5 minutes were added to the discussion
A motion to switch to this new schedule for fall was brought from the floor and seconded.
VOTE: raise-of-hands vote: 1 yea, 9 nays, 5 abstentions. The motion did not pass.
A Senator said that the new schedule makes sense. Another senator replied that we just need to figure out the logistics.
A Senator from the Music department noted that Music always presents a special problem because students have so many applied lessons, and the individual instructors have to make their own schedules. It used to be that music students had to have 1-3pm TR reserved for lab time only, but now that has been compromised.
Sipes stated that she did a lot of research before developing this proposal. She added that it's a big change, but that we really do have to think of what's best for the students. At all the other schools that she has looked at, the calendar schedule policy is set by the administration. It's a matter of space utilization: we need to have 50% of classes during peak times and 30% of classes outside of peak times, and then the departments can determine scheduling within those parameters.
A Senator stated that there is concern among the faculty that they haven't been brought into this conversation. Sipes responded, that's why we're here today. The Senator replied that the Senate body isn't the whole faculty. A more inclusive discussion among faculty needs to happen. Not all labs are the same.
9. Budget and Academic Support Committee: Chair Phillip Clay reported on the following issues:
The committee reviewed the classroom assessment presented at the last Senate meeting.
The committee studied the June 30th, 2018 University Financial Statement document, especially pages 6-7, which present a condensed Statement of Revenue and Change. KSU made fewer expenditures on instruction, even though total revenue was up. The operating revenue was zero for 2018 but 964,396 for 2017. On pages 12-13 of the document, which discuss designated and non-designated spending, the numbers indicate that the instructional budget is decreasing as a proportion of spending. It was 15.46% in 2017 and 14.13% in 2018. This change represents about 1.3 million less spent on instruction last year than in the year before. Clay explained that this document is on the Finance section of the university website.
Moffett noted that the document isn't very detailed.
The committee looked at some old action items related to the targeted annual instructional budget. They had previously recommended a 30% instructional budget by 2022. They compared KSU's instructional spending to Morehead's (35%) and NKU's (32.9%).
The committee looked at the issue of an enrollment cap on online courses; they have yet to determine whether there is an official cap on those classes.
10. Faculty Ombudsman Report: Ombudsman Wilfred Reilly was absent, so there was no report.
11. Other Business: