Ohio University’s Board of Trustees will break a recent tradition at Thursday’s meeting by postponing the presentation of the final FY 2014-15 budget.
Instead, the board will begin its meetings, after an open government training session, with a joint academic and resources committee meeting on prioritizing OU’s financial needs.
Discussion will include different tuition increase scenarios for the 2014-15 academic year, although the final decision won’t be made until the board’s summer meeting.
They are as follows:
No increase, which would give OU $1.26 million to invest in programs toward academic and college needs
A 1 percent increase, which would leave $2.56 million to invest
A 1.5 percent increase, which would leave OU with $3.23 million to invest
The extra time to discuss budget options will give trustees the chance to spend more time considering the implications of increasing the tuition, said Peter Mather, board secretary.
“I expect very rich discussions in the Thursday meetings about these important issues,” Mather said in an email.
The joint committee will also discuss the “Transforming OHIO” plan — a term the university uses to describe its large projects, including the Capital Improvement Plan, or planned construction; the Total Compensation Plan, which is an effort to make all OU salaries more comparable to positions in other Ohio industries; and the $100 Mil. Investment Strategy, aimed at collecting money for specific academic programs.
“Our March meeting will provide valuable opportunities to engage trustees in a discussion about Ohio University’s vision and strategic direction as we forge new ways to be entrepreneurial and support transformative learning experiences for our students,” OU President Roderick McDavis, said in an emailed statement.
Academics Committee:
At the academics committee Executive Vice President and Provost Pam Benoit will provide an overview of the Honors Tutorial and the Graduate colleges. She will provide a similar update on the Office of Information Technology and the Office for Institutional Equity, detailing the offices’ goals and priorities.
The board will also discuss the Completion Plan, which aims to increase enrollment by 0.5 percent each year and implement the guaranteed tuition plan by Fall 2015.
Resources Committee:
The resources committee meeting will begin with an assessment of OU’s endowment assets based on a national survey of higher education institutions through NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments.
The board will also receive an annual update on the institution’s debt capacity, and discuss three recommendations for addressing it:
Take on debt and accept a temporary high credit ranking to work on projects
Take on debt incrementally in order to maintain credit rankings
Limit borrowing to projects prioritized in OU’s misswion, which often are self-supporting by their own revenue, such as Residential Housing projects
Facilities will then present its plans to begin discussing possibly limiting or removing vehicle traffic on Park Place to create a “pedestrian-friendly” walkway.
The discussion is still in preliminary phases, but if the board votes in favor of McDavis continuing talks of the Park Place street study, facilities will take plans to city officials for input, because it is Athens property, said Shawna Bolin, director of University Planning & Space Management.
“Every single thing we do for every planning study … will be thought of with the community, not just the OU community but the local community as well,” Bolin said.
The items on the consent agenda (which is approved all at once by board members) include:
OU’s Investment Policy, discussed at the March board meeting
Two corporate resolutions related to investments
Schematic design for Boyd Dining Hall, Schoonover Center Phase 2, and OU-HCOM Cleveland
Construction projects for Allen Student Help Center, College Green exterior painting and landscape design, The Convo, Crawford and Mackinnon Hall roof and gutter replacements, Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium Upgrades
Dublin Campus Permanent Utility Easement
The University Completion Plan
The Faculty Compensation Plan
Program review of the Computer Science Technology Program for OU Chillicothe, Lancaster and Southern campuses
Establishment of the Doctorate of Philosophy in the Translational Biomedical Science Doctoral Program
Physician Assistant Program name change to “Master of Physician Assistant Practice”
Graduate Student Senate constitution revision
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