MU BOG Meeting

6-18-09

Dr. Monica Brooks, Faculty Representative 2007-09

AGENDA

Access the entire BOG package here: http://www.marshall.edu/ill/09-BOG/MUBOG-June-18-09.pdf

Minutes approved

Classified Staff Report (Mike Dunn)

·         Mike was elected to the BOG as the classified staff representative; Nina Barrett will become the chair of the CS group.

·         Mike asked a member of the gallery to speak: Kim Lawson, classified staff, from the LCOB has been here five years and is unable to meet financial needs for her family and is leaving Marshall; she is aware of a dozen people who have left recently due to the low salaries; fully funding the salary schedule would retain several people.

·         To fully fund the classified staff schedule the university would need 1.6 million dollars or 4% tuition increase to fulfill this need.

·         Except for SWVCTC, Marshall is at the bottom of the staff salary scale among the WV public institutions.

·         1% increase in tuition is equal to $400K in revenue; this year MU will have a tight budget and very little in reserve for emergencies.

·         Chairman Schell indicated he and the BOG are very sympathetic to the staff salary situation; however, the current financial situation does not allow the university t solve this issue at this time.

Nominating Committee – Election of Officers

·         Vera Gibson elected to Chair; John Hess, Vice Chair; and Mike Sellards, Secretary

·         Unanimous vote

Report of the President

·         Dr. Kopp indicated the finance committee meeting went well

·         Freshmen apps are up for 2009 (11.2% increase over last year)

·         Recruitment has been more aggressive with their student phone campaign; we have a better handle in re: to our student matriculation

·         1670 students are registered for orientation; over 14% increase from last year.

·         4.5% increase in freshmen enrollment is projected – the plan is to be conservative in this estimate; financial aid applications have also increased (up 16% over last year)

·         Dr. Kopp specifically commended Tammy Johnson and Beth Wolfe for their efforts in increasing enrollment!

·         This is a five year challenge to rebuild the recruiting program for MU and it appears we are indeed making progress!

·         Legislative progress – Special Session

o   Promise bill included funding and BOG representation for WVU; includes mandatory training.

o   The local legislative team was recognized individual for tireless efforts in support of higher education.

o   2010 base appropriations will remain at the same level; MUSOM had a 400K reduction; MU was able to secure funding for the Luke Lee pre-school.

o   Land sale of University Heights was included in our budget (2.3m)

o   HB113 passed (capital bonding bill) 150m in bonds will be generated 60% goes directly to higher education; MU should receive capital funding.

o   Six supplemental appropriations bills were passed; we will receive one-time money of over 1m dollars; Bill Burdette has worked consistently to ensure MU interests in Charleston.

o   Speaker Thompson has done a tremendous job not just for Marshall but for higher education. He is extremely supportive and committed to higher education in the state!

·         Budget planning and development – the President’s office has worked toward long-range planning; however, the late legislative session and deferral of the state budget into the last session; unknowns re: 2010 presented the university with a challenge.

·         New Deans:

o   Dr. Mary Todd – Honors College (Founding Dean)

o   Dr. Charles Somerville – College of Science

o   Dr. Donna Spindel – Graduate College

·         Faculty searches

o   Hired 18 new professors; includes new department chair in English; have also added members of the research team: pharmacology; interdisciplinary research program; and MURC.

·         MU is working to bring a new genetics company to Huntington.

·         College of Fine Arts (Music) – has been awarded a FIPSE grant to provide exchange programs with Brazil.

·         We are in the process of hiring a new Athletic Director.

·         MUSOM received 3^rd ranking in nation (includes top ten award) for placement; seniors received 100% pass rate for the boards.

·         2600 students attended commencement.

·         Dr. Bob Bookwalter has revitalized the forensics program; students participated in the national tournament this year.

·         Capital renovation projects: several renovations are underway on campus.

·         BOG Attendance:

o   WV Code mandates 6 BOG meetings (proposing 3^rd Thursday every other month) they will revisit the Aug 20 date to try and coordinate with the development program offered by the HEPC.

o   In an effort to have maximum participation, the BOG members are encouraged to attend every meeting.

o   BOG members should have these dates at least a year in advance.

·         Recreation Center should be dedicated sometime in early August.

