*1
.
DRAFT UNTIL APPROVED BY SENATE
Minutes of a Meeting of the Senate of Simon Fraser University held on
?
Monday, January 10, 2005 in Room 3210 WMC at 7:00 pm
?
Open Session
Present: Percival, Paul, Vice-Chair of Senate
Brennand, Tracy
Budd, James
Copeland, Lynn
da Silva, Gisele
Dean, Charmaine
Dickinson, John
Driver, Jon
Easton, Stephen
Fizzell, Maureen
Giacomantonio, Chris
Gordon, Irene
Gordon, Robert
Harder, Derrick
Hayes, Michael
Higgins, Anne
Honda, Barry
Horvath, Adam
• Hunsdale, Shawn
Johansen, Elinor
Krane, Bill
Love, Ernie
MacKenzie, Christine
MacLean, David
McKinnon, Stephanie
McInnes, Marcia
Parkhouse, Wade (representing B. Lewis)
Pierce, John
Pinto, Mario
Plischke, Michael
Rozell, Sara
Sears, Camilla
Schellenberg, Betty
Scott, Jamie
Shaker, Paul
Smit, Bernard
Smith, Don
Waterhouse, John
Weeks, Daniel
Wong, Josephine
Woodbury, Robert
Yerbury, Cohn
• ?
Zandvliet, David
Heath, Ron, Dean of Student Services and Registrar
Watt, Alison, Director, University Secretariat
Grant, Bobbie, Recording Secretary
Absent:
Apaak, Clement
Beynon, Peter
Blackman, Roger
Breden, Felix
Delgrande, James
Dunsterville, Valerie
Fung, Edward
Grimmett, Peter
Gupta, Kamal
Haunerland, Norbert
Li, Ze-Nian
Mauser, Gary
McArthur, James
McFetridge, Paul
Stevenson, Michael
Tombe, Trevor
Wessel, Sylvia
Wong, Milton
In attendance:
Dinning, Mike
Gill, Warren
Ignace, Marianne
Perry, Tom
Trottier, Howard
a
S.M. 10 January
2005
Page 2
1.
Approval
Reference
of
was
the
made
Agendato
the
?
two documents distributed prior to the meeting. Senate was
0
advised that the one document was an additional item to be reported under item 4 -
Report of the Chair - dealing with a new guaranteed admission initiative and the other
document was an amended page relating to S.05-1 - Annual Report on Student
Discipline. The Agenda was approved with amendment.
2.
Approval of the Minutes of the Open Session of December 6, 2004
The Minutes were approved as distributed.
3.
Business Arising from the Minutes
Reference was made to an issue raised during Question Period at the December, 2004
meeting concerning declining entrance averages for college and high school students.
The Associate Vice-President, Academic B.Krane provided detailed admission data for
Fall 2003 and Fall 2004 for the following groups of students: College Transfer, Grade
12, and Diverse Qualifications. In general, the data indicated that there were very minor
reductions in the average admissions grades and the cut-off grades for these categories in
some Faculties. The admissions averages for the Arts (and Social Sciences) college
transfer group experienced the largest decline.
A question was asked about the availability of data for the Spring 2005 semester. Senate
was advised that the data were probably available now but had not been available at the
time the information was gathered for the Fall semester. It was pointed out that it was
possible to prepare an analysis each Spring if Senate was interested, but in light of the
new guaranteed admission initiative it was likely not very useful.
4.
Report of the Chair
i) ?
Paper
S.05-
18
-
Guaranteed Admission Initiative
Senate's attention was directed to the paper distributed at the meeting. R. Heath
explained that the new initiative was meant to correct misinformation in the secondary
schools about admission requirements, acquaint the general public with the university,
increase awareness about the entrance scholarship program, and make SFU more
competitive in attracting students. Senate was advised that the admission guarantee
would not result in over enrolment because if admission targets were met and limits
reached, offers would be cut off and any additional students would be offered a
guaranteed admission to a subsequent semester.
In response to a suggestion that a drop in admission applications might be due to
increased tuition fees, Senate was advised that although this may be a factor, many
universities across the country also experienced similar circumstances.
