DRAFT UNTIL APPROVED BY SENATE

Minutes of a Meeting of the Senate of Simon Fraser University held on?

Monday, September 16, 2002 at 7:00 pm in Room 3210 WMC

Open Session

Present: Stevenson, Michael

Absent:

President and Chair of Senate

Andrews, Ian

Apaak, Clement

Atkins, Stella

Beynon, Peter

Bourke, Brynn

Blackman, Roger

Clayman, Bruce

Copeland, Lynn

D'Auria, John

Driver, Jon

Garcia, Carlos

Gordon, Robert

Grimmett, Peter

Haunerland, Norbert

Higgins, Anne

Jackson, Margaret

Jensen, Britta

Kemper, Michelle

Krane, Bill

Lewis, Brian

Love, Ernie

Mathewes, Rolf (representing W

McFetridge, Paul

Naef, Barbara

Percival, Paul

Peters, Joseph

Phipps, Kate

Poirier, Guy

Poletz, Taira

Russell, Robert

Smith, Don

Thandi, Ranbir

Tyab, Azam

Vaisey, Jacques

Van Aalst, Jan

Waterhouse, John

Weldon, Larry

Wessel, Silvia

Yerbury, Cohn

Aloi, Santa

Chen, Danny

Dunsterville, Valerie

Gill, Alison

Gupta, Kamal

Heaney, John

Hill, Ross

Horvath, Adam

Jones, Cohn

Jones, John

Mauser, Gary

McArthur, James

Warren, Joel

Wong, Milton

Zaichkowsky, Judith

In attendance:

Bartholomew, Kim

Hanson, Phil

Weeks, Daniel

Davidson)

Heath, Ron, Dean of Student Services and Registrar

Grant, Bobbie, Recording Secretary

S.M. 16 Sept 2002

Page 2

Approval of the Agenda

The Agenda was approved as distributed.

Approval of the Minutes of the Open Session of July 8, 2002

A typing error (Hegberg should be Hedberg) on page 4 was noted. Reference

was made to the section on the Woodsworth Chair on page 5. As currently

written the word 'its' would refer to the Department. Suggestion was made that

the sentence be reworded to clarify the location and precise duties of the Chair.

Following these amendments, the Minutes were approved.

Business Arising from the Minutes

There was no business arising from the Minutes.

Report of the Chair

On behalf of Senate, the Chair extended a welcome to the following new

Senators: Ian Andrews, Acting Dean of Education, Peter Beynon, Convocation

Senator, Don Smith, OIC appointed Senator, and Guy Poirier, faculty Senator

from the Faculty of Arts. The Chair noted that both Lay Senators were past SFU

students and past Presidents of the Alumni Association with experience and

strong connections with SFU.

The Chair reported that the new SFU Surrey campus had been formally opened

by the Lieutenant Governor, Iona Campagnola (Hon. LLD) and the Premier,

Gordon Campbell (MBA graduate of SFU). At the opening ceremony much

credit was given to SFU for keeping with its traditions of innovation and serious

commitment to the needs of the wider community. The Chair advised that the

very successful opening and merger would not have been possible without the

enormous amount of hard work by many people in the University and he wished

to acknowledge these efforts, particularly those of the transition team working

under the Vice-President Academic.

The enrolment target for Surrey campus was to double the enrolment formerly at

Tech BC. The Chair was pleased to report that not only has that target been met

but enrolments have gone considerably beyond the target due to higher retention

and acceptance rates in the Surrey programs. Final data was not yet available

but it appeared that there has been a general increase in applications to SFU as

well as an increase in retention and acceptance rates and enrolments are likely to

be 5% above the overall enrolment targets for this year. Expectations are that the

Senate Committee on Enrolment Management and Planning would discuss the

impact of this increase on future semesters.

The Chair also reported that a proposal to initiate construction of a new student

residence will be presented to the Board of Governors at its next meeting. The

new residence will be targeted at first year students and will include a meal

service plan. In response to an inquiry about the source of capital funding for the

project, the Chair indicated that the funding would be borrowed and paid off

through a long term business plan through rent. The Chair was asked whether

S.M. 16 Sept 2002

Page 3

• there were any plans to increase graduate student housing. Senate was informed

that although the proposed expansion was directed towards first year students,

graduate students would indirectly benefit from the conference facilities that

were built into the plans and from the hotel like accommodation that would be

available for short term stays. The Chair advised that the University was aware

of the need for graduate housing and explained that plans for expanded facilities

were being discussed.

Referring to the visible removal of trees in the eastern most fringe of the campus,

the Chair advised that this was the start of the new SFU UniverCity Community.

He explained that the tree removal was required as part of the environmental

management plan and that the short term damage was needed for long term

sustainability and environmental protection.

5, ?

Ouestion Period

There were no questions.

6. ?

