The University Senate held its first meeting of the 2003–2004 year on November 20 in Hardin Hall on the Evanston Campus. President Bienen called the meeting to order at 3:30 PM.

I. The minutes of the March 11, 2003 meeting were approved unanimously without changes.

II. Newly eligible members of the University Senate as nominated by their respective schools were elected by acclamation.

III. Acting on behalf of David Besanko, Chair of the Committee of Honorary Degrees, Associate Provost John Margolis presented nominees for honorary degrees proposed by the Committee.

IV. C. Bradley Moore, Vice President for Research, described the current work of his office. As the University moves to the next level in research, new disciplines and combinations thereof are being brought to bear on social and intellectual problems that could not be attacked before. Such areas as human learning will now combine the structure of neurons, neuroscience, and cognitive science with effective pedagogies for schools and how school systems work in large and small communities here and abroad. Over the next half century, biological sciences will combine with social sciences to point the way to new educational strategies. In global security, biodefense will join hands with a better understanding of politics and human values that underlie terrorism. A global energy policy that makes sense for the coming century, the challenge of AIDS in Africa, a new understanding of the mechanics of Alzheimer’s disease, and similar problems make research an exciting part of Northwestern’s mission today. Multidisciplinary projects are likely to be paradigmatic in coming years. The report of the Huron Consulting Group makes it clear why infrastructure issues now occupy much of the attention of the Office of Research. The mission of the Office of Research is to support the faculty and enable them to pursue the University’s research program. To this end, the faculty are being involved in the Office of Research in a much more integral way. Developments in the Office of Research include the recent appointments of Gary Borisy and Louis Smith as Associate Vice Presidents for Research and faculty members from basic medicine and clinical medicine, and a current search for a complementary Associate Vice President for fields beyond science and engineering. Members of the faculty are being solicited to join research advisory committees. The Huron Report has been especially useful for its recommendation that the University bring Information Technology to bear on support of the research enterprise. Another report, to be finished in about a month, will make recommendations regarding the implementation of IT for this purpose. The annual inspection by the USDA in August yielded a 16-page report on the efficiency of the research program; this has been followed up more recently with a two-page report. Faculty support in meeting compliance deadlines has been greatly appreciated.

In response to a question from Bruce Wessels, Moore explained that the re-organization of his office will be reflected in the new organizational chart to be printed in the forthcoming telephone directory. The information can also be seen of the Office of Research website. As for access by the faculty to information about research, Moore predicted that such access should be greatly improved through faculty advisory committees. President Bienen remarked that concerns can be discussed as appropriate with Ronald Nayler, Associate Vice President for Facilities Management, Eugene Sunshine, Senior Vice President for Business and Finance, and other officers of the administration, using their best judgement as to where remedies need to be applied. Moore concluded by stressing that members of the faculty should seek to act in whatever ways can improve the conditions for their research.

V. Athletic Director Mark H. Murphy, who joined Northwestern in June after eleven years at Colgate, remarked that Northwestern is one of few schools nationally that can say they do things the right way, competing at the highest level athletically without sacrificing its high academic standards. The graduation rate of student athletes is outstanding, comparable to that of the overall student body. Tracking of academic progress by student athletes shows they are doing well as students. Northwestern’s 1995 success in football sent a signal to the NCAA that academic standards are compatible with athletic excellence. Speaking of his personal career in athletics, Murphy noted that he played eight years in the NFL with the Washington Redskins after playing for Colgate. Being on a professional team where only a third of his teammates had college degrees was a great eye-opener for him. He recalled talking to a fellow player who had attended the University of Nevada at Las Vegas but left fifty hours short of a degree. Something is wrong with an intercollegiate athletic system that allows players to go through college without getting a degree. After leaving the Redskins, Murphy worked about four years with the NFL Players’ Association, in which he had been an active member, becoming vice president of the union. He worked with degree completion programs and career counseling. This was another eye-opener. The average career of the pro football player is only three years; seeing how ill-prepared these men were to do anything other than play football and how few had college degrees, he learned how badly served these retirees had been by their college experience. In one instance, it came out in testimony before a Senate subcommittee studying illiteracy that one of his Redskins teammates, two years after his career as a great defensive end, acknowledged that he was illiterate. This athlete attended high school for four years and graduated, than went on to Oklahoma State and was a student there for four years without anyone noticing that he could not read. Murphy’s next post was with the Justice Department, where he worked as an attorney for four years. After that, he returned to Colgate as athletic director, taking the opportunity to ensure that student athletes took their education as seriously as athletics. His eleven years there prepared him for his post at Northwestern, where similar values prevail though Colgate did not at the time award athletic scholarships. He was involved with many different faculty committees dealing with many issues important to athletics. Two recent books, The Game of Life and Reclaiming the Game, describe the impact of athletic programs on small liberal arts schools like Colgate, which has 2700 students but 25 varsity sports and 600 varsity athletes — over 20% of the student body. The resultant impact on the admissions process was much discussed on campus. Varying policies regarding missed classes, NCAA issues, Division I football, and Division I championships were frequently on the table at Colgate. Moving to a high-profile program at Northwestern was a welcome challenge. An impressive coaching staff and athletic administrators with a positive attitude toward competing within a strong academic framework, student athletes with sound academic goals, and a supportive central administration have contributed to good impressions since his arrival in June. At the same time, the remoteness from campus of his office at Ryan Field does not provide the closeness he would like with coaching staff and student athletes. Better liaison with faculty is also needed, though the prohibition on coaches from talking with faculty about specific classes or students should be respected. Faculty can be helpful in recruiting, when they can assure parents and prospective students about access to professors in academic work. Student athletes should also be able to comment on their academic experience with something like CTEC evaluations. Student attendance at games has been disappointing. The Athletic Department will be studying ways to improve this aspect of student life. Summarizing his goals as Athletic Director, Murphy wants to have continued success in sports competition on a more consistent basis across the board. This will depend on recruiting more than anything else, and that depends chiefly on Northwestern’s academic reputation. Proximity to Chicago is another advantage. With achievement of its athletic goals, Northwestern will be a role model for all NCAA schools.

