UNL Staff Senate Meeting
Date: 14 September 2023
Location: Swanson Auditorium, Nebraska Union, 2:30-4:00 pm
Note: These are not verbatim minutes. They are a summary of the discussions at the full Staff Senate meeting as corrected by those participating. These are provisional and subject to change until approved at the November meeting.
The meeting was called to order at 2:30
Land acknowledgement reading
Consent Agenda
- Minutes from May 11, 2023: Meeting minutes approved from May.
- Approval of today’s agenda – No corrections Motion passed.
- Committee Reports – none offered for consent.
Officer Reports
President, Sara Haake
Chancellor Bennett was unable to attend today due to conflicts in his schedule, but we hope to have attend an upcoming meeting. Sara and Joann met with Josh Davis, the Chancellor’s Chief of Staff.
Defining our Senate: We are in the process of finding our way and our voice as a senate. This will take some time. We are also attempting to raise awareness of the Senate. The Communications Committee is working on a template for a quarterly letter that is sent out to all staff. The Liaison Committee has been working on making sure that we have representation on university-wide committees.
The Employee Wellness Fair is Tuesday, October 17th from 8-11 am. A sign-up sheet will be made available to the Staff Senate so that members can sign up to help staff the table.
District interactions: Some districts are working well and moving forward
Parliamentary Procedure: Mary Guest will give a 60-90-minute presentation on parliamentary procedure. October 12 @ 2:30 in the East Campus Union. Currently, there is no commitment for a zoom option. However, we are working on the opportunity to have the presentation recorded and archived.
A Staff Senate Reporting form has been created for senators to use when they have interacted with individuals who raise issues of interest to the Staff Senate. This will be a great opportunity to keep track of interactions.
Internal Vice President, Jordan Gonzales
Jordan will be serving as the Staff Senate representative to the CIED
He is also serving on a current search committee
External Vice President, Jessie Brophy
The NU Staff Advisory Board is comprised of representatives from all four campuses. Jessie is a member of that group. The group is tracking the progress and success of senates on all four campuses. All four need to have an established body before we can petition the Board of Regents for official recognition. Common issue of concern: parking, legislative responses to DEI offices on campuses, centralized services
Big Ten Collaboration on Staff Advocacy: Reset meeting was a week or so ago after being off for the summer. There was turnover of leadership and membership. Pay equality and salary surveys were discussed, as were policy equalization, and staff retention. One question that was raised in the meeting was what it would take to be formally recognized with the Big Ten Academic Alliance? It would provide greater legitimacy to the group and access to greater resources.
Committee Reports
Elections Committee, Stephanie Bonnema, Chair
Stephanie shared the upcoming elections calendar the committee has created that includes Senator term limits. (The graphic is available at the end of these notes.) Terms started in August 2023, as the first 6 months of operation was really an onboarding/transition period. An email will be sent to all Senators to request their term length preferences. Once the survey is completed by all senators, the elections committee will begin working on the best way to allocate the terms without leaving districts and committees shorthanded.
As a reminder, Senators can run for up to 2 consecutive terms. After a 1-year break, the individual may run again.
Bylaws Committee, Christina Franklin, Chair
Motion to update X.3.3 – no discussion, the motion passed.
Motion updates for X.5.5.B.5 – after discussion, this task will be returned to the By-laws committee who will work with the Liaison committee to update. Suggested update: Appoint a member or affiliate of the Senate to every committee, commissions, and other similar bodies that lack and/or ask for a representative on behalf of the Staff Senate.
New Business/ Open Mic
The Personnel Affairs Committee requested clarification on the issue referred to the Personnel Committee referencing the use of banked leave/vacation or other use for Holiday shut down leave.
Concern was raised regarding administrators using the term “non-faculty” to refer to staff. Our titles should not be defined as what we are not. Similarly, there is a lack of recognition or reference to staff in communication from the administration. There is also a lack of recognition of who staff are and what they do for the campus. How can we raise awareness? The Executive Committee agreed to investigate this.
Lack of access to what our insurance benefits are. We should have better resource support, in knowing what is covered and what is not. Why is there not a representative for faculty and staff who can answer questions without being referred to the Insurance website. This is especially difficult for Trans community as Insurance companies have not updated as quickly as needed and resources/support is very limited.
Discussion about committees. Members are getting stretched in so many ways and we want to ensure that Staff Senate isn’t causing additional stress. A meeting between the executive committee and committee chairs is forthcoming to talk about committee updates, chair needs, and what the executive committee can do to assist them.
Adjourn formal meeting at 3:40
Note: Photographs of members by district will take place immediately following on the 1st floor of the Gaughan Center by the staircase.