Fall 2024 BFA Elections 鈥� External
Call for Nominations
September 9, 2024
The external phase of BFA Fall elections are now underway. The nomination process begins on Monday, September 9, 2024, and continues through Wednesday, September 18th. Once nominations have closed, the current representatives of the General Assembly will vote on the nominees; this election will take place between September 19-20.
I strongly encourage you to consider nominating yourself or a colleague to a standing committee. BFA Standing Committees undertake important work on behalf of the faculty and others in the community on the CU 麻豆影院 campus. Also included in these elections are the open CU Faculty Council seats for 麻豆影院 faculty. The chart below indicates available Committee seats.
________________________________________
Number of BFA standing committee seats up for election, by affiliation:
Number of seats up for election (Affiliation: CU 麻豆影院)
________________________________________
Check our Elections webpage and Committees webpage for information on elections, committee charges, composition, etc.
Nomination email packets should include:
1. affiliation (A&S or Non-A&S), home department/unit, and contact details;
3. brief statement of interest in serving on the committee (1-2 sentences max)
4. an e-mail header containing the phrase "BFA Election Nomination"
Please email your nomination packet(s) to bfa@colorado.edu by 11:59 p.m., Wednesday, September 18, 2024. Elections are completed by Assembly members on September 20, 2024.
Nominees will be notified by email when election results are available. The election results will also be posted on the BFA web page.
Sincerely,
Vicki Grove
BFA Secretary and Chair, BFA Nominations and Elections Committee
Email: bfa@colorado.edu
*Non-A&S units include Business, CMCI, Education, Engineering, ENVD, Law School, Libraries, and Music
Who's eligible to run and serve on 麻豆影院 and CU system shared faculty governance bodies?
BFA representatives were advised of two campus issues that could impact faculty at the start of the year and asked to share this information with their constituents and colleagues.
The first was about a new email security service called Abnormal Security email that is being rolled out this week by OIT. The rollout and details were announced in
The second item is regarding faculty contract selection and the impacts to August pay. August 19th is the first date for AY24-25 faculty contracts, which means there are fewer paid days for August paychecks.The deadline to make changes to faculty contract pay (9x9 v. 9x12) was in July and was communicated to department HR liaisons in May and June. It's recommended that faculty use the to ensure they know what to expect.
Please use the links above and view additional details from OIT and HR listed below.
What to Know about Abnormal Security for Email This week OIT will be rolling out a new email security service, called Abnormal Security, to help protect personal information and university data. Abnormal Security further prevents email attacks that exploit human behavior such as phishing, social engineering and account takeovers. Abnormal Security only reviews emails that pass Microsoft鈥檚 365 quarantine and so is an addition to our email environment and is in direct response to campus feedback about the desire for improved email security as we continue to be impacted by cyber-attacks.Why is this needed now?
What is the risk to faculty?
The BFA held it's final meeting of academic year 2023-2024 on Thursday, May 2, 2024 in-person at the Chancellor's Hall in the CASE building.
After receiving many comments on the campus FCQ process related to the resolution introduced in April, the BFA Executive Committee recommended withdrawing the resolution on open comments only, and instead to recommend campus create a task force to review the full FCQ process and make recommendations on the following questions:
Members unanimously approved withdrawing the open comments resolution. The new resolution will be voted on at the September 5, 2024 Assembly meeting. Representatives are asked to share this resolution with their colleagues and to provide feedback through August 23, 2024.
Approved with 47 votes in favor; 0 opposed; and 3 abstentions. BFA Chair Shelly Miller appointed Peter Hamlington, Mechanical Engineering as chair, and the committee seats will be filled in September during committee elections. If you or one of your colleagues is interested, please email bfa@colorado.edu for more information.
BFA Chair Shelly Miller presented Norgaard and Feldman with certificates of appreciation from the BFA for the many years of contributions to faculty shared governance and to campus policies ranging from Teaching Faculty (Instructor) rights, contracts, pay, and titles to recognition of DEI in the FRPA and departmental merit review processes. Norgaard and Feldman are retiring this spring. The BFA wishes them well!
All three nominees were elected for a second term of one year. Please join us in congratulating:
The BFA held it's regular monthly meeting on April 4, 2024 via Zoom. Chancellor DiStefano was on hand to address faculty for the final time as CU 麻豆影院 Chancellor. Areas on his mind as the academic year is wrapping up included a concern about academic freedom in light of recent events this year as well as upcoming elections. DiStefano encouraged faculty to be empathetic and to remain open to civic discussion around hard topics. He emphasized that democracy is fragile but that CU 麻豆影院 has a critical role to play in educating tomorrow's leaders. During questions from members, DiStefano also said an important concern was the public perception of higher education.
