The Board of Trustees held its winter meeting from February 15-17 on the Lawrence University campus in Appleton, WI. Ahead of the meeting, the Board was provided with materials to prepare for conversations on campus. Included in the materials were administrative reports from the president’s cabinet and the observers representing the Faculty Governance Committee, the Lawrence University Community Council (LUCC) and Lawrence University Alumni Association (LUAA).
The meeting began with a reception and dinner with students on Wednesday, February 15. The topic of the discussion was “Becoming a More Inclusive Lawrence”. There was praise for the improvements made to the university’s hiring processes and the new hires in administrative and faculty roles that further advance the issues of diversity and inclusion, as well as the new, more accessible Diversity Center. It was acknowledged that students and student groups are becoming more intentional about creating dialogue and welcoming other students into their groups and spaces, but there is always room for improvement. Students pointed out the need for prompt communication regarding updates, timelines and progress being made on campus and noted that this has not been particularly strong in the past. In attendance were a number of students from a
variety of student organizations, committee chairs and the executive board, trustees, members of the president’s cabinet, and observers.
During the meeting, reports were delivered from the President and the Chair of the Board. The Board engaged in a discussion pertaining to changes in higher education with regard to a proposed update of the Academic Freedom Statement, which was drafted by the Faculty Curriculum Committee, to be more responsive to emerging issues. The Subcommittee on Buildings and Grounds provided an update on the completion of the renovations at Colman Hall as well as the relocation of the Diversity Center to the first floor of Memorial Hall. There was an update on capital campaign planning, and the Board approved revisions to the Term Trustee and Recent Graduate Trustee Commitments Statements.
In the course of the meeting, the Board:
• Approved the promotion of Ian Bates to the rank of Associate Professor and award of tenure
• Approved the promotion of Lori Hilt to the rank of Associate Professor and award of tenure
• Approved the promotion of Erin Lesser to the rank of Associate Professor and award of tenure
• Approved the promotion of Mark Phelan to the rank of Associate Professor and award of tenure.
• Approved the revised Trustee Commitments Statement
• Approved the Recent Graduate Trustee Commitments Statement
The next meeting of the Board is scheduled for May 17-19, 2017 on the Lawrence University campus in Appleton, WI.