Meeting Minutes 2013

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, December 2, 2013
2520B UCC

Present: Rose Friedrich, Gary Gussin, Benny Hawkins, Ken Kuntz, Nancy Sprince, Robert Summers, Tom Weingeist.

Absent: William Buss, Lorraine Dorfman, Claibourne Dungy, Douglas Flanagan, David Jepsen, Irvin Levin, John Menninger.

Call to Order: Ken Kuntz called the meeting to order in Room 2520B, UCC, at 9:35 a.m. Since nobody present was disposed to serve as secretary for this meeting, Kuntz suggested that he jot down notes during the next 90 minutes and turn them into these minutes, adding that he didn’t want this procedure to set precedent.

Minutes: The minutes of the November 4 EFC meeting, written by John Menninger, were not approved at this time since Kuntz had failed to circulate them to the full membership of EFC. He will do so within the week in order that the November 4 minutes, along with these minutes, may be approved at the next EFC meeting.

Kuntz turned the council’s attention to the resignations of Ray Muston and Gerald Rose. Though these resignations were not news at this time, some discussion was needful regarding their replacements. Since Muston was serving on the EFC Elections Committee, his leaving that committee poses no problem since Benny Hawkins, Robert Summers, and Tom Weingeist remain on that committee. The other committee on which Muston served was the EFC Communications Committee (emeriti listserve, website, handbook). Again, Muston’s leaving this committee poses no problem since Douglas Flanagan and David Jepsen serve there.

With regard to Gerald Rose’s resignation, the issue was somewhat more serious. Rose was the only EFC representative to Recreational Services. It was recommended that Kuntz send an email to those absent at today’s meeting to ascertain whether someone among the absentees would be willing to take Rose’s place. Moreover, Rose was an EFC liaison to UIRA. Since Nancy Sprince is the other liaison and Ken Kuntz regularly attends UIRA board meetings, Rose’s departure from EFC poses no problem.

Kuntz reported that Gerald Rose recommend that Warren Boe, Emeritus Professor in the College of Business, serve as his replacement. In a phone conversation with Boe, Kuntz learned that Boe is willing to serve as Gerald Rose’s replacement, but an appointment this morning made it impossible for him to attend today’s meeting. Boe’s willingness to serve was well received by EFC members today since they are well aware of Boe’s talents and previous helpfulness to EFC. It was recommended that he be placed on the Communications Committee.

Discussion next turned to potential speakers for the 3 March 2014 EFC meeting. Claibourne Dungy recently emailed Kuntz that the Annual Meeting and Program Committee had settled on seven possibilities: Gary Barta (Director of UI Athletics), Chris Brus (on the Women in Science and Engineering Program), John Culshaw (the recently hired University Librarian), Matt Hayek (Mayor of Iowa City), Lynette Marshall (President & CEO, University of Iowa Foundation), Dan Reed (Vice-president for Research and Development), and a local representative from TIAA-CREF. Kuntz suggested that each EFC member present today vote for three of these seven candidates. John Culshaw, Dan Reed, and Chris Brus received the most votes (Culshaw: 6; Reed: 5; Brus: 4). This vote determines their rank order: Culshaw, then Reed, then Brus. Soon Kuntz will report these results to Claibourn Dungy so that his committee can promptly firm up plans for a 3 March 2014 speaker.

Moreover, Kuntz was urged to request Dungy and his committee to turn their attention in the near future to recommending a speaker for the annual meeting of the Association of Emeritus Faculty scheduled on 12 May 2014. Two speakers were recommended: Matt Hayek, Mayor of Iowa City, and a Representative from the Board of Regents.

At 9:55 the discussion turned not to a general discussion of a possible AEF-UIRA merger (based on arguments for and against that Kuntz had assembled in a document [‘Collective Reflections about a Possible Merger of AEF and UIRA] that he circulated as an email attachment to EFC members two days ago. Rather, it was agreed that what was more pressing was Gary Gussin’s E-mail Proposal which EFC members also received at that time.

Of the five items in Gussin’s proposal, two received close attention. Gussin recommended that several EFC members briefly report on the accomplishments of their committees at the annual meeting of the AEF. Admittedly, there would not be enough time for all EFC members to speak, but a representative group of EFC members could report. This would ensure that AEF members, who have rather little contact with AEF other than attending the annual meeting and luncheon, might gain a better understanding of what EFC is doing and why that matters to both the AEF and the University as a whole.

The other item in Gussin’s proposal that was discussed had to do with several faculty members being invited to speak as part of an Emeritus Faculty Lecture Series during the spring 2014 semester, when they could articulate their research in ways understandable to non-specialists. Two meeting times were suggested: 4:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. On balance, it was thought that the turnout would be better if these presentations were made at 4:30 p.m. Gussin volunteered to work with the Program Committee in the near future to implement this plan (at the close of today’s meeting, Gussin spoke informally with Benny Hawkins and Robert Summers to invite their input).

Gussin’s proposal that the EFC create its own e-mail distributed newsletter (no more than two pages) was briefly discussed but no action was taken. It was agreed that such a newsletter would be salutary in giving EFC greater visibility.

At 10:15 Chaden Djalali, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, joined the meeting. He spoke informally to the EFC for roughly 25 minutes. He reported that his first year as dean was quite busy since it was often necessary for him to be out of town engaged in fund-raising.

The dean reported that the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences hopes to raise $120 million in funds in the near future. To date, approximately $92 million has been pledged. Thus this cause is advancing nicely. Dean Djalali also spoke briefly about the following: on-line communication as a currently expanding enterprise; faculty salaries at UI not being competitive though the University still benefits from a large applicant pool of persons who perceive the UI as a first-rate university; the need for transparency and openness so that a ‘us vs. them’ mentality doesn’t prevail as UI faculty and administration interact; a realization that some small departments at UI find their equivalents in programs (not departments) at other universities; and a concern that lecturers not be perceived as second-class citizens and that their number (roughly 10% of the faculty at present) be maintained but not increased (the percentage at many other universities is notably higher). As Dean Djalali left the meeting, EFC members expressed their gratitude for his taking the time to attend today’s meeting.

A few minutes remained for the board to deal with loose ends. Since no EFC meeting is scheduled for January, our next meeting is slated for 3 February 2014, 9:30-11:00 a.m. in room 2520B, UCC.

Respectfully submitted,
J. Kenneth Kuntz

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, November 4, 2013
2520C UCC

Members present: William Buss, Lorraine Dorfman, Claibourne Dungy, Douglas Flanagan, Rose Friedrich, Gary Gussin, David Jepsen, Ken Kuntz, Irwin Levin, John Menninger, Ray Muston, Gerald Rose, Nancy Sprince, Tom Weingeist.

Members absent: Benny Hawkins, Robert Summers.

The EFC meeting in room 2520C began at 9:30 a.m.: Presiding, EFC president Ken Kuntz reported that Rose Friedrich, who attended a meeting of Faculty Senate on Oct. 22, will send him notes on that meeting in the near future that can be appended to these minutes. Moreover, Rose Friedrich, who took minutes at the 13 May 2013 meeting of AEF, will send them to Ken once she has slightly revised them.

Speaker for 2 December 2013 EFC meeting: It is hoped that Chaden Djalali, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, can attend and speak for 45 minutes. As yet he hasn’t responded to the e-mail that Claibourne Dungy sent him. Claibourne will write him again imminently. Should Chaden not respond or be unable to attend our Dec. 2 EFC meeting, Claibourne will search for another speaker.

Communicating with AEF members: Soon Kuntz will appoint a three-member committee to consider what the EFC might wish to communicate to members on its mailing list. Though Gary Gussin does not wish to be a member of this committee, he is willing to serve as a consultant.

Room 605, Jefferson Building: Presumably, the Provost Office has a key for room 605 in the Jefferson Building (one with desks and file cabinets) available for use by the EFC and the UIRA. Kuntz will reconnoiter the room and report back to EFC.

Forthcoming meetings: It was thought that the Provost Office should have the financial ability to fund a rep. from EFC to attend the annual Big Ten Retirees’ Organizations meeting scheduled in August 2014 at University of Minnesota. Immediately following that event, a meeting of AROHE will also take place at the U of Minnesota.

Respectfully submitted,
Ken Kuntz

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, October 7, 2013
2520B UCC

Call to Order: The meeting was called to order by President Ken Kuntz at 9:30 a.m.

