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University of South Carolina

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Academic Affairs and Faculty Liaison Committee

March 30, 2000

The Academic Affairs and Faculty Liaison Committee of the University of South Carolina Board of Trustees met on Thursday, March 30, 2000, at 1:00 p.m. in Room 107-C of the Osborne Administration Building.

Members present were: Mrs. Helen C. Harvey, Chair; Mr. Herbert C. Adams; Mr. James Bradley; Dr. C. Edward Floyd; Ms. Darla D. Moore; Mr. M. Wayne Staton; Mr. Othniel H. Wienges, Jr.; and Mr. Mack I. Whittle, Jr., Board Vice Chairman. Mr. Robert N. McLellan and Mr. William Hubbard, Board Chairman, were absent. Other Trustees present were: Mr. Toney J. Lister; Mr. Miles Loadholt; and Mr. Michael J. Mungo.

Members of the Faculty Liaison Committee present were: Professor Carolina D. Strobel, Chair of the Faculty Senate; Professor Caroline Eastman, Chair of the Faculty Welfare Committee; and Dr. Henry T. Price, Chair of the Faculty Advisory Committee. Members of the Faculty Liaison Committee absent were Ms. Ellen Chamberlain from USC Beaufort and Mrs. Anne C. Shelley from USC Spartanburg. Ms. Linda K. Allman attended in the absence of Ms. Chamberlain.

Others present were: President John M. Palms; Secretary Thomas L. Stepp; Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Jerome D. Odom; Vice President and Chief Operating Officer J. Lyles Glenn; Vice President for Human Resources Jane M. Jameson; Vice President for Student and Alumni Services Dennis A. Pruitt; Vice Provost and Executive Dean, Regional Campuses and Continuing Education, Chris P. Plyler; General Counsel Walter (Terry) H. Parham; USC Spartanburg Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Jane Stephens; USC Aiken Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Blanche Premo-Hopkins; Associate Provost and Dean of the Graduate School Marcia G. Welsh; Associate Provost for Regional Campuses and Continuing Education Carolyn A. West; Associate Dean for the School of Public Health Harriet Williams; Associate Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Barbara Ainsworth; Assistant Dean for the School of Medicine James Buggy; Assistant Professor for Neuropsychiatry and Behavioral Science, School of Medicine, Manuela K. Kress-Shull; Director of Public Affairs Russell McKinney; representative from Media Relations Jason Snyder; and a member of the press.

Mrs. Harvey called the meeting to order and invited those present to introduce themselves. Mr. Snyder introduced the member of the media who was present. Mrs. Harvey stated that notice of the meeting had been posted and the press notified as required by the Freedom of Information Act; the agenda and supporting materials had been circulated to the Committee; and a quorum was present to conduct business.

There were personnel matters dealing with honorary faculty titles, appointments with tenure, and honorary degree candidates which were appropriate for discussion in Executive Session. Mrs. Harvey called for a motion to enter Executive Session. Mr. Bradley so moved, and Mr. Wienges seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.

The following persons were asked to remain: Dr. Palms, Mr. Stepp, Dr. Odom, Mr. Finan, Ms. Jameson, Dr. Pruitt, Mr. Parham, Mr. McKinney, Ms. Hyatt, and Ms. Mayfield.

Executive Session

Personnel Matters

Return to Open Session

I. Tenure and Promotion Calendar: Dr. Odom outlined the Tenure and Promotion Calendar. The tenure and promotion process occurred year round, and the calendar was currently being drafted for the 2000-2001 year. Department Chairs or Deans retain copies of all components of tenure and promotion files that would possibly be needed.

Adequate documentation of a scholarly or artistic performance record included letters from external referees. Referees would not normally be dissertation directors, co-authors, or co-investigators with the candidate. A one-paragraph biography and/or short vita for each referee should be included in the file.

Adequate documentation of teaching required a summary of teaching evaluations prepared by a senior faculty member. Peer evaluation of teaching was particularly valuable.

If a department gave a candidate a negative vote, the candidate's respective file should be forwarded only if the candidate appealed the department's decision in writing. The calendar also provided guidelines for obtaining outside reviews of the candidate's work in a timely manner.

Mrs. Harvey asked if the committee would no longer hear grievances and Dr. Odom replied that was correct.

II. Report from the Office of Pre-Professional Advising: Dr. Odom reported on the Office of Pre-Professional Advising. The University pre-medical students had steadily and significantly improved their performance on the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) and their acceptance rates to medical schools since the inception of this office in 1996.

In 1996, USC students' acceptance rate to medical school was 34 percent. With steady increases each year, USC students' acceptance rate to medical schools in 1999 was 49 percent.

The Office of Pre-Professional Advising was instrumental in making it possible for a greater number of USC students to attain their goals and the University was pleased to be involved in such a rewarding endeavor.

III. Program Proposal, Master of Public Health Degree in Physical Activity and Public Health, School of Public Health: Dr. Williams requested approval of a new degree program in the School of Public Health. The proposed program would offer a Master of Public Health Degree in Physical Activity and Public Health in the School of Public Health.

The purpose of the program would be to provide students with unique opportunities to: (1) study issues germane to physical activity and to public health; (2) acquire appropriate background knowledge and experience in an epidemiological approach to public health problems as they related to physical activity; and (3) develop skills integral to the design, implementation, and evaluation of public health programs that were intended to promote increased physical activity in populations.

