University Staff Senate

August 25, 2026 | 3:30 - 5 p.m. | Rhatigan Student Center Harvest Room (142)

 

Senators in Attendance – In Person 

Ana Abente, Joseph Asbridge, Katie Austin, Monica Bergkamp, Angela Blackerby, Anne Marie Brown, Caitlin Bruner, Ann Burger, Gabriel Fonseca, Zachary Hendrich, Courtney Henry, Nathan Johnson, John Keckeisen, Christopher Leonard, Daniel Ludlow, Brady Marzolf, Sarah Mathews, Jacob Mendez, Kendra Nguyen, Caitlin Nolen, Chukwunenye Nweke, Jessica Pierpoint, Lyndsay Pletcher, Sadi Roberts, Kim Sandlin, Preston Schroeder, Megan Steele 

Senators in Attendance – Virtual 

Senators Not in Attendance 

Krissy Archambeau, Sara Mata, Raven Garrison, Kelley Smetak 

Guests

Kathleen Rundell, Christopher Wiebe, Natalie Commerford, Mackenzie Baxter, Francine Angell, Roberta Swanson, Bethany Kennedy, Melanie Tidball, Christine Yim, will Fulls, Abigail Burgess, Mark Bengtson, Joseph Dempewolf, Courtney McHenry, Connie Slaughter, Ashley Forney 

