Faculty Senate Proposals

• ULO Proposal to Faculty Senate on 11/21/2025
• Faculty Pay Equity Proposal by the Faculty Senate - approved 11/21/2025
• FRAC Proposal 11/21/2025

ULO Proposal to Faculty Senate on 11/21/2025

University Learning Outcomes

 

Previous University Learning Outcomes:

 

1. Creative and Critical Thinking
   Students will demonstrate the creative and critical thinking skills needed to evaluate relevant information and/or ideas, formulate innovative strategies, and solve problems.
2. Communication
   Students will communicate effectively in social, academic, and professional contexts using a variety of means, including written, oral, numeric/quantitative, graphic, and/or visual modes as appropriate to topic, audience, and discipline.
3. Social and Civic Responsibility
   Students will understand the impact and consequences of their actions upon themselves and others, as well as their roles as citizens of a free democratic society.
4. Diversity and Globalization
   Students will be able to live and work effectively with others as an engaged member of a diverse and global society.

 

*Submitted through the A-State Shared Governance process and approved Spring 2017 (https://www.astate.edu/a/shared-governance/)

 

Proposed University Learning Outcomes:

 

1. Creative, Analytical, and Ethical Reasoning
   Students will apply creative and analytical thinking and ethical judgment to evaluate information, generate innovative solutions, and make well-reasoned decisions in both academic and real-world contexts.
2. Effective Communication & Digital Literacy
   Students will communicate clearly and effectively across multiple modalities (e.g., written, oral, visual, numeric) and be proficient in digital tools and information literacy to adapt to evolving professional, academic, and civic environments.
3. Global Awareness & Intercultural Competence
   Students will understand and engage with the interconnected nature of local and global systems, demonstrating the ability to collaborate across cultural, social, and geographical boundaries, and to address global challenges responsibly.
4. Civic and Social Responsibilities
   Students understand their responsibilities to, and influence on, their communities, society, and the environment, to promote ethical, sustainable, and fair outcomes.

 

*Revised and approved by the Accreditation and Assessment Committee on 11 November 2025. Submitted to SGOC on 13 November 2025.

Faculty Pay Equity Proposal by the Faculty Senate - approved 11/21/2025

Faculty Equity
Arkansas State University

approved on 11/21/2025

1. Purpose:

a. Arkansas State University recognizes that a commitment in maintaining competitive, equitable salaries is key in recruiting and retaining faculty at an R2 research institution.

b. Arkansas State University further recognizes that the faculty equity review process needs to be automatic, and the burden of an equity review process should not rest on the individual faculty member.

2. Definitions:

a. Faculty Salary Equity – Faculty within a given rank, with a similar time-in-rank, similar credentials, similar productivity over time, and qualifications, should be paid similarly and according to factors relevant to their academic position.

i. Inequities between, and productivity of, similarly ranked tenure and non-tenure track faculty should be considered when determining if an inequity exists. Care should be taken to minimize both salary compression (new faculty making significantly more than current experienced faculty—should be remedied by raising salary of the experienced faculty) and minimize any bias (explicit or implicit).

b. Equity Review – Automatic, systematic, statistical, and annual process of reviewing salaries and identifying salary inequities/pay gaps.

c. Faculty Equity Review Committee – Tenured faculty appointed by the dean with equal representation from each of the academic units subject to annual review.

d. Committee Structure

i. Three-year, staggered appointments.
ii. Equal time off the committee for prior members before reappointment.
iii. One tenured member appointed from each of the college/academic units represented. A representative may be non-tenured if an academic unit subject to review does not have tenured faculty.

3. Process:

a. Faculty at Arkansas State University shall have their salaries automatically reviewed annually.

i. The Provost and EVCAA will make a good faith effort to annually increase the availability of funds to address faculty salary inequities.
ii. HR will provide faculty under review with salary, most current CUPA Data, which grouping of CUPA data is utilized for review, etc. to each faculty member under review. HR will also find a secure location within the A-State website wherein faculty can check their equity status.
iii. If inequities are found, the faculty will be listed according to size of inequity and made equitable according to available funds. In the case of a tie in the amount needed to become equitable, the faculty with the lower base salary will be placed higher on the list.

b. The increases applied for equity shall not impact the faculty members ability to receive merit pool funds or COLA, if available, in the same fiscal/academic year.

c. If a faculty member believes they have a salary inequity outside of the review process, they may submit for and independent review by the DPRTC and Faculty Equity Review Committee by providing appropriate documentation that an inequity exists in their situation. If the committee chooses to review the decision, they will ask for the same information used by the Provost to make their decision. Upon review, if the committee disagrees with the decision, the committee will generate a letter as to why the committee disagrees.

d. Faculty receiving tenure or promotion, along with a raise for the promotion, are not eligible for an automatic review in the year of tenure or promotion.

