The Faculty Senate passed a new decanal review process on Tuesday afternoon in the Center for Tomorrow, as it had enough members of the body attending to vote. The Senate was unable to vote on the changes to how UB reviews its deans at its last meeting on March 3 because it did not have quorum – or half the body plus one member present. The new changes aim to make UB’s decanal review process clearer and more transparent.
An amendment to include the vice provost of the libraries to the new dean evaluation process was pass unanimously.
President Satish Tripathi addressed the Senate at the meeting Tuesday, as he reviewed the enacted next year’s SUNY budget, which the New York State Senate and Assembly have already passed. Tripathi called the budget process “elaborate and unpredictable,” but broke down the important aspects for the Senate.
Here are the highlights:
- UB will receive $18.2 million for critical maintenance, which Tripathi noted is down from past figures that were as high as $60 million
- $18 million in performance based funding will be split among all SUNY schools
- Educational Opportunity Programs statewide will receive $5.7 million more in funding
Tripathi commended the Senate for its “hard work” done to pass the new general education requirements, which will be implemented in the fall of 2016.
Tripathi also congratulated faculty and students who received awards for excellence in their fields, including the Associate Dean for Graduate and Postdoctoral Education Luis A. Colón. United States President Barack Obama nominated Colón for the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching. Tripathi noted only 14 educators nationwide are nominated for the award each year.
The next Faculty Senate meeting, which is the last of the semester, will be held May 5 at 3 p.m. in the Center for Tomorrow
Charles W Schaab is an Asst. New Editor and can be reached at news@ubspectrum.com
