12 S-01-48 FACULTY OF SCIENCE Meeting of Faculty Tuesday, May 21, 2002 Redpath Museum Auditorium ATTENDANCE: As recorded in the Faculty Appendix Book. DOCUMENTS: S-01-38 to S-01-41 S-01-43 to S-01-47 Dean Shaver called the meeting to order at 3:05 p.m. (1) ADOPTION OF AGENDA Prof. Farrell moved, seconded by Prof. GowriSankaran, that the Agenda be adopted. The motion carried. (2) RESOLUTION ON THE DEATH OF PROFESSOR THEO HILLS - Prof. M. Lapointe Prof. Lapointe read a formal resolution on the death of Prof. Hills (Appendix A, attached to the permanent copy of the minutes). The resolution was adopted unanimously. (3) REPORTS OF COMMITTEES a) Leo Yaffe Award Committee 803.1 Prof. E. Cooper, Chair of the Leo Yaffe Award Committee, mentioned that there were a number of pleasures in being part of the Leo Yaffe Award Committee. He said: 803.2 The members of the 2001-2002 Leo Yaffe Award Committee are: Prof. E. Cooper (Chair) - Physiology Prof. R. Koestner - Psychology Prof. A. Vincent - Biology Prof. O. Coomes - Geography Prof. F. Fabry - Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences Prof. M. Gander - Mathematics & Statistics Prof. L. Hermo - Anatomy & Cell Biology Prof. V. Kaspi - Physics Prof. P. Panangaden - School of Computer Science Rachel Choit (U2) - Microbiology & Immunology (Student Representative) 803.3 This year's nominees were: 1. Yutaka Nishioka, Biology 2. John Stix, Earth and Planetary Sciences 3. Richard Koestner, Psychology 4. Masad Damha, Chemistry 5. Niky Kamram, Mathematics and Statistics 6. Carlos Morales, Anatomy and Cell Biology 7. Wayne Pollard, Geography 8. Laurie Hendren, Computer Science 9. Edith Zorychta, Pathology 803.4 Prof. Cooper said that Professors Koestner and Panangaden had withdrawn from the committee because of conflict of interest. Prof. Kaspi couldn't attend the meeting, but submitted her comments in writing. After much discussion, the committee agreed unanimously that Prof. Edith Zorychta should receive the 2002 Leo Yaffe Award. 803.5 The following is Prof. Cooper's citation: The 2002 Leo Yaffe Award Winner, Dr. Edith Zorychta "a wonderful teacher...(and) a wonderful person" The Leo Yaffe Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching rewards McGill professors who make an outstanding and long-lasting impact on teaching in Science at the university. Qualities such as dedication, passion, and innovation define Dr. Edith Zorychta, this year's winner of the Yaffe award. Dr. Zorychta's major impact includes her design, initiation, and teaching of 3 undergraduate courses: Drug Addiction; Human Disease, and Principles of Toxicology. The success of the first two courses has culminated in the creation of the third. Her commitment to her students' success is clear: she continually upgrades her courses; she offers tutorials for those who experience difficulty with the midterm exam; she edits NTC's for accuracy and she digitizes her lecture material to make it accessible on the WEB. Accolades for Dr. Zorychta, associate professor in the Department of Pathology, come from colleagues and students alike. Dr. Carolyn Compton, Chair of Pathology, supports unequivocally Dr. Zorychta as nominee for the Yaffe award: "she is absolutely outstanding and richly deserving of this prize." A colleague from Chemistry, Dr. David Harpp, echoes the students' enthusiastic view of Dr. Zorychta. He says: "The organization, clear approach and extraordinary scholarship of her presentations should be a model for any teacher in the University...The fact that she can convey this complex material to nearly 200 students is credit to her superb teaching skills." In their testimonials, Dr. Zorychta's students praise her excellent teaching skills. They acknowledge that while her courses are demanding, her mode of delivery is a model of clarity: "while the material in her course may be difficult, she is always able to make it comprehensive." Many students point to her ability to explain complex concepts logically: "She has a particular way of making everything very straightforward, simple - even if the subject is quite complicated - and interesting."... "Her lectures are well organized, clear, and interesting." Students speak highly of her accessibility: "she genuinely cares about her students. Her friendly nature makes her easy to approach... She is generous with her time."... "She does everything in her power for the students..."... "She is a wonderful teacher, but moreover, she is a wonderful person." In addition, many mention that as a result of Dr. Zorychta's classes, "science is an integral part of our daily lives." Praise for Dr. Zorychta is confirmed by her strong evaluations over the past 15 years; they average a high of 1.60 (1 being excellent and 5 poor). Dr. Zorychta's superior teaching skills and dedication to her students' success make her "a wonderful teacher...