Members Present: Lorraine Dorfman, Claibourne Dungy, Douglas Flanagan, Gary Gussin, David Jepsen, Ken Kuntz, Irwin Levin, John Menninger, Ray Muston, Nancy Sprince, Robert Sommers, Tom Weingeist.

Members Absent: William Buss, Rose Friedrich, Benny Hawkins, Gerald Rose.

Introduction of members: President Ken Kuntzextended a special welcome to new members Dave Jepsen, Bob Summers, John Menninger, and Doug Flanagan.

Acting Secretary: Ray Muston volunteered to act as secretary for the day.

Approval of minutes: Minutes of the 9 September 2013 EFC meeting - Tom Weingeist had forwarded minutes for the September meeting electronically. Approval will be postponed until the November meeting.

Announcements: UIRA invitation to EFC members to attend a reception for retirees hosted by President Sally Mason, Thursday, October 10, 3:30-5:00 p.m. (remarks at 4:15 p.m.), Wyrick Rotunda, Levitt Center, rsvp by October 7 to Nancy Williams.

Speakers for EFC Meetings: The chair suggested we limit speakers to two per semester with approval of the council. It was generally agreed. Persons recommended for potential speakers include Chaden Djalali, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Ken Starck and/or Nancy Williams, representatives to the Big 10 Association of Retirees held at the University of Michigan last August. After discussion, it was also suggested that a policy level representative of Instructional Technology be invited to bring the Council up to date on current services of ITS available to Retirees and Emeritus Faculty. The program committee will pursue that potential.

Research Council (September 17, 2013): Gary Gussin VP for Research Office has been moved to 2nd floor of Old Capitol Center. Open House to visit new facilities will be 2-4 pm, Friday, Oct. 11. VP for Research is establishing mechanisms for rewards and recognition of faculty, post-doc and graduate student achievements. Awards (research or artistic breakthrough of the year, outstanding faculty research, entrepreneurial innovation, etc.), which will involve one-time cash awards, will be presented in a grand ceremony once a year.

Library Committee report: Lorraine Dorfman summarized a report on new facilities and services of University Libraries (see attached report). Discussion of the report included concerns related to the reduction of library carrels for emeritus faculty as a consequence of space limitations. It was noted that a current shift of digital services and resources may be important to emeritus faculty. Those who wish to sustain professional development and links to university activities through software and technical training resources may want access to ITS software and training programs. It was suggested that a query be made of the Provost’s Office to clarify emeritus access to ITS services and programs.

The committee met on Sept. 13, 2013. The new head of libraries, John Culshaw, was introduced. He reported going to lots of meetings (14) since arriving Aug. 1, attending two President's Club receptions, and visiting several academic departments in an effort to know better what is going on at the university. Culshaw reported on his attendance at the National Directors of Research Libraries meeting, which focused on transitioning to the digital age and new challenges such as still having a lot of print materials, microfiche, etc., to deal with and increasing open access.

His initial priorities for the libraries this year include (1) the self-study, which is an opportunity to show what has been accomplished since the last review in 2006; (2) organizational planning for the libraries overall, with emphasis on current and planned structure; (3) space issues because the library is filled to the brim and must be reduced; and (4) emergency planning, e.g., for evacuation.

The committee concluded its meeting with a tour of the new Learning Commons, which is now open. It is very impressive!

Request for Emeritus Status: Following a summary of qualifications and service to the University and recommendations from her department head and dean, the council voted unanimously to recommend emeritus faculty status to Robin Hemley (Motion by Weingeist and Second by Muston).

FRIC Report: Gary Gussin reported on proposed changes to Delta Dental coverage under consideration by the Funded Retirement and Insurance Committee. He also briefed the Council on rebate matters. There will again be rebates (av. about $50-100) from TIAA-CREF for past “administrative savings”. Rebates will be credited to current accounts in proportion to participants’ current equity. Only accounts that have not been annuitized will be considered.

Changes to Delta Dental policies are being considered. An increase in amount reimbursed by Delta Dental for orthodontia, implants, etc., from 30% to 50% has been recommended. A plan for preferred providers is being considered whereby a provider who agreed to a 25% reduction in fees would be considered a preferred provider who, presumably, would benefit by attracting more patients. Insured individuals could still select “non-preferred” providers who would charge the normal approved fees, which would be reimbursed at normal rates by Delta Dental.

Engineering Representation on EFC: Ken Kuntz and Gary Gussin shared results of their efforts to identify a representative of the College of Engineering to serve on the Council. It was decided to postpone further action on this item until the next election cycle.

Emeritus E-mail List: Gary Gussin will work with provost staff to explore ways to expand the list of e-mail addresses of emeritus faculty. The goal will be to increase interpersonal communication with colleagues.

Emeritus Faculty Survey: The council discussed ways to streamline future surveys of emeritus faculty. Our latest effort resulted in responses from 169 retired faculty. It was also noted that a substantial number of faculty began to respond but did not complete the survey. Perhaps a shorter survey would result in better feedback from our constituents.

EFC website: A question was raised about ways to upgrade our website, Nancy Sprince and Ray Muston shared background on the changes made in the web site three years ago with considerable help from Provost Office staff. They emphasized the importance of finding a way to ensure timely and consistent updating of content on the web site and noted that President Ken has a greeting posted on the front page as well as his photo. It would be good to collect photos and biographical information to post for new members of the council. Members are encouraged to visit the website and familiarize themselves with current links and content. Suggestions for “News” items that may be posted should be sent to Ray Muston.

Announcements: Council members were reminded that it is their responsibility to contact their respective university committees to ask that they be included on meeting notices as representatives of the EFC.

The EFC-UIRA ‘Merger’ Committee will meet from 9:00-10:30 a.m. in the Iowa City Public Library on October 9. Interested council members are invited to attend.

New Business: Members were reminded that flu shots are not available free to emeritus faculty but are covered through Medicare.

Next EFC meeting: The next meeting of the council will take place on 4 November 2013, 9:30-11:00 a.m. in 2520B, UCC (Please note the change of room).

Adjournment: 11:00 a.m.

Respectfully Submitted: Ray Muston, Acting Secretary

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, September 9, 2013
2520B UCC

Gary Gussin served as the leader of the group in Ken Kuntz’ absence.

Members present: Lorraine Dorfman, Claybourne Dungy, Douglas Flanagan, Rose Friedrich, Gary Gussin, Benny Hawkins, David Jepsen, John Menninger, Gerald Rose, Nancy Sprince, Robert Summers, Tom Weingeist [new members in bold type].

Members Absent: William Buss, Kenneth Kuntz, Irwin Levin, Ray Muston.

The meeting was called to order by Gary Gussin at 9:30 a.m.

Introduction and welcome of new members (highlighted in bold above): It was noted that there is no member of the EFC from the College of Engineering. A suggestion was made to have the CE Dean identify someone from its faculty to attend meetings without being able to vote.

Election of Secretary: Since there were no volunteers, Tom Weingeist agreed to write the minutes, but indicted that a number of issues precluded him from doing a good job: left-handedness, recovering from a left total arthroplasty which makes writing and typing painful, dyslexia and diminished hearing. “May I say more.”

It was proposed that two unspecified people alternate taking minutes. All agreed that Rose Friedrich did a superlative job during the past two years, but she pleaded to be spared of further secretarial work.

Minutes of the last EFC Meeting were approved unanimously after minor corrections.

Announcements, Handouts: E-mail address roster of EFC members were circulated for additions and corrections. A tentative list of committee appointments was announced.

How to report committee activities to the EFC – brief reports would be written and submitted to Ken Kuntz for review soon after attending meetings. They would then be sent to Brenda Bradley in the Provost’s Office.

How to know when committees meet – dates, times, and location of meetings are listed in the Website for the Faculty Senate http://www.uiowa.edu/~facsen. This site has a great deal of useful information. It would be particularly useful for new members to check it out and bookmark pages such as committee schedules, minutes from committees, etc.

Old Business: Faculty survey and merger of EFC and URIA were mentioned and will await Ken Kuntz’ direction.

New Business: Discussion occurred regarding possible ways to augment the list of e-mail addresses among retired faculty so that costly regular postage could be avoided. In the recent survey of faculty only 160 responses were completed out of a potential of nearly 700. It is likely that the numbers of e-mail addresses will require a postcard mailing in combination with members seeking lists from individual colleges and departments by members of the EFC.

