University Council Minutes

12/04/2008 03:30 PM - Room 213 - Sanford Hall

The University Council met on December 4, 2008 in room 213 of Sanford Hall. President Adams called the meeting to order at 3:32 p.m.

The minutes from the September 25, 2008 University Council meeting were approved as distributed.

The report from President Adams included the following:

Budget Update: President Adams praised the people who have spent countless hours working to insure the long term financial viability of the University of Georgia. The credit for the careful management goes to many faculty and staff that have taken on extra responsibility in areas where we have unfilled positions. The credit also goes to the financial management team; particularly Tim Burgess, Holley Schramski, and Ryan Nesbit who have been aided by Tom Landrum and Arnett Mace as well as other managers, department heads and directors. President Adams then shared details of the budget situation that were outlined in a statement released prior to the meeting. (December 4, 3008 Budget Update)
NBAF: President Adams indicated that it is a disappointment that the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility will go to Kansas. He expressed his thanks to Dr. Lee and those who worked on efforts to bring the facility to the University of Georgia and indicated that we now need to focus on the strengths that we have and the possibilities for future endeavors based on those strengths.
President Adams stated that he is proud to have Dr. Barbara Schuster as the new dean of the Medical College of Georgia/University of Georgia partnership campus in Athens.
President Adams emphasized that there are a lot of good things happening at the University of Georgia.
- We are currently ranked fifth in International Study Abroad programs which is the highest ranking we have had to date.
- Also the Center for Undergraduate Research Opportunities has the best record they have ever had.
- The National Survey of Student Engagement found that a high percentage (90 percent in 2008) of UGA first-year students reported having a favorable image of UGA, while 92 percent of seniors said they would choose UGA again if they were starting their college career over. Comparing 2008 UGA data to 2005 results, the committee found that UGA has made progress for both first-year students and seniors in all benchmark areas.
- UGA has received a $8.3 million NIH grant to study stem cells. The CCRC has just hired our 16th eminent scholar, Dr. Harry Gilbert from Newcastle University.
- This fall we dedicated three buildings to former governors: the Zell B. Miller Learning Center, the Joe Frank Harris Commons, and the S. Ernest Vandiver Jr. Hall.
- We purchased a new equestrian facility in Oconee County.
- We will likely be in the Capitol One Bowl on January 1, 2009.
Dr Adams stated that he has great confidence in our financial leaders as we work through this financial crisis along with the Board of Regents.

The floor was opened for standing committee reports as follows:
Executive Committee (attachment a)
Student Affairs Committee (attachment b)
Curriculum Committee (attachment c)

Professor David Shipley presented the following proposals from the University Curriculum Committee:

Revised proposal to offer the major in Adult Education (Ed.D.) on the Gwinnett campus The vote was called and the proposal was approved.
Proposal for a new major in Fisheries and Wildlife (B.S.F.R.) The vote was called and the proposal was approved.
Proposal to terminate the major in Instructional Psychology, Training and Technology (B.S.Ed.) The vote was called and the proposal was approved.

Stuart Ivy presented a report for the Staff Council.(attachment d)
Connor McCarthy presented a report for the Student Government Association.(attachment e)
Hank Clay presented a report for the Graduate Student Association. (attachment f)

Announcements
Dr. Rodney Mauricio, chair of the SACS Reaffirmation Student Learning Enhancement Committee, presented information on this critical new element of the SACS accreditation process that requires UGA to implement a specific plan for improving some aspect of student learning. This Student Learning Initiative is an integral part of accreditation and the university is required to commit financial resources to its successful implementation. This is an opportunity for members of the University community to have a direct impact on student learning at UGA over the next decade. Dr. Maurici encouraged UC members to review the Student Learning Initiative website (http://www.sli.uga.edu/) for additional information, to review submitted proposals and to submit their own proposals.

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 4:23 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,
Rebecca L. Macon
University Council Secretary

University Council Roster

Represented by proxy (representative)

Davis Adams

Michael Adams

Wyatt Anderson

Michael Bamber

Katie Barlow

Nicki Batelli

Jamie Beggerly

Rodney Bennett

Irwin Bernstein

Eric Bonaparte

Payton Bradford

Chad Brantley

Peggy Brickman

Lonnie Brown

Scott Brown

Wayde Brown

Dana Bultman

Timothy P. Burgess

Georgia Calhoun

Alan Campbell

Anthony Capomacchia

Anthony Casedonte

Caroline Cason

Adrian Childs

Manjeet Chinnan

Hank Clay

Michael L. Clutter

Mark Compton

Mark Cooney

Diane Cooper

Matthew Cox

Bonnie Cramond

David Cromley

Robert Curtis

Jerry Daniel

Hugh Dookwah

Jeff Dorfman

Eric Drucker

Arthur Dunning

Silvia Giraudo

Joe Goetz

Maureen Grasso

Nelson Hilton

Bruce Hollett

Ken Honerkamp

Thomas Houser

Jacquelyn Houston

Patricia Hunt-Hurst

David Hurley

Stuart Ivy

Loch Johnson

Laura D. Jolly

Anna Karls

Alexander Kaufman

Jean Kidula

Thomas Krunkosky

Melissa Kurz

Thomas Lauth

Michele Lease

Arnett Mace

Rebecca Macon

Hugh Martin

Rodney Mauricio

Connor McCarthy

Richard Milford

Blake Mitchell

Cory Momany

Chris Morphis

Joe Nairn

Scott Noakes

Naomi Norman

Svein Oie

Marisa Pagnattaro

William Potter

Sonja Pruitt

Alan Przybyia

Paul Quick

Stephen Rathbun

Bryan Reber

John Ricketts

Kathy Roulston

Robert Rumely

Jennifer Samp

Larry Scott

Robin Shelton

David Shipley

Leah Sibley

Cara Simmons

Peter Smagorinsky

David Spooner

Deborah Stanley

Garnett Stokes

Robert Sumichrast

Susan Thomas

Bill Tollner

Cynthia Vail

Jace Weaver

Kirk Willis

Doug Winn

William Wraga

Christopher Allen (Brock Tessman)

Sheila Allen (Harry Dickerson)

Jay Scott Angle (Josef M. Broder)

Pete Bettinger (Todd Rasmiussen)

E. Culpepper Clark (Alison Alexander)

Wojciech Florkowski (C.L. Huang)

Jerry Gale (Jessica Fox)

Hayden Martin (Ryan Sharp)

Scott Merkle (Robert Warren)

Jere Morehead (Ann Crowther)

Claire Robb (Travis Glenn)

Lori Tiller (Vickie Coker)

Phillip Williams (Joel Lee)

George Zinkhan (Charlotte Mason)