December 1, 2020 Minutes

Council of Department Chairs

In attendance: Curtis Bennett, Barbara Taylor, Chris Brazier, Andreas Bill, Babette Benken, Christine Whitcraft, Lisa Martin, Margaret Karteron, Dessie Underwood, Rick Behl, Kris Slowinski, Will Murray, Henry Wu, Allie Puz.

NOTE: THESE MINUTES REFLECT DISCUSSIONS THAT HAPPENED ON THE DATE OF THESE MINUTES.  DUE TO THE COVID-19 SITUATION, THINGS ARE RAPIDLY CHANGING.  FOR OFFICIAL POLICY PLEASE WAIT FOR DOCUMENTS FROM THE APPROPRIATE OFFICES.

  1. Approve agenda (10:00)
  2. Approve minutes from Nov. 17; approved as amended.
  3. Announcements
    1. ASM
    2. Operations
      1. Mid-February 2021 date on RSCA awards.
      2. End of Semester Celebration in planning stage.
        1. Looking for a more social virtual option.
      3. Nominations for Outstanding Awards are under review by ORSP.
    3. Tech Report (David Goulet – Time Certain 10:30)
      1. Inventory
        1. Campus is rolling out an asset management system for newly purchased computers that will draw data from existing services. As such we will need to slightly alter how devices are purchased.
          1. Apple – For new purchases:
            1. Process:
              1. Work with a college technician for all Apple purchases (David Goulet, Thuy Nguyen, or Dan Pankratz.).
            2. Info:
              1. Devices should be enrolled in Apple School Manager (ASM), formerly called Device Enrollment Program (DEP), and Jamf, an Apple mobile device management platform.
              2. This is done at purchase by the vender, so techs need to be directly involved to provide ASM account information to the vendor and coordinate with DoIT so the device is assigned to the proper college, division, or department.
                1. Apple devices must be purchased through 49er Shops, CDWG, or Apple.
            3. Purpose:
              1. Enables enterprise management features (provides similar functionality to Active Directory and SCCM automation like with Windows).
              2. Creates a record of the device serial number.
              3. Installs antivirus automatically and keeps it up to date.
              4. Encrypts the hard drive and backs up the key in case of loss.
              5. Creates the Red Folder to comply with CSU-wide policy.
              6. For lab computers, software can be automatically deployed, updated, or removed in bulk.
          2. PCs – Same processes as always.
            1. Purpose:
              1. Devices must be setup in Active Directory.
              2. This must be done by a campus technician prior to first use and again after factory resets or wipes.
            2. Process:
              1. Work with college or department techs to set up new properly and check existing devices periodically.
      2. Security/Privacy
        1. Encryption – will create a how-to on this topic for faculty and staff to do at home.
          1. All laptops, regardless of operating system, must be encrypted.
          2. Desktops must be encrypted prior to leaving campus, but unrealistic to bring those already out back.
        2. Antivirus
          1. All computers must have antivirus.
            1. Windows 10 has built-in antivirus that is very effective and is updated automatically.
              1. Please do not use third-party free antivirus programs.
            2. All Macs must have Symantec Endpoint Manager installed.
              1. For existing Macs, contact a tech with the version of MacOS running.
              2. For new Macs, this is installed and updated automatically by Jamf; no action is required.
        3. Operating System Versions
          1. All Macs used for university business must be on MacOS 10.14 Mojave or newer – go to “About this Mac” under the Apple icon menu to see version.
          2. All Windows 10 machines must be running Version 1909 or newer – type “winver” in Windows Search to see current version.
        4. Devices must be wiped by a technician before being reassigned to other faculty, staff, or students.
          1. Work with your college or department techs on equipment distribution.
      3. Apple Updates
        1. New Software
          1. MacOS 11.0.1 Big Sur was finally released – already addressed via email.
            1. David Goulet is testing this on his work Mac.
              1. No issues so far other than some tech tools.
              2. Same limitations as MacOS Catalina (no 32-bit application support).
              3. David Goulet recommends that users stay on MacOS Mojave at this time for essential machines.
        2. New Hardware
          1. Apple is releasing new Macs with new “Apple Silicon” CPUs, starting the M1 CPU
            1. David Goulet strongly recommends that these do NOT be purchased at this time.
              1. Existing software compiled for intel CPUs is not compatible.
                1. At this time, Microsoft Offices, Adobe Creative Cloud, nor any other campus software is natively compatible.
                2. Common tools like HomeBrew are not yet compatible.
                3. Windows Bootcamp is no longer supported.
                4. Hypervisors, such as VMWare Fusion, Parallels, and Virtual Box are not yet compatible.
                5. David Goulet has ordered one. Send him an email if you would like him to test specific software. David will make a list and publish it somewhere.
