Address any questions or comments on the content of this update to the Faculty Senate Chair at a Senate meeting or via email at faculty-senate@buffalo.edu. Suggestions of items to include in future Updates are welcome.
As the academic year winds down, I wish you joy on your students’ successes and best wishes for a restful and rewarding summer.
Our final Faculty Senate meeting of the year takes place in person in 403 Hayes Hall on South Campus. Immediately after our brief meeting, President Tripathi will give his final Address to the Voting Faculty. All are welcome. A reception will follow the address.
This update focuses on four topics:
I will submit a full report on the work of the Senate this year to senators at our May 12 meeting and post it on our Faculty Senate website for all to read. Here I will just highlight two recent Senate actions.
As reported by Faculty Senate Secretary Turquessa Francis, Chair of the Senate’s Election Committee, the Voting Faculty voted to change the definition of “voting faculty” in the Bylaws of the Voting Faculty. The change identifies faculty with appointments of “at least one academic year” as members of the Voting Faculty. The former wording required appointments of “more than one year.”
Since her term is ending on June 30, I want to take this opportunity to thank Turquessa for her excellent work for the Senate these past two years. Beginning on July 1, we will have a new Secretary, Enoch Azasu from the School of Social Work. Best wishes to Turquessa and welcome Enoch!
The survey we sent around at the beginning of this month soliciting volunteers for Senate committees resulted in a healthy number of volunteers, I am pleased to report. We also received numerous recommendations for matters the Senate should prioritize. I will discuss these with the Executive Committee and committee chairs.
Here is my brief summary of the concerns expressed: budgetary issues; AI and IT concerns; research support; academic freedom; protection for DEI and international faculty/staff/students; clinical faculty work conditions and faculty wellness in general; curricular issues, instructional support, and grading standards; better communication about UB policies, faculty views, and the importance of shared governance; campus safety; the academic calendar; office hours policy and campus presence; community engagement.
For your information, there is a form on the Faculty Senate website you can use to suggest improvements to UB policies and procedures, including those related to the Senate.
The SUNY Faculty Senate (UFS) organizes committees that influence SUNY policy. UB is already represented on some of the committees, but we encourage more representation. All faculty and professional staff are eligible to apply. Below is UFS President Bruce Simon’s call for volunteers. If you have any questions about UFS committee service, please contact me or Bruce (see his contact info below; mine is at the top of this Update).
WE NEED YOU!
The SUNY University Faculty Senate would not be able to fulfill its mission as the official governance body representing academic and professional faculty at SUNY’s state-operated and statutory campuses without the service people just like you provide to our nine standing committees. These standing committees meet once in person at the Fall Planning Meeting to set their agenda for the academic year, then meet virtually during the year, often splitting into subcommittees or forming cross-committee working groups to write reports, develop policy recommendations, propose resolutions for the body to vote on, and inform Executive Committee’s deliberations over strategic coordination of UFS activities, including regarding advocacy.
The more broadly representative of the full range of diversity across SUNY—from our individual and collective identities to our roles and positions, from our different sectors to our different regions, from our range of experiences to our areas of expertise—the more effective our standing committees will be, the better researched and informed their reports will be, and the more influential their recommendations and resolutions will be.
SO…
…if you want to learn more about what’s going on across SUNY, join a UFS standing committee.
…if you want to influence SUNY’s strategies and policies, join a UFS standing committee.
…if you want to learn how to become a more effective participant in shared governance, join a UFS standing committee.
…if you like working with people from across New York State committed to realizing the promise of #PublicGoodU, join a UFS standing committee.
…if you want to make New York State the national leader in college affordability and in funding, pricing, staffing, and governing SUNY like the indispensable public good it is, join a UFS standing committee.
Thank you for sharing this message with your colleagues and constituents. And feel free to send them to me if they have any questions!
-- Bruce Simon
President, SUNY University Faculty Senate
Member, SUNY Board of Trustees