Minutes of Psychology Department Meeting December 5, 2011

Present: Rick Archer, Claudia Brown, David Carpenter, Natalie Ceballos, Maria Czyzewska, John Davis, Joe Etherton, Ron Finke, Harvey Ginsburg, Reiko Graham, Kelly Haskard-Zolnierek, Krista Howard, Bill Kelemen, Azucena Mayberry, Amy Meeks, Roque Mendez, Crystal Oberle, Shirley Ogletree, Robyn Rogers, Ty Schepis, Marc Turner

The meeting was convened by Bill Kelemen at 3:30 p.m. in Psychology 211

  1. The agenda was approved without modifications.
  1. The minutes from Nov. 7, 2011 were approved without modifications.
  1. Announcements
  2. Committee Updates
  3. The tenure-track faculty mentoring committee completed their mentoring document, which will now be used in the department. A copy will be circulated (see attached). Thanks go to the committee members: Kelly Haskard-Zolnierek, Harvey Ginsburg, and Roque Mendez.
  4. The undergraduate curriculum committee has been discussing a variety of issues and expects to have a proposal for the department to consider in early Spring 2012.
  5. The special subcommittee of the graduate committee has met and is continuing discussion about the graduate program. A proposal should be ready in early Spring 2012.
  6. The assistant professor search committee will meet on Dec. 6 to review the candidates and select a group for telephone interviews. On-campus interviews likely will occur in late January and/or early February.
  7. Faculty Senate Report
  8. Maria Czyzewska reminded the group that she serves as a member of the Faculty Senate, which can take action on a variety of matters. Faculty members wishing to bring concerns to the Senate are encouraged to consult with her. In the future, Maria will be asked to report on important Senate issues during department faculty meetings.
  9. FARRS reminder: The dean will not review FARRS reports anymore. Faculty members are encouraged to print their own copies at the end of the process should they wish to retain a written record.
  10. Process for Presidential Award Nominations. Faculty members are encouraged to nominate others in the department for these awards (see PPS 6.11). Department chairs must submit Presidential Award nominations by February 10, 2012. The initial nomination will consist of two items only: (a) a nomination letter, and (b) a CV emphasizing achievements in the area. Faculty chosen to apply will prepare a three-inch binder later. If you wish to be nominated, please feel free to contact Bill Kelemen.
  11. PPS 5.06 (Incentive Compensation for Externally Funded Sponsored Programs) has been revised, making it easier for faculty to qualify for grant incentive pay. Grant awardees who “buy out” at least 25% of their time can apply for incentive pay of 35% of the differential between their base salary and the replacement cost. Bill Kelemen indicated that he would strongly support such applications.
  12. Staff updates
  13. A second undergraduate advisor is expected to join the Psychology department in January, 2012. This person will be located in PSY 320G.
  14. Mr. Adan Leal will transition to a full-time technical support staff position effective January 1, 2012. Bill Kelemen expressed great thanks to Marc Turner for his efforts in these areas over the years, and for assisting in the transition of responsibilities so far and continuing into the Spring semester. Because Adan will have an expanded scope of duties, John Davis requested that a job description be circulated and Bill agreed to do so. Bill also solicited ideas for office space for Adan, and a variety of possibilities were offered.
  1. William James Scholarship
  2. Roque Mendez announced that the Halloween fundraiser generated $877 in pledges. So far nearly $700 has been collected. Faculty members are encouraged to fulfill pledges before the end of the year to ensure the donation is tax-deductible for 2011.
  3. Roque Mendez also asked what amount should be awarded from the scholarship fund. After some discussion, a motion to set the amount at $500 was moved, seconded, and passed without dissent.
  1. Course overloads
  2. Bill Kelemen explained that course overloads occur when an instructor agrees to teach one course beyond the standard load for additional pay (typically $3000). The department often has a need to fill a course in this way due to a variety of reasons. Bill wanted to inform faculty members how he will proceed to offer course overloads. The criteria are as follows:
  3. First priority is to offer courses based on the need of the department.
  4. Full time faculty members qualified to teach the needed course(s) will be contacted to assess their willingness to teach the course(s). (Qualification and potential willingness to teach will be assessed in the future by including these items on the standard teaching request forms for each semester).
  5. If two or more full-time faculty members are qualified and willing to teach the same overload course, priority will be given to the person who has taught overload the least recently. In the case of a tie, preference will be given to the person with the lowest salary.
  1. Office space allocation for the move to UAC and beyond
  2. UPPS 01.03.01 states that space allocation in a department is at the discretion of the department chairperson. To guide his decisions, Bill Kelemen suggested that the Psychology department develop a policy. Bill asked faculty members to list potential criteria that could be used, and some discussion ensued. In the end, two alternatives were offered: (a) based on years of teaching at Texas State, or (b) based on rank and then years of teaching at Texas State. Bill indicated that he will seek additional criteria via email, which will then be put forward on a ballot. For efficiency, the department approved by consensus the use of an “Instant Runoff Procedure” if necessary. Faculty will be asked to rank order their preferences, and if no choice receives a majority of 1st place votes the instant runoff procedure will be used until an option has received a majority of 1st place votes.
  1. Around the table:
  2. Claudia Brown, David Carpenter, and Amy Meeks reminded faculty that they are collecting money and have a card to sign for our custodian, Delia.

Meeting was adjourned at 4:50p.m.

Minutes submitted by: Bill Kelemen