Graduate Council Meeting
Minutes
October 8, 2004
Attendance: Duncan Brown, Patricia Beamish, Josephine Bloomfield, Carolyn Cardenas, Scott Carson, Christine Mattley, David Drabold, Peter Johnson, David Juedes, Averell Overby, Robert Roe, Susan Sarnoff, Lee Cibrowski, John Day, Judith Edinger, Jerrell Mitchell, Michael Mumper, Josep Rota, Ginger Weade, Maureen Weissenrieder, Brooke Dagnan, Elizabeth Miller, Natalia Matukhno.
Staff: Katherine Tadlock, Usha Matta, Anne Walker
Excused: Catherine Axinn, Dina Lopez, David Mould, Julia Zimmerman
Guests: Michael Tedesco
Convened: 2:15 pm, Packets with the agenda and sign in sheet were distributed.
Chair’s Report: Duncan Brown
1. Approval of Minutes: A motion was made to approve the June 4, 2004 minutes with one correction on pg. 2. MA in Public Health, to be changed to Masters in Public Health.
2. Introductory remarks: Duncan Brown, thanked Joe Bernt for his hard work as Chair for the last three years. He also indicated that for future meetings we will have name tents.
3. Nominations for Committees: Duncan passed out nomination sheets for standing committees. He requested members of committees to stay on the committees they were a part of in the previous year for maintaining institutional memory. He also noted that the extra space on the nomination sheets was meant for comments from committee members, because several people served on two committees last year.
4. Introduction of new student representatives: The new Graduate Student Senate Representatives were introduced, Brooke Dagnan (President, GSS), Liz Miller, Natalia Matukhno
5. President’s Office: Duncan informed the Council that he is working with the President’s Office to have President McDavis attend the January 14th, 2005 meeting.
6. Role of Grad Council and Committee responsibilities: Duncan said that he was unable to find descriptions of the responsibilities of each standing committee. He noted that this fits well with the question raised in the final discussion at the June 4th, 2004 meeting: What is the role of Graduate Council and what it should be in the future? He would like to return to this discussion at another time, and with that he asked Michael Mumper to address the Council.
Michael Mumper, Associate Provost for Graduate Studies
1. Introductory remarks: Michael started his address by thanking Anne Walker for being the Office of Graduate Studies liaison to the Graduate Council for the last three years. He also introduced Usha Matta as the new liaison.
2. Decline in international student enrollment: The focus of Michael’s address was the concern about the drop in the international student applications. He mentioned that last spring he presented monthly reports to the Council about number of applications coming in. Michael drew attention to two hand outs (part of the packet) that list graduate student enrollment by College and by standing (Master’s and Ph.D) respectively. The decline in international admits was less than what was anticipated. Michael also highlighted the results of the survey conducted by the Council of Graduate Schools. The survey presents statistics about the decline in international graduate student applications and a corresponding decline in international graduate admits. Institutions that develop specific practices to make the admission process easier for international graduate students are likely to fare better than those that do not change their admission processes.
3. Planning for recruitment of International students: Michael informed the Council about the Provost’s decision to give a one time amount to have an impact on the incoming applications for 2005. Since, applications have already started coming in, it is rather difficult to have a major influence on the applicant pool for 2005.
a. He emphasized that it needs to be a campus wide effort and that Graduate Studies will support all departments in their efforts. Graduate Studies is in the process of developing promotional materials that describe the admission process, list programs and degrees offered at OU, enhancing existing websites, creating new websites, and linking department websites to a central link that will provide all the required information.
b. Michael also informed the Council about travel plans of some Office of Graduate Studies and International Studies staff members to China, India, and Malaysia for recruiting international students.
c. He also indicated that they would try to make some funds available to support faculty in their endeavors in this area as well.
d. He also proposed to hold some ‘Best Practices Workshops’ for graduate chairs and sought requests for participation in them. Michael mentioned that the Provost has assembled Dean’s working groups on issues of concern and for strategic planning.
4. New Graduate Application: Michael mentioned that the new graduate application will be unveiled on October 18th at the first meeting of all Graduate Chairs. Katie Tadlock addressed the Council next.