  1.  Call to Order
    1. Approval of July 21st Minutes
    2. Motion to approve, Anne Marie. Motion seconded by Chukwunenye. Motion carried. 
  2. Guest Presenter - Dr. Jamarco Clark, Vice President of Student Affairs
    1. Appointed April 9th, Officially Joined Wichita State July 6, Work begins August 14th
    2. First 40 Days – Stakeholder engagement and lots of meetings to connect with university. 140 meetings in 40 days.
    3. Updates to the Leadership Team
      1. Amber Duncan
      2. Gabriel Fonseca
      3. Tia Owens – Military & Event Services is now part of Student Affairs
      4. Erin Stieben – Telling the Shocker Experience
    4. 26-27 Student Affairs Priorities
      1. Elevate the Student Experience – Create exceptional, student-centered experiences that foster success, belonging, and Shocker Pride
      2. Better Together – Create a more connected Student Affairs division through shared ownership, partnership, and coordinated action
      3. Greater Impact – Focus our time, energy, and resources on the work that creates the greatest value for students and Wichita State.
    5. In October/November will begin our plans for developing the strategic plan.
    6. August 13, 2027 will be the Strategic Plan Launch.
  3. Informal Statements - floor is open for Senators to bring forward comments that they would like to make or areas of concerns they would like to make the full Senate aware of
    1. Kim Sandlin – I'd like to recognize the incredible efforts of our academic advisors this summer. They have navigated a particularly challenging enrollment season while remaining committed to helping students stay on track toward their academic goals. Throughout the summer, advisors worked through constantly changing course caps and quotas, adjusted schedules when classes were canceled, and helped students identify alternative pathways that aligned with their degree plans. They have also fielded questions and concerns related to courses that have not yet been assigned instructors (it’s week two), often helping students make decisions with limited information available. Despite these obstacles, our advisors have continued to provide exceptional support, flexibility, and care for students. Their professionalism, persistence, and student-centered approach have played a vital role in helping students successfully enroll and prepare for the upcoming semester. The university should be grateful for their dedication and the positive impact they make every day as it relates to student success.
    2. Daniel Ludlow – A year and a half ago, this senate brought up concerns about Custodial staff requests. Custodial staff have brought up concerns about short staffing. Can we elevate that conversation to this senate as well?
    3. Anne Marie Brown – Will we continue to have Staff Electorate Working Group, presence of staff senator in that group
  4. President’s Report
    1. Senator Expectations
      1. Emailing updates to Constituents
      2. Constituent lists are done and available on Teams and divided
      3. Make sure to send out the meeting highlights to your constituents in a timely manner.
      4. One potential new thing we will implement is to have “what happened at Staff Senate” in WSU Today
    2. Website Update
      1. The website has been updated, please review and let us know if there are any errors/edits needed.
      2. Agendas will be on the website as a webpage (not as a word document), Minutes - will be available via teams if the website is not updated at the time of request from constituents
    3. Bringing Issues Forward to the Senate or Requesting a Report
  5. New Business
    1. Action Requested: approve nominee for Exempt Senator appointment
      1. Ashley Forney (term to expire June 2027) - Operations Manager at Ennovar
      2. Installation of New Senator
        1. Motion to approve, Courtney H. Motion seconded by Chris L. Motion Carried.
    2. Discussion: review of proposed priorities
      1. Based off of notes from our retreat in July, pulled together themes
      2. Open up for thoughts/feedback – None
      3. Motion to approve, Katie A. Motion seconded by Daniel L. Motion carried.
      4. Any additional thoughts/feedback please feel free to send feedback to Gabriel.
    3. One idea that Gabriel is working on is potentially having some off-campus meetings to allow senators the opportunity to see other locations.
    4. Constituent lists and expectations
      1. The list is updated, there is a tab for each of your lists
      2. If there are any bouncebacks received, let Gabriel know. If there are new staff, Gabriel will let you know
    5. Report on Policy Committee Recommendations – Senator Johnson
      1. 3 Policies sent for review
        1. Policy 8.02 / Regular Student Employment: Since this policy was last substantively updated in 2007, there have been changes in governing laws and regulations, as well as several changes in University policies, procedures, and practices.  Revisions were necessary to ensure compliance with federal immigration laws and regulations in relation to international students and to reflect and clarify current University policies, procedures, and practices. The coversheet provides a detailed description of the updates. 
        2. Policy 19.01 / Acceptable Use: The current policy was last updated in 2016.  Since that time, there have been advances in information technology and changes in the governing policies, standards, and laws.  Revisions to this policy were necessary to address advances in technology and to ensure compliance with all federal, state and local laws and regulations, and all University, Kansas Board of Regents (KBOR), and State of Kansas policies, standards, and procedures related to such use.  The coversheet provides a detailed description of the updates. 
        3. Policy 19.04 / University Web Sites: This policy is being revised to ensure compliance with content, privacy, accessibility, and security requirements for official University websites and unofficial websites hosted by or connected to University’s systems.  Additional updates were made for purposes of clarification, to reflect current practices, and to conform to the University’s standard policy format, including reorganization.   You might recall that this policy was previously provided to shared governance in May of 2026.  Since that time, the policy has gone through further reviews, resulting in several additional updates, so we are sharing it again. The coversheet provides a detailed description of the updates.
