Academic Senate Agenda

All Fall semester, Academic Senate meetings start at 10:00 am in DW 1001.  There will be a passive Zoom option for those who want to listen to the meeting, but you will not be able to participate in the meeting.  Click for more information about the passive Zoom option; the Zoom link for the meeting is here .

The University Faculty Council Co-Chairs has published a statement on current changes to Faculty Governance and the procedures for policies now at Indiana University and asked the faculty governance organizations at each campus to share it with their faculty.

That statement covers much of the same ground at as the presentation made by UFC Representative Bill Feighery, though it does present some of the information in a different way.  Below is that statemen, thought the graphics came through quite fuzzy–so here also is a link to original.

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October 30, 2025

Dear Colleagues,

We want to bring you up to date on several matters that will affect the work of the University Faculty Council this year.

First, you might recall that in late April the state legislature declared that “faculty governance organization actions are advisory only.” IU General Counsel determined that this required that policies for which the UFC had been the responsible office must be moved to either the Academic Leadership Council Executive Committee or the Board of Trustees as the responsible offices.

Naturally, this makes one question what the UFC is now, what it does. What does “advisory only” mean for the 55-year-old body that has overseen academic policies for Indiana University? We have spent the last several months working with administrators to figure this out, and we are pleased to inform you that the UFC will continue to play a vital and robust role in academic policies going forward.

In July, while moving the former-UFC policies to the ALC Executive Committee, the Policy Executive Committee voted to include this language in all of those policies:

“A foundational principle of Indiana University is its enduring partnership across its units, including faculty, to collectively advance the university’s mission. The establishment, revision, and retirement of academic policies will occur with consultation and input from the University Faculty Council.”

This ensures that the UFC will remain involved and active in academic policies for which the ALC Executive Committee is the responsible office.

The Academic Leadership Council Executive Committee consists of:

• IUB Chancellor
• IUB Provost
• IUI Chancellor
• IUI Provost
• IU Regionals/Online VP
• IU Regionals/Online Academic Officer
• IUSM Dean
• IUSM Executive Academic Dean

These academic offices of the ALC Executive Committee do not have the structure (or the time) to think through all the matters that the UFC had for years. Going forward, while the ALC-EC will be the responsible office for academic policies, it will utilize the structure of the UFC and its committees to continue formulating policies in a collaborative effort with the ALC-EC. At times, this will entail the ALC-EC bringing us a request to work on a policy. At other times, the UFC will identify policies that need attention. In both cases—no matter where the impetus originates—the UFC’s committees will do the work, and our long-time practices will be followed. Collaborating with the ALC-EC, the UFC will still vote on these academic policies, which will then be taken to the IU Policy Executive Committee for passage according to BOT-02, the “policy on policies.”

We are putting this new arrangement to the test right away. As part of the much-needed “Policy Alignment Initiative,” all policies will undergo scrutiny and assessment to see if they need revision, merger, or retirement. These reviews will be done by the responsible office for each policy. There are many academic policies that fall under this massive review. Working with the ALC-EC, the UFC has begun looking at them. Sixteen are especially pressing, so special task forces are working on those right now. The task forces include people from our UFC committees who will then carry the discussions back to the committees for conversation. We want those committee members, which come from each IU campus, to carry the discussions back to their respective campuses, creating a loop from the task force all the way down to the local campuses and eventually back to the task force.

The task force working on BOT-24, “Post-Tenure Productivity and Annual Review,” will continue its comprehensive review in the coming months, but has revised it in several places that clarify key parts. This is important because the first cohort to be reviewed will be submitting materials this winter. In its current form the policy is unclear about the scope of the post-tenure review. This could put faculty at risk if various administrators read the policy differently. The revision clarifies that the focus of the post-tenure review is the previous five years, which the faculty member may discuss within the context of their academic career. The revisions are now up for public comment, after which it will be presented to the PEC, and finally to the Board of Trustees for the December meeting. Additionally, the revision includes a longer period for response by a faculty member to a review.

After we get through these most pressing policy issues, things should fall into a more normal cadence that utilizes the UFC committee structure without the need for the task forces.

Faculty can stay apprised of policy changes by talking to their representatives on the UFC and members of its committees, by offering their input and feedback to those representatives, and by giving feedback to the policies under review during the 10-day public comment period at this link: Under Review: University Policies: Indiana University. Additionally, all campuses are charged with creating or using existing committees on their own campuses to review, align, or create locally necessary policies. Faculty may be asked to serve on these committees as well, making yet another avenue by which faculty voices may give continue to give advice on these matters.

