For the Record? June 2004 ****************************************************************************** Welcome to the seventh issue of ?For the Record?? The purpose of this publication from the Office of Marketing and Communications is to keep the campus community informed of the latest actions, deliberations and discussions of the YSU Board of Trustees. ?For the Record?? will be distributed after the regular quarterly meetings of the board. Comments and suggestions may be sent to Ron Cole, manager of news and information services, at 330-941-3285 or racole.01@ysu.edu. YSU trustees approved an agreement with the Youngstown City School District to open a high school on campus and ratified the university?s annual budget during a busy series of meetings in June. The board also approved four new master?s degree programs, new gender equity program for intercollegiate athletics and resolutions recognizing several students and employees. William J. Bresnahan, Donald Cagigas and Scott R. Schulick were sworn in as new trustees, while Trustee Larry E. Esterly was named board chair, replacing Chander M. Kohli. Here?s a summary of the board?s actions and discussions at the June 18 full board meeting, as well as committee meetings on June 3 and 10. Board of Trustees, June 18 Chander M. Kohli, chair Larry E. Esterly, vice chair The board met in Tod Hall: ? New board members William J. Bresnahan, Donald Cagigas and Scott R. Schulick took the oath of office. ? President David C. Sweet presented his annual report to the board, focusing on enrollment growth, ongoing planning efforts and sound management of the university. Sweet pointed out that fall semester enrollment has grown from 11,787 to 12,858 since he came to YSU in July 2000. The university plans to increase that to 14,000 by fall 2008, he said. The number of minority students also is on the rise, from 1,282 in fall 2000 to 1,656 in fall 2003. Minority students now make up nearly 13 percent of the student body, up from about 11 percent in 2000. The president also highlighted several planning activities on campus, including the enrollment management plan, technology master plan and the campus master plan, as well as planning efforts for the upcoming centennial capital campaign. He also shared with trustees information about the university?s management practices. Sweet showed trustees a chart showing the significant declines in state funding for YSU since 2000. Another chart showed that YSU?s tuition is the lowest among the 11 largest public universities in Ohio. He also pointed out that the university has earmarked $870,000 for strategic initiatives this year, including hiring four new faculty members and two new fund-raisers and continuing support for gender equity issues in intercollegiate athletics. Sweet said there have been many accomplishments across campus in the past year, including new academic programs, increased research activities for undergraduate students, the opening of the University Courtyard Apartments and fund-raising and ground-breaking for the new Andrews Recreation and Wellness Center. Other accomplishments include the national re- accreditation of the Beeghly College of Education, the naming of Professor Sherry Linkon as the Ohio Professor of the Year, continued growth in the amount of external grants to the university, a new policy addressing professional conduct, creation of the Youngstown Early College with the Youngstown City School District, leadership in the Youngstown 2010 planning project and partnerships with several community groups, including Wick Neighbors Inc. and the Northside Citizens Coalition. ? Provost Tony Atwater introduced William Beisel, the new executive director of the YSU Metro College. The provost also discussed the university?s new Civic Engagement Education Initiative and plans for this year?s Freshmen Readers Dialogue. ? Cynthia Anderson, vice president for student affairs, told the board about several student success stories, and she introduced the staff of the Neon, YSU?s student yearbook. The board: ? Authorized conferral of an honorary doctorate of human letters degree on Clarence R. Smith Jr., chairman of Diamond Steel Construction Co. and Compco Industries. Smith will receive the degree at summer commencement on Aug. 14. ? Approved a resolution commending several university staff members for a 99.9-percent accuracy rate on a recent enrollment, course and financial aid audit by the Ohio Board of Regents. The accuracy rate, based on the examination of more than 6,000 data items, was the highest in the state. ? Voted on a resolution to recognize the accreditation of the dental hygiene program by the American Dental Association Commission on Dental Accreditation. The resolution congratulates several faculty and staff members, including Madeleine Haggerty, program director. ? Passed a resolution of appreciation regarding publication of the Neon, YSU?s student yearbook. The yearbook was discontinued in 1992 but revived this year