NCE Faculty Forums

Alison Hilsabeck, NCE Dean and Christine Quinn, Provost are offering open forum discussions centered around two strategic questions:

1) What are the biggest challenges facing education schools today?

2) What will colleges of education of the future need to look like?

During the May NCE Faculty meeting the concept of having these open forums surfaced and the Dean and Provost have scheduled the following times to have an opportunity to hear from faculty about these important issues. There will be alternate arrangements for Florida and Wisconsin faculty. Of course, faculty from other colleges can participate, particularly in areas such as teacher prep, which includes CAS coursework.

Each of the three forums will have a specific perspective to frame the questions around.

The dates, locations, and question perspectives are as follows:

Date & Time	Location	Perspective for Questions
Tuesday, May 31, 3:00-4:30 pm	Chicago Campus Room 5016	MED and Professional Development
Friday, June 3, 9:00-10:30 am	North Shore Campus Room 468	Doctoral Programs
Tuesday, June 7, 8:30-10:00 am	Chicago Campus Room 5016	Teacher Preparation

On Sorrow

It is truly saddening to see so many of our valued colleagues and coworkers leave NLU. The suddenness of the staff departures is truly hard, and there are so many people I will deeply miss, as will all of us.

While some faculty are retiring and beginning a new stage in their lives, others were not ready or prepared for the news they received.

Words cannot express the sense of loss we all feel, both personally and for NLU. I hope faculty can pull together and support one another at this time, both those of us still here and those who are moving on.

Mourning is a process that each of us experiences differently, and each of us needs to make our peace in different ways. One way is to attend the NLU Retirement Recognition Event on June 2, at 3:00 in Wheeling. Other colleges may be having their own events, such as NCE on Wednesday, June 8.

Meetings and Events, May 31 to June 3, 2011

Tuesday, May 31: University Leadership Council, 10 AM to noon, Chicago

Thursday, June 2: NLU Faculty Retirement Recognition, 3 to 5, Wheeling. RSVP to Eva Hernandez.

NCE will have its own retirement recognition event on Wednesday, June 8.

Strategic Planning Input Sessions and Blog

Many faculty ask about opportunities to have input into the strategic planning process. In addition to the faculty on the 3 design teams (academic excellence, student experience, financial viability) and the faculty on ULC that provide input to the design teams, faculty can participate in these university wide opportunities.

First, face-to-face and virtual input sessions will take place on this schedule.

Wednesday May 4 Chicago 3 – 4 pm

Thursday May 5 Virtual 10 – 11 am

Friday May 6 Northshore 10 – 11 am

Friday May 6 Wheeling 2 – 3 pm

Monday May 9 Lisle 3 – 4 pm

Tuesday May 10 Virtual 3 – 4 pm

The virtual sessions will be a combination of Centra and teleconference. Seating is limited and reservations are required. If you are interested in signing up for a session, please contact Gia Kastelic (gia.kastelic@nl.edu).

In addition to these conversations, a blog and discussion board have been created on the NLU web site: http://connect.nl.edu/StrategicPlanning/blog/default.aspx. The blog also contains copies of the current draft documents created by the design teams. Comments left in the blog and discussion forums will also be used by the design teams to guide their ongoing work.

Faculty Senate Highlights, April 2011

The NLU Faculty Senate met on April 20, 2011.

President’s Report
President Nivine Megahed discussed accomplishments for moving the University forward. Key interim and vacant positions have been filled (e.g., provost, VP for marketing). Better metrics are in place for managing enrollment, and NLU is beginning to see results. For nine weeks, applications have been higher than at the same time last year. The strategic planning process will address moving academics forward and focus on what must be accomplished over the next five years.

Dr. Megahed reported that approximately 20 faculty have accepted the early retirement offer. There will be a university-wide event to honor their legacy.

A question was raised about interim positions: Do those individuals who served in interim positions stay in the administration once permanent hires are made? The President asked that this question be tabled until June.

