Tuesday, September 1, 2026

3:30 – 5:15 pm
Seminar Room (2520D), University Capitol Centre

I.   Call to Order – President Curto called the meeting to order at 3:30 pm. 
 

II.  Approvals

A.      Meeting Agenda – President Curto noted that one more committee appointment was added after the agenda was sent out. Professor Bassuk moved and Professor Carlisle seconded that the revised agenda be approved. The motion carried unanimously. 

B.      Faculty Council Minutes (April 14, 2026) – Professor Vogel moved and Professor Thomas seconded that the minutes be approved. The motion carried unanimously.

C.      Draft Faculty Senate Agenda (September 15, 2026) – President Curto indicated that changes may be made to the draft agenda prior to the Senate meeting. A final version will be approved at the meeting. Professor Walker moved and Professor Vogel seconded that the draft agenda be approved. The motion carried unanimously. 

D.      Committee Appointments (Sarah Vigmostad, Chair, Committee on Committees) –Professor Cunning moved and Professor Williams seconded that the committee appointments be approved. The motion carried unanimously. 

• Emma Erner (Pharmacy) to fill the unexpired term of Mary Schroeder (Pharmacy) on the Faculty Senate, 2026-29
• Kristine Arens (Business Analytics) to fill the unexpired term of Jaron Wilde (Accounting) on the Faculty Senate, 2026-28
• Jonathan Platt (Epidemiology) to replace William Story (Community and Behavioral Health) on the Faculty Senate, Fall 2026
• Rachel Maassen (Obstetrics and Gynecology) to fill the unexpired term of Scott Spak (Planning and Public Affairs) on the Campus Planning Committee, 2026-27
• Brandon Dean (Classics and Religious Studies) to replace Nicole Esposito (Music) on the Council on Teaching, Fall 2026

III.    New Business 

• Introductions

At this first meeting of the academic year, Officers and Councilors introduced themselves. Senior Vice Provost Barry Thomas, who was in the audience, introduced himself, as well. 
              

• Orientation (Roxanna Curto)  

President Curto provided a brief orientation to shared governance at the University of Iowa. She began by citing a definition posted on the University of Iowa Shared Governance Portal:

Shared Governance is a collaborative decision process between University administration, faculty, staff, and students, all working together to advance the mission of the University as a community dedicated to excellence in teaching, scholarship, and service. She noted that this concept of shared governance allows for building community across the university as well as creating a shared sense of ownership for decision making. Through shared governance, we are able to engage in vigorous debate without diminishing our sense of community. The four university-wide shared governance bodies are Faculty Senate/Faculty Council, Staff Council, Graduate and Professional Student Government (GPSG), and Undergraduate Student Government (USG). The presidents of the four governance bodies meet monthly to discuss issues of concern to their constituencies. Administrators sometimes invite the four leadership groups to important meetings and events; for example, today President Curto and Vice President Vigmostad participated in an orientation meeting with new members of the Iowa Board of Regents. 

Faculty Senate and Faculty Council are the two main governance bodies for faculty at the university level, President Curto continued. She observed that many colleges have some form of faculty shared governance, as well. Interaction occasionally occurs between the university-level and collegiate-level shared governance bodies, such as at the annual Faculty Council/Administrative Retreat, to which leaders of collegiate faculty shared governance bodies are invited. The Faculty Senate represents approximately 2900 faculty members from the tenure, clinical, research, and instructional tracks. The Senate is comprised of about 80 representatives elected at large from within the 10 academic colleges, with delegation sizes based on collegiate faculty population. Collegiate faculty also elect the 18 members of the Council from among the Senators in their delegations. 

The Senate was established decades ago to serve as the principal channel for communication between faculty and central administrators. This crucial function of two-way communication must be preserved. Councilors and Senators are urged to bring forward faculty concerns from their colleges, as well as to disseminate information to their constituents. Another important function of the Council and Senate is to participate in the policy creation and review process. The Council functions as the executive committee of the Senate. With its smaller size, the Council is able to engage in in-depth discussions of current issues, while the larger Senate is better able to play a role in disseminating information to faculty. 

Turning to the role of the Senate officers, President Curto explained that the Committee on Elections is responsible for identifying candidates for officer positions from among current, past, and newly-elected Senators. Officer elections are held at the last Senate meeting of the spring semester. The most important task of the officers is to advocate for faculty voices and input to be solicited, heard, and respected. The officers also attend regular meetings with the university president, provost, and other senior leaders; engage with Regents leadership, membership, and staff; interact and collaborate with the leadership of other shared governance groups; coordinate periodic reviews of central academic offices and their leadership; and serve as ex-officio members on Senate policy and rules committees.  

A variety of standing committees have been created to conduct the Senate’s work. The Faculty Policies and Compensation Committee, for example, is active throughout the academic year, analyzing and providing feedback on new and revised university-wide policies impacting faculty, before those policies come to the Council and Senate for consideration. Other committees carry out components of Senate business, such as the Committee on Elections, which is active primarily during the spring semester. Service on Senate committees is open to anyone eligible for election to Senate; Senate membership is not required. Senate-eligible faculty members can also apply to serve on charter and non-charter committees. Another branch of shared governance, charter and non-charter committees are comprised of varying combinations of faculty, staff, and students and focus on aspects of the university, such as campus planning, teaching, parking and transportation, and research. A recruitment drive is held each spring to fill vacancies on Faculty Senate, charter, and non-charter committees. 

