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The Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs met at the Alexander G. Ruthven Building Monday afternoon to hear chair updates and discuss committee affairs and upcoming meetings.
The meeting began with updates from SACUA Chair Rebekah Modrak, Art & Design professor. She discussed the possibility of requesting the University of Michigan to adopt institutional neutrality — a request for universities to not take stances on political or social issues — and the possibility of working with Tabbye Chavous, U-M chief diversity officer and vice provost for equity & inclusion. The discussion follows requests for institutional neutrality were brought to Modrak by faculty.
“This summer I had a conversation with Tabbye,” Modrak said. “She’s interested in possibly co-sponsoring a panel with the faculty office in SACUA about neutrality and institutional neutrality.”
The majority of the meeting consisted of SACUA members discussing committee charges, or documents that list the tasks and duties of a committee. SACUA reviewed 17 charges during the meeting but spoke in most detail about the General Counsel’s Advisory Committee’s and Administrative Evaluation Committee’s charges.
SACUA members discussed items to add to the GCAC charge and decided on including a duty to discuss the Principles on Diversity of Thought and Freedom of Expression as well as a responsibility to consider how the University’s legal considerations impact its commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion goals.
SACUA member Derek Peterson, Ali Mazrui collegiate professor of history and African Studies associate chair, brought up the charge on the GCAC, which includes an item stating that the committee will consider the University’s legal position as it relates to the prosecution of student protesters and students’ freedom of expression on campus.
“Consider the University’s legal posture in relation to student protestors and its obligation to defend students’ right to free speech,” Peterson said. “It would be hard not to read that and think about the students who have been charged with felonies.”
SACUA member Alex Yasha Yi, Engineering professor at U-M Dearborn, led the discussion on the AEC charge during the meeting. The AEC conducts annual surveys of U-M academic administrations to evaluate perspectives of the University President as well as chancellors, provosts, deans and department chairs on all three U-M campuses.
SACUA members discussed the AEC’s annual evaluative survey participation numbers and how they can improve the interaction between students, professors and U-M administration through higher survey responses.
“The issue about the evaluation is that for some of the (U-M administrators) there are extremely low survey numbers,” Yi said. “Also there is some manipulation because some faculty prefer to participate and some don’t care at all, so this is something we should look at.”
Near the end of the meeting, SACUA discussed the agenda for the following meeting on Sept. 23 and, with no rising matters of note, adjourned the meeting.
Daily Staff Reporter Maddyn Shapiro can be reached at maddyns@umich.edu.
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