The Faculty Council voted to call upon Chancellor Brady Deaton to conduct an audit of the Nuclear Science and Engineering Institute on Thursday.
The motion was one of two resolutions Professor of Mathematics Stephen Montgomery-Smith introduced in response to the ongoing debate surrounding the closing of NSEI.
Administrators announced the closure in a March 15, 2012 letter. The institute was to be restructured for general improvement and economic opportunities. Staff would have to find new academic departments to join.
Faculty and students in the institute contested the action and accused administration of breaking Collected Rules and Regulations by failing to consult them on the issue.
The first resolution proposed the creation of a committee to analyze the administration of the NSEI, but there was a consensus that the resolution was too vague.
The second resolution stated the council should call upon Deaton to conduct an audit on the NSEI as well as restore the NSEI to its state prior to the closing until the audit has been completed.
The council postponed a vote on the first resolution for their next meeting, but the second resolution passed in an 14-8 vote.
Under current conditions, NSEI cannot admit any new students to the program. The only students who can participate in the program are those currently enrolled in it.
“We cannot recruit students,” said Sudarshan Loyalka, professor of nuclear engineering. “We cannot advertise that they are coming to NSEI. That has been changed.”
Graduate students are still interested in the program, but the current suspension has closed admissions. Loyalka said he was to send letters out telling students they were not allowed to enter the program.
“Twenty-eight students applied,” he said. “They have just been sent letters that admission are suspended.”
Loyalka continued to say the NSEI and its staff have asked Deaton to talk with them about the current admission problems.
“We were supposed to have more discussions this week,” he said. “No discussions have happened this week.”
A date to vote on the first resolution was not set.
