{"id":2606,"date":"2024-09-09T13:53:11","date_gmt":"2024-09-09T19:53:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/faculty-staff\/?p=2606"},"modified":"2024-09-09T13:54:35","modified_gmt":"2024-09-09T19:54:35","slug":"march-2024-minutes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/faculty-staff\/2024\/09\/09\/march-2024-minutes\/","title":{"rendered":"March 2024 Minutes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Minutes of the Faculty Senate<\/strong><\/p>\n

Regular meeting in Blanchard 204<\/strong><\/p>\n

March 14, 2024<\/strong><\/p>\n

Present: Senators Valenzuela, Logan, Faucett, Pfannenstiel, Oden, Lowther, Djiguimde, Al-Shami, White, Tucker, McLelland, Filburn, Greathouse, Karim, Nelson, Fanning, Samples<\/p>\n

Ex-officio and guests: David Rankin, David Lanoue, Sheryl Edwards, Donna Allen, Shawana Reed, Josh Kee, Kim Bloss, Jennifer Rowsam, Robin Sronce, Abdel Bachri, Connie Wilson, Marisa Grippo, Gerald Plumlee, Brian Logan, Karen Landry, Makenzi Hamilton, Tim Schroeder<\/p>\n

Call to order: 3:40 pm<\/p>\n

Reading of Proxies: Logan for Wise, Lowther for Coppersmith<\/p>\n

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  1. Approval of Minutes<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Minutes from February 15, 2024, were approved (motion \u2013 White, second \u2013 Nelson)<\/p>\n

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    1. Special Orders of the Day<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Reminder: At-large Faculty Senate elections to be completed by April 1st<\/sup>. College Senator nominations and elections will follow.<\/u><\/p>\n

      The at-large election will be done through email and completed by April 1st<\/sup>. Afterwards, each college will hold elections for open spots before the final faculty meeting on April 18th<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

      Remarks from Dr. David Rankin, Interim President of SAU<\/u><\/p>\n

      There are sixteen people on the search committee, and applications will begin to be considered on April 1st<\/sup>. There will likely be ten finalists interviewed by Zoom, with three finalists recommended to the Board of Trustees after that. The new president should help in the search for a new VPAA, so Dr. Sronce will serve as the interim provost after Dr. Lanoue leaves, with Dr. Plumlee serving as the interim dean during that time.<\/p>\n

      With Robbie Nash retiring, Kyle Newton will be promoted to director of the physical plant. Both Keith Labit and Laurie Burks will be promoted to associate directors.<\/p>\n

      A good case scenario would be losing only 50 undergraduate and 100 graduate students next year. The state appropriation will drop by just over $71,000 next year, which is better than most colleges in the state aside from University of Arkansas – Fayetteville. There is a battle going on with scholarships, and the budget is being looked at. Cost of living for faculty and staff is a high priority.<\/p>\n

      Repairs are being looked at on-campus. The buildings next to Highway 84 need to look first-class for those who drive through that area. The university will get new farm equipment, repurpose the aquatic center, and spend money on A\/V equipment.<\/p>\n

      Comments from Dr. David Lanoue, Provost and VPAA<\/u><\/p>\n

      Due to the eclipse, Dr. Lanoue suggested making April 8th<\/sup> an asynchronous day for instruction. After debate on issues involving potential exams and nursing students, the faculty senate voted unanimously to agree to with Dr. Lanoue\u2019s suggestion.<\/p>\n

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      1. Question for the Administration<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Dr. Lanoue answered questions for the administration, with input from Sheryl Edwards.<\/p>\n

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        1. Can faculty request software or hardware that is not on the approved list sent out by ITS? There are a number of academic and professional reasons why faculty members will need items not currently approved by ITS.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n