It response to a question from Bruce Wessels about recreational athletics for the general student body, Murphy cited space constraints for limited workout opportunities. SPAC is the most favored facility ahead of Blomquist and Patten because of its health club environment. Blomquist is the most in need of improvement. It was also noted that the Chicago campus needs to be included in recreational facility planning.

VI. Vice President Eugene Sunshine reported on community relations in Evanston. These present a mix of good and bad relations, becoming worse the closer one looks at the City Council. Relations with both school districts have been good over the years, thanks to collaborations between the School of Education and Social Policy and the schools. The Center for Talent Development has worked with middle and high school teachers, minority students, and others. Project Lighthouse has helped to develop teaching techniques in the elementary and middle schools. Decreased funding has threatened the continuity of such programs, however. A recent $1M grant awarded to members of Evanston Township High School faculty, funding development of programs in political science and history, grew out of a seed program initiated between faculty at Northwestern and high school faculty. Northwestern student mentoring and tutoring of Evanston primary and secondary students is another success story. On the commercial side, Northwestern’s policy of acquiring goods and services within Evanston combined with the purchasing power of our students has done more yet to promote good relations with Evanston. These benefits have not been sufficiently felt by the City Council, which is instead drawn to the political benefit of maligning Northwestern and refusal to collaborate in mutually beneficial enterprises. The main case in point is the imposition of a Historic District in northeast Evanston. A settlement, mediated by retired judge Abner Mikva, was voted down in the City Council with two of the three aldermen who negotiated the settlement voting against it. It is still unclear why the Council voted against a settlement that could have saved both parties considerable legal costs. Land use issues, fees and assessments, and time and energy costs are serious impediments to the conduct of the University’s business in Evanston. Collaborations such as fiber optic installations currently under way and joint patrolling by University and City police in areas adjacent to campus, succeed to the degree they are kept out of the political limelight.

Responding to a question by Bruce Wessels, Sunshine explained that too many aldermanic elections go uncontested — though the first ward aldermanic race was decided by a margin of only 57 votes. About 2,500 Northwestern faculty, staff, and alumni live in Evanston; these could be a powerful constituency favoring Northwestern. In reply to a question about fire and police collaboration, Sunshine remarked that this aspect of town-gown relations is excellent.

