Research Faculty Council
at
Montana State University
A Proposal
Requesting Sanction for the Formation of a
Research Faculty Council
Prepared For
The President's Executive Council
Montana State University
Prepared By
Ad-Hoc Steering Committee
Research Faculty
July 21, 1999
Introduction
The purposes of this proposal are to provide discussion for the creation of a Faculty Research Council at Montana State University, and to request its sanction and recognition by the President's Executive Council. This proposal will conceptually define the structure and function of such a Council, define its membership, and identify core issues that are of mutual concern to the research faculty and the university administration.
Representation
In 1997-1998 the MSU Faculty Council redefined its membership and excluded several groups within the university community including faculty members who hold nontenured research appointments. These individuals can be described as independent or lead research investigators responsible for obtaining extramural funding to support research and scholarly activities. They provide funding for research programs and centers, direct the work of graduate students, and many of these research professionals have teaching responsibilities at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Recent increases in the number of research faculty at MSU as well as other research institutions have been significant. The rate of growth of this group is directly related to increased research funding levels at MSU which now exceed $50+ million. Research faculty have contributed prominently to this success. A consequential amount of research faculty generated funding is dispersed throughout the university at the departmental, college and central administration levels. These non-State of Montana funds have and will continue to make major impacts on the research, teaching and service missions of the university, as well as the recruitment of students, and the perception and reputation of this institution. It should be noted that while the research faculty contributes to the university community in multiple arenas, Montana State University and the State of Montana offer no commitments. As a consequence, this highly productive group currently has no suffrage in the university community.
Preliminary Discussions and the Ad-hoc Committee
In the past few months a dialogue between some research faculty members and Vice President McCoy has been established and mutual concerns regarding the future of MSU's research faculty have been discussed. With Dr. McCoy's encouragement, a larger group of individual research faculty has met and discussed the formation of a Research Faculty Council. This group elected an ad hoc Steering Committee and identified core issues that such a Council may address. The ad-hoc Committee met with Vice President McCoy to discuss these core issues and to seek guidance for the formation of a Research Faculty Council.
Constituency
In initial deliberations, several research faculty members discussed and then identified the constituency that would be represented by a Research Faculty Council. Membership in the proposed Council would include individuals having the following research appointments:
Research Faculty Council Function
Conceptually, the Research Faculty Council would provide a means for research faculty and administration to interact and to discuss, formulate, and recommend university policy relating to research and associated activities to the appropriate university authority. The Research Faculty Council Constitution would be developed to describe the powers of the Research Faculty Council to recommend such policy, always within the constraints of the Montana University System powers as described in the Constitution of the State of Montana.
Research Faculty Structure
Conceptually, the Research Faculty Council would be relatively small, approximately five members, and representative of research faculty from across the university community. Council members would be elected from the larger group and serve limited terms. The Council would meet on a regular basis and/or as deemed necessary by the chairperson.
Core Issues
The research faculty identified several core issues that were then presented to Vice President McCoy by the ad-hoc Committee. The following issues would be the first items of discussion of the newly constituted Council, and formulation of recommendations on them would be made to the university administration:
ad-hoc Steering Committee Members
This proposal is respectively submitted by the members of the ad-hoc Steering Committee:
Jean Starkey, Chairperson, Associate Research Professor
Dennis Neuman, Research Scientist
Charles Spangler, Research Professor
Heini Miettinen, Assistant Research Professor
Frank Albini, Research Professor
Vance Thurston (ex-officio), Research Professor