When asked about things over his tenure at CU that he鈥檚 most proud of, the chancellor noted that shared governance is unique to higher education and that he's appreciated the guidance from the BFA along with other campus bodies that he's worked with over the years. DiStefano told members that he has great pride in where 麻豆影院 stands in relation to AAU peers and gives credit to faculty in particular for their work over the last fifteen years in research, scholarship and creative work. Additionally, he noted that during his time as Provost, he was also proud of work done with the BFA to begin improving conditions for instructors. In particular he noted the efforts of Cathy Comstock and Rolf Norgaard on the Instructor Bill of Rights. DiStefano also noted that previously fundraising in his role was not a main focus, but that through his efforts he more than doubled the amounts and noted that fundraising would continue to play a key role in the future.
Lastly, the chancellor told members that he鈥檚 looking forward to returning to the faculty and noted that back in the day he had been an original member of the BFA (known as the Faculty Council at that time). DiStefano received many thanks from representatives for his work at CU in both the room and chat.
Dr. D鈥橝ndra Mull, Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, who joined campus last fall, reviewed the student affairs organization and the role they all play in the student experience. The mission of Student Affairs (SA) mission is to 鈥�..create a comprehensively excellent student experience through the development of dynamic programs, services and support structures that prepare Buffs to thrive as lifelong learners in a globally engaged society.鈥� To achieve this her office is focused on student development through engagement, belonging, academic support, and high-impact practices. Mull walked members through an organizational chart designed to give faculty a better understanding of who they can go to for specific issues and how to contact them. Associate Vice Chancellor, Dr. Joe Thomas also spoke with members about his role in connecting and aligning Student Affairs with faculty and academics. He partners with Undergraduate Education on the common curriculum and other high impact programs with Buffs Undergraduate Success (BUS) group. Both Mull and Thomas encouraged faculty to reach out to them directly with any questions.
BFA Chair Miller introduced a resolution on behalf of the Executive Committee BFA-R-1-030424 to recommend that Academic Affairs form a working group next fall to review issues, benefits, and alternatives to the anonymous open comment section currently on the FCQs. Per any changes to campus FCQs must include input by faculty and students appointed by shared governance bodies. Concerns regarding the open comment section include: a lack of support and follow-up when students anonymously report misconduct violations instead of utilizing campus reporting procedures, as well as well-established data showing a negative impact on women and under-represented faculty from student biases in anonymous comments. Conversely, many faculty, including the BFA Diversity and Academic Affairs committees support the use of anonymous comments for constructive student feedback for courses and instructors. The BFA Executive Committee supports a full review of the issue and asks that the working group making recommendations to the Provost on the following:
The motion is under consideration for thirty days and will be voted on at the May 2 meeting. Representatives are asked to share the resolution with constituents and send all feedback and questions to Shelly Miller at: bfa@colorado.edu.
Lastly, Assembly members heard more about the for course materials introduced last year. CU Bookstore Director Jessica Carlsen along with Assistant Director Matt Avena, and the Redshelf VP of Product, Tim Shea gave faculty an overview of the program. Goals include ensuring that students have materials on the first day of class, reducing the cost to students - in particular in certain fields, and committing to a reduction in the environmental costs associated with printing thousands of books each semester. Carlsen noted that the high success of the program has already allowed CU to lower the subscription price for all students. Representatives noted issues for faculty included a need for publishers to provide greater useability and to make offerings more faculty focused. Examples included issues like page number confusion between digital and hard copies as well as problems with annotations. Several faculty also pointed to 鈥渄igital fatigue鈥� that their students were experiencing. Shea welcomed faculty feedback and questions as they continued to improve the system. Carlson stressed that faculty are strongly encouraged to choose whatever course materials are best for their classrooms and noted that the cost of printed over digital will not affect students opting into the program. However Carlsen did want faculty to be aware that most publishers have greatly reduced the availability of printed materials which also impacts the availability of pre-owned items. Avena also offered a potential solution for students to request official photocopies of pages for a few dollars in case they found it useful to have both the digital and hard versions. See the presentation slides and email questions to bfa@colorado.edu and they will be forwarded to Carlsen鈥檚 group.
In conclusion BFA Chair Shelly Miller reminded members of the following BFA items:
Please see the letter sent to BFA representatives and liaisons on Tuesday, April 2, 2024 and share widely.
Dear Colleagues,
Today President Saliman sent an with details on the selection of as the finalist for the CU 麻豆影院 Chancellor search as well as information on the open forums scheduled for Thursday, April 4th in the UMC Aspen Rooms.
