President Duncan called the meeting to order at 3:30 P.M. Seventeen senators were present. Richard Balderas, Karen Defranchi, Dayton Hall, and Sandy Johnson were absent. The senators welcomed guests Dwayne Snider and Kim Rynearson.

1. Approval of Minutes and Treasurer's Report.
Upon motion by Carol Thompson, the Senate unanimously approved the corrected minutes of the January 18 meeting. The Treasurer reported a balance of $3,322.50.

2. Report on Provost's Meeting.
In her monthly meeting with Provost B. J. Alexander, President Duncan discussed the following subjects:
a. Sick Leave Policy - Duncan expressed senators' concerns regarding inconsistencies in interpreting and implementing the university's sick leave policy. Provost Alexander invited Angie Brown of Human Resources to attend the next Dean's meeting to clarify the issue.
b. Promotion and Tenure Policy - President Duncan reported the new promotion and tenure policy goes into effect September 1, 2000 for all tenure positions. Affected faculty members with ten or more years' service at Tarleton will be eligible for promotion and tenure in five years. Individuals with fewer than ten years' service will be eligible in seven years.
c. Compression Raises - In an effort to maintain pay equity across ranks, the floor salary for assistant professors will be raised to $38,000. Assistant professors currently earning more than $38,000 will receive a $600 per year raise.

3. Faculty Awards Report.
Gene Atkinson reported the Jack and Louise Arthur/O.A. Grant Award nomination process is underway. When asked for input, Senators reported no problems. Atkinson then asked faculty members to forward ideas and nominees for the Regents' Faculty Award to him by the next Senate meeting. President Duncan noted a potential inconsistency in selection criteria for the Arthur and Grant Awards. At present, faculty members who are nominated for, but do not receive the Arthur Award in one year receive the Grant award in the following year. A person who receives the Arthur Award is not eligible to receive this award again for five years, while Grant Award winners are eligible for nomination the following year. This policy could result in faculty members receiving this award and its cash stipend repeatedly. Duncan then appointed the following committee to study nomination and selection criteria for these awards and to recommend changes:
Gene Atkinson - Chair
Janis Petronis
Carol Thompson

4. Contribution for Speaker Symposium Committee.
President Duncan reported that Rose Ann Kincannon, Chair of the Speaker Symposium Committee has approached the Faculty Senate for a donation to that body's budget, noting that a cash augmentation will improve Tarleton's chances of attracting a first rate speaker. Following a brief discussion, Richard Sale moved that the Senate donate $500 to this committee. The motion passed unanimously.

5. Committee Appointment Request Form.
Bill Beaty passed a copy of the Committee Appoint Request Form for the senators' study. President Duncan urged any interested faculty member to submit a request when this form is distributed. David Weissenburger reported that Dr. Johanson has encouraged Central Texas Center faculty members to apply for representation on Tarleton State University committees and will (within reason) provide budgetary support for travel to meetings held on the main campus. He observed that distance-learning technology might also be used to support meetings between the two campuses.

6. Report From Developmental Leave Committee.
President Duncan reported that she had sent a memo to other Texas A&M System schools inquiring about their developmental leave policies. Based on limited replies, she inferred no System school currently has a developmental leave policy in place, although several state and private schools do have them. She noted that a number of important questions related to this policy's implementation remain unanswered. The Developmental Leave Committee will finish its deliberations and submit a report the full Senate at the April meeting. The Senate will then vote on this committee's recommendations at the May meeting. Duncan encouraged senators email their suggestions to her.

7. Report from Faculty Evaluation Committee.
Committee Chair Holly Lamb reported she had reviewed several suggestions for improving evaluation forms from Central Texas faculty member, Kim Rynearson, as well as from other universities. Rynearson reported that she simply used textbook principles of evaluation instrument design and applied them to Tarleton's existing form. Based on these and other suggestions, Lamb's committee is considering a 14-point instrument that converts questions into statements, requests additional information from students, and improves and simplifies scan sheets. Lamb noted the mood of the administration appears to be shifting toward making changes in this process.

8. Report from Central Texas Representation.
David Weissenburger reported the first Open Forum meeting of Central Texas faculty was held February 1. Questions discussed included the need for improved communication from the Main campus and from Dr. Johanson to C.T. faculty members, as well as confusion regarding the proper chain of command on key questions. Weissenburger reported that he plans to hold future Open Forum meetings one week prior to Senate gatherings, and will publish a newsletter to keep his faculty informed on Senate issues. He went on to suggest that the Executive Board or full Senate may wish to meet at the Central Texas Center once or twice a year. President Duncan observed that the Senate should implement by-law changes to fully incorporate the Central Texas Center's faculty into its decision making process.

9. New Business.
a. Texas A&M Policy on Intellectual Property - President Duncan distributed a copy of an email message she received from James Puckett, faculty member from Texas A&M, Kingsville, that discussed intellectual property issues. She asked members to read the message between now and the next meeting and to consider the advisability of the Tarleton Senate stating a position on this policy. She also encouraged senators to distribute copies of the correspondence to their colleagues.
b. Faculty Evaluation Scan Sheets - Dr. Dwayne Snider, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, announced that the deans will instruct their department heads to purchase and distribute new scan sheets for spring semester evaluations.

President Duncan adjourned the meeting at 4:35 P.M.