Committees

STARK CAMPUS FACULTY COMMITTEES 

Membership on most committees for the academic year are determined in early fall. Faculty indicate their committee preferences using an online form at the end of August. 

Faculty Council Cabinet, with advice from the deans, nominate individuals for committee membership, which is then submitted for approval to Faculty Council at the September and January meeting. Except for the Technology Committee, all chairs of Committees of Council are required to be members of Faculty Council. 

Membership on all committees is open to all faculty.

COMMITTEES OF COUNCIL

Term: September 2022 - August 2023

• Committee I: Professional Activities Advisory Committee (PAAC)
  Advises the dean on matters such as faculty travel approval requests, sabbaticals, load lifts and grants. This committee is chaired by the Vice-Chair and includes five faculty members.
  Members: Katrina Bloch (chair), Cynthia Barb, Angela Guercio, Jim Seelye, Keith Lloyd
• Committee II
  Serves Council for the numerous general tasks requiring short-term attention.
  Members: Claudia Gomez (chair), Eric Taylor, Erin Hollenbaugh, Ian Anderson, Oliver Ruff, Paula Sato
• Diversity, Equity, and Anti-Racism Committee
  Works with ideas organically generated by faculty, staff, and students, producing outcomes that will shape a better future for the campus within an umbrella of equity.
  Members: Bathi Kasturiarachi (chair), Amy Damrow, Matthew Hollstein, T. Mavis Jennings, Vaneet Kaur, Andrea Dale (administration, Financial Aid), Lester Sanders (administration, Rising Scholars), Sarah Schmidt (administration, Global Education Initiatives)
• Faculty Colloquium Committee
  Plans faculty colloquia and other faculty seminar series.
  Members: Lori Wilfong (chair), Victor Berardi, Paul Andaloro
• Handbook Committee
  Proposes timely revisions to the Stark Campus Faculty Handbook in response to changes in university and campus policies and procedures.
  Members: Jim Seelye (chair), Carrie Schweitzer, Relja Vulanovic, Lucas Engelhardt
• Social Committee
  Plans various social events, e.g., holiday and spring dinners. This committee is chaired by the Council Treasurer.
  Members: Leslie Heaphy (chair), Paula Sato, Ann Martinez
• Student Complaint Committee
  Receives and reviews information from all parties involved in a student complaint. The committee then identifies possible solutions and makes recommendations to the campus dean.
  Members: Rob Kairis (chair), Brad Shepherd, Joel Carbonell, Daniel Castaneda, T. Mavis Jennings
• Technology Committee
  Evaluates and advocates for the appropriate uses of instructional technology at Kent State Stark.
  Members: Younghun Chae (chair), Brian Betz, Deepraj Mukherjee, Sebastian Birch

STARK CAMPUS DEAN'S COMMITTEES

TERM: SEPTEMBER 2022 - AUGUST 2023

• Academic Planning Committee
  Plans the campus theme and advises the dean on curricular and programmatic development. This committee has a representative from each faculty constituency group.
  Members: Patrick Dillon (chair), Leslie Heaphy, Matthew Lehnert, Jay Sloan, Mark Nowakowski, Marty Daniels
• AURCO Representative
  One year appointment to represent our campus to the Association of University Regional Campuses of Ohio.
  Representative: Anne Haas
• Campus Activities Budget Committee
  Plans the budget for campus activities.
  Members: Relja Vulanovic (chair), Arron Foster, Michelle Bagwell, Deepshika Bhati, La Tarsha Miller (administration, Business Services), Ashley Brightbill (administration, Student Activities)
• Faculty Budget Committee
  Advises the Dean on campus budget issues from the faculty perspective.
  Members: La Tarsha Miller (chair, administration, Business Services), Robin Shura, John Lovell, Carrie Schweitzer, Oliver Ruff, Chris Post
• Student Research Travel Committee
  Allocates money to students who will be presenting conference papers. Needs three faculty members.
  Members: Leslie Heaphy (chair), Matthew Lehnert, Brian Chopko, Julie Cremeans-Smith
• Student Scholarship Committee
  Selects recipients for scholarships available from Kent State Stark foundation accounts.
  Members: Andrea Dale (chair; administration, Financial Aid), Heather Bracken-Ott, Andrew Burns, Ran Li, Ashley Meinke, Scott Tobias
• Undergraduate Research Assistantship Committee
  Reviews applications from students and faculty, matching students with appropriate faculty research projects.
  Members: Haithem Zourrig (chair), Lori Wilfong, Gro Hovhannisyan, Ralph Menning

Spring Semester Dean's Committees  /  Term: January 2023 - December 2023

• Black History Committee
  Develops, organizes and implements all Black History Month (February) events.
  Members: Leslie Heaphy (chair), Katrina Bloch, Brad Shepherd, Daniel Castaneda
• Distinguished Teaching Award Committee
  Seeks out and selects recipients for the Kent State Stark Distinguished Teaching Award (full-time faculty) and the Award of Recognition (part-time faculty). Please note that members of this committee are not eligible for the award.
  2022-23 Members: Sebastian Birch (chair), John Lovell, Farid Fouad, Victor Berardi, Alexis Baker, Cherie Mountain
• Diversity Committee
  Enhances diversity on campus.
  Members: Joel Carbonell (chair), Leslie Heaphy, Jay Sloan, Melissa Bauer, Bei Cai
• LGBT Faculty Committee
  Promotes educational events to raise awareness of LGBT issues at Kent State Stark.
  Members: Jay Sloan (chair), Katrina Bloch, Lori Mirkin-McGee, Mary Gallagher
• Women’s History Committee
  Plans, organizes and publicizes events for the celebration of Women’s History Month (March).
  Members: Melissa Bauer (chair), Alicia Pieper, Lisa Waite, Melanie Tabak