(and) a wonderful person" richly deserving of this award. Prof. Cooper moved, seconded by Prof. Harpp, that Prof. Edith Zorychta be the Faculty of Science's 2002 Leo Yaffe Award winner. The motion carried. 803.6 Prof. Zorychta thanked members. 803.7 On behalf of the Faculty of Science, Dean Shaver congratulated Dr. Zorychta for being selected as the 2002 Leo Yaffe Award winner. b) Committee on Scholarships S-01-39 803.8 Prof. Leighton said that the Faculty of Science's nominee for the Governor-General's Silver Medal was Mr. Shaheed MERANI, First Class Honours in Physiology. Mr. Merani had also won the Lieutenant-Governor's Award. Prof. Leighton mentioned that the winner of the Moyse Travelling Scholarship was Mr. Renaud RICHARD, First Class Honours in Physics. Prof. Leighton moved, seconded by Prof. Barrette, that the Report of the Scholarships Committee be approved. The motion carried. (4) CANDIDATES FOR DEGREES a) Bachelor of Science S-01-40 Prof. GowriSankaran moved, seconded by Mr. Farrell, that the above candidates, as well as those listed on a tabled addendum, be recommended to the Senate Steering Committee for the Bachelor of Science degree. The motion carried. b) Diploma in Environment S-01-41 Prof. GowriSankaran moved, seconded by Prof. Barrette, that the above candidate be recommended to the Senate Steering Committee for the Diploma in Environment. The motion carried. c) Diploma in Meteorology S-01-42 There were no students receiving this Diploma. Prof. GowriSankaran further moved, seconded by Prof. Mucci, that the Dean be given discretionary power to make such changes in the degree list as would be necessary to prevent injustice. The motion carried. Associate Dean Mendelson moved, seconded by Prof. GowriSankaran, that a resolution of thanks be extended to the Student Affairs Office and to departmental advisors, for the work involved in preparing the degree lists. He mentioned that the current year had been particularly difficult. The resolution was adopted unanimously. Dean Shaver expressed his appreciation to professors in the Faculty of Science for their work in submitting grades in a timely fashion. (5) MINUTES OF MARCH 5, 2002 S-01-38 Prof. GowriSankaran moved, seconded by Prof. Barrette, that the minutes be approved. The motion carried. (6) BUSINESS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES There was no business arising from the minutes. (7) REPORTS OF COMMITTEES (Continued) c) Committee on Student Standing S-01-43 807.1 Associate Dean Mendelson pointed out the CSS Report, submitted by the Chair, Prof. W. Mushynski. d) Academic Committee S-01-44 SECTION A: NEW PROGRAMS New Option for M.Sc.: Computational Science & Engineering (CSE) Option - Comments on Academic Committee Concerns (AC-01-98) - CSE at McGill (AC-01-83[REV]) 807.2 Prof. Chang described some changes that had been made to the CSE documents after they had been considered by the Academic Committee. These changes had been made in response to criticisms by SCTP of the Faculty of Engineering's CSE proposal. Prof. GowriSankara moved, seconded by Prof. Leighton, that the above be adopted. The motion carried. New Course for CSE Option MATH 669D/N CSE Seminar (AC-01-86[REV]) 1 credit - Mathematics & Statistics (AC-01-89[REV]) - Computer Science (AC-01-88[REV]) - Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences (AC-01-87[REV]) Prof. GowriSankaran moved, seconded by Prof. Chang, that the above be adopted. The motion carried. SECTION B: MAJOR PROGRAM CHANGES None SECTION C: NEW COURSES Biology/McGill School of Environment Biol 540/Envr 540 Ecology of Species Invasions (AC-01-97) 3 credits Prof. Kramer moved, seconded by Prof. Bell, that the course be adopted. The motion carried. SECTION D: MAJOR COURSE CHANGES BIOLOGY - Changes in Description & Prerequisite BIOL 313 Structure & Function of Cells (AC-01-93) 3 credits Prof. Kramer moved, seconded by Prof. Bell, that the changes be approved. The motion carried. - Changes in Title, Prerequisite, Restriction, Description & Course Number [from 177-357]) BIOL 485 Plant Growth and Development (AC-01-94) 3 credits Prof. Kramer moved, seconded by Prof. Bell, that the changes be approved. The motion carried. - Change in Prerequisite BIOL 555 Functional Ecology of Trees (AC-01-95) 3 credits Prof. Kramer moved, seconded by Prof. Bell, that the change be approved. The motion carried. SECTION E: MINOR PROGRAM CHANGES School of Computer Science - B.Sc. Major in Software Engineering (AC-01-99) Prof. Vangheluwe moved, seconded by Prof. Chang, that the program changes be approved. The motion carried. SECTION F: Minor Course Changes & Other (For Information Only) 1. Minor Course Changes (AC-01-91) 2. Report: Freshman Science Program (FSP) 807.3 Associate Dean Mendelson said that the FSP Subcommittee of the Academic Committee would be recommending that the Freshman Science Program should be subject to a full review. A report from the Subcommittee would be presented to the Academic Committee in the Fall, 2002. 