Agenda/Minutes‎ > ‎2006-2007‎ > ‎

2007 - 01/11

agenda status: approved

Agenda:

AGENDA
University Committee on Academic Policy
Meeting of Thursday, January 11, 2007
10:15 a.m., Administration Bldg. Board Room

    1. Approval of the Agenda
    2. Approval of Minutes of the December 14, 2006 Meeting.
    3. Comments from the Chairperson
    4. Comments from the Associate Provost
    5. “Admit When Ready”
      Guest: Tom Wolff, Associate Dean Engineering
    6. Request for change in admission requirements for the Construction Management Program
      Guests: Robert von Bernuth, Director Planning, Design and Construction
      Eunice Foster, Associate Dean College of Agriculture and Natural Resources..(Attachment)
    7. Religious Observance Policy Subcommittee...........(Revised proposal to be distributed at the meeting)
    8. Coalition on Intercollegiate Athletics......................................(Please bring materials from prior meeting - Attachment)
    9. Roundtable
    10. Next meeting agenda
      CLEP Committee Update
      Academic Integrity Committee
    Phone or e-mail Sandra Walther (353-5380; swalther@msu.edu) if you cannot be present. Please remember that you are asked to send a substitute from your college.

    Attachments: December 14, 2006 Minutes
    Request for change in admission requirements for the Construction Management Program



minutes status: approved

approved at meeting of 01/25/2007

UCAP Minutes for meeting held on 01/11/2007

University Committee on Academic Policy

Minutes of the Meeting: Thursday, January 11, 2007

Members Present: Dennis Banks, Renee Canady (Vice Chair, Presiding), Sekhar Chivukula, Peter Cobbett, Doug Estry (ex-officio), Richard Hallgren, Yen-Hwei Lin, Helen Mayer, Philip Moon, Tony Nunez, Ralph Putnam (Chair, attending by speaker phone), Daniel Roth, Brandon Sethi, Jon Sticklen, Colleen Tremonte, Bruce Vanden Bergh, Alexander von Eye, Connie Zheng, Keri Zolman.

Members Absent: Edmund Outslay, Paul Turner

Visitors: Tom Wolff (ENG Assoc Dean), Wendy Booth (ENG Data Specialist), Eunice Foster (CANR Assoc Dean), Robert von Bernuth (Director: Planning, Design & Construction)

Chairperson Putnam attended via conference phone call; Vice Chair Canady chaired the meeting. The meeting was called to order by Vice Chair Canady at 10:13 am in the Board Room, Administration Building.

Because visitors for Agenda Item 5 (“Admit when ready”) required time to set up for their presentation, the committee began considering Agenda Item 7 (Religious Observance Policy) after the Associate Provost’s comments, paused for consideration of Items 5 and 6, then concluded consideration of Item 7.

1. The agenda for the current meeting was approved.

2. The minutes from the meeting of December 14, 2006, were approved.

3. Comments from the Chairperson

      No comments.
4. Comments from the Associate Provost
      No comments.
5. Report on “Admit When Ready”
      Associate Dean Tom Wolff and Data Specialist Wendy Booth from the College of Engineering gave a presentation on the background and success of the Admit when Ready program, which was approved on a trial basis in 2004 with a report due back to UCAP in the fall of 2006. With this program, students are admitted to the College Engineering when they have completed admission prerequisites and attained the minimum GPA required for their intended major.

      Motion by Prof. von Eye:

          Based on results of a two-year trial period, UCAP recommends that the Admit When Ready program of the College of Engineering be made into a permanent program.
      The motion passed unanimously.
7. Religious Observance Policy
      The committee considered a draft proposal for policy on religious observance prepared by Chairperson Putnam following discussion of the policy at the December 14 UCAP meeting. Discussion ensued to sharpen the suggested policy language.

      Motion by Prof. Sticklen:

          The policy on student religious observance of Michigan State University is recommended as follows:

          It is the policy of the University to permit students to observe those holidays set aside by their chosen religious faith.

