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College Council Meeting Minutes: September 22, 2020

Present

  • Scott Turner
  • Heidi Macpherson
  • Mike Andriatch
  • Dave Mihalyov
  • Cathy Houston-Wilson
  • Jim Wall
  • Lorraine Acker
  • Katy Heyning
  • Roosevelt Mareus
  • Katy Wilson
  • Elaine Leshnower
  • Mike Furness
  • Ken Pink
  • Chris Wiest
  • Lesli Myers-Small
  • Lauren Kelly
  • Alex Leonty
  • Andrea Guzzetta
  • Rodmon King
  • Bridgette Wiefling

GUEST

  • Robert Wyant

I. Chair’s Report [Mr. Turner]

WELCOME AND INTRODUCTIONS

Mr. Turner called the meeting to order at 4:35pm.

He welcomed the new members, Mr. Alex Leonty, BSG President; Mr. Mike Furness, President, Alumni Association; and Dr. Cathy Houston-Wilson, College Senate President.

 

Mr. Turner said they are still in talks with SUNY about potential College Council members, and they have forwarded two names to the Governor’s office for review and approval.

 

Mr. Pink asked about the number of vacancies, and Mr. Turner said there is one vacancy, and he wants to see which candidate the Governor’s Office will approve. Mr. Mihalyov said there has been a vacancy for the past few years, and the reason they are putting two names forward is because of the length of time for approval.

II. President’s Report [President Macpherson]

  1. President Macpherson thanked everyone for being present today, and for their continued support of the College.
  2. President Macpherson said she is exceptionally proud of the Undergraduate Admissions recruitment team, and even when going remote, they have done an outstanding job of bringing students to Brockport. She shared student numbers for both graduate and undergraduate recruitment, and she is confident that they will continue to recruit strong, academically capable students for 2021 and beyond.
  3. President Macpherson discussed the budget and said for spring 2020, the cost to SUNY for quarantining students has been almost $300K, and there have been additional expenses through refunds for housing and students studying abroad. She said there is also a decrease in the number of students living on campus, and there are continuing costs for the Bringing Back Brockport expenses. The pool testing for students is approximately $15K per week, and that will be ongoing for the semester and possibly into next semester as well. President Macpherson talked about the Emergency Operations Center and identified their function, and shared information on the implementation teams that fall under the EOC. One of the things they are trying to do is keep the students connected, and they have added wireless points in all the parking lots, along with outdoor tents where people can study or eat. President Macpherson said we have the opportunity to perform the antigen test on symptomatic students. They are in discussion with System regarding pool testing, and the completed tests go to Upstate Medical for review. She outlined what happens if there is a positive test. President Macpherson talked about the two athletic teams that are on interim suspension, and she shared some just-released information on SUNY’s stringent system-wide disciplinary policies, promulgated by the new Chancellor, Dr. Jim Malatras.
  4. President Macpherson shared some good news stories from campus. She said the faculty are working very hard to meet the needs of students during COVID, and they are still actively working on external grants. Dr. Rebecca Smith, Dr. Mehruz Kamal, and others, have been awarded a $1mil grant from the NSF. She said faculty have found creative ways to keep their scholarship alive in the virtual environment, and she highlighted various faculty members, such as Dr. Lauren Lieberman and Dr. Amy Shema.
  5. In the first quarter of the year, the College achieved a 52% utilization rate for MWBE contracts, and she said the Rochester Business Journal named the MBA program a top MBA program. She highlighted Digital Commons, and shared its reach. Finally, she said the Provost has put the campus in for membership with the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity. This membership is accessible for faculty, staff, and graduate students.
  6. She said there is so much to be proud of at SUNY Brockport and thanked everyone for their support.
  7. Dr. Wiefling said Brockport has done a fabulous job, and she can comment on this from a healthcare angle. She said the plans have been very well thought out, and she knows how well the campus planned for health and safety.

III. Enrollment Management and Student Affairs Report

  1. Dr. Katy Wilson said she wants to highlight the ways that undergraduate admissions is recruiting students, and she introduced Mr. Robert Wyant, Director, Undergraduate Admissions.
  2. Mr. Wyant discussed the way his office has pivoted to recruit students via online events, and identified how they have been reaching out to students in innovative ways. He shared information on the on-campus tours, that have been heavily attended, and he shared the preliminary enrollment summary for all Comprehensive Colleges, and discussed Brockport in comparison to the other schools. He shared plans and ideas for future recruitment, and he discussed ways they will be reviewing new applicants who are applying without the SAT.
  3. Mr. Pink said that the enrollment is at 7591, and asked how that compares to capacity, and is the capacity reduced subsequent to COVID. President Macpherson said this is lower than in previous years, but higher than forecast. Mr. Pink asked if the forecast was done before COVID, and President Macpherson said yes; it was hard in the spring to forecast. She said they are not at capacity, but they have intentionally reduced the number of on-campus students. Mr. Pink asked what has been told to students if there is not room for them on campus, and President Macpherson said even though they modeled for it, they did not have turn students away from on-campus housing. Dr. Wilson said for enrollment, they have really watched the trends for the community colleges, and their numbers have dropped. Mr. Wiest said that with the community college’s numbers being down, along with transfer numbers, he asked what are the trends for the future. Mr. Wyant discussed ways they market to not only community colleges, but to private schools as well. He identified their drop in numbers, and he shared ways that SUNY Brockport helps with programs at two of the local community colleges that will assist the students, but also help them transfer to a four-year school. President Macpherson shared ways the College is assisting, and Mr. Wyant said that the graduate school is doing really good work in recruiting students as well.

IV. Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Report

  1. Dr. King said he came to Brockport to do his consultant work in special assignment from former Chancellor Johnson. He identified the guiding concepts he is using in his time at Brockport, which is appreciative inquiry, structural analysis, empowerment, and collaboration. The focus of his work has been professional development/training and structural change, and he shared how he has been meeting with Cabinet, individually and collaboratively, but also with all divisions across campus.
  2. Mr. Pink said he was highly impressed by the presentation, and he said Dr. King touched upon the development of a sustainable model, so he asked how the College would measure this. Dr. King said the goals and metrics of the EDI Strategic Plan should reflect the work that has been incorporated during his time here. Mr. Pink asked if the EDI plan will be a public document, and President Macpherson said the EDI plan was written by Dr. Milo Obourn while they were in the position. She said the current plan highlights ways to recruit faculty, staff, and students; on increasing training; and working on campus climate. Part of what they are doing a better job of is illuminating the work that they are doing in educating the institution on EDI, and she thanked Dr. Acker for her hard work on this. President Macpherson said they are convening a new EDI Strategic Plan committee, which will work on the future plan, and EDI has been threaded through the performance plans of all members of Cabinet and their divisions. Additionally, there is a standing item of EDI in Cabinet meetings. Dr. Houston-Wilson said that Senate has created an ad hoc committee on EDI that will eventually become a standing committee. They want something similar to happen at Senate, so when they look at policies or anything at Senate, that they will utilize an EDI lens for all items of discussion. Dr. Myers-Small said the one thing she hasn’t heard is how anti-racism is being discussed. Dr. King highlighted that antiracism is crucial to their work, as well as anti-oppression more widely, and he shared information on how the educational model is utilized in the EDI implementation. President Macpherson thanked Dr. King for his guidance and assistance. She shared information on the newly-implemented Community Advisory Board which will help identify places where the College could engage further within the City of Rochester, and that the search for the new Chief Diversity Officer kicked off today.
  3. Dr. King asked a final question: What work can the College Council do? He suggested a book that will help begin other conversations, and it is, How to be a Student-Ready Campus. He said this might be something the Council could read and discuss. Mr. Leonty asked how some of his work is relatable to students. Dr. King said the student piece is where they need to pick up some additional work, but that Dr. Acker has been doing a lot of work in this area. He said there is work going on, and they are working on engaging the students in processes of change. Dr. Acker identified ways that the OEDI has been doing things structurally around engagement of students, and one of the ways is the development of the Intercultural Center. The staff will be hosting a series of listening sessions, and will consider ways that students can be involved and provide feedback. Another thing EMSA has been doing is the retention piece, and they have looked at the number of undergraduate men of color, and they developed a program to attain this goal with the Talon Academy. A permanent employee was hired and it is being launched through the Academic Success Center. Additionally, the Counseling Center is taking a more active role in assisting students with trauma. She spoke about the development of the Student Advisory Board, and said that there are many things happening behind the scenes.

V. Administration and Finance Report

  1. Mr. Wall provided a budget update for the 2020-21 fiscal year. He provided an enrollment update as well and identified the projections. He shared information on the Capital Projects, and showed the project status for all capital projects. He discussed the Five-year Financial Model, and the reserve balance projections.
  2. Mr. Pink asked about the projected deficit and said what would the College do if they can’t pay the bills. Mr. Wall said the College would have to borrow money from the state. President Macpherson said we are actively working very hard to mitigate this deficit. Mr. Pink asks what happens to campuses who do borrow money, and President Macpherson said that SUNY assists with loans and a repayment plan. Mr. Wiest asked if the five-year model includes reducing head count for personnel, and President Macpherson said the College is not allowed to enact an early retirement model because the State has said that it is currently not allowing it. She said the College is under a state hiring freeze, but if there are retirements, the vacant positions will not be filled, other than those that affect health and safety. Mr. Wall said that over 20% of the workforce is retirement eligible. Ms. Leshnower asked where the REOC expenses fall in this picture. President Macpherson said REOC is a separate institution to the College, and they have a separate, University-wide budget.
  3. Mr. Wiest said he’d like to end where the meeting started, by thanking the President for her hard work and leadership.

VI. Next Meeting

The next College Council meeting is scheduled for December 1, 2020.

VII. Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 6:22 pm.