LOUISIANA TECH UNIVERSITY SENATE
Volume 17 February 2008 Number 6
1. Call to Order - Aziz Saber
The February 18, 2008 meeting of the University Senate was called to order at 4:00 p.m. in the Ropp Center, Room 105, by
President Aziz Saber.
2. Roll Call: Marie Pipes
Senators absent from the meeting: Perna Sethi, Chester Wilson, Galen Turner, Marilyn Robinson, James Webb, Brian Etheridge,
and Jeff Hankins.
3. Adoption of Agenda:
A motion was made to accept the agenda. The motion was seconded and approved.
4. Adoption of Minutes - January 14, 2008:
A motion was made to approve the January minutes with one correction under Call to Order. The minutes should read
"January 14" rather than "September 17". With this correction, the motion was seconded and the minutes approved.
5. Academics and Athletics - Dean James Liberatos
Dr. Liberatos presented the Athletic Strategic Plan and provided an overview of each of the ten (10) goals.
a. Athletic Strategic Plan consists of ten goals:
Goal 1: Louisiana Tech will be a competitive member of its conference that consistently wins in athletic competition and
in the classroom.
Goal 2: Louisiana Tech student-athletes will maintain the highest graduation rate among Division I institutions in
Louisiana and exceed all minimum academic standards.
Goal 3: Louisiana Tech student-athletes will be valued contributors to the Tech community.
Goal 4: Louisiana Tech will continue its commitment to equity through support of its intercollegiate athletics teams.
Goal 5: Louisiana Tech will continue its commitment to honesty and integrity in athletes.
Goal 6: Louisiana Tech will achieve its vision through cooperation across campus and in collaboration with the extended
Louisiana Tech community.
Goal 7: Louisiana Tech will elevate its image to be recognized nationally as one of the major competitors in Louisiana.
Goal 8: Louisiana Tech Athletics will raise funds to support an overall budget of $16.5 million and will meet or exceed the
WAC recommended budget increase.
Goal 9: Louisiana Tech will have facilities that are equivalent to the top half of the conference and meet the qualifications
necessary to host NCAA championship events.
Goal 10: Louisiana Tech will operate with a team of staff and coaches equipped with the skills, experience, and attitudes
reflective of a top athletics program.
Dr. Liberatos provided an overview of each of the goals and then went to say that we have between 300 and 350 athletes on scholarship. Statistics from the 2007 Federal Graduation Rate Report, Louisiana Tech ranks 71% in student-athlete graduation rate. This rate is higher than any other university in the State of Louisiana. All of our athletes have at least a GPA of 2.36 or above and at least 40% of our athletes have a 3.0 GPA or above. We are allowing our athletes to enroll the summer quarter prior to the their first team actively involved with their respective sport. This allows the athlete to become acclimated to college life. Our athletes are also under the five-year rule which allows for an athlete to receive scholarship funds a fifth year of college to enable them to receive a degree after their four years of eligibility in their sport. Basically the scholarship pays for fifteen (15) quarters. The student can choose to come summers rather than the fifth year.
b. Athletics Academic Center
Lisa Merritt is Assistant Athletics Director of Academics and Missy Farrar is the Student Success Specialist for athletics. Lisa Merritt gave an overview of what the academic center offers the student athlete. The students are held accountable and must attend study hall. The amount of time spent in the study hall depends on their g.p.a. The average is four to six hours a week. Tutors are available to assist. They are also instructed in time management skills. The at-risk student athlete is to attend academic meetings once a week in addition to the study hall time. If the g.p.a. increases, then they don't have to attend study hall at all or not as many hours.
Lisa stated that the student athlete should provide their instructor, the first day of class, the days they will have to miss. This allows the instructor to make a decision at that point whether the athlete should or can remain in the course. Students are required to sign a FERPA waiver so that instructors are allowed to provide grades to the academic center. Lisa stated that athletes should be coming to class and be physically and mentally prepared. There are consequences for the student athlete if they do not fulfill their academic obligations. For example, Football has a Peer Leadership Council and works on a point system. There is also a Student Athlete Advisory Council that is formed of two athletes from each sport. They meet twice a month and discuss issues among their team members. They vote on legislation with the NCAA and also provide a voice to the conference and NCAA.
Missy Farrar, Student Success Specialists works closely with Lisa Merritt. She works with the student athletes in getting them involved in giving back to the community. The athletes, this past year, have participated in a food drive, Halloween Carnival for children, St. Jude Radiothon, a fifth-year Habitat for Humanity project, and in the fall will begin a Big Brother Program. The purpose is to get them involved in other activities besides the sport they are playing.
6. Announcements:
● Administrative and Planning Council -
Dr. Saber represented the University Senate at the January meeting of the council. The academic calendar for next 08-09
was adopted. At the February meeting a presentation will be made regarding the proposed new dining program for the
students and the university. Jeff Hankins serves on the Dining Committee as the Senate representative.
● Faculty Advisory Council - Ms. Debra Blackman stated there the next schedule meeting is for February 29, 2008.
7. Treasurer's Report: Ron Cathey
A motion was made and seconded to approved the treasurer's report.
8. Unfinished Business:
a. Turnitin - There were some technical difficulties so the meeting was cancelled and rescheduled for March. Brian Etheridge and
Derek Lowe represent the Senate.
- b. Blackboard Upgrades: Debra Blackman attended the Blackboard Upgrade Training session.
Ms. Blackman stated that the basics - Course Description, Assignments, Gradebook, etc. - are essentially the same in Version 7 with some enhancements. There are many enhancements in Version 7 - branching logic in courses, notification for certain events, Safe Assignments, discussion board enhancements, RSS feeds, etc. But there is no requirement to use the new features immediately. Once we get the new version, you can begin to explore and use the new features that fit your needs. Version 7 has been out for more than a year and is in use by hundreds of institutions. So, the main benefits we hope to see are improved response time, fewer "hang ups" and less down time.
Today the university sent out spring data to Blackboard and on March 1st this data will be available for review and updates for use during the Spring Quarter. Last week training sessions were held for two days. There were two members from each college at the training sessions. Debra thanked Roy Waters for getting such a good instructor for the training.
8. New Business: Debra Blackman will be sending out information regarding nominations for the University Senate Chair Award and the
Virgil Orr Undergraduate Junior Faculty Award
9. Voluntary Remarks: none
The meeting adjourned at 5:00 p.m.
Marie Pipes, Recording Secretary