A CAS resolution recommending an administrative pay cut led to discussion about equity in view of faculty being asked to teach an additional course, no summer overages, and higher insurance costs. President Megahed responded that it is necessary now to look at how all resources are allocated rather than across-the-board pay cuts. This includes how faculty time can be allocated to help the University, i.e., less service, research, etc., during this budget crunch. This is a temporary situation and faculty should work with their deans to determine how to allocate their time.

Provost’s Report
Dr. Quinn outlined ways the institution is moving forward academically, including creating the Learning Commons, the undergrad and NCE grad advising centers, conversations about gen ed and adult learners, NLU’s online learning strategy, an improved academic planning process, the calendar conversion, and the credit hour conversion. Dr. Quinn announced that in May, several open forum meetings will take place to gather faculty input on the Strategic Plan.

Senate brought up the issue of student discipline and how necessary information about policy in general as well as individual students is communicated to the appropriate faculty, including adjuncts. It is apparent that correct policy and procedure are not clear to everyone. Administration promised that appropriate training will be provided to faculty and adjuncts. Senate will invite appropriate administrators to the May meeting to provide more information.

Faculty Welfare and Compensation Committee Report
Linda Gibbons reported that the FWCC continues to respond to faculty concerns. FWCC representatives on the Benefits Committee, along with Human Resource personnel Tom Bergmann and Holly Battaglia, worked together to make the insurance benefit increase as equitable as possible for all employees. She thanked Mr. Bergmann and Ms. Battaglia for their collaboration. The committee has submitted to the Administration a compilation of ideas on increasing workplace satisfaction for all employees without additional cost. The Administration is considering the suggestions

Graduate Advising Center
Steve Neer, Director of Advising, Assessment, and Development, presented an overview of the NCE Graduate Advising Center, which will launch in mid-May. Seven professional advisors located at the Chicago, Lisle, and Wheeling campuses will staff the center. They will travel to other campuses and off-site locations and work evening hours as needed. They will advise students on degree requirements and program deficiencies, serve as main points-of-contact for students, and lead retention efforts.

Academic Planning Subcommittee Report
Rebecca Lake reported on the work of the Academic Planning Subcommittee of Senate. The Academic Planning Task Force will work to implement a revised system for new programs and program revisions in Fall, 2011. Then they will work toward developing a new, simplified system for program reviews for implementation in Winter, 2012. To accommodate the change, the 10 program reviews remaining for this academic year will be postponed to Fall, 2011. Program reviews scheduled for AY 2011-2012 will be postponed until the launch of the new system. Programs will be able to choose from the old or new requirements, depending on the amount of work they have already done preparing their reports under the old system. These steps will allow for ample faculty input, especially from college academic planning units, and ensure that NLU moves forward with appropriate deliberation. More information on academic planning will be shared at the Faculty Association meeting

ULC Representative
Dr. Steve Thompson was elected by Senate to fill a vacancy on ULC. (Because of administrative changes since the Senate meeting, Senate will review ULC membership at its next meeting.)

Forthcoming Meetings
The next Senate meeting will be Wednesday, May 18, 2011, at 11:00 AM on the Chicago Campus. The Senate will meet in executive session at 9:30 AM that day, primarily to organize the agenda of the 11:00 AM meeting. Senate has agreed that all attendees of Senate meetings identify themselves by name when prompted by the NLU Meeting Place system, and those names will be announced aloud by the system to all meeting participants. Callers who do not identify themselves will be asked to hang up and reconnect, saying their names when prompted. As always, Faculty Senate meetings are open to all members of the NLU Community.

Senate agreed that the NLU Faculty Association Meeting will be on Friday, May 20, 2011, at 1:00 PM. Details on locations and teleconferencing are forthcoming.