As you can see, this is an important year for the UFC and its committees. Perhaps the most consequential year in decades. Faculty participation in this process is crucial to our ability to provide wise guidance in academic matters, a collaboration between the UFC and ALC-EC that will set the foundation for years to come.

We will keep you updated as things develop. Again, thank you for your service in this important year for the University Faculty Council and faculty governance.

UFC Co-Chairs,

Philip Goff, IFC President

Susan Popham, Regionals President

Bill Ramos, BFC President

Below is the link to bring you to the  IU Policies Under Review Page where you can subscribe for updates.

https://policies.iu.edu/under-review/index.html#subscribe

it looks something like this:

All Fall semester, Academic Senate meetings start at 10:00 am in DW 1001.  There will be a passive Zoom option for those who want to listen to the meeting, but you will not be able to participate in the meeting.  Click for more information about the passive Zoom option; the Zoom link for the meeting is here .

The first Academic Senate meeting for the Fall semester will be on Friday September 19 at 10:00 a.m., in  DW 1001.

Academic Affairs will kindly provide a breakfast prior to the Senate meeting on the 19th, in the reception area outside of DW 1001 starting at 9:00 a.m.

The Agenda for each Senate meeting will be available a week before the meeting on the Academic Senate blog.

See you on the 19th!–The Executive Committee

Below are the dates and times for the all of the Academic Senate meetings in 2025-26.

All meetings will be in DW1001

Fall 2025

• September 19 | 10:00-11:30
• October 24 | 10:00-11:30 (Fall Break, 10/20&21)
• November 21 | 10:00-11:30 (Thanksgiving,  11/26)

Spring 2026

• January 23 | 1:30-3:00 (First day of classes, 1/12/2026)
• February 20 | 1:30-3:00
• March 27 | 1:30-3:00 (Spring break, March 15-23)
• April 24 | 1:30-3:00 

Below are links to the Academic Senate committees for 2025-26.

Senate Appointed Committees 2025-26

Senate Elected Committees 2025-25

When the Senate website is fully functional again we will post them there as well.

Below are the dates and times for the Academic Senate meetings in 2026.

All meetings will be in DW1001

Fall 2025

• September 19 | 10:00-11:30
• October 24 | 10:00-11:30 (Fall Break, 10/20&21)
• November 21 | 10:00-11:30 (Thanksgiving,  11/26)

Spring 2026

• January 23 | 1:30-3:00 (First day of classes, 1/12/2026)
• February 20 | 1:30-3:00
• March 27 | 1:30-3:00 (Spring break, March 15-23)
• April 24 | 1:30-3:00 

Because the Senate meeting went long on April 25, 2025, announcements were not made. Below are announcements that people and groups intended to make. If you would like your announcement added here, please send to Steven Gerencser sgerencs@iu.edu

UCET  Improving Your Online Course

Anna Michelle Martinez-Montavon (UCET)

Friday, May 16, 2025 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. EDT  NS 245

The “Improving Your Online Course” workshop explores the QM Rubric and provides a framework to improve the quality of online courses. Participants use the QM Rubric to review their own online courses and develop a course improvement plan.

The content is based on the essential Specific Review Standards of the Quality Matters Rubric. Participants come away with a plan for course improvement so enrolling in the workshop with a pre-developed online course is required.

In-person only and registration required by May 7. Lunch will be provided.

Learning Objectives

• Identify the origin and scope of Quality Matters.
• Apply the essential Specific Review Standards of the Quality Matters Rubric to your own online course.
• Describe the alignment of at least one module/unit in your online course.
• Prioritize improvements to your online course.

Registration on the UCET Events page.

Also UCET

Dwyer School: Seeking Director of Academic Services in Dwyer School

The Dwyer School of Health Sciences is seeking a faculty member from campus to serve and support the administration of the academic programs as the Director of Academic Services, starting in fall 2025.

We’re looking for someone to join the Health Sciences team in a flexible capacity that meets the aspirations and experiences of a faculty member on our campus. This is a great opportunity for someone with a desire to grow administrative experience and work in a collaborative interdisciplinary environment.

For specific details on the position, please copy and paste this link: https://indiana-my.sharepoint.com/:b:/g/personal/jenderan_iu_edu/ETkiOvMR3pZLtnu-hnomWKABSVAww0gPacDNU66FjkqFRg?e=0a7ui2

Interested faculty members should submit the following to Jenny Deranek (jenderan@iu.edu), Associate Dean of the Dwyer School of Health Sciences by April 30, 2025:
– letter of interest
– curriculum vitae

All Spring semester meetings start at 1:30 pm in DW 1001.  There will be a passive Zoom option for faculty who want to listen to the meeting, but you will not be able to participate in the meeting.  Click for more information about the passive Zoom option, the Zoom link will be available here.