The resolution that was unexpectedly voted on was the last to be presented at the meeting and amended the policy regarding the relocation of students at the regional Ohio University campuses.
At the first Ohio University Faculty Senate meeting of the semester, faculty approved four resolutions, although they originally planned to vote on three.
At the Monday night meeting, the senate also heavily debated the implications of increasing the powers of non-tenure track faculty.
The fourth resolution, which was originally up for consideration for a first reading, passed with one abstention after the senate moved to suspend the rules. The resolution will amend the policy regarding the relocation of students at the regional OU campuses.
“There was this goofy loophole going on, where it was possible that a regional student could drop all their classes and come to the Athens campus,” Ben Bates, professor of communication and head of the Educational Policy and Student Affairs Committee, said. “Now, I don’t think anyone got through this loophole, but it was something that we needed to take a look at.”
A resolution to increase the representation of Group II faculty in Faculty Senate passed with a two-thirds majority. The next step for the resolution is to go to all Group I and Group II faculty at OU for a vote and then to the Board of Trustees.
The two other resolutions faculty passed involve changing the language in the faculty handbook. It will go to Executive Vice President and Provost Pam Benoit for her signature.
Another resolution up for a first reading caused the senators to debate the importance of tenure when it comes to Group I and Group II faculty. The resolution concerned the departmental approval of chairs, as non-tenure faculty members can be long-term professional members of the department or school faculty.
“Academic freedom belongs to all faculty, not just tenured Group I," Bill Reader, an associate professor of journalism who agrees with the proposal, said.
However, associate professor of English Joe McLaughlin worried that the resolution was an "attack on tenure."
“I don’t think anyone, with the exception of one person, has been on this senate longer than I have,” associate professor of English Joe McLaughlin said. “But there hasn’t been a resolution I’ve been more opposed to than this one.”
Bryan Benchoff, vice president for Advancement and CEO of the OU Foundation, described the goals and role of the OU Foundation, the fundraising arm of the university, at the meeting. The foundation is responsible for all private gifts to OU, and the goal of the foundation is to build a nationally-recognized, comprehensive, fully integrated and sustainable advancement program, Benchoff said.
The foundation completed the Promise Lives Campaign, which raised $500 million in private donations for the university from 81,215 donors. 99 percent of these donations are designated by the donor to a specific department or college at OU, Benchoff said.
The foundation hopes to reach out to alumni who are not donating to the university, which is an estimated 189,700 people, in order to increase the amount of money the university is bringing in for scholarships and capital projects, Benchoff said.
Faculty Senate Chair Beth Quitslund said during the meeting that one concern about the money raised through the Promise Lives Campaign was the amount that was designated for the athletics department.
“For many institutions, that would not be a large amount of money,” Quitslund said. “But I feel a bit of a twinge given that it is (about) 50 percent more than the amount that went to the College of Arts and Sciences in the same campaign.”
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@KyraCobbie