·         Building enrollment is critical to increasing our revenue stream; out-of-state enrollment is an important component; Provost Ormiston is working on a two pronged approach- he is working to increase enrollment while also increasing retention of existing students.

Committee Reports

Finance Committee – Mike Perry

·         Mike indicated that this is one of the BOG’s most important roles; the finance committee also recognizes the importance of funding salaries at competitive rates for both staff and faculty; the over-all budget is a significant challenge this year; the finance committee views this responsibility as an important and critical one.

·         Every time we increase the tuition, we do make it that much more difficult for our students to attend Marshall. At the same time, we must consider increasing tuition to ensure that MU is competitive and can meet its financial needs to continue to provide quality education to the students.

·         If we would have grown enrollment by 7% this year, we wouldn’t need to impose a 7% increase onto tuition; unfortunately, this is what is needed to make ends meet.

o   $169 increase for resident

o   $240 for non resident

o   There are other increases for metro and MUSOM students in addition to some new fees that are going to be assessed.

o   A tuition increase totaling 6.9% was approved.

·         Equity programs that address faculty salaries will continue

o   Specifically Brooks asked if creative salary augmentation programs in academic divisions that are in place to address salary compression that results from the hiring of new faculty at competitive market wages would be suspended due to the statement on Page 4 item 4 of the Agenda Board Package.

o   Brooks clarified that she was aware that several deans and chairs had programs in place to address compression of existing faculty when hiring new faculty at or close to market.

o   Both Layton Cottrill and Dr. Kopp indicated “No” – the statement on page 4 does not prevent the university from continuing faculty salary equity programs in place to address faculty salary compression.

Page 4 item 4: Other Major Anticipated Expense Increases/Revenue Decreases (Total = ‐ $3.19‐million)

• No compensation increase for any employee group is proposed in the budget. State Code mandated increases due to faculty promotions, Annual Employee Increment (AEI) and Staff Reclassifications, however, are included in the proposed budget.

·         MUSOM Capital Projects - The proposal for a new building; property purchase; existing building expansion (approved).

·         Finance committee also had a report from the internal auditor.

Academic Committee – Tish Chafin

Action Item: Addition of New Degrees (Page 62)

·         BS in Athletic Training

·         BS in Exercise Science

·         BS in Medical Imaging

Action Item: Intent to Plan (Page 69)

·         MS in Accountancy

Action Item: Intent to Plan (Page 80)

·         MS in Health Informatics

Action Item: Addition of New Major (Page 101)

·         BA in Anthropology

Action Item: Degree Deletion (Page 104)

·         BA in Multidisciplinary Studies

Future meeting dates – Chairman Shell stressed that everyone needs to be in attendance; additionally he wants all BOG members to consider attending the HEPC Board Development Conference at Stonewall Jackson on August 21 and 22, 2009.

Executive session

Adjourned by 1:00 pm

Meeting Notes

MU BOG Faculty Representative, Dr. Monica Brooks

April 28 General Faculty Meeting

Dr. Larry Stickler from the College of Fine Arts and Dr. Steve Banks from the College of Education and Human Services were both nominated for the BOG Faculty Representative position 2009-2011.  Dr. Chuck Bailey, from the School of Journalism and Mass Communications, was nominated for the ACF position formerly held by Dr. Ben Miller of COFA.  Please do not forget to vote when the notice is sent regarding ACF and BOG elections in MyMU!

April 30, 2009 BOG Meeting

The full agenda from the April 30 meeting is located here: http://www.marshall.edu/ill/09-BOG/BOG-AGENDA-4-30-09.pdf

There were several items listed on the agenda that required BOG action. The 2008-09 Program Review process took place on April 16 and 17, 2009 in which the following programs were evaluated and approved by the board for the proposed actions listed below. At this time, Dr. Ormiston recommended that resource enhancements be tabled until more information is provided regarding the budget situation for 2009-2010 in light of a potential 5% cut by the State of WV:

