Members Present: Duane C. Anderson, Pamla Armstrong, Ed Brackett, Nick Cheper, Bob Feighner, Kurt Jackson, Linda Mitchusson, Kenneth Moore, Jack Paschall, Chuck Perry, Nancy Thomason, Bruce Weems

Members Absent: Shirley Talley, Alvin Turner

Others Present: James Harris, Marilyn Cole

Recorder: Sue Milner

I. CALL TO ORDER

At 9:00 a.m. Dr. Anderson called a regular meeting of the Academic Affairs Council to order. Dr. James Harris, chair of the History Department, sat in for Dr. Turner.

II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

The minutes of November 18, 1997, were approved as distributed.

III. UNIT REPORTS

School of Education and Psychology--Dr. Kenneth Moore

Dr. Moore has been busy reading folios. He has not received folios for the music, social studies, speech and drama, library science, and psychometry programs. All others have been submitted. Dr. John Bedford joins the education faculty in January. He comes to East Central from Odessa, Texas. Ms. Carolyn Thomas is appointed on a temporary basis to a position formerly held by Freda Jones. She begins her assignment in January also. Interviews are in process now and two positions in elementary education will be filled by Christmas break.

School of Business--Dr. Linda Mitchusson

Dr. Andrew Parkes attended a meeting to present a paper at the Southern Economics Association. A new interest in the Resume' Book has created a good response. Students are being contacted by companies, which is very gratifying. The Business Administration Department is working on program review. The Business/Office Technology Department submitted their folio.

School of Mathematics and Sciences--Dr. Bruce Weems

Mr. Jay Moore is leaving the Environmental Health Science department at the end of the fall semester for employment with the Texas County Public Health Department. The School is in process of advertising for the Kerr Chair in environmental health science and for a position in cartography. The School is waiting for a review from the Regents for a grant proposal for several summer academies.

School of Humanities and Social Sciences--Dr. James Harris

Speech students placed second in a recent meet.

Data Processing--Mr. Bob Feighner

The network has been under maintenance for two weeks. The math/sciences server is being upgraded.

Libraries--Dr. Chuck Perry

The topic of the month is "osmosis." The library staff is waiting for the remaining office furniture. There are no further faculty complaints concerning access to the library annex.

Registry--Ms. Pamla Armstrong

Class rosters are in faculty mailboxes first day of final exams.

Continuing Education and Community Services--Ms. Nancy Thomason

Ms. Thomason is writing grants. One proposal in the amount of two million dollars will establish a professional development institute to provide professional development to teachers to help improve their skills in teaching children to read. A new employee, Connie Tatum, is Assistant Coordinator of the Child Care Resource and Referral Services.

Assessment Center and Institutional Research--Dr. Kurt Jackson

The Center is collecting Student Evaluations of Faculty. Deans should check to see that all evaluations are in. Next year the time frame for evaluation will be in early November rather than late November.

Title III and Grants and Research Information Center--Mr. Ed Brackett

The Center has $3,963,000 in grants approved this fiscal year. The collection of the Institutional Goals Survey is about 77 percent complete. The library returned all surveys distributed. There are other areas that have returned none.

Faculty Senate--Dr. Nicholas Cheper

There appears to be some concern in two areas: the statistical validity of student evaluations of faculty and procedures in place to cover student emergencies.

School of Graduate Studies--Dr. Jack Paschall

The January intersession course scheduled will be taught by Dr. Michael Brand, professor in Human Resources. The Graduate Office completed their home page on the Internet.

IV. AGENDA OF THE VICE PRESIDENT FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRS

A. COI, December 4, 1997

1. Report, discussion, and handouts by Regent Bill Burgess concerning economic development and distance learning. Plans include promoting economic development by making seed money available and promoting distance learning by providing money for more technology. Along with that, COI is diligently working to review all state regent policies that relate to off-campus learning and electronic media.

2. Report on faculty transfer matrix matters. The new matrix has been given to the academic vice presidents for corrections. The deadline is December 19, 1997.

3. Committee Reports: Electronic Media--Discussed review if its policy. The Committee sees a need to create a listing of electronic offerings and distribute statewide to avoid duplication. An attempt is being made to set up a revised policy that considers "quality" as well as delivery.

