University Council Minutes

02/19/2014 03:30 PM - Tate Theater, Tate Student Center
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The University Council met on February 19, 2014 in the Tate Student Center's Tate Theater. President Jere Morehead called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m.

The minutes of the November 20, 2013 meeting were approved as distributed.

President Morehead's report to the Council included the following remarks:

  • President Morehead began his remarks by expressing his appreciation to those faculty and staff who kept the campus running for student residents while the University was closed during recent inclement weather. The President expressed specific thanks to Dr. Marshall Shepherd, Georgia Athletic Association Professor of Geography and past president of the American Meteorological Society, for his assistance during this time.
  • Three students of the UGA School of Law have won the 64th Annual National Moot Court Competition, which was recently held in New York City. The competition is considered the oldest and most prestigious appellate advocacy competition in the country. The President asked the Council to join him in congratulating Dean Rebecca White, moot court advisor Kellie Casey, and the three students who won the competition, Steven Strasberg, Benjamin Thorpe, and Emily Westberry.
  • The President also acknowledged School of Law students Maggy Randels and Utrophia Robinson for their national championship win at the Andrews Kurth Moot Court National Competition held at the University of Houston Law Center's Blakely Advocacy Institute in January.
  • The President took a moment to recognize Student Government Association president Austin Laufersweiler and Graduate Student Association president Krunal Shah for their work as leaders of the student body. The Council joined the President in recognize their efforts as well. The President stated that UGA has been very successful in attracting the best and brightest students to serve in student leadership positions on campus.
  • The President introduced to the Council two new members of the senior administration who joined UGA on February 1: Dr. Pamela Whitten, the new Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost and Mr. Michael Raeber, the new Executive Director of Legal Affairs. The Council joined President Morehead in welcoming them.
  • The application cycle for the Fall 2014 class is currently underway. A new record for applications to the University has been set, as 21,200 applicants have applied for the Fall semester.
  • Progress is being made on several construction projects. The replacement for the Bolton Dining Hall should be ready to open for the Fall 2014 semester. Correll Hall, which constitutes phase one of the new Terry College of Business Learning Community, and the College of Veterinary Medicine Learning Center are both underway. As well, phase three and four renovations of the Health Science Campus are on schedule. A permanent location in Washington, D.C. has been secured for the Honors in Washington Semester Program. This was made possible due to efforts from the UGA Foundation.
  • Governor Nathan Deal has proposed a merit raise pool in the budget submitted to the Georgia legislature for consideration. The President stated that he has met with key House and Senate leaders to explain that this is the number one priority for the University.
  • The President also stated that he has been stressing to the legislature the importance of funding the Science Learning Center. Planning is coming along on the Center, and the President is confident that a design for a functional building that will serve the needs of faculty and students will see fruition. The President is confident that the legislature will approve the project, and the hope is that construction will begin this Summer with a proposed opening of Fall 2016.
  • The Georgia House of Representatives has passed the fiscal year 2015 budget, which does feature Governor Deal's recommendations for funding the Science Learning Center as well as a merit raise pool. The House also approved funding for the renovation of Baldwin Hall to support the School for Public and International Affairs. Additional support for graduate medical education and expansion of the Turfgrass Research and Education program in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences was also approved. The budget now moves to the Georgia Senate for approval.
  • The UGA Foundation will be meeting on campus February 20-21. The University is currently in the "quiet phase" of a multi-year campaign period devoted to working with many of the University's top donors and prospects, with the goal of trying to get donors to see a vision of supporting UGA in ways they might not have previously. The working goal is a billion dollars, and a final goal will be revisited as the public phase of the campaign begins. The President stated that the involvement and support of everyone on campus will be needed; the President made a specific appeal to those faculty members in the Council to reach out to their former students and encourage them to be interested in giving back to the University.
  • Many Foundation trustees will remain on campus through the upcoming weekend as some of the best high school students in the country are welcomed to campus for the Foundation Fellows Interview Weekend. The President hopes that these students will have a successful weekend on campus and come away with a desire to attend UGA.
  • The President alerted the Council to upcoming calendar events:
    • The SEC Swimming and Diving Championship is underway at the Ramsey Center through Saturday, February 22.
    • The UGA Miracle, a student-led fundraiser that supports the Children's Miracle Network, will be taking place at the Grand Hall at the Tate Student Center on Saturday, February 22 and Sunday, February 23.
    • On Thursday, February 27, political commentator Paul Begala of CNN will be delivering a lecture at the UGA Chapel.
    • The three finalists for the Vice President for Finance and Administration have been announced and will be coming to the campus at the end of February through the beginning of March. The President encouraged Council members to attend the candidates' public sessions.
    • Finalists are expected to be announced soon for the Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations. Those finalists will be visiting the campus at a later point this spring.
    • The President stated that the Return to the Arch Alumni Seminar has been re-launched at UGA for this March 20-22. The three-day event will feature lectures, events, and presentations on a number of topics. The President expressed his thanks to Associate Provost for Academic Programs Meg Amstutz for her leadership in bringing this seminar together and to the deans and faculty who have agreed to participate in the seminar. The President stated that he hopes the seminar energizes those who attend and results in an increased interest in the University.
    • Lastly, the President stated that he and Provost Whitten will be attending the annual Academic Affairs Faculty Symposium in early April. The President and the Provost will join members of the faculty who will be exploring "Changing Roles, Perceptions,  and Expectations" of faculty. The President hopes that the symposium will generate useful ideas that can be implemented on the campus.
  • This concluded the President's report to the Council.

