Minutes 15 October 2025

October 22, 2025 Minutes

Attendance

Present:
Senators: Aaron Putnam (for Seth Campbell), Amanda Klemmer (President), Amber Roth, Amy Booth, Bashir Khoda, Benjamin King, Bill DeSisto, Briar Chapin (Undergraduate Student Government Representative), Camerin Seigars, Carter Emerson (Graduate Student Government Representative), Colleen Marzilli, Craig Mason, Danielle Pelletier, Dean Astumian, Derek Michaud, Ek Han Tan, Ellen Hostert, Eric Landis, Glenda Pereira, Grant Miles, Greg Howard, Heather Falconer, Jack Buttcane, Jay Wason III (Secretary), Jennifer Perry, Jonathan Barron, Kathryn Slott, Kelly Jaksa, Liliana Herakova, Lauren Jacobs, Lee Karp-Boss, Matthew Chatfield, Michael Grillo, MJ Sedlock (Past President), Nils Haëntjens, Paula Drewniany, Philip Fanning, Roberto Lopez-Anido, Sarah Lindahl, Shannon McCoy, Steven Kimball, Sudarshan Chawathe, Susan Smith, Timothy Bowden, Timothy Waring, Vince Weaver, Will Manion, William Gramlich, William Otto

Guests: Adam Kirkland, Andrea Gifford, Daisy D. Singh, Ellen Weinauer, Emily Haddad, Gabriel Paquette, Guiovanna Guidoboni, Jack Campbell, Jenny Boyden, Joseph DiSalvo, Jude Killy, Karen Pelletreau, Kody Varahramyan, Nicole Lawrence, Ryan Weatherbee

Absent:

Senators: Alexis Foster, C. Matt Graham, Daniel Sandweiss, Esther Enright, Jean Henri Akono Ada, Jianjun Hao, Karen Beeftink, Keith Berube, Lee Karp-Boss, Matt Hawkyard, Phillip Dickens, Sara Flanagan, Tingting Ye

Call to Order: The meeting was called to order at 3:02pm

Land Acknowledgement

The land acknowledgement was read by Secretary Jay Wason III.

Approval of Minutes

Minutes from 10 September 2025 were approved with no corrections.

Announcements

President Klemmer announced Jay Wason III as the new Secretary (replacing Sabrina DeTurk), welcomed new student representatives, and thanked Senators for their help recruiting faculty to serve on administrative review committees.

Interim Provost Paquette also thanked faculty and reported that the current faculty/staff database is being replaced due to technical issues and reduced support. Following a task force recommendation, the university is issuing an RFP and expects to contract with Interfolio.

Questions of the Administration

Health Insurance Transition

President Klemmer solicited comments from Senators regarding the announcement that the University of Maine System would be signing a contract with Anthem as its new health insurance provider, effective January 1, 2026.

Some senators echoed skepticism among faculty regarding the System’s statement that only 15% of UMS employees receive services from providers within the Northern Light network. Others expressed anecdotal concerns over Anthem’s cost structure, approval rates for required medical services, waitlists for local out-of-network providers, and low compensation rates to health care providers. Several in the room also echoed the idea that UMS employees might accept higher premiums to ensure continuity of care. Interim Provost Paquette offered for faculty to share their feedback and questions with him and he would pass them along to the System through the appropriate channels.

Pedestrian Vehicle Accidents and Student Safety

President Klemmer raised the issue of the increased incidence of pedestrian-vehicle accidents in recent weeks. Andrea Gifford, Interim Dean of Students, explained various options currently being considered to mitigate risk to pedestrians, including the installation of speedbumps, lowering speed limits, blinking traffic signs, patrol officers, educational approaches for students, etc.

Accessibility Services

President Klemmer then shared faculty concerns about accessibility services that record classroom content. Peter Schilling, Executive Director of Innovation in Teaching and Learning, clarified that the Student Code of Conduct had been updated by the University of Maine System over the summer to prohibit recording and disseminating anything that happens in the classroom. An announcement containing information about this update was scheduled to go out the week of October 13.

Concerns were also raised over the platform, Glean, which offers transcription and AI summaries. Senator Seigars argued that the service could potentially provide misleading or inaccurate information to students, especially in some technical fields that use discipline-specific variables, terminology, etc. Seigars added that care should be taken in selecting and vetting accessibility tools to ensure student learning is actually being supported effectively. Interim Provost Paquette recommended that the Senate work through the Academic Affairs Committee and University Teaching Council to draft a thorough report and recommendations so the administration can respond sensitively to faculty concerns.

New Faculty Biographies

Eric Landis asked whether communications could be sent out on an annual basis containing brief biographical information about newly hired faculty members. This used to be done pre-pandemic by the Division of Marketing and Communications and was seen as a helpful way for faculty to connect with one another. Interim Provost Paquette responded that he would welcome moving this idea forward.

