A-Senate discusses tax fraud, Title IX
Central Michigan University Provost Michael Gealt speaks with faculty and students at the Academic Senate meeting on Oct. 6 in Pearce Hall.
During the delivery of the provost's report during Academic Senate on April 5, Senator Bradley Swanson said his taxes had been fraudulently filed, and he'd heard from several other professors with the same problem.
Swanson said he usually filed his taxes jointly with his wife, but when he tried to file taxes this year found his own had already been filed. Swanson said after talking to other professors who had their taxes filed fraudulently, he found those who had partners working at CMU had their taxes filed jointly, while others had their's filed separately.
Chief Information Security Officer Mark Herron said the university had looked into the problem and found several other universities had similar problems. He said identity thieves could retrieve W2 information from the IRS if they knew enough personal information, such as from a credit report.
Swanson said he didn't feel that explained why joint taxes were filed only when both partners were working at CMU.
The Academic Senate voted for members of the second Online Academic Programs Committee. The first committee made researched and made suggestions for Global Campus. The new committee will focus on implementing those recommendations.
The committee members are librarian Laura Thompson, professors Leela Rakesh, Renee Babcock, Gina Umpstead, Maureen MacGillivray, Deborah Gray, Heather Polinsky and Brian Roberts.
The Athletics Committee gave a presentation on Title IX and the addition of new sports to even out participation by men and women.
Senator Mary Senter asked if Title IX standards could be met by instead cutting two men's sports. Athletics Committee Chair Liz Brockman said that could cost CMU NCAA sanctions. Senter said she was concerned about the rising costs of sports programs.
"I think what you're hearing here from many folks is this concern that all the rest of us have to be concerned with how much things cost, and the idea that there is just a blank check for athletics is just extremely disturbing," Senter said.
The senate passed a motion to require the committee to make two reports, one which suggests how to meet Title IX requirements by adding sports, and one which does the same by cutting sports programs.
