A comprehensive — yet readable — guide to Thursday, Oct. 16-17 meeting for the curious or concerned university reader.
Next week marks the beginning of another Board of Trustees season at Ohio University. The last meeting was held at the Dublin regional campus on August 28th. During that session the Board of Trustees voted to raise tuition by $156, approve a $31.6 million renovation of McCracken hall, as well as a 7.8% pay increase for OU President Roderick McDavis. Here is what will be discussed by the board at the meeting next week.
President’s Report (pages 96-116)
McDavis will give a report to the board regarding the progress toward several university goals including the disability strategic plan, sexual misconduct prevention, and the Promise Lives fundraising campaign.
Compensation 2014 Project (pages 117-137)
The Compensation Project was started to create consistent job classifications linked to market-based pay structures, and provide OU employees with a clear career path. This project was in response to a Title IX complaint filed against the university, and OU is working with the Department of Education to develop this plan. A story on the top paid administrators at OU can be read here.
Ridges Master Plan (pages 138-186)
The Ridges Advisory Committee was re-established by McDavis in 2013, in order to provide the university with possibilities for rehabilitating The Ridges. The Ridges is currently home to Kennedy Art Museum, the Child Development Center and is used by many of the schools within the university. The Ridges Advisory committee is working with consultants and the public to develop a plan which will expand how the university uses The Ridges and look at ways to rehabilitate the buildings while preserving the history surrounding them. For more information regarding the possibilities being discussed, read our recent coverage here.
State Share of Instruction Updates (pages 187-194)
The State Share of Instruction is a formula which determines how Ohio distributes money to the public state universities. Two small tweaks to this formula will change how much money OU receives from the state. These small changes will increase money to universities who take on students with a higher risk of not completing their degree, and will change how funding is allocated to universities for students who complete both an associates and a bachelors degree. These changes will most likely lower the amount of funding OU will receive from the state, but it is unclear by how much. Read more of our coverage here.
Ohio Guarantee Budget (pages 195-209)
The Ohio Guarantee is a plan, previously approved by the Board of Trustees, is a plan to make planning for college easier, at least financially. The plan will lock in a single tuition for four years, and will offer more transparency in costs associated with additional years of study, as well as things like changing meal plans. The board will discuss the process of budgeting for the plan, which will begin for the class of 2019, and will approve the pricing for the first group of students by January 2015. For more coverage of Guaranteed Tuition, read our coverage here.
University Library Presentation (pages 210-218)
The Ohio University libraries joined the Association of Research Libraries in 1996, and was then recognized as one of the top 100 research libraries in North America. A presentation will be given about the increase of digital traffic for the library. As said in a memo from Pam Benoit, executive vice president and provost, to the board, “In the past four years, for example, downloads of journal articles have increased by 50%. Since 2009, downloads of electronic books have increased 250% to nearly 177,000 in 2013. We even anticipate e-book downloads to exceed the use print books in 2014. Similarly, the libraries’ services are quickly migrating to electronic delivery through chat, Twitter, and even YouTube.”
Review of Centers and Institutions (pages 219-228)
In a review of the various centers and institutions within OU, several recommendations to the board regarding the continuation of these centers will be made. They are as follows:
-
Centers to continue
-
-
Contemporary History Institute
-
Institute for Sustainable Energy and the Environment; Ohio Coal Research Center; Center for Air Quality
-
Ohio Research Institute for Transportation and the Environment
-
Ohio Musculoskeletal and Neurological Institute
-
Ralph and Luci Schey Sales Centre
-
Institute for Democracy in Education
-
Charles J. Ping Institute
-
-
Centers to give one-year extension
-
-
African American Research and Service Institute
-
-
Centers to discontinue
-
-
Ohio University Cartographic Center
-
Ohio University Insurance Center
-
Scripps Survey Research Center
-
Parental Leave Pilot Program (pages 229-235)
A program providing the ability for parents to go on leave was implemented in January 2013 at the request of various groups at the university voiced a need. The program was scheduled to end at the end of 2014, but has been approved for a year long extension. The Benefits Advisory Committee will look at the program in the coming year to determine its long term possibilities.
Accreditation (pages 236-242)
Ohio University has to maintain accreditation with the Higher Learning Commission, and the progress towards an upcoming re accreditation process will be presented to the board.
Enrollment Update (pages 243-251)
A new record has been established for freshman enrollment. There was an increase of 3.2% over last year’s freshman class, resulting in 4379 students as of the first day of classes. This resulted in a scramble to find adequate housing for the influx of freshmen, and left some students sleeping in lounges.
