Statewide Academic Senate Report by Steven Stepanek November 2006 Plenary

Statewide Academic Senate Report by Steven Stepanek – November 2006 Plenary

Resolutions Passed: 1. Laboratory Science Requirement for Freshman Admission – recommends changes to align CSU admissions with the UC requirements; two years of lab science from category “d” (physics, chemistry, biology) 2. Fulfilling the Principles of Cornerstones in the New Strategic Plan – calls for CSU to complete original Cornerstones principles 4, 6 and 8 on adequate support for faculty, graduate programs and infrastructure 3. Advocating for Additional Funding for CSU Budget Challenges and Unmet Needs – urges the Chancellor and Board of Trustees to advocate for additional state funding 4. Monitoring and Supporting Progress in the Implementation of ACR (Assembly Concurrent Resolution) 73 – urges the Chancellor and Board of Trustees to advocate for additional State funding to increase the percentage of tenured and tenure-track faculty in the CSU to 75% 5. Supporting Academic Freedom for CSU International Exchange and Study- Abroad Programs – calls for maintaining the academic freedom of the faculty to develop and implement international exchange and study-abroad programs

Resolutions Presented for Discussion: 1. Resource Needs for High Quality Independent Ed.D. Programs in the CSU – urges the Chancellor to support funding of resources to support Ed.D. programs including interlibrary resources, campuses to use Ed.D. fee revenue to augment the funding of resources for Ed.D. programs, and campuses to augment the funding of required library resources for Ed.D. programs 2. A Student Fee Policy That Supports Educational Outcomes – requests the Chancellor’s Office study the CSU Student Fee Policy to determine if changes would facilitate graduation efforts; current fee policy defines two fee levels: 0-6 units and 7+ units 3. Principles to Guide the Application of the TCSU Numbering System for CSU Systemwide Articulation – TCSU courses that are part of LDTPs should still transfer even if a student does not complete the entire LDTP; provides a mechanism for campus challenges of individual TCSU articulations and a challenge appeal process 4. Response to SB 1543 (Alarcon): High School Curriculum; High School Coursework Requirements – urges the Chancellor’s Office to establish a systemwide faculty task force to address issues raised by SB 1543 related to Career technical Education courses as a-g general electives for purposes of admission to the CSU 5. Support of the a-g Curriculum as California’s Primary High School Graduation Course Requirements – encourages high schools to prepare students for entry into college; strength of wording was critical discussion point 6. Library Resource Needs For All Undergraduate and Graduate Programs – urges the Chancellor and campus presidents to seek funding to restore and improve library collections, improve student-library ratios, and address the challenge of improving information competency 7. Recognition of Faculty Service in Governance – urges campus academic senates to consider establishing campus award programs to recognize exceptional faculty contributors to academic governance

Other Issues Discussed: 1. Report on Services to Students with Disabilities – ADA issues that have led to cases brought against CSU campuses by the Office of Civil Rights. 2. LDTP – first cycle of community college reviews in progress; second cycle to start shortly 3. Keith Boyum, Assistant Vice Chancellor, Academic Affairs, stated a request has been made to the Dept of Finance for an additional $2M per year to the base CSU budget to handle ATI implementation 4. Craig Smith, Faculty Trustee, discussed issue of remediation and admission policy; current policy expires the end of this academic year; a new policy to continue the remediation program will be developed; no changes to admission policy contemplated 5. Gary Reichard, Executive Vice Chancellor and Chief Academic Officer, discussed the successor to Cornerstones, “Access to Excellence”; the strategic initiatives related to the new effort will be posted on the CSU website (http://www.calstate.edu/acadaff/System_Strategic_Planning/AccessToExcellence .shtml); campus discussions regarding the strategic initiatives are to occur between now and early March 2007; plans for a statewide meeting in mid-April to focus the campus discussions into a statewide initiative 6. Reichard announced the creation of two new statewide task forces: a) text book affordability – to explore how to reduce costs, and b) CSU review of student add/drop/repeat policies 7. Reichard introduced Beth Ambos, the Interim Assistant Vice Chancellor for Research Initiatives and Partnerships; this new position will assist in supporting and coordinating multi-campus research activities