8:30 – 10:30 a.m., Virtual Meeting via Teams
Attendees
Voting Members
Martin Abraham
Qudus Bawa-allah
Jennifer Blood
Monica Brasted
Frances Dearing
Tom Hernandez
Stephanie Learn
Theresa Martinez
Carl O’Connor
James Onley
Skye Paine
Kathy Peterson
Heather Raczkowski
Jaime Spiller
Elizabeth Thorpe
Non-Voting Members
Julie Caswell
Damita Davis
Keith Davis
Eileen Daniel
Crystal Hallenbeck-McPhall
Ian Harper: Co-Chair
Mike Harrison
President Macpherson
Gary Morog
Logan Rath
Elliot Weininger: Co-Chair
Melissa Wight
Robert Wyant
Guests
Mike Baird
Michael Brown
Denise Copelton
Kandie Gay
Jennifer Green
Scott Haines
Debbie Jacob
Julie Letourneau
Sophia Lockhart
Jose Maliekal
Tyler Moesle
Brandon Nunnery
Darson Rhodes
Janet Roy
William Ruiz
Megan Sarkis
Rey Sia
Bonnie Swoger
Brian Wallenhorst
Christine Walterick
Regrets
Voting Members
Lorraine Acker
Michael Doyle
Sara Kelly
Non-Voting Members
Rachael Killion
The meeting was called to order at 8:31 a.m.
Approval of the Minutes
Dr. Weininger asked the committee to review the February 6, 2025, meeting minutes. Dr. Peterson motioned to approve the minutes; Dr. Spiller seconded the motion. 13 members voted to approve the minutes. Therefore, the minutes were approved.
Announcements
Dr. Weininger announced the following:
- There is a slight delay with the development of the next working group. The details of the working group will be shared at our next meeting.
Center for Graduate Studies Update
Mr. Harrison provided an update on the Center for Graduate Studies. The following questions, answers and discussion points occurred:
- Appreciation was extended for the presentation.
- It was stated that a few years ago when the graduate projections were presented, there were many concerns, but we have gone beyond those projections and everyone involved in achieving this should be commended. A few members echoed this same response.
- The question was raised regarding the proposals in Senate and if the proposals regarding trimming credit loads are meant to cut costs. It was stated that the proposals are specific to the credit load, so a shrinking credit load creates a different cost. The cost of a graduate education is directly related to the number of credits needed.
- The question was raised regarding if we have any flexibility in out-of-state tuition incentives. It was stated that Mr. Harrison will be attending the SUNY Tuition Work Group meeting this morning at 9:00 am. For the first time all institutions were able to put forward a proposal for out-of-state tuition. Some institutions held flat and some increased their tuition. We lowered our tuition, and it worked out quite well to our advantage. This proposal was for three years, and this coming year will be the third year. Now the discussion is will we have an opportunity to come in again lower than the other SUNY schools.
- The question was raised regarding how the increase in programs will impact the resources for students, especially with the difficulty for students not being able to get the classes that they need because the classes are full. It was stated that when it comes to programs at the graduate level, except for one or two exceptions (Masters in Family Nursing Practitioner is one of them), we do not have a capacity issue. Courses do have to be managed semester to semester to ensure availability. In terms of services, we are very mindful and as an institution to continue to talk about how do we get services to our students. The graduate student population can be slightly different than the undergraduate student population in terms of where they are physically and how we deliver those services. Many of our graduate programs are online so those students do not necessarily come to campus. Discussions need to continue about how we get services to students that do not arrive here on campus and if they do, often their classes are in the evenings. They may not be here to overlap with some of the daytime services that are offered. Service to students is something that the institution and the Center for Graduate Studies are mindful of, and it is under discussion about how those students get the services they need.
- The question was raised regarding the mix between online only, in-person and mix modality students. It was stated that a significant number of our programs have moved to exclusively online, then there are hybrid programs where some of it is offered in-person and some of it is offered online and then we have some programs that are exclusively in-person. The number of students that are engaged in online course work, when you combine the exclusively online and the those that are taking some course work online due to the hybrid program, definitely makes up the majority (meaning more than 50%) of our students are taking course work online in any given semester. The growth in online as been significant. Many of our proposals for new programs have been to go online, but not all, the MS in Chemistry is in-person. We have had some programs that shifted, for example our Education Administration program that was in-person has shifted to fully online and they saw an increase in enrollment this year. They were in a little bit of a decline from an enrollment perceptive and their enrollment has gone back up in part because they have shifted, and they have a broader audience they can capture by being online. The exact breakdown of the mix of programs is not available at the time of the meeting. It was added that with the exception of SUNY Empire State, we do have the largest number of online graduate programs amongst all of our SUNY comprehensives.
Undergraduate Admissions Update
Mr. Wyant presented an update on Undergraduate Admissions. The following questions, answers and discussion points occurred:
- Appreciation was extended for the presentation.
- The question was raised regarding if proximity is the reason why Cortland does not conduct any high school visits. It was stated that Mr. Wyant asked José that same question and he said they have never had to because they are well-known (they have a good name recognition) and they are three hours closer to New York City. They do save a lot of money in travel.
