CHAIR TALK 2015-16 #1

Aug. 19, 2015

CHAIR TALK 2015-16 #1

Welcome back to faculty friends, welcome also to new colleagues. 

It may be pretty hot out there, but that won’t stop us from greeting thousands of new students as the 2015-2016 academic year begins.

My first Chair Talk message last year laid out a few goals: to engage greater participation in shared governance; to make the monthly Senate meetings relevant; to initiate discussions, and hopefully actions, around some of the central issues now facing the UA.  And, finally, to increase communication with and between faculty.  One year later I feel progress was made on all these goals, some more than others. 

Faculty governance is a great deal more than what the Chair says or does.  The three faculty officers (myself, Vice Chair Michael Brewer, Secretary Bobbi McKean) work together to help orchestrate the activity of Faculty Senate, Senate Standing Committees, and University Committees, amongst others.

Our most important accomplishments last year (we think):

  • Bringing Senate to the heart of campus, in Old Main, and increasing meaningful discussion during Senate meetings;
  • Fostering open communication with Chair Talk messages, and the creation of a vastly improved Faculty Governance website;
  • Revising the reorganization/merger guidelines and implementing this revision for the iSchool;
  • Inviting representatives from athletics and IT to Senate Executive, ensuring that current issues in these areas are on the faculty radar screen;
  • Revitalizing the NTT Ad Hoc committee, setting it up to take the next critical steps in improving the lot of NTT faculty.

Prompted by the discussion of Faculty Senators and friends at a year-end meeting last May, we have established some goals for the new year, and are open to suggestions for more.

  • Develop clear expectations for roles of Senate, and Senate committees, which should be proactive;
  • Conclude the work of Senate Ad Hoc groups formed in 2014/15
  • Continue the work of the NTT Ad Hoc committee;
  • Enhance the interactive features on our new website
  • Host a meeting of the PAC12 Academic Leadership Coalition

In my next message I’ll discuss specifics of our plans for Senate, and other shared governance activities.  For now, I wish you all an excellent start to the 2015-2016 academic year.

Lynn Nadel
Chair of the Faculty