Minutes from the meeting of the Macaulay College Council
October 23, 2019, 6-8pm Lecture Hall Macaulay Honors College
Members Present: Mary Pearl, Joseph Ugoretz, David Rosenberg, Elizabeth Reis, Karen Shelby, Ira Bloom, Ted Widmer, Regina Bernard, Roni Natov, Lynda Klich, Owen Gutfreund, Sylvia Tomasch.
Members Absent: Mike Owen Benediktsson, Richard Ocejo, Steven Monte, Douglas Cohen, Susan Tenneriello, Betina Zolkower.
Others/Guests Present: Steven Rudolf, Amanda Hick, Lisa Brundage
Introductions and Attendance:
Welcome from Dean Pearl. An update was given on the PSC contract.
Approval of Minutes:
Minutes from the last meeting (2/27/19) were unanimously approved.
Dean’s Report:
Dean Pearl provided an update on the CUNY Hackathon and a presentation about the strategic plan for Macaulay Honors College. The entire presentation is included here: (PowerPoint file) .
One of the Associate Directors of Macaulay’s new Wellness Program, Steve Rudolf, gave a presentation, which is available here: (PowerPoint file). He also distributed as a handout an excerpt from the book The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor (Currency, 2010). The Wellness Center has also developed a protocol for helping students in crisis or distress. It will be emailed to all Macaulay faculty in the coming days and is available here: (PDF file)
Curriculum Committee Report and Upper-Level Class Discussion:
The Curriculum Committee approved 3 new courses to be taught by Professor Karel Rose (spring 2020), Prof. Jack Zevin (spring 2020), and Prof. Sylvia Tomasch (fall 2020). There was a discussion about how important the titles of a class are, to increase students’ interest and class enrollment.
Ideas for Curriculum Committee to discuss:
- Putting out a broader and more attention-getting (targeted) call for courses.
- Perhaps listing all courses that have been offered in the past on the website, and long-term plans for future courses.
- Surveying students to get their ideas and to make it more clear to them what offerings are available to them.
- Investigating co-listing other campus-based honors courses and enlisting campus honors offices to help with further listing Macaulay’s.
- Asking faculty to commit to teaching these courses more than once to help build up following and word-of-mouth.
New Faculty Initiatives:
Astrophysicist Emily Rice, formerly of the College of Staten Island, has joined Macaulay Honors College. She will teach and mentor students, as well as strengthening connections with the American Museum of Natural History. Macaulay Distinguished Lecturer Carmen Boullosa has been awarded the XIX Premio Casa de América de Poesía Americana, a prestigious award for the best volume of Spanish poetry in the Americas.
Committee Elections:
- Curriculum Committee elected: Ted Widmer, Owen Gutfreund, Sylvia Tomasch, Karen Shelby. (Elizabeth Reis will continue as chair)
- Appointments Committee: No new members elected. Only anticipated business for this academic year will be to recommend an honorary degree recipient.
- Admissions Committee: No new members elected. No anticipated business.
- Adhoc Committe on Governance: will invite Lori Fox (Macaulay’s Legal Counsel) to join the committee.
New Business:
No new business at this time.
Respectfully Submitted:
Amanda Hick, Assistant to the Chief Academic Officer (MHC)