with the help of advisor Alyssa Lenhoff and several students, including editor-in-chief Dan Griesemer. ? Approved a resolution for a new master?s degree in American Studies. ?I see this as a definite asset to our graduate arsenal,? Atwater said during committee meetings. The program still must be approved by the Ohio Board of Regents. ? Approved a resolution creating a new master?s degree in financial economics. The program also must be approved by OBOR. ? Approved a new master?s degree in computing and information systems. ?This is a program we?ve tried to bring to YSU for decades,? Atwater said in committee meetings. It also must be approved by OBOR. ? Approved a new Northeast Ohio Universities Master of Fine Arts Degree in Creative Writing. The program, which also must be approved by OBOR, is a consortium of YSU, University of Akron, Cleveland State University and Kent State University. ?This will really give us an opportunity to show what collaboration can do,? Atwater said. ? Voted to accept development gifts totaling $722,527 for the period January to March 2004. ? Approved a resolution naming the amphitheater on the west end of the Andrews Recreation and Wellness Center after F.W. ?Bill? Knecht, a YSU trustee who died in January. Knecht?s wife, Connie, donated $100,000 to the rec center campaign in honor of her husband, a 1960 graduate of YSU. ? Passed a resolution of appreciation for members of the Information Technology Master Plan Advisory and Steering Committees. The committees were appointed by President Sweet in fall 2002 to develop a comprehensive technology plan. The plan was presented to and endorsed by the Board of Trustees? Finance and Facilities Committee on April 23. ? Voted in favor of the 2005 fiscal year budget. In committee meetings, John Habat, vice president for administration outlined the 24- page budget plan. The operating budget totals $141.7 million, $5.4 million or 4 percent higher than the fiscal year 2004 modified operating budget. Habat noted that the budget was prepared in an environment of continuing cuts in state support, which he said has shifted the financial burden more heavily to students over the past several years. State appropriations for 2005 are projected at $43.58 million, a 2.3 percent decrease from 2004. Meanwhile, revenue from tuition and fees is projected to climb 8.1 percent to $79.05 million. Tuition and fees now account for nearly 63 percent of the university?s general fund revenues, while state funds amount to 34.7 percent. Habat said the split was 49 percent tuition/47 percent state funds just three years ago. On the expense side of the budget, personnel costs increase nearly 7 percent to $89.75 million, while operating costs (i.e. supplies, maintenance, postage, equipment, scholarships) will go up 3.1 percent to $19.43 million. ? Agreed to raise the credit hour tuition and fees for the Master of Public Health consortium program from $368 to $403, upon the recommendation of the MPH Academic Counsel. ? Approved a resolution increasing the nurse anesthetist fee from $5,400 to $5,500 a year. YSU and St. Elizabeth Health Center has an agreement by which YSU charges students and reimburses the hospital in an amount determined by the board of directors of the St. Elizabeth Health Center School for Nurse Anesthetists. ? Agreed to authorize the purchase of several small parcels of land in Smoky Hollow and in the area across from Stambaugh Stadium. ? Passed a resolution of appreciation for Cynthia Anderson, vice president for student affairs, who received the ATHENA Award on May 27. The award, co-sponsored by the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber and The Vindicator, recognizes and celebrates outstanding, dynamic women in the Mahoning Valley. Anderson was selected from among 35 nominees. ? Approved faculty and staff appointments. ? Voted to confer emeritus status on five faculty members (Edwin V. Bishop, George P. Kulchytsky, Yih Wu Liu, Donald J. Milley and Donald Slanina) and three administrators (Arlene B. Ivan, Virginia L. Mears and Leonard A. Perry). Board policy provides for the conferral of emeritus status upon faculty and professional/administrative staff who retire following at least 10 years of meritorious service to the university and community. ? Voted to approve a gender equity plan for intercollegiate athletics for 2005 to 2010. The plan commits $450,000 to fund scholarships, staffing, operating budgets and physical facilities to enhance women?s intercollegiate athletics programs. In committee discussions, Ron Strollo, executive director of intercollegiate athletics, said that federal law calls for equal opportunity for men and women in intercollegiate athletics. In 1994, YSU implemented a $696,000 gender equity plan that, among other things, added three women?s sports to the campus. Another five-year, $375,000 plan was approved in 1999, he said. The first two plans doubled the level of support for women programs. ? Approved a resolution of