Minutes of the August 30, 2007 Faculty Meeting

I. Call to Order

President David Anderson welcomed the faculty to the opening meeting.

II. Opening Prayer

Pastor Bruce Benson opened the meeting with a prayer for the beginning of the academic year.

III. Approval of the minutes of the May 2007 Faculty Meeting

The minutes were approved.

IV. Introduction of New Colleagues

Provost Jim May welcomed back faculty members who were on leave or on international programs last year and introduced new members of the faculty. The Provost was pleased to report the appointment of two faculty members to named professorships by the Board of Regents: David Emery to the Husby-Johnson Chaired Professorship of Business and Economic and Gary Miessler to the Larson- Anderson Chaired Professorship of Chemistry.

Provost May also announced that the Faculty Development Committee will form a working group to conduct a review of the faculty development system at the college. Please contact Arnie Ostebee if interested in participating.

V. Update on the Class of 2011 and the Work of the Admissions Division

Michael Kyle, Vice President of Enrollment, reported that the incoming class of first-year students is one of the most impressive and one of the most diverse in the college’s history. He offered statistics to illustrate this vividly. For example, the following can be said of the incoming class of 753 students: They were selected from the largest applicant pool ever. Twenty percent of this class held perfect 4.0 GPA’s in high school. The median ACT score increased to 29 (28 in ’06-07, 27 in ’05-’06). Fifty percent come from outside Minnesota. Sixty-one join siblings who were or are Oles. Ninety-six have parents who attended St. Olaf. About 65 percent of the class is receiving need-based financial aid; about 40 percent have received merit-based awards. Eighty-seven percent report a church affiliation.

Kyle also gave brief biographical sketches of several very talented new students with diverse backgrounds. These included a wunderkind from New York City; a Sioux Falls, S.D. dancer, a second-generation Tibetan from Minneapolis, a presidential scholar from Atlanta, and a National Merit Scholar from Edina.

Kyle concluded by thanking all of the people who assisted in recruiting, hosting, interviewing, and welcoming potential students. He also invited the faculty to join him in thanking the entire staff of the Admissions and Financial Aid Offices. [Much applause.]

VI. Update on the Budget

Alan Norton, Treasurer of the College, reported that the financial picture is better than it has ever been in the college’s history. The college currently has 600 million in assets, 140 million in liabilities, resulting in 470 million dollars net worth.

Comparison with Other Colleges. Where do we stand relative to colleges with better resources than ours, colleges like Macalester, for example? For comparison sake, the Treasurer offered three ratios used to measure financial status.

A. Primary reserve ratio (the net worth that is available to spend). If we had to operate without income, we could operate for 2.5 years. Colleges with more resources fall at 3 – 5 years.

B. Capitalization ratio (the measure of net worth relative to all assets). In other words, how dependent are we on debt? Our ratio is .77, which is fairly typical. The wealthiest schools tend not to have much debt. Most schools fall between .7 and .8. Those without any endowment are around .6; those with less debt are at .8.

C. Viability ratio (ratio of expendable net worth vs. total amount of debt). In other words, this is the measure of an institution’s ability to repay its debt. This is the ratio of expendable net worth vs. total amount of debt. Two years ago we had a 2.9 ratio. Last year our ratio was 3.6. This year we are back at 2.9. The stock market does affect this ratio. As long as the stock market does not crash, a year from now we will be at about the same ratio.

Other Statistics. The Treasurer offered a few other comparisons. In terms of the amount of financial resources relative to FTE, we are not doing as well as some other colleges. St. Olaf has $122,000 per FTE. Wealthy schools have between $350,000 – 400,000 per FTE. However, in terms of how we spend money, the percentages look very similar to the averages at other colleges. St. Olaf spends 65% on education, 17% on student life, and 15% on institutional costs. The averages at other Minnesota colleges: 60% on education, 18% on student life, and 20% on institutional costs.

Balance of Unplanned Expenses vs. Added Revenue and Savings. The Treasurer concluded by reporting that unintended costs were balanced by unexpected revenues and savings. Costs that were not planned: maintenance and renovation costs for buildings, including Boe Chapel and dormitories. Added revenue came from short-term investment income and telecom revenue. Savings came from health costs having been less last year than in previous years, vacancies, and lower utility costs. On total, we ended the year in fine shape.

VII. Committee Updates

A. RPC
Dan Hofrenning , Chair of Review and Planning, offered the expected agenda for the year.

Stoppage of Tenure Clock . The first proposal for consideration concerns extending tenure clock in cases of health emergency or the birth or adoption of a child. The green sheet should appear before the October meeting.

Committee Reform. Last year 8 committees were eliminated and two “uber-committees” were created. Last year focused on committees related to student life and the curriculum. This year RPC will consider two other categories: governance and faculty life committees. If you have ideas or concerns, please e-mail the Chair of RPC or other members of committee.

B. Pandemic Task Force
Pat Ceas gave a Power Point presentation detailing the dire predictions concerning a future pandemic epidemic. The CDC predicts that a pandemic is inevitable; thus, preparation is essential.

Principles for Planning. In case of a disaster like an Avian flu outbreak at St. Olaf, a few principles will guide the response at the college. Students will be sent home. Some courses will need to be taught as part of an emergency curriculum. Without it the college would lose enrollment and tuition. Some students will remain behind. Sick students will need to be quarantined. Faculty and staff will work at home and in split shifts to minimize contact. Emergency contingency plans will need to be worked out for public safety, delivery of supplies, communication, and how to restart campus life. The task force is working with Carleton to share resources.