There was a brief discussion about whether it was useful to have speakers at each of our monthly meetings. A consensus indicated that more effective business could be done if we had invited guests every other month.

Next EFC meeting: The next meeting of the council will take place on 7 October 2013, 9:30-11:00 a.m. in 2520C, UCC.

The meeting was adjourned at 10:50 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,
Tom Weingeist

Minutes for the AEF Annual Meeting

May 13, 2013
2520D UCC

Call to Order: Gerald Rose, Emeritus Faculty Council (EFC) President, called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m.

Welcoming Remarks: Gerald Rose welcomed attendees to the meeting, with special recognition to Provost Barry Butler (who would arrive shortly) and acknowledgement of the founding members who were present.

Introduction of Council Members: Gerald Rose introduced the members of the EFC for 2012-2013.

Gerald Rose (EFC President), Business
Laird Addis, Liberal Arts & Sciences
William Buss, Law
Lorraine Dorfman, Liberal Arts & Sciences
Claibourne Dungy, Medicine
Rose Friedrich (Secretary), Nursing
Gary Gussin, Liberal Arts & Sciences
H.D. Hoover, Education
Kenneth Hubel, Medicine
Irwin Levin, Liberal Arts & Sciences
Ray Muston (Vice President), Graduate College
John Rosazza, Pharmacy
Nancy Sprince, Public Health
Jerry Walker, Dentistry
Thomas Weingeist, Medicine

Gerald Rose thanked Warren Boe for his expertise and service to the organization in setting up the new data base of Association of Emeritus Faculty (AEF) email addresses and software that were used in conducting the “e-survey” of members as well as the nominations for and election of new EFC members.

Introduction of Staff: Brenda Bradley and Debbie Milsack, from the Office of the Provost, were introduced and thanked for their contribution to the functioning of EFC, including serving as the web liaison, planning and serving today’s luncheon and other tasks that keep the organization running smoothly. Kris Yows was thanked for her work setting up the AEF email data base.

Minutes of AEF 2012 Annual Meeting: Rose Friedrich noted that Claibourne Dungy’s name was missing from the list of 2011-2012 EFC members and recommended making this correction. It was moved to accept the minutes as corrected. The minutes were unanimously approved.

Report of the Election Committee: Thomas Weingeist announced the results of the EFC election. The new representatives include:

1. Doug Flannigan, Pharmacy
2. Benny Hawkins, Dentistry
3. David Jepsen, Education
4. Kenneth Kuntz, Liberal Arts & Sciences
5. John Menninger, Liberal Arts & Sciences
6. Robert Summers, Medicine
7. Lorraine Dorfman, Liberal Arts & Sciences (second term)

Report on the Emeritus Faculty Council 2012-2013: Gerald Rose

Questions or Comments from the Membership:

There was an extended discussion of the pros and cons of AEF merging with UIRA. Highlights of the discussion are as follows:

Cons:

James Clifton, M.D., Roy J. Carver Professor Emeritus and one of the founders of the Association of Emeritus Faculty was unable to attend the meeting but submitted a written statement. “I am opposed to a merger. The emeriti faculty need a separate organization in order to have matters specifically related to their concerns brought to the attention of the University Administration. When the late Sam Becker and I formed the EFC we had the strong support of the Provost because he recognized the need for a separate faculty organization. The Associate Provost for Faculty attended every meeting and served as an excellent conduit for our concerns to the Provost. Sam and I helped form the Retirees Association so were quite familiar with its purpose and organization and knew the faculty would be greatly outnumbered by non-faculty in the Association. It is hard for me to imagine why the EFC would consider this merger. It is a bad idea.”

Art Cantor stated he helped found the UIRA and it was never intended to replace the faculty association. The UIRA is for all retirees and is not restricted to faculty. The two organizations are related, but not the same. He stated that he has always argued against centralization and supports parallel organizations.

Gary Gussin commented that he opposes the merger, but would favor a strategic alliance with the UIRA. Gary does not agree that our objectives are identical to those of UIRA. In particular, the AEF is concerned with maintaining opportunities for faculty input in University activities, and that is one thing we do fairly well through our participation on various committees. He also stated that requiring dues is a bad idea because it may cause the organization to lose contact with emeriti faculty who don’t want to pay dues. Based on his conversations with a former Faculty Senate officer, he suggested that a merger may require approval from the U of I Faculty Senate

Albert Hood, who formerly served as president of EFC and whose wife was a recent president of UIRA shared his point of view that there are big differences between the organizations: UIRA highlights programs and AEF is much more concerned with contributions to the University such as research and teaching. Also, AEF is officially part of the University of Iowa and we have a connection with the Provost’s office. The Senior College is a strength that was begun by the EFC and continues with the support of many retired faculty.

Pros (including uncertain position):

Gerald Rose (EFC President 2012-2013) stated that Provost Barry Butler and Associate Provost Tom Rice would like to see more active Association of Emeritus Faculty (AEF) and EFC contributions to the university. They have assured their continued support of the AEF and EFC and they support greater unity between the AEF and UIRA. The gap between the emeriti pool of talent and the numerous and difficult challenges faced by both emeriti and the University of Iowa is not being bridged by the AEF’s activities. We have learned from reviewing other university retirement organizations (e.g. The University of Michigan and the University of California) that it is possible to accomplish far more for both retirees and the University of Iowa than we have since the EFC was founded 14 years ago. While some individual emeriti have actively worked to serve AEF goals, service rendered by sustained collaboration among AEF members has been extremely rare. Collaboration with the UIRA on the Senior College is the outstanding exception and suggests the potential accomplishments that can be expected from uniting the two organizations. The emeritus status of AEF members would not be changed by uniting and none of the privileges enjoyed by AEF members would be threatened. The UIRA recognizes the unique role that emeriti have at the university and wish to see that role maintained. In short, by uniting we can achieve greater emeriti engagement and effectiveness in the service of both the University of Iowa and fellow retirees.

Rick Walton (UIRA President 2013-3014) remarked that he had not been directly involved in the discussion up to now. His position is neutral. He cannot see a merger but an emeritus group incorporated with autonomy. Whatever happens should be beneficial to both groups. It won’t happen quickly.

Carol Fethke (EFC President 2011-2012) stated that currently committees operate across both groups and meet as a need arises (e.g. health insurance committee). Another example of cooperation is planning for a co-sponsored health conference in the near future. Overall, there is a positive working relationship between the organizations.

Kenneth Starck (UIRA President Elect 2013-2014), who attended the Big 10 Retirees Association and AROHE in 2012, reiterated that initially he had not thought of the idea of a merger until he attended these meetings. He found that 70% of retiree organizations consist of both faculty and staff and are effective in realizing their general and individual goals. 14% had an Association of Emeriti Faculty only. The structural organization at most universities favors one organization. He recommended that the two groups continue to work together. There is a need to find another structural arrangement for EFC other than a committee within UIRA.

Thomas Conway, who had been a member of the EFC in the past, stated that there has been confusion about having two groups at the University of Iowa. He believes there is a need for a “club” in which there is a lot of exchange. The AEF strengths are research and education. He is disappointed with the lack of volunteer interest. AEF needs a way to keep contact with UIRA.

Ray Muston, EFC Vice-President 2012-2013, reported that he has never had any requests for information from any emeritus faculty member during the time he has been an officer in the EFC in spite of numerous postings requesting participation through email and website postings. He noted that low levels of response to frequent requests for EFC nominations, election participation, or willingness to volunteer support of defined needs and requests from university representatives are NOT a strong indication of commitment to the organization in its current form. We seem to be overly concerned with structure while substantive participation is lacking.

Sara Wolfson praised the UIRA for “spending their lives” supporting faculty and stated that staff are equally committed to the University. She remarked that she does not know how she feels about the merger.

In conclusion, Laird Addis emphasized that the rights and privileges one has as an individual emeritus or emerita faculty member would be entirely unaffected by any changes in organizational structure because those rights and privileges are independent of any organization one does or does not belong to. He then moved that AEF authorize EFC to continue discussions with UIRA about this issue, and a large majority of those present (show of hands) supported the motion. Eventually, the recommendation would come to the AEF and to the UIRA for a vote.