appreciation for YSU?s women?s outdoor track and field team, which won the 2004 Horizon League Women?s Outdoor Track and Field Championship in May. YSU also won the Indoor Track and Field Championship in February. The team is coached by Brian Gorby, who was named Horizon League Women?s Coach of the Year. ? Voted for a resolution of appreciation for YSU?s baseball team, which won its first-ever Horizon League Tournament Championship, earning an automatic birth in the NCAA Regionals of the College World Series. YSU defeated Cleveland State 10-1 in the championship game on May 30 at Eastwood Field to win the title. ? Approved a memorandum of understanding with the Youngstown City School District to create Youngstown Early College, a high school on the YSU campus that will help high school students get a head start on college. (See discussions below in the June 3 Academic and Student Affairs Committee and the June 10 joint meeting of the Academic and Student Affairs/Finance and Facilities Committees.) ? Voted to named trustee Larry Esterly as the board?s new chair. Trustee H.S. Wang was named vice chair. ? Set upcoming regular meetings of the board for 3 p.m. Friday, Sept. 24; 3 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 15; and 3 p.m., Friday, March 18. ? Trustee Chander M. Kohli, outgoing board chair, thanked Sweet, deans, staff and students who gave him direction during his term as the leader of the board. He said it was a good learning experience. Finance and Facilities Committee, June 10 Larry E. Esterly, chair Larry D. DeJane, vice chair ? Committee members reviewed a report comparing budgeted numbers to actual numbers in the general operating fund for the period ending March 31, 2004. ?Nothing seems to be significantly out of line,? said John Habat, vice president for administration. Finance and Facilities Committee/Academic and Student Affairs Committee, June 10 ? The joint committees met to further discuss the proposed memorandum of understanding with the Youngstown City School District to create Youngstown Early College, a high school on the YSU campus that will give high school students a head start on college. Several Youngstown City School District officials attended the meeting to speak in favor of the program, including Superintendent Ben McGee, Superintendent-designate Dr. Wendy Webb and Board of Education President Jackie Taylor. ?We think it?s an excellent opportunity,? Taylor said. ?There is a lot of potential.? Webb said the school district is excited about the program. ?Business as usual is not going to change the Youngstown city schools,? she said. ?We know all of our students don?t fit the same size box. We have to do several different things. YEC is that kind of program. We?re going to make it work.? Patricia Melton-Johnson of the Knowledge Works Foundation and Joyce Brooks of the Mahoning Valley Vision for Education also spoke in favor of YEC. Many of the YSU trustees, however, had concerns. Trustee Cagigas said he thought the program presented ?enormous risks to the university,? including financial and public relations risks. He referred to an article in The Vindicator that said the school district could only fund the program through 2007. McGee and Webb said the school district hopes to find other sources of funding for the program beyond 2007. ?We believe we?re going to be able to maintain and reach additional funding,? Webb said. Trustee Schulick said YEC is ?a very noble venture,? but he said he was ?not convinced yet that the long term funding is in place.? Trustee Bresnahan said YEC is a ?very interesting? program with great potential, but he also expressed concern about funding. ?I want to root for this program, but we have a fiduciary responsibility, first and foremost, to the students here at YSU,? he said. Responding to The Vindicator article, McGee said it is not entirely accurate to say that funding will not be available for the program beyond 2007. If YEC is successful, it is unlikely that funding would not be available. Melton-Johnson said KnowledgeWorks is committed to the program. ?We are here for the long run?to support this initiative and others,? she said. Sweet said YEC addresses the top three priorities he laid out when he became YSU president in 2000: enrollment diversity and partnerships. ?This is a (research and development) project,? he said. ?It?s what universities should be doing ? pushing and extending knowledge.? John Habat, vice president for administration, outlined the funding for the project. (See details under the June 3 Academic and Student Affairs Committee.) Habat said funding for YEC will not effect funding for other YSU programs. The board agreed to an amendment to the resolution that says funding for existing YSU programs will not be reduced to pay for YEC operations. ?This in, on the academic side, a very bad idea, and on the fiscal side?my reservations remain,? Esterly said about the YEC. But, with the amendment, Esterly said he would vote for the memorandum