Einstein Senate

Senate Meeting: Saturday, November 9, 2024

  • Dr. Marla Keller gave the Dean's Report on behalf of Dr. Tomer. She indicated that the tenure policy changes approved at the October Senate meeting were approved by the Board, gave a reminder about the ECHO gala on November 14th, and introduced the presentation on conflict-of-interest later in the meeting. Dr. Keller also spoke about the recent death of Dr. Irwin Merkatz, for whom a memorial page has been created on the website.
  • Dr. Arnsten provided the Speaker's Report. At the October 23rd Senate Council meeting, there was a discussion of revisions to the appendices to the Senate bylaws and the last Board meeting. At its most recent meeting, the Council received a preview of the LCME presentation that Dr. Yoon Kang will give to the Senate next month.
  • Elections were held for Senate officers via Poll Anywhere. Dr. Jeff Segall was re-elected as Parliamentarian and the Senate also voted to have the current slate of officers – Dr. Julia Arnsten as Speaker, Dr. Matthew Gamble as Vice Speaker, Caroline Delbourgo Patton as Secretary, and Dr. Lindsay LaFave as Treasurer – continue in their current roles.
  • Dr. Correa gave a report on the work of the DEI office. He seconded the reminder regarding the ECHO gala, then discussed opportunities for faculty to be involved in the Student Affinity Groups, the upcoming Stakeholder Breakfast, and the open house on December 8th for applicants to the MD/Ph.D. and MSTP programs. He also reminded the Senate about the interfaith space in Forchheimer, which is available for quiet and personal reflection.
  • Christopher Eichstedt from the Office of Human Research Affairs presented on the new conflict-of-interest disclosure process. All faculty and post-docs must complete the CITI COI course online and fill out a disclosure statement by December 31, 2024. The disclosure form will be updated annually from now on. The CITI course will be required once every four years.
  • Ankur Sharma from the Montefiore HR team spoke about the extension of the Bright Horizons Back-up Care program to MMC employees beginning in the first quarter of 2025. This includes 15 annual back-up care uses either in-home or at one of the Bright Horizon centers per employee, as well as other benefits. This change was advocated for by Dr. Christina Yang and other faculty members, who collected data in 2023 to support broadening the program.
  • Caroline Delbourgo Patton indicated that the D. Samuel Gottesman is seeking books with authors, contributors, or editors from Einstein/Montefiore that were published since spring 2023.
  • There was no additional old business at this meeting. The only new business was an announcement regarding the Cancer Center Inclusion Survey.