Minutes of the Academic Council Meeting

15 October 2003

Portland State University

Campus Performance Targets

Joint Ways and Means Education Subcommittee reviewed OUS performance indicators item by item and requested more financial indicators or in some cases more specificity (i.e., “low-income students” changed to “Pell grant recipients”). OUS is the lead agency on five of 90 Oregon Benchmarks (net job growth, research and development as percentage of Gross State Product, per-capita income, adults with some college completions, and adults with baccalaureate and/or advance college completion). There are 12 key performance indicators common to all universities and each has two mission-specific indicators. There are few administration indicators and a Governor-appointed committee is may propose all state agencies adopt similar performance indicators (e.g., satisfaction, cost-effectiveness). The provosts each received a notebook to aid each president in preparing a report on goals to the Board in November.

Intel International Science and Engineering Fair

Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) is an annual event that will be held in Portland 9-15 May 2004 (first time since 1962). The fair is anticipated to attract 1,600 students from 40 countries, 5,000 U.S. students, 3,000 other visitors including renowned scientists and 6 Nobel Laureates. OUS institutions will participate as judges and translators, scholarships, academic showcases (institution booths), interactive showcases (for outreach), and site visits. Additional information available at www.intelisef2004.org

Enrollment Watch

Because of concerns over changing enrollments as a result of tuition increases, enrollment will become a regular agenda item for Academic Council. Normally enrollment is discussed at two fixed points (e.g., fall fourth week, and projections in late spring). This meeting the second-week enrollment was the focus. There was no consistent pattern in enrollments at this point (some were right on target, some were up and others were down from last year).

October Board Meeting Agenda/Issues

Board had expressed concern about adding new programs during periods of fiscal constraint. Proposed programs should dovetail with employment, social, cultural, and economic needs in the state. Chancellor Jarvis wants new programs to have a business plan that will ensure program viability and an exit strategy if the program wanes. I inquired about our question from the last IFS meeting regarding elimination of programs. Dr. Clark responded that the process is less formal than the approval process. Provosts simply notify Clark in writing that they will no longer be accepting students in a program and the reasons for eliminating the program. She tracks these changes over time.

UO Graduate Certificate in Museum Studies

Proposed program builds on UO Master’s in Arts Management and provides more extensive education in museum studies than the current museum concentration. No new courses will be required. Support was expressed by several provosts.

Legislative Update

Grattan Kerans indicated that House Joint Resolution 42 called for a 20-member Joint Interim Committee on Tax Reform to study and make recommendations for improving the state’s tax system. House appointments had been made and were well-balanced and broad-based. The Senate had not yet made appointments. The committee report is due 31 May 2004. A special session is likely to be convened in June to develop legislation to be voted on in November 2004.

Biennial Budget Request Process: Ideas for Improvement

Senior Vice Chancellor Tom Anderes requested ideas from four councils on ways to improve the OUS budget requests. It was recognized that the complexity of the funding architecture and funding requirements makes it difficult to explain to legislators. Provosts provided several suggestions for improving the pitch.

Respectively submitted

W. Daniel Edge

IFS Representative to Academic Council

30 November 2003