of understanding. The committee voted unanimously for the resolution. Internal Affairs Committee, June 10 VACANT, chair John L. Pogue, vice chair ? Pogue called for a moment of silence in observance of President Reagan?s death. ? The committee reviewed a workforce analysis report showing that the total number of YSU employees has increased from 1,591 on March 31, 2003, to 1,637 on March 31, 2004. Jimmy Myers, director of equal opportunity and diversity, talked about minority hiring. He said YSU has been ?holding its own? in terms of trying to attract minority faculty. The workforce report shows that 53 of the university?s 410 faculty members are racial minorities. ? Committee members received a report showing that of the $2.36 million of eligible goods and service purchases by YSU from Jan. 1 to March 31, 2004, $54,810 or 2.3 percent went to minority business enterprises. ? The committee received the minutes of the University Diversity Council?s April 19 meeting. Sweet reported that the council is talking about restructuring, although no final decision has been made. ? Ron Strollo, executive director of intercollegiate athletics, reported on spring and fall sports. ? Strollo also reported on the university?s efforts to get state lawmakers to pass legislation that would allow YSU to continue tailgating at home football games. A bill sponsored by State Rep. Ken Carano passed the House and had strong support in the Senate, but it was not passed before the General Assembly recessed in June. Strollo said he will meet with representatives from Gov. Bob Taft?s office and the Ohio Department of Public Safety to try to reach an agreement on tailgating for this football season. He said the university is exploring alternative tailgating methods. Sweet said tailgating will continue at home football games. External Relations Committee, June 3 H.S. Wang, chair Millicent S. Counts, vice chair ? Catherine Cala, associate director in the development office, reported on Penguin Parade, a public arts project in which 31, 7-foot tall fiberglass penguins have been turned into works of art. The penguins, sponsored by local businesses, organizations and individuals, are being delivered to the Tod Hall lobby and will make their public debut at the Summer Festival of the Arts July 10 and 11 on the YSU campus. The penguins will then be placed throughout the community from July to October before being auctioned Oct. 29 at Stambaugh Auditorium. ?They?re just incredible,? Cala said about the penguins. The project is similar to one in Chicago that used cows instead of penguins. ?I may be biased, but I saw those cows, and I think these penguins are far superior,? Sweet said. ? Received a quarterly report from the development office. ? Shannon Tirone, director of Alumni Relations, reported that Clarence R. Smith Jr., chairman of Diamond Steel Construction Co. and Compco Industries, will receive YSU?s Distinguished Citizen Award at a banquet July 22 at Mr. Anthony?s in Boardman. The DCA, developed in 1981, is presented annually to a business leader who has rendered exceptional service to the greater community. It is the highest mark of distinction by YSU?s Office of Alumni Relations. ?He is extremely humbled this,? Tirone said. ?He certainly deserves this award,? Wang said. ? Pam Palumbo, associate director of Events Management, reported that the Summer Festival of the Arts will be July 10 and 11 on the YSU campus and that Forte on the Fifty, featuring The Commodores, will be July 10 in Stambaugh Stadium. ?We?re excited about it,? she said. ?It will be a great weekend. Pray for no rain.? ? Walt Ulbricht, executive director of marketing and communications, distributed the latest edition of the YSUpdate, featuring a photograph of President Bush?s visit to campus on May 25. Ulbricht shared with trustees clippings from newspapers nationwide about the president?s YSU stop. Ulbricht also told trustees that the university?s redesigned website was launched April 30. Bob Tupaj, university website manager, showed trustees various features of the new site, including a tuition and financial aid estimator, a web cam of the rec center construction, YSU news releases, class registration, a searchable schedule of classes and a campus map. Daily visits to the website are up about 33 percent, Ulbricht said. ?I spent some time on the old website, and this is light-years beyond that,? Trustee Bill Bresnahan said. ? Gary Sexton, director of WYSU-FM, said the station has received a $12,000 Audience Service Challenge Grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to conduct a self- study of the station?s operations. ? Under new business, Sweet welcomed the three newest members of the board, Bresnahan, Cagigas and Schulick. Academic and Student Affairs Committee, June 3 Chander M. Kohli, interim chair H.S. Wang, vice chair ? Cynthia Anderson, vice president for student affairs, told trustees that spring enrollment was up 1.2 percent, and enrollment was up 2 percent