September 14, 2007

1. Roll Call
Present- Mr. Michael Duggan, Vice President of the Board
Mr. Gordon Elliott, Governor
Mr. Brian Hammons, Governor
Ms. Mary Sheid, President of the Board
Mr. Ryan Sivill, Student Governor
Ms. Cathy Smith, Governor
Ms. Phyllis Washington, Governor
Mr. John Winston, Governor

Also
Present- Michael Nietzel, President
Drew Bennett, Chancellor of the West Plains Campus
Don Aripoli, Vice President for Student Affairs
Belinda McCarthy, Provost
Greg Burris, Vice President for Administrative and Information Services
Jim Baker, Vice President for Research and Economic Development
Brent Dunn, Vice President for University Advancement
Kent Kay, Chief Financial Officer
John McAlear, Secretary of the Board

2. Presiding --- The presiding officer for the meeting was Ms. Mary Sheid, President of the Board of Governors. She called the meeting to order at 1:00 p.m. in the Allen Village Charter School in Kansas City, Missouri. She first thanked Ms. Washington for hosting the meeting at such a beautiful facility. Ms. Washington welcomed everyone to Allen Village and then introduced Reverend Alan Shelby, President of the Board at Allen Village and she then introduced the school’s leadership team. Ms. Washington also introduced Dr. Steve McClure, Director of Charter Schools at the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC). UMKC is the sponsor of Allen Village. Dr. McClure remarked that they are excited at what they are doing with charter schools in Kansas City and look forward to sending their graduates to Missouri State University.

3. Approval of Minutes --- Ms. Sheid first asked for a motion for the approval of the minutes of the Board of Governors’ open meetings of July 19, 2007 and August 3, 2007. Mr. Hammons so moved, receiving the second of Mr. Winston.

Motion passed 7-0.

4. Consent Agenda --- Ms. Sheid noted that the next item of business on the agenda was the approval of the Consent Agenda for this meeting. The items included in the Consent Agenda are:

West Plains Campus
Approval of the Activity Report dated August 24, 2007 (West Plains Campus Activity Report No. 65-07).

Approval of actions concerning West Plains Campus academic employees (West Plains Campus Personnel No. 270-07).

Approval of actions concerning West Plains Campus non-academic employees (West Plains Campus Personnel No. 271-07).

Springfield Campus Purchases/Contracts
Approval of purchases exceeding $100,000 between August 3, 2007 and August 30, 2007 (Purchasing Activity Report No. 304-07).

Design and Construction Items
Approval of Activity Report for the month of July 2007 (Activity Report No. 176-07).

The repair of John Q. Hammons’ Fountains (Bids & Quotations No. 1243-07); MTS Contracting Inc., low bid of $618,000; total project budget set at $800,000.

Human Resources Items
Actions concerning academic employees (Human Resources No. 1245-07).

Actions concerning non-academic employees (Human Resources No. 1246-07).

Mr. Winston moved to approve the Consent Agenda and Mr. Duggan seconded the motion.

Motion passed 7-0.

5. President’s Office --- Dr. Michael Nietzel first reported that regarding the lawsuit to prevent transferring funds from MOHELA into the Lewis & Clark Discovery Fund, the Cole County judge did not issue the requested preliminary injunction filed to prevent the transfer of funds from MOHELA. The transfer of $230 million to the Office of Administration is expected today. The Universities will begin submitting requests for reimbursement right after October 15, 2007. Dr. Nietzel next reported that the University’s Whistleblower Site was launched on August 31. He also informed the Board that the annual report to the campus was made this week – this included the twelve FY08 priorities that the Board agreed to at their summer retreat, as well as a review of the twelve priorities from FY07. Dr. Nietzel next reported on the planned steps in response to the recommendations of the Emergency Response Task Force. We will spend about $300,000 this year for a mass-notification system – text messaging for those students who volunteer to submit their cell phone numbers. We also will purchase a number of additional generators to improve our capacity for the telephone system, Cheek Hall and the Safety Office. We will add some radio and emergency phones. We will perform a survey of our classrooms to determine the priority for installing door locks on those classrooms. We also will spend some funds to provide education and training for faculty, staff, and students in terms of emergency responses. Dr. Nietzel also reported that he and Provost Belinda McCarthy had a positive meeting with the Dean of the College of Pharmacy at UMKC yesterday to discuss the possibility of bringing a PharmD curriculum to Missouri State University.

Dr. Nietzel next presented a resolution (Purchase Approval No. 108-07) approving the participation of the University in the Springfield Chamber of Commerce Partnership for Prosperity for an additional five-year period at an annual amount of $10,000 per year. Moved by Mr. Duggan and seconded by Mr. Hammons.

