Category Archives: Information

Penn State Mont Alto Faculty Senate minutes, April 27, 2016.

Penn State Mont Alto Faculty Senate minutes, April 27, 2016

Meeting began at 2:01 pm. Chairman Somjit Barat opened with a reminder about the end-of-year luncheon. He then gave a brief recap of the International Program that concludes at the end of the semester. Only four people attended the first two events, but attendance grew to about 50 people for the last three events on campus. The question is: how to involve students more? A reference to a statistical study showed that students involved in the program have higher graduation rates and better opportunities upon graduation.

The next area of discussion involved committee operations. There will be an ongoing effort to encourage committee reports at MAFS on a regular basis. Therefore, it is expected that all committees will conduct regular meetings and members of each committee are expected to attend. A question was raised about what to do with less active committees. Should every current committee remain in existence? Should some committees be put on an inactive list until they are needed? Should there be a cap on members for each committee? How many members are needed for each committee? There are provisions in the Constitution for making adjustments to committees, which is something that needs to be addressed by the incoming chair in the next academic year.

The discussion was halted due to a special surprise announcement about Dr. Lauraine Hawkins, assistant professor of biology at Penn State Mont Alto. Dr. Hawkins was the sole recipient of the 2016 Milton S. Eisenhower Award for Distinguished Teaching, which recognizes excellence in teaching and student support among tenured faculty who have been employed full time for at least five years with undergraduate teaching as a major portion of their duties. Milton S. Eisenhower, brother of former U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, served as president of Penn State from 1950 to 1956. Dr. Hawkins was surprised with a bouquet of flowers by Dr. Mike Doncheski and Dr. Francis Achampong. Here is a link for more detailed information: http://news.psu.edu/story/406190/2016/04/25/academics/hawkins-receives-eisenhower-award-distinguished-teaching.

Chair Barat then continued his opening remarks by commenting that all correct information is now posted on door of Police Services for any faculty member to get assistance with classroom keys. Also, faculty should expect to be contacted about involvement in the Faculty Connections Program after what is considered a successful year of events.

Chair Barat concluded with an admission update from Diane Chamberlin, who could not attend the meeting. At the time of the meeting, the accepted invites stood at 160, which is about 100 less than the statistically expected number. The low number can be attributed to the lateness of the offers getting sent out because of the technical issues with the new system.

Dr. Achampong then addressed a recent incident involving potentially inappropriate interaction between the athletic department and faculty. There are some general guidelines that should be observed going forward, which stress that athletics should steer clear of any discussion involving grades or eligibility with faculty. There cannot be any perception of influence regarding grades earned by student-athletes. Discussions can be held about attendance, travel schedules and missing work. The PSUAC is expected to put specific regulations in place in the near future.

The Athletic Committee then interjected and gave a recap of their latest meeting, which included a lengthy discussion of the issue. Is the answer an appointment of a liaison between the coaches and faculty to ensure there is no perception of grade tampering? The committee felt it would be awkward for the liaison, a faculty member, to contact another faculty member about their grading process. It was the conclusion of the committee that the campus should emphasize the utilization of existing procedures instead of creating another layer of reporting. Dr. Achampong agreed that Marla Minnich, in her role as student advocate, is well within her prevue to serve as the contact person. The point was then made that the process in place, which is the Early Intervention Program form, is for faculty to report ANY student, not just student-athletes. Marla will automatically receive a copy of each form that is submitted. The underlying thrust of all of this is that the student should be encouraged to follow through on their academic performance.

Andrea Pritt then gave a recap of Academic Festival, which turned out to be the largest ever with 49 projects and 120 participants. A big thank you was expressed to all faculty who supported the students, the judges, the set-up crew and the food prep team.

Dan Dandy then discussed the poll that picked the winning theme for the coming year: Engaged Scholarship. The question now is: what’s next? Should there be a session in the fall MADE about the new theme? How to go about integrating the theme in all aspects of the campus, including the website? Would it be advantageous to have a two-year theme instead of something new every academic year? A comment was offered that this sounded like a good idea because introducing the new theme at the start of the year means integration probably won’t occur until the spring semester since everyone already has the fall plans in place. The overriding goal is to get the theme integrated and up front in everybody’s mind.

Kate Chronister followed with an update on Starfish. It was suggested that faculty take the opportunity to get familiar with the system before the fall arrives. Upon graduation, there will be no more advising notes in eLion; old notes will supposedly be transferred to the new system but we do not know when, or in what state, they will appear. A training session will be held on Wednesday, May 25 from 1 to 4 pm. A sign-up sheet was passed around for faculty to attend. An email announcement about the session will also be sent out to all faculty.

Robin Yaure gave a quick update from Faculty Affairs. There is $3960.83 remaining in the PDF fund; $0 in the TSF.

