Academic Council Minutes, October 5, 2005

I.  Minutes 

--Approved as written for the previous two meetings 

II.  General Agenda 

• Data Collection

--No data report but was a question on 2+2 agreement with WCJC in relation to the AAT.  Education dean and provost will try to identify and resolve the issue. 

• Instructional Technology/Online Issues and Updates

--IT: 

• IT will hold a brown-bag session on what is available for free in the way of software resources and services.

--ISS: 

• FACT discussed the WebCT disaster recovery plan that UH and UHV are developing.
   
• Some faculty have expressed interest in various technology equipment, and so a “technology day” to present wares is being planned for early November.
   
• There are some licenses left for various software purchases that can be distributed to faculty interested.  Training will be available.
   
• Fort Bend Issues and Updates

--Chari Norgard reported on a meeting of the AAS (Academic Administrators Support).  Items in progress are policies and procedures to address proctoring needs (using outside help, which would be trained and which the institution using it would pay for) any further ways of trying to address ongoing bookstore issues (Cinco Ranch will no longer refer students to the Sugar Land store on the CR website, given its limitations). 

--Need for a weekend administration of the Texas Education test at Cinco Ranch was noted; also noted that on-site management could set up the testing and that proctors could be trained at UH, as is currently the case for other tests.

--Arts and Sciences is planning to request approval to offer Criminal Justice and general Psychology (undergraduate) at Cinco. 

III.  Specific Agenda 

• Student Appeal

--An appeal for waiver of the TOEFL, referred to Business Administration, at the last meeting was approved. 

• Faculty Development Requests and Reports

--Due to funding not being used in year approved, a research grant ($1,000) was reapproved for Dr. Paul Carlson to continue work on a manuscript that attempts to help prepare educators to focus on local ethnic and cultural variations.  

--Approved a development grant for conference presentation ($1,000) to Dr. Jeffrey Di Leo to present at the Modern Language Association Annual Meeting, in Washington, D.C., in December.

--Approved a request of Dr. Donald Loffredo for a research grant ($1,000) to write a journal research article suitable for publication entitled “Communicator Style and Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Preferences.”

--Approved a publication award ($600) to Dr. Sandy Venneman for the published paper “Sniffing Out Efficacy:  Sniffy Lite, a Virtual Animal Lab” in Teaching of Psychology.

--Accepted a grant funded conference travel report from Dr. Yong Lee.

• Other

--John Stansell indicated policy being put into place in Education and Human Development to deal with problems of students not observing course prerequisites.

DNS/kw
10/7/05