Minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Academic Council

Duke University DURHAM NORTH CAROLINA 27708-0928 ACADEMIC COUNCIL phone (919) 684-6447 304 UNION WEST e-mail [email protected] BOX 90928 fax (919) 681-8606 Minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Academic Council Thursday, February 21, 2013 Susan Lozier (Chair of the Academic Coun- potential to make substantial contributions cil/Nicholas School for the Environment): to their field. Congratulations to both Patrick Good afternoon, everyone. If I can have your and Jianfeng. attention, I will start our meeting. Welcome to the February Council meeting – and the Finally, I would like to offer congratulations second Council Conversation, which will to two Duke alumni, Alessandra Colaianni commence after the business portion of our and Jordan Goldstein, who are among the 39 meeting this afternoon. U.S. recipients of the Gates Cambridge Schol- arship, which is awarded by the Bill and Announcements Melinda Gates Foundation on the basis of academic merit, leadership and a commitment I have a few announcements before we begin to improving the lives of others. This award our meeting. On behalf of the Duke faculty, I covers the full cost of graduate study at Cam- would like to offer congratulations to the fol- bridge University. Alessandra graduated lowing faculty members who have garnered magna cum laude from Duke in 2007 with a distinction for themselves and for Duke: degree in Biology and Philosophy and Jordan graduated magna cum laude from Duke in Kam Leong, a James B. Duke Professor of Bi- 2010 with a degree in Mechanical Engineer- omedical Engineering, has recently been ing. And there’s Patrick, just a little late, we elected to the National Academy of Engineer- just congratulated you on the Sloan Fellow- ing. With this appointment, Professor Leong ship (laughter and applause). becomes the fourth Duke member of the Na- tional Academy of Engineering, joining Pro- Congratulations to all on these stellar accom- fessors Robert Calderbank, Earl Dowell, and plishments. Henry Petroski. My next announcement concerns the loss of Patrick Charbonneau, who is a member of two members of our Duke community. Rob- this Council, and he is an Assistant Professor ert Richardson, former member of the Duke of Chemistry and Physics, and Jianfeng Lu, an Board of Trustees and the Floyd Newman Assistant Professor of Mathematics, have Professor of Physics at Cornell University been named Sloan Research Fellows by the died yesterday at his home in New York. Dr. Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. This two-year Richardson earned his Ph.D. from Duke in award recognizes young researchers for their 1966 and shared the 1996 Nobel Prize for Physics for his work in low-temperature 1 physics. He was the first to discover the input and after receiving advice from the property of superfluidity in helium-3 atoms, a University Counsel, Pam Bernard, and the breakthrough he made in 1972 after building Vice President for Administration, Kyle upon his work as a graduate student here at Cavanaugh. In order to gather that faculty in- Duke. Dr. Richardson was one of our honor- put, this issue will be on the agenda for our ary degree recipients just last May. Former March meeting. Prior to that meeting, I have Duke basketball star Phil Henderson died at asked Kyle Cavanaugh to prepare a document his home on Sunday. Mr. Henderson made that describes in more detail than my brief three NCAA Final Four appearances in his summary the criteria currently used by time at Duke from 1986 to 1990 and was the Duke’s Human Resources for pre- captain and leading scorer of that 1990 Final employment background checks, and the Four team. On behalf of the Duke faculty, I ex- proposed process for these background tend condolences to the Richardson and checks on potential faculty hires. Henderson families for their losses. As with every meeting, I will alert the full Approval of Meeting Minutes Duke faculty of the agenda items for March and invite them to contribute their voice on Our first item of business is to approve the this issue. Also, as with every meeting, you January 17th meeting minutes. are invited to contribute your questions anonymously, if you so desire. After receiving (Approved by voice vote with no dissent). feedback from the faculty, ECAC will make a recommendation to the Provost. Next, I want to take a few moments to alert all members to two important issues that will As for the next item of upcoming business be coming to the Council later this spring: this spring: Some of you in the room, by virtue of your membership on any number of For a number of years, Duke has conducted faculty committees, have learned that the pre-employment background checks for new administration is considering changes