The following message was sent to faculty and staff on Sept. 1
Dear Colleagues,
We are living through a slow-motion hurricane and must expect random events at every turn. But your faculty governance representatives are determined to continue the work you elected us to do. We believe fervently in the power and principle of shared governance and invite you to come along with us either as passengers or members of the crew.
There will be two regular meetings of the College Faculty this semester. On Friday, Sept. 11, at 3:30 p.m., we will convene virtually to welcome new Academic and Professional Faculty, honor those receiving Chancellor’s awards, and recognize faculty members who have achieved promotion and permanent or continuing appointment. The end-of-semester faculty meeting will be on Wednesday, Dec. 9, from 1 – p.m. WebEx links for both of these meetings will be sent via email a few days in advance and will be posted on the faculty governance blackboard site.
Senate meetings will be the first Wednesday of every month, also virtually on the WebEx platform. The dates for fall, 2020 are Sept. 2, Oct. 7, Nov. 4, and Dec. 2 (The make-up date in the event of cancellation will be the second Wednesday of the month).
All members of the campus community are welcome to attend these meetings. Meeting announcements and documents are posted on the Faculty Governance Blackboard site. All College Faculty (academics and professionals) should have access to this site. If you do not, please send an email to governance@newpaltz.edu. If you want to notify us of any changes in senate or committee membership, please send an email to ccnominations@newpaltz.edu.
I encourage you to discuss governance matters within your departments and/or individually with your representatives. This is crucial to the success of our representative system. The other crucial factor is service: whether on the Senate, on our central and joint committees, or on ad hoc, standing, and administrative committees. You will soon see a call for nominations in your email inbox asking you to fill a handful of governance committee vacancies for 2020-21. Regular faculty governance elections for fall 2021 will be held later this semester.
What you do now determines what we can do in the future. Your dedication and your thoughtful contributions through faculty governance create tremendous opportunities for your fellow faculty colleagues, our students, and this institution as a whole. Step up, lean in, let’s go!
Best wishes,
Rennie Scott-Childress
Faculty Presiding Officer
