University of Louisiana at Lafayette

Wednesday, January 31, 2001

I. The meeting was called to order at 4:03 P.M.

II. The minutes of the November 29, 2000, Faculty Senate meeting were approved as circulated.

III. Report of the Executive Officer–Nancy Coghill. The Executive Officer reported the following actions since the November 29, 2000, meeting: (1) the Executive Officer represented the Senate at the Second Century Oaks Celebration on January 1, 2001; (2) a letter of appreciation regarding the Christmas luncheon was sent to President Authement; (3) Dr. Claire Foret, slated by the Senate in November to complete an unexpired term on the Faculty Grievance Committee, was approved; (4) Dr. John Greene was officially approved as the editor of the Faculty Forum; (5) letters of appreciation for crosswalks were sent to Joey Pons and Tony Tramel; (6) the Executive Officer represented the Senate at the University Council interview of Dr. Chestnut for Vice President of Research. It was noted that Dr. Chestnut feels that the Director of the Graduate School should be represented on the Council of Deans; (7) as directed by Senate Motion 2000-11-16, the Executive Officer requested assistance from Joe Riehl and ALFS in getting other Faculty Senates to write the Governor, local legislators, and senators requesting that the elected higher education representative be included in the New Task Force to Study the State Employees Group Benefits Program; and (8) as directed by Senate Motion 2000-11-15, letters were sent to the Governor and 20 legislators requesting the same.

IV The agenda was amended to include the election of the Nominating Committee charged with preparing the slate of Senate officers and conducting the election as required by Article III, Section 4.C. of the Constitution. Nominees elected to the Committee are Leslie Bary, Gerald Carlson, Judy Gentry, John Matese, and Mark Smith. Mark Smith was asked to convene the committee for the purpose of electing a chairman.

V Reports of Senate Committees: Permanent Committees A. Committee on Committees: Terry Clement, Chair–No report. B. Ways and Means Committee: William Rieck, Chair–No report. C. Academic Planning & Development Committee: Demetrios Kazakos, Chair–No report. D. Governmental Concerns Committee: Christian Okoye, Chair–No report. E. Faculty Senate-Faculty Advisory Council Committee: Harry Bruder, FAC rep. Senator Carolyn Bruder reported that the Board of Supervisors FAC did not meet. Joe Riehl did attend the Regents FAC which met on January 24, 2001, and reported that three items–the insurance problem, the five-year Master Plan, and new admissions standards--were discussed. Additional information may be found on the Faculty Senate listserve.

VI Report of Special Senate Committees A. Ad Hoc Committee on Adjunct Faculty: Lewis Gale, Co-Chair. Senator Gale reported that the Committee met on January 12, 2001, to revise and modify the 1996 Adjunct Survey Instrument and plan to distribute the new survey at the end of this week. B. Ad Hoc Web Site Committee: Jack Ferstel, Chair. (Attachment #1) C. Ad Hoc Faculty Club Steering Committee: Duane Blumberg, Chair. (Attachment #2)

VII Reports of University Committees A. Curriculum Committee: Jackie Robeck, Chair. (Attachment #3: Report and Chart) B. Faculty Grievance Committee: Nancy Coghill, Chair. (Attachment #4) C. Faculty Benefits and Welfare Committee: Carol Venable, Chair. (Attachment #5). Senator Venable presented a mock up of the proposed new faculty ID card prepared by Mr. Gastineau. The card, for which there will be a charge, will be available upon request by faculty, staff, and students within six weeks. The following three modifications were suggested: (1) to eliminate the ID number containing the last four digits of the Social Security number; (2) to include the President's signature on the front of the card; (3) to keep the signature strip on the back of the card in spite of cost. Motion 2001-01-17 (Cicardo, Bary): Motion 2001-01-17 (Cicardo, Bary): That the card design submitted by the Faculty Benefits and Welfare Committee as modified be adopted. (Approved) Mr. Gastineau answered questions about new cards proposed for the Fall. The Committee was asked to work with Mr. Gastineau with issues such as adjunct faculty ID cards. New faculty ID cards with the University of Louisiana at Lafayette name are now available from Parking and Transit. D. Library Committee: Dolores Labbe, Chair. No report. E. Committee on Academic Affairs and Standards: Lewis Deaton, Chair. No report. F. Parking and Planning Committee: Lucien Gastineau, Chair. No report. G. Student Evaluation of Instruction Committee: Mike Maher, Chair (Attachment #6)

VIII Unfinished Business A. Vote on proposed constitutional amendment. Motion 2001-01-18 (Bruder, Cicardo): I move that we adopt the amendment to Article III, Section 2 as presented by Ways & Means in November 2000. "The Executive Officer or a senator designated by the Executive Officer will serve as official representative of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Faculty Senate to the Association of Louisiana Faculty Senates." (Approved) B. Reorganization of Graduate School under Vice President of Research. The Executive Officer was asked to request that Senator Triche, chairman of the Search Committee for the Vice President of Research, provide a copy of the letter to the faculty that he is preparing with President Authement regarding President Authement's decision to reorganize the Graduate School under the Vice President of Research so that it may be attached to the February 21, 2001, Senate agenda and minutes. C. Adjunct faculty pay. (Added to agenda at request of Senator Riehl via the listserve.) During the rap session, Dr. Landry reported that adjuncts will be paid in four installments, as is the usual case in the Spring, on February 9, March 9, April 11, and May 11. He reported that the pre-certification process was used in several instances and that, as a result, the appointment forms of those faculty no longer go through EEO and Dr. Cicardo for academic credentialing. Dr. Landry noted that there were improvements in processing this Spring as compared to last Fall. Dr. Cicardo did point out continuing problems, however, with last minute schedule changes for faculty. D. Group benefits plan. Dr. Cicardo called attention to three items of faculty concern: (1) Prudential Insurance is now the carrier for life insurance. While faculty will be grandfathered in with regard to pre-existing conditions, etc., they will have to sign up again for coverage. The affect on rates is unknown; (2) Faculty should compare prices when seeking medical care because it is sometimes cheaper to go out of state to a Medical Resource Center. Call to determine if the facility is in the NPPN (National PPN); (3) The delay in claims is caused by out-of-state processing. Dr. Cicardo also reported on proposed changes for July 1, 2001, which include $150 drug deductible, charge of 50% of drug cost not to exceed $50, $500 PPO deductible, and increase in out-of-pocket expenses to $1,500 (incur $15,000 at 10%) before 100% coverage is reached. Senator Caillouet reported that a Healthcare Legislative Forum is scheduled for Wednesday, February 21, 2001, from 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. at Hotel Acadiana. Dr. Cicardo will set up a meeting for interested individuals to meet prior to that date for the purpose of preparing Talking Points. She will communicate details of the meeting via the Senate listserve.

IX There was no new business.

X The meeting was adjourned at 5:11 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Ellen D. Cook, Secretary

University of Louisiana at Lafayette Faculty Senate