• AAS in Medical Lab Technician – Continue as is
• BA & MS in Criminal Justice – Resource Enhancement
• BA in History– Resource Enhancement
• MA in History– Continue as is
• BA in Sociology– Corrective Action
• MA in Sociology– Corrective Action
• BA and MA in Humanities– Resource Enhancement
• BA in Economics (Follow-up)
• BA in Family & Consumer Sciences (Follow-up)
• BFA in Fine Arts  - Continue as is
• BS in Biological Sciences– Resource Enhancement
• BS in Cytotechnology– Continue as is
• BS in Integrated Science & Tech – Corrective Action
• BS in Medical Technology – Continue as is
• BS in Recreation & Park Resources – Corrective Action
• BSW in Social Work– Corrective Action
• MA in Art– Continue as is
• MA in Music– Continue as is
• MS in Exercise Science, Sport & Recreation– Continue as is
• MS in Forensic Science– Resource Enhancement
• MS in Technology Management– Continue as is

Other BOG Agenda Items & Actions:

·         Effective July 1, 2009, all BOG representatives are required to obtain 3-6 hours of continuing education in the form of mandatory orientation upon acceptance of their board positions. The BOG Summit will be conducted by the HEPC and held on August 22.

·         Dr. Kopp provided a detailed report in which he outlined the current budget situation and provided information regarding the upcoming Core Foundations changes and other major initiatives on campus.

·         The President’s report is provided here in its entirety:  http://www.marshall.edu/president/presentations/MUBOG_PRESENTATION_04-30-09.pdf

·         The Finance, Audit, and Facilities Planning Committee reviewed each of our accounts, the Common Fund, and the quarterly budget statements. While the earnings have been very low, they are recovering slowly from the major dip that was seen in the last quarter. View the financial reports starting on page 11 of the Agenda packet provided.

·         Both the Animal Policy (GA-15 Policy) and the Employee Dependent Tuition Assistance Policy (AA-42 Policy) were passed by the full board.  The faculty did have major issues with the campus animal ban and the faculty representative voted “Nay” on this policy accordingly.

The Academic Committee chaired by Verna Gibson, had a full agenda of action items. The BOG voted unanimously to pass the following actions:

• IT-5 Policy regarding Online Courses
• Participation in the 9/11 GI Bill Yellow Ribbon Program
• Addition of the Major and Program in Early Childhood Education
• Intent to plan the BS in Athletic Training
• Intent to plan the BS in Exercise Science
• Current University policies: http://www.marshall.edu/president/board/policies.html  

The BOG went into Executive Session in which no action items were discussed and the meeting was adjourned before 1:00 p.m.  If you have any questions or comments, please let me know. I am a member of the library faculty in Information Technology located in CB220. I can be reached at 304- 696-6474 or brooks@marshall.edu.

The full agenda can be found here: http://www.marshall.edu/ill/09-BOG/mubog031209.pdf

AGENDA

Report of the President:

·        Obama Omnibus bill will yield 13.5m federal funding for WV; the funding has to be used for projects and programs; the actual breakdown is forthcoming. Senator Byrd helped get the state this money.

·        Admissions update: 11.3% increase over last year this time; hoping for 5% increase for fall 09; 5% growth is a healthy figure; big increase in non-resident enrolled students; core full-time resident population has decreased; still have a lot to do on retention; Dr. Ormiston is in the process of working on this with faculty and administrators.

·        The Admin is looking at colleges in re: to which ones are increasing/dropping in enrollment.

·        Recreation center update: April 17 dedication (1-3 p.m.)

·        Legislative update:  Dr. Kopp is watching several bills carefully and meeting with key legislators regarding higher education issues; Governor Manchin recently announced a 2% reduction to House and Senate (not across-the-board reduction); at this point we do not know if this will translate to reductions for MU.

·        Internal budget planning has been underway; the admin is anticipating the 2% cut to provide better forecasting; the goal is also to provide long-range budget planning; this is extensive and ongoing.

·        Mission critical expenditures will be reviewed; the budget process is now very open to include people from various sectors on campus; several presentations have been conducted to provide info and seek input.

·        The summer school program has been revamped; over the last 4 years we have lost over 1.4m dollars instead of breaking even or making money on summer classes; we went from 6 to 4 sessions; all colleges who offer summer courses must have balanced budget; the hope is to see a net gain in revenue; high demand courses and courses required for graduation have priority.

