George Mason University
Approved Minutes of the Executive Committee Meeting
August 27, 2003
Present: J. Bennett, L. Brown, P. Buchanan, R. Coffinberger,
M. De Nys, E. Elstun, D. Kuebrich, P. Stearns
Chair Jim Bennett opened the meeting at 12:27 pm.
I. Approval of Minutes
A motion to approve the July 17, 2003 minutes was not called due to time constraints.
II. Announcements
In October, Lorraine Brown will report to the Faculty Senate on President Merten’s
letter concerning the Senate’s Resolution on Library Governance.
The AAUP and the Faculty Senate are sponsoring a forum on September 17th that
will include a panel of state legislators addressing the issue of higher education.
Provost Stearns had a number of announcements:
He will address the Faculty Senate on “Civility on Campus” at the
September 3rd meeting.
The Provost’s Office is working on a budget proposal for recitation sessions
for large undergraduate classes.
The University is proposing a GMU campus in Dubai that will focus on the fields
of management, information technology, biology/bioinformatics, nursing, arts,
and General Education. It is slated to open in Fall 2004, with an estimated
increase from 200 to 825 students over the next four years. The campus would
be financially underwritten by ETA, an Indian/Middle Eastern joint business
venture, but GMU will control academic decisions. An Open Forum on the proposal,
cosponsored by the Provost’s Office and the Faculty Senate, will be held
on September 15th at 3:00 pm in Johnson Center Assembly Room B. Provost Stearns
will take the proposal to the BOV in September, and it will need further approval
from the General Assembly and SACS. The university is also pursuing academic
opportunities in Shanghai, China.
III. Old Business
There was no old business.
IV. Reports from Senate Standing Committee Chairs
There were no reports from the Senate Standing Committee Chairs.
V. New Business
A. Senate Operations
The proposal was submitted that Executive Committee meetings be held on Tuesdays
to give extra time for compiling Faculty Senate meeting agendas. However, the
majority of the Committee members have teaching conflicts on Tuesdays.
B. Agenda for September 3, 2003 Faculty Senate meeting
The agenda was approved and will be sent out this afternoon to the general faculty,
staff senate, student leaders, and interested personnel.
VI. Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at 1:20 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Debi Siler
Clerk, Faculty Senate