Professor Datchuk asked how COGS (Campaign to Organize Graduate Students) fits into the UI shared governance landscape. President Curto commented that the level of interaction with COGS depends on the particular issue under consideration.

• Faculty Council/Administrative Retreat Summary and Follow-up (Roxanna Curto)

President Curto reminded the group that this year’s retreat, held August 20, had focused on Shared Governance at Iowa and Beyond: Past, Present, and Future. The event had opened with a reflection by President Wilson on the lessons she had learned about shared governance across her career. President Curto had then presented background on the evolution of the Faculty Senate at UI, along with an overview of faculty shared governance at Regent institutions and Big Ten peers. Three table exercises had brought participants together for small group discussions on the topics of collegiate-level shared governance, shared governance and academic freedom, and the future of shared governance. 

Councilors then paired up to consider these two questions: What was something your table discussed at the retreat that feels like it would warrant continued conversations? and What was one thing that you learned at the retreat from another college or an administrator that informed your work?

Following a few minutes of conversation, Councilors shared feedback. Many Councilors commented that they had learned how very different the various collegiate shared governance bodies are. On a related issue, they discussed how a college’s size and shared governance structure might impact the ways information acquired at Senate meetings could be conveyed to collegiate faculty. Several Councilors expressed appreciation for President Curto’s presentation about Senate history and peer institution governance. While the Senate engages in shared governance at the highest level, the relevance of shared governance at more local levels, such as in departments, was noted.  

• Review of Division of Student Life Update (Craig Just, Chair, Division of Student Life Review Committee)

Past President Just indicated that the Division of Student Life (DSL) is currently undergoing review as part of an established seven-year cycle of administrative reviews. The Faculty Senate conducts administrative reviews in consultation with the Office of the President. Information about the DSL review, such as review committee members and the anticipated process, can be found on this Senate webpage. Past President Just reported that interviews with key DSL constituents are already underway. The review committee was recently given a tour of the IMU, which is in the midst of renovations to provide centralized space for student health and well-being facilities, as part of a major DSL initiative. Past President Just commented that the completed review report will focus on areas of strength or praise and on areas warranting further review or potential improvement. He emphasized the collaborative spirit with DSL in which the review is being conducted. Interviews are projected to be completed in mid-October, with the review process likely concluded by early December.

In response to a question, Past President Just indicated that the review committee is currently planning on sending a survey to a select group of recipients, not only to allow them to expand upon comments made in interviews, but also to gather feedback from individuals who were not interviewed. Vice President Vigmostad advocated for speaking with leaders of student organizations. Past President Just encouraged Councilors to put forth suggestions of other individuals or groups for interviews. Professor McGonagill asked to what extent feedback would be gathered from graduate and professional students. Past President Just responded that the leaders of the Graduate and Professional Student Government are scheduled to be interviewed. He concluded his comments by indicating that, in addition to the public review report of the DSL, the review committee would write a confidential review report of the Vice President of Student Life; this confidential report would be seen only by President Wilson. Both reports are required by the Policy Manual. President Curto noted that positive changes often emerge as a result of the public review reports.   

• President’s Report (Roxanna Curto)

President Curto had earlier sent the following report to Councilors:

• Faculty Senate officers met with Regents Robert Cramer and Kurt Tjaden during the Board of Regents meeting held in Iowa City in June.
• President Barbara Wilson’s contract has been renewed by the Board of Regents until June 30^th, 2030.
• Vice President Vigmostad hosted a table at New Faculty Orientation and spoke with incoming faculty about shared governance at Iowa.
• Barry Thomas is assuming the position of Senior Vice Provost. A search was conducted for an Associate Provost for Faculty and the results will be announced soon.
• Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer Terry Johnson has announced his retirement. A search committee to name a Vice President for Finance to replace him has been formed with representation from the Senate.
• The administrative review of the Division of Student Life and the Vice President for Student Life has begun. The committee is chaired by Past President Craig Just.
• This year, we will undertake a revision of the Faculty Senate constitution to bring it up to date with current practices.
• The university is working on revising its budget model. Modifications to the existing model will be announced during the fall semester.
• Undergraduate Student Government is organizing a shared governance event that will take place on October 5^th in the evening. 
• Several committees will begin meeting in the coming weeks to discuss Senate business: Faculty Policies and Compensation, Academic Values, and Rules and Bylaws.

• Executive Session

Professor Datchuk moved and Professor Vogel seconded that the Faculty Council move into executive session. The motion carried unanimously. 

 Councilors discussed general education courses, program closures, and efficiency initiatives. 

Professor Datchuk moved and Professor Cunning seconded that the Faculty Council move out of executive session. The motion carried unanimously. 

IV.     From the Floor – Professor Thomas asked for guidance on communicating with constituents about Council and Senate activity. President Curto responded that Councilors should feel free to share the president’s report and the newsletter that comes out after each Senate meeting. Otherwise, the Senate officers are still working on identifying communication strategies and therefore welcome suggestions. 

V.       Announcements   

• The next Faculty Senate meeting will be Tuesday, September 15, 3:30 – 5:15 pm, Senate Chamber, Old Capitol. 

• The next Faculty Council meeting will be Tuesday, October 13, 3:30-5:15 pm, Executive Boardroom (2390), University Capitol Centre.

   

VI.     Adjournment – Professor Walker moved and Professor McGonagill seconded that the meeting be adjourned. The motion carried unanimously. President Curto adjourned the meeting at 5:10 pm.