Faculty Meeting Wednesday at 3:00
Good Monday to you all,
Hopefully the rain has stopped for a few days so that we can dry out. I can see some sunlight poking out right now as I type 
I thought Saturday would be the washout and Sunday the drier day...but noooo! The weather forecasters called for rain all day Saturday but there was none and Sunday it was only supposed to rain for the morning, but it rained all day. How would you like to have a job where you could be wrong most of the time, even with the best technology, and keep your job?
Anyhow, we've got a week to wrap things up before final exams. Our faculty meeting will be Wednesday at 3:00 (starting at 3:00 so that a few folks can attend the 3:30 grad council meeting). Below is a draft agenda. Then, what follows are a couple of reminders and calendar events to plan for.
Draft Faculty Meeting Agenda. May 6 @ 3:00, Craig 336
1. Announcements, Congratulations, and Goodbyes
2. Discussion about PR program staffing in light of Susan's departure. I have been working closely with Sam and Jerri Lynn to make necessary adjustments to cover Susan's courses next year. I am extremely grateful that Jerri Lynn has agreed to teach a full load of PR courses both fall and spring next year. With that, I have requested a one-year basic course instructor to teach the courses Jerri Lynn would have taught.
With Susan leaving, we will have a vacant position to fill by August 2010. We need to request a replacement position to teach courses in the PR program. The administrative team has discussed a few staffing options via email recently and we need to discuss these options as a faculty now. From this discussion and your input I will forward a request to the dean. Because the dean is currently considering all faculty requests in the college, it's important that we forward such a request before the end of the semester.
3. Curriculum Revisions. As you know, both Heather and Stephanie have headed up changes to their respective areas in the last few months. Ad hoc committees have been working in the last few months to make recommended changes to both health and org com major options in the BA/BS in Communication degree. There are a few associated course proposals that go along with these. I will ask that Heather and Stephanie make brief reports about the status of these revisions so that we may seek input from the faculty. We plan to recommend final revisions to the faculty at the August faculty retreat (the Friday before classes begin). However, if the faculty feel compelled to vote on any particular item on Wednesday, we may do so.
One additional item that needs further discussion is the issue of allowing students to complete a double option in the BA/BA in Communication major, as well as whether or not our majors can complete the Ethical Leadership minor.
4. Other items to be added by any faculty member.
Additional Reminders and Deadlines
1. May 7, 2009, Faculty Report on Remunerated Outside Activities for 2008 are due to me. Thank you to those who have already submitted theirs. Recall that even if you did no work, you must still sign the form and submit it to me. If you DID have work for which you were compensated, you must complete this form as well. And, if you did multiple events, you need to submit one form for each separate activity. If you submitted one form with two activities, please revise it and resubmit it to me by Thursday. If I don't have yours by the faculty meeting Wednesday, I'll send you a special email personally to remind you :).
2. Friday, May 8, at 5:00, Plan to attend the End of the School Year Grad and Student Awards Party. The weather is supposed to be nice on Friday, so plan to come on out to our cabin in Fair Grove. You should have received a flyer in your mailbox from Randy last week. We begin at 5:00 with food, fun and drinks...maybe even take a short stroll on the trails. Then at 6:15, we'll give out the awards for grad teaching assistant, grad research, and faculty awards.
3. Friday, May 15, 8:00-9:15 COAL Commencement Reception. It's again at the First & Calvary Church next to the Arena. Please plan to attend this fun event, meet the parents, and congratulate our 59 graduating seniors.
4. Friday, May 15 at 10:00am is the commencement ceremony for COM majors and other COAL students. It's at the Arena of course.
5. Monday, May 18 at 10:00am ALL GRADES ARE DUE. Yeah, summer begins! 