The Academic Council met at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, September 3, 2003, in the Deans' Conference Room of Derryberry Hall with Jann Cupp, Chairperson, presiding. Dr. Cupp introduced the new members of the Council who were present: Ben Hickok, Tony Baker, and Joe Biernacki. Dr. Armistead introduced Dr. Elwood Watson, historian and Geier visiting professor from ETSU, who is on our campus this semester
The following members of the Council were present:
Prof. Rebecca Tolbert
Dr. Roy Loutzenheiser
Dr. Donald Elkins
Dr. Jack Armistead
Dr. Darrell Garber
Mr. Ben Hickok
Dr. John Harris
Dr. Sharon Whitney
Dr. Mark Stephens
Dr. Christine Miller
Dr. Jann Cupp
Dr. David Larimore
Dr. Joseph Biernacki
Dr. P. K. Rajan
Prof. Gail Stearman
Prof. Tara Watson
Dr. Tony Baker
Dr. Linda Null
Prof. Ray Jordan
Dr. Jeff Roberts
Dr. Brian O'Connor
Dr. Corinne Darvennes
Dr. Gretta Stanger
Prof. Ken Hunter
Also attending as resource persons were Ms.Yvonne Gribble and Dr. Francis Otuonye.
The following members of the Council were absent:
Dr. Robert Niebuhr
Dr. Winston Walden
Dr. Susan Elkins
Mr. Nathan Wilds
Ms. Carie Harrington
Ms. Casey Couch
Dr. Ben Byler
Dr. Cathy Cunningham
SUMMARY OF PROCEEDINGS
1. Approved the agenda.
2. Approved the minutes of the April 9 meeting as posted on the web site.
3. Discussed "TTU 2015."4. Discussed the TBR Common Calendar.
PROCEEDINGS
Approval of the Agenda
Professor Hunter MOVED approval of the agenda, and Professor Tolbert SECONDED the motion. The agenda was APPROVED.
Approval of the Minutes of the April 9 MeetingDr. Loutzenheiser MOVED approval of the minutes of the April 9 meeting as posted on the Academic Council web site, and Dr. Don Elkins SECONDED the motion. The minutes were APPROVED as posted.
Clarification of Issue of Listing Minors on TranscriptsDr. O'Connor asked about the informational item on the agenda regarding listing minors on transcripts. Professor Tolbert said our current transcript software does not allow us to list minors, and it could be another two years before we can do this. The Chair stated that this issue could be brought up again later if anyone wished to put it on the agenda for a Council meeting.
TTU 2015
Professor Tolbert presented the 15 Key Success Areas of the President's "TTU 2015" vision statement. President Bell has asked that everyone across campus discuss these items and make suggestions and comments that will be used by a small committee to refine and finalize the statement. To a question about enrollments, Professor Tolbert said that 10,000-12,000 is a realistic goal, and she pointed out that not all of these students would be on campus. Dr. Darvennes objected to the use of the word "notable" to describe research and suggested "excellent" instead. Professor Tolbert said "regional" describes the greater 22-county Upper Cumberland area. Responding to a question about what kind of new faculty would be hired to be consistent with "TTU 2015," Professor Tolbert said that unless a faculty member is hired in a research area, his/her first obligation is to be a good teacher.Common Calendar
Professor Tolbert presented the TBR common calendar that was distributed with the agenda, and she said that TBR mandated that we would have a system-wide common calendar and set Fall Semester 2004 as the deadline for implementation by the campuses. She noted that everything is about a week later on the common calendar than what we are currently doing. There is a window for establishing the date when classes will end, and a subcommittee will be appointed to work out the details of the calendar for this campus. This committee should be able to report to the Academic Council at its November meeting. Professor Tolbert said that she would ask that no exams be scheduled the Friday before commencement, because it is asking too much of staff members to process the paper work so quickly.. The Council discussed several aspects of the calendar, including the possibility of beginning classes before 8 a.m.
Such Other Matters
Dr. Null reported that on Monday the Faculty Senate would be discussing the proposed changes to the TBR Tenure and Promotion policy, copies of which were sent to all faculty. TTU's response to TBR is due on September 25, and input is being solicited from all over campus. The Deans Council has discussed the document, and Dr. Cupp said that a special meeting of the Academic Council could be called if necessary after the Faculty Senate has reviewed the policy.
Dr. O'Connor asked questions about who will teach University 1020. Professor Tolbert responded that this year we have only 12 sections because of budget cuts, but it would require about 75 sections of 20 students each to teach all freshmen, and instructors would be faculty, administrators, and adjuncts-anyone who is qualified and wants to teach the course.
Dr. Miller said the Accounting Department is having a problem with transfer students being unprepared. This problem is especially true of those who have taken RODP accounting courses, and the department has been unable to find out on the web what the course content is. Professor Tolbert said if a department is having a problem, Dr. Barker might be able to get help from the RODP administrators at TBR.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 3:45 p.m.
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Pat Gilbreath, Recorder