3. Bachelor of Arts and Science 807.4 Associate Dean Mendelson said that the committee members of the Bachelor of Arts and Science Joint Committee were: Prof. H. Goad (Linguistics), Associate Dean (Science) Mendelson (Co-chair), Prof. G. Mikkelson (Philosophy), Mr. N. Naidoo (AUS), Associate Dean (Arts) Quaroni (Co-chair), Prof. G. Schmidt (Mathematics & Statistics), Ms. C. Ward (SUS) and Prof. A. Wechsler (Physiology). He said that in the Fall, the Joint Committee would be recommending to the Academic Committee and to the Faculty of Arts' Curriculum Committee, that a Bachelor of Arts and Science be instituted. The Joint Committee would provide an outline of the proposed degree. 4. Credit Weights in Faculty of Science Programs (AC-01-101) 807.5 Associate Dean Mendelson briefly highlighted the main points in Document AC-01-101. 5. Minor Concentration in Science for Arts (AC-01-96) e) Other Reports or Academic Business - Examination Statistics - Arts & Science S-01-45 Associate Dean Mendelson 807.6 Associate Dean Mendelson briefly described the statistics in Document S-01-45. He noted the large number of students taking exams, and thanked the people involved in the examination process - Karyn Baxter, Sharon Bezeau and Connie DiGiuseppe. Associate Dean Mendelson said that special examination arrangements involved a great deal of administrative work, and that the Faculties of Arts and Science were trying to minimize the number of special arrangements. He encouraged members to aid in this. (8) MEMBERS' QUESTION PERIOD There were no questions. (9) REPORT ON ACTIONS OF SENATE (Full Senate Minutes may be found at http://www.mcgill.ca/senate/agdmin.html) Senate Meeting of February 13, 2002 - Prof. J. Rasmussen Prof. Rasmussen's Senate Report was not submitted. Senate Meeting of March 13, 2002 - Prof. M. Baines The meeting was opened with the obituary of Professor John Brierley read by Dean Leuprecht. In response to a question from student Senator Mr. Shivji inquired about the time it took for marks to be listed on MARS, Associate Dean of Science Mendelson stated that they were posted within 48 hours of receipt. The Principal discussed governmental priorities and long term planning, calling the senators attention to the materials previously submitted. It appears clear that McGill will continue to face funding deficiencies and growing expenses to maintain the university and its programs as we would like to see them in the future. Additional sources of long term funding must be assured. In response to a question from Senator Pare about the apparent high number of "tending to negative" decisions for sabbaticals, Vice Principal Vinet stated that there were a total of 8 denials out of 100 in 2001-2002 and 5 denials and 12 "tending to negative" notices with requests for more information. He anticipated that the final result would be similar to last year. In responding to supplemental inquiries, he stated that the policy and practices were the same as last year but were being processed faster this year. Senator Noumoff asked for a definition of "academic renewal" and the Vice-Principal stated that he would respond later. Senator Noumoff then asked whether there was a university policy that covered the acceptance of "finders fees" for the enrolment of patients in clinical trials by McGill staff and whether there were guidelines for the recruitment of patients in clinical studies. Dean Fuks responded that McGill has no specific policy but the University abides by the Tri- Council Policy Statement of Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans. This policy includes the obligation of the investigator to reveal all conflicts in interest and further, all protocols must be approved by an Ethics Review Board and patients must be fully informed and give consent to recruitment in clinical trials. Dean Fuks stated that finders fees are not accepted as part of the recruitment process. He also stated that for equity, physicians must offer the same opportunity for recruitment to their own patients. Student Senator Bilec asked when the Committees on Discrimination and Harassment would be properly constituted and begin to examine their portfolios? Vice Principal Vinet stated that as Chair of the Joint Senate Board Committee on Equity, he has ensured that the committee is now fully functional and that it will begin its deliberations as soon as possible. The report of the Honourary Degrees and Convocations Committee was discussed in confidential session. Senate voted a unanimous motion of appreciation for all the contributions of the outgoing Vice