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Minutes of the Meeting of the Senate of the Faculty
Thursday, November 8, 2001, 7:00 p.m., Room 213, Conner Hall

Meeting called to order with a quorum at 7PM

Present: M. Aiken, B. Barkdoll, L. Bombelli, J. Bradley, L. Bush, W. Cleland, A. Cooper, J. Czarnetzky, S. Davis, C. Eagles, R. Elam, J. Ford, G. Herrera, I. Labuda, F. Laurenzo, K. McKee, A. Mark, D. Nagal, R. Oliphant-Ingham, J. Reid, H. Reynolds, R. Riggs, J. Schetz, W. Steel, D. Wilkins, S. Wolcott, M. Zarzeski

Absent: A. Ajootian, W. Y. Chen*, D. Chessin*, P. Cooker*, C. Cunningham*, K. Dellinger, R. Ethridge, A. Fisher-Wirth, R. Haws*, Bobbie Krapels*, P. Malone, J. Martin*, D. Rock, K. Swinden*, M. Tew*, T. Verlangieri*
*Prior notification

I. Announcements
A. Chancellor's annual visit is postponed until the December Senate meeting.
B. The December Senate meeting will be Wednesday, December 5, 7:00 p.m., in Room 211, Conner Hall. Note room change.
C. The Senate's recommendation regarding dean search procedures will be on the agenda of the November 12, 2001, Council of Academic Administrators.
D. Liberal Arts II will caucus with Senator Bradley following this meeting.

II. Old Business
A. Minutes of October 11, 2001 Senate meeting were approved without dissent.
minutes_20011000.html

III. New Business
A. Biological Safety Subcommittee: Chair, David Graves, has requested the following roster changes:

• Dr. William Keith has retired and needs to be removed.
• Request to add: Dr. Bryan Scheffler, Dr. Michael Mossing, and Dr. Darryail Whittington (required external committee member).

James Reid moved that the Senate accept David Graves' recommendations/2nd Charles Eagles. The motion passed without dissent.

B. Discussion concerning the operation of the campus bookstore

Mr. Shane McElveen, bookstore manager:

• Average number of adoptions is 2000 x number of sections x number of students
• Only 7-25% of professors turn their textbook requests in on time in the last three semesters
• Dramatically increased enrollment and new sections added to the shortage this fall
• 60% of the faculty have still not turned in their textbook requests for the spring semester (already past due)
• Long explanation of how books are ordered in bookstore; used book system, "textNet" run by B&N; only 2-3 shipments made by B&N; next they place orders for books not supplied by textNet from the publishers
• Number of complaints are during the first week of class, which is when the store is totally swamped. Don't have the manpower for so many late adoptions because there are only two people at B&N assigned to process book orders.
• Book store is supposed to call the professors when they're ordered but they cannot because they have to deal with the late orders.
• Improvement: have placed a computer in the textbook department.
• Improvement: real time enrollment instead using registrar's statistics.
• Prefer faxed, online, or mailed orders. Will not accept phone orders because there is no documentation process.

Faculty Q & A McElveen's comments & answers italicized

1. Could orders placed on time be date stamped and returned to the professor? No.
2. Another Senator recommended using email because then the professor has a record that the order was actually sent (date and time stamped).
3. Faculty can walk over to book store and watch B&N place the order in and get a receipt.
4. Who sets the due date? Barnes and Noble sets them; they are set early because of how long the process takes…and they know that everyone isn't going to turn requests in on time. The first store that gets its order in gets the best pick of the used books.
5. There are only two employees to process book orders for 500 faculty members.
6. Why is the store getting such a low on-time response? It works at other universities; only response is that it is a matter of priority, or it is because we have some classes that are not assigned a faculty member until very late.
7. How do you determine that the forms are turned in late? Stamped and filed.
8. How often does the bookstore mess up/lose book orders? Not as often as faculty think.
9. If there is an edition change is there a possibility the order will get lost? No.
10. Barnes and Noble won't send order to Rebel books and Square Books. No, because the students can't use their Ole Miss Express cards at the local store. Faculty suggested perhaps the University should extend Ole Miss express privilege to Square Books and Rebel Press.
11. B&N has a policy of not ordering 100% of the enrollment. Orders are based on previous year's sales history reports; store will look into this since there have been so many shortages/increased enrollments but B&N will not order 100% of requested books.
12. John Czarnetszky: why he tells his students not to use the store: for two years there were mistakes at B&N and Square Books (Barristers Book Store) never has made a mistake in two years since he's switched.
13. Faculty members should make a complaint if the bookstore has actually lost an order.
14. Faculty members should go and check to make sure that the books are on the shelf.
15. Senator Zarzeski: need to use positive reinforcement for orders in on time. Corporate headquarters won't go for it because current system works for other universities.
16. The bookstore is having a faculty reception with food.
17. The paper order form that goes out the faculty has the wrong address for the online order form.
18. The online system no longer sends a receipt.
19. Who is in charge of course packs? Betty Mize and Paul Gamble.
20. Cost of course packs can be high. Maybe send out an estimate? Not possible in time frame.
21. Senator Bradley: when taking a closer look at the figures handed out: they are not trying to present an accurate figure.
22. Senator Laurenzo: for a low volume book (30 copies) how often does it happen that a monograph doesn't come up in either of B&N's systems? Don't know because the due date for orders gives the store enough time to try the main corporate system first and still order from the publisher if B&N can't supply it.

C. Discussion regarding possible term limits for academic administrators

• Provost would like the Senate to take up this issue; she would like formalized term limits.
• One model suggested by Provost: one term of four years, reviewed during the 3rd year, with the possibility of a second term of 4 years-if there is a favorable review.
• Could we actually fill these positions, if the candidates know that after 8 years they could no longer be an administrator? Result is an odd set of options: tell candidate they'll be taking a pay cut in 8 years or departments end up paying former administrators more than their colleagues.
• Are term limits a common practice at other universities?
• Senator Eagles: rejects the idea that administrators are different quality-better-than faculty. Other schools let the faculty be the administrators on a rotating basis instead of paying administrators so much money. We need to demystify what administrators do.
• Senator Nagle: We need to be nationally-oriented about everything: trying to hire excellent research staff and faculty and not just use our funds to lure in coaches and administers.

D. Discussion about quadrennial review procedures for academic administrators.

• The AAUP has outlined review procedures: conducted by a committee instead of a provost; these usually include an anonymous survey of faculty.
• Senator Reid: the interim deans get a couple of years before their official title starts and hence they get longer before they are reviewed.
• Senator Wolcott: interim and acting dean do not get the same amount of power and prestige.
• Senator Bradley: we don't need to do it the same way in all of the schools.
• Senator Steel: would have to be a provision to prevent one school spending a bunch on superstar salaries.
• Senator Labuda: terminology issues: use the word dean as being an administrative position, for some schools and fundraising for others, etc.
• Senator Elam is for more frequent reviews to increase feedback.

E. Consideration of need to monitor class attendance before and after the up-coming Fall/Thanksgiving Break.

• Senator Davis: suggestion to assign a quiz on the Friday.

Meeting officially adjourned at 8:55 PM

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