4. New committee assignments: Dr. Anderson serves on the Electronic Media Committee and will meet two times monthly for the next eight months. Also, he is on the Program, Admission/Retention, and APRA Committees.

5. Marketing Program. A high school student in a two-year course sequence may take a series of business courses at vo-tech schools, and upon passing a test prepared by high school teachers, they can articulate those courses as Introduction to Business for college credit at two-year colleges. Institutions are insisting that persons preparing the exams should be business faculty at two and four year schools. The School of Business may receive inquiries to serve on this committee to validate that work. Dr. Anderson asks the School of Business to provide a representative from that department.

6. Vice Presidents' Meeting: Dr. Ross reports that students may use two years of a foreign language taken at a high school if the high school program is validated. Validation is obtained by university faculty going to the school to review the program. If validated, the courses meet requirements at the novice high level. This will be inserted in the plan as a possibility for use at ECU.

7. Commission on Teacher Preparation is scheduled to sunset June 30, 1999, unless the legislature rescinds the order in its 1998 session, thus, giving the Commission new life.

B. Calendar Dates

December 16: Open house at President Cole's residence. Supervisors may release employees to attend. Dr. Anderson encourages all to go.

December 18: The ECU Hall Party begins 12:00 noon. If attending, respond to the Academic Affairs Office.

December 19: Fall grades are due at 10:00 a.m.

December 23: Offices are open through December 23.

January 2: All administrative offices open. Because of new tax laws, students may pay fees January 2 for spring enrollment.

January 6: Academic Affairs Council meeting

January 8: Faculty return for spring semester

C. Rogers University Proposal

East Central is submitting a proposal to deliver our graduate rehabilitation program at Rogers University. East Central has the only accredited graduate Rehabilitation Counseling program in the state.

D. End of Semester routine

A note to faculty is forthcoming reminding them final exams must be given. If no exam is scheduled, the class must meet to fulfil the class requirements outlined by the regents.

E. Spring 1998 Enrollment Report

At the close of walk-in enrollment, undergraduate FTE is down 4.8%; graduate is down 11.5% and overall is down 5.2%. Headcount is down 227 or 6.4% overall. The sophomore and part of the junior class is down 200 headcount. Dr. Anderson meets with Deans December 11 and 12 to discuss small classes for spring semester.

F. Other

1. Three-year tenure review is complete. Recommendations go to the President.

2. The annual Interscholastic Meet is February 10, 1998. Mr. Todd Essary will be asked to attend the January meeting to talk to council members. Dr. Talley will coordinate the Interscholastic Meet. Deans are asked to check the accuracy of exam descriptions.

3. The state regents inform institutions that informal geometry does not meet high school curriculum requirements.

4. Enrollment report. Dr. Anderson distributed tables showing enrollments for all Oklahoma institutions that compared years 1996 and 1997.

5. Computer count. Reports should be submitted as soon as possible.

6. Academic Plan. The Chancellor's office notified ECU that they received and accepted ECU's academic Plan. The next plan is due July 15, 1998. Dr. Anderson plans to incorporate departmental plans more fully into the academic plan submitted to state regents.

IV. OLD BUSINESS

A. Van & Bus Usage Policy

After review of the current policy, Deans Weems, Turner, and Mitchusson, recommend no change in the current policy for academic use of the vans. Use continues to be on first come, first served basis.

B. 1998 Enrollment Schedule

A memo, distributed to council members, show revised enrollment dates for beginning freshmen. For further information, contact a school dean.

V. NEW BUSINESS

A. Student Withdrawal from School

Dr. Anderson distributed an Exit/Withdrawal Questionnaire. He is proposing a change in how students withdraw from the university, starting with spring semester. He will work up a new procedure and change the policy that requires students to get the signature of faculty advisors. Rather, the student will go to a central location to complete a questionnaire and secure the necessary academic signature, thus, providing the university with information on why students are withdrawing.

VI. ADJOURN

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 10:45 a.m.

Duane C. Anderson,Vice President for Academic Affairs