Minutes
Urbana-Champaign Senate Meeting
October 1, 2007

A regular meeting of the Urbana-Champaign Senate was called to order at 3:15 p.m. in the Beckman Auditorium with Chancellor Richard Herman presiding.

Approval of Minutes

10/01/07-01          The minutes of the April 23 and April 30, 2007, Senate meetings were approved.

Senate Executive Committee Report

Senator Nicholas Burbules (EDUC), Chair of the Senate Executive Committee (SEC), provided the following report.

Senator Burbules reminded those present that this will be the first Senate meeting to be videotaped for broadcast on channel UI-7, this Thursday, October 4, at 7:00 p.m.

He referred to SC.08.03, Academy on Capitalism and Limited Government Fund (ACLGF) Advisory Committee, as an item that the SEC worked on closely with Chancellor Herman.  He said the SEC believes the establishment of this committee, advisory to the Chancellor, is an important first step in this process.

At the door today, please pick up a copy of CC.08.03A, addendum to CC.08.03, Nominations for Membership on Standing Committees of the Senate.

Tellers for today’s meeting are Senators Michael Murphy (ACES), Harry Hilton (ENGR), and Dana Rabin (LAS).

Chancellor’s Remarks

The Chancellor welcomed all back to a new academic year.  He then reported that the new fundraising campaign has a conservative target of $1.5 billion.  He then introduced a video that was presented during Foundation weekend that highlighted the many accomplishments and features of the university.

Questions/Discussion

Senator Al Kagan (LIBR) asked if the Senate would be able to see a copy of the memorandum of understanding about ACLGF.  The Chancellor replied that he thought that could be arranged.

Consent Agenda

The Presiding Officer announced that, absent objections of any senator, the following proposals were approved by unanimous consent:

10/01/07-02            EP.08.01*, Proposed Revisions to the M.E. and M.S. degree programs, Human Resource Education,
10/01/07-03            EP.08.02*, Proposal to Terminate the Teacher Education Minor in Art Education, FAA,
10/01/07-04            EP.08.03*, Proposal to Terminate the Teacher Education Minor in Urban Studies, FAA,
10/01/07-05            EP.08.04*, Undergraduate Minor in Statistics,
10/01/07-06            EP.08.06*, Financial Planning Concentration, Agricultural and Consumer Economics Major, ACE,
10/01/07-07            EP.08.07*, Upgrade Technology Management Concentration under the M.S. in Business Administration to a Major and to Eliminate the Technology Management Concentration within the Department of Business Administration.

Proposals for Action

10/01/07-08          Presented for action was CC.08.03*, Nominations for Membership on Standing Committees of the Senate.  Senator Kim Graber (AHS), Chair of the Committee on Committees, moved approval of the slates on CC.08.03 and its addendum, CC.08.03A.  There were no floor nominations and nominations were declared closed.

10/01/07-09          By voice vote, all nominations were approved.

Reports for Information of the Senate

The following reports were presented for information:

10/01/07-10          SD.07.01*, 2006-07 Annual Report of the Student Discipline Committee,
10/01/07-11          SC.08.03*, Academy on Capitalism and Limited Government Fund (ACLGF) Advisory Committee,
10/01/07-12          HE.07.14*, June 5 IBHE,
10/01/07-13          HE.07.16*, August 14 IBHE,
10/01/07-14          HE.07.13*, May 18 FAC/IBHE,
10/01/07-15          HE.07.15*, June 22 FAC/IBHE,
10/01/07-16          UC.07.07*, March 30 USC,
10/01/07-17          UC.07.08*, April 24 USC,
10/01/07-18          UC.08.01*, August 28 USC.

New Business

10/01/07-19          Senator Belden Fields (LAS) moved to add to today’s agenda a resolution regarding ACLGF; the Senate voted to add this item to the agenda.

Senator Fields stated the resolution called upon the President, the Chancellor, and the ACLGF advisory committee to communicate to the funders that it is the sense of the Senate that 1) the funders change the name of the fund to a more general name, i.e., the Fund for the Study of the Relationship between Government and the Economy, 2) the ideologically motivated curricular transformations articulated in Tom O’Laughlin’s News-Gazette commentary and in the Fund’s own brochure be disavowed, and 3) there be no political or ideological litmus tests attached to the recruitment of faculty or grants from the funds, indeed that any such fund itself reflect the diversity of viewpoints for which the funders claim to be striving.

Perceptions about the Academy included its possible threat to academic freedom, i.e., would funding come with strings attached.  Chancellor Herman averred that would not happen on his watch; he reaffirmed his position that no one will be hired on political grounds.

Concern was expressed that the assembly was reacting to the media coverage of the Academy and not the facts surrounding its establishment.  By voice vote, the Senate approved a motion to call the question on consideration of this resolution.

10/01/07-20          By voice vote, the Senate agreed to postpone consideration of this item until the next regularly scheduled Senate meeting on November 5.

The meeting adjourned at 4:50 p.m.

Robert C. Damrau, Senate Clerk
*Filed with the Senate Clerk and incorporated by reference in these Minutes.