Name of Committee: Health and Safety Committee
Current Committee Members (please indicate chair and any other officers):
Elizabeth Brown
Maritza Davila
Susan Maakestad
Remy Miller
Haley Morris-Cafiero (Co-Chair)
Bill Price
Cynthia Thompson
Leandra Urrutia
Cathy Wilson
Ken Houk
Carla Ruffer
Jonathan Welden (Co-Chair)
Part 1: MCA Faculty Handbook Description
1) The 2011-2012 MCA Handbook includes the following description of the Committee:
In the 2011-2012 MCA Handbook under the subheading “Standing Committees” (p. E10) the following description is available:
Health and Safety – Establishes and enforces policies and procedures for the safe operation of all academic facilities.
2a) In the opinion of the committee, does the handbook description accurately describe the function, purpose, and membership of the committee? Please explain.
The committee feels that the handbook description is in need of revision. The function is still on target, but the purpose should be updated to reflect where the college currently stands in regard to the use of safe practices, becoming more responsible environmentally, and how this may impact the community at large. In addition the composition of the committee needs to be addressed.
2b) Please suggest changes/edits/rewrites for the Handbook description of your committee. If the Handbook does not currently include a description for your committee, please write one. (Answers to this section of the self-study are suggestions only. They are intended to help the faculty move toward Handbook revisions, but they should be regarded as draft versions at this stage. Please don’t spend an inordinately long time trying to craft the perfect description—they can be changed and edited as we go through the process.)
The Health and Safety Committee, composed of appropriate faculty and staff, is responsible for the establishment of policies and methods that promote safe and environmentally responsible practices both physically and pedagogically throughout MCA and within the Memphis community.
Part 2: Committee Charge, Duties, and Goals
1) Does the committee operate under a clearly stated committee “charge” (that is, a statement of purpose explaining what the committee is charged with doing on behalf of the faculty or college—this may be different from the catalog description of the committee)? Is this charge written down and made available to the members of the committee and the college community at large? Please explain. (If you feel that the current catalog description or any revision to the description that you made above functions adequately as a charge, please say so).
During the past four years, the college actively sought to address issues of health and safety introduced in voluntary audits requested of EPA and OSHA. Although a formal college-wide committee did not meet, individual faculty worked together in their departments to resolve EPA and OSHA issues with the assistance of the Facilities Director and EPA Coordinator. These issues were also brought before the entire faculty at regularly scheduled faculty meetings and through email. The college is now compliant with these audits. At this time the committee would like to change it’s purpose and create additional goals that allow for the creation of new environmentally proactive policies, in addition to ensuring that MCA remains EPA and OSHA compliant.
2) Does the committee maintain a set of specific duties? Are these written down? If a set of such duties exists (written down or in the minds of the chair or other members of the committee), please list them here. (In other words, what is the committee specifically responsible for? What does the committee do?)
In the past few years, the focus of the committee has been to help all faculty members maintain safe practices and also become compliant with EPA and OSHA guidelines on a voluntary basis. This was accomplished through emails, small group meetings, and faculty meeting announcements. As the committee transitions to a larger group, duties will be more clearly delineated in early 2012.
3) Does the committee have a set of goals (short and/or long-term)? If so, please list them and briefly explain the process the committee used to arrive at these goals.
The Environmental Policy outlines a set of goals that the committee will begin to investigate ways of making each one happen.
4) Other than verbal reports at faculty meetings, does the committee make reports in verbal or written form to the faculty or administration? How often are these reports made? Where are written reports housed and are they available to other members of the college community?
No reports currently exist. When the committee becomes more active, the reports will be kept in Jonathan Welden’s office.
5) Please add any additional comments about the charge, duties, and goals of the committee.
Part 3: Committee Membership
1a) To the best of the committee’s knowledge, how are faculty members of the currently committee chosen?
The Dean and Faculty Representative presented last year’s Faculty Assignments at a faculty meeting on Sept. 15. The faculty voted to keep assignments consistent with the exception of changes needed to address new faculty and faculty who had left the college. It was agreed that most positions should be maintained. Current members of the committee were chosen as the people responsible for areas (studios, housing, woodshop) that have active engagement in handling, storing and/or disposing of hazardous materials. The faculty was asked for their input (Sept 15 email from Faculty Representative, Ellen Daugherty, and a new assignment grid for all committees was presented to the faculty via email from the Faculty Representative on Sept. 21.