          Instructors must be sensitive to those who absent themselves from class in order to observe religious holidays. It is the responsibility of students who wish to be absent to make arrangements in advance with their instructors. In the absence of a simple and dignified way to determine the validity of individual claims, instructors generally should accept claims of religious conflict at face value. Instructors may expect a reasonable limit to the requested number of absences by any one student. If it is the practice of an instructor to cover reasons for student absences with a blanket practice, such as allowing the student to drop one grade or two quizzes without penalty, this practice does not apply to the university policy on religious observance. If instructors require make-up examinations, activities, or assignments, they retain the right to determine content and conditions of administration or completion, giving due consideration to equitable treatment.

          Hearing procedures for violations of the religious observance policy are those in place for the Code of Teaching Responsibility.

      The motion passed unanimously.

      Chairperson Putnam indicated the policy proposal would be sent to the Executive Committee of Academic Council, then on to Faculty Council and Academic Council for endorsement.

6. Request for change in admission requirements for the ConstructionManagement Program
      Robert von Bernuth (Director, Planning, Design and Construction) and Eunice Foster (Associate Dean, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources) addressed the committee concerning a request to change the admission requirements for admission as a junior to the Construction Management Program to require at grade of at least 2.0 in each of 5 courses (Memorandum from Linda Stanford, Associate Provost for Academic Services, November 27, 2006). Committee members asked a number of questions about the rationale for the proposed changed, including the relationship between performance in the targeted courses and key courses in the major, and the impact of these changes on students.

      Vice Chair Canady recommended that the proposal from the Construction Management Program be held pending receipt of additional information. The committee will consider Construction Management’s proposal upon receipt of additional information to justify the proposed changes and clarify their potential impact on students.

8. Coalition on Intercollegiate Athletics
      Dennis Banks, UCAP representative to the Athletic Council, noted that the Executive Committee requested a review on the issue of MSU participation in the Coalition on Intercollegiate Athletics (COIA)(memorandum from James Potchen, ECAC Chairperson, November 8, 2006).

      Prof. Banks reported from discussions with members of the Athletic Council that most of the recommendations of COIA are already in effect in the MSU Athletics Department.

      The main issue raised in discussion was that the issue of MSU participation in COIA goes beyond the University’s own athletics-related practices to our having a voice in the broader dialog about such national issues as the over commercialization of athletics.

      Motion by Prof. Sticklen:

          UCAP recommends that Michigan State University become a member of the Coalition for Intercollegiate Athletics.
      The motion passed unanimously.
9. Roundtable
      Ms. Zheng noted that the public meetings held for the candidates for Associate Provost have been set. She encouraged all UCAP members to participate in the public meetings.

      Prof. Banks reported that at the last meeting of Athletic Council the following topics were covered:


        The fall semester academic summary. This includes the semester and cumulative average GPA for all athletes and the number of individual athletes and teams that reached the benchmarks of 4.0 and 3.0 averages. The data also included averages for each team on a semester and cumulative bases and the average change from fall of 05 to the fall of 06.

        Data were presented and discussed on the graduation success rate for all Big 10 schools (including MSU). The rank (and percent graduation success rate) of schools in the Big Ten for each were presented for each team across the Big 10.

        MSU Athletic Training Nutritional Supplement Statement and Form. Athletes are now required to disclose all nutritional supplements taken (including multi-vitamins).

        A review of drug testing policy at several levels. The first was MSU specific, followed by Big 10 rules, NCAA rules and an attached letter from MSU Physicians that suggested ways that the Big 10 testing policy might be enhanced.


      Prof. Banks shared his appreciation of the commitment to academics within the Athletic Department at MSU, a sentiment shared generally by the membership.
      The meeting was adjourned at 11:50 am.
Minutes taken by Sticklen 01/11/07 and revised by Putnam 01/25/07
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