Present: Hadi Esfahani, Harry Hilton, Richard Laugesen, David O’Brien, Robert Parker, Bruce Rosenstock, Daniel Steward, Leslie Struble, Carol Symes, H. F. Williamson.
The meeting began at about 12:31 p.m. with O’Brien presiding.
- Introductions. Introductions were not needed.
- Review of the Minutes for March 11, 2021 Meeting of Policy Committee. The minutes were approved with the correction of the spelling of Andrew V. Suarez in item (6)(a).
- President’s Report
- Tenure and Promotion Workshop. This will be discussed later in the meeting. He noted that it was an enormous success.
- Zoom Censorship. He reviewed the discussion of this issue that occurred at the meeting with President Killeen, Associate Vice President Barbara Wilson, and Trustee Don Edwards. Wilson has followed up on the concerns noted about possible censorship by Zoom. Wilson recommended we arrange a meeting with representatives of the Provost’s Office, the Legal Department, and the interim CIO.
- Tenure and Academic Freedom Articles. He thanked Parker for his work on providing the links of interest which were “abundant” this month.
- Schedule for Spring Meetings. O’Brien noted the dates of the remaining meeting this spring.
- Policy Committee Meetings: at 12:30 p.m. May 6 (first Thursday, this is Reading Day)
- Annual Meeting: Tuesday, May 11, 2021
Action Items
- Promotion and Tenure Workshop: Thursday, April 1, 2021
- Review. O’Brien congratulated Hilton on having organized our most successful workshop with a record attendance. He noted that there was an increase in the focus on the promotion from Associate Professor to Full Professor compared to previous workshops. There was a discussion of whether we should use the Zoom format for all workshops. The participants seemed more comfortable in this format in participating in the questions and discussion. He noted that the workshop was recorded and that we were checking on the procedures to use regarding the recording.
- Resolutions Thanking Panelists. A motion was made and passed to have O’Brien send a note to each panelist thanking them for their participation as a follow up the email that Hilton had sent them. A second motion was made and passed to have O’Brien send a note to Harry Hilton “expressing our appreciation for his long-time leadership in arranging the Workshop so well. He had done an amazing job in making this event so successful.”
- Proposed Schedule of Fall Meetings: Williamson presented the proposed schedule for meetings of the Policy Committee next fall assuming we will again meet at 12:30 p.m. on an early Thursday each month. The dates might change if we return to in-person meetings depending on the availability of rooms at the Illini Union. The final decision on the schedule will be made at the May 6 meeting of the Policy Committee.
- Thursday, September 9 (2nd Thursday); instruction begins August 23; Labor Day is Sept. 6.
- Thursday, October 7 (2nd Thursday)
- Thursday, November 11 (2nd Thursday)
- Thursday, December 9 (2nd Thursday); Reading Day is also December 9
- Planning for Annual Meeting: Tuesday, May 11, 2021 at 3:30 p.m.
- Speakers: The speakers will be Professor Esfahani, Vice Provost Bernhard, and Professor Murav in that order. It was suggested that each speaker have 12 minutes.
- Program: There was a lengthy discussion of the nature of the program. Some of the topics to be covered would be how the report was prepared; the changes (past and future) in shared governance policies on campus resulting from the report; and how shared governance can work effectively. O’Brien will supervise generating a list for the speakers of the questions that we feel might be addressed. Rosenstock led a discussion of the differences between the Departments organized with Heads who are appointed without specified term and those organized with Chairs who are appointed annually. This included comments on a revision the Senate will be considering in the sections of the Statutes covering Departments and their structures whose purpose is to “provide an opportunity to strengthen shared governance and promote diverse representation.”
- Business Meeting: There was nothing new regarding preparations for the business meeting. Final plans will be covered at the May 6 meeting of the Policy Committee.
- Set up: O’Brien will supervise the preparation of the site for electronic attendance. Potential attendees will be referred to the Chapter website for finding the link.
- Publicity: The publicity will include placing the program on the web site and in emails to Chapter members. It will include a link to the report and the suggestion that attendees read it prior to the meeting. We will check with the Provost’s office about whether they will help publicize the event as they did for the Workshop. An entry will be placed in the May 2nd Eweek.
- Adjournment. There were no reports so the meeting adjourned at about 1:36 p.m.
As noted above, the next Policy Committee meeting will be at 12:30 p.m. on May 6, 2021 and the Annual Meeting will be May 11, 2021.