March 1, 2004

Present: Judith Anderson, Erik Bucy, Katy Fraser, Jeff Hart, Chuck Livingston (recorder), Al Ruesink (acting chair), Rob Shakespeare

1. The meeting began at 2:00 PM with the approval of the minutes for February 23, as amended.

2. On February 18, Professor Beth Raff, Chair of Biology, contacted the CPC in her role as a member of the President's Task Force on the Graduate School, asking for input for the ongoing review of the graduate program. On February 26 President Herbert announced to the faculty the formation of the Task Force, requesting feedback by March 12.

In anticipation of Professor Raff's scheduled arrival at 3:00 PM, committee members reviewed the structure of the Graduate School and supporting documentation of its budget and history. At the present time, John Slattery, Dean of Graduate Studies, heads the University Graduate School. He reports to Michael McRobbie, Vice President for Research. The Graduate School is charged with overseeing the curriculum and degree process for nonprofessional degree programs, such as most of those in the College, but not including most graduate degrees in such schools as Business and Law; roughly 75 percent of students in nonprofessional degree programs are in the College. The Graduate School disburses fellowship funds to the Schools and College and directly oversees a much smaller amount of scholarship funds directly.

In preliminary discussion, Committee members summarized some of the potential benefits of a strong central Graduate School: in maintaining the quality of graduate programs, avoiding duplication of effort by different units, attracting external funding, and raising the external profile of Indiana University. Members also discussed some of the risks associated with changes in the Graduate School; principal among these is that the interests of the College might not have sufficient influence in a restructured Graduate School, noting that by most measures the College represents roughly three quarters of the graduate program.

3. At 3:00 PM Professor Raff arrived at the meeting, introducing herself as one of three College faculty on the President's Task Force of 16, chaired by Dean Trevor Brown of Journalism. Professor Raff described the charge of the Task Force as reviewing all issues related to the Graduate School, from its necessity at IU to its appropriate role and structure if continued. Professor Raff emphasized the importance of input from the College, and in particular from the CPC, and informed the Committee that President Herbert has asked that the Task Force present its initial findings to him by April 1. The next meeting of the Task Force will be on March 11.

The discussion with Professor Raff covered possible benefits offered by a graduate school, including its support of interdisciplinary studies, promoting innovation in graduate education, serving as a resource for data on graduate programs, and serving as an advocate for graduate students. Concerns associated with a stronger Graduate School were also discussed, including an increase in the number of bureaucratic layers, and the difficulty of simultaneously addressing the concerns of multiple Schools. Proportionate representation of the College is a particular concern.

At this time the CPC requests that faculty communicate to Professor Hunt their concerns regarding the Graduate School. Professor Raff also invites comments sent directly to her, at eraff@bio.indiana.edu . 4. Professor Raff left the meeting at 3:40 PM.

5. After a brief follow-up discussion, Professor Ruesink agreed to begin to draft a letter from the CPC to the Task Force, outlining the concerns and expectations of the CPC with regards to the graduate program.

6. The meeting concluded at 3:55 PM.

Questions or comments regarding the minutes and actions of the Policy Committee may be addressed to Kevin Hunt 5-3857, Dept. of Anthropology, Student Building 248, khunt@indiana.edu. Past minutes and College Policy Statements can be found at the CPC web page: www.indiana.edu/~college/faculty/policy/policies.shtml.