- The concern was stated that SUNY Albany is starting a Nursing program, and this may draw our numbers away. It was added that SUNY Potsdam is trying to start a Physical Education program, and this will be competitive for us too.
- The concern was stated that in the summertime when we get our transfer students it is difficult to find classes for them and the concern is that will continue with these enrollment numbers. The individuals in charge of the course schedule should be mindful of this.
- The question was raised regarding the resource limitations for growth in the ODC for Psychology and if these limitations are exclusive to the number of faculty to teach or if there is some other limitation that is preventing growth. It was stated that it is hard to know because I am not involved in the day-to-day activities. One possible struggle is that there is not a way to assist students to be 100% online and there could be conversations happening around this issue. With the ODC applicants that come through you find very few of them have what you need to be 100% online. This is what was experienced with Business when it first launched, but Sarah does a great job working with students to find online classes that we do not have that the student needs. Psychology is in the early stages of figuring out how to accept more students and find ways to keep them 100% online.
- The question was raised regarding how many SUNY schools have ODC programs, are they in the same fields as ours and are there any schools that will be adding these programs? It was stated that Oswego has the same array of programs as us. They have a few different ones than us and we have a few different ones from them. They have a Communications program that is online. It is believed that no one has a Computer Science program as an ODC and that would be a good one for us to have as there would be a big draw as it is going to be a thing of the future, but there are limitations that need to be worked through in order to have this program.
Center for Global Education and Engagement
Mr. Davis provided an update on the Center for Global Education and Engagement. The following questions, answers and discussion points occurred:
- Appreciation was extended for the presentation.
- It was stated that staff from the Center for Global Education and Engagement should commended for their hard work in exceeding the international enrollment targets.
- The question was raised regarding the possible partnership between Global Education and Engagement and Athletics to recruit athletes from Canada. There has been a change in the NCAA policy in particular with hockey where they are going to allow major/junior hockey players to come down to and play in the United States and they have never been allowed to do this before. There are about fifty major/junior teams that these players at the age of 16 committed to play major/junior hockey are now eligible to come down and play in the United States. There are other teams that could benefit from this as well. If we do not support this program in particular and Athletics can not complete this recruitment due to budget restrictions, is there a way for the institution to assist the coaches with these recruitment efforts? We struggle getting students from NYC because it is six hours away, but we have a million people an hour and a half away and they would still be considered international students. It was stated that we are recruiting in Canada. An advisor will be going there this semester, and this is in collaboration with GCC, and it is utilizing some of the transformation funds. This is the second semester in a row that we have done this collaboration. It was stated that Global Education and Engagement does work with Coach Dickinson and Erick Hart but are happy to explore other opportunities to do so. It was added that we could do more in terms of recruiting athletes and conversations have occurred around how we connect our athletes to our international recruitment efforts. To some extent it depends on the team and the country of interest. There are many teams that could be highlighted all over the world. It is just a matter of putting the coaches in place that are interested in recruiting internationally and connecting them with Mr. Davis and his team so that they can work together. This is an area of interest and is under discussion. This is an area you will probably see grow in the next couple of years.
Review and Endorse Call Letters for BASC, DIFR & BSG
Members reviewed the call letters. The following question was asked:
- The question was raised regarding whether the letters are identical to what has been asked in the past. It was stated that substantively it is the same as in previous years.
BASC & DIFR Letter
Dr. Peterson put forward a motion to accept the letter as written; Dr. Spiller seconded the motion. The following are the voting results from the present voting members:
Endorse - 14 Not Endorse - 0
BSG Letter
Dr. Peterson put forward a motion to accept the letter as written; Dr. Spiller seconded the motion. The following are the voting results from the present voting members:
Endorse - 15 Not Endorse - 0
Discuss and Vote on JPBC Membership
Members reviewed the revised resolution on the committee’s membership. The following questions, answers and discussion points occurred:
- The question was raised regarding if the library inclusion is the faculty-at-large representative. It was stated that is correct and that has always been the case.
- The concern was stated to ensure that there would not be too many positions cycling off at the same time due to the positions that are cycling off now and the new positions that are being added. This is something the committee should be mindful of for continuity. It was stated that discussions could occur to alter the terms if needed.
- The concern was stated that in terms of library inclusion, the faculty-at-large position is defined as such that the library director would not be able to serve in that role due to being a M/C position. It was stated that historically this position has been a faculty-at-large position and M/C positions are appointed to the committee by the President, but it would be looked into to see how the library director could participate.
- It was stated that all members of the Brockport campus community are invited to attend JPBC and contribute their insight when it can constructively advance the deliberations of the JPBC. Membership is about voting, but the decisions for the votes are framed by the contributions that anyone including the library director can make.
- It was stated that this proposal of membership is preserving a long-standing framework of voting membership.
- It was stated that M/C is not specifically detailed in the Charge for membership, but most of the HR staff are M/C and we have had HR representation in the past. M/C should not preclude someone from being a member if you fall under a professional staff designation. We also have technical consultants and if the committee felt it was appropriate, the committee could suggest that the director of the library be added as a technical consultant.
Dr. Peterson put forward the motion to endorse the resolution; Dr. Spiller seconded the motion. The following are the voting results from the present voting members:
Endorse - 15 Not Endorse - 0
Additional Items from the Committee
None at this time.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:07 a.m.