        4. What we will do moving forward, any new policy reviews that come through, we will send out to full senate for comment if time allows for comment/review. Policy committee will review, senate can send feedback to them.
  6. Old Business
    1. Report on Docking Survey recommendations – Past President Mendez
      1. Docking Survey background:
        1. The Docking Institute conducted the survey in April 2025 across all six Kansas Board of Regents universities.
        2. It focuses on staff satisfaction and the overall employee experience.
        3. Statewide, 3,516 employees responded - a 36.6% response rate.
        4. At WSU, 517 employees responded - a 26.5% response rate, down from 37.5% in 2022.
        5. Only 31 USS employees at WSU responded, so we should be cautious about drawing broad conclusions from that group.
      2. Recommendations:
        1. Incentives and benefits
          1. Pilot summer Fridays/flexible summer scheduling where operationally feasible.
          2. Establish consistent expectations for hybrid and remote work across campus.
          3. Explore meaningful non-salary benefits, including additional leave, parking incentives, and expanded tuition assistance.
          4. Better communicate existing benefits through a clear Total Rewards Snapshot.
        2. Budget and workload
          1. Require a formal workload review when positions are eliminated or remain vacant, identifying which responsibilities will stop, shift, or continue.
          2. Review positions for reclassification when employees take on substantially increased responsibilities.
          3. Increase transparency around budget reductions, staffing decisions, and their impact on employee workload.
          4. Consider student/applied-learning support for appropriate work when full-time hiring is not possible.
        3. Wages and compensation
          1. Prioritize salary adjustments for employees below market median and address salary compression.
          2. Clearly explain how market data, education, experience, and responsibilities influence compensation decisions.
          3. Establish a clearer process for reclassification and compensation when responsibilities increase.
          4. Explore ways to recognize performance and longevity through compensation or other meaningful benefits.
        4. Retention & HR transparency
          1. Create a centralized, easy-to-understand resource explaining MBC, salary bands, position grades, compensation decisions, and reclassification.
          2. Increase direct HR communication with all employees, rather than relying primarily on information flowing through leadership.
          3. Establish greater consistency and transparency around flexible work arrangements.
          4. Clearly communicate what happens with employee feedback—including what is implemented, still under consideration, or cannot be pursued.
        5. Work morale and culture
          1. Increase visible and meaningful staff recognition and appreciation.
          2. Encourage supportive supervision, workplace flexibility, and employee wellbeing initiatives.
          3. Increase opportunities for transparent communication between leadership and staff, including town halls.
          4. Regularly share progress on Staff Senate recommendations so employees can see outcomes from their feedback.
          5. Recommendations will be sent out to all senators to review. If there are any additional thoughts/comments/feedback please share them so we can share with leadership.
  7. Senate Committee Updates
    1. Executive Committee
      1. Discussion of priorities & expectations for senate
    2. Awards and Recognition - no update
    3. Communications and Website
      1. The communications committee had their first meeting. The committee review roles and responsibilities and ensured committee members had access to the website.
      2. Committee members will be handling the tasks as follows:
        1. Kim Sandlin – Updates to the website (Agenda/Minutes)
        2. Caitlin Bruner – WSU Today postings (Meeting reminders, Senator Highlights)
        3. Kendra Nguyen – Senate Minutes, Meeting Highlights
      3. The committee will also explore potentially utilizing social media accounts, sharing senate updates through WSU Today. 
    4. Elections - no update
    5. Policy Review - no update
    6. Professional Development and Service
      1. First meeting will be set in the next few weeks. 
    7. Scholarships
      1. Anne Marie – Founders Day Ambassador, will be drafting an email for all senators to send out to constituents. If you are interested in being the ambassador, let Anne Marie know.
      2. WSU Today ads have been submitted.
    8. Shocker STRIVE - no updates
  8. Campus/University Business 
    1. Budget Advisory Committee - no update
    2. Human Resources Update - no update
    3. Legislative Affairs Update - no update
    4. Parking & Traffic Appeals 
      1. Reviewing appeals as they come in.
      2. Shocker Support Locker has Food for Fines
    5. President’s Executive Team, Dean and Constituency Heads - no updates
    6. Rhatigan Student Center Board of Directors
      1. CAC Theater is back open
      2. Sometime this year there may be updates to furniture in the RSC.
      3. There are now cameras in RSC – update to the building.
      4. Carpet in the building have also been replaced.
  9. Kansas Board of Regents
    1. Kansas Board of Regents Staff Council
      1. Had first staff council meeting with KBOR today. No major updates, getting started for the Fall Semester.
      2. Presidents of Staff Senate will have a breakfast at KBOR in December – will work on topics that we can bring up at that meeting.
      3. If you are interested in joining this meeting, let Gabe know and he will add you to the invitations. 
  10. Adjourn/Upcoming Meetings and Events/Shoutouts
    1. September Meeting: Tuesday, September 15, 2026, | 3:30PM  
    2. STRIVE Conference 2027: March 26, 2027 | 8:30AM
    3. Check the Events Calendar for upcoming events on campus