Approved
NORTHERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Minutes of the Regular Session
of
A regular session of the Board of Trustees of Northern
Michigan University was held on Thursday and Friday, August 4-5, 2005, in the
Trustees present included:
Karl A. Weber, Chair Samuel S. Benedict Douglas B. Roberts
Larry C. Inman, Vice Chair Brian D. Cloyd Leslie E. Wong, ex officio
Alan T. Ackerman Mary C. Lukens
The Trustee absent for this portion of the meeting was Jon G. LaSalle
Senior staff and counsel present included:
Michael J. Roy, V.P. for Finance and Administration and Treasurer of the Board
Pamalene R. Grundstrom, Executive Assistant to the President and Secretary of the Board
Alfred N. Joyal, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
Kurt N. Sherwood, representing Miller, Canfield, Paddock & Stone, University Counsel
CLOSED SESSION AUTHORIZATION
President Wong presented the following recommendation:
It is recommended that the following resolution relative to holding a closed session of the Board of Trustees of Northern Michigan University be approved:
RESOLVED, that the Board shall meet in Closed Session at 2:35 p.m., on August 4, 2005, pursuant to Section 8 of the Open Meetings Act:
To consider a periodic personnel evaluation of a public officer, employee, staff member, or individual agent, if the named person requests a closed hearing;
To consider matters connected with the strategy and/or negotiation of its collective bargaining agreements;
To consider the purchase or lease of real property on which the University does not hold an option;
To consult with the attorney for the University on matters relating to pending litigation, it being the opinion of the Board that consideration of such matters in an open meeting would have a detrimental financial effect on the litigation and/or settlement position of the University;
To consider material exempt from discussion or disclosure by state or federal statute.
Aye Nay
Mr. Ackerman
Mr. Benedict
Mr. Cloyd
Mr. Inman
Ms. Lukens
Dr. Roberts
Mr. Weber
None
The resolution was thus approved unanimously.
Chair Weber recessed the meeting at 2:32 p.m.
RECONVENE
Chair Weber reconvened the meeting at 3:42 p.m.
Trustees present included:
Karl A. Weber, Chair Samuel S. Benedict Mary C. Lukens
Larry C. Inman, Vice Chair Brian D. Cloyd Douglas B. Roberts
Alan T. Ackerman Jon G. LaSalle Leslie E. Wong, ex officio
Senior staff and counsel present included:
Michael J. Roy, V.P. for Finance and Administration and Treasurer of the Board
Pamalene R. Grundstrom, Executive Assistant to the President and Secretary of the Board
Alfred N. Joyal, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
Kurt N. Sherwood, representing Miller, Canfield, Paddock & Stone, University Counsel
INTRODUCTION OF DEAN OF THE WALKER L. CISLER COLLEGE OF BUSINESS
Provost Fred Joyal introduced Dr. Rajib Sanyal, new Dean of the Walker L. Cisler College of Business. Dr. Sanyal said that he is pleased to be at Northern and looks forward to working with the Board in the future.
APPOINTMENT OF AD HOC NOMINATING COMMITTEE
Chair Weber announced the appointments to the Ad Hoc Nominating Committee as follows:
Chair: Alan T. Ackerman
Members: Mary C. Lukens and Samuel S. Benedict
COMMITTEE REPORTS
Executive
Mr. Benedict, Chair of the Executive Committee, reported on meetings held on May 6, 2005, and on August 4, 2005. A copy of the report is appended to these minutes. (Addendum #1)
Based on recommendations from the Executive Committee, the Board then took the following action:
It was moved by Mr. Inman, seconded by Mr. LaSalle, and supported unanimously by the Board to approve President Wong's incentive payout for 2004-2005, his incentive goals for 2005-2006, and his contract modifications as recommended by the Executive Committee.
Following this Board action, Chair Weber complimented President Wong on his first year of service at Northern, stating that he has done a wonderful job during difficult times. Chair Weber's colleagues on the Board echoed his comments. President Wong thanked the Board for their confidence and he thanked his colleagues on the faculty and staff for their hard work and support.
Dr. Roberts, Chair of the Finance Committee, reported on a meeting held today. A copy of the report is appended to these minutes. (Addendum #2)
BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING SCHEDULE FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2006
The Board discussed the proposed meeting schedule for calendar year 2006. Due to possible conflicts, the proposed schedule will be removed from the Formal Recommendations for this meeting and will be addressed at the Board's October meeting.
It was moved by Ms. Lukens, seconded by Mr. Benedict, and unanimously supported by the Board of Trustees to approve the Formal Recommendations as amended. (Backup)
(Formal Recommendation F-1, NMU Board of Trustees 2006 Meeting Schedule, was removed.)
ANNOUNCEMENT OF CLOSED SESSION TO BE HELD IN CONNECTION WITH THE THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2005, MEETING OF THE BOARD
President Wong made this announcement for the public record.
RETREAT SESSION: STRATEGIC CHALLENGES – PIECES OF THE PUZZLE
1. The "Gap"
Dr. Mike Roy and Associate Vice President for Finance and Planning Gavin Leach led a discussion of the challenges related to the "gap" in appropriation per FYES between NMU and peer Michigan institutions. Dr. Roy and Mr. Leach responded to questions and comments from Trustees. Discussion followed and the Board asked the Administration to prepare several "what if" scenarios for NMU's financial picture, to be discussed during future meetings, beginning with the October Board meeting.