Emeritus Faculty Committee 2012-2013 Summary Reports

Memorial Moment: A moment of silence was observed in honor of 25 colleagues who died during the past year:

Samuel Becker	Maurico Lasansky
Eleanor Birch	Enzo Macagno
Arne Magne Bjorndal	Marshall McKusick
Byron Burford	Karl Merke
Delores Bruch Cannon	J. Dawson Mohler
John Cazin	Kenneth Moll
Kimberly Ephgrave	Harold Mulford
Michael Geraghty	Donovan Ochs
Brian Glenister	Ralph Roberts
Alfred Healy	Ian Maclean Smith
Ray Heffner	Robert Soper
Norman Holzaepfel	Albert Stone
Richard Hoppin	Gerald Stone
David Hussey	Gary Van Hoesen
Richard Kessel	Rahima Wade
	William Zima

Passing of the Gavel: President Gerald Rose introduced Kenneth Kuntz as the President of the Emeritus Faculty Council for the 2013-2014 year. Gary Gussin was introduced as the Vice President of the Emeritus Faculty Council for the 2013-2014 year.

Guest Speaker: Gerald Rose introduced Sally Mason, President, University of Iowa. Her topic: “University Priorities, Initiatives and the Role of Emeritus Faculty”.

Selected highlights of President Mason’s address: She began with the importance of student success at the University of Iowa. Success is emphasized in strategic priorities which include recruiting students from out of state and from out of the country in order to provide diversity to the campus. Currently one-half of the students are from Iowa and recently there has been a redoubling of the commitment to recruit instate through activities such as the “Golden Pledge Scholarships”. Other strategies to recruit and retain freshman students include an expanded orientation, freshman seminars, living-learning communities and the building of a West Campus Residence Hall that includes living-learning communities for undergraduate students. The freshman class retention rate has increased 4%.

Sustainability is an ongoing priority at the University of Iowa. For example, the College of Engineering is offering a Wind Energy Certificate for students who enroll for classes in this specialty. Governor Branstad has recently approved a two billion dollar investment for wind turbines in Iowa. Several new buildings on campus are LEED certified including the College of Public Health and the Data Center at Oakdale.

It is projected that flood renewal construction projects will be completed by spring 2016. Included are the School of Music and Hancher Auditorium. Although FEMA has denied funding for the art building projects, President Mason assured the audience that art will have a new home with the use of other funding. A 1.7 billion dollar financial campaign is taking place at the University of Iowa. As of March 2013 the fund had reached the one billion dollar mark, with contributions from 116,000 people.
President Mason showed the audience examples of progress that has been made throughout campus in the planning, construction and remodeling of numerous buildings

Following the presentation Thomas Weingeist asked President Mason about the status of loans for students at the University of Iowa. She replied that 40% of students are debt free and 60% have loans averaging $25,000 when they graduate. The placement rate for students after graduation is 80%.

Adjournment: The annual meeting was adjourned at 12:00 noon. Lunch and a fellowship hour followed.

Respectfully submitted,
Rose Friedrich, EFC secretary

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, May 6, 2013
2520B UCC

Members Present: Laird Addis, William Buss, Claibourne Dungy, Rose Friedrich, Gary Gussin, Ray Muston, Gerald Rose, Nancy Sprince, Jerry Walker, Tom Weingeist

UIRA Guest: Kenneth Kuntz

Call to Order: The meeting was called to order at 9:30 a.m. by President Gerald Rose.

Minutes: The April 1, 2013 minutes of EFC were approved with the following editorial change: “It was agreed that the committee consisting of Laird Addis, Claibourne Dungy, and Gary Gussin would prepare a report on the matter to be sent to members of the EFA for discussion at its annual meeting and a vote on whether or not to continue with discussions toward merger with the UIRA.”

Recognition of service to EFC: The members who will not be returning to the EFC include Laird Addis, Kenneth Hubel, Jerry Walker, H. Dee Hoover and John Rosazza. Gerald Rose thanked them for their service to the council.

President’s Report: Gerald Rose identified a number of concerns/questions that will require continuing discussion and evaluation within the council. Some of these concerns are derived from the changes that have been implemented within the council during the past academic year (2012-2013). (1) This year the council attempted to enroll all AEF in an email data base so we could provide more timely and complete information about matters that would be of interest to retired faculty. He argued for the effectiveness of EFC’s increased reliance on electronic communication. However he cited pros and cons and encouraged the council to continually assess the system. (2) The EFC meets monthly except for the summer semester and the month of January. Gerald Rose asked the council to consider if the number of meetings is necessary and or ideal to meet the needs of the organization? (3) Over the past several months, the EFC has discussed the possibility of the AEF joining with the UIRA, to be submitted for a for-or-against vote by the AEF at a later date. One of the primary questions is will we preserve our academic priorities if we integrate with UIRA? (4) An e-survey of retired U of I faculty was distributed Spring 2013 to approximately 320 retirees. The purpose was to gather data on teaching, scholarly and service activities since retirement from the University of Iowa. Although these are important data the question remains, what is the best method for regularly reporting emeriti faculty activities to the Provost’s office and other interested parties? (5) One of the primary activities of EFC in the past was to conduct exit interviews of faculty who were leaving the University of Iowa; however, the results of these interviews are not available. Should EFC reinstitute exit interviews of faculty? (6) The Provost has encouraged the EFC to become more self-sufficient in managing the EFC data base. (7) This year the committee reports were distributed via email to council members prior to the monthly meetings. There was very little discussion of the written reports during the meetings. Is this method of information distribution, with minimal discussion, adequate for updating emeriti of University decisions that affect them?

EFA Annual Meeting: Gerald Rose requested EFC members turn in 2012-2013 Committee summary reports for the EFA meeting. The report on the possible merger of EFC and UIRA will be discussed at the meeting and a vote on whether or not to continue with discussions toward merger with the UIRA will take place. Following a brief business meeting that will include the work accomplished by the Emeritus Faculty Council in 2012-2013, President Sally Mason will speak on “University Priorities, Initiatives and the Role of Emeritus Faculty.”
Survey Summary: An e-survey of retired U of I faculty was distributed Spring 2013 to approximately 320 retirees. 139 male and 30 female retirees responded. (Not all who responded answered all the questions.) The following are some of the results:

1. 151 reported good or excellent health
2. CLAS (70) and the College of Medicine (59) constituted the bulk of those who responded.
3. 131 spent at least nine months in Iowa City.
4. 23 reported being as professionally active, or more active than before retirement.
5. 58 had office space for their use, 40 had clerical support, nine have travel support and seven have lab support.
6. 38 taught on campus courses, 20 taught off campus. 52 supervised doctoral or post-doctoral students, and 14 supervised undergraduate (e.g. honors) students.
7. 27 mentored junior faculty.
8. 77 published at least one journal article, 25 published a book, and 38 published a book chapter.
9. 25 were engaged in externally funded research activities. 57 presented papers at meetings, 59 gave invited addresses, 37 served in editorial capacities for professional journals, 73 reviewed submissions to journals, and 96 routinely read professional journals.
10. 51 volunteered for some form of service to the University of Iowa, 28 to health care organizations, 47 to charitable organizations, and 44 to religious organizations.

Open-ended responses revealed a vast array of retiree activities.

Merger update: Comments received from AEF members regarding the possible merger with UIRA were reviewed. Overall, very few comments were received. There were some concerns that parking privileges and other “perks” may disappear. Laird Addis commented that we have these privileges as individual faculty members regardless of a merger. Gary Gussin reported that several emeriti whom he contacted were opposed to the idea of a merger. Losing autonomy as an organization is an issue. Laird Addis added that he did not believe that anything in the merger would diminish our status. Claibourne Dungy stated that he was aware of two emeriti who disapproved of the merger. He also added that a potential problem with a merger is that UIRA does not have exclusive committees. Ken Kuntz, our UIRA guest, agreed that most of the work is done by 1 or 2 people who do the work outside of the meeting and use the meetings to report their work. Nancy Sprince had concerns about library materials, specifically that data bases might not be available to emeriti. Laird Addis pointed out that there is no evidence of this concern from his point of view. Gerald Rose reported that the librarian in charge of access to library data sets and other materials reported there are no plans to exclude emeriti access in the future.

Results of EFC election: Tom Weingeist announced the results of the EFC election.

