Provost’s Advisory Council Notes
September 9, 2014
1:00pm – 2:30pm, SU 319
Present: Ayers, Beagle, Burke, Chang, DeNeui, Denney, Ettlich, Fountain, Garcia-Hanson, Gardner, Gayton, Humphrey, Jones, Kinsey, Lovern, Morris, Moutsatson, Nagy Catz, Preston, Rex, Roberson, Robitz, Stanek, Stillman, Stone, Suter, S Thorpe, Trueblood-Gamble, Walsh, Waters.
Guests: Brad Christ, Roxane Beigel-Coryell
1. Welcome from Sue Walsh, especially to new members. Introductions exchanged.
2. Printer and Copier proposal (Brad Christ)
· Consolidation of printer and copier contracts; we currently have many individual contracts, and we need a single contract.
· Second part: managed print services, possibly black and white only. For toner we often pay retail prices, or sometimes use bad recycled cartridges which damage our equipment. There are managed print services; we can use reduced price toner with these.
· Part 3: getting into sustainability as well as reducing costs. We charge students for using some printers; others are not charged. Not always subsidized. Description of how students are charged and how to check balance. Some campuses have a way to track all print jobs.
· Proposal looks to end free printing. Departments wouldn’t buy toner and paper; we’d centralize these costs. Departments can reduce their printing costs and align with the sustainability goals of the university. This creates an incentive to save money. Departments can reallocate printing funds to other needs.
· We want the ability to scan instead of printing. Contemplating a trade-in program to trade in printer for scanner. For copiers it is more economical to lease.
· Printing should not be a revenue stream for the library.
· Questions about details of proposal and how things will be charged and/or scrutinized. Disassociating printers from departments; a printer is cheaper than a copier.
· PAC should give feedback to Brad Christ; any questions too. (Brad departs)
3. Roxane Beigel-Coryell: Climate Action Fund.
· Ultimate goal is net zero greenhouse gas emissions. One of the biggest areas is campus air travel; hard to measure. But we can highlight this to reduce our greenhouse gasses.
· Proposal is changed from earlier version of fixed surcharges for intracontinental and intercontinental travel.
· Current proposal is funded by university. Not a fixed dollar amount, but a percentage. Money in fund would go back to university, to support renewable energy, lighting retrofits, etc. Don’t want to pay for carbon offsets.
· Question about disincentivizing air travel; sometimes that’s the only way to travel somewhere. Morris: update from BAC; real purpose is not to dissuade people from flying when they need to; reason is to reduce our carbon footprint, so 1% would be paid by the university and the fund would enable the university to fund small projects. Just makes another step toward offsetting our carbon footprint.
· Garcia-Hanson: what data do we have of the difference of flying and driving, especially as a single passenger? How big a difference? Roxane will send information.
· Waters: question about car-share efforts. Roxane: proposal to encourage a program that promotes reducing driving; we’re still doing surveys so not ready to publicize.
· Issue of RVTD bus service not running at night, for students with night classes. We can get free bus passes for faculty and staff at the enrollment services center; this should be more widely publicized.
· Walsh: keep us apprised of any changes and updates. (Roxane departs.)
4. Brian Kinsey: Updates from Service Center
· Out of State Travel: pre-approval for out-of-state travel is no longer necessary. We will still require pre-approval for foreign travel.
· Delegation of Budget Authority forms: recent request generated much conversation and confusion. It’s very specific; doesn’t include contracts; contracts can’t be delegated out.
o Purchasing card approval is also separate.
o The request for Budget Authority delegation is only for paper invoices coming in to be paid. Not to be confused with someone new taking over budget authority. The person identified as Budget Authority is still responsible even if someone else is signing.
o In consultation with Provost’s Office, it is agreed that Division Directors’ delegation of budget authority should only go up, not down. If Division Director can’t sign, invoice goes to Provost’s Office for approval.
· Service Center move into Britt: Britt is almost finished. Service Center staff will move in Monday and Tuesday next week.
· Questions: about approving invoices; is this by email? Goods need to be received before payment is made. Kinsey said Service Center staff are trying to reduce paper so will scan invoices and forward scanned version to confirm approval.
5. Enrollment Reports update: Chris Stanek
· SOU Enrollment Drivers (Recruitment, Retention, and the Fund Balance)
· Thermometer style chart. Close to where we were last year. We are 534 students from where we want to be; we have 7 weeks before 4th week of term. Good news is that retention is better than Fall 2013. Retention of last year’s freshmen is 73%; better than in the past.
· The Board will get a high level report of this; overall. Red, yellow, green; won’t get the details unless they ask for it.
· Questions: how long does it take for the state allocation to catch up with enrollment numbers? Settle-up process happens at the end of the year. Shifts will likely occur about the way allocation is figured. Morris: depends on how we forecasted last year; for example, for resident undergraduates, and what actual is.
· Denney: our tuition is ahead of retrenchment plan, because of the improved mix. State appropriation changed in the true-up from what OUS forecasted for us.
· Funnel report: new students coming in for Fall 14, compared to Fall 13. We’re up in all categories of students.
· Stillman: do we have any evidence to support the hypothesis that enrollment improvement is due to a particular program over another? No. The calling campaign really helped. What we need to do is track our programs and initiatives to see what works. Then we know what works and what doesn’t work.
· Stillman: it may be dangerous at this time to determine what the successful initiatives were. Walsh: anecdotally, everything we’ve done in the last two months has helped. Shotgun approach has worked.
6. Retention and Recruitment: Lisa Garcia-Hanson
· Walsh: we needed to offer some incentives for students; in 2 days staff put together fabric of calling campaigns, housing incentives, tuition remission money; everyone jumped in, and I t’s still continuing. We managed the process because of the people involved.
· Current tactics of recruitment:
o Reclaim share of Rogue Valley high school students entering college
o Refine and improve transfer student recruitment within Oregon and neighboring states’ community colleges
o Continue to concentrate recruiting efforts in the greater region
o Increase outreach and recruitment efforts to reach a greater diversity of students
o Collaborate with Office of International Programs to increase international student enrollment
o Optimize financial aid awarding process to increase yield and retention of entering students.
· Current tactics of retention:
o Concerted calling/contact to current students toward end of each quarter to ensure timely preregistration and remove barriers
o Employ success specialists who are versed in Degree Works and academic advising and can proactively review student schedules and progress and contact those who may need more intrusive advising to stay on track.
o Develop warning and probation programs to reach students
o Develop more intentional and well-coordinated peer mentor and university mentor programs to widen advising network for incoming and second year students
o Develop more proactive advising programs for undeclared students
o Conduct ROARs for winter and spring quarters, to ensure that students that enter in the off-quarters get the same quality and quantity of transitional and information as those that enter in Fall.
7. Other information
· Walsh: week after next, some of us are going to Portland for training for institutional governing boards.
· Other reminders about upcoming events for beginning of Fall term.
The meeting adjourned at 2:30 p.m.