Announcements:
The
APC will no longer be working with the honor code; instead they will focus on
revising the code of conduct for next year.
APC will suggest that the Leadership Council appoint an ad hoc committee
to work on an honor code.
A
picture of the whole community will be taken at 12 on Friday, December 10.
The
computer learning lab in the library may not be ready for classes at the start
of the second semester. Although the
wiring and physical change will be completed, the tables will be shipped too
late for the computers to be installed.
The lab will be available in January and orientation sessions will be
held.
If
you would like to participate in Martin Luther King Day celebration contact
Peggy Craft or Russell Robinson.
Sally
Adkin and others will administer an evaluation of the after 8 rule that was put
into place at the beginning of the 1999-2000 school year. She has hired an outside consultant to do a
quantitative analysis of the effectiveness of this rule. Focus groups of 10 people from the different
constituencies in the school will answer the questions of how the rule has
worked and how various groups on campus have been affected. Sally asked the faculty if there are other
important questions, besides those on her list, that
would be important for the faculty group to consider. Faculty suggested that
the groups be involved in selecting items for discussion. Faculty members also asked if it wouldn’t be
better to include people from all groups from the school together in groups (to
which Sally responded no) and if all groups should be asked the same questions.
This is a pilot program and the final results of the study will be wrapped up
in March. This will not be a vote by the
faculty but rather an informational study that will determine where people are
in order to decide on the need for a change in policy. Faculty should let Dot know if they are
interested in serving on one of the focus groups.
Updates from Phil:
Dr.
Gerry Boarman made a good presentation to the board, and Dr. Boarman also acknowledged his enthusiasm for working on
all of the things we need, particularly in regard to the physical plant. Twenty-four board members came to the Board
retreat and for the first time, they were challenged to help raise money for
the school. The Strategic Plan was
shared in draft form with the trustees, and they have been asked to make their
suggestions.
By
the end of January, the final draft will be in place.
We
will have a capital campaign to address faculty needs, the physical plant,
sabbaticals in the endowment and other items.
Phil has told the BOT he thinks this school should have $25 million
raised in 5 years. The Trustees have
political influence, and we can all work toward more fund raising for the
school. None of our budgets will be cut this year; however, unallocated money
is unsure due to the budget changes as a result of hurricane Floyd.
The
faculty approved the minutes of the 11/16 metting.
ATC Committee report:
Jonathan
Keohane reported back on the work of the ATC and the concerns about the T
drive. The committee suggests that the faculty need to clean up their T drive
folders. That may involve moving things
over to the S drive to appropriate discipline folders. Each discipline should have folders organized
and files should be cleaned up by the end of the semester. ITS is working on
giving students the ability to access their M drives from the EFC through the
academic server in the lab there. The ATC now is planning to come up with a
global plan for what the school needs, and they would like members of the
faculty to tell members of the committee what we should think about in terms of
technology.
Discussion:
Gail
Hudson - Stress Days
There
is no such thing as stress days. If a
student comes to the counseling office with serious problems that make them
unable to go to class, then students are excused. If this happens, they are not allowed to
participate in evening events. Students may
come late to class because the counselors are assessing this. Only serious problems will be excused, and
the counselors follow up to see that the students are in their rooms if
excused.
Discipline
hearings
Should
faculty know about discipline hearings in advance? The charges may not be
valid. Will this change the faculty
member’s perception of the student unfairly?
Many students prefer that their teachers not be told. Many faculty
commented that they should know in advance of hearings because it may help
students if adults on campus know about the difficult time a student may be
having. Marlene Blakeney suggested that
it is better if students know that everyone has been informed so that the SLI’s
will not carry the burden of being the only adults who know about a student’s
behavior. If we are told in advance, we
should also know if the charge was valid or not later. The question was also
raised about whether faculty should also be told about the nature of all the
hearings taking place on campus without the names being listed so that they are
aware of what is taking place in the residential environment.