Senate
AGENDA 8
April 2002 |
The next meeting of the Senate will be held in the Senate
room on Monday 8 April 2002 at 4.30pm. Afternoon tea will be
available in the foyer of the Senate Suite from 4pm. In accordance with Senate’s
resolution, you are asked to wear your name badge at the Senate meeting.
After the meeting members are invited to have dinner in the
University’s Banksia Restaurant. Last year Senate resolved that each
Executive Dean should give an annual presentation about that academic Division
at a Senate dinner, which all Heads of School in that Division should be
invited to attend as guests. This is the first occasion when this will occur.
The presentation will be by the Executive Dean of the Division of Social
Sciences, Humanities and Education, Professor Kateryna Longley. The other
staff attending the dinner will be the Heads of the Schools of Arts (Dr Niall
Lucy), Asian Studies (Mr Radha Krishnan), Institute for Sustainability and
Technology Policy (Dr Dora Marinova), Media Communication and Culture (Assoc
Prof Gail Phillips) and Social Inquiry (Prof Bill Loader), the Dean of
Education (Assoc Prof Simone Volet) and the Acting Dean of Psychology (Assoc
Prof Iain Walker).
If you will be unable to remain for dinner, please advise
Helen Yeoman by 9.30am on the morning of the Senate meeting, so she can
finalise catering numbers. [The University is billed for the dinner based on
the numbers advised at that time.] Her number is 9360 2173.
Audit Committee, Equity and Equal Opportunity Committee,
Honorary Degrees and Ceremonial Committee, and Legislation Committee have not
met since the last Senate meeting.
Andrew Bain
University Secretary
2 April 2002
1.
MEMBERSHIP
Elections are underway for the two vacant
Senate positions elected by Convocation, and for the Senator elected by
general staff. Voting closes on Friday 5 April, when the votes will be
counted and the results declared. It is hoped that the new Convocation
Senators will be able to attend this meeting. Ms Trish Allen’s term on
Senate expires on 20 April; she is standing for re-election.
2.
APOLOGIES
Sir William Heseltine has recorded his apologies for this
meeting, as he will be overseas. Any further apologies received after the
circulation of the agenda will be reported to the meeting.
3.
DECLARATIONS OF
INTEREST
The Chancellor will ask whether any Senators have an
interest to declare concerning any items on this agenda. Senate has adopted
the following statement on conflict of interest:
Senators have a duty to place
the interests of the University before their own personal advantage
(financial or otherwise) and the advantage of any other person or
organisation (including the group that elected or appointed the Senator).
Possible conflicts of interest include:
employment
by, shareholding in or directorship of a company dealing with the
University
membership
of a body that is in competition or conflict with Murdoch University
for
Murdoch staff members, out-sourcing or restructuring of their work
sections
any
matter under discussion that would result in personal financial advantage
government
officials who are responsible for an aspect of policy or operations which
affects a matter under consideration by the University
A matter which arises from
membership of the group qualifying the Senator for election to Senate, and
which is not otherwise special or personal to the Senator, is not a conflict
of interest. (Examples could include students voting on assessment policy, or
staff voting on a salary increase for all staff.)
At the start of each meeting of
Senate and its committees, Senators must declare the nature, character and
extent of any conflict of interest. In case of doubt, it is best to
acknowledge possible conflict of interest. When conflict of interest is
identified the Chair (subject to the views of the meeting) may ask the Senator
to leave while the item of business is discussed; to participate in the
discussion but withdraw from the meeting before the vote; to stay but not
participate in the debate; or to stay with full rights to debate and vote.
Where there is a significant conflict of interest, future papers on this
matter might not be made available to the Senator concerned.
All declarations of interest
shall be minuted, along with any ensuing action.
In addition, if any member of staff presenting a proposal
to Senate or one of its committees has a conflict of interest, the person must
declare that interest at the meeting.
PART A - MAJOR ISSUES
4.
FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE
The September meeting of Senate agreed to annually review
the University’s performance in each of nine key areas: campus
infrastructure, community relations, finances, international operations,
research, risk management, staff, students, and teaching and learning. These
reviews will take the following form:
v Be on financial and
operational performance against the key strategic objectives of the
University, centred on agreed Key Performance Indicators to include past
performance and future goals.
v Include an executive
summary sheet, comparative data for the university sector, and graphical
representation of key data.
v Be accompanied by a
discussion paper on key issues for the University in this area. At the
preceding Senate meeting, Senate will be invited to consider any issues it
wishes included in that paper.
v The report will be
listed as a major item for discussion, in the first part of the agenda.
