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Approved Resolutions

142^nd Plenary Meeting Farmingdale State University - January 26-28, 2006

• Resolution to Restore Conversations in the Disciplines Support to Recent Funding Levels
• Special Resolution
• Resolution on Selection of Interim Presidents

University Faculty Senate
Awards Committee
142^nd Plenary Meeting
Farmingdale State College
January 27, 2006

Resolution to Restore Conversations in the Disciplines Support to Recent Funding Levels

WHEREAS the Conversations in the Disciplines Program has and continues to foster scholarly development and intellectual exchange among faculty across SUNY and with national experts in all fields of study, thus enhancing the quality of the University's programs of instruction; and

WHEREAS the Conversations in the Disciplines Program has sponsored nearly 500 conferences (awarded competitively through a peer review process) since its inception in 1965, thereby heightening SUNY's visibility and prominence to the public; and

WHEREAS the recent $20,000 reduction in program funding has resulted in many meritorious proposals going unsupported; therefore

BE IT RESOLVED that the University Faculty Senate supports the restoration, and encourages Chancellor Ryan to reinstate, the $50,000 annual funding level for the Conversations in the Disciplines program.

University Faculty Senate
Executive Committee/Full Senate
142^nd Plenary Meeting
Farmingdale State College
January 27, 2006

Special Resolution

We, the University Faculty Senate, rise to recognize the many contributions and dedicated services of Dr. Peter D. Salins as Provost of the State University of New York and,

We now welcome him as an invaluable colleague and as a member of our teaching faculty.

University Faculty Senate
Governance Committee
142^nd Plenary Meeting
Farmingdale State College
January 27, 2006

Resolution on Selection of Interim Presidents

The Governance Committee recommends endorsement of the following resolution:

Whereas the University Faculty Senate has previously expressed its position that consultation with the Faculty should take place prior to the appointment of an interim President, and

Whereas the Senate directed the Governance Committee to develop a proposal to refine the intent of the Senate, and

Whereas the Governance Committee has prepared the attached Statement on the Appointment of Interim Presidents,

Now therefore Be It Resolved

That the University Faculty Senate endorse the Statement on the Appointment of Interim Presidents and urges the Chancellor to implement it.

Statement on the Appointment of Interim Presidents

Selection of a college president is always a critical decision in the life of an institution. Both by tradition and by policy, the presidential selection process is one that involves both the college council and the faculty.

The overarching principles are stated in the 1966 Statement on Governance of Colleges and Universities jointly endorsed by the American Council on Education (ACE), the Association of Governing Boards of Colleges and Universities (AGB), and the American Association of University Professors (AAUP). The section of that document pertaining to presidential selection reads:

Joint effort of a most critical kind must be taken when an institution chooses a new president. The selection of a chief administrative officer should follow upon a cooperative search by the governing board and the faculty, taking into consideration the opinions of others who are appropriately interested. The president should be equally qualified to serve both as the executive officer of the governing board and as the chief academic officer of the institution and the faculty. The president's dual role requires an ability to interpret to board and faculty the educational views and concepts of institutional government of the other. The president should have the confidence of the board and the faculty.

In SUNY the principles with respect to presidential selection articulated in the Statement on Governance of Colleges and Universities are operationalized in the Policies of the Board of Trustees. Article IX, Title A, Section 1 of the Policies speaks to the selection of the "Chief Administrative Officer" in the following language:

There shall be a chief administrative officer of each state-operated institution of the university who shall be designated president. Presidents shall be appointed by the Board of Trustees after receipt of recommendations of the campus councils (or of the Trustees of the College of Environmental Science and Forestry) and of the Chancellor, and shall serve at the pleasure of the Board of Trustees. Before making its recommendations the campus council shall consult with a presidential search committee designated for such purposes by the chair of the council and comprised of members of the various campus constituencies, including faculty, students, professional employees, administration, alumni and members of the council. Reflecting the significance of the role that faculty are expected to play in academic governance, the faculty should predominate among the non-council constituencies on the search committee. The Chancellor, or designated representative, before making recommendations to the Trustees, shall consult with the chair or other designated representative of the college council.

The same logic that dictates that faculty should have a significant role in the selection of a president is operative in the selection of an interim president. Interim presidents may be in a position to serve for a number of years and potentially under difficult circumstances, and it is thus important that the person in the position have the support of the Board of Trustees, the Chancellor, the College Council, and of the faculty.

Nonetheless, the Policies are silent with respect to the process used to name interim presidents. In practice, interim appointments are made by the Board of Trustees upon recommendation of the Chancellor, who, in turn, is not bound to any specific procedure.

Vacancies in presidencies occur for a variety of reasons, among them: illness or incapacity, removal, the resignation of the incumbent to assume another position, retirement, or an unsuccessful search.

While some of these circumstances, for example illness, incapacity, or removal, necessitate an appointment under trying time constraints, and removal, in particular precludes public disclosure until it has been accomplished, nonetheless the overarching selection principles of consultation should be adhered to.

Accordingly, the University Faculty Senate recommends to the Chancellor that under circumstances where there is inadequate opportunity for faculty consultation with respect to filling an interim presidency that the officer in charge be appointed for a defined short period of time sufficient to permit consultation, after which an interim president shall be named. Nothing in this recommendation should be construed as rendering the interim chief administrative officer ineligible for consideration for the interim presidency.

142-03-1 Resolution on Selection of Interim Presidents
Passed Without Dissent
January 27, 2006