December '23 Updates from University Governance

Dear all,

University Governance wishes you all a happy winter, a happy holiday to those who celebrate, and a happy end of the semester. We made it! This is a shorter newsletter than we typically send but includes some Governance news and much-awaited presentation recordings, so please read on!

Our University Senate President, Kristin Villa, will be pursuing an exciting opportunity for her professional growth in the new year that unfortunately takes her away from KU. We can confidently say that Kristin and all that she brought to this space will be missed. Her steady hand guided effective meetings and authentic governance work. From Kristin: “Thank you for allowing me to serve as University Senate President and President-Elect over the last 18 months. I’ve appreciated the opportunity to meet many wonderful people across campus. I’m sad to be ending my term early, but I know others will continue the important work within Governance.” New University Senate leadership will be announced at the beginning of the semester in January.

Recordings Now Available

The recordings of two recent events are now available for viewing on-demand. The CFO Public Forum, held on Nov. 6th, was an important outcome of the Shared Governance initiative and addresses financial transparency and community engagement. Later in the month, KU’s consulting partner, Perkins & Will, presented the Campus Master Plan at townhalls attended by several hundred people.

Surveys

Governance is interested in evaluating the impact of the university excused absences policy update that was approved by University Senate at the end of the Spring 2023 semester. We have just finished surveying faculty and are in the process of surveying Graduate Teaching Assistants regarding their understanding of and experiences with the policy. Later, we will provide an opportunity to share more specific questions and concerns.

We also want to share a survey being conducted by a 2023 KU Racial Equity Award winner on campus. Phil Duncan, Associate Teaching Professor in Linguistics, is conducting a research project investigating whether people feel that the way they use language is valued at KU, and, if not, how people can make campus a place where everyone feels valued. Phil and his team are looking for individuals 18 and over at the University of Kansas to complete a survey to help explore these items. Please feel free to share the survey link with anyone at KU that you think would be interested in sharing their experiences. See the flyer for more information or reach out to Phil directly (philiptduncan@ku.edu).

As always, please contact your senate president or the Governance Office if you have any questions, concerns, or comments.

Rock Chalk!

Victor Gonzalez, Faculty Senate President

Chris Wallace, Staff Senate President

Turner Seals, Student Body President

DaNae Estabine, Student Body Vice President

Kristin Villa, University Senate President