement about faculty involvement in the creation of a new academic unit. Since the last meeting of the Council when this idea was discussed, Dr. Barker said he has spoken with the Faculty Senate, the Deans Council, faculty involved with the Web CT program, the campus administrative structure, and several small faculty groups. The response has been positive and enthusiastic with nothing negative. Dr. Barker said although approval is not required by the tenure policy, he would appreciate the Council's endorsement. He then MOVED that the Academic Council endorse the proposal for the establishment of a School of Interdisciplinary Studies and Extended Education. Professor Hunter SECONDED the motion.

Dr. Barker clarified that there will be a director, who will probably be Dr. Susan Elkins, Director of Extended Education, but no new permanent faculty. No new facilities or support staff will be needed. The Regents degrees will not be housed in the School, nor would World Cultures in Business move to the School. Professor Tolbert noted that the Curriculum Committee had also indicated consensus support. Dr. Eisen said the School fits very well with the Vision Statement. Dr. Barker said he does not want to change our existing traditional, very successful, structure; this school would be an adjunct to the current structure. The motion PASSED by a unanimous vote.

Adjournment

The meeting was ADJOURNED at 4:10 p.m.

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Pat Gilbreath
Recorder