Renee Borromeo gave a quick overview of the most recent University Faculty Senate report. The four quick items reviewed were: 1 – Students want electronic access to all syllabus in the future; NOT just a paper copy. 2 – There should be some type of assessment update given in every class prior to the late drop deadline so that students can make an informed decision about continuing with the class. 3 – Minors will require six extra credits. 4 – Should a yearly diversity award be given? Mike Doncheski commented that instructions on how to set up a new award are in place if faculty chooses to do so.

The meeting concluded at 2:55 pm with an expression of thanks to Somjit Barat for his service ats MAFS Chair.

 

 

Penn State Mont Alto Faculty Senate minutes, March 23, 2016

Penn State Mont Alto Faculty Senate minutes, March 23, 2016

Meeting began at 2:02 pm. Chairman Somjit Barat opened with an update on campus theme vote. All faculty were encouraged to submit their opinion before the voting deadline.

Linda Monn then discussed an update on several aspects of LionPath. First of all, wait lists are no more. The new term is “watch lists”. Students can put a class on a watch list and the system will schedule the class when a seat opens up in the desired class. A question was asked about the sequence of events: when a class is on a list, will it be added automatically? Can students take a class off the list if they change their mind? Can a class be dropped that was automatically added? The answer may be found in the variety of options available when setting up the watch list. One word of advice is that students be sure that web sections have not been selected.

Next, class lists are now called “class rosters”. The fall lists will not be available to faculty until June. Since Linda and Deana have access now, you can request a list from them if you need it before June.

Faculty should look for a future message from Linda about course controls. The site Pulic.lionpath.psu.edu was shown on the screen and the steps involved in conducting a search. One key piece of advice is for multiple searches, use modify search instead of selecting new search each time in order to save time in repeatedly selecting the options. Also, you should uncheck the box to show open classes only. A few other simple searches were shows, such as how to look for available general education classes.

One of the next areas that Linda will work on are room assignments. Watch for a message from Linda on when to check on these. There is a chance that some glitches could pop up; such as over-enrolled classes and double-booked rooms.

For advisors, if you have a student with hold issues in LionPath; make sure they have taken care of the “To Dos” in ordere to get rid of the hold message. Access showed be allowed once these are completed.

Finally, Spring 2017 classes will go live July 18. Directors will have to provide all information before summer break. Everyone can check the recent helpful e-mail from Lauraine for assistance.

 

Mike Doncheski then spoke about volunteers for Faculty Scholar Award. Peter Dendle will call for self-nominations and faculty can submit the scholarly part of FAR.

A second topic addressed was the ENTI minor, which has one course online with a limited number of seats. Students interested in the class should let Mike know ASAP.

 

Dr. Francis Achampong then delivered a bit of good news regarding the ongoing issues with the state budget. In the spending plan presented last week, the appropriation proposal was not vetoed by Governor Wolf. That does not mean that everything is fine and will go back to normal, but it is an encouraging development.

The deadline to submit 4% of funds back to University Park was the day of the meeting. Mont Alto sent $294,000, which included $155,000 earmarked for a campus beautification project. A question was asked about the nature of the project put on hold, which involved the PT lab in the Sci-Tech building.

Plans are still in place for a 5% cut in permanent budget for 2016-17. There will be a wait-and-see approach for now before going forward with any plans on dealing with Mont Alto’s operating deficit for 2016-17.

Robin Yaure then addressed travel grant. Reimbursements are still on indefinite hold despite the recent budget development. Funding for anything other than licensing and tenure track (something for your job) will not be available. Also, the teaching support fund is completely spent for the current budget year.

Committee chairs were then given an opportunity to speak, but there were no updates.

Kate Chronister then gave an update on Starfish. EPRs are now called “Raising Flags”. Faculty can mark flags for positive performance as well as warning flags.

Advising notes were discussed, which is not something that can be done in LionPath. Hence, the need for Starfish. Do not add advising notes into eLion after May 9. NSO advisors will be the first to learn this feature in Starfish due to their work over the summer. Other faculty members who use the feature should get training from the DUS office before the first official training in the fall.

A question was asked about older notes getting transferred to the new system. At this point, it’s assumed this will happen. But no one is sure how it’s going to look.

Starfish trainees were promised that the system will have more functionality. What that means is not known since no details have made available at this time. There is a question about some of the new functionality being compatible with the current email usage. It appears that in order to use the new functions, faculty will have to be able to uses the calendar in the Starfish system. IT will need to be consulted about the issue.

One of the basic guiding forces of Starfish is the roles and relationships of the user. Users will be granted roles in the system. Roles dictate access and what information can be seen. Instructors will be asked to set up a profile that includes contact information. Student ID photos eventually will be viewable. Additional roles will be added in the future. Lastly, The Phase 2 roll out is planned for 2017, which will connect to Canvas. It is not yet known how access to Starfish will be handled.

