Oakland University Senate

November 9, 1965

Agenda

MEMORANDUM
November 8, 1965

TO: All Members of the Senate

FROM: Donald D. O'Dowd, for the Steering Committee

RE: Agenda for Meeting of November 9, 1965

The next meeting of the Senate will be on Tuesday, November 9, 1965, at 4:00 p.m. in Gold Room A of the Oakland Center.

A. Old Business

1. Reading of the minutes of the Senate meeting of April 22, 1965 (Mr. Stoutenburg)

2. Recommendations from the Steering Committee (Mr. O'Dowd)

a. It is recommended that the Cultural Programs Committee and the Commencement Committee be combined into a single committee, and that the membership of the Cultural Programs Committee approved at the last Senate meeting serve as the newly established committee. The Senate is asked therefore to approve the following title, charge, membership specification and membership:

Committee on Cultural Programs and Commencements:
To formulate policy for and render advice to those agencies responsible for the development of programs designed to enrich the cultural life of the University community; to advise on commencement activities and ceremonies; and to consult with the Chancellor with regard to commencement speakers and candidates for honorary degrees.

Membership will consist of seven members.

The 1965-66 committee will include:  Susskind, chairman; Di Chiera; Beardman; Malm; Davis;  McGarry; De Charms

b. It is recommended that the membership specification of the Library Committee be changed to the following:

Membership will consist of five faculty members and the University Librarian; the latter will be an ex officio member of the committee and non-voting.

c. The following nominations for committee membership are offered to the Senate for its approval.

Committee on Instruction
Tomboulian, chairman; Lowy; Dutton;  Moeller; Evarts;  Atkinson, ex officio

Library Committee
R. Williamson, chairman; Cameron; Boddy;  D. Potter; Briod;  Cammack, ex officio

3. Recommendation from the Ad Hoc Committee on Constitutional Revision, By-Laws and Procedures (Mr. Appleton)

The Committee recommends the revision of the University Organization document as follows (revisions underlined):

II. Academic Senate, Oakland University

1. Organization and Function

(a) through (e) as before

f. A senator may question the Chancellor on any matter within the jurisdiction of the Senate by submitting such questions, in writing, to the Chancellor and to the Secretary of the Senate. At the start of every regular meeting of the Senate, immediately following approval the minutes of the previous meeting, a period not to exceed one-half hour will be devoted to responses by the Chancellor or any appropriate person designated by him. Any senator may put supplementary questions orally.

g. Substantive motions will normally be submitted first to the Steering Committee for disposition.  A Senator may introduce any substantive motion "directly onto the floor of the Senate, however, by filing a written copy of the motion with the Steering Committee at least ten (10) days in advance.

h. Except by concurrence of twenty-four (24) senators, the Senate may not vote on main substantive motions until one (1) week after they have been circulated, together with relevant committee recommendations and reports. to the Assembly. Upon demand of twelve senators, one hearing open to the electorate shall be held before final action may be taken on any motion not ruled procedural.

This legislation constitutes old business since it was put over for later action on April 7, 1965.

Your attention is called to the requirement of the following provision of the University Organization document in connection with the foregoing:

"Amendments to and revisions of this document shall require an affirmative vote of at least twenty-four senators for ratification."

4. Recommendation from the Committee on Instruction (Mr. Tomboulian)

The Committee recommends the adoption of the following proposal that has been amended in the light of discussion at the last Senate meeting:

(Change in entry on page 37 of 1965-1966 catalog.)
Course and Credit System
The unit of credit is the semester hour. Courses carry four semester hours of credit unless otherwise specified. Normally the maximum student registration is 16 to 18 credits a semester. With his adviser's permission, however, a student who has completed 12 or more credits at Oakland may register for as many as 21 credits provided that his cumulative grade point average is at least 2.60. All other students may take more than 18 credits only as a result of a successful Petition of Exception.

Comment:
In view of the liberal ninth week deadline for dropping courses, the Committee feels that this decision to carry more than a normal load can be made exclusively by the student in consultation with his adviser.

B. New Business

1. Recommendation from the Committee on Instruction (Mr. Tomboulian)

The Committee recommends the adoption of the following policy as an addition to the grading system:

Academic Work Recorded as S or U

Certain courses may carry academic credit towards graduation and are recorded only with "S" and "U" on the transcript.  The letter "S" (for satisfactory) means that the academic performance is equal to 2.0 or better on the decimal grading scale. The letter "U" (for unsatisfactory) means that no academic credit should be granted for the work, and that prerequisite or transfer requirements are not met.

Courses completed with these letters would not affect the grade point average. (Thus the grade point average would reflect only those courses for which decimal grades are recorded.) If the course is completed with an "S", the course credit counts towards graduation and would appear in the "transfer credit" column on the grade report. If  a "U" is received, the credit would not appear in this column. A department wishing to offer a course which falls into the above category must obtain approval from the Committee on Instruction in advance of the semester in which the course is to be offered. All sections of the course must be recorded in the same manner.

Comment:
The Committee has received several requests for a category of academic work which did not have to be graded with the regular decimal system. We believe that the above solution meets the demands of the departments and groups offering this type of work.

2. Recommendations from the Steering Committee (Mr. O'Dowd)

a. The Committee recommends the adoption of the following policy:

Except on occasions when by a vote of the Senate or by a ruling of the chairman that the proceeding of the Senate shall be closed, the Editor of the Oakland Observer, the chief student officer of the Dormitory Council and of the Commuter Council will be welcome as visitors to regular Senate meetings.

Comment:
The members of the Steering Committee believe that the approval of this motion will improve communication with the student body, strengthen the institutions that are represented, and recognize the importance of students in the development of university policy

b. The Committee supports the following resolution and recommends that it be adopted by the Senate.

A Resolution

The Academic Senate supports the establishment of a School of Performing Arts that will offer a new degree. This School shall have the freedom both in curriculum design and in the development of personnel policies to establish the highest quality professional program in the performing arts. The faculty of the School of Performing Arts shall have the freedom to determine the admissions requirements, academic standards, curricular sequences, and degree requirements for its students. In addition, subject to Board approval, the faculty may determine the patterns of appointment to the faculty of the School of Performing Arts and may adjust these to the reality of the professional arts world rather than to traditional university practices. The School of Performing Arts should contain the most imaginative program that can be devised to encourage the development of future professional performing artists.