·        A building energy cost study was completed by VP Anita Lockridge and Dr. Fox; this is a comprehensive study and examines every building and its operating expenses on campus; the two most expensive buildings to operate were the Bio Tech Center and the Science Building; most expensive bldg on campus had ONE summer class taught in it; it is not zoned therefore the heating/cooling cannot be modified or turned down; WHERE we are teaching in the summer is going to be considered. Expenditures for utilities have to be reduced for the summer because AEP is projecting an 18.5% increase in costs next year so we must prepare if this passes.

Reports

Finance, Audit and Investment Committee (Mr. Perry, pages 1-17 of agenda packet)

·         Action: Approve the Byrd Flexible Manufacturing Bldg action (Resolution requesting and authorizing acceptance of transfer of real property situate at 1050 Fourth Avenue from the West Virginia Board of Public Works was approved)

·         Investments update and quarterly reports: The Common Fund accounts have lost ground in the same way our personal accounts and those at the national level have; for now, we are staying the course; the BOG Finance Committee will watch the accounts carefully but will authorize the BOG Executive Committee to change the asset allocation model if needed.  (BOG voted to approve this action).

·         Statewide Auditor Update: RFPs went out and Delloit and Touche were selected; this is the same firm MU has been using.

·         FYI the university got solid assurance that none of our funds were diverted to Madoff’s firm or any other unscrupulous firms affiliated with this Ponzi scheme.

Academic Committee Report (Dr. Brook, pages 18-61)

·        Program reviews will take place on April 16 and 17 in BE-5 of the Memorial Student Center; Monica is seeking reviewers from the present and past BOG and will provide documentation needed for this process.

Report of the Provost:

·        Dr. Ormiston reiterated some of the items Dr. Kopp shared regarding summer school; he indicated that MUGC will offer some undergraduate summer courses (15 daytime and 6 e-courses are scheduled)

·        Retention report: 21 members of university community are serving on a retention committee; their charge is to review student success and persistence rates and strategize improving these.

o   71% of our students continue to the second year; 6 year grad rate

o   45% are graduating in 6 years

o   We also need to push 4-year graduation rates and improve degree completion

o   A draft retention plan from the committee should be available this month

·        Core foundations: the committee has provided a proposal that is being shared with the university community; the main theme of the process is critical thinking; four sessions have been conducted on campus; comments gained from this process are being discussed/considered by the committee; this is also related to recruitment and retention since one aspect is to reduce the total hours required for graduation and allow students to transfer from college-to-college easier.

Action item – Intent to Plan BS in Medical Imaging (BOG voted to approve)

·        Complete report and budget items provided on page 18; Mr. Hess wanted to be sure we were not competing with local institutions in regard to attracting students; Dr. Hossler and Dr. Fisher indicated this will not be the case. Fewer than 10% of their incoming freshmen are transfer students from other institutions and they have a 90% matriculation rate.

·        The College of Health Professions and St. Mary’s want to expand their AAS to a BS because the professional accrediting body affiliated with medical imaging will be requiring a minimum of a BS prior to sitting for the professional certification exam effective 2015.  MU and St. Mary’s want to start accepting students into this degree program in 2009 so they can be prepare MU graduates with the appropriate education and credentials by 2013.

MUSOM Report: they submitted a proposal to acquire a virtual colonoscopy C-T scan unit which was approved by the BOG (Page 62).

The Board went into Executive Session before lunch and adjourned before 1 p.m.

Attached you will find the BOG Agenda for Thursday, March 12, 2009, to be held in BE-5 in the Memorial Student Center at 10:15 a.m. (or immediately following the standing committee meetings).

The agenda includes Dr. Kopp’s report to the board, standing committee reports, the finance update, quarterly budget information, our current investment earnings, an update on the audit RFP, real property issues (including property transfers), a new program intent to plan in CHP, and the terms of the MU/MCTC separation.

If you have any questions or comments, please let me know. I can be reached at 696-6474 or brooks@marshall.edu. I will provide a detailed report at the next Faculty Senate meeting and this Blog site.

