The University Faculty Senate is preparing for a busy year as they look into changing the diversity requirement in the curriculum and work toward implementing faculty background checks.
At today's Senate meeting, the faculty affairs committee will discuss criteria for background checks and then make suggestions to the administration for creating a policy in its the first meeting of the semester, said Christopher Bise, Senate chair.
John Moore, last year's Senate chair, said there are also three committees reviewing specific aspects of the curriculum but the Senate cannot provide details about their work until further notice.
"There is a committee on first-year seminars, one on Bachelor of Arts degree requirements and one on the Intercultural and International Competence (GI) requirement," he said.
Bise said the draft on the effectiveness of the first-year seminar program will hopefully be finished by the end of the fall semester, with the final draft done in the spring.
The group hopes internal organizational changes will help the Senate pass legislation more efficiently than they have in the past, Bise said.
This year, instead of the usual seven meetings, the Senate will hold six -- three in the fall and three in the spring.
"In previous years there was an uneven distribution of the meetings with three in the fall and four in the spring," Bise said.
Bise said he hopes the new meeting schedule will give the Senate the chance to pass equal amounts of legislation in both semesters.
In the past, the Senate officers visited each of the Commonwealth Campuses over a two-year period but have now decided to extend the cycle an extra year.
Susan Youtz, the executive secretary of the Senate, said the three-year rotation will allow officers to spend more time discussing concerns at each campus.
"When we spread out the rotation it allows us more time to hear from the students, faculty and administration and also allows us to learn from them," Youtz said.
Bise said that prior to each Senate meeting, he will send out a newsletter to all college deans who will forward it to all faculty members, not just senators.
"This allows more involvement and insight within each college as well as create a better communication structure," he said.
The Senate also hopes to discuss an online course approval system that would allow faculty to post up-to-date course information.
"Some course descriptions were written so long ago that they don't comply with what the course truly is," Bise said.
The group may also discuss issues of improving campus safety and computer security.