1. Kenneth Kuntz, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
2. John Menninger, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
3. Lorraine Dorfman, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (second term)
4. Robert Summers, College of Medicine
5. Benny Hawkins, College of Dentistry
6. Doug Flannigan, College of Pharmacy
7. David Jepsen, College of Education

Selection of EFC officers: Kenneth Kuntz and Gary Gussin were nominated to be candidates for EFC president for 2013-2014 academic year. Ray Muston suggested that the top vote-getter become the president and the other candidate assume the role of vice-president. There was unanimous agreement among those present to cast the ballots accordingly. The results were: Kenneth Kuntz, president; Gary Gussin, vice-president. The secretary will be selected by the elected officers.

Summaries of Committee Reports (submitted email)

FRIC: Gary Gussin submitted the following report of the April 5, 2013 FRIC meeting. Various aspects of Obamacare and associated increased costs to the University of Iowa as a large employer, UI healthcare, and Blue Cross system were discussed. On July 1 of this year, the U of I will have to pay $50,000 in fees to fund research into health care options. As of January 1, 2014 the health insurance mandate will go into effect, but it most likely will be delayed for one year. Employers will have to enroll every employee, but they can opt out (if they have insurance elsewhere, or if they don’t want to have health insurance.) There is a question of which employees will be eligible because of the 30 hour rule. This will especially affect non-regular faculty. For example an adjunct faculty member should be covered in some years but not others. (For adjuncts, it might be that teaching 10 credit hours will quality for 30 hr/week employment. Depending on who gets included, the cost to the University could be substantial.)

Long-term health care must now be made with Genworth Financial. If you’re already insured through U of I with John Hancock (900 such contracts), your coverage will continue. New retirees will no longer get a paid-up $4000 life insurance policy, but the policy for the already-retired will continue.

Specialty drugs are a growing and substantial burden to the health insurance system. These drugs normally count as “medical” costs rather than “pharmaceutical” costs. Individuals taking these drugs rapidly hit the out-of-pocket maximum so that all medical costs for that calendar period must be paid by insurance. During the month of January, 2013, 22% of claims were due to specialty drugs (this is beyond other medical costs or drug costs). There was one case that cost $350,000 in one month for one person.

Research Council: Gary Gussin submitted the report of the April 2, 2013 meeting of the Research Council. Topics for discussion during the meeting of the Research Council on April 2, 2013 focused on ways the University research effort could be more entrepreneurial. There is an Associate VP for Economic Development who will attempt to foster relationships between researchers who may be involved in innovative (patentable) research. Funding will be available to help foster such research and presumably help start- up companies that arise from the research. The University is pursuing a Carnegie Foundation “Community Engagement” classification. This would involve increased research efforts that involve collaborations with citizens in communities in which the research is done. Such efforts could involve educational assessment, evaluation of socio-economic research, clinical outreach, etc. The Office of the VP for Research is developing incentives (several awards) to recognize faculty who do especially creative scholarly research, or innovative research, or research that has economic potential. There is also a plan to involve a limited number of faculty in administration research.

Hancher Committee: Nancy Sprince reported on the Hancher Committee meeting held April 17, 2013. The Press-Citizen newspaper ran articles about the Hancher building progress and included the renderings and drawing for the new Hancher. Building progress is on schedule, with a projected completion date in Spring 2016 and projected opening in Fall 2016. Fundraising is and will be an important activity. It is expected that there will be a web cam at the Levitt Center to view the construction site for those interested in the progress. The Broken Chord, a highly interactive, collaborative, educational program commissioned by Hancher to the Working Theater Group, was very successful. Many educational sessions for this play were incorporated with college classes at the UI. Upcoming events include the following: (1) June 14, 2013, 3:30PM, UI Pentacrest, Iowa City: “Arts and Minds”. This event is a public “thank you” in appreciation for the many people, including legislators and the governor, who helped the University through the process set out by FEMA for building the new Hancher, the School of Music, and the School of Art and Art History. (2) June 15, 2013, 4PM, UI Pentacrest, Iowa City: “Living with Floods” featuring a free outdoor performance by the Preservation Hall Band. (3) June 29, 2013, 4PM site of the new Hancher: San Jose Taiko and Rinde Eckert will present a ceremonial performance invoking memories of the past and gratitude for the present, to bless and safeguard the workers and site for the new Hancher.

Faculty Senate: Gary Gussin reported on the March 26, 2013 meeting of the Faculty Senate. Theresa Mangum discussed various opportunities provided by the Obermann Center. She explained the difference between “outreach” and “engagement”, especially in terms of the Carnegie Classification system. The University is pursuing certification by the Carnegie Foundation as an engaged University. Outreach implies that members of the University community offer various services and resources to outside groups. Engagement involves an outside community as a partner in research or service activities in which the community has its own expertise to contribute. There was also a continuation of discussion of the meeting of The Steering Committee of the Coalition on Intercollegiate Athletics, following a report by Mike O’Hara who is a University delegate to that committee. The committee is basically a coalition of faculty groups who are engaging in dialog with NCAA about possible deregulation, faculty involvement in regulating athletics on their own campuses, and possible autonomy of individual institutions in self-regulation in some areas.

Regent President Lang spoke and also responded to questions from members of the Senate. He emphasized his respect for the Regents’ Universities, efforts of faculty members, importance of education etc.

Faculty Senate: Gary Gussin reported on the April 30, 2013 meeting of the Faculty Senate. The Senate considered a 5-year review of the policy on Research Track (non-tenure track) Faculty and voted to make the policy on establishment of this faculty classification permanent. Currently there are 30 such faculty, whose funding and salaries are supposed to come from research grants, primarily grants obtained by these faculty as PI’s. That’s clearly not the case for a majority of these faculty members, but at least no general education funds have been used to support these positions. All the current research track assistant professors are in the College of Medicine. Possible modifications to the established policy will be considered next year. A revised policy on Conflict of Commitment and Conflict of Interest was approved. (The policy on Conflict of Interest was revised last year, primarily in response to policy changes of NIH.) Conflict of Commitment involves proper allocation of faculty time to outside activities (consulting, teaching etc.) while a faculty member is considered a full-time employee of the University of Iowa, especially outside commitments that interfere directly with faculty commitments to teaching and research at the U of I. Conflict of interest primarily concerns the conduct of research or other academic activities that may be influenced by outside contracts, drug trials, etc. that may be carried out by the faculty. A revised policy on acceptable use of technology resources was considered. The policy is very complicated, but since it applies to all users of ITS services (i.e. U of I e-mail address), or those involved inn University-sponsored research, evaluation of outside grants, submission of manuscripts on-line, et., emeritus faculty who use these services should make sure they understand this policy (Chapter 19 of Operations Manual). This policy outlines what files on your computer could be subject to disclosure under various laws pertaining to activities of government agencies, etc. The policy also outlines what uses of the University ITS system are (in)appropriate.

Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 10:57 a.m.

Annual Meeting: May 13, 2013, Meeting 10:00 a.m.; Luncheon 12:00 noon. Room 2520D UCC

Respectfully submitted,
Rose Friedrich, EFC secretary

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, April 1, 2013
2520B UCC

Members Present: Laird Addis, William Buss, Claibourne Dungy, Gary Gussin, H.D. Hoover, Kenn Hubel, Irwin Levin, John Rosazza, Nancy Sprince, Jerry Walker and Thomas Weingeist

Guests: UIRA Members Nancy Williams, Pam Willard, Kenneth Kuntz and Kenneth Starck

Call to Order: The meeting was called to order at 9:31 am by EFC Acting Chair, John Rosazza.

Welcome: John Rosazza acknowledged and welcomed our UIRA guests.

Minutes: The minutes of March 4, 2013 were accepted as amended. Moved by Laird Addis and 2nd HD House.

John Rosazza chaired the meeting in the absence of Gerald Rose.

Presidents Report – Gerald Rose (via written comments):

Nomination of New President
I have asked the Nomination Committee to find candidates for next year’s EFC president so that a vote can be taken at the May EFC meeting (in time for an announcement at the annual meeting May 13th). The meeting will be a good time to select next year’s president. By now it should be obvious that a president who misses most meetings is not a good idea. I’m certainly committed to quickly and smoothly achieving a “merger” (in whatever form is chosen) and will do whatever I can to help accomplish that. But I believe it is very desirable to have members of the EFC select a new president each year. The Nominations Committee should immediately begin the process of finding a new president to assume responsibility at the annual meeting on May 13th.

