Faculty Senate
March 12, 2026
MEETING INFORMATION
Date
Thursday, March 12, 2026
Time
3:15 - 5:15 p.m.
Business 3:30 - 5 p.m.
Location
WUC Columbia Room
Zoom link: https://wou-edu.zoom.us/j/81141923854
Agenda
Meeting Agenda (DOCX)
Draft Minutes
Draft Minutes for February 26, 2026 (DOCX)
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MATERIALS
Institutional Reports
-
Faculty Senate President's Report (Michael Baltzley)
-
University President’s Report (Jesse Peters)
-
Provost’s Report (Jose Coll)
-
Interinstitutional Faculty Senate Report (IFS) (Ricardo Pelegrin, Tad Shannon)
Consideration of Old Business
1. Faculty Publications at WOU Bookstore (Kim Jensen)
2. American Sign Language Drop Concentration, Minor, or Other Programs Proposals (Brent Redpath)
- American Sign Language Studies: Culture Certificate
- American Sign Language Studies: Linguistics Certificate
- ASL Studies: Beginner Certificate
- ASL Studies: Intermediate Certificate
3. Canadian Studies Concentration Drop Concentration, Minor, or Other Programs Proposal (David Doellinger)
4. Criminal Justice Sciences Drop Concentration, Minor, or Other Programs Proposals (Misty Weitzel)
- Corrections Concentration
- Forensic Anthropology Concentration
- Forensic Anthropology Minor, Criminal Justice Majors
- Juvenile Justice Concentration
- Law Enforcement Concentration
5. Elementary Mathematics Specialization and STEM Education Drop Major, Degree, or Graduate Certificate and Drop Concentration, Minor, or Other Programs Proposals (Gregory Zobel)
- Elementary Mathematics Specialist (K-8) Certificate
- Elementary Mathematics Specialist (K-8) Specialization
- Elementary Mathematics Specialist (K-8), M.S.Ed.
- STEM Education, M.S.Ed.
- STEM Educational Leadership Certificate
6. Interpreting Studies: Educational Interpreting Certificate Drop Major, Degree, or Graduate Certificate Proposal (Elisa Maroney)
7. Department of Music Drop Concentration, Minor, or Other Programs Proposals (Daniel Tankersley)
8. Pre-Education Non-licensure Concentration Drop Concentration, Minor, or Other Programs Proposal (Laura Ellingson-Sayen)
New Business
1. Academic Sustainability Guiding Principles (Steve Scheck)
2. 2026-27 Faculty Senate officer elections
- President
- Vice-President
- Secretary
- At-large members (2): Steve Scheck
Informational Presentations, Open Discussions, Committee Reports, Announcements
1. NWCCU Site Visit (Judy Sylva and Jessica Murfin)
2. Call for future business: New Business, Presentations, Discussions
3. Announcements
- Western Oregon Voices Winter Term Concert, Friday, March 13, 7:00 pm, Rice Auditorium
- Smith Fine Arts Series: Rodney Marsalis Philadelphia Big Brass, March 14, 7:30 pm, Rice Auditorium
- Java with the Provost on Monday, March 16, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm in the Provost's Office
- Academic Excellence Showcase, Thursday, May 28
4. Closing discussion items from the floor
NEW BUSINESS ITEMS
Please submit new business items using the following link: https://wou.edu/facultysenate/submit-new-business/
IMPORTANT DEADLINES THIS YEAR
Curriculum proposals
To provide sufficient time for all the review steps (committee and Faculty Senate), the deadline for submitting curriculum proposals for inclusion in the next academic catalog is the second Thursday of February for course proposals, program changes and new certificates. New programs take longer to process.
See wou.edu/curriculum and the Deadlines and timing page for more specific information.
SUBMIT NEW BUSINESS
Have something you would like to share with or have discussed by Faculty Senate? Use this form to let us know!
VOTING LINK
Senators can use the link and QR code below to access voting via computer or smartphone.
OUR MISSION
The mission of the Faculty Senate is to lead faculty in fulfilling their responsibilities in the shared governance of the university and to represent faculty interests to university and community stakeholders. The Faculty Senate serves as a liaison between faculty and administration. Responsibilities include the following:
- ensuring that academic freedom is encouraged and protected;
- overseeing curriculum development that promotes student learning in alignment with identified university student learning goals and outcomes;
- participating in the review and implementation of the strategic plan of the university;
- informing faculty about university policies, procedures, and substantive changes made by the administration; and
- making recommendations to faculty and administration on policies to improve the learning environment.
