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2011 - 04/14

UCAP Meeting of 04/14/2011

2010-2011



agenda status: approved

Agenda:

University Committee on Academic Policy
AGENDA
Thursday, April 14, 2011
10:15 A.M. to 12:00 P.M.
Board Room Administration Building


    1. Approval of the Agenda


    2. Approval of the Minutes of March 31, 2011


    3. Comments from the Vice Chairperson


    4. Comments from the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education


    5. Anti-Discrimination Policy Working Group Recommendations – Fred Fico .........(Attachment)


    6. Request to Accept DANTES Subject Standardized Tests – Action Item .........(Attachment)
      Nicole Rovig, University Registrar


    7. University Research Organization (URO) Volunteer – Doug Estry


    8. Roundtable

Phone or e-mail Diana J. Stetson (355-1528; stetsonD@msu.edu) if you cannot be present. Please remember that you are asked to send a substitute from your college if you cannot attend

minutes status: approved

approved at meeting of 04/28/2011

UCAP Minutes for meeting held on 04/14/2011

University Committee on Academic Policy
Minutes
Thursday, April 14, 2011
10:15 AM to 12:00 PM
Board Room, 4th Floor, Administration Building

Attendees: Paul Abramson, Crystal Branta, Janice Brady, Lisa Cook, Laura Dillon, Doug Estry, Anita Ezzo, Fred Fico, Kathleen Hoag, Evan Martinak, Matt McKeon, Ryan Sweeder, Mary Noel, Helene Pazak, Ron Perry, Chris Scales, Mitchell Treadwell

Not attending: Miles Armaly, Gillian Bice, Tom Morse, Justin O’Dell, John Reifenberg, Mike Shields, Chris Schuster

The following motion passed unanimously:
      The secretary for the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education shall attend Committee meetings and prepare minutes for review and approval by committee membership.
The Agenda was approved.

Minutes of March 31 meeting were approved.

Comments from Vice Chair
Vice Chair Scales reported on the most recent ECAC meeting at which there was consensus that the Course Repeat Policy should move forward. The Provost indicated that he would consider the recommendation but had some concerns about the impact on courses with limited enrollments and current systems ability to manage prioritized student enrollment. ECAC also unanimously recommended to the Provost that the online SIRS process be implemented as recommended by UCAP.

Dr. Scales reminded committee members that the April 28 meeting would be the last of the academic year. Incoming members are invited to attend the April 28 meeting and officers for 2011-12 will be elected. He noted that effective fall 2011, the University Committee on Academic Policy will be renamed University Committee on Undergraduate Studies (UCUS).

Comments from the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education
There were no comments from the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education.

Anti-Discrimination Policy Working Group Recommendations
Fred Fico, Member, Anti-Discrimination Policy Working Group

The Academic Council initiated the Anti-Discrimination Policy Working Group, composed of members from various governance bodies, which was charged to review the University Policy on Sexual Harassment, the MSU Anti-Discrimination Policy (ADP), and an ADP user’s manual that has been developed. The Working Group’s recommendations were forwarded to UCAP by Academic Council for feedback.

The Working Group recommended the following revisions:

    1. Clarification of the body mandated to investigate alleged ADP violations.

    2. Separation of the investigative function of the Office for Inclusion and Intercultural Initiatives from other activities conducted by that body.

    3. Institution of a three‐part investigative procedure, modeled by the Research Integrity Office.

    4. Clarification of rights of those investigated, including rights to appropriate representation and documentation and recording of testimony.

    5. Accountability of the ADP investigative body, including published annual reports to the university community and appropriate university administration and faculty.

    6. Modifications of the proposed ADP User’s Guide to enhance explanation of First Amendment protections and to remove examples of bias.


After committee discussion a motion by Laura Dillon passed unanimously.
      The University Committee on Academic Policy endorses the recommendations for revision of the MSU Anti-Discrimination Policy investigative procedures made by the Anti-Discrimination Policy Working Group with the following specific concerns:

        1. Indicate clear timelines for action, using as a model the procedures of the Research Integrity Office practices. (http://rio.msu.edu/June_2009_Procedures.pdf)

        2. In Item 6, change “remove” to “revise” regarding partisan examples of bias.


University Research Organization (URO) Volunteer
Associate Provost Estry informed the committee that the University is considering a University Research Organization. There are occasions in which faculty would be interested in or are doing research that precludes the ability to openly share/disseminate results as is the standard practice among all university scholars. This would include such things as work being done related to issues of national security. The Provost has indicated that the details of URO will be part of a larger University discussion and he urged members to become part of the campus conversation on this issue.

Request to Accept DANTES Subject Standardized Tests
Nicole Rovig, University Registrar

Dr. Rovig stated that incoming students occasionally ask that MSU recognize DANTES, a standardized testing organization similar to AP, scores as we do others. The Office of the Registrar requests that the university recognize DANTES credit as acceptable for graduation. As in the case of other standardized testing, the decision to recognize credits is the purview of the units/faculty. It is also the unit/faculty that determines the scores that are acceptable. Faculty reserve the right to change the scores acceptable based on evidence collected over time.

After discussion, a motion by Laura Dillon failed to pass

      The University Committee on Academic Policy accepts the DANTES standardized tests language for addition to the Academic Programs catalog with the recommendation that “if approved” is added.
Consensus of committee discussion after the motion failed to pass was that the language be accepted as is, under the condition that one or more units indicate they will accept DANTES transfer credits.

Motion by Evan Martinak passed unanimously.
      The University Committee on Academic Policy approves the inclusion of DANTES standardized tests in the Academic Programs catalog contingent upon one or more units accepting DANTES transfer credits.


After Roundtable, the meeting was adjourned.

Respectfully submitted by
Sandra Walther