Back to Main College Council Page | Back to MCS Home Page

MCS College Council
December 9, 2003

In Attendance:
Richard McCullough
Gregg Franklin
Eric Grotzinger
Elizabeth Jones
Hyung Kim
Roy Nicolaides
Michael Widom
Amy Burkert
Paul Karol
William Brown
Rea Freeland
Shiu Fai
Ksenija Simic

I. Biotechnology (handout)
  1. GSIA MBA Biotechnology Track (information only - (handout))
    A biotechnology track has recently been added to the list of tracks available to GSIA MBA students. MCS faculty members are involved in screening applicants to this track and the track requires MCS courses, including the course proposed in item (B) below.

  2. Principles of Biotechnology (request approval for new college wide course)
    Bill Brown presented a request for a new course, 38-710 Principles of Biotechnology, that will be required for the new master's degree in biotechnology management and also for GSIA's MBA with a biotechnology track.

    This would be a full semester graduate level course, offered for 12 units in the fall. The audience is expected to be primarily graduate students, though undergraduates may take the course if they are qualified. There will be no text as the course will focus on a variety of current issues in biotechnology, covering a new topic each week. Although guest experts in the field, drawn from the Carnegie Mellon faculty, will guide each module, Dr. Alan Waggoner will be the coordinating instructor.

  3. Concerns
    Would there be a cap on the number students permitted to enter the program each year, in order to ensure that the relevant courses are not over-enrolled?
    If the program grows by more than about 10 students, additional faculty members will be needed to teach Molecular Biology of Prokaryotes and Molecular Biology of Eukaryotes.

    Given that this will be a joint program, what are the benefits to MCS?
    This program will provide another option for our students and will also attract additional prospective students. There is only one other comparable program in the U.S., at University of Pennsylvania. Offering this program will make Carnegie Mellon, including MCS, stand out.

    Is the course sustainable?
    The department felt that it will be sustainable and that in addition to Alan Waggoner, Jeffrey Hollinger is interested in providing support, particularly in the area of Tissue Engineering.

    Will the MCS courses fit into a manageable schedule along with GSIA and Heinz mini courses?
    GSIA and Heinz mini courses are scheduled frequently and offer students a lot of flexibility. It should not be a problem to schedule MCS courses during the same semester as these courses.

    COLLEGE COUNCIL ACTION:
    College Council unanimously approved the proposal.

  4. Masters of Science in Biotechnology Management Proposal (initial discussion)
    Bill Brown presented a proposal to initiate discussion of a new masters degree program - the Master of Biotechnology Management. The program is intended to serve students who are interested in management and have a strong scientific background in biotechnology related fields. This would be a university degree managed by the Heinz School, GSIA, and MCS. It would be administered by Heinz.

    Potential candidates for admission to the program currently hold PhDs, MDs, and bachelor's degrees in scientific fields. Although the program will be open to those with management backgrounds as well as those with scientific backgrounds, it is expected that it will be more difficult for those with management backgrounds to become proficient in the technical areas. There is also a possibility that Carnegie Mellon undergraduates could earn an MS in Biotechnology Management as part of a 3-1-1 program. The committee is seeking program approval by spring 2004.

    In addition to the Manufacturing and Lab Practices mini course that will likely be taught by an adjunct professor, there are currently three key courses required for this program that do not yet exist:
    1. Biotechnology Regulation, Policy, and Compliance
      This course would be provided by MCS and Heinz and will require a new hire (in the Heinz School).
    2. Biotechnology Industry Structure and Strategy
      This course will be provided by GSIA.
    3. Principles of Biotechnology
      This is the new MCS course proposed in part B, above.
.

II. Proposal for New Neurobiology Course
Beth Jones presented a proposal for a new Neurobiology course, 03-761 Neural Plasticity in Sensory and Motor Systems. This will be a graduate level course, offered in the spring, for 9 units. It is modeled after the Advanced Development course taught by Chuck Ettensohn. This course will appeal to graduate students in Psychology and the CNBC as well as those in Biological Sciences and will also be available to students in these fields at the University of Pittsburgh. Although qualified undergraduates may take the course, it will not be cross listed with an undergraduate course number.

COLLEGE COUNCIL ACTION:
College Council unanimously approved the proposal.

III. Request for 03-601 Summer Internship in Computational Biology
Beth Jones presented a proposal for a summer internship course in computational biology. This course is proposed with regard to international students in particular. All students seeking an MS in Computational Biology are required to complete a summer internship. An internship can be compensated either with course credit (units), pay, or some combination of the two (though the same hours cannot be credited and paid). International students need to be registered for at least one unit of course work in order to keep their visas current. This is sometimes an issue during summer, when these students are not typically registered for any other courses.

Emily Stark, Graduate Program Coordinator for the Department of Biological Sciences, will oversee students seeking internships and assist them in finding appropriate placement. She will also be responsible for reviewing the written technical report that will be required upon completion of the internship.

The department is consulting with LynnYoung, Contracts Manager in the Office of Sponsored Research, regarding matters of intellectual property.

COLLEGE COUNCIL ACTION:
College Council unanimously approved the proposal.

IV. Request for Cross Listing
Bob Murphy has a joint appointment in the Departments of Biological Sciences and Biomedical Engineering. He currently teaches three courses that are listed under the Department of Biological Sciences. Biomedical Engineering would like to have these courses cross-listed in their department. The courses are: The cross-listed courses would have the same titles, prerequisites, etc.

COLLEGE COUNCIL ACTION:
CIT's College Council has approved the cross listing and no action is required on the part of MCS.

V. Proposed Changes to Joint Appointments Policy
Gregg Franklin presented a modified version of the MCS policy on major joint appointments.

The policy addresses what should be done when there is a discrepancy between the two departments that jointly appoint a faculty member. In particular, the two department heads and two deans ("joint ad-hoc" committee) are expected to meet to resolve these issues.

COLLEGE COUNCIL ACTION:
The council decided that a revised version of this document, with wording changes to clarify the role of the joint ad-hoc committee, should be distributed to the department heads for review at their respective faculty meetings.

Issues for the Spring 2004 Semester
The following issues will need to be addressed during the spring 2004 semester: