The Faculty Senate passed a motion Tuesday night to continue the communication-based initiative ISUComm, which would pilot foundation courses in communication.

ISUComm is an ad hoc committee of the Faculty Senate formed in 1999 to look into the communication abilities of ISU students, said Michael Mendelson, professor of English.

ISUComm will try to improve communication skills by “extending communication study and practice across the entire undergraduate experience, involving faculty from all disciplines, invoking communication activities as a mode of critical thinking and undertaking ongoing assessment of student communication competencies,” Mendelson said.

According to the motion, two foundation courses will be piloted, one in fall 2003 and one in spring 2004 and a preliminary assessment of these two courses will be reported to the Faculty Senate in the fall of 2004.

Mendelson said the two foundation courses will integrate a new WOVE curriculum focusing on written, oral, verbal and electronic communication in a two year sequence of courses.

“Students take English 104 and 105 in their first year and have no communication experience until their junior year when many take English 302,” he said. “Learning to communicate is like learning to play the piano — you have to practice.”

The senate also passed a policy regarding the rescheduling of final exams when a student has three or more scheduled on one calendar day.

Sanjeev Agarwal, associate professor of marketing, said the current rule doesn’t say when students have to tell their instructor that they need to reschedule their final exam. Many professors should have adequate time to find a place and time that work for both the student and instructor.

The policy states “the student wishing to change the day of the exam must request the concerned instructor no later than the last scheduled class day of that class before the beginning of the Dead Week.”

Agarwal also said if a student doesn’t come to the instructor in time the instructor can refuse the student’s request to reschedule.

A motion was also introduced into the senate outlining the procedure for appealing an action taken by the provost or the president.

An appeal of a provost’s action will be sent to the provost to resolve. According to the motion, “If the provost’s decision is unchanged, the provost’s report and recommendation will be forwarded to the president.”

An appeal of a president’s action will be sent to the president. If the president’s decision is unchanged, the report will be sent to the Board of Regents for review.

The senate also discussed a motion to end university support of the United Way of Story County because of its funding of Boy Scouts of America, which has a discriminatory policy against homosexuals.

Use of the campus mail system by United Way and the practice of having faculty operate as United Way collectors should be discontinued, according to the motion.

The United Way and appeals policies will be voted on at the next Faculty Senate meeting March 25 at 7:30 in the North Room of the Gateway Center.