January 14, 2009

MU BOG Meeting notes

AGENDA:  http://www.marshall.edu/ill/09-BOG/BOG-AGENDA-JAN-14-09.pdf 

Minutes approved

2009 March 12, April 30, June 18 meeting dates confirmed

President’s Report (Dr. Kopp)

·         Dec 6 convocation was a success; Dr. Miller was the keynote speaker; in the future this will become a full commencement because feedback a so positive from students and parents. The turn-out was excellent; the attendees filled the Keith Albee and more participation is expected next year.

·         The MU Institute for Interdisciplinary Research is up and running; the first researcher is in place along with personnel and over a million dollars in grants; he is bringing an additional 8 people to the lab.

o   Univ of KY meetings – WVU colleagues and members of the Dept of Commerce attended; the group met to learn more about their experiences re: bucks for brains; the UK president will be coming to MU to view the interdisciplinary research institute. They have raised 1.8 m and have 1.1 m verbal commitments so far.

·         Financial planning & forecasting – Anita Lockridge is moving us forward; we need to realign our systems to support what we have; austerity budget planning measures are in place for ‘09; each VP has been informed to anticipate the forecast of potential down-turn in the state.

·         Recruitment & retention – Dr. Ormiston is generating a compressive plan for recruitment and retention; it is very specific and focused to help produce sustainable measures.

·         Leadership summit – a comprehensive compensation plan is being developed and will be shared with the board.

·         Recruitment – the search for a director should be resolved soon; special thanks to Dr. Tammy Johnson.

·         New student recruitment initiatives due to lessons learned:

o   Ongoing practice to establish relationships with prospective students between application and actual matriculation; should help improve admission yield over-all; also providing enrollment advisors; completed application yield is also improved (includes mailings and personal calls; telecounseling efforts)

o   Border state and Appalachian recruitment – electronic marketing yields a target of 133K students eligible for admission under these new guidelines

o   Admission – non res/metro up 16.4% (204); overall up 7.9% ; trend analysis indicates we will meet or exceed our 5% freshmen enrollment projection; we are ahead of last year.

·         Intuit project for FAFSA – close to the beta test; should announce in February; thanks to Dr. Fox’s efforts.

·         Capital projects – 1.4 m renovation work has been completed such as the MSC basement; another 1.8 m renovations are underway on campus; early February is the target for a soft opening of recreation center; grand opening likely in March.

·         New degree program – DPT; Dr. Kopp is very excited about the MUSOM and CHP collaboration to make this happen; the program is poised to meet a critical need in this area with a competitive and timely program that will generate a program of excellence and help grow enrollment.

·          Committee restructuring proposal for MU BOG – over-all response was positive; should go into effect July 1; new committee appointments will be made.

Finance Committee (Mr. Perry)

·         Page 1 of the agenda packet – indirect cost service agreement w/ MCTC; Extraction of data is a costly and a lengthy process.  The committee proposed the development of another committee that could resolve this and other issues and bring this process to conclusion. This committee would include reps from both boards to resolve the admin issues and financial considerations.

o   New committee was approved.

·         Page 27 – financial statements & investments update: we are within our budget; we are concerned re: the country and state’s economic situation; the committee and university admin are working on contingency planning measures; athletic income for season tickets dropped by 1.5 m due to the WVU game.

·         Investment update – major dip in every fund; however, the recent quarter is not as bleak; also the over-all health of the fund is good in spite of the national economic crash in the fall. No surprises; the status of our fund is directly related to the status of the economy. We are still in the black.

·         Residence Halls & Capstone Project (Public/Private) - we are on schedule with our budgets.

·         Page 41 – lottery bond funding; see seven projects listed on page 43; the university uses the return from this lottery fund to fund these projects.

o   Approval to move ahead.

·         University Heights – sold to Prestera; should be closed this Friday at 3 p.m.; these funds go into a state account by law; MU will ask legislative colleagues to redirect these funds back to the university with some flexibility.

·         Doctorate in Physical Therapy (Business Plan) – Dr. McKown also provided three financial updates re: the medical school; the MUSOM budget is on target; practice plan is still under same constraints as before; looking forward to how the new administration in Washington impacts this.

o   The Forensic Science building expansion is well underway; expected to open on schedule.

o   Logan Co. Rural Co. health center update: 2.9 million project; 2 story building to serve Logan and Mingo counties; Logan Healthcare Foundation approved a 25-year site lease for $1 per year.

