Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Stuart Bell paid a visit to the Faculty Senate on Wednesday to communicate with the faculty about problems on campus. Bell said his main goal in the coming months is to meet with all the different departments on campus. “We can’t move forward if we don’t know where we are,” he said. He also addressed the issue of faculty member salary raises. Although this is the fifth straight year that faculty have not received raises, Bell said implementing some kind of pay increase is the top priority for the University. In addition, he stressed that the University needs to make an effort to stand out. “We have the coast right on our doorstep,” Bell said. “We need to use our resources to stand out and differentiate ourselves. Coastal science is certainly something that we can differentiate ourselves in.” The meeting became heated over a resolution that would allow the LSU AgCenter faculty members to more easily teach in the University’s graduate school. Currently, the LSU AgCenter faculty have to go through a long process before being considered for a teaching position within the graduate school. Lawrence Datnoff, professor of plant pathology and crop physiology, argued that many AgCenter faculty physically work on campus so they are connected to the University and the graduate school. But according to T. Gilmore Reeve, vice provost for Academic Programs, Planning and Review – the graduate school is a separate entity and should be treated as such. “It is just like the Health Sciences Center in New Orleans,” Reeve said. “They have to go through the same process. Being physically on the campus really doesn’t mean anything.” Because the resolution was being read for the first time, no action was taken. In addition, Faculty Senate President Kevin Cope addressed the possibility of reducing the number of commencements. “We are happy with the progress that commencement has made over the last 10 years or so,” Cope said. “We are once again going to look at the number of commencement ceremonies, whether three graduation ceremonies a year is really worth it or whether we should concentrate our efforts, so that we can have a commencement ceremony that is truly special.” The Faculty Senate also introduced a resolution to limit classes to four days per week. The senate rejected the proposal unanimously.
 
____ Contact Joshua Bergeron at [email protected]