1b) If it is not explicitly stated in the description/rules/by-laws of the committee, how do you think the members of the committee should be chosen?
Members should be chosen based on their working environments and their interest in the carbon reducing measures of the college. Any broad EPA/OSHA policy changes are communicated to committee to be disseminated to their areas.
2a) Do the faculty members on the committee have limited terms of service?
Committee appointments are made yearly. However, most positions remain the same year-to year due to teaching assignments where specific faculty members are actively engaged in compliance with EPA and OSHA mandates.
2b) If it is not explicitly stated in the description/rules/by-laws of the committee, should there be terms of service? Please explain.
No. As the engagement with hazardous materials requires compliance with certain laws and engagement with college community to insure college-wide management of the materials, the term of service for the members is not finite.
3) Does the current committee membership structure make sense? Is the committee too big, too small, the right size? Please explain.
At present the committee size appears to be appropriate to meet the needs of the college. As the needs of the college change, the committee structure will be adapted.
4a) Does the committee as it currently exists have faculty members from each of the Divisions of the College? If so, do you feel (or is it a requirement of the committee) that it always have representation from each of the Divisions?
The committee does not currently have any faculty members from liberal studies or the design arts division. The committee will solicit interested faculty to join once goals and duties are clarified.
4b) If the Committee does not include members from each Division, should it? Please explain.
It is not necessary to have all divisions represented. However, additional members have the potential to better inform the committee on issues such as technology, grant writing or simply to bring a different perspective to the group.
5a) If there are administrators on the committee (according to Dean Strickland’s committee grid), explain their role(s).
There are no administrators on the committee.
5b) If administrators are members of the committee, do you feel that their roles are necessary? In other words, does the committee feel that administrators should be members of the committee? Please explain.
N/A
6a) If there are staff members on the committee, explain their role(s).
Director of Physical Plant, Jonathan Welden, is the Co-Chair of the committee, Carla Ruffer and Kenny Houk.
6b) If staff are members of the committee, do you feel that their roles are necessary to the successful functioning of the committee? Please explain.
Yes. All staff members involved are pivotal for success. Jonathan Welden is responsible for changes and maintenance to properties owned by the college and is therefore aware of current projects, budget and plans related to facilities. Jonathan also works with Haley Morris-Cafiero to stay up to date on EPA and OSHA regulations to guarantee MCA’s continued compliance. Kenny Houk is responsible for the shop and safety in this area is critical. Carla Ruffer directs Student Life and student safety/ wellbeing are major concerns of her position.
7) To what extent are the decisions of your committee autonomous? In other words, do you make decisions that do not go to the full faculty for approval? Or do you make recommendations that then must be approved by the faculty or others? Please explain.
MCA faculty, staff and students are currently in the process of reviewing policies related to health and safety.
8) Please add any additional comments related to membership, committee structure, the appointment or election of members, participation of non-faculty members, etc.
None.
Part 4: Committee Meetings and Time Commitment
1a) On average, how many times per semester does your committee meet? Please indicate if the number of meetings varies by semester and explain why.
Committee meetings have been held once per semester. As the committee becomes more active, it is anticipated that meetings will be held 4 times per semester.
1b) Is there a set meeting schedule (e.g., once monthly, bi-weekly, etc)? If not, how does the committee determine if a meeting is necessary and who calls the meeting?
1c) If there is no set meeting schedule, do you think that there should be a set meeting schedule or a minimum number of meetings for your committee per semester? Please explain.
1d) How long is the average meeting?
One hour.
2) In general, how many hours of commitment per semester does this committee require of members?
10-15 hours.
3a) Does the committee take minutes, keep notes, or otherwise track and archive the activities of the committee?
Yes.
3b) If you do keep minutes, where are they housed? Can other faculty (or administrators) not on your committee look at these minutes easily?
Minutes are kept for the committee and may be located in the Director of Facilities office. Other faculty (or administrators) may have access to these minutes via email, phone request or by setting up an appointment.
4) Please add any additional comments on committee meetings and the time commitment required of faculty on this committee.
None.
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