March 6, 2026

Faculty Senate Minutes

President called the meeting to order at 1:00 p.m.

10 senators and the parliamentarian were present.

1. Call to order
2. Procedural Items
   1. Only items on the agenda will be discussed in the meeting
   2. Public Comment time is available for members of the public attending in person. Those wishing to sign up for public comment must arrive and sign up at least 5 minutes before the scheduled start Public comment is limited to 3 minutes per person. Comments will not be discussed at the meeting when they are raised but may be added as agenda items for future meetings.
3. President’s Report
   1. Bookstore Committee Report
      1. Pressure from publishers to move to either all print or all
      2. Will be determined by divisions
         1. Courses with online aspects (flex online or blended) will likely be only available as digital copies.
         2. Face-to-Face courses will need to have the option selected of all digital or all physical.
   2. Convocation
      1. Fall convocation will be in person only, no zoom
      2. Will check on options for Faculty Senate meeting or workshop as part of the convocation.
      3. Proposed date: Thursday, August
   3. Board of Trustees Meeting
      1. Approved new Associate of Applied Science degrees in Artificial Intelligence and Artificial Intelligence in Business.
      2. Approvals of furniture and facilities purchases for Waller campus and Brenham housing facilities.
      3. Housing occupancy and enrollment are
      4. Spring Graduation will be two
         1. Divided based on Division
         2. Both will be at the same location: Brenham High School
   4. Chancellor Chat indicates the Chancellor and Board see the college’s financial position as favorable.
4. DLAC report from Kristin Saltsman
   1. Discussion boards can have due dates
   2. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
      1. ADA, Title II
      2. Compliance deadline: April 24,
      3. Accessibility Starter Guide for Instructors available online
         1. https://support.blinn.edu/TDClient/277/Portal/KB/ArticleDet?ID=20330
      4. QM reviewed courses should meet the
      5. In-class handouts may need to be compared to law
         1. If also provided via eCampus for later reference or access by students, it must be accessible for ADA
      6. Verify third party publisher resources are
5. Old Business
   1. Minutes from February 6, 2026, approved with no
   2. Previously elected senators can be selected as an appointed senator by the Chancellor while ineligible for re-election.
   3. Still waiting for response regarding service points for attending graduation/pining ceremonies or student events.
6. New Business
   1. Suggestion to increase inclusion of faculty by using Town Hall style meetings between Division Senators and constituents to ensure representative role is filled.
      1. Verified this would fall within the law as there is no quorum present of Faculty
      2. Will depend on faculty involvement but may allow more enfranchisement and connection to the process.
   2. Renewed discussion about sharing AI policy between divisions and
   3. Service points change
      1. Full time faculty service point requirement reduced from 5 to
      2. Part time faculty do not require service points
      3. Eligible activities include:
         1. Volunteering to Tutor Students
         2. Volunteering to Mentor Students
         3. Volunteering to Mentor Faculty
         4. Serving on Departmental or College Committees
         5. Volunteering to Review Online Courses
      4. Serving as a Division Senator falls under “Serving on College Committees” for service points.
      5. Attendance at graduation and student events is under review by April Kinkead and Leighton Schubert
         1. Attendance requirements for these events may be determined by division leadership.
      6. Question: Are there ways to get lists of committees that need members that we could provide to faculty as options for fulfilling the service requirements?
         1. Suggestion: Check with Michelle
   4. Upcoming Meeting Schedule
      1. April 10, 2026
      2. Elections should be complete and elected senators announced at this meeting for Applied Technology, Workforce, and Economic Development; Math, Business, Engineering, and Technology; Humanities; and Social Sciences.
7. Adjourn

Meeting adjourned at 1:59 p.m.