Faculty Senate - September 2024 Minutes

*Proxy for Dr. Vicki Dillard
**Proxy for Dr. Rodney Fisher

Call to Order: 3:32 PM

Housekeeping:

• Approval of Agenda - Dr. Case motioned, and Dr. Young seconded. All approved.
• Approval of Minutes - Dr. Slavens motioned, and Dr. Colmenares Diaz seconded. All approved.

Current Business/Information Sharing:

1. Welcome New senator & Representative - Dr. Capps
   • New and existing senators were introduced.

New Business:

1. Piper Award & Faculty Award Nominations
   • Dr. Capps called for nominations for the Piper Award, and Dr. Stiles, the most recent recipient, offered to help nominees with packets. Nominators should identify nominees so that packets can be completed. Dr. Capps called for nominees for the Faculty Award by October 1st. Dr. Capps has heard from PY and Education, but other colleges still need nominees.

Unfinished Business:

1. Committee Appointments  - Dr. Capps
   • Dr. Capps provided the QR code for the electronic ballot, provided by Dr. Case. Dr. Case indicated that votes should be cast for one candidate, even those that have two positions open. Dr. Case asked that votes be submitted by end of day, and he will share results promptly.
2. Classroom Incident  - Dr. Capps
   • Dr. Capps explained an incident in Dr. Maxwell’s class in which a student said that another student who left in the middle of class threatened them with a knife. When Dr. Maxwell attempted to report it to campus police, the officers said that the police representative indicated that they were too busy and they should come back later.
   • The incident was reported to the Provost, and Dr. Maxwell believes that the Provost will address the issue of the police response. Dr. Henschel provided her account of the aftermath of the incident. Faculty indicates that a Title IX report should be filed as well. Dr. Case said that Laura Hetrick has provided more immediate and helpful responses than other offices in similar or related incidents. Dr. Capps said that the executive committee will discuss it with Dr. Haynie in the next monthly meeting. Dr. Case indicated that Gunn College will do an Active Shooter Drill on Nov. 15th with the support of experts.
   • Additional notes about the incident: The identity of the student who made the threat was not known. Mr. Peters explained that SGA’s Safety Walk with the police department illustrated that they are understaffed and that their requirements may mean that they are not always available to deal with incidents at the moment they occur.
   • Dr. Lei asked if there is an incident involving violence in the classroom, what the faculty member should do. Drs. Capps, Case, and Judie indicated that your first priority should be to ensure your own safety and then to call police. Dr. Henschel suggested that we ask the Provost to send out campus-wide guidance on safety protocols for threats of violence. Dr. Lei asked if procedures or rules are in place about how faculty should deal with such incidents. Dr. Capps is not aware of any such rules but referred to our annual training videos. Dr. Henschel suggested that information be posted in classrooms offering guidance. Dr. Case asked if the door “night lock” feature is provided in all classrooms. Dr. Vandehey pointed out a poster in the meeting room that advises the “Run, Hide, Fight” protocol. Dr. Karundapuram asked to whom the campus police are accountable. Dr. Capps said that the chief of police used to report to the VP of Administration and Finance/CFO, which is currently occupied by the President. Dr. Vandehey asked if we still have the Behavioral Intervention Team, and Dr. Case said that the name has changed and procedures may have as well. Dr. Judie updated that the chief of police reports to the Dean of Students and then VP of Student Affairs.

Committee and Other Reports: None

1. Academic Council - Dr. Dawn Slavens
   No report. Has not met.
2. Administrative Council - Dr. Matthew Capps
   No report. Has not met.
3. Allocation Advisory Council - Dr. Matthew Capps
   No report. Has not met.
4. Athletics Council - Dr. Catharine Garahan
5. Budget Oversight Committee - Dr. Bev Stiles
   No report. Has not met.
6. Enrollment Management Council - Representative TBD by vote
   No report. Has not met.
7. Leadership Advisory Council - (Unlisted)
   No report. Has not met.
8. Student Affairs Council - Dr. Randy Case
   
   • Dr. Case attended and they talked about Family Weekend and Enrollment updates.
     1. Enrollment of FTFT is at 916, retention is increased, but enrollment is down because of the discontinued dual credit relationship with Founder’s Academy. Current total enrollment at 5200.
     2. Family Weekend is October 7-8. Dr. Case indicated that Sikes Lake is not a good representation of our campus and more in-depth cleanup is needed. Dr. Masuoka explained that some renovation is needed to address recurring issues.
9. University Celebration of Scholarship - Dr. Darla Diltz
   No report. Has not met.
10. Other Committee Reports - None

Meeting adjourned at 4:10 pm. Dr. Capps made a motion to adjourn, and everyone seconded.
The motion to adjourn passed unanimously.

Submitted,
Hillary Coenen, Faculty Senate Secretary
Matthew Capps, Faculty Senate Chair

Next Meetings:
The next Executive Committee meeting will be at 3:30 PM on Oct 3 via Zoom.
The next Faculty Senate meeting will be at 3:30 PM on Oct 10 in Bridwell Hall 204.