WHEREAS the CSU administration has decided to impose YRO (Year -Round Operation) on the system; and
WHEREAS the time which the CSU Administration has allotted for phasing in YRO is extremely short, considering the magnitude of the changes that will be required; and
WHEREAS little of the critical information about YRO that is required for planning purposes is available at this time; and
WHEREAS in the absence of reliable information, rumors are circulating which may or may not be true, regarding such matters as whether all campuses will be required to convert to the semester system, whether all campuses will be required to adopt a uniform calendar, and whether inter-sessions will be eliminated; and
WHEREAS the autonomy of the campuses in the CSU is a long established principle, enshrined in the recently adopted Cornerstones document; and
WHEREAS the right of the faculties at the respective CSU campuses to establish their own calendars is another long-established principle, also enshrined in the recently adopted Cornerstones document as well as other controlling documents referenced below;
Therefore, be it
RESOLVED that the Academic Senate of Sonoma State University expresses its strong support for the faculties of campuses operating on the quarter system that do not wish to convert to the semester system; and be it further
RESOLVED that the Academic Senate of Sonoma State University expresses its strong support for the concept of individual campus autonomy; and be it further
RESOLVED that the Academic Senate of Sonoma State University expresses its strong support for the concept of individual campus control over its own calendar, as provided in controlling documents referenced below; and be it further
RESOLVED that that the Academic Senate of Sonoma State University expresses its strong support for the value of the concept of inter-sessions, and opposes any attempt from the system-wide level to eliminate them; and be it further
RESOLVED that that the Academic Senate of Sonoma State University commends the Academic Senate CSU for its resolution of 4-5 May 2000 which addressed these matters; and be it further
RESOLVED that copies of this resolution be transmitted to the Board of Trustees, and to the Academic Senates of the other CSU campuses urging them to adopt these or similar resolution clauses.
REFERENCES:
Principle Ten of the Cornerstones document, adopted by the CSU system in 1997, specifies:
The California State University campuses shall have significant autonomy in developing their own missions, identity, and programs, with institutional flexibility in meeting clearly defined system policy goals.
"Responsibilities of Academic Senates Within a Collective Bargaining Context," adopted by the Academic Senate CSU in May 1981 and adopted by Chancellor Ann Reynolds on February 9, 1983 states:
The academic senates/councils shall be consulted by campus presidents concerning . . . the academic calendar and policies governing the scheduling of classes. . .
"Collegiality in the California State University System," adopted by the Academic Senate CSU in March 1985, and supported in principle by the Board of Trustees in a statement issued in September 1985. The pertinent section reads:
Because the university's curriculum is of central concern to the faculty and because faculty have the primary responsibility in curricular decisions, it follows that faculty should have the major voice in the academic policy decisions which closely affect the curriculum, access to the curriculum, or the quality of the curriculum. All of the following are examples of academic policy: . . . (11) The academic calendar, including the first and last days of instruction and the scheduling of final examinations.