Fall 2020 Meeting Summary

Due to the necessity to hold meetings virtually, the Board of Trustees held its fall meeting October 20-23 via Zoom conferencing to accommodate our internationally-based trustee membership. Ahead of the meeting, the Board was provided with materials to prepare for
conversations and decisions. Included in the materials were administrative reports from the president’s cabinet and the observers representing the Faculty Governance Committee and Lawrence University Alumni Association (LUAA).

The meeting began with our New Trustee Orientation for the new trustees. During the course of the meeting, reports were delivered in our committees from the respective committee leadership and campus leadership. The President and the Chair of Board led the trustees in discussion on the priorities for academic year 2020-2021 and reviewed the institutional response to the COVID-19 pandemic across all aspects of campus. The Enrollment Committee celebrated this fall’s first-year class and returning student population, which in the midst of a pandemic mirrored that of last year. The Board of Trustees Anti-Racism Task Force, created during the Summer 2020, updated the full membership on its activity. The Campaign Steering
Committee updated the full membership on this last cycle of the Be the Light! Capital Campaign, forging ahead having already reached our goal. The Academic and Student Affairs Committee focused its time on the curricular shifts and student life efforts made due to the
pandemic with insight provided by the Lawrence University Community Council (LUCC) president. The Finance Committee continues to contemplate revenue enhancements and savings strategies as we strive towards a more balanced budget, mindful of the pandemic.

Over the course of the meeting, the Board:

  • Approved the Fiscal Year 2021 Budget.
  • Approved the election of Gregg Dawley ’77 as a Non-Trustee Investment Committee Member.

The next meeting of the Board of Trustees is scheduled for February 16-19, 2021 virtually via Zoom conferencing.