Faculty Association Spring Meeting May 20, 2011

The National Louis University Faculty Association spring meeting will take place, as previously announced, from 1:00 to 3:00 PM CDT on May 20, 2011. In order to minimize the cost of parking in Chicago, the meeting will originate from the North Shore campus, with teleconferencing to Chicago, Wheeling, Lisle, Elgin, and all remote locations via NLU Meeting Place. Powerpoints will be broadcast using Centra. A separate meeting announcement will contain instructions for connecting to NLU Meeting Place and Centra.

This is a particularly important meeting because of the challenges facing our institution. As we all know, the sharp drop in enrollment and tuition revenue has forced the Administration to take a number of harsh measures, including increased load and reductions in force. At the same time, the Administration has launched a number of initiatives they believe will improve service to students, increase enrollment, and improve operational efficiency.

Senators, other faculty leaders, and I have worked very hard to represent faculty voice in a very challenging time, and this meeting is important for gaining an understanding about the impact your representatives have had in representing the faculty voice.

Obviously, it has not been possible to avoid the effects of a $10 million revenue drop on faculty. Nevertheless, despite numerous obstacles, Senate and other faculty leaders have brought faculty voice to bear on many decisions, and continue working to make sure that unaddressed concerns will be acted upon in the future.

During this meeting we will review the impact we have had despite the obstacles, and will design ways to ensure that faculty voice is represented as NLU attempts to rebuild over the summer and next year.

Though we have faced many challenges, Senate and I continue to advocate, and, in fact, have had considerable impact on many decisions. At the meeting, we will provide updates on:

• Administration’s promise, at Senate’s request, that the load increase be temporary as we work next year to replace the current disputed load policy with a policy mutually satisfactory to faculty and Administration.

• Respect for the tenure process and tenure in making decisions about reductions in force.

• Insistence on timely communication to affected faculty of reductions in force (rather than delaying).

• Addition of a second option to the Voluntary Early Retirement Incentive.

• Improved faculty input into benefits, including restoring the Benefits Committee.

• Reduction of increases in insurance costs, and a fairer allocation of the increase to all employees.

• Faculty input and improvements to the Academic Calendar revision.

• Increased opportunity for faculty input into the Strategic Plan (such as coming open meetings on the draft plan)

Other areas have been less successful, as we all know. We will address those areas at the meeting and develop plans to continue to press for satisfaction.

The meeting will include reports from President Megahed, Provost Quinn, and several senators. There will be time for Q and A, and if time remains, for small group discussion on these important matters:

• Faculty input on the Learning Commons

• Faculty input on the Graduate Advising Center

• Faculty input on increasing enrollment

• Faculty input on the Strategic Plan

• Faculty governance of Academic Planning

I look forward to your active participation in the meeting.

Agenda, NLU Faculty Senate, April 20, 2011

Call to Order (11:00 a.m.)

Approval of Minutes of March, 2011 Minutes

Acceptance of the Agenda

Reports (11:05 a.m. to 12:15 .p.m)

· President’s Report, Dr. Nivine Megahed (11:05 a.m. to 11:25 a.m.)

· Provost’s Report, Dr. Christine Quinn (11:25 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.)

· Financial Report, Kent Kay (11:45 a.m. to 12:00 noon)

· Steve Neer, Graduate Advising Center (12:00-12:15 p.m.)

Academic Planning Subcommittee Report, Dr. Renee Judd (12:15 p.m. to 12:20 p.m.)

Faculty Welfare and Compensation Committee Report, Michelle Turner Mangan and Linda Gibbons (12:20 p.m. to 12:45 p.m.)

New Business (12:45 p.m.)

· Election of New ULC Representative (12:45 p.m. to 12:50 p.m.)

Adjournment (12:50 p.m.)

Executive Session: Senate will meet in executive session at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, April 20, 2011, primarily to organize the agenda of the 11:00 a.m. meeting.

Next Senate Meeting: Wednesday, May 18, 2011 11:00 a.m. at the Chicago Campus.