Discussion turned to the issue of early registration for first year students. It was
explained that first year students were the least familiar with the registration process and
have the least number of course options due to the prerequisite structure. Allowing them
early registration provides a level of comfort in terms of an orientation to registration and
puts SFU on the same competitive level as UBC who also registers freshmen students at
about the same time.
I,
S.M. 10 January 2005
•
?
Page
In response to an inquiry as to whether or not all students with a minimum admission
average of 90% are guaranteed a Summit Scholarship, Senate was informed that all
eligible students across Canada would be offered a Summit Scholarship.
A question arose about the planning, evaluation and feedback with regard to this new
initiative. Senate was advised that a number of scholarship student groups had been
consulted and showed overwhelming support for it. Comment was made that some initial
feedback on the initiative indicated a perception that SFU was lowering its standards. It
was stressed that the standards were being made more transparent but not lowered and
expectations were that the average GPA should increase as a result of the initiative.
In response to a question about international students, Senate was advised that
international students are admitted on the same basis as domestic students and if the
admission average from their home institution is judged to be eligible they would receive
the same admission guarantee. There are separate quotas for international students,
however, that are closely monitored.
A question was posed as to how long the guarantee would be in place. It was expected
that the campaign would be successful and would likely be seen as a new way of doing
business.
5.
Question Period
Inquiry was made as to when the Senate Policy Committee on Scholarships, Awards and
Bursaries was going to meet, especially to discuss financial aid and scholarship issues.
Senate was advised that the meeting to discuss financial issues would not likely take
place until the proposed budget for next year was known, but there were some graduate
issues coming forward so there may be a meeting scheduled for late January.
6.
Reports of Committees
A) ?
Paper S.05-1 - Annual Re
port
- Student Discipline (For Information)
The following persons were in attendance in order to respond to questions: H. Trottier,
Coordinator of the University Board on Student Discipline, M. Dinning, Associate Dean
of Student Services, and R. Heath, Dean of Student Services and Registrar.
Senators were reminded of the replacement page with respect to amended statistical data
from the Dean of Student Services and Registrar which had been distributed prior to the
meeting.
Questions arose with respect to several UBSD cases. H. Trottier provided details with
respect to these inquiries. Senate was reminded that the case summaries were quite brief
and generic and did not include specific details which explained some of the reasons for
•
?
the variation in penalties.
Reference was made to the statistical data on academic dishonesty and inquiry was made
as to why there appeared to be such an increase from 01-02 to 03-04. R. Heath felt that
S.M. 10 January 2005
Page 4
in terms of cheating and plagiarism the numbers seem to be relatively consistent and the
increase might be the result of having more students.
Inquiry was made as to whether any cases were ever submitted to the RCMP, with
particular reference being made to the case involving fraudulent letters of reference from
SFU faculty. M. Dinning advised that the university process proceeds in parallel to
anything that might happen with the RCMP, but generally the police were not involved
unless the incident involved very serious issues such as violence or threats.
B) ?
Senate Committee on Agenda and Rules
i)
Paper
S.05-2 -
Naming of Simon Fraser Universit
y
Campuses
Moved by J. Waterhouse, seconded by J. Driver
"that the official names of the Simon Fraser University campuses be:
Simon Fraser University for the main campus on Burnaby Mountain,
Simon Fraser University Vancouver to encompass activities in downtown
Vancouver, and Simon Fraser University Surrey for the Surrey campus"
W. Gill, Vice-President, University Relations was in attendance in order to respond to
questions.
It was pointed
?
out that the Great Northern Way Campus was not mentioned in the
0
documentation and inquiry was made as to whether it was envisioned to be part of the
activities in Vancouver. Senate was advised that it was not part of the Vancouver campus
since GNW was a joint effort by four institutions and was not controlled by SFU.