Chair Weber recessed the meeting at 5:02 p.m.
RECONVENE
Chair Weber reconvened the meeting on Friday, August 5, 2005, at 8:35 a.m.
Trustees present included:
Karl A. Weber, Chair Samuel S. Benedict Mary C. Lukens
Larry C. Inman, Vice Chair Brian D. Cloyd Douglas B. Roberts
Alan T. Ackerman (morning session) Jon G. LaSalle Leslie E. Wong, ex officio
Senior staff and counsel present included:
Pamalene R. Grundstrom, Executive Assistant to the President and Secretary of the Board
Alfred N. Joyal, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
Michael J. Roy, V.P. for Finance and Administration and Treasurer of the Board
Kurt N. Sherwood, representing Miller, Canfield, Paddock & Stone, University Counsel
RETREAT SESSION: STRATEGIC CHALLENGES – PIECES OF THE PUZZLE (continued)
1. The "Gap" (continued)
The Board concluded its discussion with Dr. Roy and Mr. Leach of state funding issues. President Wong reminded Trustees and the administration will present "what if" scenarios for NMU's financial picture, to be discussed during future meetings, beginning with the October Board meeting.
Dr. Roberts made a presentation on his personal review of Northern Michigan University and state appropriations. He presented his assessment of the issues we face and offered ideas for ways to work with the state to resolve those issues. Board members thanked Dr. Roberts for his presentation and expressed an interest in continuing the discussion of ways to work with the state to resolve funding issues while growing enrollment, containing costs, and continuing to offer quality programs and services to our students.
NMU Lobbyist David Haynes gave a legislative update and discussed issues facing higher education in Lansing. He outlined our strategy to work with state leaders to resolve these issues for Northern. He responded to questions and comments from Trustees.
2. Enrollment
Associate Provost for Student Services and Enrollment Bill Bernard and Associate Vice President for Institutional Research Paul Duby led an enrollment discussion, focusing on current and projected enrollment levels and recruitment efforts. Director of Communications Cindy Paavola reviewed marketing efforts related to student recruitment. Ms. Paavola, Mr. Bernard, and Dr. Duby responded to questions and comments from Trustees.
RECESS
Chair Weber recessed the meeting at 11:27 a.m. (Trustee Ackerman departed at this time.)
RECONVENE
Chair Weber reconvened the meeting at 12:31 p.m.
RETREAT SESSION: STRATEGIC CHALLENGES – PIECES OF THE PUZZLE (continued)
3. Programs
Dr. Joyal, Dean of Graduate Studies and Research Cynthia Prosen, and Director of Broadcast and A/V Services Eric Smith made a presentation and led a discussion on programs, focusing on future areas of growth in on-line delivery in the areas of continuing education and graduate education, and initiatives (Superior Edge and Internationalization, TLC, WNMU-TV, and USOEC). The Trustees reaffirmed their intention to conclude discussion on WNMU-TV during the October meeting. Dr. Joyal, Dr. Prosen, and Mr. Smith responded to questions and comments from Trustees.
4. Grants and Giving
Executive Director of the NMU Foundation Martha Van Der Kamp gave a update on NMU Foundation activities and made a presentation on opportunities for private gift support. Discussion followed and Ms. Van Der Kamp responded to questions and comments from Trustees. Dr. Cynthia Prosen led a discussion on future directions for NMU in the area of grant procurement and research opportunities. Dr. Prosen responded to questions and comments from Trustees. President Wong announced that an upcoming reorganization will place Continuing Education under Dr. Prosen's direction.
President Wong summarized, stating that the puzzle pieces discussed during the retreat – The Gap, Enrollment, Programs, and Grants and Giving – are the challenges and opportunities that we face in charting Northern's future directions.
Discussion followed and Chair Weber asked the staff to run models for discussion at the October 2005 Board meeting. He suggested a model that would limit tuition growth to the level of inflation versus moving tuition toward the average of our state peers. The Board discussed that as a technique, we could consider the extremes in order to look at the consequences and options of the decisions we must make; i.e. if we adopt an inflation tuition policy, what are the repercussions to our ability to maintain/improve academic quality. The Board also discussed the idea of increasing our focus on research and the implications of moving in that direction.
Trustees proposed and discussed several ideas that have come to mind during the retreat discussions:
1) Passing savings on to students if our budget is not reduced as we have assumed in our financial planning and tuition; 2) Starting a "Recruiters' Club" for alumni who recruit new students to Northern; 3) Pursuing further development of models based on Dr. Roberts' presentation; 4) Building Foundation support to help offset budget reductions; and 5) Identifying our vision for NMU and how we will move the university in that direction.
President Wong summarized what the staff will prepare for a focus discussion at the October Board meeting: "What if" scenarios on 1) holding tuition at inflation – what are the ripple effects; 2) addressing questions of size – what is our capacity on campus, what is the optimum size and at what point do we limit further growth; 3) increasing our emphasis on research – what are the implications; and 4) relating all of these factors to our vision for the future of Northern.
Chair Weber thanked everyone who participated in the Retreat discussions. President Wong expressed his appreciation for the work of staff, both on campus and in Lansing in recent months.
Chair Weber adjourned the meeting at 3:04 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
___________________________________
Pamalene R. Grundstrom
Secretary of the Board