May 1, 2014 Minutes

Presiding Officer: Andrea Weber

Welcome new employees in attendance today!

Actions of Meeting

Roll Call

  • Roll call was conducted using sign-in sheets
  • Members in Attendance: Catherine Beck, Christina Bowles, Kelly Cara, Addie Douglas, Paul Essel, Dave Falls, Scott Fiedler, Sandy Johnson, Sharon Lopinot, Yvette Medley, Janelle Melton, Robert Moore, Allison Overmyer, Charles Schoneboom, Gary Stafford, Brenda Stewart, Andrea Weber, Dixie Williams, Ryan Wilson
  • Proxy Members in Attendance: None
  • Members Absent (Excused): Ian Alaimo, Tara Benson, Brian Edmond, Karen Willde
  • Members Absent (Unexcused): Andrew Garton, Kirby Williams
  • Guests in Attendance: Marilyn Robertson (THWC), Alex Johnson (CASL), Dr. Stephen McIntyre (Faculty Senate/History Professor), Kristie Reynolds (CASL), Jeremy Wright (Financial Services), Lauren Bansbach (Sustainability), Galen Martin (Campus Rec)

Call to Order

  • Staff Senate had quorum
  • Meeting called to order at 11:06 AM by Chair, Andrea Weber

Approval of Agenda

  • Agenda was emailed prior to meeting
  • Motion to approve agenda with no changes by Sharon Lopinot
  • Second by Yvette Medley
  • Agenda approved unanimously

Approval of Minutes

  • April meeting minutes were emailed prior to meeting
  • Motion to approve minutes with no changes by Gary Stafford
  • Second by Addie Douglas
  • April minutes approved unanimously

Chair Report

  • Faculty Senate – Presentation by Chair-Elect, Dr. Stephen McIntyre
    • Professor of History at MSU since 1996
    • New Chair of Faculty Senate as of today, May 1, 2014
      • Representative body for 700+ faculty at MSU
      • Representatives for each of the five faculty rankings (full professor, clinical, etc.)
      • Officers including chair, chair-elect, secretary of the faculty, parliamentarian
      • Primary duties:
        • approve curricular proposals
        • provide recommendations for issues on campus
      • Several Senate committees:
        • Each College has a College Council which is actually a Senate committee
        • Committee on General Education and Interdisciplinary Programs (CGEIP)
        • Professional Education Committee (PEC)
        • Budget and Priorities Committee (issues related to financial concerns)
        • Faculty Concerns Committee (surveying faculty morale and views of the provost/president performance)
        • Academic Relations
        • Rules Committee
        • Judicial Review
      • Primarily overseeing the curricular process and serving on university committees as representatives of faculty on campus
      • Try to develop relationships with various constituencies across campus including staff, students, etc.
        • Idea to have informal discussions between faculty, staff, and student leadership groups on campus (e.g., monthly lunch)
      • Work to fix problems in collaboration with provost and president
      • Faculty Senate Chair additional roles
        • spokesperson for university issues that pop up in the newspaper or other media outlets
        • representative on Missouri council that includes all Missouri higher education institutions – meets regularly throughout the year (allows MSU to keep up-to-date on issues impacting higher education in our state)
    • Faculty Senate 2014-2015 Academic Year Plans
      • Updating maternity and paternity leave policy for faculty because this is currently being handled case by case between faculty employees and department heads
      • Hoping to find a way to amplify faculty voices on diversity issues – using curriculum and the education we provide to offer perspective on this issue during campus (rather than always being reactive to this issue)
    • Questions/comments?
      • Thank you for pursuing the maternity/paternity leave for faculty
      • Support for the idea about meeting informally as faculty, staff, and student leadership groups
      • Appreciation for the Faculty Senate’s work on the revised General Education program and taking the staff role into consideration
      • Clarification about CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) on campus
        • There is a faculty union on campus, but they have to win elections to gain collective bargaining rights
        • This isn’t done elsewhere, and this is still up in the air at MSU. There is no CBA currently at MSU.
  • Master Planning Committee
    • Working on a new guide to inform campus about recent renovations to buildings and physical spaces on campus
    • New plans for the Welcome Center starting in June (no more parking in Lot 14 once that begins)
  • Executive Budget Committee
    • Looking at how much money will be allotted by the state
  • Sole Senators
    • Group is leading in fourth place and continues to rise up in the rankings
  • Board of Governors Meeting
    • Scott will be attending on behalf of Staff Senate

