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March 28, 2022

  1. Call to Order – The March 28, 2022 meeting of the University Senate was called to order at 4:00 p.m. in Wyly Auditorium/Zoom Session by President, Louis Reis.
  2. Welcome and Opening Remarks – President, Louis Reis, COES
  3. Roll Call – Alicia Kimbell recorded the attendees as they logged into Zoom as well as those that attended in person; a quorum was met
  4. Approval of February 2022 Minutes – a motion was made by John Worsencroft/Joan Lynam; all approved
  5. Updates
    1. Senate award nomination link will close this Friday, April 1st; there have already been 81 nominations made for the various awards
      1. Need more nominations for the University Senate Chair Award (only 4 nominations so far)
    2. Senate officer elections are coming up soon
    3. Sumeet Dua will be the guest speaker at the April meeting; will discuss research and partnerships
      1. Louis Reis will send out a Moodle questionnaire for senate members to submit questions for Dr. Dua to address
  6.  Adjournment
    1. The official business of the senate was adjourned at 4:03 p.m. by a motion from John Worsencroft/Shelcie Menard-Harvey; the remainder of the meeting time was opened up for all faculty/staff to participate
  1. President Guice: Remarks and Q & A
    1. Thanked everyone for all their hard work within the classrooms and throughout campus
    2. Very optimistic on state funding
    3. Shared a presentation that was given in January to legislators; showed what needs to be invested in going forward
    4. The following items were discussed:
      1. Campus strengths
      2. Strategic framework – Tech 2030
      3. Goals – providing unparalleled educational experience, our legacy at Tech, and building a model 21st century campus (master-planning)
      4. Enterprise Campus Phase I
        1. Support students and research; entrepreneurial and innovation culture support
        2. In 6-8 months will start construction on Tech Pointe II
      5. Enhancing our campus core
        1. Capital outlay requests have been submitted; feeling good about where we stand
          1. Priority #1 is the renovation of GTM
          2. Priority #2 is CTH – needs work in science labs
      6. Green Space
        1. Added from taking down of Harper and Harris
        2. $1.5 million each year to deal with ADA issues on campus
          1. Enhance sidewalks going into Keeny Hall
          2. LED lights all over campus
          3. Need to focus on accessibility near COE
      7. Bossier City
        1. National Cyber Research Park
          1. GDIT – relocated due to Computer Science degree generated at Tech
          2. Academic Success Center – has been quiet for a little while
        2. LTRI
          1. Gives Tech a great opportunity to bring in partners for research
          2. 30 year no-cost cooperative endeavor agreement
        3. Cyber enrollment
          1. Has had growth impact on CIS & Cyber Engineering programs
      8. National Scale Impacts
        1. Creating a facility to support our forestry program
        2. Ways to enhance south campus (Forestry Products Innovation Center)
      9. Deferred Maintenance Projects
        1. Roofing of Wyly, AEP, and GTM
        2. Repairs for Ropp and Davison
        3. Utility Infrastructure – cooling structure
        4. Power Plant
          1. Move to LED lights; more energy efficient buildings
          2. Transition to depend on city for power in 3-4 years
        5. Roads on campus are not funded by city
        6. AEP – retaining wall/fence for playground
      10. Athletic Facilities
        1. State – tornado recovery funding
        2. Hold regional competitions – economic driver
        3. Build women’s facilities
      11. BOR Budget Plan
        1. System office – feels very optimistic to receive funding for pay raises
        2. Operating budget – enrollment growth is key
        3. 72% self-generated (tuition and fees from students) 27% from the state
      12. Senator Questions
        1. When will the renovations start on GTM? Possibly next year to allow for architects and planning; money will be given after legislative session ends in May
        2. How is teaching load considered across colleges? The head of department or dean would determine (Policy 2106)
        3. Will there be funding to hire for empty spaces? Enrollment is a factor; feels that there will be the ability to set aside money to fill positions; think strategically about new hires (research centers – hire those with strengths); grants for graduate students to advance research; push for additional operating dollars
        4. Tenure requirements? Disparity in teaching load and research would need to be discussed between Provost and Dean of college
        5. Plans to use facilities in Shreveport/Bossier? Barksdale has been inaccessible and have also been unable to use BPCC facilities (courses are online); Dr. Donna Thomas is working to figure out what programs to deliver; Working with BPCC on partnering in programs
        6. IT Services? Supporting faculty in the classroom; working on utilizing tools for online and in-person classes; turning 10th floor into a faculty resource; Tom Hoover looking to fill positions
        7. Issues with Conference USA? Feels good about where we are right now; wanted to be selective about which teams come into our conference; we have the lowest budget in Conference USA (have had good success despite that)
        8. Student Engagement Fee by SGA? There will be a Town Hall meeting tonight for students to attend to discuss; the fee is crucial for engagement
        9. Moodle Questionnaire – Louis Reis will send out a questionnaire to University Senate members regarding today’s meeting