This is the first of these reviews of the University’s
performance. The Acting Pro Vice Chancellor (Resource Management), Mrs Gaye
McMath, will give a presentation. Relevant to this are the annual financial
statements for 2001, at attachment 9.
When Senate considered any issues it wishes to be included
in the discussion paper, the following were identified:
· Transparency and
readability of the University’s financial information
· Financial
projections
· The extent to which
the University budget influences strategic directions, including how it
operates in Divisions
· Leave liabilities
Leave liabilities are also addressed in the minutes of
Resources Committee, item 12. [See attachment 15]
5.
RESEARCH ISSUES
Senate agreed to review the University’s performance in
research at its April meeting each year. When Senate considered any issues it
wishes to be included in the discussion paper, the following were identified:
· How research fits in
with the focus priorities in the Vice Chancellor’s report
· How to strike a
balance between consultancy and research
· The time-frame for
accounting for investment in research
· How to decide what
proportion of external research grants are retained for administrative
overheads
attached is discussion paper
from
the Acting Pro Vice Chancellor (Research), Assoc Prof Steve Thurgate. He will
introduce the paper.
PART B - OTHER ISSUES FOR DEBATE
6.
VICE CHANCELLOR'S REPORT
7.
SELECTION PROCESS FOR NEW VICE CHANCELLOR [in
committee]
The Chancellor will provide an oral progress report.
8.
AMENDMENTS TO STATUTES
The last meeting of Senate approved the following changes
to Statutes:
Statute No. 5 – Academic
Council
1. The Academic Council shall be
a committee constituted by this Statute for the purposes of section 18(1) of the
Act and is the principal academic body of the University. Subject to the
authority of the Senate, the functions of the Academic Council are:
(b) to determine the programmes
of study courses
and majors to be offered by
the University, subject to the authority of the Vice Chancellor as academic
principal and chief executive officer of the University;
Statute No. 11 – Admissions
1. The Academic Council shall be
responsible for determining: (a) policy on the academic aspects of admission of
students to the University, and (b) which programmes
of study courses
and majors shall
have a quota limiting the total number of students who may be admitted. The
Council may delegate this authority to a committee of the University.
Every such delegation shall be revocable by the Council, and no delegation shall
prevent the Council carrying out the responsibilities imposed on it by
this Statute.
Statute No. 20 – Examinations
5. Notwithstanding the other
terms of this Statute, a student may be appointed to a Board or Committee to
consider an appeal by another student
(a) against a final assessment
where the grounds of appeal include grounds other than only a request for a
second assessment of the student’s performance;
(b) against exclusion from a programme
of study course
or major or from the University due to unsatisfactory academic
progress.
Statute No. 17 – Guild of
Students
7. Guild Secretariat
(1) The Guild shall be
administered by a Secretariat comprising -
(a) the President of the Guild;
(b) eight members (in this
section referred to as the ‘Guild Members of the Secretariat’);
and
(c) not more than seven
ten representative members as described in
sub-section (4) of this section (in this section referred to as the ‘Representative
Members’) no person shall hold office as the President of the Guild or as a
member of the Secretariat unless that person is a member.
(4) The Guild may by Guild
Regulation provide for the nomination of not more than seven
ten persons as representative members who shall be
elected officers or representatives of subsidiary councils of the Guild or of
Student Societies.
Notice of the proposed Statute changes has been displayed
within the University in accordance with the provisions of section 25 of the
Murdoch University Act. At the time of the preparation of this agenda the
University Secretary has received no objection to the amendments.
Subject to no objection being received prior to the meeting,
the Senate will be asked to ratify the Statute changes. In accordance with s.25
of the Murdoch University Act, this requires an absolute majority (13 members).
9.
ANNUAL FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR 2001
10.
KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS FOR 2001
11.
REVIEW OF THE ACADEMIC PROFILE
At the November Senate meeting, a Senator asked what was
the outcome of the academic restructuring process which was set in place in
2000. The President of Academic Council took this on notice, and agreed to
provide a report to a subsequent meeting of Senate. At the February meeting,
Senate noted that the Divisions had not yet completed the 2001 exercise. In
light of the difficulty in generating accurate cost information for the first
time, and the sensitivity of the outcomes, the Divisions were given an
extension until the March meeting of Academic Council.
Attached is the President’s
report. He will introduce the
report.