Comment was made that many faculty members include Vancouver as part of their
address for Simon Fraser University, especially at international meetings, because
Vancouver was so well known. An opinion was expressed that using Vancouver for
downtown activities only might cause confusion, and suggestion was made that it might
be better to use SFU Downtown. It was pointed out that other cities also have a
downtown area and, in addition, there were three other institutions already in downtown
Vancouver and SFU needs to make a claim to that geographical location.
Question was called, and a vote taken.
?
MOTION CARRIED
ii)
Paper
S.05-3 -
Named Recognition of Buildings, Academic Endowments and
Academic Units Policy GP
35
Moved by J. Waterhouse, E. Love
"that Senate approve, and recommend to the Board of Governors, the
Named Recognition of Buildings, Academic Endowments and Academic
Units Policy GP
35"
S.M. 10 January 2005
Page
5
.
W. Gill, Vice-President, University Relations was in attendance in order to respond to
questions.
Question was called, and a vote taken.
?
MOTION CARRIED
iii)
Paper
S.05-4 -
Recommendation for a new Senate Committee on Academic
Integrity in Student Learning and Evaluation (SCAISLE)
Moved by J. Waterhouse, seconded by E. Johansen
"that the Senate Committee on Academic Integrity in Student Learning
and Evaluation (SCAISLE) be created"
Senate was informed that the committee was being created as a result of one of the
recommendations of the Task Force on Academic Honesty and Integrity which had been
established in response to some highly publicized events surrounding student cheating in
the Spring of 2002.
The issue of having alternate members on the committee was discussed, and a suggestion
to add alternates for the student positions on the committee was accepted as a friendly
amendment. A minor revision changing 'Chief Librarian' to 'University Librarian' was
also accepted as a friendly amendment.
Question was called, and a vote taken.
?
MOTION CARRIED
iv)
Paper
S.05-5 -
Senate Review of Policy R20.01 on University Research Ethics
Review
Moved by M. Pinto, seconded by C. Sears
"that Senate approve the review of Policy R20.01 as outlined in Senate
Paper S.05-5"
In response to an inquiry as to why there was no undergraduate student representative on
the committee, Senate was advised that although there were a few undergraduate students
undertaking undergraduate research studies in independent study semester courses, most
of the research matters fell under the purview of graduate research. It was also pointed
out that in the case of undergraduate research courses, the faculty member in charge of
the course would have the responsibility for making sure that the policy was adhered to.
A question arose as to whether Faculty representation was taken into consideration in the
composition of the committee. It was pointed out that there was no attempt made to have
representation across all Faculties. The main consideration was to have representation
from units frequently dealing with research involving ethical issues and M. Pinto felt that
the proposed membership was very capable of undertaking a comprehensive review.
0
S.M. 10 January 2005
Page 6
Reference was made to the two external members and an inquiry was made as to why
membership outside SFU was proposed. Senate was informed that ethical issues have
become so complex that it was necessary to have professional and legal representation.
Question was called, and a vote taken.
?
MOTION CARRIED
v) ?
Paper
S.05-6 -
Change of Membership - Senate Graduate Studies Committee
Moved by J. Driver, seconded by C. Sears
"that Senate approve the changes to the composition of the Senate
Graduate Studies Committee, as set out in Paper
S.05-6"
Question was called, and a vote taken.
?
MOTION CARRIED
C)
Senate Nominating Committee
i) ?
Paper
S.05-7 -
Elections
Senate was advised that Bernard Smit had withdrawn his candidacy for the Senate
Committee on University Priorities. Derrick Harder had subsequently been nominated
and was elected by acclamation to the Student Senator position on SCUP for term of
office to May 31,
2005.
The remaining student vacancies on the Committee to Review
University Admissions and the Senate Committee on Disciplinary Appeals would be
carried forward.
D)
Senate Committee on Universit
y
Priorities
i) ?
Paper
S.05-8 -
External Review - SFU Program at Kamloops (formerly
SCES/SFU Program)
Moved by J. Waterhouse, seconded by I. Gordon
"that Senate concur with the recommendations from the Senate Committee
on University Priorities concerning advice to the Simon Fraser University
Program at Kamloops (formerly the SCES/SFU Partnership) on priority
items resulting from the external review"
T. Perry, Associate Dean of Arts and Social Sciences, and M. Ignace, Academic
Coordinator, SFU Program at Kamloops were in attendance in order to respond to
questions.
