BOARD OF TRUSTEES FOR FORT LEWIS COLLEGE
February 12, 2016
Vallecito Room, Student Union
Fort Lewis College
Vol. 16-115
Call to Order
Chair Karen Wilde convened the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees for Fort Lewis College at 8:35 a.m.
Trustees Present:
Karen Wilde, Chair; Alan Hill;; Tom Schilling; Steve Short; John Wells; Justin McBrayer, Faculty Representative; and Lindley Gallegos, Student Representative
Absent: Nora Jacquez and Ernest House
Staff Present:
Dene Thomas, President; Barbara Morris, Provost & Vice President for Academic Affairs; Steve Schwartz, Vice President for Finance and Administration; Glenna Witt Sexton, Vice President for Student Affairs; Mark Jastorff, Vice President for Institutional Advancement; Kimberly Spiering, Legal Counsel; Peggy Sharp, Deputy Secretary; and Mike Larson, Audio Consultant.
Also Present: Dugald Owen, Faculty Senate President, and Gene Bradley, Former Chair of the Foundation
RECOGNITION
President Thomas introduced Dr. Shelby Tisdale, the new Director for the Center of Southwest Studies. Dr. Tisdale provided some personal background, as well as her vision for the Center.
Mr. Gene Bradley introduced Barney Hinkle, one of four newly elected Foundation Board members. Mr. Hinkle stated that he is a Fort Lewis College alumnus and also provided a brief description of his professional career. Mr. Bradley announced the other three new members are Darrin Church, Julie Levy Duvall and Charles (Chuck) Carson.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Carrie Meyer, Director of the Athletic Training Program and Associate Professor of Exercise Science, expressed her concerns about the decision to suspend the Athletic Training Program.
Sarah Roberts Cady, Professor of Philosophy and member of the AAUP, voiced support for Dr. Meyer’s comments and concerns and suggested that the Board take a leadership role on the issue of shared governance. Becky Clausen, Assistant Professor of Sociology, also voiced the faculty concerns about the decision and the effect on students. Cathy Simbeck, Professor of Exercise Science, expressed support for her colleagues in the Athletic Training program and a concern regarding another administrative decision.
ACTION AGENDA – CONSENT:
Provost Morris explained the criteria and process for awarding the rank of emeritus/emerita to faculty who have been at the institution for ten years or more. The professors who are being proposed as emeritus are: Gordon Cheesewright, Professor of English; William Dodds, Professor of Marketing; and Ron Estler, Professor of Chemistry.
John Wells moved to approve the Consent Agenda, with a second by Steve Short. Motion passed and the following Consent Agenda items were approved:
Approval of Minutes of December 3, 2015 Meeting of the Investment Advisory Committee
Approval of Minutes of December 3, 2015 Meeting of the Business
Affairs Committee
Approval of Minutes of December 3, 2015 Meeting of the Academic &
Student Affairs Committee
Approval of Minutes of December 4, 2015 Regular Meeting of the
Board of Trustees for Fort Lewis College
Approval of Emeritus/Emerita Rank Designation
CHAIRMAN’S REPORT/ANNOUNCEMENTS
Chair Wilde noted a correction in the Planning Calendar. The Hozhoni Days Powwow will be Friday evening, April 15 and Saturday, April 16.
She announced a change in the name of the Presidential Evaluation Committee to the Governance Committee. This change was suggested at a previous Board meeting. Chair Wilde stated that the charge to the committee will encompass additional responsibilities. The deputy secretary and legal counsel will work on revising the Committee Section of the Manual to bring it up to date. Following are committee appointments for 2016:
Business Affairs Committee
Alan Hill, Chair
Tom Schilling
Steve Short
Academic & Student Affairs Committee
Nora Jacquez, Chair
Ernest House, Jr.
John Wells
Governance Committee
John Wells, Chair
Alan Hill
Nora Jacquez
Investment Advisory Committee
Steve Short, Chair
Ernest House, Jr.
