University Council Minutes
11/19/2014 03:30 PM - Tate Theater, Tate Student Center
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The University Council met on November 19, 2014 in the Tate Theater. A quorum being present, President Jere Morehead called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m.
The minutes of the September 24, 2014 meeting were approved as distributed.
President Morehead's report to the Council included the following remarks:
- President Morehead began his report to the Council by informing members that UGA has offered early admission to a pool of nearly 7,500 high school seniors who have an average GPA exceeding 4.0, a mean SAT of 1474, and a mean ACT of 30. These students represent the largest and most academically qualified pool of early applicants in UGA's history. In addition to the early action process, the regular decision admission process will take place later in the Spring.
- Earlier in the week, the University announced that it's graduation rate has reached an all-time record level. The six-year graduate rate has moved up to 84.6%. The five and four year rates have also increased with a five-year rate of 83% and a four-year rate of 63%. These numbers indicate that the overwhelming majority of undergraduate students are graduating in five years or less. The University is comparing very favorably to its peer and aspirational institutions with regards to graduate rates.
- UGA student athletes are also graduating at record levels. In October, the NCAA released the graduation success rate for athletic programs in the country. Three UGA sports finished first in the SEC with 100% graduation rates: gymnastics, women's swimming and diving, and women's tennis. The rate for nine sports was 90% or above. The President indicated that this is good evidence of student success on campus and expressed thanks to the UGA faculty and staff who support the student body.
- The President offered his congratulations to Professor Peter "Bo" Rutledge on being named the new dean of the School of Law effective January 1, 2015. The President thanked Dean Svein Oie for his leadership as chair of the search committee, the members of the search committee, and Provost Whitten for bringing the search to a successful conclusion.
- The President also congratulated Dean Daniel Nadenicek and the faculty of the College of Environment and Design. The Landscape Architecture programs have been ranked in the top ten in the country in the annual ranking by Design Intelligence magazine.
- Earlier in the day, the President was pleased to make an announcement related to sustainability as well as experiential learning. It was announced that $80,000 in annual savings from UGA conservation efforts would be used to support the Office of Sustainability. This means that students will now have more access to grants and internships without requiring any increases in the student green fee. The President commended all the individuals involved in moving this effort forward, specifically Vice President for Finance and Administration Ryan Nesbit in finding the means that will allow the enhancement of these student engagement opportunities.
- Big news was recently announced on the research front. Dr. Samantha Joy and her team have been included in a three year, $18.8 million grant to continue studies of natural oil seeps and to track the impact of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill on the Gulf of Mexico eco-system. The President congratulated Dr. Joy and her team on this accomplishment.
- A dedication ceremony will be held on Friday, November 21 for the new Student Veterans Lounge in the Tate Center. UGA has many student veterans and active duty service members among the student population, and the lounge will serve as a welcoming, multi-purpose space for these and other students together. As well, last week UGA was named to the "Military Times Best for Vets College 2015" rankings and to the Military Advanced Education's top schools for 2015.
- This week, the national "It's On Us" sexual assault awareness campaign was held on campus. The President commended SGA President Drew Jacoby and his fellow officers and leaders in SGA for coordinating a series of events supporting this campaign. The President stated that he has pleased that so many units on campus have worked together to ensure a safer and more respectful environment for the University community.
- On December 2, the University will break ground on the new Baldwin Hall Annex which will provide faculty and students with state of the art classrooms, meeting spaces, and common areas for academic programs and activities.
- On February 13, the University will dedicate the new Veterinary Medical Learning Center.
- On February 26, the new UGA in Washington facility will be dedicated. This facility will serve as a front door for the University in the nation's capital and provide affordable housing options for undergraduate students.
- The Louise McBee Lecture will be held on December 2 at 11:00 a.m. in the Chapel. The lecture will be presented by Mary Sue Coleman, president emerita of the University of Michigan.
- The Carl Vinson of Government will host the Biennial Institute for Georgia Legislators December 7-9 at the Georgia Center.
- The annual State of the University address will occur on January 21 at 3:30 p.m. in the Chapel.
- This concluded the President's report to the Council.
The floor was then opened for the following standing committee reports:
The following Action Items were presented to the Council for consideration:
- William Vencill, chair of the University Curriculum Committee, presented the following proposals:
- Rodney Mauricio, chair of the Educational Affairs Committee, presented the following proposal:
- Proposal to revise the Academic Affairs General Policy No. 4.02-3, University Policy on Course Drops and Withdrawals. A lengthy discussion regarding the proposal occurred among members. Some members expressed concern over the new policy with regards to the lack of faculty involvement in the proposed withdrawal process and whether or not in light of the proposal if students should be required to meet with their instructors prior to withdrawing. As well, some members inquired if the new Banner system's capabilities were driving the policy revision. Dr. Mauricio indicated that technology was not driving the proposed policy and that the EAC had discussed the policy on its merits, resulting in unanimous approval of the proposal. Other members advocated support for the proposal by stating that students are mature enough to be able to withdraw from a course without being required to meet with their instructors to discuss withdrawing. Following the discussion, a vote was called and the proposal was approved.
