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New Mexico State University URC Minutes - March 23, 2001

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Present: Satya Krishnan, Stephen Horan, Nirmala Khandan, Karl Wood, Tracy Sterling, Dave Rocks, Jim Strickland, Elizabeth Titus, Vicente Garcia

Absent: Harold Matteson, Rudi Schoenmackers, William Gould, Shaun McQuitty, William Ogden, Stephen Bernhardt, Tim Pettibone, Naida Zucker, Margaret Jacobs, Betsy Cahill, Becky Keele-Smith, Kristine Derer, Gary Cunningham

Guests: None

1. Minutes of February 23, 2001

A motion was made by Dr. Wood and seconded by Dr. Strickland to approve the minutes. All were in favor

2. Finalize Focus Areas/Research Themes - Dr. Sterling

Input was requested and received from CORC to approve the memo to faculty regarding Collation of Faculty Input on University Research Themes. It was moved and seconded that the six focus areas be accepted as presented. A letter will be sent to Dr. Cunningham stating that URC approved the focus areas and acknowledging that CORC will take further action on the focus areas. The number of faculty respondents (50 out of 800 faculty) will be included in the content of the letter before it is distributed. Dr. Sterling thanked everyone for their help on the development of the research themes.

3. Update of Research Fair - Dr. Strickland

a. Announcements
The Research and Creative Activities Fair is confirmed for September 27, 2001 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The poster sessions will be held in Corbett Center ballrooms and presentations by 2-4 invited speakers will be held in the Dona Ana Room throughout the day. The committee will contact University Communications with the details of the Fair so that an announcement to recruit posters as well as state the facts of the Fair can be made this Spring. Cost of the Fair is estimated at $1,200. The College of Agriculture and Home Economics will rent poster boards for $15./day which they will set up and dismantle. Refreshments for morning and afternoon breaks will cost about $400. Because the rental of computer projectors is an expensive item ($25./hour), URC members volunteered to provide them for the day. An overhead projector and slide projector will also be available. There is no charge for use of the rooms in Corbett Center.

b. Selection of Judges for Research Awards
April 13 is the deadline for nominations for the Fort Bliss Federal Credit Union Faculty Award for Research and Creative Activity which must be reviewed before the end of April. A committee is established, but additional members are needed so that each college is represented. Dr. Sterling will contact Bill Gould and Naida Zucker to represent the Business College and Arts and Sciences. This committee will also review the URC Award for Exceptional Achievements in Creative Scholarly Activity in terms of its criteria.

4. Follow-up on Faculty Identified Issues - Dr. Strickland

Dr. Strickland moved that this item be tabled until there is a quorum present.

5. Nominations

Chair elect Steve Horan
Ex officio Elizabeth Titus
Faculty Rep (1 year appointment, attends executive meetings) Becky Keele Smith

6. Next Meeting

The next meeting will be April 27, 2001 in the Zuhl Library Associates Room, 2nd floor at 3:30 p.m. Dr. Cunningham will present a draft of the Flexible Faculty Appointments and Dr. Vipin Gupta will talk about the Binational Sustainability Laboratory being built on the U.S. Mexico Border.

7. Announcements and Other Business

Dr. Titus announced that the library would have a $751,000 book budget cut for FY 2002. She met with over 65 departmental faculty and representatives to inform them of serial cancellations by May 15. She, as well as representatives from Faculty Senate and ASNMSU, attended the Board of Regents meeting today to briefly address this issue. Faculty Senate is working on a memorial. In the next four weeks, every department on campus will be working with a specific library fund manager to make decisions for book budget cuts. The book budget cut represents about 26% of the total library fund budget and is based on a three-year expenditure average minus 5% across the board, with deeper cuts in approval plan lines. The serials budget cut varies with the disciplines, proportions, and electronic resources. The sciences represent a high proportion of the budget, especially in serials ($1 million). The inflation factor for FY 02 is predicted at 10% in all serials lines. Factors creating the budget problem include: 1) The library formula doesnt work for academic libraries; its based on enrollment and the library is not enrollment driven. 2) The library formula does not address the inflation factor. 3) The library formula does not address curricular differences and this is a high science campus. 4) The introduction of an electronic data base was never figured into the budget to respond to the new format. NMSU, the state, and the legislature must find a long-term solution which changes the nature of funding for the library. Dr. Strickland stated that URC previously discussed the indirect cost policy and may continue efforts to determine if it can be a source to aid library funding. As a Carneigie I Research Institute, funding for the library must be a priority.

The meeting adjourned at 4:15 p.m.

Minutes by Betty Lindsey