·         Auditor’s report (Perry Chafin)

Academic committee (Monica Brooks)

·         Information item - 07-08 tuition waiver report; numbers decreased due to loss of MCTC; numbers are similar to last year.

·         The other was an action item that required a vote – Dr. Shortie McKinney, Dean of the college of health professions provided details on a proposal to develop a doctorate in physical therapy. The BOG approved the program proposal.

Athletic Committee (Mr. Farrell)

·         We are in full compliance w/ our NCAA report/conditions; Academic summary for the fall was very positive.

Executive Session

Greetings, Colleagues,

Attached you will find the BOG Agenda for the Wednesday, January 14, 2009. The meeting will be held at the MU Graduate College in South Charleston beginning at 11:30 a.m.  

http://www.marshall.edu/ill/09-BOG/MUBOG-Jan14-Agenda.pdf
 

The agenda includes various committee reports listed such as current budget materials, the MCTC agreement, an update on the Univ. Heights property; Residence Hall/Capstone status, and other important items.

If you have any questions or comments, please let me know. I can be reached at 696-6474 or brooks@marshall.edu.

I will provide a detailed report at the next Faculty Senate meeting on January 29, and will post the meeting materials via the MU BOG blog:  http://mu-bog-faculty.blog.com/  Prior approved minutes and policies can be found on the university site: http://www.marshall.edu/president/board/ 

Regards,

Monica

BOG General Meeting Notes

November 13, 2008

http://www.marshall.edu/ill/08-BOG/11-13-08.pdf

Academic Committee Report:

·     Dr. Ormiston provided a summary of the COMPACT; Brooks presented a resolution: The Academic Committee presents a resolution to approve the Marshall University Campus Compact, our submission the Higher Education Policy Commission for the 2007-2012 Master Plan process that commences with this report. (approved)

·     Dean Van Horn discussed the Marching Band facilities proposal (information item only)

Dr. Kopp’s report to the Board:

·     MU’s current financial status is good; the university still has to be frugal in case there are unforeseen financial issues; financial returns for mid-year 2009 were not as good as in the past for foundation accounts; Ron Area is on top of this issue (austere measures). He also indicated that MU continues with the hiring freeze practice that has aided us; there is no eminent crisis but we will monitor closely.

·     Recruitment: Open house on Nov 8 was the largest ever! Freshmen enrollment has been up each year.

·     The Compact report was submitted to the HEPC; one big goal is meeting the FT freshmen level of 2,000 students.

·     Dr. Kopp introduced Dr. Gayle Ormiston; was pleased he has hit the ground running; his work with retention is crucial.

·     Dr. Jan Fox is working with a corporate entity to automate the FAFSA form for prospective students; this will aid families in filing the correct paperwork to obtain aid they have been eligible to receive.

·     MCTC contract work is still underway and the parties are moving toward a separation timeline that was agreed upon.

·     The HB3215 deadline was extended to April 2009.

·     Audit update: the residence halls and recreation projects are not part of the debt assigned to the university; our audit status is good. (See attached packet for specifics in the audit letter.)

Capital projects:

·     Recreation Center: February 2009 opening planned; (using contingency fund to get it done on time).

·     The Alumni Center dedication was on October 31 and the building is going up well.

·     The MSC basement renovation is underway and should be completed in December.

·     The roof replacement for the Morrow Library is underway; the Smith Hall air handling system work is also underway.

·     OM is also being renovated; 3^rd floor of OM will be converted to another use when foundation moves out

·     Business start-up opportunity: Phoenix Biotherapeudics: amplifies non-embryonic stem cells for the treatment of developmental disorders.

·     MU has a potential partnership with St. Mary’s in Medical imaging; and we also entered into a midwifery partnership with Shenandoah University.

·     The Legislative Agenda is being finalized.

Finance Committee Report:

·     Increasing enrollment and retention are the most critical means for improving our financial situation.

·     The trick is putting the negative impact that non-retention has on the university is hard to convey in an easy-to-understand report; however, the retention committee wants to encourage the faculty, staff, and students participating in this process.

·     Capital assets went up because of the number of new buildings etc; but we still want to concentrate on improving the operating lines for the university.

