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Show MONDAY, FEB. 11, 1001 u N I V E R s I T y Satisfaction statement now tabled BY RHIANNON BENT SENIOR STA~£ WRITER The faculty senate voted to indefinitely table a statement of position regarding the Faculty Satisfaction Survey at its Thursday meeting. The senate created the statement, which said its members support the information in the survey, with the intent of sending it to the Board of Regents, Board of Trustees, press and faculty. The statement was written late fall semester and the final draft was ready at the beginning of spring semester However, the senate was split on whether the statement was necessary. Bonnie Bishop, associate professor of family and consumer science. said the statement says the faculty senate believes the survey is representative "I think we do need to say we support this survey," she said. Art Porter, associate professor of management. disagreed with Bishop. He said it brings attention to the public again (of low morale) at the time the legislature is meeting. · "It may not be the most constructive way to deal with the problem," he said. Porter suggested the senate address concerns in-house and work with the administration. "We don't need outsiders to help us solve our problems." he said. Luciane Berg, assistant professor of psychology, said the senate needs to make a statement on the continued perception that the members of the faculty are a bunch of "whiners." The question arose over whether the survey truly was representative. Dan Pence, associate professor of sociology, read a passage from the seventh edition of The Practice of Social Research by Earl Babbie. It said a 50 percent response rate is adequate, whereas 60 percent is considered good and 70 percent very good. The total return rate of the survey was 54 percent. The response rate from tenured faculty was 67 percent. Berg said considering the survey as nonrepresentaHve is granting power to those who chose not to participate and devaluing those who did. Rick Lambson, assistant professor of physical education. said what the senate is trying to get from' the survey is a response from the administration. "If {th.e survey] has helped [get a response] , we don't need to c_ontinue," Lambson said . The senate also questioned whether the survey reflected the real problems. Porter said the root of the problems seemed to be salary, despite what the survey said. The motion to table the statement was called to question and passed 11-7-4. In other senate business, the Annual Review and the Three-Year Review policies were sent from the Deans' Council. The deadlines to get the evaluations to the Leave, Rank and Tenure Committee had been amended previously to allow the reviev,:s to work in conjunction. The senate approved the_policies with an addition to put the review of all deans in writing. Both policies are part of the ·criteria for advancement and tenure. Utah State University student Brian Tibbets and additional members of the band 'Colors' performed in concert in front of a full house at the Cedar High School auditoium Saturday night. Proc.e eds for the concert went to Park Discovery, a one-of-a-kind interactive and educational pa.rk aaventure for the children of Cedar City. Along with swings and slides, the park will have towers and ramps, musical and science features and a host of other learning activities incorporated directly into the structure. Donations are currently being accepted for Park Discovery. For more information, call Megan Wilcken in. the SUUSA Office at 586-7766. I' ' |