Dean of Students Ben Lieber opened the meeting by describing the current state of the dorm overhaul that the College is planning.
"I'm interested in your sense of where you think the advantages and disadvantages of each plan fall," Lieber told the senate.
At present, the dorm master planning committee is considering changes to freshman housing, though they will eventually evaluate all of the dorms on campus, Lieber said. "[Sophomores] are the next stage in the conversation. The notion is that when we finish with the freshmen dorms we go to the sophomore dorms."
Lieber presented four different plans from the consulting firm, Sasaki Associates. The proposals recommended changes ranging from converting Pratt Museum, which houses the geology department, into a freshman dorm to moving freshman into Morrow and Pratt Dormitories to creating a second freshman quad by transforming Chapin Hall into a dorm. All proposals detriple freshman housing, renovate Appleton Hall and North and South Colleges and completely rebuild James and Stearns Halls. "It's more cost effective to tear them down then renovate them," Lieber said of James and Stearns.
Lieber noted that the suggestion to convert Williston Hall into a dorm was regarded as "the most controversial of the changes" by faculty who attended an open meeting on dorm planning. "I don't think we have a good sense of the general feeling yet [among the faculty] and that's one reason we're going to [have] a full faculty meeting," he said.
Of the plans presented, a majority of the senate agreed that the proposal which moves all freshmen to the quad and turns Valentine into an upperclass residence was the best. "We need more beds to accommodate all freshmen on the quad," Lieber said. "Williston would be torn down and rebuilt to match Appleton. That would hold about 70 beds."
If this plan were adopted, the philosophy and black studies departments, which are presently housed in Williston, would most probably be moved into Cooper House, a building next to Clark House that the College owns but does not presently occupy, Lieber said.
Pratt Museum would be converted into an 82-bed dorm. The geology department, which is in need of new facilities, Lieber said, would be relocated. "The tentative notion is that a new wing would be built onto Merrill." This is feasible, Lieber said, because Merrill was constructed so that an addition could be added to it.
This plan puts 467 beds on the freshman quad. "We're assuming 425 [freshmen], but we need some margin in that," Lieber said. The extra beds would accommodate an entering class that was slightly larger than predicted. They would also house resident counselors and possibly an area coordinator, Lieber said. "The Board of Trustees will make a decision [on which plan to enact] either in March or May," Lieber said.
After Lieber's presentation, the Senate passed a distinguished teacher resolution, authored by Dan Cooper '01. The resolution formalized the Student Government Organization Distinguished Teaching Award, which was awarded to Assistant Professor of Black Studies Jeffrey Ferguson last year, as a prize to be given out every year. The recipient will receive an engraved bowl and his or her name will be added to a plaque which now hangs in the Keefe Campus Center.
"I think that it's important to let our professors know that students are aware of and truly appreciate them when they make special efforts to excel in teaching and [show a] commitment both inside and outside the classroom," said Jun Matsui '03.
Amy Summerville '02 introduced a resolution urging the College to add more tenure-track positions. Senators were quick to point out that the resolution was one concerning general philosophy, not one which dealt with financial feasibility. The resolution passed and will be sent to the dean of the faculty.
Blake Sparrow '04 supported the resolution. "I think there should be more tenured teachers to increase the quality of the education here at Amherst. That way we can retain the teachers who have improved and developed," he said.
Also at the meeting, candidates for various senate positions made brief presentations. Statements of candidacy will appear in the next issue of The Student.