Buell Will Modify CUE Proceedings

In a memorandum distributed to members of the Committee on Undergraduate Education (CUE) last week, Dean for Undergraduate Education Lawrence Buell said he would modify the committee's proceedings in response to students' complaints.

Students charged last week that faculty were disproportionately represented as voting members of the committee, in violation of the faculty legislation which established the committee.

Students also said they felt that the inflexible meeting time was unfairly excluding several student CUE members who had class conflicts.

Buell's letter stated that the voting balance between students and faculty would be restored. He also wrote that the committee's weekly meeting time could be rescheduled to meet the needs of all the committee's members.

"I tried to convey in general that I wanted to ensure that there would be a complete fairness in the matter of the size of the different voting blocs," Buell said in a telephone interview yesterday.

Ten days ago, the Undergraduate Council passed a measure urging Buell to "bring the structure and composition of the CUE within the guidelines specified."

Buell said yesterday that he assured CUE members no more than five faculty votes would be counted in future meetings.

But he also invited students to add another member to the committee.

"There had been concern that there were more faculty members than there should be. There is in fact one faculty member beyond the five that is stipulated," Buell said. "I emphasized that I would see to it that no more than five faculty votes were ever counted."

The committee would decide how to distribute the votes, whether to give each member a fraction of a vote or to have one student, if students decide to add an undergraduate member, and one faculty member not vote.

But Buell emphasized that voting rights seldomare at issue because the committee usually strivesto makes its decisions by coming to a consensus.

"This issue of voting members almost neverrises as a practicality," Buell said.

Buell also noted that he would encouragefaculty CUE members to be more open in theirscheduling, in an attempt to accommodate morestudents.

But he added that it was not yet clear whetherthere would be another time that would be moreconvenient for all CUE members.

Student members expressed satisfaction withBuell's efforts to address their concerns.

"I was very happy to see that Dean Buell took avery open-minded approach to looking into some ofthe concerns students had about the Committee onUndergraduate Education," CUE member Randall A.Fine '96 said on Monday. "He took a verygood-faith approach.

But Buell emphasized that voting rights seldomare at issue because the committee usually strivesto makes its decisions by coming to a consensus.

"This issue of voting members almost neverrises as a practicality," Buell said.

Buell also noted that he would encouragefaculty CUE members to be more open in theirscheduling, in an attempt to accommodate morestudents.

But he added that it was not yet clear whetherthere would be another time that would be moreconvenient for all CUE members.

Student members expressed satisfaction withBuell's efforts to address their concerns.

"I was very happy to see that Dean Buell took avery open-minded approach to looking into some ofthe concerns students had about the Committee onUndergraduate Education," CUE member Randall A.Fine '96 said on Monday. "He took a verygood-faith approach.