Tom Schilling
Foundation Liaison
John Wells
Discussion ensued about announcing public meetings of committees and what to include in these announcements. Future committee meeting agendas will be posted on the Board’s web page. The Board Chair will have the opportunity to review the committee agendas prior to posting. It was also suggested to post these agendas on faculty and student list serves and FLC-official.
Ms. Sharp reported she and Vice President Schwartz have made contact with the person who arranges for use of the State Patrol Plane. An estimate of the cost has not been received but efforts will continue to obtain that information. There will be further follow-up and as soon as the cost is known.
Chair Wilde noted the visit the Trustees had made to the robotics demonstration by Professor Ryan Smith, with a brief introduction by Professor Ryan Haaland. She requested that the Board might have a presentation by the students and/or faculty from the Fine Arts departments.
Committee Reports
Academic & Student Affairs Committee
Tom Schilling reviewed the items discussed at the meeting of this committee on February 11th. An enrollment report was given by President Thomas. Provost Morris provided the committee a detailed account of the timeline and factors considered in making the decision to suspend the Athletic Training Program. Trustees Schilling stated that Faculty Representative McBrayer had responded with the faculty’s perception and concerns regarding the suspension of this program and the process used in making the decision.
Business Affairs Committee
John Wells reported that the committee reviewed the proposed fee schedule for 2016-17 and the room and board rates for 2016-17. Associate Vice President Ms. Peterson had reported that due to issues at the both the State level and at CCHE, a tuition rate for 2016-17 could not be set at this time. The committee also heard a report on the Financial Audit for June 30, 2014-15 by Controller Cheryl Wiescamp. Trustee Wells called on Ms. Wiescamp to summarize certain aspects of the audit that were required by new standards set in place by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB 68). She indicated that despite the new requirements, the College received an unqualified opinion on the financial statements for the year ended June 30, 2015, with no findings or recommendations.
Investment Advisory Committee
Steve Short reported that the committee has not met since December 3, 2015. He provided a brief summary of that meeting and the discussion that occurred regarding allocation changes to the investment policy and considerations for social responsible investing. A suggestion to add a faculty and student advisory member to the committee will be discussed when the committee meets again.
Presidential Evaluation Committee
Tom Schilling stated that this committee has not met.
BREAK
Standing Committees
Faculty Representative Report
Associate Professor Justin McBrayer indicated that his written report represented the point of view of the faculty concerning the actions taken by the administration to end the athletic training program. He reviewed the faculty’s concerns regarding the process, the lack of time for a full discussion at the faculty level, the absence of shared governance and other issues of concern to the faculty. Professor Dugald Owen, President of the Faculty Senate, supported Professor McBrayer’s statements and added that Faculty Senate had passed a resolution to put this decision on hold until they had a chance to provide feedback on suspension of the program and the teach-out plan that affects current students in the program. Chair Wilde expressed a concern regarding how and when the Board is informed about matters of importance, as well as the break down in the process of shared governance. Trustee Hill requested that Professor McBrayer report on this issue at the next meeting
Student Representative Report
Lindley Gallegos reported that she had talked with many students who were upset and affected by the suspension of the Athletic Training program. A few other highlights of her report were: formation of five new clubs this semester; passing a resolution regarding the proposed $20 million budget cut to higher education; and collaboration with Sodexo to have a real food table in the dining hall. Elections are coming up soon and she stated that the $500 scholarship is very helpful in recruiting students to run for election.
Foundation Liaison/Office of Institutional Development Report
Trustee Wells stated he had not been able to make the last two Foundation meetings.
Vice President Jastorff reported on several major gifts including the largest single cash gift in the history of Fort Lewis College from the Robert and Roberta Barr Trust in the amount of $1.4 million. He thanked Gene Bradley for his leadership role as the chair of the Foundation for the last two years. Consideration is being given to creating an Alumni Council and expanding services to alumni. The second Alumni Magazine will be coming out in May.