·     Common Fund reports that our results are fluctuating as does the market; Sept and Oct figures are dramatically different; changes daily and weekly; MU is going through the same pangs the rest of the economy is experiencing.

Executive Session/Post-Session Results:

·     Approved appointment of Vijay Shah to the Autism Training Center Advisory Board.

·     Approved endowed professorship to be named at a later date.

·     Declared property at University Heights to be surplus property.

·     Accepted the highest bid which was from Prestera Center to purchase the property.

·     Approved salary package to be submitted to HEPC for the President (Brooks & Noble voted nay).

Next meeting:

·     The next BOG meeting will be in January in Charleston, WV; the date is TBA but this meeting usually coincides with the MU-WVU basketball game at the downtown Civic Center.

·     Meeting notes and agenda items are posted on the MU BOG Blog site: http://mu-bog-faculty.blog.com/  and I can be reached at 696-6474 or brooks@marshall.edu

Future Meetings:

·     March 12, 2009

·     April 30, 2009

·     June 18, 2009

Attached you will find the BOG Agenda for the Wednesday, November 13 meeting that will take place in the Shawkey Dining Room of the Memorial Student Center at 10:45 a.m.

http://www.marshall.edu/ill/08-BOG/11-13-08.pdf 

Items to be aware of include the various committee reports listed on the agenda, quarterly budget materials, internal audit status, and investment earnings; the results of the second audit for the Univ. Heights property; the 2008 Campus Compact; and minor changes to HR-5 re: the non-classified staff progressive counseling process.

If you have any questions or comments, please let me know. I can be reached at 696-6474 or brooks@marshall.edu. I will provide a detailed report at the next Faculty Senate meeting on November 20, and will post the BOG materials via the MU BOG blog: http://mu-bog-faculty.blog.com/ Prior BOG minutes and policies can be found on the university BOG site: http://www.marshall.edu/president/board/

Regards, Monica

Senate Executive Committee Request for Information

• As per the request made at the September 8 meeting, members of the Senate Executive Committee asked for answers to a few questions in preparation for the full Senate meeting. I spoke with Layton Cottrill, General Counsel, on 9/18, who indicated that inquiries for information are directed to his office; the decision on the sale of the property has not been made nor has a date been set; the second appraisal has not been completed yet; once the university has that information, the BOG will have to consider price in addition to other fiduciary responsibilities.
• During the fall faculty meeting on September 22, President Kopp provided additional details regarding the status of the University Heights property.

• The most recent meeting took place on Friday, August 29 via conference call in President Kopp’s office at 4:00 p.m. The agenda consisted of a brief discussion regarding the Higher Education Policy Commission (HEPC) capital improvement list in which MU projects must be submitted prior to any initiative to seek funding or break ground in the future. The 2009-2014 submission included many “wish list” items that have no location or funding to date. In order for any of these to become a reality in future years, the university was required to make the HEPC aware they are on our long-range plan.
• The University Heights property was also discussed. A public meeting had been held earlier in the day to allow community members to voice concerns. The public was also made aware that both Prestera Center and the Cabell County Board of Education submitted bids; however, the board determined that more information was needed before any action could be taken. A second appraisal is required by state code; this appraisal is still pending.

• The weekend before school began I joined members of the MU BOG at the Board of Governors Summit meeting hosted by the WV HEPC at Stonewall Resort. John Hess, Virginia King, Sherri Noble, and Michael Sellards also attended the two-day meeting. Several BOG members and some presidents from the state’s public institutions participated representing Bluefield, Concord, Fairmont, Glenville, Shepherd, West Liberty, West Virginia State, the WV SOM, WVU Tech, and West Virginia U.
• In addition to member panel discussions on issues such as campus communication, funding, retention, and board responsibilities, members of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges and leaders in higher education provided sessions on ethics, finance, accountability, retention, and assessment. Governor Manchin was the keynote speaker, Chancellor Noland moderated, and Senator Plymale participated on the opening panel. The information, materials, and sessions presented provided the state’s BOG members with the opportunity to discuss state-wide higher education issues with other board members, lawmakers, AGB and HEPC officials. I felt it was a very worthwhile program that allowed for faculty board representatives to meet and share information.