FACULTY SENATE STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA
August 17, 2021
3:30 PM
Roll Call and Quorum Check – (Barb Dahlbach)
Approval/Correction of the Minutes for April 20th – (Barb Dahlbach)
President Bell, Provost Dalton, Dr. Ricky Friend
- Welcome back to campus
Thank you to UMC / Dr. Friend and the UMC / SHC team
GET Update (Feasibility Study)
Gavel Exchange
President’s Report – (Chapman Greer)
- Back-to-School
- Paid Parental Leave progress
- 2021-2022 Agenda
- 2nd Ave crossover Bridge opening
Vice President’s Report – (Matthew Hudnall) – No Report
Secretary’s Report – (Barb Dahlbach)
- Update on resignations, vacancies, and committee assignments
Senate Committee Reports:
- Diversity, Equity & Inclusion – (Lyndell McDonald & Luke Niiler) – No Report
- Faculty & Senate Governance – (Ibrahim Çemen & Jeri Zemke) – No Report
- Academic Affairs – (Rona Donahoe & Babs Davis)
- The Academic Affairs Committee will be addressing the following at the beginning of the Fall 2021 semester:
- Academic Misconduct Policy revision
- Academic Program Review Council proposal
- We also anticipate reviewing revisions of the Faculty Handbook, particularly the following Faculty Handbook sections during the Fall semester:
- Copyright Policy
- Patent Procedure
- The Academic Affairs Committee will be addressing the following at the beginning of the Fall 2021 semester:
- Community & Legislative Affairs – (Joy Burnham & Steven Yates) – No Report
- Faculty Life – (Heather Elliott & Ruth Ann Hall)
- Parental leave
- Childcare
- Academic freedom
- Miscellaneous
- Financial Affairs – (Mary Stone & Byung-Cheol Kim) – No Report
- Research & Service – (Shanlin Pan & Douglas Bish) – No Report
- IT & Strategic Communications – (Patrick Kung & Nathan Loewen)
- First meeting of academic year with VP for Strat Com scheduled for Aug. 13
- Met with OIT on July 9. Topics discussed include:
- HPC: OIT has the support of Provost, VP Mumper, and VP Fajack. Support staff increased to 2, with PhDs in simulation/computing to better support faculty. Current 3-pronged roadmap:
- Physical relocation to lease space with DC Blox in Birmingham
- Increased off-premises connectivity
- Cloud HPC support (will bring consultant to help faculty find the right solution). Also looking into collaboration within SEC (UF, ORNL)
- Classroom Technology: audio/visual equipment of 25 classrooms to be upgraded over the Summer (vs. 12~15/year in the past)
- Blackboard: 2014-18 will be removed: (OIT will still have access)
- Day-to-day computing support:
- IT Service Desk is now fully staffed
- Will add a chat bot for standard questions before a ticket is issued
- A few colleges have their own IT desktop support, so there’s a layer of triage that can slow response
- Computer surplus: Department-to-department transfer possible. Can make transfers (e.g., OIT’s IT forum) before sending to UA Property Control
- O365: Email & directory consolidation across campus ongoing
- Latest: Finance and Operations
- Law/C&BA/Athletic have their own exchanges or use Gmail
- UA Box will continue. OneDrive available.
- GoogleDrive will start charging Summer 2023 (OIT will communicate the cost when known) so there might be a need for faculty to move files out
- MyBama: Will have a new look in Fall 2021
- HPC: OIT has the support of Provost, VP Mumper, and VP Fajack. Support staff increased to 2, with PhDs in simulation/computing to better support faculty. Current 3-pronged roadmap:
- Student Life – (Jennifer Dempsey & Amy Traylor)
- Student Back-to-School Policies
Reports from Other Committees
- Compliance Committee (Babs Davis)
Old Business
New Business
Reminders
- Next SC meeting: September 21st – Venue: Hybrid (Zoom / In-Person: 1015 North Lawn Hall)
Adjourn