UPDATED: Feb. 20, 2018, at 9:57 p.m.

SUNY-ESF’s Academic Governance body on Tuesday passed two resolutions in response to the university administration’s controversial decision to remove three department chairs just before the start of the semester.

The governance body also announced that they passed a vote for a campus visitation from the SUNY University Faculty Senate. According to the University Faculty Senate governance handbook, visitation committees are created by the SUNY system’s governing body in the event of a “serious, prolonged conflict about faculty governance.”

The committee would visit the campus and write a report that may include recommendations to deal with on-campus conflicts.

The meeting raised numerous points of contention against the SUNY-ESF administration, and the Academic Governance body passed three resolutions Tuesday: a request for clarification on the Pursuit of Excellence, a major academic plan; a request for the procedures for selecting new department chairs be followed; and a request for a reception to thank the three removed department chairs for their work.

The wording for the title of the resolution about department chair procedures was changed slightly to reflect forward procedures and the lack of existing procedures in some departments.

The votes signaled continued tensions between faculty and university administration.

Of the 171 voting Academic Governance members, 84 percent voted for visitation, 16 percent were opposed and seven people did not vote.

Kelley Donaghy, an associate professor of chemistry and current SUNY senator, said a campus governance leader and the campus president must write a joint letter to request a campus visitation.

“If that does not happen, yes we can inform the University Faculty Senate, but this does not have to go any further than this,” Donaghy said.

Klaus Döelle, Academic Governance’s executive chair, said he was in favor of writing the letter. But Provost Nosa Egiebor confirmed that President Quentin Wheeler, who was not present at the meeting, was not in favor of writing the letter.

Discussion ended with a motion to have Donaghy present the results of the vote to UFS, regardless if the letter is actually written.

This is not the first time Academic Governance has suggested a campus visitation vote. In 2015, President Wheeler, SUNY Provost Alexander Cartwright, UFS President Pete Knuepfer and then-Academic Governance chair Donaghy discussed a campus visitation, Donaghy said in an email. The provost negotiated to have outside consultants mediate instead, but that never happened because it was cost prohibitive, Donaghy said.

The body also discussed a recommendation from the Academic Governance Executive Committee body to oust its executive chair.

The committee received two complaints against Döelle on Friday — one internal to the committee and one from an external faculty member, according to an email obtained by The Daily Orange.

The committee, a subsection of the full Academic Governance body, met on Friday and recommended Döelle be removed, according to an email sent by Academic Governance executive committee members to Döelle, which was obtained by The D.O.

Academic Governance passed a motion to reschedule a closed officer removal session to next Tuesday. Only voting Academic Governance members can attend.

Alexandra Moreo | Senior Staff Photographer

The three resolutions passed Tuesday come after weeks of tension in response to the abrupt removal of three department chairs. The Undergraduate Student Association passed a resolution calling for clarification on major academic strategic plans and increased communication from the administration.

Wheeler responded to the USA resolution last Thursday, and said the administration is working on sending regular executive communications and publishing online updates for the Pursuit of Excellence Plan.

SUNY-ESF’s Board of Trustees also said at its meeting last Wednesday that it would more closely scrutinize the administration’s actions in wake of the December Academic Governance and January USA resolutions.

The motions passed are part of a string of critical resolutions SUNY-ESF faculty have been discussing.

The SUNY-ESF faculty chapter of United University Professions are voting on two resolutions: one requesting Wheeler’s contract not be renewed and the other requesting the UUP State Chapter union review the financial situation at SUNY-ESF. The two resolutions are being voted on paper, with the ballot count to occur on March 1, according to an email to UUP faculty members, obtained by The D.O.

The turmoil follows previous conflict between SUNY-ESF faculty and administration in recent years. In November 2016, SUNY-ESF faculty passed a vote of no confidence for Wheeler, expressing frustration in the president’s leadership style and citing a climate of fear.

While Wheeler was not at the Tuesday Academic Governance meeting, Egiebor said it was normal to have “vigorous” arguments among faculty and administration. He said he was surprised by the “vitriol” seen on campus in the forms of social media and in person confrontations.

“My appeal is that, although we have serious differences, just like our students have asked us to reconcile, to at least treat each other with civility,” Egiebor said.

Published on February 20, 2018 at 3:29 pm

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