Questions arose with regard to the size of the program and library access to the Internet.
Senate was advised that enrolment at Kamloops varied between 100 - 250 part-time and
full-time students. Until recently the Kamloops program was unable to access the
Internet but improvements were currently underway to allow access.
S.M. 10 January 2005
•
C.
Page
Giacomantonio, speaking on behalf of students in the Kamloops
7
program, pointed out
that it was their hope that action would be taken as quickly as possible to put substantial
plans in place and they look forward to the report which was due back by March 3Is.
Question was called, and a vote taken.
?
MOTION CARRIED
ii) ?
Paper
S.05-9 -
RBC Financial Professor in Technology and Innovation - Terms
?
of Reference
Moved by J. Waterhouse, seconded by M. Fizzell
"that Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors the terms
of reference for the RBC Financial Professor in Technology and
Innovation"
Several Student Senators expressed opposition to naming a professorship after a
corporate donor, and concerns were expressed about the effect of this process on the
academic freedom and future programming in a Department or Faculty. Strong concerns
were also raised regarding the process that was followed in the establishment of this
particular Professorship. It was noted that news releases and web postings announcing
the creation of this Professorship and the intention that the current Dean of the Faculty of
• Business Administration would be the first recipient appeared as early as October 2004.
Since Senate and Board approval was required with regard to the naming of
Professorships, and the Board was responsible for the awarding of a Professorship, there
appeared to be a number of problems with respect to process, since neither Senate nor
Board had given their approval. The Vice President Academic reiterated that no
appointments could be made without following the procedures and process set out in
Policy A 10.06 and that the news releases and web postings were not accurate.
In response to an inquiry as to what the consequences would be if Senate defeated the
motion, it was pointed out that the donation would likely be at risk.
Discussion turned to the proposed name of the Professorship and whether it might be
appropriate to include the term 'management' in the title. Senate was advised that during
negotiations the donor was very clear that they wished to have it named "Technology and
Innovation".
Reference was made to the clause in the terms of reference specifying that the Dean of
the Faculty of Business Administration would normally hold the Professorship. A
question was raised as to whether this meant that the Dean would always have to have a
specialization in that area and if the donor would have any role in the appointment
process. It was pointed out that the word 'normally' was inserted to allow for the fact
that a future Dean may not have an interest or specialization in that particular area, and in
that case the Professorship could be awarded to another faculty member. Senate was
assured that the donor was not part of the appointment process and that all appointments
must follow the procedures set out in University Policy A10.06.
S.M. 10 January 2005
Page 8
Ethical and conflict of interest concerns were raised by a Student Senator with respect to
the involvement of the current Dean and potential recipient of this Professorship in the
negotiation process. E. Love reported that he was not intimately involved in the
negotiations. The Advancement Office had worked with the donor and he was only
involved in follow-up discussions in regard to the specific title for the Professorship.
Opinion was expressed that the involvement of a potential recipient of an endowment in
the negotiation process was questionable and suggestion was made that in future the most
ethical course of action would be for the intended recipient to remove him/herself entirely
from the process.
A suggestion was made that removal of the phrase 'normally held by the Dean of the
Faculty of Business Administration' would still allow the Faculty to award the
Professorship to the Dean if they wished, but would remove some of the concerns
surrounding the definition of this being held by someone by virtue of their administrative
office. It was pointed out that the donor requested that the endowment be established
within the Business Faculty and held by the Dean. The word normally had been inserted
by the University to allow for an appointment other than the Dean. It was not an
uncommon practice for donors to specify that the endowment normally be made available
for a specific position.
On this matter, several Student Senators expressed their opposition to attaching corporate
names to endowments and asked whether there had been any precedents. The
Weyerhauser professorship was cited as one example of an existing named professorship.