Principal Research, Professor Pierre BÇlanger. Dean of Research Crago presented a list of proposed changes to the Statutes for information. Dean of students Shore presented a number of amendments to the Code of Student Conduct and Disciplinary Measures. These amendments were discussed at length and a number of minor revisions proposed, some of which were accepted and others failed by vote of Senate. The amended code was accepted, effective immediately. Subsequently, Dean Shore presented the amendments to the Code of Student Grievance Procedures and they were approved, effective 1 September, 2002. The report of the Nominating committee was presented by Vice Principal Vinet and was approved item by item. Professor Lewis presented the Report of the Appeals Committee for Student Discipline and Grievances. The report to Senate from the Board of Governors was received and the meeting adjourned at 4:15 p.m. Senate Meeting of April 3, 2002 - Prof. G. Schmidt 1. Under the report of the Steering committee Provost Vinet gave an interpretation of the phrase "academic renewal" occurring in the sabbatic leave recommendations. The word "academic" was to be interpreted in terms of the academic duties in the grey book and renewal implied "rebirth or at least a rejuvenation". He stressed that a sabbatic leave is expected to be of demonstrable value both to the individual and the department. 2. Professor Gisel asked a question about the proposed location of the Office for Students with Disabilities in the Brown building and listed a number of concerns which have still not been met. 3. Changes to the statutes reflecting the abolition of the Graduate Faculty and the intoduction of new structures governing Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies were approved. 4. Remaining business was routine or minor. Senate Meeting of April 17, 2002 - Prof. J. Derome Senate had resolved last fall to have a discussion on the long-term planning for the university. The first phase of that discussion was the main Senate agenda item on April 17th. Further discussion will take place next fall. Three speakers had been asked to lead the discussion by answering, in 5 to 10 minutes, the following questions: 1. How do we go about establishing priorities and making choices about where we expend the available resources? 2. What alternative models of university organization would enable us to accomplish our mission with the available resources? 3. How might we go about increasing our resources? The three speakers were Professor Antonia Maioni, of the Department of Political Science and Director of the Institute for the Study of Canada, Mr. Jon-Thomas Godin, a graduate student, and Professor Graham Bell, of the Biology Department and Director of the Redpath Museum. In her presentation Professor Maioni put a lot of emphasis on building on our strengths in teaching and research, and made a number of concrete suggestions for the future, such as developing more integrative, multidisciplinary programs and providing mentoring for new students. Mr. Godin argued against differential student fees as a means of increasing revenues and suggested instead that alumni giving is a source of funding that has not been fully explored. Graham Bell centred his presentation on two themes: theme one was autonomy (financial and academic) and theme two was reputation. He reminded Senate that academic autonomy is based on collegiality, and stated that collegiality has enemies not only among the administration, but also among the faculty and researchers. It worst enemy, he said, is the apathy of the faculty and their withdrawal from decision-making. On theme two he also argued that to attract the best students we must retain our reputation and achieve the occasional highly visible, public success. He concluded with a concrete proposal, namely, to find, hire and nurture a person capable of winning a Nobel Prize. This would be expensive, he admitted, but would burnish McGill's reputation like nothing else would. An open discussion followed, but will not be summarized here. More details can be found in the Senate minutes. Senate Meeting of May 1, 2002 - Prof. N. de Takacsy The Principal Professor Noumoff asked a question about the appointment of the new Principal. Senator Eakin replied on behalf of the Chancellor, and stated that the term was from 2003 to 2008, renewable, and that the reappointment process would be according to the Statutes. Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. Dean Crago reported on the follow up to certain recommendations of the Task Force. Sabbatic Leave Regulations. The Standing Committee on Sabbatic Leaves proposed a number of changes to the Regulations, three of which are particularly significant: - The proposed regulations explicitly state that "sabbatic leaves are intended to enrich the intellectual life of the University". This was approved. - The proposed regulations provide for 100% of salary. This was approved. - The proposed regulations require the sabbaticant to return to the university and, in case of non- compliance, require repayment of salary and benefits paid during the sabbatic leave. This was debated at some length and eventually adopted without the punitive clause. This was a short meeting. Senate Meeting of May 15, 2002 - Prof. P. Farrell The meeting of May 15th had a relatively long agenda, which commenced with two death resolutions and then turned to responses to two previously posed questions. The Chancellor's delegate responded to a question pertaining to whether the current, or some future version of the Statutes would govern the appointment/re- appointment of a Principal on January 1, 2008 by stating that the relevant version in 2007 would presumably prevail! The Vice-Principal (Academic) replied to a question regarding regulations for sabbatical leave by stating that the regulations obtaining at the time of application would govern the conditions of any such leave. Prof. Noumoff then asked a question regarding the ethical review process and monies received by Departments for participation in clinical trials of pharmaceutical products. Dean Fuks responded by reaffirming that all trials involving human subjects are subject to consideration by the University and/or hospital review boards and that clinical trials are conducted on a contractual basis with the normal overhead provision for the University, i.e. only monies for use as specified by the contract are received directly by a participating Department. Vice-Principal Vinet brought forward two small amendments to the proposed revisions to the Regulations on Sabbatical Leaves to include a statement of purpose and to confirm that "normal" academic duties at the University are waived during sabbatical leave. These amended, revised regulations will go to the board next week for intended implementation in the 2002-03 year. Vice-Principal Vinet then brought a proposal to create a "University Tenure Committee for Recruitment" before Senate. The responsibility of this Committee is to review the dossier of any person holding an academic appointment at another University or scholarly institution who is being considered for appointment at McGill with tenure, and to make a recommendation thereon to the Principal. This proposal would enable McGill to hire people from places or countries where "tenure" does not exist, who are more senior scholars and who would not consider coming here without some guarantee of a "permanent" position. While some concerns over the details of the proposal were expressed, there was general consensus for the need for some rapid action in this area and the proposal was accepted. The Nominating Committee's proposals for Committee memberships and Statutory Selection Committees (3 in Science) were mostly accepted, as were several new programs proposed in the latest APPC report. The meeting then heard presentations by the Principal and Vice-Principal Yalovsky on the draft budget for 2002- 03. This will be a balanced budget with no overall cut to all units and with an anticipated 22M new revenues. The major new expenditures include compensation increases, administrative and support infrastructure, academic renewal, libraries and T.A. and graduate student support. A further 10M will be borrowed for deferred maintenance expenditures. The number of full-time academic staff rose by 31 over the calendar year 2001, half of these being in medicine. Of the 69 who left McGill, 28 resigned and 36 retired. During the comparable period the administrative and support staff increased by 122, 93 of these being paid out of the operating budget. The majority of this increase (95) is in the M category, librarian and service staff decreasing during this time. After receiving a report of actions by the Board, Senate adjourned until September! (10) RESULTS OF SCIENCE ELECTION FOR SENATE S-01-46 810.1 Dean Shaver congratulated the newly elected senators: Newly Elected Senators: Prof. K. GowriSankaran (Mathematics & Statistics) Prof. M. Mendelson (Psychology) Continuing Senators: Prof. M. Baines (Microbiology & Immunology) Prof. J. Derome (Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences) Prof. N. de Takacsy (Physics) Prof. P. Farrell (Chemistry) Prof. E. Meighen (Biochemistry) Prof. J. Rasmussen (Biology) Prof. G. Schmidt (Mathematics & Statistics) (11) SCHEDULE OF MEETING DATES S-01-47 811.1 Dean Shaver pointed out the schedule of meeting dates for the 2002-2003 academic year. (12) OTHER BUSINESS 812.1 Mr. J. Farrell announced the new SUS President, Mr. Josh Vorstenbosch. There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 4:10 p.m.