Professor David Robinson, Vice-Chancellor and President

Professor Peter Darvall, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Research & Development)

Professor Alan Lindsay, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic & Planning)

Ms Alison Crook, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Resources)

Professor Homer Le Grand, Dean, Faculty of Arts

Professor Sue Willis, Dean, Faculty of Education

Professor Michael Brisk, Dean, Faculty of Engineering

Professor Stephen Parker, Dean, Faculty of Law

Professor Robert Norris, Dean, Faculty of Science

Professor Nick Saunders, Dean, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing & Health Sciences

Professor Colin Chapman, Dean, Faculty of Pharmacy

Professor John Redmond, Dean, Faculty of Art & Design

Professor Gill Palmer, Dean, Faculty of Business & Economics (till 3.45pm)

Professor Phillip Steele, Deputy Dean, Faculty of Information Technology for Professor John Rosenberg

Professor Max King, Deputy Dean, Faculty of Business and Economics

Ms Melany Blackwell, Quality Advisor, Centre for Higher Education Quality for item 4.4.1

Mr Peter Marshall, Divisional Director, Student and Staff Services for item 4.4.2

Ms Amanda Birmingham, Manager, Workplace Policy and Privacy Office for item 4.4.2

Mr John White, Campus Director, Peninsula for item 4.3.1

Professor John Rosenberg, Dean, Faculty of Information Technology and Professor Brian Mackenzie, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Gippsland.

The minutes of the meeting 4/2002 of the Committee of Deans held on 28 May, 2002 were approved.

The Vice-Chancellor spoke to this item.

At the request of members, the document Still Learning: Recommendations/Responsibilities is attached to the Minutes for the information of Deans.

Members were advised that recommendation 32, a Monash view on the teaching-research nexus, should be discussed at a meeting of the Academic Board in 2002. Further, a report on the Review will be discussed at Council meeting 5/2002, 2^nd September with a progress report on implementation of the recommendations to be considered by Academic Board in 12 months.

This item wad added to the agenda. Mr John White, Campus Director, Peninsula was in attendance.

Professor Lindsay introduced the item and informed members that as it was several years since the implementation of the recommendations of the Phillips Review, he proposed to form a group consisting of Professor Merran Evans, Director, Planning and Academic Affairs, Mr John White, Campus Director – Peninsula and Deans of faculties with programs at Peninsula campus to revisit faculty plans in relation to the future of the campus including the current set of programs and load issues.

Mr White informed members that gradual load creep away from Peninsula has occurred over the past eighteen months. This, combined with related issues and space pressures at Caulfield created the trigger to convene a meeting to review the issues with stakeholders.

Noting the absence of Professor Evans during the opening of the Centre in London, the Vice-Chancellor requested that a meeting be convened in the next four weeks to progress the matter.

Introducing the item, Professor Lindsay informed Deans that following the recent announcement of a Monash lead Biotechnology Centre of Excellence – the proposed Centre for Stem Cells and Tissue Repair – it was appropriate to look more broadly at biomedicine and biotechnology undergraduate programs.

Professor Saunders informed Deans that the initial suggestion was to identify current programs / units and assess their content, identify any interest that may exist in developing further biotechnology units (e.g. a biotechnology unit for law students) and review the need for developing new units that are complementary to developments such as the Centre for Stem Cells and Tissue Repair , the STRIP and the Synchrotron.

Professor Lindsay informed Deans that at Thursdays meeting of the Committee of Associate Deans (Teaching), Associate Professors Michael Page and Tony Luff would be requested to co-ordinate a response that included, but was not limited to, the issues outlined above, opportunities for DEST load, gaps in units currently being offered and postgraduate and fee paying options.

A report on the outcomes would be requested for consideration at the Committee of Deans meetings scheduled for 20^th August 2002.

Ms Melany Blackwell, Quality Advisor, Centre for Higher Education Quality was in attendance for this item.

A document Service Level Agreement (SLA) Update was distributed at the meeting.

Ms Blackwell informed members that the Service Level Agreement (SLA) project was initiated to support the implementation of the Strategic Cost Management process.

Outlining the major phases of the project, members were informed that the major milestones were the development of Service Statements for each specific service, compilation of a generic Service Level Agreement which would lead to the final phase – a negotiated Service Level Agreement tailored to the specific requirements of each faculty.

Commenting on progress to date, members were informed that the first phase of the project was being rolled out across support service areas reporting to the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Resources) where core services were identified and catalogued, Service Statements developed and faculty input/feedback sought. A framework for the ongoing management of SLAs would be developed in 2002.

During discussion members raised the following issues:

Concluding the discussion, the Vice-Chancellor thanked Ms Blackwell for her presentation and suggested that the item be included for further discussion at a meeting of the Committee of Deans later in the year.

Introducing the item Ms Amanda Birmingham, Manager, Workplace Policy and Privacy Office, informed members that the Information Privacy Act 2000 (Vic) and the Health Records Act 2001 (Vic) would become operational in 2002 and would apply to Monash University.

Ms Birmingham provided members with an overview and definition of the information covered by the Acts, the Information Privacy Principals, the Health Privacy Principles, compliance with the Acts, the ramifications of breaching either the Information Privacy Act and/or the Health Records Act and Monash’s approach to complying with the Acts.

In response to questions, members were informed that in general statistical data could be supplied to government departments, however, some exemptions did exist and may apply and further advice would be provided, that the process for supplying information to scholarship providers may need to change and that as a general rule all areas of the University needed to consider why information is collected and declare up front what collected information will be used for.

Professor Nick Saunders, Dean, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences provided the background to this item, noting that in an increasingly complex environment where, in some instances, faculties may be lacking the full set of skills in some area’s, secure lines of communication and awareness by Deans of all proposals that may affect space requirements was, at this point, difficult to guarantee.

Discussion focused on a range of matters including the resource implications of a faculty(ies) being particularly successful in an STI or ARC research round, need for sound communication lines between researchers, Deans and central planning staff, the ramifications of large initiatives, the role of contingency planning and the need to ensure that an appropriate framework is in place to facilitate and accommodate increased research activity at Monash.

This item and documentation was emailed to Deans on 1^st July 2002.

RECOMMENDATION

The Committee of Deans approved the proposal to establish and fill a Chair of Public Transport.

The next meeting of the Deans Discussion Group will be held at 4.00pm on Wednesday 31 July 2002 in the City Office.

The next ordinary meeting of the Committee of Deans will be held at 2.15pm on Tuesday 20 August, 2002 in the Sir George Lush Room.