Letter on Roundtable to ASC Faculty from Professor David Davis

From:   Davis, David H.  Sent:   Tue 1/26/2010 8:43 AM  To:     Cc:     Subject:   Concerns about Round Table for this afternoon  Attachments:  View As Web Page

January 26, 2010   To my Fellow Council Members:   The Executive Committee asked to have comments on the Round Table Implementation Report in writing. While the Report has some good ideas, many are not good. Here are some that worry me the most. I am particularly disturbed that the Report was sent to the Board of Trustees Committee on Academic and Student Affairs yesterday before the Council had a chance to discuss it. This violates promises made and appears deceitful. It helps to remember the idea of Zemsky and the Round Table started as a public relations ploy by President Jacobs as a way to distract attention from the Council’s vote of no confidence in the leadership of Dean Lee.                                                                                                   David H. Davis                                                                                                 Political Science   Abolishing departments p. 10 Breaking up departments, specifically English and Communication p. 10 Move departments or parts of departments p. 22. More power to department chairs rather than faculty p. 16 and elsewhere Defining the “scholarship of teaching” and the “scholarship of integration” p. 14, 19 etc. Defining and importance of “the Academic Journey” p. 2, 9, 13, 15, 22, 28, 30. Importance of weak students p. 13 and elsewhere More leniency for retention and academic probation p. 32 Deemphasize GPA in admission decisions p. 32 Rewards for engagement and community based research p. 19 Heavy praise for distance learning. Many pages. Priority for Collaborative Learning. Rewards for Collaborative Learning.  Many pages.   (Does this mean Law and Social Thought and Women’s Studies?)   Hiring priority for integrative studies p. 28 Very little for the natural sciences All graduate programs to be evaluated by November 1. p. 27 Note time line p. 28 Lack of pedagogical evidence supporting proposals.   Goal of reaching Tier I p. 33.  Top tier p. 5, 6 “THE GREATEST NEED IS TO RECAPITALIZE OUR FACULTY” p. 32