ACTION AGENDA – NON-CONSENT
Approval of Fee Schedules for Academic Year 2016-2017
Tom Schilling moved that the Board of Trustees for Fort Lewis College approve the Fee Schedule for the academic year 2016-2017, and that the attached fee rates be adopted thirty days from this date and that notice be given as of this date in compliance with CCHE Tuition and Fee Policy. John Wells seconded the motion. Motion passed unanimously.
Approval of Room and Board Fee Schedules for Academic Year 2016-2017 and Summer Sessions 2017
Ms. Peterson stated that the rate of 4% for the Mears Apartments applies only to summer semester of 2017. John Wells moved that the Board of Trustees for Fort Lewis College approve the Room and Board Fee Schedule for the academic year 2016-2017 and summer semester 2017, and that the attached room and board rates be adopted thirty days from this date and that notice shall be given as of this date in compliance with CCHE Tuition and Fee Policy. Justin McBrayer seconded. Motion passed unanimously.
Carry-in Action Item: Approval of the Revised Third Supplemental Resolution
Steve Short moved that the Revised Third Supplemental Resolution be approved by the Board of Trustees for Fort Lewis College. Alan Hill seconded the motion. Motion passed unanimously.
Carry-in Action Item: Approval to Support the Development of the Post 2017 Beneficiary Use Agreement between the Board of Trustees for Fort Lewis College and the State Board of Land Commissioners
Vice President Schwartz stated that this action simply indicates support for moving forward with this proposal. He and President Thomas will be meeting with the SLB in March to further discuss the development of this proposal. Trustee Short suggested that the Board tour the Old Fort property and perhaps invite a few Foundation members and a representative from the SLB to join the Board. This activity could be on the agenda for the August retreat.
Trustee Hill moved that the Board of Trustees for Fort Lewis College support the development of the Post 2017 Beneficiary Use Agreement with the State Land Board of Commissioners. Tom Schilling seconded. Motion passed unanimously.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
· Enrollment
President Thomas stated that freshman applications for Fall 2016 stand at 6,479, with 254 confirmations. Transfer student applications are at 235 with 61 confirmations. This is the College’s first full year of using the services of Royall and Company and the results are proving to be beneficial.
· Native American Tuition Waiver Update
President Thomas reported on the trips made recently to Washington to pursue sponsorships for the Native American tuition bill. She further reported that in addition to pursing a line in the Higher Education Reauthorization Act, we may possibly seek being included in one of the small pieces of the Higher Education Act.
COPLAC Conference Report
A significant portion of this conference was spent on discussion of hybrid and on-line courses. COPLAC may offer grants for cooperation in developing these courses and also for student research. The Summer Institute will be held at Southern Utah University in Cedar City, Utah.
· Presidential Metrics
Orien McGlammery, Senior Institutional Research Analyst, stated the only change in the President’s Metrics was updating the official retention rate from 60% to 63%.
· Strategic Planning Update
Ann Duffield distributed a detailed report on the results of the Strategic Planning Listening Sessions that have been held during the last five months. The major themes that emerged from these sessions were:
o Mission and Vision
o Undergraduate Research
o Engaged Learning: Collaborative, Experiential and Problem-based
o Diversity
o Enrollment Management & Marketing: Name Change and Products/Program
o Region
o Affordability and Accessibility
o Technology: On-line Learning
She elaborated on each of the eight themes and concluded her report by stating that these themes should be addressed in the new strategic plan. The Strategic Plan Steering Committee will meet over the next year and a half and will use the themes that emerged in developing the goals and strategies for a new strategic plan.
Discussion ensued concerning the suggestion to include perspective employers in order to get their input on career opportunities.
OTHER BUSINESS
Chair Wilde reminded the Trustees of their fiduciary responsibilities and referenced the AGB publication that clearly outlines these duties. Copies of this publication can be provided.
President Thomas reported that the men’s head soccer coach, Ogie Kennedy, has resigned and will join former head coach, Jeremy Gunn, at Stanford University. The search has begun for his replacement.
John Wells moved to adjourn, with a second by Tom Schilling.
MEETING ADJORNED at 12:10 p.m.