Motion passed

Proposed Constitutional Changes

Calendar Item: 
1518
Docket Number: 
1394
First Name: 
Amy
Last Name: 
Petersen
E-mail: 
amy.petersen@uni.edu
Facts: 

In the spring of 2020, a working group met and developed a proposal to revise the UNI Faculty Consitution as a result of the previous consitutional revisions related to the voting eligibility of term and temporary faculty. This proposal was tabled for further discussion; however such discussion did not occur because of COVID. This petition seeks to bring forward the proposed revisions for further discussion and in anticipation of the Fall Faculty meeting on Monday, October 19.  Revisions to the UNI Constitution require a 2/3 vote of faculty present at a regular faculty meeting.  

Pursuant to the working group's recommendation, at its October 12 meeting the Senate endorsed the first (of two) options for changing the language of the Faculty Constitution outlined in the attached document. In summary: the working group proposed that the faculty delegate the authority to the UNI Faculty Senate to determine the formula for its membership (i.e. moving the formula from the Constitution to the Senate Bylaws), eliminate the constitutional language allocating a specific number of seats to non-voting faculty, and add the Graduate Faculty Chair as an ex officio member of the Senate. The Senate unanimously endorsed this proposal.

The specific changes to the language of the Faculty Constitution are outlined in the attached document.

Upload Petition Facts: 
File options_for_constitutional_changes.docx
Action: 

A vote is requested to forward one or more of the proposed changes to the UNI Faculty Constition to the faculty for vote at the Fall Faculty meeting. 

Final Action Taken: 
Working group's recommendation endorsed
Meeting Date: 
Oct 12, 2020

Petition to discharge Ad-Hoc Faculty Senate Summer Advisory Council

Calendar Item: 
1516
Docket Number: 
1393
First Name: 
John
Last Name: 
Burnight
E-mail: 
john.burnight@uni.edu
Facts: 

In May, due to the extraordinary circumstances presented by COVID-19, the Senate voted unanimously (via email) to approve the creation of an Ad-Hoc Faculty Senate Summer Advisory Council to offer the Senate’s perspective on emerging issues during the summer months. It consists of the Senate officers and one Senator from each college, the library, and contingent faculty. Membership is as follows:

Imam Alam (CBA representative)

Kenneth Hall (CHAS-Humanities)

Syed Kirmani (CHAS-Science)

Mark Hecimovich (COE)

Matthew Makarios (CSBS)

Gretchen Gould (Library)

William Koch (Contingent Faculty)

John Burnight (Chair of the Senate)

Danielle Cowley (Vice Chair of the Senate)

James Mattingly (Former Chair of the Senate)

Amy Petersen (Chair of the Faculty)

The council has consulted with the administration on a number of issues this summer, and on behalf of the Senate voted unanimously to approve the COVID-19 related syllabus statement and the additions to Policy 3.06 on attendance and make-up work. (The text of both of these can be found on pp. 91-92 of the Faculty Handbook: https://provost.uni.edu/faculty-handbook-updates.)

With the resumption of regular Senate meetings this fall, the council has served its purpose and the Senate officers recommend discharging it, with our thanks.

Final Action Taken: 
Council discharged
Meeting Date: 
Sep 14, 2020

Proposed change to Policy 3.06 regarding religious observance

Calendar Item: 
1535
Docket Number: 
1412
First Name: 
James
Last Name: 
Mattingly
E-mail: 
jim.mattingly@uni.edu
Facts: 

Northern Iowa Student Government passed a resolution in Spring 2020, requesting to change policy 3.06 to require instructors to excuse students from absences due to religious observance.  Although the current policy provides for discretionary excuse of such absences, the NISG resolution requests a policy change to make excuse of those absences mandatory.  Under the policy, students must be allowed to make-up missed work or complete an alternative assignment when an absence is due to a reason that falls under the class of events that qualify as mandatory excused absences.  The Educational Policies Commission has proposed changes to the policy which are consistent with this request, as indicated in the marked-up policy change proposal.

Upload Petition Facts: 
PDF icon ssr_2020-22_a_resolution_in_support_of_mandatory_excused_absences_for_obligatory_religious_observances.pdf
PDF icon 3.06_class_attendance_and_make-up_work-epc_proposal.pdf
Action: 

Therefore, be it resolved that the University Faculty Senate approves the change to Policy 3.06 recommended by the Educational Policies Commission.  The proposed change requires instructors to excuse student absences when such absences pertain to religious observance.

Last Spring, after the NISG passed their resolution requesting this policy change, senate officers consulted with university attorneys to determine our legal standing in this situation.  They could find no specific legal precedent, but their opinion was that failing to alter the policy to mandate accommodation for religious observance would leave the university exposed to legal challenge under the first amendment.  Further, when deliberating this issue, an EPC sub-committee, together with the Senate Committee on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion reviewed similar provisions for several institutions, discovering that institutions generally provide excused absence for religious observance.  Thus, failing to alter the policy in at least the minimal way proposed by the EPC would leave us out of step with institutional norms, and very likely leaves the university exposed to legal challenge.  Thus, it is incumbent on us to adapt our policy in the proposed manner to resolve these deficiencies.

Upload Supporting Information: 
PDF icon links_to_similar_provisions_by_peer_institutions_.pdf
Final Action Taken: 
Change to policy approved
Meeting Date: 
Feb 22, 2021

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