The proposed program proposal had been carefully developed, received the requisite faculty and administrative approvals, and appeared to be consistent with the mission of the University.

Mrs. Moore requested information on the policy the University used to track new degree programs. Mr. Whittle added that the University was inclined to add programs but not eliminate the programs that were no longer appropriate or economical and he inquired about the University's review process for new degree programs. Dr. Odom replied that every year the deans presented a strategic plan with goals that each college had to achieve. This year the University started a new five year plan cycle to set goals.

Mr. Adams stated that each new program needed to be tracked for fiscal expectations and enrollment. The same format should be used as the Fiscal Policy used to track audits. The tracking report should contain information on all programs for the last five years. Ms. Moore suggested that Dr. Odom supply the information to the committee for the last five years, and Dr. Odom agreed to obtain it. Programs which are eliminated would be reported to the Committee.

Mr. Bradley moved approval of the program proposal, Master of Public Health Degree in Physical Activity and Public Health, School of Public Health. Mr. Adams seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.

IV. Program Proposal, Certificate of Graduate Study in Psychiatric Rehabilitation, School of Medicine: Dr. Buggy asked for approval of the Certificate of Graduate Study in Psychiatric Rehabilitation to be offered and administered by the Rehabilitation Counseling Program within the Department of Neuropsychiatry and Behavioral Science in the School of Medicine. This program would target individuals seeking a Rehabilitation Counseling Masters' Degree with a specialty non degree program for individuals wanting to take selected courses in psychiatric disability for continuing education or certification credit. Courses within the certificate were appropriate for rehabilitation counselors, educational psychologists, marriage and family counselors, social workers, psychology majors, public health, sociology, education, and persons pursuing vocational or personal interests in the area of psychiatric disability.

The Department of Neuropsychiatry currently received funding in the amount of $70,000 per year by the South Carolina Department of Mental Health and the South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department for the support of a contractual faculty member. The $70,000 covered the faculty member's salary, fringe benefits, and an annual allocation of $24,000 for travel. The cost of the contract was shared equally by the agencies.

In addition, the Rehabilitation Counseling Program obtained a federal Rehabilitation Services Administration grant in the amount of $478,889 for support in developing an emphasis in psychiatric rehabilitation. The grant primarily covered student tuition, fees, stipends and a small amount of money for technology and materials that supported development of the program.

Mrs. Harvey asked Dr. Buggy to explain the definition of a certificate.

Dr. Buggy replied that a certificate was an innovation in graduate education where, rather than someone receiving a large volume of work to earn a Masters or Ph.D. Degree, the individual could receive a certificate. The certificate would enable them to take a more restricted amount of course work without a thesis or dissertation requirement.

Mr. Bradley moved approval of the program proposal, Certificate of Graduate Study in Psychiatric Rehabilitation, School of Medicine. Mr. Wienges seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.

V. Other Matters: Dr. Palms stated he was on the way to the inauguration of the new president of the Medical University of South Carolina.

Dr. Palms updated the committee on the Spartanburg situation. The University had vice-presidents and various people dealing with certain concerns that had been raised by the Spartanburg campus. Dr. Palms requested that Dr. Stockwell make a presentation on the rationale for student housing, and the University Administration had a meeting scheduled in April to discuss the situation.

Dr. Palms received a copy of the book, The Politics of Rage, which had been written by Professor Dan Carter who had been one of the Keenan Professors at Emory University and the University had hired Professor Carter from Emory University. Dr. Carter was now a professor at the University of South Carolina Department of History. The book, The Politics of Rage, was also the source for a PBS series on the American Experience to be shown this fall on the life of Governor Wallace.

Dr. Odom gave a report on the searches for academic administrators who reported to the Provost. Dr. Odom stated that the University was currently looking for five deans and two other individuals. For the position of Chief Information Officer, the University had identified three candidates. An offer had been made to a candidate for the Vice Provost for Research position with every expectation that the University would be successful; the Darla Moore School of Business had invited three candidates to interview for the Dean's position and the College of Education had one candidate visiting this day and one the following week. The College of Engineering and Information Technology search committee had narrowed the list to five people while collecting references and making phone calls on those individuals, and the College of Journalism and Mass Communications search started on January 1, 2000. The search committee had met, the position was advertised, and the search committee was currently evaluating the applicants. The School of Music had an offer to a candidate with every expectation that the University would be successful.

Mr. Whittle asked, in regards to the Association of American Universities (AAU), if the University would try to attract deans who were with, or had been with, AAU Institutions. Dr. Odom stated the University was trying, but it was not always possible.

Mr. Whittle asked what was the University's main obstacle for finding deans. Dr. Odom stated that salary was the primary issue, especially in Engineering. Mr. Whittle asked if the University had other sources to fund salaries, and Dr. Odom stated that there was a foundation account which could be used to add a supplement.

Mr. Whittle stated there was growing criticism outside the University from both Legislators and business leaders regarding the searches. He stated that the University needed to be proactive, but hire the right people. Mrs. Moore added that the Board should be helping the University with these searches and should be informed with the updates on all searches as they progress.

There being no further matters to come before the Committee, Mrs. Harvey declared the meeting adjourned at 2:32 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Thomas L. Stepp

Secretary