Attending: Brockmann, Rossi (for Pelesko), Sloane-White, Kaminski, Weber, Noble-Harvey, Case, Brueckner, Busch, Levia, Bernstein, Bruening, Burton, Hanley, Hicks, Rasmussen, Rise, Davis, Ussery, Wilson

Absent: Jianguo Chen, Steve Mortenson, Ikem Okoye, Stan Owocki, Antonio Randolph, Doug Ridge, Carlisle Skeen, Fritz Szabo, Ann Towns

Excused: Sharon Neal, Michael Rosenberg, Andrea Barrier

Guest: Lauren Peterson, Jill Neitzel, Dave Barlow

 

1.  Meeting called to order at 3:30 by John Brockmann.  Agenda approved.  Minutes from Oct meeting approved.

2. Dean Apple gave an overview of Responsibility Based Budgeting and its relation to the college.  Endowments have dropped from 1.4 billion to less than 1 billion now.  The university took an 18 million dollar cut in state funds this year.  With this bleak economic future, UD has put a freeze on all professional and salaried staff hiring.  As noted in the strategic plan, both for the college and UD, faculty hires will continue in order for UD to continue on its path to prominence. Dean Apple explained what revenue algorithms stand for in RBB and restricted and unrestricted funds and noted we will be in competition with other colleges for funding. Those areas getting subvention funding will be the most likely cut due to the 18 million in cut state funds. The grad tuition policy under RBB says we won’t pay any grad tuition. Departments are currently not paying any of this under their own funding. The Dean’s office will now pay departments $.75 back on every $1.00 of graduate tuition under RBB. Indirect cost recovery; we will get most of that back. CAS counts for about 34% of all indirect costs brought in. It should also be noted that under the new RBB, we will now be paying for all support services that were not charged for previously.    More information will be given to the group as the budgets are worked out over the next few months and after the Chairs and Directors retreat in February.

3. Ed Affairs: Tony Seraphin went over items up for a vote.
Prof. Levia (GEOG) commented on the ANTH certificate proposals, noting that there are several Geography courses listed that are no longer being offered by them. Karen Rosenberg, Chair of the Anthropology, noted they would be removed from the document. A vote followed with the approval of the certificate proposals. (16 approved, 4 abstention, none opposed)

A vote was taken on the remainder of the proposals on the agenda and they were approved. (19 approved, 1 abstention)

There was discussion about the breadth requirement document and why they are listing a C- as the minimum grade instead of a D-. Dean Apple and Tony Seraphin both noted that we need to raise the standard of education at UD and that we are not doing justice to the students by allowing them to get lower than a C- to pass a course. Students must have a 1.27 GPA (C-) to graduate from the University of Delaware. It was also noted that you can count breadth requirements as requirements for other majors/minors. The minimal amount of breadth requirements is now 12 and a lab is not required.

The meeting was adjourned at 4:45 p.m.

Respectfully submitted by Mary Cleveland (acting secretary)