Chair Elect Report

  • Work Group to Clarify Policy on Insurance for Work-Related Travel
    • Executive Committee is gathering more information and will consider whether to create a work group if needed

Past Chair Report

  • Computer Information Systems Taskforce for Wi-Fi on campus
    • Ad hoc group designated to review access to Wi-Fi in common spaces at MSU (PSU, Library, new Welcome Center)
    • Objective was to determine how to increase availability on campus (density and capacity issues in classrooms and the three targeted common spaces)
    • Staff can pay for Wi-Fi themselves, or this need is work-related, supervisors can approve for this to be covered by departmental budgets (staff who are students are covered through student fees)
    • The Wi-Fi capacity and density on campus is not sufficient to cover everyone on campus
    • Wi-Fi for staff is not “off the table” and may be available in the future, but that will not happen in the immediate future
    • Comment (Ryan Wilson) – Access 30 and Access 40 will no longer be used. The new access point is labeled “MSU,” and for guests, access will be available at “MSU Sponsored” (this is subject to change).

Secretary/Treasurer Report

  • Budget balances
    • Operating budget (A account)
      • Balance is $1,312.80
      • Expected upcoming expenses = $539.95
        • $49.95 for plaque and gavel to BJ’s Trophy Shop
        • $15 x 6 = $90 for gift cards to senators with no absences
        • $400 for Staff Senate video
        • $450 for catering for Staff Senate training in June
      • Expected balance = $322.85
    • Activities budget (B account)
      • Balance is $604.09
      • Expenditures in April
        • $54 charge for Denim Day luncheon was found in wrong account
        • $200 for baseball tickets
      • Expected upcoming expenses = $240 for PSU Level 1 Staff Game Night
      • Credits in April
        • $30 in missing Denim Day donations found and sent to Lee Denim Day Foundation
        • Brings total donation to $2,014.58
      • Expected balance = $334.09
      • Petty cash on hand is $125
  • Staff Senate Elections
    • Vote today by paper ballot
      • Chair-Elect
        • Christina Bowles – Elected
        • Allison Overmyer
      • Secretary/Treasurer
        • Robert Moore – Elected
      • Director of Staff Relations will be appointed by the 2014-2015 chair
    • Online ballot was sent out today, May 1, and elections will be open until May 31
  • Job family 1 candidate
    • Kelly Bridges, Administrative Specialist II, Safety & Transportation/Transit Operations Ctr.
  • Job family 4 candidates
    • Peng Zhang, China Operations Specialist, VPRED
    • Kami Gollhofer, Academic Advisor – Nursing

Director of Staff Relations Report

  • Committee Reports
    • Bylaws – No report
    • Denim Days Committee – No report
    • Public Affairs Committee – Gary Stafford
      • Adopt-A-Street today, May 1, 12-2 PM (for staff senators only – includes lunch at Imo’s). Meet at the Burger King parking lot at Cherry and National.
      • Convoy of Hope on May 20, 6:30-8:30 PM
      • Relay for life – over $350 raised by staff last weekend, April 25-26.
        • Thanks to staff participants SuzAnn Ferguson, Steve Sharum, Gary Stafford
    • Public Relations Committee – Kelly Cara
      • Update on Staff Senate video ad project: Christina Bowles wrote a draft script for the video, so our next step is to get feedback from Web & New Media.
    • Scholarship Committee – No Report (numbers submitted by Andrew Garton)
      • Balance – $4,219.61
      • Fundraising To Date – $1,480.80
    • Staff Activities – Janelle Melton
    • Staff Excellence in University Service Awards – No Report
    • MSU Administrative Professional Forum Committee –
      • May 28 11:30-1:00 PM, The Faces and Facts of Financial Services, Carrington 208
    • Public Arts Committee – Yvette Medley
      • Student art is currently displayed in the PSU 3rd floor – students vote for a winner
      • The winning artwork will be displayed in the President’s Office
    • My Ideas Committee – No report
    • Faculty Senate – No report
    • Sustainability Committee – No report
    • Admin Budget Committee – No report

Old Business - None

New Business - None

Announcements - None

Adjournment

  • Motion to adjourn by Ryan Wilson
  • Second by Rob Moore
  • Meeting was adjourned at 11:59 PM by Chair, Andrea Weber

Minutes respectfully submitted by Kelly Cara, Secretary/Treasurer