FACULTY SENATE REJECTS PLAN; PROPOSAL INVOLVES COLLEGE-BASED DECISION MAKING SYSTEM

The Faculty Senate at Southeast Missouri State University Wednesday strongly rejected a College of Business Administration plan for college-based decision making.

The senate also recommended that all college-based, decision-making plans be put on hold to allow time for universitywide discussion and debate of the issue.

Leslie Cochran, Southeast's provost, said he would not approve the Business College's governing plan because it conflicts with university policies.

Senators said college-based decision making would affect the rights of faculty members in areas such as: performance appraisal, salary increases and adjustments, merit pay, market pay, tenure, promotion, departmental autonomy, teaching assignments, class scheduling, and course and curriculum decisions.

"I think it is inconsistent with what is good for the university as a whole," said faculty senator David McElreath.

He expressed concern that the College of Business Administration (CBA) plan was being used as a model for development of similar plans in colleges and departments campuswide.

Senators complained that faculty both in the Business College and campuswide have not been given a chance to discuss the college-based, decision-making plan in any detail.

Faculty senator Roy Farris of the Business College has been one of the leading opponents of the CBA plan.

"I am fighting for the individual faculty rights in my college because they have been violated," he said.

Ronald Clayton of the Faculty Senate said he believes the CBA plan undermines the senate's role regarding faculty issues.

"I think in this particular case we are talking about a proposal that really attempts to pre-empt the functions of this body," he said.

In a measure adopted by the senate, faculty senators said the Business College plan conflicts with established university policies on promotion, tenure, student evaluation of instruction and merit pay.

The Faculty Senate recently approved a merit pay plan. Senators said the Business College plan includes requirements for merit pay that do not conform with the senate's merit pay plan.

The Business College plan also conflicts with some of the provisions of the faculty handbook, senators said.

For example, the CBA plan would require every faculty member in the Business College to use a specific survey instrument in regards to student evaluation of instruction. But the university policy as published in the faculty handbook leaves the selection of the survey instrument up to each individual faculty member, senators pointed out.

The senate measure opposing the Business College plan states that "any decisions on promotion, tenure, merit pay, or student evaluation of instruction conducted under the provisions of the CBA plan are null and void" and indicates the senate will support any faculty member in the Business College who wishes to appeal or contest such decisions.

In a separate but related measure, senators called for open and complete discussion of the concept of college-based decision making.

Deborah Beard, a faculty senator who serves on the college council of the business school, said the CBA plan has been discussed by the council. Department chairpersons and representatives serve on the college council, which is chaired by Richard Schmidt, dean of the college.

Beard said she doesn't believe the council ever officially voted on the plan. "I kind of thought we would bring it back to the full college," she said.

But she said there never was any intention to violate the faculty handbook.