4. Methodology for Equity Review:

a. Faculty under review or upon request for review, shall have their salaries compared internally to the current CUPA Data available to Arkansas State University, and to peer and aspirant institutions.

i. Arkansas State University realizes its faculty are outstanding and thus the institution will strive for as close to full CUPA equity as possible given resource constraints.
ii. Review of faculty will occur in the fall semester by December 15 of a given fiscal year; results provided in the spring semester by April 15 of a given fiscal year; salary adjustment will be applied during the next fiscal year.

 

FRAC Proposal 11/21/2025

RESOLUTION: MODIFICATION TO FACULTY RESEARCH AWARDS COMMITTEE (FRAC) STRUCTURE AND TERMS

REVISED: November 24, 2025

Dear Faculty Senate Committee:                                                                             

Please accept this resolution to extend the length of Faculty Research Awards Committee (FRAC) appointment terms and to modify the process in which members of the committee are appointed. To align the committee’s representation with the colleges that house tenure-track faculty (Agriculture, Business, Education and Behavioral Science, Engineering & Computer Science, Liberal Arts and Communication, Nursing and Health Professions, Sciences and Mathematics, and Veterinary Medicine), we propose removing the current Chair’s council position on FRAC and adding the College of Veterinary Medicine. This shift allows for equitable representation so that the committee members can adequately advocate for the proposals from their units.

We also propose establishing staggered, three-year appointment terms to ensure the committee’s sustained experience with the grant-making process. The committee is currently on a two-year appointment rotation at a 1:1 ratio, on average, of first- and second-year appointees. This constant turnover prevents the committee from further streamlining its processes and, hereby, alleviating the learning curve new committee members experience when reviewing proposals. Adding a year to the appointment term would allow for more exposure in this area and serve their own grant-writing experience when they see how others interpret the work of their peers and what makes for a compelling proposal.

This initiative will not only enhance committee members’ readiness for participation on federal agency review panels but also grow the A-State research community’s knowledge base. As we grow institutional capacity for research, extending FRAC committee appointments to three years will support this objective.

Moreover, we propose that FRAC committee member rotations are staggered in a way that allows for two or three new appointees each academic year. This means that five to six of the eight committee members are continuing their term of service when two to three of them have completed it.  An example of this is shown below.

	AY 2025-2026	AY 2026-2027	AY 2027-2028	AY 2028-2029
Group 1 (Members A, B, C)	Year 1/3	Year 2/3	Year 3/3	New appointees Year 1/3
Group 2 (Members D, E)	Year 2/3	Year 3/3	New appointees Year 1/3	Year 2/3
Group 3 (Members F, G, H)	Year 3/3	New appointees Year 1/3	Year 2/3	Year 3/3

As Faculty Senate meets to confirm committee appointments, we propose implementing a process that allows the deans to provide input for their representatives prior to Senate voting. The Deans understand the research interests of their colleges and can make nominations for FRAC that protect those interests and move research forward in their colleges.

In our proposed model, Faculty Senate approaches the Deans (two to three Deans each year, on rotation) at the beginning of the academic year to request their nominations of research-active faculty for new three-year appointments. These nominations are brought to the next Faculty Senate meeting for confirmation. The Faculty Senate President sends the next rotation of appointees to the Associate Dean of the Library for dissemination to the responsible parties.

Finally, we propose that there is one representative from each college on the committee, for a total of nine committee members.  The Chair will be selected by the committee and must complete at least one year of service on the committee prior to selection. 

In conclusion, we are proposing:

• Restructuring committee membership to remove Chair’s council representation and adding a representative from the College of Veterinary Medicine
• Staggered appointment terms with two - three new appointees each academic year
• Increasing appointment terms from two to three years
• Dean endorsement of college representatives
• Chair selection by the committee

We are seeking Faculty Senate’s endorsement on these changes and a vote to implement this process effective immediately.

Sincerely,

Travis D. Marsico, Ph.D.
Vice Provost for Research, Innovation, and Discovery
Executive Director of the Arkansas Biosciences Institute

 

Vicent Moreno, Ph.D.
Chair, Department of English & Philosophy
Chair, Department of World Languages & Cultures
Chair, Faculty Research Awards Committee, 2024 - 2026