Survey
Our survey has gone well and I’m asking Lorraine and Irwin to help me prepare a summary to be circulated to everyone when I return. The last time I checked with Warren Boe we had about 110 responses (from our email list of about 310 AEF members).

Merger Thoughts
The merger proposal is a good one. The March discussion of the “merger” team’s proposal was useful. But it left some members hoping for further discussion of some issues. I hope everyone will make that the focus of the April meeting. My thoughts, for what they are worth:

Achieving a consensus is hard but very desirable. And I hope everyone will help to achieve one by the end of the meeting.
Names of the organization(s) are a minor issue compared to other matters and should not stand in the way of a consensus.
An essential point is that the EFA, by whatever name, should be a voluntary and dues paying organization with an ECC, by whatever name, “board of directors” elected by EFA (by whatever name) members. More active involvement by retirees should be achieved by voluntary membership and “skin in the game” (however little).
The EFC should have a major role in a “merged” organization to assure that matters related to research (broadly defined to include artistic expression) and teaching are not subordinated to social activities and retiree needs.
The idea that there should be EFC (by whatever name) representatives by college, in proportion to the number of tenure track faculty in the colleges should not be a deal breaker.
The minutes of the April meeting should be circulated to everyone ASAP for comments and corrections to facilitate productive e-dialog before the May meeting.
EFA members should be able to review the proposal as far as possible before the May 13th annual meeting. To facilitate this it would be helpful to attain approval of the minutes from the April meeting ASAP, by e-polling if necessary, so the proposal can be posted on the web site.
Associate Provost for Faculty and Provost Butler both support “merger” and do not plan on eliminating our current support in any significant way.
A discussion about the proposal at the annual meeting will be followed by a vote of all current EFA members. This will necessitate a “work around” to obtain paper ballots, particularly from those EFA members who did not enroll in our email address data base.

Annual Meeting
The software used by Warren Boe will be used again to announce the annual meeting, collect registration information, and direct EFA members how to pay the $10 luncheon fee. (The meeting was also announced with the nomination requests.) The Program Committee may have additional details.

Emeritus Status
Based on my polling of all EFC members’ comments I recommended to Provost Butler that Gary Wicklund be given emeritus status. Everyone supported this move.

Tour
HD Hoover has volunteered to tour with the Faculty Engagement Corps.

Rice Meeting
I will be meeting with Associate Provost Tom Rice, April 23rd. Please let me know of any questions or comments you would like me to discuss with him.

The matter of “a designation as “Chair Emeritus” was requested by Tom Rice. The Council did not seem to be favorable to this request. Though there wasn’t a vote it seemed unanimous that we were all Professor Emeritus and it should remain this way.

UIRA Position RE Possible Merger with EFA (Emeritus Faculty Assn) Nancy Williams, UIRA President:

Note: This statement reflects the thinking of the UIRA Board which discussed the possibility of the EFA (Emeritus Faculty Council) merging with the UIRA. The statement takes into account the EFC proposal circulated earlier and discussed at the EFC meeting March 4, 2013.

The UIRA Board affirms its earlier stated desire to welcome EFA to join the UIRA. The Board believes that the joining of UIRA and EFA would greatly enhance efforts to effectively serve both the university and its retirees.

With this in mind, the UIRA Board proposes that the EFA become a committee within the UIRA with its own chair and with committee members. The Chair of EFA would serve as director on the board of the UIRA (directorships are for a three year term). As with older UIRA committees, the EFA committee would meet as desired and carry out its mission as determined by the committee in accord with the purposes of the UIRA. As with other UIRA committees, the EFA committee would be subject to the Bylaws of the UIRA (see Article IX-Committees)

Representation on various University committees (e.g. Faculty Senate, Campus Planning Committee, Hancher Committee, etc) would come within the purview of the EFA committee. This representation would be in the name of the UIRA and not the EFA committee. However, the UIRA would have two representatives to FRIC, a staff member appointed by the UIRA president, and a faculty member from EFA.

Ken Starck commented that 69% of universities have one organization representing retired staff and faculty.

A number of issues will require continuing dialogue between UIRA and EFC representatives including, but not limited to questions such as: How do we assure emeritus faculty will have an opportunity to occupy the presidency of the UIRA? (By tradition, the office has alternated annually between faculty and staff, depending to some extent on our ability to recruit someone for that office). Naturally all members of UIRA are eligible to serve as officers and board members.

It was agreed that the committee consisting of Laird Addis, Claibourne Dungy, and Gary Gussin would prepare a report on the matter to be sent to members of the EFA for discussion at its annual meeting and a vote on whether or not to continue with discussions with the UIRA toward merger.

Assuming the Provost’s subsidy to the EFA will continue, how will such funds be handled?

Guest Speaker: John Keller, Dean of the Graduate College – Engaging Emeriti in the Graduate Mission”.

There are a number of emeriti faculty engaged with graduate theses; Masters as well as Ph.D. A description of the graduate Colleges mission was presented. Members of the Grad College have their own Departmental assignments. There is no organized Collegiate Advisory body. Dean Keller referred to the survey that Irwin Levin is following as a good reference to Emeritus Faculty contributions. He spoke of the very little role that the Graduate College has with the Iowa Foundation for support. It would appear that the outside world, particularly in Iowa, can understand the contribution of Master’s students more easily than that of doctoral students, most of whom leave the state upon completion of degrees. Employment of graduates is satisfactory at present. The role of graduate students in instruction is important for the institutions as always. Younger faculty are already overworked. Dean Keller admits that he doesn’t know what role emeriti or retired staff have within the University. Student financial support is declining. Funding from private, collegiate or departmental sources is important! The Graduate College has about $11 M from General Funds. The overall budget is about $25 M of which only about 10% is used to run the Graduate College, which is responsible for the accreditation of college and programs. John said “WE make friends from friends”.

No University Committee Reports

Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 11:00 a.m.

May meeting: The next meeting will be May 6, 2013 at 9:30 a.m. in 2520B UCC.

Respectfully submitted,

Jerry Walker, Acting Secretary

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, March 4, 2013
2520B UCC

Members Present: Laird Addis, William Buss, Lorraine Dorfman, Claibourne Dungy, Rose Friedrich, HD Hoover, Kenn Hubel, Irwin Levin, John Rosazza, Gerald Rose, Nancy Sprince, Jerry Walker, Thomas Weingeist

Guests: UIRA members Nancy Williams, Pam Willard, Kenneth Kuntz, and Kenneth Starck

Call to Order: The meeting was called to order at 9:31 a.m. by EFC president, Gerald Rose.

Welcome: Gerald Rose introduced and welcomed the guests, representing UIRA.

Minutes: The minutes of February 4, 2013 were accepted as amended.

Faculty Engagement Corps: An email was received from Provost Barry Butler inviting faculty to participate in the Faculty Engagement Corps. This invitation involves a road trip from May 21-24, 2013 to meet Iowans in their communities. Selected faculty board a bus to travel across the state to interact with Iowans in preselected sites. Kenn Hubel reviewed his past involvement in this venture and found it to be a positive experience. As a result of local interchange during one of the past trips, two cooperative projects between the University of Iowa and state constituents evolved. HD Hoover and William Buss expressed interest in participating in this event. They were encouraged to contact tour coordinator, Mary Kenyon, who is accepting self-nominations through Friday, March 15.

Email registrations: 324 emeriti faculty have opted to be contacted by email. This represents about half of the emeriti faculty. The Survey of Emeriti Faculty developed by Lorraine Dorfman and Irwin Levin will be sent out within one to two weeks to those whose names are on the email list.

Nominations and voting for EFC: Gerald Rose encouraged the nominating committee (Thomas Weingeist, Kenn Hubel, Laird Addis) to have the ballot prepared no later than April. Contacting retired faculty, both for nominations and voting, will rely on the names of emeriti faculty who have submitted their email addresses, as described above.

May 13th annual meeting: Jack Rosazza reviewed the agenda for the annual meeting of the Emeritus Faculty Association to be held May 13, 2013. Associate Provost Tom Rice will make the welcoming remarks. President Mason is the speaker for this event. The registration cost is $10.00 per member.

Proposal to UIRA: The remainder of the meeting was devoted to a lengthy discussion about the possible future direction of EFC and EFA in relationship to UIRA. Laird Addis, Claibourne Dungy, and Gary Gussin developed a tentative proposal to make the EFC/EFA a division within the University of Iowa Retirement Association. This proposal and other relevant materials were emailed to council members before the meeting. The proposal is attached as an appendix to these minutes.

