Due to the necessity to hold meetings virtually per our campus pandemic protocol, the Board of Trustees held its spring meeting May 11-14, 2021 via Zoom conferencing. Ahead of the meeting, the Board was provided with materials to prepare for conversations and decisions. Included in the materials were updates from the functional areas of the institution, the Faculty Committee on University Governance (FCUG), the Lawrence University Community Council (LUCC) and the Lawrence University Alumni Association (LUAA).
The Board began with the General Session where they spent time with incoming president Laurie A. Carter and discussed the culminating report from the Board of Trustees Antiracism Task Force. After which, the Enrollment Committee, Development Committee, Buildings and Grounds SubCommittee, Finance Committee, and Academic and Student Affairs Committee held their meetings, concluding with the Formal Board meeting. Much of each committee and subcommittee meeting was discussing our ongoing response to the COVID-19 coronavirus global pandemic, updates on different initiatives, and forecasting fall 2021. The reports were delivered from the President, the Chair of the Board, and respective committee and campus leadership. Trustees and the campus leadership discussed the ever-changing climate and our mechanisms to lead and respond, and our institutional decision-making strategy as we welcome a new leader. There was much to celebrate as well: honoring the Board of Trustees members retiring from the Board, honoring President Mark Burstein, and welcoming President Laurie Carter.
In the May meetings, the Board:
- Approved the minutes of the Special Meeting of the Board of Trustees on Wednesday, February 24, 2021 when Laurie A. Carter was elected the 17th president of Lawrence University, beginning July 1, 2021.
- Approved the President Emeritus Resolution bestowing the title of President Emeritus to Mark Burstein upon his retirement on June 30, 2021.
- Approved the motion from the Board of Trustees Antiracism Task Force to create a standing committee of the Board of Trustees dedicated to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion work and composed of an integrated group of Board members with the President and Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion as ex-officio.
- Approved the Corporate Resolution.
- Approved the Fiscal Year 2021 and projected Fiscal Year 2022 budgets.
- Approved a Lawrence University Campus Community Resolution, thanking all for their dedication and sacrifice since the pandemic began.
- Approved the election of the Class of 2024 Term Trustees for terms ending June 30, 2024.
- Approved the election of the Officers of the Board.
- Approved the election of Francesca Siekman ‘11 as a Recent Graduate Trustee.
- Approved the election of Sachin Shivaram as a Term Trustee.
- Approved the re-appointment of Ryan Primmer ‘91 as a Non-Trustee Committee Member of the Investment Committee.
- Approved the re-appointment of Steven Mech ‘93 as a Non-Trustee Committee Member of the Buildings and Grounds SubCommittee.
- Approved the President’s Advisory Council (PAC) as a formal institutional body.
The next meeting of the Board is scheduled for October 20-22 on the campus of Lawrence University in Appleton, WI.