The floor was then opened for the following reports:

The following Action Items were presented to the Council for approval:

The following Information Item was presented to the Council:

  • Associate Provost for Academic Planning Jerry Legge and Associate Provost for Academic Programs Meg Amstutz made a presentation on the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) Fifth Year Interim Report:
    • Associate Provosts Legge and Amstutz gave a brief presentation about SACSCOC accreditation. The next accreditation for the University will occur in 2020. Since the last accreditation in 2010, a new requirement has been added which is the Fifth Year Interim Report. This report is due in March of 2017 which is five years after implementation of the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP). The hope is to use the Interim Report as a springboard to prepare for the 2020 report. There are two elements comprising the Interim Report. One element is a ten page report on the effectiveness of the QEP (which is the First-Year Odyssey Program). The second aspect is an abbreviated compliance certification on 21 principles of SACSCOC. In order to prepare for this compliance, a policy working group was formed in the Summer of 2013 to go over the compliance issues the University might face. The group is chaired by Associate Provost Amstutz and is looking at policies to ensure that the University is ready for the Fifth Year Interim Report. Some of the items the group is examining are institutional effectiveness, admission policies, academic program coordination, program length, student complaints, distance correspondence education, and the definition of a credit hour. Anyone interested in these issues or in the work of the group can contact Dr. Legge or Dr. Amstutz directly.

There being no old or new business, the Council adjourned at 4:20 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Dr. Jan Hathcote, Registrar
Secretary to University Council





University Council Roster

Abbott, Jennifer

Gordon, Robert

Morse, Jack

Allen, Sheila

Graff, Jennifer

Nadenicek, Daniel

Anderson, Mark

Grossman, Barbara

Naeher, Luke

Arabnia, Hamid

Gutierrez Sanchez, Gerardo

Nairn, Joe

Ashley, Louise

Hall, Jori

Nesbit, Ryan

Azadi, Parastoo

Hammersley, Jackie

Norman, Naomi

Baginski, Steve

Harrison, Mark

Oie, Svein

Baker, Tyler

Harshman, Melissa

Owsiak, Andy

Bayer, Lisa

Hathcote, Jan

Pagnattaro, Marisa

Becker, Lee

Haynes, Audrey

Pendergrass, Jan

Bierema, Laura

Hazinski, David

Peterson, Thomas

Biesecker, Barbara

Hendrickson, Scott

Popik, Vladimir

Bliss, Thomas

Henry, Gerald

Potter, William

Bringolf, Robert

Holmes, Shannon

Quesada, Margaret

Buntin, David

James, Jennifer

Riley, David

Burd, Adrian

Jolly, Laura

Roberts, Andrew

Cahoon, Lynn

Jones, Betty

Roman, Paul

Caille, Alex

Kalivoda, Karen

Rosemond, Amy

Chepyator-Thomson, Rose

Keadle, Tim

Rossbacher, Brigitte

Chumbler, Neale

Keen, Brenda

Sarasvati, Bala

Coker, Vicki

Kirin, Asen

Sarmiento, Fausto

Cramond, Bonnie

Lai, Ming-Jun

Schulte, Christopher

Daniel, Jerry

Laufersweiler, Austin

Sellers, Holly

Daniels, Maurice

Lee, Jung Sun

Shipley, David

Davis, Charles

Lee, Kyunghwa

Smalley, Tim

Dluhy, Richard

Leo, Donald

Smith, Amanda

Dorfman, Jeff

Leonard, Elizabeth Weeks

Spooner, David

Dotts, Brian

Lewis, Michael

Stabb, Eric

Dreibelbis, Hadley

Luken, Emily

Starai, Vincent

Eberle, Roxanne

Madden, Marguerite

Steffens, Ashley

Ellis, Angela

Makanani, Kyley

Stewart, Shontel

Farmer, Mark

Matic, Gordana

Stooksbury, David

Freeman-Lynde, Ray

Matthews, Paul

Taha, Thiab

Froetschel, Mark

McBride, Walt

Tessman, Brock

Frum, Jennifer

McDonald, William

Tollner, Bill

Gallagher, Megan

McDuff, Nancy

Trap, Diane

Gandhi, Kamal

McEwen, Dee Dee

Walker, Virginia

Garfinkel, David

McNulty, Tom

Wallinga, Charlotte

Giraudo, Silvia

Medine, Carolyn

Wesolowski, Brian

Gittleman, John

Melcher, Katherine

White, Catherine

Glass, Anne

Meller, Abbey

Whitten, Pamela

Goodhue, Dale

Moore, Mary

Wilder, Lance

Gordon, Leslie

Morehead, Jere

Wilson, Jim

 

Wilson, Victor

 

Zomlefer, Wendy



Represented by Proxy

Angle, J. Scott

Atkinson, Eric

Boyhan, George

Buck, James

Chapman, Sue

Chowdhury, Uzma

Dorsey, Alan

Dove, David

Filipov, Nikolay

Fox, Linda

Goodfriend, Jon

Grasso, Maureen

Griffin, Michele

Heiss, Christian

Kennedy, Craig

Lamb, Taylor

Lee, David

Ojo, Akinloye

Orpinas, Pamela

Schuster, Barbara

Shelley, Clay

Tschepikow, Kyle

Vandenberg, Robert

Williams, Phillip

Zeigler, Shelby

Zhao, Yiping