1:05 PM The meeting was called to order.
Senators Present:
Sara Hopkins-Powell, Interim President of Southern Oregon University, welcomed senators to Ashland and discussed Southern's General Education program. The lower division requirements have been in place for four years and seem to be working well. There has been some improvement in retention. Work is continuing on the upper division part of the program. She also mentioned that rather than pursue new degree programs, Southern would concentrate more on developing minors and certificate programs.
With regard to budget matters, she indicated that the new budget model has not yet been implemented at the school or division level. She felt the new collaborative bargaining model was helpful in leading to an early settlement with the faculty bargaining unit.
In response to a question about where the "new money" provided by the last legislature went, she indicated very little of it went to the smaller institutions and most of that was for recapitalization.
1:50 PM Dr. Alan Bates, Democratic candidate for Representative from the congressional district which includes Ashland, Eagle Point and Butte Falls, offered his thoughts on education in Oregon. He feels education is the most important thing the state does and understands the disinvestment in higher education that has taken place over the last several years. One consequence is that higher education is too expensive for many Oregonians. If more money is needed, he might go so far as to recommend getting it from the Board should look into it as the demographics of the area support the need. The curriculum might be specialized in a way that will avoid duplication of costly programs. He also indicated that the business or profit making model is inappropriate for public institutions.
3:40 Lenn Hannon, Senator from District 26 explained the dire effects that various ballot initiatives (especially the Sizemore initiative) would have on the future of Oregon and higher education in particular. He urged IFS senators to take an active role now in helping to defeat the measures. This includes encouraging students to vote as only about 6% of them have been voting in the past. He also volunteered to accept invitations anytime, anywhere to debate the measures.
4:50 The meeting was adjourned.
Saturday, April 8
8:45 AM The meeting was called to order.
Senators Present:
Reports: State Board and request from Legislative Fiscal Office
Gary Tiedeman reported on the April and May meetings of the State Board of Higher Education. The full text of his remarks to the Board can be found at the IFS web site (http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~ifs/ifs.html).
The Board expects enrollments to increase and plans to make strategic investments in computer science, engineering, and biotechnology. Board member Geri Richmond urged the Board to fully involve faculty in the process.
An announcement will be made at the June meeting of the Board regarding higher education in Bend.
A motion to allow arming of campus security at certain campuses was defeated. Among the action items approved were a student health policy, new residence hall for UO, incidental fee guidelines for UO, national zebra fish stock center for UO, and the naming of the new library at WOU.
The only action at the May meeting of the Board was the approval of Dr. Sara Hopkins-Powell as interim President of SOU.
Gary Tiedeman was contacted by Steve Bender from the Legislative Fiscal Office regarding a report he is preparing for the Joint Legislative Audit Committee. The report will deal with the implementation of the new OUS budget model and he (Bender) wants faculty input from each campus. It was agreed that Gary will send a letter to the President of each of the faculty governing bodies asking for faculty to meet with Mr. Bender.
Reports: Joint meeting of the Budget/Finance and Strategic Planning Committees own campus that might be of interest to IFS.
10:45 AM Jack Cooper gave a report from the subcommittee looking into the "14-hour rule" (credit-based tuition centered at 14 credits). He stated no one seems to be pushing the idea at the present time , but recommended IFS still go on record opposing it. A draft letter was discussed and Gary Tiedeman will use it as a guide to prepare a letter to the State Board.
11:00 AM Bruce Sorte reported on a meeting of the Committee for OUR Oregon. Current polls and focus groups show the Sizemore initiative (Initiative 10, Federal Tax deduction) has a majority in favor, but support drops when the effect on education in Oregon is made clear. Ron Cease mentioned that another effective argument against it is one of fairness in that only the very wealthy will see significant savings. Arguments against the initiative should be kept simple: a 30% cut right away and a 17% cut in the next biennium.
11:40 Bruce Sorte presented a draft of the IFS Policy Option Package for 2001/2003 and a discussion followed. Four initiatives were included in the policy.
12:10 The meeting was adjourned.
The next meeting will be October 6th and 7th at Oregon Institute of Technology.
Respectfully Submitted, Robert Brandon, Secretary.