At the Nov. 3 meeting of the Urbana-Champaign Senate, concerns were expressed about the campus’s communications strategies.
Robin Kaler, interim associate chancellor for public affairs, spoke about the departments and activities under her auspices, which include media relations, internal communications, marketing and publications, crisis management, responding to requests for information and expert commentary as well as strategic communications with constituents in government, higher education and other sectors.
Despite limited staff and resources, which have been reduced further by recent budget cuts this year, Kaler said she plans for Public Affairs to return to a more proactive strategy in communications.
“We have already begun working to create systems to improve the quality and flow of information from our offices to the colleges and from the colleges to our office,” Kaler said. “We’re creating a strategic communications plan at the campus level that builds on the unique and diverse contributions of each college and unit. We will assist communications professionals across campus in creating college- and unit-level plans to ensure that we’re helping them make the most of the resources they have available.”
Chancellor Nancy Cantor also has undertaken a review of Public Affairs to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of its practices and personnel.
Senator James Barrett, professor of history, expressed concern about a report on the Oct. 7 meeting of the Faculty Advisory Committee of the Illinois Board of Higher Education, which indicated that higher education is not communicating successfully with the legislature and that concerns are being raised about faculty productivity.
“That’s what we’re trying to address in our reorganization,” Kaler said. “We’re trying to move from the reactive role that we’ve had the past few years to being proactive. We’re putting together a marketing plan for the scholarship that happens on this campus so that we can ensure that when the legislature goes to address us that they understand the unique contribution the University of Illinois makes to the state and the nation and the reasons that we should be treated differently than other institutions.”
Provost Richard Herman, who presided over the Senate meeting in the chancellor’s absence, said that the productivity of UI faculty members by any measure of scholarship is remarkable; however, the university needs to address such concerns directly.
“There is a faculty workload request coming from the IBHE, and we’re going to need to respond to it in a thoughtful way,” Herman said.
Senator Peter Loeb, professor of mathematics, said that he gathers data annually on the workloads of mathematics instructors at peer institutions and suggested that similar data may be available from other departments.
Michael Grossman, chairman of the Senate Executive Committee and professor of genetics, reported on the SEC’s recent activities, which included meetings with trustees Marjorie Sodemann and Kenneth Schmidt and with state Rep. Naomi Jakobsson and state Sen. Rick Winkel to discuss the effects of the budget cuts on the university. State Rep. Chapin Rose has been invited to attend the Nov. 10 SEC meeting, Grossman said.
Herman reported that administrators are still developing their tuition recommendations for next year; Herman said he hopes to have information to share soon and said he believes the UI Board of Trustees will be addressing the matter at its Nov. 13 meeting in Urbana.
In other business, the senate:
- Approved a revision to the Senate bylaws that formally recognizes the Research Policy Committee, which was established in 2001, and the senate’s role in determining the committee’s membership. The 15 members of the committee are appointed by the vice chancellor for research and advise the chancellor, VCR and senate on research activities. The Senate Executive Committee consults on selection of a faculty chair for the committee; the senate Committee on Committees provides a slate of faculty and student nominees to the full senate for approval and transmittal to the VCR.
- Approved a revision to the bylaws establishing a representative of the Graduate College as an ex officio member of the Committee on Educational Policy.
- Passed a proposal revising the undergraduate history major curriculum in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Among other changes, the new policy increases the number of credit hours from 33 to 36 and requires students to take two non-Western history courses.
- Passed a proposal to discontinue the curriculum preparatory to the teaching of computer science and a proposal to establish a minor in environmental economics and law in the department of agricultural and consumer sciences.
- Approved the nomination slate of faculty members to fill faculty vacancies on the Campus Budget Oversight Committee, the Student Discipline Committee and the Library Committee. They also approved nominees for student vacancies on the University Student Life Committee, the Conference on Conduct Governance and the Educational Policy Committee.