to the hires. In brief, these checks are limited to employer contribution to 403(b) plans in or- criminal convictions--not arrests or allega- der to meet current and anticipated financial tions--during the previous 7 years. Convic- challenges in the next few years. Some of you tion information is not used as a reason to in the room, by virtue of the fact that news of deny employment unless the conviction has this kind spreads faster than butter on a hot occupational relevance, and the severity of bun, have heard the same news. I want all the conviction is taken into consideration for members to understand that over the past the hiring decision. To date, new faculty hires few months the administration has been in- have been exempt from this policy except forming ECAC, UPC and APC about the Uni- those whose responsibilities include clinical versity’s current financial state, and while work. The senior administration approached there have been suggestions that reductions ECAC earlier this semester with a proposal to in retirement contributions would alleviate no longer provide this exemption. The deci- some of the current and anticipated budget- sion is not ours to make. The Provost will ary pressure on the Schools, no proposals make the decision as to whether new faculty have been put on the table. If a proposal to hires will continue to be exempt from these alter the faculty compensation package is re- background checks after gathering faculty ceived from the administration, it will first go to the Faculty Compensation Committee, 2 chaired by Professor Rochelle Schwartz- Update on Duke-Kunshan University Bloom. After receiving input from this com- from Provost Peter Lange mittee, ECAC will invite the administration to update the Academic Council on the Universi- Turning to our next item, we are just doing ty’s financial health so as to provide the great here (laughter): In September of 2011, needed context for any proposed changes in at my first Council meeting as chair, I ex- total compensation. Your input on any pro- pressed concern that there was a rocket, posed changes will be sought at that time. So called DKU, ready to be launched half a world please stay tuned. away before we even knew whether rocket fuel was available. The recent news of anoth- Election of Next Academic Council Chair er delay in the opening of DKU means different things to different people, but one thing it The next item of business is the result of our says for sure is that I am not much of a rocket recent election for the next Academic Council scientist! The letter to faculty earlier this chair. 82% of Council members fulfilled their month from Provost Lange, Vice Provost for civic duty by participating in this election, the DKU and China Initiatives Nora Bynum and results of which have been verified by Pro- DKU Executive Vice Chancellor Mary Bullock, fessor Kathy Nightingale, chair of the Aca- announcing the delay of the DKU opening un- demic Council Elections Committee. Profes- til the fall of 2014 has provided some re- sor Joshua Socolar has been elected as the newed concern about this initiative. Alt- next Academic Council chair (applause). On hough I think it fair to say that the Chronicle behalf of this Council, I offer Joshua my article of February 8th provided more of that warmest congratulations. I would also like to concern, with an assessment of the situation extend my thanks to Professor Tom Metzloff that differed not so much in facts, but in tone. for his willingness to stand for election and, ECAC has invited the Provost today to ad- indeed, for all of his loyal service over these dress some of the renewed concern by fur- many years at Duke. Thank you to Tom as ther explaining the cause for the delay and by well (applause). Josh will assume his new discussing the financial and programmatic post on July 1 of this year. implications of this delay. Neurology Proposal: Transition from Because we have the Council Conversation Division to Department scheduled today, I have asked the Provost to keep his remarks relatively short. He gave a We now turn to a vote on the proposal from full account to the Arts & Sciences Council the Neurology division within the School of last week and had a chance to talk more Medicine to transition to a department of about the programmatic developments. If Neurology. The supporting materials from there are remaining questions today, the last month’s meeting were posted again with Provost has agreed to come back to another today’s agenda. Dr. Ted Pappas, Vice Dean for meeting to answer those questions. Provost Medical Affairs, is here again today if there Lange? are any questions. Peter Lange (Provost): Thank you for invit- (Approved by voice vote with no dissent). ing me to do this.

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