College of Health Sciences

Minutes for CAC Meeting

September 26, 2007

Presiding: Dr. Denny Ryman

Recording: Donna Eichhorn

The College Administrative Council (CAC) met in the Dean’s Conference room from 2:00-4:05 p.m. Dr. Ryman called the meeting to order.

In attendance: Dr. Denny Ryman, Mr. Brett Bennett, Ms. Juliet Burgess, Dr. Jessica Dolecheck, Ms. Emily Doughty, Ms. Donna Eichhorn, Dr. Judy Fellows, Dr. Florencetta Gibson, Ms. Beverly Jarrell, Ms. Belinda Morgan, Dr. Paxton Oliver, Ms. Debbie Wisenor.

1. SACS – Dr. Jeff Cass, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences

· Dr. Cass presented the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) and other information regarding ULM’s reaffirmation with SACS.

2. Mid-Term COHS Meeting – Dr. D. Ryman

· Dr. Ryman asked the council if they felt there was a need for a mid-term college-wide meeting in order to keep all faculty informed of what is going on in the college.

· Dr. F. Gibson stated that the Nursing Department typically invites the dean to one of their faculty meetings to provide updates on the college.

· After general discussion, Dr. Ryman informed council members that rather than scheduling a mid-term meeting, he would attend a regular departmental faculty meeting if department heads requested it.

3. Medical Terminology – Dr. D. Ryman

· Dr. Ryman asked the council who teaches AHSC 330 – Medical Terminology and which semesters it is offered. Council members stated that it is rotated through the different department and is taught fall, spring, and summer. Dr. Jan Corder is currently teaching the course.

· Ms. Eichhorn stated that she taught it this past summer and only had a few students enrolled. She also expressed concern that the course contained a large amount of information and was difficult for students to do during the summer, although it was spread out across both summer sessions.

· Department requiring the course are: Pharmacy, RADT, and Health Studies

· Mr. Bennett expressed his opinion that all health sciences students should be required to take the course.

· Several department heads stated that terminology for their disciplines is taught throughout their professional courses, rather than having it required in one course.

· Ms. Morgan stated that Dr. Corder recommended the course be taught by the same department/faculty member each semester rather than rotating.

· Dr. Ryman recommended that Medical Terminology become a part of the Health Studies Department and be taught by their faculty.

· Mr. Bennett volunteered RADT to teach the course in the spring 2008. Health Studies will teach it in the fall 2008 and it will then remain in that department.

4. Dean’s Student Advisory Committee – Dr. D. Ryman

· Dr. Ryman informed council members to turn in names of two students from each department to be on the “Dean’s Student Advisory Committee”. He needs the names by Thursday, 10/3/07. CODI is to submit one undergraduate student and one graduate student.

· Dr. Ryman stated that the committee will have a budget and will decide what the money will be used for.

· Dr. Ryman’s suggestions for the committee will include starting an Internet journal for health sciences students.

· Ms. Wisenor asked if the meetings would be held in the evenings to accommodate students’ class schedules. Dr. Ryman confirmed that this would be the best idea – probably after 5 p.m. He also stated that the committee would meet about twice per semester.

5. COHS Advisory Committee – Dr. D. Ryman

· Dr. Ryman described that he is in the process of setting up a College of Health Sciences Advisory Committee that will meet once or twice per year to look at the educational needs of the college. He has names of some people in the community who are interested and asked council members to inform him if they know of other people who could assist the college in this way.

· The COHS Advisory Committee should be assembled by November and will begin looking at goals and objectives for the college.

6. Clinical Track Designation – Dr. D. Ryman

· Dr. Ryman discussed the possible designation in some departments of “Clinical Faculty” designations. Several institutions in Louisiana are in the development stages of utilizing the designation.

· Faculty with this designation would not follow the criteria on research or publication like typical faculty members would.

· Dr. Ryman would like council members to consider whether this designation would be appropriate for their individual departments. He suggested Nursing would benefit from the designation, as well as other departments.

· Any recommendations for “Clinical Faculty” designations would need approval by Dr. Richters and the University of Louisiana System.

· Dr. Ryman would like the designation status to be in place by fall 2008.

7. College Tasks – Dr. D. Ryman

· Dr. Ryman reported that each department and each college will be evaluated by the university. The college and departments will need to justify what they currently have and what is needed additionally.

· The evaluation system for departments is being looked at very closely, as are the expectations for the departments.

· Criteria for evaluation will differ by department, with department heads needing to develop criteria for their departments

· Dr. Ryman stated that there will be additional meetings regarding this topic.

8. Miscellaneous

· Dr. Ryman stated that there will be a Majors Fair on 10/25/07. It will be held for ULM students in order to help them make decisions about what to major in.

· Dr. Ryman emphasized to department heads to monitor their budgets, particularly in the areas of copying and long distance phone calls. Some departments have excessive amounts of spending in these areas and faculty members need to be mindful of these expenses. Dr. Ryman will have Sandra Barton print out monthly reports of copying and phone call expenses so that department heads can monitor them. Ms. Burgess asked if faculty members should begin keeping a log of long distance phone calls. Dr. Ryman replied that this was not necessary at this point.

· Ms. Jarrell inquired about the status of the lab fees that are to be placed into budgets. Dr. Ryman stated that they are being processed and should be in the budgets soon. He will have Sandra monitor this and let department heads know when it has been done.

· Dr. Ryman commented that the administration is considering decreasing the percentage of professional fees that the departments get. Additional fees for professional students are also being considered.

· Dr. Ryman informed the council that he attended a meeting in Alexandria on the “CALL” (Continuum for All Louisiana Learners) Initiative to discuss providing Internet courses for adult learners. The “CALL” Initiative included discussions on placing some of the state health sciences programs online. Dr. Ryman commented that the programs high pass rates, quality and standards must be maintained. Ms. Doughty expressed concerns about not having enough technical support when providing online courses at ULM. Dr. Ryman stated that the need for 24 hours technical support was brought up at the deans’ meeting. The COHS received $35,000 for Health Studies to place its courses online. Dr. Ryman stated that the Health Studies degree is being mandated by ULM administration to be placed online over a period of time. A number of their courses will be online beginning fall 2008. Chemistry, Physics, and other core courses will also be provided online beginning fall 2008.

· Dr. Ryman stated that there are master’s proposals and grant proposals for the college that are currently being submitted.

· Dr. Ryman announced that Melanie Chapman will be the new Interim Department Head of CLS to replace Ms. D. Wisenor after this semester.

· D. Eichhorn announced that Peggy Meredith is being re-hired as a consultant to assist with the accreditation self-study process.

· Dr. F. Gibson announced that Nursing has hired a consultant from Winston-Salem to provide expertise on curriculum design and to assist in re-accreditation.

· Mr. B. Bennett stated that he had received information from a visit to the University of Arkansas Medical Sciences center that will aid in online clinical information management. We also received information that will aid in the development of the BS in Diagnostic Medical Sonography.

9. Meeting adjourned at 4:05 p.m.