Also attached is the process adopted by Academic Council in
November 2000 for reviewing whether courses should continue to be offered.
12.
INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS
The September meeting of Senate agreed to annually review
the University’s performance in each of nine key areas: campus
infrastructure, community relations, finances, international operations,
research, risk management, staff, students, and teaching and learning. These
reviews will take the following form:
v Be on financial and
operational performance against the key strategic objectives of the
University, centred on agreed Key Performance Indicators to include past
performance and future goals.
v Include an executive
summary sheet, comparative data for the university sector, and graphical
representation of key data.
v Be accompanied by a
discussion paper on key issues for the University in this area. At the
preceding Senate meeting, Senate will be invited to consider any issues it
wishes included in that paper.
v The report will be
listed as a major item for discussion, in the first part of the agenda.
The next meeting of Senate will review the University’s
performance in its international operations. In accordance with the Senate
resolution, the meeting is invited to consider any issues it wishes to be
included in the discussion paper.
PART C – OTHER ITEMS
13.
MINUTES
13.1 Confirmation of Minutes
Senate is asked to confirm the
minutes of the meeting held on 25 February 2002.
13.2 Action on Resolutions of the Last Meeting
The attached action sheet
records
the resolutions of the previous meeting and action that had been taken to
implement them. It also updates Senate on outstanding action items from previous
meetings.
The
Chancellor will put these as a single item for noting and for the acceptance
of any recommendations contained in them. Senators may indicate any of these
items they wish to reserve for discussion.
14.
ACADEMIC COUNCIL
Attached are the minutes of the
meeting of the Academic Council held on 20 March 2002. These include the
following recommendations to Senate:
AC/43/2002(v) Master by
Coursework Degree Regulation 2(1): MA in Globalisation and Governance
AC/44/2002(ii) Certificate
Regulation 1(c): Graduate Certificate in Drama Teaching
AC/47/2002(iii) Certificate
Regulation 1(d): Postgraduate Certificate in Financial Management
AC/57/2002(ii) Vary the
application of Bachelor Degree Regulation 20
AC/58/2002 Bachelor Degree
Regulation 70, Certificate Regulation 13, Diploma Regulation 30 and Master
by Coursework Degree Regulation 40: Exemptions from Regulations
AC/59/2002 Postgraduate by
Research Degree Regulations: Introduction of New Degree
AC/60/2002 Division
Regulation 15(i)(b) and Bachelor Degree Regulation 16(1): Approval of Unit
Details
Legislation Committee has
endorsed by circulation the form of the legislative changes proposed, with the
exception of the penultimate one. The Committee recommends that the proposed
new regulation 1B read as follows: "The introduction of a new
degree requires the approval of Academic Council following
after consideration of a submission by the Research and Development
Board." The President of Council has accepted this change on behalf of
Council.
15.
RESOURCES COMMITTEE
Attached are the minutes of the
meeting of the Resources Committee held on 26 March 2002. These include the
following recommendations to Senate:
RC/1+2/2002 Annual Financial
Statements for 2001
RC/3/2002 Certificate
of Compliance for 2001
RC/4/2002 Key Performance
Indicators for 2001
RC/5/2001 Write-Offs for 2001
RC/6/2002 University Budget
2002
16.
ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITTEE
Attached are the minutes of the
meeting of the Environment Committee held on 21 March 2002. These include the
following recommendation to Senate:
EC/1/2002 Terms of Reference
17.
STRATEGIC QUESTIONS
Following on from the discussion of the Strategic Plan at
the November meeting of Senate, Professor Richmond has prepared the attached
paper outlining four strategic questions for Senators. This is provided for
the information of Senators, who may find it useful when considering strategic
issues and the new Strategic Plan.
18.
OFFICIAL SEAL
Report on the Use of the Official Seal
In accordance with resolution 90/85, the Official Seal of
the University has been applied to the following document since the last
meeting of Senate –
· Deed of Agreement
with the NHMRC for research project 194808
Senate meetings will be held at 4.30 pm on the following
dates:
|
FUTURE MEETING DATE |
AGENDA PAPERS DEADLINE |
|
Monday 27 May 2002 |
Thursday 16 May 2002 |
|
Monday 8 July 2002 |
Thursday
27 June 2002 |
|
Monday 19 August 2002 |
Thursday
8 August 2002 |
|
Monday 7 October 2002 |
Thursday
26 September 2002 |
|
Monday 25 November 2002 |
Thursday
14 November 2002 |
|
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