- Brenda Keen, chair of the Human Resources Committee, presented the following proposal:
- Proposal for Updated Parental Policies. Following a brief discussion involving the possibility of adding staff to a proposal such as this in the future, a vote was called and the proposal was approved.
There being no old or new business to come before the Council, the meeting adjourned at 4:40 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Dr. Jan Hathcote, Registrar
Secretary to University Council
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University Council Roster
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Aderibigbe, Ibigbolade
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Hazinski, David
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O'Kelley, Kip
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Alworth, Leanne
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Heaton, Will
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O'Neill, Peter
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Arabnia, Hamid
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Heiss, Christian
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Oie, Svein
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Atkinson, Eric
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Henry, Arlana
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Owsiak, Andy
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Bayer, Lisa
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Hernandez, Sonia
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Pendergrass, Jan
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Beckstead, Robert
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Hollander, Barry
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Peterson, Thomas
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Bell, Peyton
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Holmes, Shannon
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Poland, Mary
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Bliss, Thomas
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Holosko, Michael
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Reidenbaugh, Patrick
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Brown, Tifara
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Hughes, Linda
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Reyes De Corcuera, Jose
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Brush, Ryan
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Jackson, Deven
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Rhicard, Laura
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Buda, Nate
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Jacoby, Drew
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Roberts, Susan
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Cahoon, Lynn
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Jolly, Laura
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Roman, Paul
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Cai, Haini
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Jones, Betty
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Rose, John
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Casey, Ashley
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Jutras, Peter
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Rosemond, Amy
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Cauthen, T.W.
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Kaplan, Betina
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Rossbacher, Brigitte
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Chapman, Sue
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Keadle, Tim
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Sarmiento, Fausto
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Christoffel, Chandler
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Keen, Brenda
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Schuster, Barbara
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Chumbler, Neale
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Kerner, Kelly
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Shelton, Robin
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Coffield, Julie
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Kiepper, Brian
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Shipley, David
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Coker, Vickie
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Lai, Ming-Jun
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Spivey, Julie
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Colquitt, Jason
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Lee, Kyunghwa
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Spooner, David
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Daniels, Maurice
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Leo, Donald
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Stooksbury, David
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Davis, Charles
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Lewis, Michael
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Sullivan, Greg
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Dennis, Carla
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Lindquist, Stefanie
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Tessman, Brock
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Dorsey, Alan
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Lindstrom, Jennifer
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Thomas, Paul
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Dotts, Brian
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Malone, Barrett
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Thompson, Jim
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Dove, Robert
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Mason, Charlotte
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Tricksey, Lauren
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Dunham, Richard
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Mativo, John
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Turner, Madison
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Fox, Linda
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Matthews, Paul
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Vencill, William
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Freeman, Melissa
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Maurer, John
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Walker, Virginia
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Frick, Janet
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Mauricio, Rodney
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Weeks Leonard, Elizabeth
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Frum, Jennifer
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McDuff, Nancy
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Weigle, Chloe
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Garfinkel, David
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McDuff, Nancy
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Wesolowski, Brian
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Gibney, Angela
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McNulty, Tom
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Whitten, Pamela
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Gittleman, John
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Meller, Abbey
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Wilde, Susan
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Glass, Anne
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Melnik, Beth
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Wilder, Shannon
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Goodhue, Dale
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Miller, Joe
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Williams, Brian
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Grossman, Barbara
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Milot, Lisa
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Williams-Woodward, Jean
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Hammersley, Jackie
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Moore, Mary
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Wilson, Victor
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Hannings, Ashley
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Morehead, Jere
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Yager, Patricia
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Hathcote, Jan
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Nesbit, Ryan
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Zhao, Yiping
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Zomlefer, Wendy
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Represented by Proxy
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Allen, Sheila
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Angle, J. Scott
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Bivins, Danny
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Carswell, Andy
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Carter, Elizabeth
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Davis, Charles
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Darbisi, Carolina
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Filipov, Nikolay
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Graff, Jennifer
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Griffin, Michele
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Iyengar, Sujata
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Kennedy, Craig
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Lee, David
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Lee, Jung Sun
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Mullis, Stephen
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Naeher, Luke
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Pagnattaro, Marisa
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Santesso, Esra
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Sellers, Holly
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Snyder, Margaret
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Tollner, William
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Vandenberg, Robert
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Williams, Phillip
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