for summer. Early projections show an increase of about 1.3 percent for this fall. She reported increases in new student applications, applications for students outside the Mahoning Valley, online applications and applications for minority students. Anderson also credited the Center for Student Progress for much of the enrollment success. She said the center provides tutoring and other services to make sure students succeed in their classes and remain enrolled, thus increasing enrollment. The center served nearly 6,400 students this past academic year, up 43 percent. She also reported that the university is considering a conditional admissions policy for students entering YSU with low grade point averages and standardized test scores. Those students will be restricted to enrolling in specific courses and be required to participate in programs in the Center for Student Progress. Anderson said the conditional admissions policy must go before the Academic Senate and could be in place by fall semester 2005. Sweet said a recent report by the Governor?s Commission on Higher Education and the Economy recommends increasing the college-going rate in Ohio by 30 percent. A separate report shows that students who take a core curriculum of classes in high school are much more likely to succeed in college. He said 43 percent of YSU students have not completed a core curriculum in high school. ? Committee members discussed a proposed memorandum of understanding with the Youngstown City School District to create the Youngstown Early College. Atwater called the agreement a ?truly historic partnership.? The pact would create a high school in Fedor Hall on the YSU campus beginning this fall. The school would start with 75 ninth graders. Seventy-five to 100 students would be accepted into the school annually for a total enrollment in grades nine through 12 of 300 to 400 by 2007. Students would take a combination of high school and college courses and would graduate from high school with up to 60 college credit hours. ?These are students who for one reason or another have not succeeded in school but have great potential,? said Bob Bolla, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. Under the agreement, the city schools would pay for the operation of the high school, including paying the salaries of all staff. The university would provide the space in Fedor Hall. The school district would pay 51 percent of the tuition cost for the college courses, while YSU would pick up the remaining 49 percent. The formula is similar to the one used to fund SB140 high school students taking classes at YSU. YSU would fund its portion of the costs through state ACCESS and SUCCESS funds as well as the Ohio Instructional Grants. ?I would urge the board to look at this as an investment in our future,? Sweet said. Trustees had several questions. Esterly wanted assured that state funds being used for the Youngstown Early College are not being diverted from existing campus programs. Bresnahan questioned what provisions are in place to evaluate the program. Schulick asked if the program would only build on the perception in the community that YSU is only an extension of high school. He asked what public relations plans are in place to publicize the plan. Esterly noted that the city school board has not ratified the agreement, that the school district is facing a budget deficit by 2006 and that the first responsibility of YSU trustees is the financial well-being of the university. ?Ultimately, the cost of this could fall overwhelmingly on YSU,? Esterly said. Sweet said Youngstown Early College is a research and development initiative. ?You don?t enter into these without some risk,? he said. He said, however, that the program could become a national model in how to address inner-city educational problems. ?We?re going into this with our eyes wide open,? he said. Trustee Millicent Counts said it is YSU?s social obligation to support such a program. ?I?m not saying we can throw caution to the wind as far as costs, but if there is some spillover, I think we need to absorb that,? she said. Atwater said he thought the program would result ?in some extraordinarily positive PR in that YSU is taking a leadership role in urban education.? The committee agreed that a joint meeting of the student/academic affairs and finance/facilities committees should be scheduled to further discuss the program. ? Paul Kobulnicky, executive director of Maag Library, made a presentation to the committee about the YSU Civic Engagement Education Initiative. ? The committee also reviewed a report on grants and sponsored programs that showed that funded proposals dropped from $2.85 million in the third quarter last fiscal year to $461,438 for the third quarter this fiscal year. ? Committee members also received documents listing appointments and re-appointments of department chairpersons, faculty members who received distinguished professorship awards and faculty who are being promoted in rank.