UNH Faculty Senate
Summary Minutes from 4 November, 2002
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UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
2002/03 FACULTY SENATE
NOVEMBER 4, 2002 - MINUTES SUMMARY
I. Roll - The following faculty senators were absent: Baldwin, Burger, Calculator, Elmslie, Fletcher, Frankel,
Giraud, McCann, Miriam, Pollard, Townson and Ward. Excused were Becker, Churchill, Hinson, and Schlentrich. Marty
Scarano, Director of UNH Intercollegiate Athletics, attended part of the meeting.
II. Minutes - The minutes of the last senate meeting were approved unanimously.
III. Communications from the Chair - The senate chair congratulated the four senators who received Faculty Excellence
Awards this year: Professors Bruce Elmslie, Joe Lugalla, Dan Reid and Jeff Salloway. The senate chair also mentioned
a Boston Globe article on the recent publication of the modern edition of a book, The Instruction of a Christen
Woman, which Senator Elizabeth Hageman helped to edit.
The new chair of the senate's Research and Public Service Committee is Gordon Kraft. David Andrew agreed to represent
the Faculty Senate at the dedication of the university's newest residence hall, Mills Hall, on November 7 at 4:00
p.m. This building was finished on time and under budget.
For the second time in four months, the trustees invited UNH faculty to talk with them about faculty concerns.
At the meeting on October 29 at the New England Center, faculty discussed James Hall and other renovation issues.
Trustees are taking on an enhanced role of advocacy. Last year the UNH System received $100,000,000 out of the
$185,000,000 requested through the KEEP program. The University System will be asking for ninety-six million dollars
for further maintenance and renovation needs. Last year, business leaders participated in this effort by telling
the legislators that renovation of certain areas, such as the science laboratories, is crucial to state businesses
which need to hire UNH graduates. The trustees are encouraging the faculty to participate in this advocacy effort
as well. Student tuition at UNH is rising rapidly; the tuition is high compared with the schools with which UNH
competes; and this could adversely affect UNH enrollment. New Hampshire is still the fiftieth state in the nation
in aid to higher education. Faculty should encourage visibility throughout the state for the accomplishments and
programs of the university and its faculty and students.
IV. Athletics and Academics and Cooperation between Them - Marty Scarano, Director of UNH Intercollegiate Athletics,
thanked the faculty for the good way they have worked with student athletes in their efforts to achieve scholastically.
301 of the 631 student athletes achieved at least a 3.0 grade point average, and 192 student athletes were on
the Dean's List in the spring of 2002. The very successful hockey team had a team grade point average of 2.84,
which the athletic director said is good considering the length of the season and the demands made on the hockey
players. The UNH student athlete graduation rate is traditionally among the top fifteen to twenty Division One
schools. This year the rate is slightly lower, not because the student athletes did less well academically but
rather because the baseball program at UNH was cancelled and the basketball program experienced attrition, and
so players left the university, thus reducing the graduation rate. U.S. News and World Report has named UNH as
one of the top twenty athletic departments in the country, after considering such issues as graduation rate, gender
equity, win/loss records and the number of sports offered.
The student athletes are expected to communicate well with their professors at the beginning of each semester,
in order to work on scheduling issues which may arise due to games and practices. The Academic-Athletic Advisory
Committee deals with issues regarding athletics and academics throughout the year. If faculty have any concerns,
please bring them to the attention of this committee or the athletic director.
The NCAA Division One Board of Directors has given approval to new academic standards which are intended to improve
the graduation rates of student athletes. These standards cover entry-level student athletes through graduation.
Among other changes, a student would have to complete forty percent, rather than twenty-five percent of the course
work by the end of the sophomore year. However, if a student athlete changes majors, even though he is a good
student, he would probably not be able to satisfy this requirement. Student athletes' grades are carefully tracked
at the middle and the end of each term. About forty-five percent of the student athletes have partial or full
scholarships. Of those students who leave the university, most do so for personal rather than academic reasons.
Both the graduation rate and the grade point averages of student athletes are higher than those for non-athletes.
V. Update on the Faculty Luncheon - The eight faculty members at the October 25 faculty luncheon discussed transportation,
parking and bus routes and also grade inflation and the effect on grade inflation of faculty concerns about student
evaluations and how they might be used at promotion and tenure time. The renovation of Kingsbury Hall will remove
yet another parking lot.
VI. Other Business - Plymouth State College has proposed that its name be changed to Plymouth State University;
the trustees have voted to let that happen; and the issue will now go before the state legislature.
VII. Adjournment - The meeting was adjourned.
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