AU Steering Meeting

Remarks and Announcements

• Virginia Davis has been named a Fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. Congratulations, Virginia!

• Committee Assignments: Jaena Alabi shared the names of several faculty members who have been approved by the Rules Committee to serve on the - Committee Assignments.

Information Items

Student Well-being and Mental Health Trends and Services

Presented by Joeleen Cooper-Bhatia, Associate Director of Student Counseling & Psychological Services.

• Cooper-Bhatia shared information about national trends related to college students and mental health/well-being, and then shared information about the resources and services available through Student Counseling & Psychological Services (SCPS). Cooper-Bhatia also addressed common misperceptions and myths about the office’s services. She shared information about the SCPS staff, as well as data about students’ reasons for use of SCPS’s services. Faculty can play a role in helping to dispel myths about SCPS.

Office of Accessibility Services and Support Presentation

Presented by Barclay Bentley, Director of the Office of Accessibility shared what his office does and how it can support faculty.

• The Office of Accessibility (OA) covers a lot of areas for students who need accommodations, including academics but also parking, dining, etc. Bentley walked through the process his office uses to determine appropriate accommodations. Some of the services offered through OA include a testing center, assistive technology support and training, and adaptive athletics. He shared data and noted that the numbers of requests for accommodations is trending up. OA can support faculty in several ways, including helping to clarify accommodation descriptions.

Unfinished or New Business

• There was some discussion about the need to remind Senators about voting – who votes, how do they vote, and how long do they have to vote.

• The format of the October Faculty Meeting was also discussed briefly.

Adjournment

Meeting adjourned at 5:01 p.m. by Senate Chair Lori Eckhardt.