SRE discussion

President Klemmer invited faculty to share data from the Strategic Re-Envisioning (SRE) initiative with their respective departments. Interim Provost Paquette thanked those who had already provided feedback on the data and invited further comments and questions from senators, which he requested be compiled by the Senate and shared with him for a detailed response. There was some additional discussion about the expected timeline for intra-college program review. Paquette said that the Academic Deans have begun the process of having conversations with faculty in their colleges and that a comprehensive evaluation of programs is expected by the end of the fall semester 2025. The Senate is welcome to begin conversations with faculty around the data that has been shared.

Senator Barron emphasized the importance of “vision” to the Strategic Re-Envisioning initiative. He said that what is sometimes identified as UMaine’s vision (“Learner-Centered R1”) is not a vision but a category—a category that is also shared by other institutions. He said that a perceived absence of a clear vision has led to confusion throughout the SRE process regarding which variables to measure and how to have conversations about the academic portfolio moving forward. President Klemmer inquired about the role the Senate might play in helping shape this vision. Senator Waring expressed that this is not the Senate’s role, and that ultimately the vision must come from the administration. Senator Buttcane said he was much more interested in reviewing the data from the SRE initiative. The discussion ended and the Senate moved onto the next item on the agenda. 

Officer & Position Reports

Board of Trustees Representative – Colleen Marzilli

  • Meeting Overview
    September 15 the Board convened at the University of Maine, and it was hosted by University of Maine Machias.
  • Major Academic Decisions

The Board approved several new academic programs:

  • Bachelor of Science in Medical Laboratory Science (UMA, UMPI)
  • Master of Science in Homeland Security (UMFK)
  • Associate of Arts in Human Services (UMPI)
  • Associate of Arts in Early Childhood Education (UMPI)
  • Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood Education (UMPI)
  • Master of Arts in American Studies (UMPI) 

All academic proposals received committee endorsement and are designed to address workforce and community needs.

  • Key Financial & Facilities Actions
    The Board authorized:
    • Renewal of the Alfond Stadium CELLCO/Verizon lease for up to 25 years
    • $1 million for Memorial Gym roof replacement
    • $1.8 million for Powers Hall envelope repairs at UMM (critical maintenance)
  • Strategic Initiatives & System Updates
    • Enrollment across several campuses is trending up despite demographic challenges, notably through transfer and adult completer programs.
    • The Board reviewed proposals for system-wide AI integration, considering launching Google Gemini with a per-credit fee to ensure equity and access for all students, as well as privacy protections.
    • The university system is focused on coordinated academic offerings to minimize internal competition and maintain quality.
  • Research & Innovation, Branding
    • Federal and state grant funding remains strong; key research sectors highlighted include nursing, education, and advanced robotics.
    • The system is launching a unified branding and marketing campaign for accessibility and outreach.
  • Next Meetings
    • A special Board Meeting is scheduled for October 24, 2025 via Zoom.
    • The next regularly scheduled Board meeting will be held at the University of Maine at Farmington on November 16-17, 2025. 

Committee Reports

Program Creation and Reorganization Review Committee – Glenda Pereira & MJ Sedlock

  • Two Program Proposals:
    • PhD in Nursing (full proposal) in the October 15 folder 
    • DNP (Doctor of Nursing Practice) in Nursing (full proposal) in the October 15 folder 
  • The review will follow the procedures on page 4-5 of the PCRRC policy manual, which addressed proposals submitted under APL X-P.1, I-II: Academic Program Approval. 
  • Timeline:
    • Oct. 15 – Present to senate at full senate meeting and send out to all faculty via email. Comment deadline of Oct. 29. 
    • Week of Nov. 3 – PCRRC Committee meets to discuss and decide whether to hold campus hearing on one or both proposals. Compiled questions and feedback sent to proposers for response. 
    • Early Week of Nov. 10 – campus hearing, if needed
    • Late Week of Nov. 10 – PCRRC committee meets again to agree to endorse or oppose proposals.
    • Nov 19 – motion presented to Senate
    • Dec 3 – motion discussed in Exec Committee
    • Dec 4 – motion discussion in Exec Committee w/ admin
    • Dec 10 – motion voted on at Full Senate Meeting

Committee on Committees – Lauren Jacobs (Esther Enright is away at a conference)

  • New! President’s Space Advisory Committee
    • Presidential Space Advisory Committee, 2 members of the FS, 1 year appointment, meetings every 4-5 weeks (see linked description). Interested Senators can email Esther or Lauren.
  • UPDATE: All Administrative Review Committees nominations made! Thanks!
  • UPDATE: President’s Budget Advisory Committee – Filled! Thanks!
  • UPDATE: Search Committee for the Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs  – Filled! Thanks!