Reports of Committees

Senate Nominating Committee

i) ?

Paper S.02-61 - Elections

Senate was advised that no further nominations were received and that Nancy

Earle was elected by acclamation as an Alternate Graduate Student to the Senate

Library Committee/ Library Penalties Appeal Committee; Don Smith was elected

by acclamation as the Lay Senator to the Senate Graduate Awards Adjudication

Committee, and Peter Beynon was elected as a Senator at-large to the Electoral

Standing Committee. All other vacancies would be carried forward to the next

meeting.

Senate Committee on Universit

Priorities

1) ?

Paper S.02-62 - Proposal - Master of Public Polic

Program

Moved by J

Waterhouse, seconded by R. Blackman

"that Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors

the proposal for a Master's of Public Policy program in the Faculty

of Arts, as outlined in S.02-62"

N. Olewiler, Acting Director, Public Policy Program was in attendance in order

to respond to questions.

Opinion was expressed that although the proposal appeared to be very research

based, it was intended for students desiring a professional career and there was

felt to be a disconnect between what the program was based on and how it was

being presented to the community. Suggestion was made that there should be at

least some reference or preamble addressing the emphasis of it being a

professional program. Senate's attention was drawn to the preamble on page 2

S.M. 16 Sept 2002

Page 4

which described the professional emphasis of the program and the focus on

applied research. ?

Referring to the same paragraph on page 2, the inconsistency of the phrase

'relatively unique' was noted and grammatical errors were noted in the last

bulleted section on page 23. Correction would be made by editorial revision.

Concern was expressed that the course descriptions for the Research Techniques

and Quantitative Methods courses, particularly MPP 805, appeared to be similar

to descriptions of introductory undergraduate courses. Suggestion was made

that the courses should either have some reference to graduate level work or not

be described as introductory courses. It was agreed that the wording would be

changed to reflect that the level would be appropriate to a graduate program. It

was also suggested that the Department of Statistics should be consulted when

designing the details of these two statistics courses.

Reference was made to the MBA program and inquiry was made as to whether

the MPP program would have a similar focus towards students already in the

work force. Senate was advised that the focus was different and expectations

were to have a balance between students coming directly out of an

undergraduate degree program and students who are mid-career. Clarification

was requested as to how different types of students would get equal access to the

program. Senate was advised that there was no specific formula but academic

standards would not be sacrificed for work experience nor would someone with

considerable work experience be discriminated against. Since this was a new

program there was no way of knowing what the student catchment would be but

efforts would be made to have an interesting and highly qualified mix of

students. In response to concerns about the Director or the Steering Committee

making decisions on admissions, it was pointed out that academic programs

make recommendations, not decisions, on admissions. Brief discussion followed

with respect to the process for admitting graduate students.

Discussion turned to the costs of the program and the fees to be charged, and

Senate was advised about the process which resulted in the proposed tuition fee.

The differential fees are expected to cover the teaching costs of the program and

to enable funds to be set aside for scholarships and bursaries for students with a

demonstrated financial need. It was pointed out that a firm budget had not yet

been determined nor had the differential fees been formulated but based on soft

figures the Faculty of Arts felt it was in a position to support the program.

In response to a suggestion that Senate receive a report at some point on the

success or failure rate of the program, the Chair indicated that since all programs

were reviewed on a regular basis, Senate would receive a report through that

process.

Discussion turned to the administrative reporting structure of the program and

the role of the program director. Senate's attention was drawn to the section on

governance in the documentation. A brief explanation was provided with

respect to the normal reporting structure of such programs and Senate was

S.M. 16 Sept 2002

Page 5

advised that the process outlined was in accordance with University policies and

procedures.

The issue of internships was raised and it was stressed that they are very

important to the success of the program. There was little mention of them in the

documentation and it was noted that contacts should be initiated now so as to

have the internships in place when the program begins. Senate was advised that

response has been generally positive and that verbal commitments for

internships have already been received from numerous agencies, particularly in

Ottawa and in the Vancouver area.

In response to an inquiry about the inclusion of an ethics course, it was pointed

out that ethics would likely be incorporated as a module in the introductory and

applied policy analysis course sequence. There were also some excellent ethics

courses available within the University which could be included.

Reference was made to the housing of the program in a new Division of

Professional Programs in the Faculty of Arts and inquiry was made as to the

status of that proposal. Senate was advised that the proposal which was still

within the Faculty of Arts was not yet fully formulated and although the MPP

program may eventually be included in the new Division of Professional

Programs, it was able to stand alone with the appropriate reporting structure and

financial resources. The proposed new Division will group together a number of

programs with a common location and a common theme in order to optimize

resources.