Katie Tadlock, Director Graduate Student Services
1. New Graduate Application: Katie’s presentation included the demonstration of the new self-managed web application that is live on the web now. Katie informed the Council that this is the first significant revision of the application in a decade. The application was moved out of the Graduate Catalog in its last printing cycle. Using the self-managed web application will reduce the paperwork for the Office of Graduate Studies, departments, and the paperwork traffic between departments and OGS. Applicants are instructed to mail their documents in two separate envelopes and they can refer to the checklist provided to ensure that each envelope has the required contents.
a. For Fall of 2006, there will be a common application for international and domestic students. Since the graduate catalog is no longer mailed to applicants, this application provides information about putting the packet together. This will help applications reach their destinations and will eliminate the problems created by misdirected applications. The application also includes letters of recommendation.
b. There is a new Transient Student Application as well. Joe Rota asked if international students are eligible to be Transient students. Katie responded that only those international students who are already in the U. S. are eligible. A Transient Student application cannot be used for obtaining a visa to come to the U.S.
c. The new application has more information about Residency status. This will help us in implementing the Ohio Board of Regents guidelines.
d. Katie asked the Council to send her information about changes and updates that departments would like on the applications. These will be implemented in January, when the application will go through a first revision.
e. The application is at the printers, but the link on the web is live. The revisions made to the online version in January 2005, will be reflected on paper copies that will be available by June 2005. The new catalog will also have all the new information.
f. Katie also informed the Council that the Grad Chair handbook is being revised and will be sent to Graduate Chairs by the end of this quarter.
2. Council of Graduate Schools Nomination 2004: Katie informed the Council that OU nominated one dissertation for the CGS International Dissertation Award, 2004. The title of the dissertation was ‘Transcription Inhibitors as Anti-Adhesion Agents’, written by Nilesh Dagia (Chemical Engineering). She also reminded the Council that on September 30, 2004 OGS forwarded information and guideline about nominating Master’s theses for the 2005 Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools Distinguished Master’s Theses Award.
3. Graduate Application/Admission Statistics: Katie discussed the handout on Graduate Studies Application Statistics. She told the Council that these are soft numbers and are good for identifying trends only. The number of domestic graduate students has increased significantly from last year. The number of international graduate students matriculated also increased from that of last year. Funded students find it easier to obtain visas than students who do not receive university support. She indicated that the new $100 SEVIS fee is a deterrent to international students and some schools in conjunction with their recruitment efforts have offered to reimburse that fee if the applicant matriculates.
4. Changes in the Conflict of Interest policy: Katie discussed another handout that she had passed to the Council. This outlines the Conflict of Interest Policy and problems associated with it. Most applications are submitted in the summer, but the first Grad Council meeting does not take place until October. Students cannot register till they are approved by the Grad Council. But, some classes require the use of ‘Blackboard’ and students need to be registered for Blackboard, but if there is a registration hold on a student’s account, they cannot sign up for Blackboard. Faculty Senate is going to review this process as well and make recommendations to improve the process to facilitate early registration in classes.
5. Proposed Changes in TOEFL: Another handout that Katie had passed to Council pertains to expanding the OU policy on TOEFL.
a. She proposed that we should also accept the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). Many institutions in the U. S. accept IELTS and by not accepting IELTS we might be losing potential students to them.
b. TOEFL currently costs $130 and perhaps serves as a deterrent to students who have already paid for, and taken the IELTS.
c. Also, Katie proposed to waive the TOEFL for natives of Canada (except Quebec), UK, New Zealand, Australia, Commonwealth Caribbean, Belize, and Liberia. She indicated that this list parallels that of the Consortium of Eastern Ohio Master of Public Health degree, of which Ohio University is a member.
d. Joe Rota asked about the acceptance of the Michigan Test and Katie said that she was not sure if that was as widely accepted as the IELTS.
Peter Johnson
Peter informed the Council about the change in the Graduate Fellowship policy. He drew attention to the tri-fold handout in the packet. Previously nominees were required to have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5; that has now been changed to 3.0. Also, the old policy excluded Master’s students from the nomination process, because of the time frame of the application process. The new policy is inclusive of Master’s students, the requirement being, that the nominated student should have completed one full year of graduate study at Ohio University. The new policy for Graduate Fellowship was voted on and approved.
Josie Bloomfield
Josie presented the report on the Conflicts of Interest reviewed by the Academic Requirements Committee. The following 14 conflict of interest reviews conducted by Katie Tadlock and the ARC found no conflict. The key is as follows:
Name, degree pursuing, college
OU position (Unit)
GS Comments
Committee Comments
Julie Allison, MBA, Business
Assist. Director Facilities Management, Budget & Finance
GS Comments: No Conflict. No collegial or resource relationship between work and degree program. Supervisor Terry Conry, 3-2928
Committee Comments: No conflict
Sara Boyd, Non-degree, Research & Evaluation (Education)
Project Manger, ILGARD, Voinovich Center for Leadership and Public Affairs
GS Comments: No Conflict. No collegial or resource relationship between work and degree program. Supervisor Diane Duffy, Mike Finney, 7-1949
Committee Comments: No conflict
Melissa Cardenas, Ph.D., Cultural Studies (Education)
Assist. Director of Undergraduate Admissions
GS Comments: No Conflict. No collegial or resource relationship between work and degree program. Supervisor Jean Lewis, 3-4104
Committee Comments: No conflict
Ivan Chang, Ph.D., Physics (A&S)
Web Programmer, Computer Services
GS Comments: No Conflict. No collegial or resource relationship between work and degree program.