Environment Committee – Tim Waring

  • Held first meeting October 8, 2025. We discussed semester priorities, and were visited by the Students for a Democratic Society, Sanctuary Campus Campaign. We discussed the following possible priorities:
    • A motion proposing campus policy to provide clear and helpful information on immigration enforcement on campus (aligns with both student concerns, and a prior motion which had President Ferini-Mundi’s verbal support).
    • A climate and faculty morale survey.
    • Alignment of default TIAA investment fund with UMS’s goal of a fossil-free investment portfolio.
  • Unfortunately, the committee expressed strong interest in all three items. We set a work agenda as follows:
    • (Non-voting) Committee member William Somes will draft a motion on changing the TIAA investment default fund. We will then review, edit, discuss and vote on putting the motion forward.
    • We are reviewing our prior motion on immigration enforcement information, and will work to update it given the new conditions and student concerns.
    • We will review a recent MBS survey as draft material for a campus survey. We are seeking support from faculty interested and available to work on this item.
  • Faculty concerns arising: (a) heavy jackhammer construction interrupts teaching and research near Sebago road (b) lack of heat in Rogers, Winslow, Deering makes work difficult, (c) unclear if UMaine faculty are being considered in the adoption of a new health insurance plan.
  • Next meeting October 22, 2025

Cultural Environment Subcommittee – Michael Grillo & Sara Flanagan

  • At our first meeting on Wednesday, 8 October, we looked to issues of campus access, both physical and academic, based on universal design.  We will explore how to possibly better coordinate efforts among various areas, such as CITL, Student Accessibility, and College Advising.
  • Considering the federal government’s increasing intrusion into universities, we will develop a document that complements the AFUM-UMSystem contract on Academic Freedom, for many of the federal anti-DEIJ initiatives directly obstruct research, teaching, and community partnering in many of our fields.
  • We have begun discussions of moving beyond performative Land and Labour Acknowledgements to consider how to address these concerns institutionally.  How might we better serve Native-American and other socially marginalized populations more effectively?

Finance and Institutional Planning Committee – Henri Akono

  • The Finance and Institutional Planning Committee (FIPC) held their first meeting on Wednesday 10/1/2025 and their 2nd meeting on Wednesday 10/15/2025
  • They introduced new members and discussed broader issues that require attention (e.g., finalizing a report to faculty senate in relation to the administrative growth motion, or drafting a recommendation in relation to Concerned Profs letters)
  • The committee is preparing for the meeting with senior administration at the end of the month 10/31/2025 (e.g., enrollments; faculty turnover, building maintenance and others)

Academic Affairs Committee – Jennifer Perry

  • First meeting was 9/29
  • Grade grievance policy under review. This policy would only apply to semester grades. Current policy dates to 1976 and does not allow for review of an instructor’s decision. 
  • Ongoing conversations about concerns related to Glean
  • Next meeting 10/22, on the agenda will be syllabus repository, Erica Tweedie to attend for Glean discussion

General Education Stewardship Committee – Derek Michaud

  • The Core Curriculum now has a website with details about the new Core Curriculum that goes into effect next Fall. 
  • Final round of unit/department-level course designations has begun. Units have until October 31 to make their choices before they go to Colleges for review ahead of UPCC sign off and addition to the AY 26-27 catalog. 
  • The Office of Institutional Research and Assessment (OIRA) is offering two informational sessions in early November to provide an overview of Core Curriculum assessment for Spring 2026. Full-time faculty who are scheduled to teach a Core course in the spring, as well as chairs and directors, are invited to attend one of these sessions.

Library Advisory Committee – Jonathan Barron

  • The first committee meeting took place on October 3, where the committee discussed ways to expand faculty use of Fogler Library’s resources.
  • Senator Barron also announced that there are a small number of publisher license agreements that enable faculty, staff, and students to publish their research as open access journal articles without an article processing charge. More information has been sent to the Senate and can be found on the library website.
  • Please email any ideas for committee work to Jonathan Barron.

Research and Scholarship Committee – Ben King & Jay Wason

  • Committee members met on 10/8/25. RSC has three more scheduled meetings this semester, two of which include the VPR, provost, and grad student rep. The committee is currently prioritizing focus areas for the committee this year. 

Faculty Information Technology – Sudarshan Chawathe (“Chaw”) & Colleen Marzilli

  • Faculty Information Technology (FIT) committee members will receive an email soliciting feedback regarding UMaine website updates and concerns regarding academic and research impact. FIT will draft a motion regarding these concerns. 
  • UMS is moving to adopt a fee per credit hour for AI programs. FIT will work to draft a motion regarding this.
  • Please send any faculty-facing information technology concerns to Chaw and Colleen.

The meeting was adjourned at 4:28 p.m.