Concern was expressed that students were not involved in the development of

the program and opinion raised that the process would have been more

accountable and transparent with student input. It was stressed that indeed

students had been involved throughout the process with elected student

representation on the Faculty of Arts Graduate Studies Committee, the

Assessment Committee for New Graduate Programs, the Senate Graduate

Studies Committee, the Senate Committee on University Priorities, and Senate.

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION CARRIED

ii) ?

Paper S.02-63 - External Review - Department of Philosophy

Moved by J

Waterhouse, seconded by R. Blackman

"that Senate concurs with the recommendations from the Senate

Committee on University Priorities concerning advice to the

Department of Philosophy on priority items resulting from the

external review as outlined in S.02-62"

P. Hanson, Chair of the Department was in attendance in order to respond to

questions.

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION CARRIED

S.M. 16 Sept 2002

Page 6

iii) Paper S.02-64 - External Review - Department of Psychology ?

Moved by J,. Waterhouse, seconded by R. Blackman

"that Senate concurs with the recommendations from the Senate

Committee on University Priorities concerning advice to the

Department of Psychology on priority items resulting from the

external review as outlined in S.02-64"

K. Bartholomew, former Chair of the Department and D. Weeks, current Chair of

the Department were in attendance in order to respond to questions.

It was noted that the external reviewers recommended that the department not

pursue a Psy.D. degree but the department had chosen to continue with the

exploration of this option. Senate was advised that this was a controversial issue

within the field of Psychology and within the Department. Students were

enthusiastic about this option and there was a demand for this kind of program

so the department felt it warranted further investigation.

Question was called, and a vote taken. ?

MOTION CARRIED

iv)

Paper S.02-65 - External Review - Continuing Studies

Moved by J

Waterhouse, seconded by R. Blackman

"that Senate concurs with the recommendations from the Senate

Committee on University Priorities concerning advice to the Office

of Continuing Studies on priority items resulting from the external

review as outlined in S.02-65"

A grammatical error in point 3 was noted and a revision of the word 'its' to

'their' was accepted as a friendly amendment.

Reference was made to point 5 and discussion ensued with respect to the term

'laddering'. In response to an inquiry, laddering was defined to mean moving

from one program to a different program at a higher level. Concern was

expressed about the transfer of credit from non-credit programs to credit

programs. Senate was advised that non-credit certificate programs could be

used for prior learning assessment and the Integrated Studies Program was cited

as an example for the laddering process. It was stressed that prior learning

assessment was used very carefully and conservatively in determining

admissions to the Integrated Studies Program and opinion was expressed that

this was not a good example for the use of laddering.

It was pointed out that the acceptance of the report did not endorse the process,

but merely instructed the Ad Hoc Committee to Review Life Long Learning to

have

discuss

to come

the issue

to Senate

and that

for

any

discussion.

specific proposals for a laddering process would

S.M. 16 Sept 2002

Page

. Reference was made to point 3 and concern was expressed about the emphasis

given to on-line learning. Suggestion was made that this was a controversial

issue that needed to be looked at very closely with regard to the implications for

the university and whether the university should be developing this technology.

A suggestion to incorporate the words 'as appropriate' in the second sentence

following the word 'activities' was accepted as a friendly amendment.

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION CARRIED

Senate Committee on Undergraduate Studies

i) ?

Paper S.02-67 - Proposed Changes to Grade Point Average needed for

graduation

Moved by R. Blackman, seconded by J. Waterhouse

"that Senate approve the proposed revision to the grade point

average needed for graduation as set forth in S.02-67"

Senate received a brief explanation with respect to the difference between

program GPA and graduation GPA. Opinion was expressed that the revised

wording was confusing in that the term 'GPA' was used inconsistently in the

proposal to mean two different things. As a result of discussion, a friendly

amendment was accepted to change the first sentence under the heading Grade

Point Averages Needed for Graduation in the proposed column on page 2, to

read "Grade point averages (GPAs) used for graduation are the minimum....".

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION CARRIED

Senate Committee on Continuing Studies

Paper S.02-68 - Annual Report (For Information)

The Annual Report of the Senate Committee on Continuing Studies was received

by Senate for information.

Senate Librar

Committee

i) ?

Paper S.02-69 - Services to International Baccalaureate Students

Moved by B. Clayman, seconded by L. Copeland

"that Senate approve the cancellation of the free borrower card

service to lB students effective 1 September 2002"

Senate was provided with a brief background explanation of this issue and was

. ?

advised that the benefits of the program do not warrant the cost.

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION CARRIED

S.M. 16 Sept 2002

Pages

Other Business ?

i) ?

Paper S.02-70 - Enrolment - Faculty of Education (For Information)

Senate received corrected data with respect to enrolments in the Faculty of

Education for information.

Information

The date of the next regular meeting of Senate is Monday, October 7, 2002.

Open Session adjourned at 8:45 pm. Following a short recess, the Assembly moved into

Closed Session.

Ron Heath

Dean of Student Services and Registrar