Gerald Rose began the discussion with a summary of some of the accomplishments of EFC/EFA as recorded in the minutes since the organization began. Major accomplishments included the development and maintenance of a very successful Senior College. During this period, three surveys were carried out that included productivity of emeriti since retirement as well as their priority concerns, which generally related to health care/insurance coverage. Earlier in the organization’s history, emeriti faculty conducted exit interviews with faculty who were leaving the University voluntarily in an effort to learn how the University could do a better job of faculty retention. Although 60 interviews were carried out, conclusions of these interviews were not available. Nancy Williams was asked to review some of the accomplishments of UIRA. Some of the activities of UIRA include participation in the Senior College, a monthly newsletter, monthly program meetings that are highly successful, and a most recently appointed committee to study “Aging in Place”.

Highlights of the comments/questions from council members pertinent to the tentative proposal are as follows:

Comments that were favorable to the merger included an observation that both UIRA and EFA have common issues and concerns. This would strengthen both the organized emeriti faculty and the UIRA in whatever they endeavor to accomplish. There are many faculty members in UIRA and the president of UIRA rotates between faculty and staff. UIRA has developed strong avenues of communication through its newsletter and email which reach a broad membership that also includes spouses and partners. Within the Big Ten most retirees have one organization for both faculty and staff. Nationally, 70% of retiree groups have one association. UIRA is very welcoming and believes a successful merger can be worked out. A merger with UIRA would not prevent us from being active in pursuit of scholarly issues as a group.

On the other hand, concerns were raised about a possible merger between UIRA and EFA. First of all it would deny the automatic membership in an emeriti organization that emerita or emeritus status merits. A member of the proposal committee stated that the extent of enthusiasm for the proposal varies among those who wrote it. It was questioned whether UIRA is considered a University organization since it is not included in the Operations Manual. EFC has representatives on many committees and we are the voice for emeriti --- it might diminish our unique voice with central administration. If goals are clear, the size of the EFC is ideal for getting things accomplished. The proposal suggests a name change from Emeritus Faculty Association and Emeritus Faculty Council to Emeriti Faculty Group. Several members of the council were opposed to this. Another recommendation in the proposal that some found objectionable was “ignore collegiate affiliations of emeriti faculty for all organizational purposes”. Their objection was based on the assumption that different viewpoints depend (in part) on the academic background.

Overall, it was pointed out that a key to successful retiree organizations is University support. Success is measured by value that it produces for the University and value for the retirees.

Following extensive discussion Laird Addis moved that we send the entire proposal on to EFA along with our vote on the proposal. Seconded by Jerry Walker.
Prior to the formal vote Nancy Sprince recommended a straw vote to obtain more input. The straw vote count was nine in favor of the proposal, three opposed, and one abstention. Following the straw vote there was continuing concern about the details of the proposal. After further discussion and without resolution of the concerns/differences raised by some council members, there was a call for the question. The result of the vote was nine EFC members in favor and four against.

Following a review with the UIRA later in March and further discussion at the April 2, 2013 EFC meeting the proposal will be e-mailed to all emeriti on the email list. The vote of the EFC will be included in the mailing. The proposal will be placed on the agenda for discussion by the EFA at its May 2013 business meeting and if agreed to by the EFA, the proposal would go to a ballot by members in attendance at the meeting.

University Committee Reports

FRIC: William Buss attended the March 1, 2013 FRIC meeting and submitted the following report. After an extensive report by two advocates of a proposed policy of not discriminating against transgender-related medical service, followed by a full committee discussion, the committee, by a unanimous voice vote, adopted a non-discriminatory, gender-affirming policy. Parts of the case in favor of this policy included the fact that the policy would be cost effective, both because it has not been expensive in other places and because up-front medical care would often save greater expense to treat medical conditions resulting from the failure to provide needed medical care.

The committee was informed that the federal government’s HIPPA policy has changed, in response to pressure by a number of hospital/foundation entities, so that the policy now permits disclosure of the name of a patient, when care was provided, department where care was provided, doctor providing care, and the outcome of the treatment. The committee voted to reassert its objection to this manner of using patient medical treatment for fund-raising.

University Libraries: Lorraine Dorfman attended the University Libraries Committee Meeting on February 7, 2013. The following items were discussed:

University Librarian Search: Eight or so individuals will be invited to be interviewed on Skype, with finalists invited to campus for interviews.
Open Access Funding Guidelines: The library approached the Provost for matching funds to assist in the cost of publishing in open access journals. A draft of the proposal was discussed. The Provost’s office will provide $25,000 in matching funds for a pilot program in which UI faculty members, researchers, P & S employees, and graduate and professional students are eligible to apply for funding up to $3,000 for an article published in a full open access journal. Authors may receive up to $6,000 per fiscal year, and will not be eligible if they have grant funding that can be used for article publication fees. A web-based application form has been developed.
Art/Music Recovery from Flood: The art library has been moved back to Art Building West and the music library will be housed in the new music building downtown.

Hancher: Nancy Sprince reported on the February 8, 2013 Hancher Committee meeting:

There was an update on the building progress. Phase I, which includes excavating the land and building structural support, will begin soon. Design details for the interior of the building, including flooring and wall materials, have been completed. Asbestos abatement must be done on the old Hancher building before it can be taken down.
An event is planned for June 14, 2013 in appreciation for the many people, including legislators and the governor, who helped the University through the process set out be FEME for building the new Hancher, the School of Music, and the School of Art and Art History.
There was a successful event at the College of Public Health on February 5, 2013, previewing 3 scenes from the Working Group Theatre performance of “The Broken Chord”. The performance was followed by a panel discussion and audience. The subject is the story of how we understand memory and cope with loss.
An interdisciplinary program called “living with Floods” and featuring free outdoor performances by the Preservation Hall Band is planned for June 2013 in seven Iowa communities. Events leading up to these programs included teachers from around Iowa gathering to Iowa City to develop curriculum on living with floods. Collaborators with Hancher on the “Living with Floods” project include the University of Iowa’s College of Engineering, Center for Global and Regional Environmental Research, Iowa Flood Center, College of Education, iExploreSTEM, and the State Hygienic Laboratory.

Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 10:58 a.m.

April meeting: The next meeting will be Monday, April 1, 2013 at 9:30 a.m. in 2520B UCC. The speaker will by John C. Keller, Dean of the Graduate College. His topic will be “Engaging Emeriti in the Graduate College Mission”.

Respectfully submitted,
Rose Friedrich

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, February 4, 2013
2520B UCC

Members Present: Laird Addis, William Buss, Lorraine Dorfman, Claibourne Dungy, Rose Friedrich, H.D. Hoover, Kenn Hubel, John Rosazza, Nancy Sprince

Guests: UIRA members Nancy Williams, Pam Willard and Kenneth Kuntz.

Call to Order: The meeting was called to order at 9:31 a.m. by council member Jack Rosazza in the absence of Gerald Rose.

Minutes: The minutes of December 3, 2012 were accepted as amended.

Survey of Emeritus Faculty: The survey developed by Lorraine Dorfman and Irwin Levin was piloted by the Emeritus Faculty Council. Lorraine Dorfman suggested two additional items for the survey: an item about the current health condition of the participant that could be scaled (e.g. 1 poor health; 10 excellent health) and the inclusion of an open-ended question at the end of the questionnaire.

UIRA-EFC meetings: As discussed in the December minutes, representatives from EFC (Laird Addis, Claibourne Dungy, and Gary Gussin) met with Jon Whitmore at ACT who was Provost at the time that EFC was established. Laird Addis stated that Jon Whitmore suggested contacting Lee Anna Clark, who was Associate Provost of faculty during that same time period. Communication with Lee Anna Clark was most helpful in providing a historical perspective. She had complete records of minutes and other documents from the past. Although the EFC committee had originally intended to meet with UIRA in January 2013 to discuss the possible future structure of the two organizations, the committee decided that our organization should first discuss the matter within the EFC and at the Association of the Emeritus Faculty Annual Meeting May 13, 2013 before proceeding to a joint discussion with UIRA. Laird Addis suggested a tentative proposal to make the EFC a division within the University of Iowa Retirement Association. Nancy Williams, President of UIRA, offered to meet with EFC as the new structure evolves and give feedback as requested. She also remarked that after attending national meetings she became aware that other universities give greater support to their retirees than does the University of Iowa.

