March 18, 2025 Minutes

Council of Department Chairs

In attendance: Curtis Bennett, Krzysztof Slowinski, Kelly Young, Jesse Dillon, Lijuan Li, Lora Stevens, Will Murray, Prashanth Jaikumar, Jim Kisiel, Babette Benken, Jeanine Pociask, Christina Hall, Margaret Karteron, Lindsay Aymar, Tatiana Avila, Cesar Cervantes (11:00am)

  1. Approve agenda (10:00am) - Approved
  2. Approve minutes from 3/4/25 - Approved as amended
  3. Announcements
    1. ASM
      1. Staff changes
        1. Bianca Mendez is working more in HR and fiscal operations with Jeanine Pociask
        2. Hired an intermittent hourly IT person
      2. 24-25 SEF discussion
        1. Would like to try to bring the balance to zero in June
        2. Talk to Jeanine Pociask if you have concerns
    2. Operations
      1. Scholarships - In progress
      2. Call for nominations for service positions will be out by end of week (Friday)
        1. Great response for the Dean's scholarship committee
        2. Dollar amounts will be posted in Beach Scholarships
    3. Communications    
      1. Commencement
        1. Possible breakfast catering this year - about $1,200 for bagels/juice/coffee/fruit for about 30 people
      2. SQE - Students for Quality Education
        1. San Marcos walk out scheduled for March 24 against Time, Place, and Manner policies
    4. Development
      1. Got through all of the chair's lunches with development - thank you for your time
      2. Christina Hall to put together some common themes and unique ideas to share in future CDC
    5. Dean
      1. Instructional Continuity update
        1. Current policy is in draft - not finalized
        2. We will likely return to this later in the Spring so we can have something prepared for the Fall
        3. We want to focus on the small things individuals can do       
      2. USU update
        1. Construction on the stairs will start April 14
        2. USU building will stay open until summer, stairs should be done by August
        3. Beach Pantry is moving to the Student Health Center
        4. Second floor of the bookstore will have seating areas for students
        5. The Outpost will remain open, but there will be lots of alternative food options (trucks/cars/kitchens/vending machines)
        6. Hoping to be done by May 2028
      3. SOAR
        1. Krzysztof Slowinski will be on a committee reexamining SOAR procedures
        2. We will likely just do what we did last year
      4. RSCA funding
        1. 7 didn't get full funding, 5 got no funding
          1. Chairs should have received a list of who isn’t getting RSCA
          2. University received about $500K cut from last year
        2. Everyone who applied for Mini Grants and Summer Stipends all got it
      5. Position Requests
        1. Sent out yesterday
        2. Last year there were 30 overall - we got about 4
        3. 25 this year so we could get 3-5
      6. Budget (quick update)
        1. Summer enrollments
          1. University has fewer courses and more capacity
          2. We're not increasing enrollment for fall
          3. Hiring Chill
  4. Associate Deans
    1. Academic Programs
      1. 5 minute time certain for Cesar to touch base on Showcase (Time Certain: 11:00am)
        1. General flyers will also be in Spanish - let Cesar Cervantes know if you would like any other handouts translated
        2. Deadline to upload folders is the end of March
        3. Volunteer training (via Zoom) April 9, probably 3:00pm or 4:00pm
      2. Fall 2025 reserve seats planning
        1. Everyone should get information today from Krzysztof Slowinski
      3. Updates on the new GE, GWAR, and SOAR discussions
        1. GE discussion - no update
        2. GWAR discussion - will have update Wednesday, 3/19
    2. Research
      1. Encouraging people to nominate faculty for Faculty Research Awards in Inclusive Excellence
      2. Day at the Beach research tours are moving forward
        1. Safety needs to know what rooms we will be using, so please forward that information to Kelly Young
      3. BBS is trying to centralize requests rather than individuals making their own requests
    3. Graduate Programs
      1. University level graduate fellowship - nominated two students
        1. 1 Chemistry
        2. 1 Biochemistry
      2. We should know awardees by mid-April
      3. Check in with grad advisors for funding opportunities for the other candidates
  5. 2025-26 SEF
    1. Need to have two meetings - one with CDC and one presented to the Student Council
      1. Proposal currently due April 14
      2. Jeanine Pociask to send form to chairs
      3. April 1 CDC will just go over SEF
      4. Student council will send a representative to the CDC meeting on April 8
  6. Open Discussion
    1. Considering creation of a facilities committee (not a faculty committee)
      1. AD for Research/ASM/Safety/BBS/a dept. Chair/Dean
    2. Issues with shared equipment/vehicles/etc.
      1. Kelly Young to send out guidance on sharing equipment
      2. Can the Dean's office request that the Sparkletts truck doesn't block the parking lot
  7. Adjournment - 12:00pm

Upcoming Dates

  • March 22: Data Day at the Beach (9:00am-2:30pm)
  • March 31-April 6: Spring Recess
  • March 31: Cesar Chavez day (campus closed)
  • April 8(?): Library deadline for thesis
  • April 12: CNSM Showcase 9:00am-1:00pm (plan for 8:00am-3:00pm)
  • May 9: (Friday) Last Day of Classes
  • May 12-17: Final Examinations
  • May 20-23: (Tuesday-Friday) Commencement (Angel Stadium)

Meeting minutes were APPROVED Tuesday, April 8, 2024.

Note: The minutes above reflect discussion on the date of the CDC meeting about policies, not actual policy. Faculty and staff should wait for official communication on each subject before acting.