C. Curriculum Committee
David Booth , Chair of the Curriculum Committee, set forth the charge of the new Curriculum Committee to do the work of the three committees that it replaces. The faculty in essence voted for less committee work and greater efficiency. The fact of having one committee now means that there will be less time and fewer people to consider proposals. One consequence is that deadlines will need to be more strictly observed.

Agenda for 2007-2008

1. Emergency Curriculum. The CC will seek to develop an academic curriculum that could be sustained in a time of serious emergency.

2. Student Assessment. Curriculum committee will encourage departments and programs to create statements of learning outcomes.

3. Transfer credits. More difficult, more diverse than in the past. CC will work with the Registrar’s Office to develop new guidelines.

VII. President’s Remarks

Faculty Meetings. The President introduced some levity by noting that outside of the academy “faculty meeting” is code for “endless but useless deliberation.” He then showed a clip from the Groucho Marx Film “Horse Feathers” (1932). (The scene depicts a faculty meeting as a song and dance number to the tune “Whatever it is, I’m against it.”) The President was pleased to note that last year faculty meetings were relevant, efficient, and productive. He plans to continue to meet with committee heads, the Dean, and others to ensure that the meetings continue to be so.

Faculty Development Accounts. The President announced that each full-time faculty member will have his or her own development account of $1500 to be used for travel, research, books and materials. Details on the new faculty development accounts will follow from the Dean’s Office. The President views this initiative as a great advancement in the college’s support of faculty development.

The President’s Colloquy. Another initiative to be launched this fall is the “President’s Colloquy on Issues in Higher Education.” The President sees this effort as continuing the long-standing tradition of faculty discussions on the meaning of the liberal arts, the vocation of a college of the church, and what matters most to the institution. The explicit goal of the colloquy is to engage with national issues and trends in higher education across the country and to consider our college within these contexts. CILA, under David Schodt’s leadership, will arrange these colloquies; all faculty members are invited to participate in these discussions.

Tenure-Track Searches. The President reported that tenure-track faculty searches will take place this year in Bio-molecular Science, Chemistry, English, Math, Music, Psychology, Spanish, and Religion. He stressed that each search represents “a once in a generation opportunity” to bring a talented, committed, passionate member to the faculty. Each search also represents an opportunity to improve the racial and ethnic diversity of faculty.

Size of the Student Body. Aligning the size of the student body with the resources on campus continues to be a goal. This year the total student body will be below 3,000. The President believes this downward trend is the right one. Sixty percent of our class offerings this fall will enroll fewer than 20 students, up from 49 percent last year.

Space Issues. The President offered an update on what he terms “the Movement of the Peoples.” In the fall of 2008, the science family will migrate to the new science center. This will be followed by moves to Old Science and other subsequent moves. It looks now that Old Science will house administration and classrooms and that the current Administration building will be used for Music. Issues concerning the Chapel and Old Main need to be resolved soon. The President will be in touch soon with the “best thinking” of the Space Team on the issues.

Ranking Season. The President reported the news on St. Olaf’s ranking on various lists. For example, in the US News ranking, St. Olaf moved up to 54 (from 55). We share the ranking with Reed. We rank above Lawrence, Beloit, College of Wooster, St. John’s, Augustana, and Luther. We rank below Carleton, Grinnel, Macalester, Holy Cross, and Dennison. Washington Monthly: differs from US News in that they employ three categories of community service, research, and social mobility. In their calculation, St. Olaf ranked 12 th in the nation, behind Vassar, Smith, and Williams, but ahead of Oberlin, Middlebury, Carleton, and Macalester. The Princeton Review also gave St. Olaf a glowing review.

While the President is pleased with the rankings, his opinion is that rankings do not really matter. What matters is the lived experience of real students. Lowering class size and improving faculty resources will improve rankings, but these are also the right things to do. What matters most is the crafting of the educational experience, which is something only the faculty can do. The President concluded by thanking the faculty in advance for their efforts this year.

VIII. Announcements

A. From the Registrar.

Mary Cisar offered the following reminders and announcements to the faculty:

1. Classes begin next Wednesday.

2. First-year students arrive on Saturday. The welcome ceremony will be followed by a picnic with faculty advisors. Faculty advisers will meet with their first-year advisees on Tuesday. Registration will take place on Tuesday afternoon.

3. The course catalog is available on the web. No hard copies will be printed this year.

4. The Academic Advising web page provides resources for advising.

5. Final exam schedule has been posted. Please be aware that times are slightly different this year.

IX. Remarks for the Good of the Order

A. Judy Kutulas invited the faculty to contribute to the St. Olaf Action Committee, which raises funds to send St. Olaf multi-cultural students abroad.

B. Solveig Zempel reminded the faculty that the Fulbright application season is beginning.

C. Xun Pomponio inquired about the status of class limits and the registration of first-year students. The Provost responded by acknowledging that class limits might be impossible, given that some courses are always in high demand. The Provost asked that faculty try to anticipate problems and talk to his/her Associate Dean.

D. Eric Lund announced that the Term in Asia needs a faculty advisor for 2009. If anyone is interested in developing new Interim programs for January 2009, deadlines are in November.

E. David Van Wylen announced that a building site tour of the new Science Center will be offered tomorrow morning.

The President adjourned the meeting.

--Minutes prepared and respectfully submitted by Anna Kuxhausen, Dept. of History.