OPEN FORUM SCHEDULE
Thursday, April 4 - all forums will be held in the UMC Aspen Rooms (or via livestream):
鈥� Faculty 鈥� 8:00 鈥� 9:00 a.m.
鈥� Staff 鈥� 9:15 鈥� 10:15 a.m.
鈥� Students 鈥� 5:00 鈥� 6:00 p.m.
Please attend one of these sessions in person or via livestream and encourage your colleagues to attend too. You can view details on the . Campus members are asked to complete a after these sessions.
As a BFA representative I ask that you ensure all your constituents are aware of the visit and the importance of faculty feedback. State law requires a 14-day waiting period in which feedback about the candidate is gathered and reviewed. The survey will launch on April 4 and remain open through Tuesday, April 9 at 5pm.
See this page for more information on the chancellor transition process. /students/chancellor-transition
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Best,
Shelly Miller PhD
Professor, Mechanical Engineering & Environmental Engineering Program
Chair, 麻豆影院 Faculty Assembly
麻豆影院
Traditional territories of the Arapaho, Cheyenne, and Ute Nations
Associate Editor,
麻豆影院 Faculty Assembly (BFA)
Norlin Library 鈥� E138
303-492-6271
The 麻豆影院 Faculty Assembly acknowledge that the University of Colorado is located on the traditional territories and ancestral homelands of the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Ute and many other Native American nations. Their forced removal from these territories has caused devastating and lasting impacts. Full CU 麻豆影院 land acknowledgment
The 麻豆影院 Faculty Assembly in conjunction with the Center for Teaching & Learning are pleased to announce a new fellowship to focus on climate and sustainability in education for AY24-25. Please see details below for the description and call for applications. Direct questions to bfa@colorado.edu.
Climate & Sustainability in Education
Faculty Working Group Leader
The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) in conjunction with the 麻豆影院 Faculty Assembly Climate Science and Education Committee (CSEC) seeks applications for a new, year-long fellowship, leading a faculty working group that will enhance synergies among CU 麻豆影院鈥檚 course offerings in climate change and sustainability. The primary focus will be on creating clearer pathways for students to pursue climate change and sustainability education across multiple majors.
The current climate crisis and growing challenges related to sustainability have increased the urgency for new approaches to climate and sustainability education. CU 麻豆影院 currently offers numerous classes across all colleges that address climate issues. However, students rarely have clear pathways to pursue well-orchestrated credentials for their interests in climate change and sustainability. The successful applicant will assemble and lead a working group of approximately 6-10 faculty who will investigate how we can more effectively prepare students in these fields.
Through this program, faculty will catalog existing courses and explore synergies among them in order to arrange a series of incremental and stackable micro-credentials that can ultimately lead to a certificate or a major. In addition, the group will host a series of short presentations in an open community of practice, whereby faculty across the campus can share the challenges and opportunities they faced as they developed new courses and expanded existing courses to address issues of climate change and sustainability.
The successful applicant will organize a series of meetings throughout the Fall and Spring semesters of the 2024-2025 academic year. These meetings will occur at approximately three-week intervals and will provide a forum for in-depth conversations related to teaching climate change and sustainability on the 麻豆影院 campus. Additionally, there will be a few preparation meetings over the summer with times TBD. Working with members of the Environmental Center, the BFA Climate Science and Education committee, the BFA Academic Affairs committee and members of the CTL staff, the leader of this group will help CU 麻豆影院 enhance its reputation as a leader in climate and sustainability education.
This leadership position will come with up to a $10,000 stipend.
We invite interested tenured, tenure-track, and teaching professors to apply before Friday, May 3, 2024. Applicants should include: (1) a one-page statement of interest, (2) a CV, and (3) a brief statement from a chair or director expressing support for participation in the program and email items to: Kirk Ambrose at: ctl@colorado.edu.
