AAC Meeting Minutes June 13, 2017

1. Call to order The meeting was called to order at 2:03 p.m. with a quorum.

2. Guest Speakers Mark Walsh, USF Assistant Vice President for Government Relations

Mr. Walsh noted that his office is considered a ‘system’ office and that they represent USF Health and also the regional campuses. He also said his office includes employees representing the interests of USF that live elsewhere.

Mr. Walsh spoke to the council about the recent legislative session. He stated that overall, it was pretty positive for USF. He thanked representative, Joe Negron, for his strong advocacy for increased funding for the State University System (SUS). Representative Negron assisted in prioritizing funding overall for the SUS. Rep. Negron believes that having several pre-eminent universities in Florida strengthens the overall SUS.

Mr. Walsh talked about the huge investment in financial aid – an additional 120M in funds were added – doubling the amount from the previous year. The legislature added significantly to the Bright Futures program. Funding was restored to 100% of costs for the highest achievers in the program. The program previously did not cover expenditures for the summer months, but the legislature is piloting a program which will provide funding for the summer sessions. Student financial aid funding for the state was a priority and there has not been enough positive media coverage for these initiatives.

Mr. Walsh addressed specific funding initiatives for USF that were passed this session. We received significant funding for the downtown College of Medicine. To date, 90M has been appropriated for the initiative. We requested a total of 120M for the development and will need an additional 20M in the 2018/19 session. The facility should be open by the spring of 2020 – possibly late 2019. Not a lot of construction money was appropriated this year. PECO (Public Education Capital Outlay) funding in the amount of 3.1M was received towards construction on the St. Petersburg campus. This will be used to renovate buildings. Improvements on the main building, which is on the waterfront, should begin within the next year. We also received funding of 7M towards maintenance. Mr. Walsh noted that facilities, such as the Marshall Center, are not covered by the state funding – Capital Improvement Fund. 3.7M will be spent towards modernization of the Wellness Center located near the Recreation Center/Physical Education area.

1 Representative Negron also secured funding for two new programs – the World Class Faculty and Scholars Program and the National Rankings – Quality of Graduate Programs. The first program will recruit eminent scholars and keep those we currently have. The funding totals 10.5M and there are accountability measures in place tied to the funding. We received approximately 6M related to the graduate programs. The funding is a mix of discretionary and restricted funding and the money will be used to make our programs more elite. We can use the funds as we see fit, but we do have to report on how the dollars were spent. The ultimate goal is to raise the national rankings of the graduate programs.

We were in the top three in performance-based funding. Mr. Walsh noted that performance based funding criteria looks at excellence and improvement metrics. Last year, Florida Atlantic made such significant improvements, that they received a lot of funds. But, that type of improvement is not sustainable, so they then have to score higher on performance metrics. From one year to the next, you only keep your performance based funding if you’re not in the bottom three institutions in the SUS. We kept our 2.8M from the previous year and we received 10.5M for being in the top three this year.

One of the most polarizing funding issues was related to pre-eminence status. This designation serves to provide funding to some and none to others in the SUS. It’s basically about bragging rights and justifying how funding is allocated amongst the entities. There are 12 metrics and if you achieve 11/12, you achieve pre-eminence status. Last year, we achieved ‘emerging’ pre-eminence status – which occurs when the institution achieves half of the metrics. Last year, it accounted for 5M in funding and we had met 9 of the 12 metrics. One of the metrics relates to the size of the endowment and that must be 500M. We knew we’d not be able to attain that, so we worked on achieving the other measures. The metric that received the most attention (and the one that was changed before the end of the session) was achieving a graduation rate of 50% over 4 years. We did not publicize that we’d met that final metric, but we did certify our results and were confident we’d met the criteria for designation as pre-eminent. Because of the last-minute change to the criteria, we remained in the emerging pre-eminence status. There was a great deal of media attention to the change and significant public outcry that USF had been denied this status. Because of that, it’s highly unlikely that this will occur again. We should achieve preeminence status next year. For us, the change was a 10M loss in funding. The impact of this is not limited to Hillsborough County – as we have a significant number of employees that reside in Pasco County. In the end, we did receive more ‘new money’ than what we lost, and decisions will need to be made as to how the funds will be spent. We realized a net gain of 60M.

