University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Chancellor's Committee on the Status of Women

Meeting Minutes

3:00-5:00 p.m., 500 Swanlund Administration Building

1. Approval of Minutes from February 25, 2003: Minutes approved.
2. Announcements
   1. Next meeting: Tuesday April 29, 2003.
   2. Replacement of CCSW members with expiring terms.
3. Old Business
   1. Rape Awareness and Prevention Committee: Delegated member Michelle Pincus discussed issues concerning rape awareness and prevention.
      1. Michelle Pincus distributed samples of posters that have been proposed to increase rape awareness and prevention. The posters will undergo approval on Friday April 4. The posters will be placed on buses, in restrooms and in campus bars. The rape awareness and prevention committee is currently seeking ways to make the rape awareness hotline telephone number easier to remember.
   2. Senate Equal Opportunity Committee: A statement was read from delgated member Linda Beale discussing the issues concerning the Senate Equal Opportunity Committee.
      1. The Senate Equal Opportunity Committee intends to form a subcommittee to prepare a faculty survey about "flexible tenure." A member of that committee will conduct the preliminary analysis and results.
         1. Guest, Provost Richard Herman questioned the need for such a survey. Richard Herman also reported the proposal drafted by the College of Engineering was unsuccessful.
4. New Business
   1. Flexible appointment structures for faculty: Guest Richard Herman discussed the need for action concerning faculty retention and part-time tenure track.
      1. Provost Richard Herman provided statistics about the percentage of women faculty currently on the UIUC campus and argues that UIUC needs to retain more. He pointed out a few academic units that have been exceptionally successful at recruiting women faculty, including the Depts. of Chemistry, Computer Science, and the College of Engineering, where, in 2001-02, nine tenure-track offers to women faculty were made, and four accepted. Herman, who was in support of changing the culture across campus to encourage more academic units to see the value in offering flexible faculty appointments, suggested that a few academic units be targeted. The targeted academic units would consider offering flexible faculty appointments in the near future, thus serving as prototypes for the rest of the campus.
      2. A guest faculty member reported that she was successful in obtaining a part-time tenure track appointment as part of a spousal hire program.
      3. Delegated member Kathleen Pecknold and Chair Kathryn Anthony provided updates on how part-time tenure track issues were addressed at institutions with a part-time tenure policy. Kathleen reported that at institutions with a part-time tenure policy, few individuals take advantage. She also reported that some institutions treat flexible faculty appointments according to each individual case. Kathryn Anthony reported that MIT does not offer flexible faculty appointments. However MIT's family leave policy is overseen by a subcommittee to ensure that employees are treated fairly. Anthony also suggested that a subcommittee at UIUC be formed to provide safeguards for those faculty taking advantage of flexible appointments in the future.
   2. Analyze deficiencies and improve women's restrooms: Delegated member Deanie Brown will provide a complete report and recommendations for improving women's restrooms on campus at the next meeting (April 29, 2003).
   3. Child-care Initiatives: Delegated member Kathleen Pecknold provided an update report on the Request for Proposal (RFP) for the sick childcare program. The sick childcare program is working in conjunction with MTD, Bright, and Fox development to develop a system in which parents will be able to drop off their child and car and take public transportation. If developed, this program will be funded by MTD transportation. The sick child-care program hopes to create a more family friendly environment that will increase faculty retention.