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Senators asked to complete, share Cyclone Support training course

May 01, 2025

Author: Jeff Budlong

Senators were given an assignment during the April 29 meeting of the Faculty Senate. Leif Olsen, student success and retention specialist in the provost's office, asked senators to better prepare themselves to help students in need by completing the newly developed Cyclone Support training and spreading the word to other faculty and staff.

Available in Workday Learning, the 25-minute, interactive module trains faculty and staff on how to connect students to academic and wellness support services and provides tips for effective conversations with students in need. It includes information on using university processes, including the Navigate software. The person who initiated the conversation receives an email when the student schedules an appointment or declines assistance.

After talking with a student in need and asking if they would like additional help, the faculty or staff member logs into Navigate and selects from a range of assistance topics. For example, a student might need help with financial issues, well-being, academic success, student accessibility or another topic. The student will receive an email and text messages with next steps for support and a direct link to schedule an appointment with an appropriate resource.

"If a student does not complete the recommended steps or schedule an appointment within a few days, a Cyclone Support specialist will contact them through email and text to check in," Olsen said. "They also offer to schedule an appointment for the student."

During training, faculty and staff get to practice issuing a nonemergency connection in Navigate and test their knowledge in exercises that provide real-time feedback and coaching, Olsen said.

Ombuds presentation

University ombuds Laura Smythe shared information about her office and the role she plays with senators. Ombuds services are independent, impartial and confidential for faculty, professional and scientific and merit staff, postdoctoral scholars and graduate and professional students.

"I am an informal office. The university is not put on notice when people talk with me, when folks find themselves in conflict with one another, concerned about the behavior of a colleague or supervisor, questioning whether a policy is being implemented accurately or appropriately," she said.

Smythe cleared up several common myths about her office. Individuals are unable to file a complaint through her office, she can't investigate claims made to her and people are not required to meet with her.

She also offers a variety of coaching and training options that can be scheduled through the office website. Trainings -- which can be customized to need -- include psychological safety, conflict management, trauma-informed workplaces and difficult conversations.

Special guest

Iowa Board of Regent member Robert Cramer was on campus Tuesday. He spent part of his time touring a lab and attended the Faculty Senate meeting where he spoke to senators after its conclusion.

Elections

Three council chairs were elected after terms had expired:

  • Academic affairs: Jennifer Schieltz, natural resource ecology and management
  • Faculty development and administrative relations: Kevin Duerfeldt, horticulture
  • Resource policies and allocations: Annemarie Butler, philosophy and religious studies

Other business

The Faculty Senate will vote in May on:  

  • A proposed interdisciplinary major (PDF) and minor (PDF) in digital storytelling -- a Degree of the Future -- in the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication and the music and theatre department. Students would learn to create compelling content for/with digital technology; design digital narratives for business, news media, entertainment or social impact; and evaluate and utilize social media analytics. The minor would help students outside a communications major develop abilities in digital literacy and storytelling.
  • A proposal that graduate program specializations (PDF) only need to be approved by the offering program. This would be consistent with the process at the undergraduate level.
  • A proposed policy change to the summer academic standards (PDF) that no longer would put a student on academic probation if their summer grade dropped their cumulative GPA below 2.0. Students reinstated for summer session may be dismissed at the end of summer session if they do not meet the conditions of their reinstatement.
  • A proposed policy to grant degrees to students facing extraordinary circumstances (PDF). An example could be a student with a terminal illness or one who has suffered a critical injury that would hinder their ability to complete graduation requirements. For undergraduate and professional students, their college may recommend the degree. For graduate students, their department or interdepartmental graduate program may recommend the degree.
  • A trio of proposed changes to the faculty conduct (PDF) policies and procedures in the Faculty Handbook. The first addition ensures faculty know which offices, councils and individuals can assist them in dealing with a formal complaint. Another proposed revision would extend the time (PDF) allowed in which to notify the senior vice president and provost of alleged misconduct, and ensure faculty know they can respond to a complaint in writing immediately. The final proposed changes (PDF) deal with the investigation procedures to add clarity to the process. It would tighten some timelines for responses and clarify who can request extensions.
  • The proposed replacement of the Faculty Handbook section on faculty salary policies and procedures (PDF) to reflect current practices. Three new sections would address:
    • Other salary increases, beyond performance-based and meritorious adjustments.
    • The process faculty can request for a review of their salary.
    • Definitions of terms used in faculty salary discussion.
  • A move for the handbook section on funding for term research appointments, to the section, "Titles for Term Faculty Appointments" (research faculty title and ranks).

Senators approved undergraduate minors in:

  • Art (PDF) from the art and visual culture department. The minor focuses on studio art methodologies in several media areas for students with little or no experience with hands-on artmaking.

  • Art history (PDF) from the art and visual culture department. It allows non-majors to explore art, architecture and culture across time periods and regions.

  • Paleontology (PDF) primarily in the department of earth, atmosphere and climate. It's designed for science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics majors to learn about ecosystems, environments and climates, and how fossil evidence benefits their majors.

  • Photography (PDF) from the art and visual culture department and the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication. It combines the fine art and photojournalistic approaches to photography to make majors in either more well-rounded in the job market.

The senate also approved:

  • A bachelor's of fine arts in illustration (PDF) to help students communicate ideas through images that educate, inform and explain.
  • A name change for the master of education specialization (PDF) in curriculum and instructional technology, to educational technology, in the School of Education.

  • A change to the policy for a student to repeat a course (PDF) for which the course number or number of credits changed since the first time a student took the course. The determination is made by the department offering the repeat, and a student's advisor no longer will approve the request.

  • A policy change that resolves a course incomplete (PDF)  when a student either completes the requirements in an incomplete contract or the resolution date passes. The new grade no longer requires a notation that it resolved an incomplete.

  • Ending the requirement that the Faculty Senate approve concurrent bachelor's and master's degree programs (PDF). Updates were made to the Faculty Handbook and the Graduate College Graduate Handbook.

  • Updates to the Faculty Handbook to align the section on administrative structure (PDF) to current practices.

 

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