The 麻豆影院 Faculty Assembly held the annual meeting of the 麻豆影院 Faculty Senate on Thursday, March 7, 2024. This meeting occurs once a year during any spring Assembly meeting and is open to the full 麻豆影院 Faculty Senate. BFA Vice Chair and CU Faculty Council Chair Alastair Norcross presided. Members heard various updates from campus on the following items:
I. Buff Undergraduate Success (BUS) Update 鈥� Katherine Eggert, Senior Vice Provost for Academic Planning and Assessment along with Joe Thomas, Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs provided members with updates to this project which includes a revised charge as of February 2024. It specifies a focus on "cross-functional and cross-campus collaboration that results in policy and process improvement for all undergraduate students and particularly for underrepresented students from historically marginalized groups from their first day on campus through the fourth semester." The group will work in concert with the Provost's and COO's priority projects to ensure there is not a duplication of efforts or multiple directions on the same project. The group has also added some new members including Jess Doty, Chief Wellness Officer, Amy Hutton, Chief Enrollment Officers, and Daryl Maeda, Dean and Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education. Eggert noted some improvements in CU 麻豆影院's 6-year graduation rates up by 4% but still lagging AAU peers. A full list of current projects can be found on the March 7 Assembly BUS Update Slides. Eggert also noted ways faculty can help in this effort which included:
II. IT Decision Framework Model 鈥� Vice Chancellor of Information Technology and Chief Information Officer Marin Stanek introduced a new IT decision framework model (also known as an IT governance model). The model will provide a more effective decision-making process, increased transparency, and to align IT strategies with overall institution academic and research goals. Currently CU 麻豆影院 uses a highly decentralized process that increases duplicative efforts and increases costs. CU lags behind most R1 peers in not having this type of model in place. Page eight (8) of the IT Decision Framework BFA 03.07.24 slides gives an overview of the framework. Faculty representation in the process comes in several areas including BFA representation on the Student & Academic Technology Committee by Janet Casagrand, the chair of the BFA Academic Technologies & Services (ATSC) committee. Additionally, Elizabeth Romero Fuerte, Asst. Vice Provost and AVC for Academic Technology and Student Success sits on both the ATSC and on the BFA Executive Committee. Faculty participating on departmental IT committees will also be called on for input and feedback.
III. 鈥� Alastair Norcross, BFA Vice Chair & Chair
Changes to this system administrative policy statement went into effect on July 1, 2023 and included making Teaching Professor titles an official option for campuses. 麻豆影院 currently uses these titles instead of Instructor, however final changes need to be made in HCM (HR management software) by system HR which is expected to happen sometime late spring or summer. Due to updates in this policy, CU Faculty Council is updating the . Faculty are asked to be aware of the following:
Additionally Norcross updated members on a current situation related to Lecturers hired at CU 麻豆影院 related to APS 5060 which defines Lecturers as temporary employees with less than a 50% appointment (which is generally one course). Instead most Lecturers on campus are hired to teach more than one course and have appointments of greater than 50%. System has asked 麻豆影院 to resolve this issue by fall. Provost Moore formed a task force to work on solutions and guidelines for this issue. Members include Katherine Eggert, Robyn Fergus, Shelly Miller, and Ann Schmiesing. Miller asked reps to contact her at bfa@colorado.edu if they (or a colleague) has ideas/experience in this kind of problem-solving.
IV. BFA Campus Updates
V. Faculty Affairs Committee (FAC) Resources for Open Access Changes 鈥� Steve Vanderheiden, BFA Faculty Affairs Committee Chair and committee member Melissa Cantrell, Ctr for Research Data/Digital Scholarship reviewed a resource document the FAC has created for faculty regarding recent changes in Open Access (OA) guidelines. Please share widely with your colleagues.
VI. BFA Announcements 鈥� Vicki Grove, BFA Secretary reminded members on two current BFA business items:
Please also see the CU 麻豆影院 Today article on the March Assembly meeting as well.
*At the University of Colorado, the 鈥渇aculty senate鈥� refers to all faculty who are eligible to vote and take part in shared faculty governance processes. The CU Faculty Council is the elected system-wide faculty governance body, and the 麻豆影院 Faculty Assembly is the campus faculty governance body. At most other institutions the 鈥渇aculty senate鈥� refers to the elected university faculty governance body. See the 麻豆影院 Faculty Senate page for more information.
The BFA Excellence Awards specifically recognize outstanding work and a concerted effort to make advances in the academy. The Chancellor provides financial support for these prestigious awards and a ceremony in the spring recognizes the winners and features a keynote by the Hazel Barnes Awardee for that year. This year's ceremony will take place on Thursday, April 18 from 4:30-7pm in the Glenn Miller Ballroom at the UMC. Please mark your calendars!
The 麻豆影院 Faculty Assembly is pleased to announce the winners of this year's Excellence Awards Winners
Excellence in Leadership & Service
Valerie McKenzie, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Excellence in Research, Scholarly, and Creative Work
Rebecca Safran, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Excellence in Teaching
.Cosetta Seno French & Italian
The BFA held it's first Assembly meeting for spring semester on Thursday, February 1, 2024. BFA Chair Shelly Miller began the meeting by reading the CU 麻豆影院 Land Acknowledgment statement and recommending members connect with the Center for Native American & Indigenous Studies.
