MEMBERS PRESENT: G. Avent, P.Bagley, E. Bateman, D. Borino, L. Brown-Wilson, K. Dimick, J. Emerson, P. Fox, S. Garcia, G. Goicoechea, E. Henderson, D. Hoem, C. Holt, C. Hyslop, L. Hyslop, P. Josey, M. Kuhl, K. Martin, M. McFarlane, R. McNally, B. Murphy, E. Nickel, L. Owens, M. Ports, M. Puccinelli, C. Pyatt, J. Rice, K. Schwandt, J. Shaw, J. Smith, P. Smith, S. Sweetwater, G. Tenney, M. Van de Ven, P. Warren, J. Williams

GUESTS: Stan Aiazzi, Vice President for Student Services; Liza Michelli, ASB President

1. ATTENDANCE: Silent roll was taken. Chair Jack Smith declared a quorum present.
2. CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 1:19 p.m.
3. WELCOME AND INTRODUCTIONS : Chair Jack Smith welcomed everyone to Senate. Vice President Stan Aiazzi and ASB President Liza Michelli were introduced.
4. VICE PRESIDENT STAN AIAZZI:
   1. Accident Coverage for Students - The current policy only covers state employees and has no given medical payments coverage. Claims for injuries must be made against the state's liability self-insurance program which would allow up to $50,000 if certain conditions exist. For students injured while traveling in an employee's private vehicle or in a state vehicle where the employee is the operator, coverage scenarios apply according to fault which includes possible suit against the employee for damages. Students operating a state vehicle can be covered under their private insurance if they hold a policy. To combat possible loopholes, additional secondary coverage may be provided by the college through an alternative carrier at a per student cost. A motion was made and unanimously passed to give support in written form for Dr. Remington to pursue insurance coverage on students riding in state-owned vehicles. It is suggested that faculty not belonging to the Nevada Faculty Alliance pursue a rider on their homeowner's coverage to protect them in all instances where damages may be sought.
   2. Great Basin Institute - This entity will function separately from, but in conjunction with, the college acting as a communication/educational bridge with communities and groups. Installation will be dependant upon funding with several federal grants available for cultural based and land management based programs and solicitation of private and corporate contributions. The institute will focus on three essential functions: Western Life and Culture Skills Training; Enterprise Development and Business Incubator; and Transformational Leadership. Instructional areas under development and consideration include equestrian skills training; applied ranch and range skills training; collaborative resource management; and cultural enhancement programs within secondary education, employment and marketing. This institute gives the College "an opportunity to significantly strengthen its connections, credibility and academic status with both regional and national audiences." The college will begin informing the public of the institute's development once funding is secured.
5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: The minutes of the November 6, 1998, meeting were unanimously approved.
6. SENATE CHAIR REPORT: Chair Jack Smith reported the following:
   1. Board of Regents -
      1. New members were introduced. Jim Eardly and Nancy Price are among those departing.
      2. The rapid growth of Henderson, Nevada, will make the city the second largest in the state by the year 2000 giving leaders an opportunity to request a four-year institution operating under the UCCSN but separate from UNR and UNLV. No support was given by the BoR; however, community leaders have the power to actively pursue their request. Should this initiative prosper, it will have a definite effect on GBC's share of the legislative budget.
      3. Compensation and Benefits Meeting - Though originally understood that this system meeting was to emphasize community colleges, it is felt that very little progress was made towards the adequate handling of comments and concerns. A Price-Waterhouse representative was present but gave very little input. A complete team of representatives will give an outlined proposal to the BoR in February.
      4. The revised GBC Mission Statement was approved.
      5. DRI has selected an internal faculty member for the position of college president following the expenditure of an additional $150,000 for the search process.
      6. GBC passed their internal audit report.
      7. The Teaching Excellence Initiative and handbook revisions were approved. As a formality, Senate made a motion and unanimously passed the initiative and revisions as presented.
   2. Final's Week - ASB President Liza Michelli was present to voice concern on behalf of the student body to the change in the final exam schedule. Certain courses must schedule two exams during the week in order to cover a full semester's material which is undesirable to some students. Senate would like the ASB to poll the students in order to obtain an accurate count of disapproval, but it was stressed that each instructor is responsible for the content and arrangement of their course(s). Vice President Elliott will be asked the reasoning for her initial proposal to hold finals during the regular class period in lieu of two-hour scheduled blocks.
   3. Campus Diversity - BoR strongly emphasizes diversity and multi-cultural content within classes. Vice President Elliott is composing a formal report with input from faculty outlining the nature of this issue on our campus. The deadline for submission of content in written form is December 8. This specific information should be present for the consideration of the students in each class where it is appropriate before the core curriculum is mandated to include credits dealing with diversity and cultural emphasis.