Mr. Walsh answered questions from the members. One individual asked whether or not it was typical for the Governor to veto recurring funds. Mr. Walsh stated that typically, recurring funds are left in the base budget. The Governor could, however, make changes to the base. One member of the legislature pushed for every new item, and all items from the last 10 years, be listed separately (so the items could be subject to vetoes). There were some items for USF from 2006/07 that have been initially lined through, but we’re cautiously optimistic that most will be restored in the final budget. It’s possible that all the items will be restored as a matter of course.

2 There have not been many discussions on regulations related to Cuba and travel. There is a delegation from Miami that wants restrictions and bans back in place; however, that would impact tourism and tourism dollars. So, if there are changes they could be, largely, ceremonial.

AAC Guest Speaker – Michelle Bombaugh, Ph.D., Assistant Director – Office of Academic Advocacy, Undergraduate Studies

This office was established in 2012 and works to improve graduation and first year retention rates. Dr. Bombaugh stated that the student may earn up to 36 credit hours before declaring his/her major. Her office looks at services that may be provided to students who are experiencing stress or other barriers to persistence. The office may coordinate care between several other offices and perform case management for students at risk. Approximately 10 – 12% of the class may not ‘persist’ and intervention is required to keep them on track. Factors could include economic ones – perhaps there is limited funding for college, or a parent has lost a job. This might impact the ability to afford residence halls, etc. In such a case, the office could work with Financial Aid to develop solutions to keep the student enrolled. Another group that works closely with these students is SOCAT. If you see a student that appears to need emotional assistance, please refer them for assistance. The office only works with undergraduate students at this time. Currently, there is no similar program for graduate students who may be at risk.

3. Approval of Minutes

The minutes from the May meeting were approved.

4. Team Reports and Leadership

Breakfast Team – The date has been set for the next breakfast event (3/22/18). The room has been reserved and the President has been confirmed. Please let Bobby Collins and Marsha Pesch know if you have ideas for the speaker.

Web & Portal – The integration with CMS has been completed and the new site should be live by July 1st.

Speakers – Rebecca Puig has been scheduled for the July meeting. The committee wanted to know if they should be considering speakers for the next year (all present agreed that would be appropriate). If you have questions you’d like Dr. Puig to answer at the next meeting, please email Marsha Pesch.

Week of Welcome – Chris Akin will start planning in late July.

3 Elections – Elections for new members are ongoing at this time. The process is going well. At present, there have been 199 votes cast. The council reviewed the timeline/process steps. It was noted that only 1/3 of the available council seats are open in any given year. We may want to think about voting period – perhaps extending it to three weeks since many individuals take their vacations this time of year. The constituent assignments will happen in the fall. The ballot closes on June 15th – a reminder email will be sent prior to that time.

Presidential Luncheons – The fall date has not yet been set. It was noted that the luncheon group should consist of 4 members, 4 constituents, President Genshaft, and Calvin Williams – for a total of 10. The lunches are held on a quarterly basis. Please email Terrie Wade if you are interested in attending.

Special Projects – The group had a productive first meeting. They are reviewing the constitution, bylaws, and officer position descriptions. They’ve completed the review of changes to the constitution. Voting by proxy will be added to the regulations. It was noted that the President approves the constitution. The bylaws can be changed by a majority of the council. Some items were taken from the constitution and added to the bylaws for practicality. The first revisions were made in 1975. This is probably the 21st time the documents have been revised.

5. Budget Update

The appreciation gifts have been received and will be handed out at the July meeting. The cost of the items was $826.00. Budget reports are as follows: In E&G – 0 balance; 0 - Carry Forward; $1,785 - Auxiliary; $0.40 - Concessions; 0 – Aramark In-kind; $757 – Foundation.

6. Issues from the Floor

It was noted that for all committees, there should be procedures and documentation should exist for the processes the committee is responsible for. If they do not exist, the committee should plan on drafting those in the coming council year.

7. Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 3:14 p.m.

4