Ohio University will be giving free rides to students interested in attending the summer’s Board of Trustees meeting.
The governing body will meet June 26 and 27 at the university’s Eastern campus in St. Clairsville, Ohio.
Transportation will be available to students and employees who would like to attend both the Thursday and Friday meetings. Those who would enjoy a ride to the meeting should email trustees@ohiou.edu by June 10 with the word “transportation” in the subject line, said Peter Mather, board secretary.
Mather said he and other administrators are currently looking into live streaming the joint academics and finance committee meeting, which will take place June 26. The possibility of streaming two meetings will be based upon whether OU Eastern has the equipment on campus or if it will be brought from Athens campus.
The board will approve, among many agenda items, a budget for the 2014-15 academic year.
The university’s Budget Planning Council recommended a 1.5 percent tuition increase — just under the two percent cap placed on public universities by the state — to OU President Roderick McDavis who, in turn, makes a recommendation to the board.
“A major focus of our June board meeting will be the determination of tuition and fee rates, as well as room and board rates, for the 2014-15 academic year,” McDavis said in a comment.
McDavis will announce his decision on tuition rates, which he will take to the board in June, before commencement, said Jennifer Kirksey, chief of staff to the president.
The upcoming year’s budget is traditionally presented to the board during the March meeting, but OU officials decided they needed more time to create the budget, according to a previous Post article.
“University leaders decided to present tuition and fee recommendations at the June meeting because they felt strongly about the need for further discussion on campus,” said Stephanie Filson, director of external communications in an email.
Between the March and June board meetings, officials held two open forums April 15 and 16 for students and OU employees on the budget.
“This schedule allowed us to ... develop the best strategy for helping colleges make the investments necessary to support these academic needs. By deferring until June we were able to understand all the investments required,” Vice President for Finance and Administration Stephen Golding said in an email.
The two-day meeting will also include the yearly update on OU’s Capital Improvement Plan, which outlines looming campus construction projects.
“Our challenge is that we have facilities that are reaching their lifespans,” Golding said. “We’re entering into 20- and 30-year obligations that we’re required to pay for that period of time.”
This meeting will also uphold the annual tradition of visiting one of OU’s regional campuses.
The board last visited OU Eastern for its January 2009 meeting, according to board minutes.
“In addition, we look forward to engaging with our students, faculty and staff on the Eastern campus and highlighting their important work and contributions to the Ohio Valley region,” McDavis said in a statement.
The full agenda will be released June 11 on the Board of Trustees web page, Mather said.
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