UC Chair N. Rothfels reported that: 1) The UC ex officio member on the Graduate Faculty Committee has now been removed; 2) VC R. VanHarpen has reported that a new FAQ on ventilation has been developed and will be shared with the UC and Profs. J. Jordan and J. Berkowitz; 3) The possibility of requiring 2X per week testing of unvaccinated faculty/staff has been raised. After brief discussion the UC recommends continuing to follow MHD/CDC guidance; 4) VC for DEI interviews are underway; 5) UC has been approached by Wisconsin Public Radio about vaccine mandates; 6) The UC will meet with the 3 CGS faculty senators to discuss the CGS faculty experience at our Dec. 7th meeting; 7) ASC has been discussing pay progression procedures developed in relation to TTC (20% of staff assessed each year). The UC noted there is no equivalent process for faculty and should discuss further, including reconsidering previous proposals developed in that area; 8) AVC D. Venugopalan will be invited to join the UC for a discussion of the revised GER plan at the Nov. 23rd meeting; and 9) Discussions continue with the Chancellor about the need to provide compensation for campus governance service.
Provost J. Britz provided the following updates: 1) A new diversity hiring document for campus is nearly ready—it needs to fit into the context of needed strategic faculty recruitment; 2) The 2030 document is being shared with faculty senators; 3) The “ask” for more GPR funding to UWM from the BOR is crucial to visions of a successful future; and 4) Masking and vaccination mandate issues continue to be contentious, but UWM’s mask mandate is expected to be extended.
VC R. VanHarpen has asked for faculty nominees to serve on the search committee for the soon-to-be-vacant AVC for Human Resources position. A list was developed and Rothfels will first contact individuals and then provide names back to the VC.
Lastly, member J. Snethen reported that the APC has sent a revision of SAAP 1-11 for consideration to the Faculty Senate, removing the unused “F+” grade, and member D. Misra reported that the APBC meet for 2 ½ hours this past week which included approving a NOI from the Business School. Additionally, College/School realignment discussions continue to move forward, and campus unit FY23 budget details are expected to be shared in early December.