Committee Comments: No conflict
Jennifer Cochran, Non-Degree, Visual Comm (Communications)*
Assist. Director, Center for International Studies
GS Comments: No Conflict. No collegial or resource relationship between work and degree program. Supervisor Joseph Rota, 3-1839
Committee Comments:No conflict
Quentin Derryberry, III, Non-degree, Cultural Studies (Education)
International Trade Counselor, Voinovich Center for Leadership & Public Affairs.
GS Comments: No Conflict. No collegial or resource relationship between work and degree program. Supervisor Mike Finney, Diane Duffy
Committee Comments:No conflict
Michael Edler, Non-Degree, English (A&S)
Teaching English, Visiting H.S. teacher
GS Comments: No Conflict. Teaching freshman composition. Supervisor Josephine Bloomfield 3-2838
Committee Comments: No conflict
Shannon Edler, Non-Degree, English (A&S)
Teaching English, Visiting H.S. teacher
GS Comments: No Conflict. Teaching freshman composition. Supervisor Josephine Bloomfield 3-2838
Committee Comments: No conflict
Jeffrey Harmison, MCTP, Comm Tech (Communication)
IT Admin/Tech Support (A&S)
GS Comments: No Conflict. No collegial or resource relationship between work and degree program.
Committee Comments: No conflict
Tim H. Johnson, MBA, Business
Business Development Workforce Specialist, OU Eastern
GS Comments: No Conflict. No collegial or resource relationship between work and degree program. Supervisor 740-699-2494
Committee Comments:No conflict
Patrick O’Regan, MCTP, Comm Tech (Communication)
Assist. Director of Undergraduate Admissions
GS Comments: No Conflict. No collegial or resource relationship between work and degree program. Supervisor Jean Lewis, 3-4104
Committee Comments: No conflict
Rebecca Petty, M.Ed., Computer Ed & Tech (Education)
Director, Computer Services, Lancaster
GS Comments: No Conflict. No collegial or resource relationship between work and degree program. Supervisor John Furlow, 740-654-6711 x202
Committee Comments: No conflict
Matthew Phillips, Ph.D., Educational Instruction & Technology (Education)*
Education Technology Coordinator, Dept. of Chemistry/Biochemistry (A&S)
GS Comments, No Conflict. Student cleared by Graduate Council for conflict regarding non-degree admission to Education. Has been admitted to degree program, so review must be redone. No collegial or resource relationship between work and degree program. Supervisor Carolyn Khurshid, 3-1737
Committee Comments:No conflict
*Originally presented to the ARC for summer review, no conflict found at that time.
Matthew Tragert, Non-degree, Computer Ed & Tech (Education)
Instructional Technology Specialist, College of Fine Arts
GS Comments: No Conflict. No collegial or resource relationship between work and degree program. Supervisor Raymond Tymus-Jones, 3-1809
Committee Comments: No conflict
Josie Bloomfield presented three cases that the ARC felt required further discussion. The first case was that of Charles Hart, who is Director of Environmental Health and Safety
and wishes to pursue a doctoral degree in Biological Sciences. The major issue that the Council was concerned with was potential repercussions that Hart might suffer from faculty in the program, given his authority to declare an area unsafe. The Council asked Josie to speak to Larry's supervisor Larry Corrigan to receive more information with which to clarify
the jurisdiction of Hart's authority, should he become a student.
The Council voted to deny Christopher Lewis's request to study for a master's degree in Biological Sciences based on a conflict of interest between such study and his position in the Edison Biotechnology Institute. The review indicated three areas of potential conflict, but Lewis and his supervisors did not offer a plan to manage that conflict.
Regarding Edward Nugent, who is employed by Lifelong Learning and wishes to work toward a doctoral degree in the College of Education, the Council voted to temporarily table the case while Josie seeks clarification regarding the signatures on the form and the relationship of the Lifelong Learning Program by which Nugent is employed to the College of Education. Because Tom Davis signed the form both as job supervisor and academic
supervisor, while the text of the form listed Michael Greenfest of Lifelong Learning as job supervisor, Josie will contact Tom Davis for clarification.
The three cases generated discussion about Conflict of Interest forms, for Council members argued that the forms need to offer a space to clearly delineate where the employee/student's salary comes from. Although that issue is mentioned on the form, Council members noted that often the question is either not answered or not answered clearly. To be able to fairly assess the possibility of conflict between the work responsibilities and academic demands on an employee, the Council concluded that this information needs to be presented clearly and that perhaps a further revision of the form is in order.
Unfortunately, there was no time left for Joe Rota’s presentation, ‘International Students at OU: Current Enrollment, trends, challenges, and benefits’.
Meeting adjourned at 4:10 pm
Next meeting: Friday, November 12, 2004
Time: 2pm—4 pm
104 Walter Hall