EFC-UIRA meeting with Foundation: Ray Muston, representing the EFC, and Nancy Williams, President of UIRA, met with Lynette Marshall, CEO of the University of Iowa Foundation. The primary purpose was to build a relationship of mutual interest. The Foundation is interested in broadening the participation of faculty and staff and retirees in supporting ongoing programs of the university. The EFC and UIRA are interested in developing a broader understanding of the role and value of retiree support of the University and its broader community.

Lynette Marshall prepared a preliminary breakdown of emeritus faculty and retiree participation and support of the foundation. While about 15 percent of active faculty and staff participate, emeriti faculty and staff do so at a rate of 25 to 30 percent. The data show that emeriti faculty and staff continue to be a vital group in the life of the university.

Lynette, Nancy and Ray concurred that it would be beneficial to meet again in the near future to focus on ways we can improve communication among our groups for mutual benefit. An immediate first step will be to provide highlights of the role of retirees in foundation support via the GreyHawk Newsletter.

Nomination Process: The nominating committee of Laird Addis, Kenn Hubel and Tom Weingeist had no report.

President’s Report: EFC President Gerald Rose emailed his thanks to Brenda Bradley and Kris Yow for their outstanding work on email registration of emeriti faculty. At least 117 have registered as of January 24, 2013. Follow up efforts are underway. A postcard will go out later. All faculty retirees are encouraged to register their email information at https://provost.uiowa.edu/apps/forms/Emeritusemail.aspx. If anyone does not know their University ID, just check the box “I do not know my UID” and then click on “Next” to proceed.

In an email report Gerald Rose reported on his discussion with Provost Butler. In summary, Provost Butler supports our efforts on e-communications and talks with UIRA. As Dean of Engineering, Provost Butler set up a scholarship in engineering for undergraduates funded by retired faculty contributions, a model we may want to encourage. He promised continued support of EFC and will encourage all deans to utilize retirees more fully at his next meeting with them.

Other business: Jack Rosazza reported that the program calendar was full through April, including the membership luncheon in May. It was the consensus of the group to not have a speaker for the monthly EFC meeting, May 6, 2013.

University committee reports: Laird Addis attended the December 4, 2012 Campus Planning Committee and reported the committee approved a project for replacing all of the windows in Trowbridge Hall with ones similar in appearance to its original windows. The committee also heard reports on the current status of the art campus master plan, of opportunities to improve bike access and sustainability, of the exterior renovation of Lindquist Center, of the naming of the gold training facility, of the development of the Family Medicine Center on Hawkeye campus, of the land use of the Oakdale Vivarium, of the demolition of Hawkeye Court apartments, and of the opening of the new Parking and Transportation Center.

Jack Rosazza met with Dean Donald Letendre, College of Pharmacy, to take a look at mutually beneficial roles that emeriti faculty, various colleges and departments and the University of Iowa might have with one another. A brief summary of that meeting is as follows:

In the world of advocacy emeriti possess knowledge and experience valuable to not only the University of Iowa, but to the legislature, the local community and to national entities. Finding ways to tap such knowledge and experience is needed. Creating a corps of “emeriti ambassadors” would be a good idea. The Pharmacy Advisory Council does not yet have an emeriti faculty member involved. The College of Pharmacy is in the midst of building development and Dean Letendre would enjoy inputs of interested and capable emeriti faculty. The question was whether this needed to be limited to Pharmacy. Emeriti faculties from other colleges on campus have worked in the development of their respective buildings and could deliver valuable insights into such a process. Pharmacy could contact EFC to ask for help. A volunteer coordinator for emeriti faculty could work collegiately or university wide. Producing a list of people/talents would be useful. Dean Letendre has reached out to emeriti Pharmacy faculty and engages them in an annual luncheon. Dean Letendre said that there appear to be no programs in other Colleges of Pharmacy that could offer hints on better ways for emeriti faculty and colleges to interact.

Guest Speaker: Brian Kaskie, Associate Professor, Heath Management and Policy, College of Public Health

Lorraine Dorfman introduced Professor Brian Kaskie who spoke on the topic “Successful Aging in Academic Institutions”. Selected highlights of the presentation:

He acknowledged the TIAA-CREF Institute for their support of the first phase of the project and the TIAA-CREF Institutional client services division for supporting the project through its second and third phases. In addition he thanked his colleagues at the UI Center on Aging and Social Science Research Center. In the first phase of the project, the goals were to establish a case for addressing the challenges and opportunities presented by an aging workforce; describe wellness programs and retirement pathways that universities and colleges have created for aging employees; and identify a set of leading institutions and best practices that can help meet the challenges presented by the aging workforce.

Between 2000 and 2010 the Bureau of Labor Statistics found that the proportion of employed individuals over the age of 65 was highest among tenured faculty. There was little evidence that academic institutions were thinking about how to address these challenges in a systematic way. The investigators developed a model for successful aging through a particular set of policies, programs and processes using five major constructs (campus climate, fitness and health, space and schedule accommodations, assistance programs and exit pathways.) Phase I of the study was to field a nationally representative sample of 187 academic institutions asking them to describe their institutional efforts in these areas. The strongest finding was that campuses which seemed to be doing the most for aging employees were more likely to have staff who were educated, experienced and dedicated to developing policies, programs and services for aging employees.

Phase II of the study was a survey of UI employees. The Family Issues Charter Committee approached the Center on Aging and asked the investigators to help with their charge to examine issues pertaining to parental-spousal caregiving. The UI Employee Survey examined 4 areas: attitudes and expectations; wellness programs; assistance programs (space and scheduling accommodations, retirement counseling, caregiver assistance) and retirement pathways. The survey was sent to all University employees (14,799) from May to July, 2012 and 3234 employees completed the survey for a 22% response rate. In general, most employees at Iowa plan to stay on the job past the traditional retirement age of 65 and 45% of faculty plan to stay at least to age 70. The second set of questions addressed wellness programs. Overall, awareness and engagement in fitness and health is high due in part to marketing and evaluation efforts associated with these programs. Awareness and involvement in assistance programs was lower than participation in wellness programs. For example, engagement with scheduling and work space accommodations (e.g. job sharing, part-time work) and retirement counseling are low. One-third of the UI employees who answered the survey are currently or have been recently involved in a caregiving role. Another one-third are about to enter a caregiving role. Caring for persons with dementia is common as was taking care of persons during and after an acute health care event. The emotional and physical burden is high and work life is impacted negatively for most. However, the awareness and engagement with UI and community programs is low.

The fourth set of questions concerned retirement pathways. There is a comparatively low amount of campus-based education. The most common way of learning about retirement pathways is from others both in and outside the work unit. Most people plan to stay in Johnson County upon retirement. Up to half realize their home will be hard to live in as they grow older.

Phase III of the study will involve a consortium of leaders addressing the aging academic workforce.

(The above summary was based on Brian Kaskie’s slide presentation as well as his notes that accompanied the presentation.)

Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 11:03 a.m.

March meeting: The next meeting will be Monday, March 4, 2013 at 9:30 a.m. in 2520B UCC. The meeting will be devoted to a discussion of the recommendations regarding the EFC relationship to UIRA.

Respectfully submitted,
Rose Friedrich

Meeting Minutes 2013

December 2, 2013

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, December 2, 2013 2520B UCC

November 4, 2013

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, November 4, 2013 2520C UCC

October 7, 2013

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, October 7, 2013 2520B UCC

September 9, 2013

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, September 9, 2013 2520B UCC

May 13, 2013 (Annual Meeting)

Minutes for the AEF Annual Meeting

May 13, 2013 2520D UCC

May 6, 2013

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, May 6, 2013 2520B UCC

April 1, 2013

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, April 1, 2013 2520B UCC

March 4, 2013

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, March 4, 2013 2520B UCC

February 4, 2013

Emeritus Faculty Council Minutes

Monday, February 4, 2013 2520B UCC

Monday, December 2, 2013
2520B UCC

Monday, November 4, 2013
2520C UCC

Monday, October 7, 2013
2520B UCC

Monday, September 9, 2013
2520B UCC

May 13, 2013
2520D UCC

Monday, May 6, 2013
2520B UCC

Monday, April 1, 2013
2520B UCC

Monday, March 4, 2013
2520B UCC

Monday, February 4, 2013
2520B UCC