VII. Provost Lawrence B. Dumas updated the faculty on the strategies being employed to implement and update “The Highest Order of Excellence,” a statement published five years ago articulating Northwestern’s educational, research, and creative goals. To refresh the thinking of that statement, a revision is in the making. Eighteen faculty members have been brought together from across the University, and deans of the schools have been asked to make their own contributions to a renewed vision statement planned for completion in June, explaining how we want Northwestern to be described ten years from now. A third group, in the central administration, will consider the environmental conditions — services and facilities — in which the University can best achieve its goals. Two undergraduate working groups will be formed, one to consider improvements in the quality of undergraduates who apply to Northwestern; these will work with Associate Provost Rebecca Dixon. The other undergraduate group, working with Associate Provost Stephen Fisher and William Banis, Vice President for Student Affairs, will seek to improve the satisfaction of students with their undergraduate experience. We survey graduating seniors every year with a standard set of questions asked at some fifteen private research universities. The highest satisfaction at Northwestern is with recreational facilities. The lowest satisfaction, relative to our peer institutions, is with the ability to get into classes. Weinberg faculty are now considering how to improve access to distribution courses. In terms of faculty and their creative work, President Bienen and Provost Dumas would like to have accomplished more with faculty in the arts and humanities. A faculty group is considering the arts at Northwestern; another is asking similar questions about the humanities. Bioengineering is another area about which a faculty group is being consulted with a view to improving the offerings of engineering faculty in biomedical and biological subjects. Positions in African Studies, Materials Science, and Performance Studies staked out decades ago have placed Northwestern in a place of leadership. Similarly, new development in collaborative or multidisciplinary fields will create new areas of institutional leadership. Creation of an optimal work environment in more areas, where faculty feel they will do their best work at Northwestern, is an important goal of development now being planned. Another working group is seeking ways to improve communication within the University. This year’s administrative retreat in April will begin integrating the ideas generated by the many groups currently at work. The resultant framework for thinking will be in circulation to the faculty by September 2004.

In response to a question about Northwestern’s visibility beyond the Midwest, Dumas remarked that our visibility is greater than any time in the past. This question was discussed at the previous day’s meeting of the Council of Deans. University Relations is tasked with keeping Northwestern’s achievements in education and research in the public view. President Bienen added that Northwestern’s visibility is vastly greater than it was as little as five years ago, though more in the Chicago Tribune than the New York Times. Another issue is the degree to which we target other media such as the legal press. Another question addressed the overall growth of the faculty. Dumas replied that there has been modest growth in the faculty of Arts and Sciences. Next to the Medical School, Weinberg is the most undersized relative to peers. The overall undergraduate faculty-student ratio compares favorably to that in other prestigious private research universities, but the ratio in Weinberg is less favorable to students than in the other five undergraduate schools. Weinberg faculty have been expanded by about 24 positions from a base of about 450. The Medical School is also building a larger faculty in the research sector. There is no plan to increase the student body; faculty growth is projected only in specific areas when resources become available. The overall size of the faculty, however, is not expected to increase. President Bienen added that no shift of the teaching load to adjunct faculty is planned, notwithstanding budget constraints such as reduced Federal funding which are on the horizon. Dumas remarked that except in the Medical School and affiliated hospitals where clinical lines have been increased, non-tenured numbers in the faculty are flat.

VIII. President Henry Bienen began his remarks by reporting that the University budget is in good condition. In the next fiscal year it can be expected that fiscal constraints will come from a negative endowment performance when averaged in with two bad years in the immediate past. This will not be made up by unrestricted gifts. The number of donors has in fact increased, and the Northwestern budget is considerably more robust than that of public institutions, which remain in desperate shape, and better than some better endowed private institutions such as Stanford and Yale, which have announced large cuts. With regard to planning priorities, the next campaign will be launched within less than five years. In the mean time, we will seek funding for objectives that we think will attract participation. These include undergraduate education, special seminars, research, and expansion of the Norris University Center, all of which are of great value to Northwestern. Naming of chairs, centers, and schools will remain targets for which donors are sought. If our pharmaceutical product generates a significant amount of money, we would invest in graduate fellowships, startup courses, and faculty retention or recruitment on a quasi-endowment basis. We will try to fund renewal and replacement and get rid of capital overhang from new building construction. None of the hoped-for royalty income will go into the operating budget. It the faculty is selectively increased, this will be done on a true cost basis: not the $3M normally charged for a chair on an endowment basis, but over $4M which reflects the actual cost of a FTE for salary, benefits, secretarial support, and building costs over the lifetime of a funded professor. No windfall will go into the operating budget to create shortfalls later when the windfall expires. We will have word of any large royalty income within the next six months to a year depending on whether the product is fast-tracked through the approval process.

In reply to a question from Mario Ruggero regarding Senate membership, John Margolis said that the University statute amended last year provides that all assistant and associate professors are automatically enrolled in the University Senate.

IX. John Margolis announced the results of voting on honorary degree nominations made earlier in the meeting. All nominees were approved by acclamation.

X. There being no new business, the meeting was adjourned at 5:10 PM

Respectfully submitted,

Daniel H. Garrison
Secretary to the University Senate

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