It was pointed out by other Senators that the University was entering a period of intensive
fundraising. Funds for all sorts of university support, including scholarship and bursaries,
would be sought from corporations and private donors, and scholarships named after
corporations and in memory of individuals would most certainly be established.
Question was called, and a vote taken.
?
MOTION CARRIED
iii)
Pa p
er S.05-10 - Tom Buell BC Leadershi p
Chair in Salmon conservation and
Management - Terms of Reference
Moved by J. Waterhouse, seconded by D. Smith
"that Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors the terms
of reference for the Tom Buell BC Leadership Chair in Salmon
Conservation and Management"
Question was called, and a vote taken.
?
MOTION CARRIED
iv)
Paper S.05-11 - Interdisciplinary Research in the Mathematical and
Computational Sciences Centre (IRMACS)
Moved by J. Waterhouse, seconded by M. Plischke
"that Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors the
proposal to establish Interdisciplinary Research in the Mathematical and
Computational Sciences (IRMACS) as a Schedule B Centre"
S.M. 10 January 2005
Page 9
MOTION CARRIED
0 ?
Question was called, and a vote taken.
v) ?
Paper S.05-12 - MA, MSc and PhD Programs in the School of Interactive Arts
?
and Technology
R. Woodbury, Senator and Graduate Program Chair was in attendance in order to respond
to questions.
Motion I - MA Program
Moved by J. Waterhouse, seconded by R. Woodbury
"that Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors the
proposal for a MA program in the School of Interactive Arts and
Technology"
Question was called, and a vote taken.
?
MOTION CARRIED
Motion 2— MSc Program
Moved by J. Waterhouse, seconded by R. Woodbury
"that Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors the
I ?
proposal for a MSc program in the School of Interactive Arts and
Technology"
Question was called, and a vote taken.
?
MOTION CARRIED
Motion 3 - PhD Program
Moved by J. Waterhouse, seconded by R. Woodbury
"that Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors the
proposal for a PhD program in the School of Interactive Arts and
Technology"
Question was called, and a vote taken.
?
MOTION CARRIED
E) ?
Senate Committee on Under
g raduate Studies
i)
Paper
S.05-13 -
Waiver of 2-semester waiting period to offer SA 203,
353
and
302 in Summer 2005 (For Information)
Senate received information that the Senate Committee on Undergraduate Studies, acting
under delegated authority, approved a waiver of the 2 semester waiting period to allow
SA 203,
353
and 302 to be offered in Summer 2005 semester.
ii)
Paper S.05-14 - Curriculum Revisions - Facult
y
of Science (For Information)
Senate received information that the Senate Committee on Undergraduate Studies, acting
under delegated authority, approved new courses, deletion of courses, and minor changes
to existing courses and programs in the following departments: Biological Sciences,
Chemistry, Earth Sciences, and Mathematics.
S.M. 10 January
2005
Page 10
F)
Senate Committee on Continuing Studies
i) ?
Paper S.05-15 - Annual Report (For Information)
C. Yerbury, Senator and Dean of Continuing Studies was in attendance in order to
respond to questions. Senate received the Annual Report of the Senate Committee on
Continuing Studies for information. There were no questions.
G)
Senate Graduate Studies Committee
i)
Paper
S.05-
16
-
Curriculum Revisions - Facult
y
of Education (For Information)
Senate received information that the Senate, Graduate Studies Committee, acting under
delegated authority, approved one new course and minor revisions to existing courses and
programs in the Faculty of Education.
ii)
Paper S.05-17 - Curriculum Revisions - Earth Sciences (For Information)
Senate received information that the Senate Graduate Studies Committee, acting under
delegated authority, approved one new course and a minor revision to an existing course
in the Department of Earth Sciences.
7. ?
Other Business
The Vice President Academic announced that there would be a memorial held for victims
of the South East Asia tsunami on January 14
th
at 12:30 pm in Convocation Mall.
Senators were encouraged to attend.
Information
The date of the next regular meeting of Senate is scheduled to take place on Monday,
February 7,
2005.
Open Session adjourned at 8:30 pm and Senate moved directly into Closed Session.
Alison Watt
Director, University Secretariat