Retention Update (pages 252- 331)
Almost 80 pages of graphs and figures will be presented to the board regarding first year retention rates. Overall, 80.2% of students returned for their second year on the Athens campus, which is a 1.4% increase over last year. The university attributes this rise to it’s Living and Learning communities, as well as other first year experiences created for the freshman class.
U.S. News and World Report College Rankings (pages 332-344)
U.S. News and World Report is one of the most widely used ranking for Universities, and OU moved up in the ranks last year. OU advanced from 135th to 129th for all universities, and from 68th to 63rd in public institutions. 129th place happens to be a six-way tie between Arizona State
University-Tempe, Louisiana State University-Baton Rouge, University of Cincinnati,
University of Kentucky and University of Utah. Read about how OU has done in the rankings since McDavis became president here.
Student Achievement Measures (pages 345-355)
A measure used by the university to track student accomplishments and completion of their degrees will be updated. OU will include students who study at multiple universities in order to complete their degree, which matches a growing trend in higher education.
College of Arts and Sciences Wealth and Poverty Certificate (pages 356-362)
The College of Arts and Sciences wants to offer a certificate in Wealth and Poverty and needs the board to approve the new certificate. The new certificate is “proposed to address economic growth, wealth distribution, poverty, inequality and empowerment issues in both domestic and
international settings.”
Support and Assistance to veterans and servicemembers (pages 363-365)
Ohio House Bill 488, set higher standards for services and support public universities. Ohio University has reacted to the bill by creating an office in Baker Center for veterans, among other improvements, and was named a 2015 Military Friendly School by Victory Media for the fourth year in a row. You can read more about how OU is doing in veterans assistance here.
Promise Lives Campaign (pages 366-375)
The Promise Lives campaign was completed last year and an update on the fundraising campaign will be given to the board. The presentation will include information regarding the universities effort to attract more women donors through their Ohio Women program.
Finance Update (pages 376-413)
Stephen Golding, vice president of finance and administration, will give a presentation to the board regarding the state of the university finances. The presentation includes information regarding the the century bond, employee compensation, university investments and more. Look for more coverage of this topic following the board meeting. To read more about the century bond click here.
Service Alignment Initiative (pages 414-423)
A presentation will be given to the board regarding the achievements of the SAI and the finance aspects of the initiative. SAI is a “plan designed to overhaul the central administrative structure of the university into a premier service organization, focused on meeting the business and administrative needs of the colleges and the university in an RCM (Responsibility Centered Management) environment.”
Comprehensive Master Plan Update (pages 424-437)
The Comprehensive Master Plan is the plan the university uses to guide building maintenance and construction across campus. A presentation will go over the progress made since the last meeting, and submit resolutions to the board which are required to move forward with the plan.
Jefferson Hall (pages 438-440)
Plans to move forward with the dining hall renovations in Jefferson Hall is an interesting topic of discussion the board will touch on. A resolution to undertake the schematic design step will be proposed. The resolution will ask for $350,000 in order to design the schematics, which will be in addition to the $750,000 previously approved by the board. The total $1.1 million will account for 2.5 percent of the total project budget. The additional funds will be funded by culinary reserves and the residential housing reserves.
Boyd Dining Hall (pages 441-443)
Construction of Boyd Dining Hall will begin soon if the board passes a resolution allowing the university to accept bids for construction. The total budget for the project is $12 million and was approved by the board at a previous meeting.
Surplus Property (pages 444-453)
OU owns land across Athens County, including property on E. State Street. A resolution will be introduced to the board which will declare several parcels on E. State Street as surplus property, which will allow the university to sell the land. If OU does sell the land, it will net around $12.05 million. Read more about the universities plans here.
Safety Report (pages 454-524)
A report will be given detailing the safety numbers for the last year. The report will include the number of fire alarms that went off per building on campus, and the very small number of injuries linked to those alarms, as well as the rules and regulations regarding other safety concerns on campus.
NCAA Compliance (pages 525-542)
The Role of Athletic Compliance Office is responsible for making sure the 16 varsity sports at OU comply with all NCAA rules and regulations. The office has seen no major violations in its history.
Audit Report (pages 543-562)
The university is audited annually, and a status update will be given regarding the completion of this year’s audit.
Honorary Degree Award (pages 563-566)
Two honorary degrees will be awarded if the board passes this resolution. Sam Crowl will be awarded an honorary degree for his service as a former chair of faculty senate, his work with shakespeare in the english department. James E. Hansen will be awarded a degree for his work creating one of the first climate change models which has successfully predicted climate change in the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s. He has testified in US congress regarding human climate change which has led to work improving our environmental impact.