The meeting concluded at 2:53 p.m.

Penn State Mont Alto Faculty Senate Executive Board minutes, March 16, 2016

Penn State Mont Alto Faculty Senate Executive Board minutes, March 16, 2016

In attendance: Chair Somjit Barat, Dr. Francis Achampong, Hanifiah Harvey, Kendra Sites, Ermek Nurkhaidarov, Mike Doncheski, Robin Yaure

Dr. Achampong opened the meeting with an update about the ongoing budget dilemma. The possibility looms of layoffs in the Agricultural Extension/Ag Research areas. According to the latest information, the budget crisis may last through the election in November. Four percent of the of the current budget needs to be returned to University Park by April 1; and 5% is planned for the 2016-17 budget.

In addition, travel restrictions are in place for an indefinite period. No travel reimbursements will be processed unless necessary for required certifications or tenure track. An example would be the TLT/Canvas Day that was not cancelled this past weekend.

Admissions was mentioned next. Transfer offers are not going out due to issues with LionPath. The problem is complicated by the fact that the offers cannot be manually delivered.

A fall PAWS session was discussed to provide some training for students on LionPath. Several open lab have been set up in March staffed by faculty volunteers. Advisers can suggest these sessions to students.

The discussion wrapped up with a rundown of proposed agenda items for the MAFS meeting. Committee reports are expected from IT and Curricular Affairs. An update on the ASC will be provided by Kendra and Linda Monn will give an update on LionPath.

Penn State Mont Alto Faculty Senate minutes, February 24, 2016

Mont Alto Faculty Senate minutes, February 24, 2016

Meeting began at 2 p.m. Chair Somjit Barat announced the UFS representative election vote was for Peter Linehan.

An announcement was made about the early progress reports. In the future, faculty should get all reports in before the deadline.

Faculty webpages updates were addressed. Anyone wanting to make changes on their own must complete a training session. There is a procedure in place for updates to be submitted through an approval process before any changes are made, which should be completed as quickly as possible. It was suggested that minor changes wait for the implementation of a new system, which seems to be imminent but is currently on hold. The new system, Polaris, does not have an announced start date.

Faculty are reminded to attend one of several remaining LionPATH open labs on campus. In addition, tutorials can be accessed online. Additional information is available at tutorials.lionpath.psu.edu.

It was pointed out that there will be some confusion during the transition period about what is available and where it can be found. Please have patience!

 

Next, Chief Wagner gave an update about the key distribution process, which has been streamlined to a simple key request form signed by a supervisor and their supervisor. Chief Wagner adjusted the exchange to allow one sheet with all the keys; not one sheet per key as technically required.

The department cannot issue key without the sheet, even though the Chief has given out keys without the sheet in an attempt to be as accommodating as possible. Other members of the department have been trained in the process. Issues with keys seem to arise more in the spring semester than in the fall. Faculty should be aware that if the department office is unattended, simply call the police service number and an officer will return to assist you. The call may call through county dispatch, but it is not a 911 emergency call.

Chief Wagner is open to suggestions from the faculty on any ways the process can be made more accessible and accommodating. One suggestion from the Executive Board is to provide a checklist of items to be addressed prior to the start of the semester to incoming faculty attached to their contract. Full-time faculty simply can call ahead and plan a visit in advance, or call the service number and wait at the office for an officer to assist you.

A question was asked about where to obtain the key request form; which can be picked up at the DAA office from Charlene. (Conklin). All keys not needed for the next semester should be returned to Police Services at the end of the semester or the end of the contract.

A reminder was made that card access is coming for outside access to the classroom building (entry into building only). This will not affect access to classrooms or the need to obtain the correct room keys once inside the building.

Dr. Achampong then addressed the latest message from University Park about the effects of the state budget impasse. A mass e-mail was sent to everyone from the Provost about contingency plans if a budget is not approved. The campuses were asked to transfer 4% of reserve funds to UP by April 1. However, this is nowhere near balancing the deficit of $300 million of appropriation from the state.

In addition, campuses have been asked to cut 5% from the operating budget for 2016-17. Travel is the area immediately affected as money should not be spent that has not already been committed. All travel has not been suspended: for those on tenure track and must be able to make presentations at conferences, travel commitment money will not be revoked. Those who have certifications to maintain and must attend workshops will still be supported. If you need to attend an Accredited Program meeting, you should still plan to go.

Other non-essential university travel in the future will most likely not be available for reimbursement. It is advised to submit summer travel plans as soon as possible in order for a chance to receive reimbursement.

A question was raised about the effect on insurance if faculty travel on their own to university functions. That should not be affected since you are on University business. You’re just not getting reimbursed for the travel expenses.