The first item on the agenda came from CUSG Tri-Exec Chase Cromwell regarding a and student efforts to get the CU Board of Regents to change the system policy allowing for concealed weapons on campus. The will be held in 麻豆影院 at SEEC. Cromwell also shared a from National Higher Education Concealed Carry Status showing how CU ranks compared to peer institutions across the country on this issue. A recent story in the Denver Post gives a rundown of pending legislation at the state level that will likely impact what changes CU might make. Miller and Cromwell recommended faculty share this information with constituents and encourage them to reach out to their congressional leaders as well as to colleagues at other Colorado institutions.
Members discussed and approved BFA-R-1-112823 Credit for Prior Learning resolution that was introduced in December by the BFA Academic Affairs Committee chair - Garrett Bredeson, Sr. Vice Provost for Academic Planning & Assessment - Katherine Eggert, and Asst. Vice Provost & University Registrar - Kristi Wold-McCormick. Discussion included upcoming plans from the Registrar and Bursars offices regarding business processes for course challenges, as well as the distinct processes and needs individual departments/units will have for course challenge requests.
BFA Chair Shelly Miller gave members an update on the committee on which she serves. Committee members are reviewing a large number of applicants and begin meetings on those this week. Additionally, Miller noted that the campus Climate Action Plan was scheduled to rollout and be open for public comment. She encouraged representatives to alert their constituents and asked faculty to review the plan and comment between February 5 to March 5.
CU President Todd Saliman joined Assembly members and spoke with them regarding several areas that the BFA Executive Committee asked about. The questions included:
Regarding the first question, Saliman noted that state institutions are working together on a marketing campaign about preparing for college and attending in-state colleges and universities. The campaign is called "It's closer than you think" and is aimed at encouraging Colorado high school students to look in-state and to help families realize the cost is often more affordable than out of state. Additionally related to the second question, Saliman noted that due to a lack of funding and financial aid funding CU was working with state leaders to access surplus funding in TABOR for possible AP/IB credit funding for in state students to help with this. He also noted that the Governor's budget fell short this year, and higher ed presidents are advocating for increased funding. He also suggested members review a recent showing how state support had declined by 27%. Regarding climate action resources, Saliman noted that resources for these measures will come from each campus, such as the campus Climate Action Plan and follow through from groups like the Campus Sustainability Executive Council. Additionally, he will be creating a system group that will draw on what 麻豆影院 is doing and try to see what we can learn from each other and elevate the issue system-wide.
The final two items on the Assembly agenda included the annual report by the Faculty Athletics Representative, Joe Jupille. Jupille went over this NCAA-mandated position and the duties. He will be stepping down next year and encouraged representatives to consider running. The role has several key "buckets" he works in: Academic integrity and success; institutional control/compliance (with NCAA, Conference, and CU rules); student athlete well-being and campus-athletics relations. The position description is being updated now and Jupille expects a call for applications on campus to begin during 2024 so that the incoming faculty can shadow him during spring 2025. Please contact him directly for any questions: joseph.jupille@colorado.edu. BFA Intercollegiate Athletics (IAC) committee chair Don Oest also announced the third event in the committee's campus athletics series featuring Kris Livingston and a conversation on student athlete success and wellness on Feb. 14 from 3-4pm at the Center for Teaching & Learning in CASE.
And lastly BFA Secretary Vicki Grove announced that nominations are open for nine BFA At-Large Representative seat vacancies. Please see the BFA elections page for more information. All eligible faculty received an e-memo on February 1 regarding the seats and how to self-nominate.
Additionally, Assembly members may wish to review the CUBT story on the meeting. Meeting minutes will be sent to Assembly members by February 29, 2024. Contact the BFA office for any questions: bfa@colorado.edu
Over winter break, the BFA Executive Committee drafted and approved a statement noting attributes that committee members feel are critical and should guide the selection of the next campus Chancellor:
ATTRIBUTES THAT SHOULD GUIDE THE SELECTION
OF THE NEXT CU BOULDER CHANCELLOR
The Executive Committee of the 麻豆影院 Faculty Assembly (BFA) expects the next chancellor of CU 麻豆影院 to be appointed from among multiple named finalists chosen by the search committee, all of whom have been vetted through campus meetings with interested faculty, staff, students, and members of the public, whose feedback on the candidates should guide the ultimate appointment.
Drawing on broad discussions and experience over recent years regarding the future of the 麻豆影院 Campus, the BFA Executive Committee supports the selection of a Chancellor who:
Approved by the Executive Committee on January 12, 2024