From the Senate Office |
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March 25, 2014, Volume 60, No. 27 |
The following is published in accordance with the Faculty Senate Rules. Among other purposes, the publication of SEC actions is intended to stimulate discussion among the constituencies and their representatives. Please communicate your comments to Vicki Hewitt, executive assistant to the Senate Office, either by telephone at (215) 898-6943 or by email at senate@pobox.upenn.edu
Faculty Senate Executive Committee Actions
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
Chair’s Report: Faculty Senate Chair Dwight Jaggard reported that there will be an Open Forum for faculty members with the Middle States Commission on Higher Education visiting team on Tuesday, March 25 and he encouraged SEC members to participate. He also announced that the Senate Committee on Committees met on March 18. The ballot generated at that meeting will be sent via email to SEC members for a vote.
Tribute to Ellis Golub: Gary Cohen, professor of microbiology in the Dental School, spoke in remembrance of Ellis Golub, former professor of biochemistry in the Dental School, who passed away on January 22, 2014. Dr. Cohen praised Dr. Golub as an exceptional researcher, University citizen and friend.
Update from the Office of the Provost: Provost Vincent Price spoke to SEC members on recent developments in the areas under his purview. He encouraged SEC members to visit the renovated ARCH building, which houses the University’s cultural centers, the Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships and a new restaurant. Construction has begun on the new college house in Hill Field, which is slated to open in 2016. The Task Force on Student Psychological Health and Welfare has launched to investigate University policies and practices concerning students’ mental health. The Commission on Student Safety, Alcohol and Campus Life issued its report last month and as a result of the commission’s recommendations, a new educational outreach position has been funded to address issues of hazing violence and sexual assault. The deans of the graduate schools and Vice Provost for Education Andy Binns will convene a University-wide council to review master’s degree programs. The AAU Undergraduate STEM Initiative is underway to incorporate Structured Active In-Class Learning (SAIL) in various STEM courses. The Middle States Accreditation process continues and the external review team will visit the University next week. The Penn Center for Innovation will launch soon, offering expanded services for faculty research, as well as the new Pennovation Center that will provide space for collaboration and innovation on the South Bank. Construction will begin on the Perry World House, which will provide conference, classroom and office space for global projects. Work continues on the Penn Wharton China Center in Beijing, which will offer a base of operations for faculty working in China. The results of three of the four dean searches have been announced: Geoffrey Garrett will be dean of the Wharton School, John L. Jackson, Jr. dean of the School of Social Policy & Practice and Antonia Villarruel dean of the School of Nursing. The search for a dean of the Graduate School of Education is proceeding smoothly, as is the search for a new Director of Recreation and Intercollegiate Athletics.
SEC members and the Provost then discussed the timeframe for the Graduate School of Education dean search, the future location of Counseling and Psychological Services, the position of Director of Perry World House, the shortage of classrooms appropriate for SAIL methods, repurposing of satellite libraries, open access to research publications and problems with the current economic model of research publishing.
Update from the Vice Provost for Faculty: Vice Provost for Faculty Anita Allen updated SEC members on the Progress Report on Minority Equity and the Progress Report on Penn’s Action Plan for Faculty Diversity and Excellence. She noted that the 2011 Action Plan had made specific commitments and the University was on target to fulfill these commitments in its recent progress report. Since the implementation of the Action Plan, underrepresented minority hiring has increased and departures have decreased. She noted that gains in hiring for women have not increased to the same extent. Because growth of the faculty across the University is limited, the only way to increase the numbers of women and minorities is to hire a greater percentage each year. If the University would like to increase the number of underrepresented faculty members to 13% by 2024, 15% of faculty hired each year must be underrepresented minorities. Penn is not doing as well as our peers in hiring women and minorities. Although the percentage of faculty that are underrepresented minorities is slowly rising, the percentage of hires that are underrepresented minorities is increasing. The role of the Diversity Search Advisors in the schools is crucial, but some areas of the University have been resistant to incorporating diversity initiatives. Improving the climate for underrepresented minorities, LGBT and women faculty is also important, since the most recent faculty climate survey indicates these groups don’t have as positive an image of the University as others. In the future, Vice Provost for Faculty Anita Allen would like to combine these two reports into one report on diversity and inclusion, in order to streamline the process and cover the full range of activities on campus.
SEC members and the Vice Provost for Faculty then discussed surveying faculty members who choose to leave or candidates who choose not to come to Penn, changing the culture of departments and schools, the designation of a minority group as underrepresented and Penn’s initiatives to increase the pipeline for minority students.
Discussion on Information Security and Institutional Risk Management: Chief Information Security Officer Joshua Beeman told SEC members that Information Security had been identified by the Institutional Risk Management Committee as one of the top areas for potential risk to the University. As a result, information security processes are being reviewed at the University, including seeking out best practices and recommendations, identifying and clarifying where and how functions are performed, assessing staff levels and competencies and establishing timetables and accountability moving forward. The project is in its initial phase, but expects to complete the process by September 2014. Mr. Beeman emphasized that although information security is often thought of as an IT problem, every user plays a role in preventing breaches by keeping credentials and privileged data secure. The project will allow the University to better assess its priorities in information security and result in regular benchmarking of progress and comparison to peers.
SEC members and the group then discussed the motivations behind data breaches, standardizing information security policies and implementation across departments and schools and improving data governance.
Related: Middle States Open Forum: This Afternoon at the ARCH
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