Until appropriations are approved, this is the reality of the current unprecedented budget situation. If a budget gets through, this issue will most likely disappear. In the meantime, check to see that scheduled conferences, workshops and meetings have been cancelled or postponed.

At this point in time, there has been no discussion about the effect of curtailing spending on the workforce.

Robin Yaure reported that no more money is available in the teaching support fund. A limited amount is still in the professional development fund, but the committee is not looking at any additional proposals.

Committee Reports

Academic Affairs, represented by Alicia White, held a meeting on Nov. 16 about the campus theme of Peace. Perhaps the theme was not promoted as widely as it could be. Some questions to consider:

Could there be more e-mails to community?

More us of digital signage?

Who should choose next year’s theme?

What is the validity of having a campus theme? Is it required?

How to engage faculty?

Was the term “Peace” – too broad?

Faculty should look for a doodle poll on the subject in the near future.

 

Curricular Affairs, represented by Jackie Schwab, reported on the committee looking over a proposal to bring a psychology major to the campus. A recommendation on submitting a prospectus will be made in the near future. If approved, two additional faculty members will be needed.

Secondly, a meeting for the team on linked and inter-domain will be arranged after spring break.

Third, anyone with books to donate to Friends of Legal Services can contact Schwab.

Finally, the campus reads meeting will be March 2. The author of the selected material will be on campus later this semester. Please note it on your calendar.

 

IT committee, represented by Paul Bart, asked for any issues for the agenda to be submitted. As for the TLTA Advisory Committee, the IT will take charge of ad hoc requests to take up work as needed. Two immediate concerns are campus server support and UCS.

 

Diversity Committee, represented by Dan Dandy, reported that the Zuzu Acrobats performance was well attended. They are now working with Student Affairs on the presentation of Hairspray and on the campus theme.

Kendra Sites closed out the meeting by announcing Brain Games are coming. There was also a flyer distributed about the event. Faculty are needed in a variety of roles to assist in the activity scheduled for 6-8 pm on April 15.

Meeting dispersed at 2:52 pm.

Health Policy and Administration

The Curriculum Committee is reviewing a proposal for a new Bachelor program for Mont Alto called Health Policy and Administration. It will be run in partnership with the Harrisburg Campus and will bring new faculty to Mont Alto.  Attached is the program proposal and a market analysis. This is the preliminary proposal, which will be discussed at next week’s MAFS meeting.

New template – P3 Proposal – HPA – PHS & PSMA

HBGHPA

Day of Enrichment Schedule for January, 2014

Mont Alto Day of Enrichment
Thursday, January 9, 2014

9:00 – 11:30 Living-Learning Communities
Elizabeth Kearns
This session, intended primarily for faculty and staff who work directly with students in the classroom or residence halls, will include a tour of our residence halls followed by a coffee hour and roundtable discussion of ways our campus could integrate academics into student living spaces.
Departing from and returning to Mont Alto Hall common room

9:00 – 11:30 What’s Your Style?
Helen McGarry
Learn how to improve your interpersonal relationships by discovering your communications style. Identify others’ styles and recognize how you can improve your interactions (both professional and personal) in general.  This foundational communications workshop will incorporate principles of Emotional Intelligence (EQ) and help participants to increase their self-awareness as it relates to interpersonal relationships.
Please note that this session is limited to 20 people, so if you would like to attend you must mention that in your RSVP!
Wiestling Hall

9:00 – 10:00 IT Session for OPP Staff
Brian Young, IDS
Title & topic TBA
ST 313

11:30 – 1:00 Working Lunch and Town Hall Meeting on Strategic Plan
Moderated by Mike Dooris, OPIA
This is an opportunity for the campus community to provide input into the development of the new strategic plan for our campus.
MPR

1:15 – 2:15 Seminars

Realities and Impact of Combat, PTSD, and TBI in the Classroom:
Improving student veteran retention from reintegration through graduation
Corey Christmas & Jennifer Roseman, Vet Advisor
This session is intended for faculty and staff who work with and are interested in learning to better support our veterans. The program will lead to the formation of a veterans’ support network on campus.
ST 204

TED Talk & Discussion
Staci Grimes
TED talks are “riveting talks by remarkable people, free to the world.” In this session, participants will view and discuss one or more of these talks. Topic TBA; if you are interested in this and would like to have input on the talk selected, contact Staci. For more information on TED, visit ted.com
ST 106

Family-friendly Library Resources
Lisa White
This session will follow up on last year’s wildly popular session on non-academic resources available (for free!) from the library. This time Lisa will focus on resources that might be of interest to kids as well as adults.
Library first floor

Introduction to One-Button Studio
Nick Smerker, Traveling Media Consultant
Learn how to use our new one-button studio, including a demonstration and hands-on participation.
Library seminar room & one-button studio

Clicker Workshop
Brian Young, IDS
How to use clickers in your classes. 304 Sci-Tech