Ms. Molly Washburn presenting at the Faculty Forum meeting
The Faculty Forum at Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine (GSDM) held its first meeting of 2015 on Wednesday, March 25. This marked the first gathering since new representatives were elected in December 2014. The agenda included a new Faculty Forum Blog, proposed changes to the Faculty Forum Bylaws and election process, as well as proposed changes to University-wide faculty and staff benefits.
The purpose of the Faculty Forum is to enable faculty to get together and learn about new developments within the School and to share any issues or concerns with fellow faculty members. With one faculty representative holding a voting seat on the Executive Committee, the Forum provides a system of two-way communication between the faculty, the School administration and Dean Hutter
The current representatives, elected in December 2014, are: Clinical Assistant Professor and Group Practice Leader in the Department of General Dentistry Dr. Charilaos Asikis (Pre-doctoral Representative); Clinical Assistant Professor and Clinical Director in the Department of Periodontology Dr. Gail McCausland (Post-doctoral Representative); Clinical Instructor and Group Practice Leader in the Department of General Dentistry Dr. Michael Slesnick (Pre-doctoral Alternate); and Professor and Director of Graduate Programs in the Department of Molecular & Cell Biology Dr. Philip Trackman (Research Representative).
Dr. Asikis opened the meeting and invited everyone to enjoy the lunch that was provided. Once the meeting was underway, Communications Manager Ms. Molly Washburn gave a presentation about the Faculty Forum Blog, including an overview and instructions on how to access the blog on the Faculty Forum page of the GSDM website. The blog enables faculty to communicate with each other as well as the Faculty Forum Representatives. All faculty who do not sit on the Executive Committee have access to the blog and are free to comment. If a faculty member wishes to submit an original post, they should submit it to their faculty forum representative.
Clinical Associate Professor and Director of Pre-doctoral Periodontology in the Department of General Dentistry Dr. Neil Fleisher then spoke about the Faculty Forum bylaws and election process. Currently, the election cycle for new Forum representatives is every two years and both a representative and an alternate are elected from three categories: pre-doctoral, post-doctoral, and research. After the two-year appointment, new representatives and alternates are elected. Dr. Fleisher proposed two changes to the Forum bylaws. First, he proposed adding continuity to the process by electing three alternates (one for each category) for two years. After the two year appointment, the alternates would ascend to the position of representatives for an additional two years. New alternates would then be elected. For future elections, he also proposed using electronic ballots rather than current process of paper ballots. In order for these proposals to go into effect, a special election will need to be held at a future Faculty Forum Meeting.
Faculty Council Representative and Clinical Assistant Professor and Group Practice Leader in the Department of General Dentistry Dr. Sheila Rodriguez-Vamvas then gave a presentation discussing recommended changes to faculty and staff benefits, which were proposed by President Robert A. Brown’s Employee Benefits Task Force. The recommended changes are discussed in detail in the Benefits 2016: Guide to Recommended Changes. Suggested adjustments include changing from three health plan options to two plans. This would eliminate the HMO plan and add a new PPO plan. The BU Health Savings Plan would remain as is. The recommendations for the retirement plan strive to close the gap between faculty and staff benefits, and encourage personal saving. Faculty were then asked to submit any comments or concerns with the recommended plan changes to President Brown’s Employee Benefits Task Force for review and consideration.