   4. Four-year Programs -
      1. Upon formal approval by the Senate of the content outline, Pat O'Rourke, former President of the University of Alaska, was asked by President Remington to critique the proposal. Numerous changes were endorsed. GBC will initiate changes as recommended through the organization of a steering committee with appropriate sub-committees.
         1. A flow chart was distributed which outlines the program process. The steering committee will be headed by Vice President Elliott with sub-committees carrying out the planning process in specific areas. Unless special circumstances exist, each appointed committee member will retain assignments on regular Senate committees. It was stressed that the model shown is a working model. Vice President Elliott will be asked to revise the Core for Baccalaureate and Faculty Positions and Recruitment committees as reporting directly to Senate who will then report to the Curriculum Committee.
         2. Curriculum Committee - Nancy Remington will chair in conjunction with Judy Harris from St. Thomas Moore College in Cincinnati. Ms. Harris will be arriving on 12/13 and will be consulting from 12/14-16 with administration, faculty and the Elko County School District. Her experience includes work with the public school system, initiating a similar elementary education program, consulting with a national publishing company, and expertise in standards base curriculum.
            1. Core for Baccalaureate Committee - Mike McFarlane - Chair, Glenn Tenney, Richard McNally, John Rice, Eric Henderson, Lynne Owens, Cyd McMullen, Bret Murphy, Marilee Kuhl and Ed Nickel. Cyd McMullen will be excused from her assignment as Personnel Committee Co-Chair. A motion was made and unanimously passed to accept the establishment of the committee as indicated.
            2. Faculty Positions and Recruitment - The current personnel committee is expanded with the addition of Margaret Puccinelli. However, due to the enormity of the task, each faculty member will be asked to serve ad hoc on the hiring committee as the 10 - 13 positions relate to their departments. A blanket advertisement listing the various positions will be submitted by December 18 to appear in "The Chronicle of Higher Education" January 8 issue. Due to the state hiring freeze, a disclosure will appear in the ad indicating that hiring is contingent upon funding. Specifics regarding the positions will be listed on the GBC web page.
7. COMMITTEE REPORTS:
   1. Academic Standards - None
   2. Compensation and Benefits - None
   3. Facilities Committee - None
   4. Personnel Committee - Written; approved. Larry Hyslop was approved for sabbatical. His time will be used for research on a comprehensive guide to online education.
   5. Student Relations Committee - Written Report; approved. The committee would like to send two faculty members, one each from sciences and humanities, to high schools within our service area to be guest instructors. Several faculty have volunteered to meet with students and teachers informing them of GBC opportunities. Dates have been tentatively scheduled for Friday, February 26 and March 5, 1999, during morning hours.
   6. Budget - None
   7. Curriculum and Articulation - Written Report; approved. CONS 100B - Introduction to Construction Management was approved.
   8. Faculty and Administration Evaluations - Verbal; approved. The student evaluation form will be simplified to be approved at the February meeting. The current procedure for administering the evaluations was found efficient and will not change as proposed by Vice President Elliott. Administration will be approached to institute regularly scheduled evaluations for non-teaching faculty.
   9. Scholarships and Awards - Written; approved.
      1. The remaining scholarships for the fall semester were awarded.
      2. Request for the removal of Star Night was sought in lieu of two events honoring the scholarship recipients and internal awards. The scholarship awards would possibly be changed to a luncheon format held in the latter part of March with internal awards honored in a ceremony titled the "President Awards Reception" held prior to graduation. The graduation ceremony would honor students receiving outstanding departmental awards.
   10. Distance Learning - None
8. REGENTS' AWARDS:
   1. Larry Hyslop was nominated for the Teaching Award due to his work and research in the area of distance education but declined. Frank Daniels was selected by the Senate Chair following faculty consultation.
   2. Mark Ports was nominated for the Creativity Award for his work with bats.
   3. An Academic Advisor Award has been instituted by the BoR and will be turned over to the ASB to solicit nominations.
9. OLD BUSINESS: No old business was brought forward.
10. NEW BUSINESS:
    1. Announcements -
       1. The speech and theatre department will be hold three one-act plays plus one monologue December 3 - 5. Admission is a non-perishable food item.
       2. The ASB is sponsoring the 12 Days of Giving. Barrels to collect non-perishable food and clothing items are set up in the foyer of the College Community Center.
       3. Jana Rundlett is the recipient of the American Red Cross Award for assisting dialogue with hearing impaired students. Jana learned sign language from GBC.
       4. The GBC Art Department is hosting a student art exhibit in the Greenhaw Technical Arts building.
    2. Vice President Elliott and Assistant Vice President Holt will be visiting with departments attempting to structure some form of interdepartmental critique as opposed to peer reviews for satisfying the NWA.
11. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 3:33 p.m.