      4. Campus/College Resources Survey
        1. Research Survey
          1. Purpose: Identify what is used, why or why not, and better work with campus to fill gaps and meet needs.
          2. Possible question topics:
            1. Usage of:
              1. High Performance Computing (HPC) cluster.
              2. Student Virtual Labs (SVL).
            2. What is it used for? Why or why not?
            3. What software is used for research? (i.e. R, Python, Anaconda, etc.)
      5. CNSM Technical Services Sharepoint – Still in planning stage
        1. Content:
          1. Guidelines, best practices, shortcuts to campus resources, video walkthroughs, etc.
        2. Please let David Goulet know what information would be helpful.
    4. Academic Senate
      1. Academic Dishonesty Policy may be completed soon.
      2. Resolution regarding Ethnic Studies will be under discussion soon.
        1. Review the Resolution and give feedback to senators by tomorrow.
    5. Dean’s report
      1. Research
        1. Trying to keep the labs open at current conditions as long as possible.
        2. Must be careful of essential work on weekends and holidays.
          1. Not permitted, except for absolutely essential work, during times when the university/campus is closed (e.g. Christmas, New Year’s, etc.).
      2. RTP
        1. Other CSUs have included special considerations for RTP process:
          1. Provosts have included a mention of the COVID situation and asked for leniency.
          2. Faculty can write a COVID impact statement.
          3. Addendums to RTP documents.
        2. Discussion:
          1. A statement from College Council would be helpful
          2. Consider extenuating circumstances on a department-by-department basis and making addendums to departmental RTP documents.
          3. Come up with a generic statement empowering committees, chairs, and the dean to address the COVID situation/any relevant hardships achieving expected guidelines in their files.
          4. Chairs to discuss RTP addendums with department faculty.
  4. Associate Deans
    1. Academic Programs
      1. Planning for No-Print Courses, Week 1 Enrollment Management (Time Certain, Vanessa, [10:45])
        1. When asked about flexibility in adding courses (specifically for rolling courses out during SOAR and removing department consent requirements once certain courses are filled up). For situations where we hold certain courses with the purpose of opening them up later, the recommendation is to use no-print.
          1. Beginning in Fall 2021, during the schedule building process, department coordinators should code these courses in no-print, submit a list of those courses to Vanessa by the end of Phase 3 (Feb. 12, 2021), and they will be reviewed.
        2. Placing courses with department consent prior to the first week.
          1. Submit a list of courses to the college for review by December 15, 2020 so that they can be coded for Spring 2021.
          2. Each course must have justification as to why it needs department consent starting the first week of instruction.
          3. Encouraged to use reserved seating code, if possible.
      2. Updates
        1. Course Withdrawals
          1. Collegewide average is 5%.
          2. If particular sections have high withdrawal rates, consider following up at the department level.
      3. EAB tools for Enrollment Planning/Discussion on Additional Data Needs
        1. EAB can help you monitor enrollment to a greater extent.
          1. Allows you to look at sequences of courses, as well as sub-categories of students enrolled and not enrolled in particular courses.
          2. Allows you to monitor course drops and repeats while evaluating student/course success, course demand, number of students expected to graduate, etc.
          3. Searches are sensitive to position in sequence of courses.
    2. Research
      1. Edison STEM-NET Applications
        1. Due to the Dean and Barbara by December 11, 2020.
      2. Research Access under new stay-at-home
        1. As of now, new stay-at-home order for LA County does not appear to have any effect on our research.
        2. Be aware of faculty asking to come in on weekends.
      3. Departmental Vehicles in Lot E7 Need to be Removed
        1. Remove by the end of the week.
    3. Graduate
      1. Update on International Students
        1. No change from Fall 2020 to Spring 2021 for existing international students.
        2. If you have M.S. students who are starting in Spring 2021 and desire to seek a visa to enter the U.S., they will need to have at least 1 unit of a hybrid class.
          1. Or they can continue fully online from the country they are in and apply for a visa to Fall 2021.
  5. Picture a Scientist and Anti-Racism Reading Group
    1. Picture a Scientist will tentatively be schedule for the last Friday in January 2021.
    2. Anti-Racism Reading Group will tentatively begin in February 2021.
  6. Other Business
    1. Ask CNSM faculty if they have interest or could benefit from some sort of VR instruction.

Upcoming Dates:

Mar. 19: 9am-1pm ORSP Virtual Research Competition
Apr. 5-9: CSULB Week of RSCA
Apr. 9(?): Nobel Prize Lecture