Motion passed 7-0.

He then presented a resolution (Gifts No. 150-07) to approve the naming of the main entrance road to the William H. Darr Agricultural Center from Kansas Expressway as the “Journagan Ranch Road” in recognition of the Leo Journagan Construction Company, Inc., and their in-kind paving gift at the Center. Moved by Mr. Duggan. Seconded by Ms. Smith.

Motion passed 7-0.

Dr. Nietzel then presented a resolution (Gifts No. 151-07) naming the North Concourse of the JQH Arena the “BancorpSouth Concourse” in recognition of their $2 million commitment to the University. Motion made by Mr. Winston and seconded by Mr. Duggan.

Motion passed 7-0.

He next presented a resolution (Agreement No. 203-07) approving a lease agreement with Springfield Underground to provide property for use for Cross Country meets and practices. The period of the lease runs from January 1, 2007 through December 31, 2010. Moved by Mr. Hammons and seconded by Mr. Duggan.

Motion passed 7-0.

Dr. Nietzel then presented a resolution (Policies & Procedures No. 128-07) adopting the Student Loan Lending Code of Conduct to assist the students of Missouri State University to make knowledgeable choices regarding the financing of their education. Moved by Mr. Duggan and seconded by Ms. Smith.

Motion passed 7-0.

He ended his report by presenting one last resolution (Administration No. 17-07) delegating signing authority to specific university positions for Tax and Trade Bureau documents regarding the use of tax free alcohol in the College of Natural and Applied Sciences and the Distillery and Winery operations at the Mountain Grove Campus. Moved by Mr. Hammons and seconded by Ms. Smith.

Motion passed 7-0.

6. Educational:
a. Report from the Provost --- Dr. Belinda McCarthy, Provost, first introduced Mr. Juan Meraz as a recently named Provost
Fellow working with diversity outreach for the Provost’s Office, and Mr. Wes Pratt, who also will be assisting with diversity efforts on campus. She next commented on the Program Review process that each academic program will undertake no less than every five years. She then reported that we had a very good visit from external reviewers of our Social Work Program as well as a good visit from the Higher Learning Commission focused on our ability to offer a doctoral program in Physical Therapy. Mr. Hammons, Chair of the Board’s Academic Affairs Committee, next reported on their meeting earlier today. He reported that they spent some time on some of the initiatives of Associate Provost Cindy Pemberton to address “student success” to ensure that our students stay in school and eventually graduate. He added that they also discussed leadership development.

7. Research and Economic Development --- Dr. Jim Baker, Vice President for Research and Economic Development, reported that the Sponsored Program Activity Report shows that we started FY08 with a very good month in July 2007.

8. West Plains Campus --- Dr. Drew Bennett, Chancellor of the West Plains Campus, reported that it appears that this coming Monday, the official enrollment census date, we will break the West Plains Fall enrollment record of 1,720 set in FY03. He added that credit hours are up by about 15%. He also reported that one of their student tutors, Rogers Taylor, has been nationally recognized by receiving the outstanding tutor award from the College Reading and Learning Association. Mr. Taylor has just been hired as the Coordinator of Student Life on the West Plains Campus.

9. Student Affairs:
a. Report from Student Body President --- Mr. Orlando Hodges, Student Body President, reported that they are working on bringing back a Higher Education Consortium of Student Government organizations of Missouri institutions of higher education that failed to get off the ground a few years ago. He added that SGA passed a resolution regarding Turnitin.com – a list of provisos that they would like to see – mainly summarizing that faculty members use this as a teaching tool as opposed to a gotcha.

b. Report from Vice President for Student Affairs --- Dr. Don Aripoli, Vice President for Student Affairs, first reported that, at this time, our enrollment is up about 201 students. We are down 136 in first-time freshmen so we are looking at analyzing this and ways to address this. He added that when the two campuses are combined, we will probably have a record enrollment for the system. He also mentioned the 2007-08 Instructional Cost report that shows us fifth from the bottom in total instructional costs and we are the lowest of all the selective institutions. Ms. Washington commented that she is still concerned about our outreach to potential students in the Kansas City area and whether it is working or not. Dr. Aripoli replied that we will soon have a full-time admissions counselor in the Kansas City area that should help.
Ms. Smith, Chair of the Student Affairs Committee, reported that they had discussions on the following items in their meeting – the Citizen Scholar Award, campus safety issues, residence life occupancy numbers, dual credit, board member involvement in recruitment, the upcoming Showcase Event, and the Wellness Program.

10. Staff Senate --- Mr. Greg Burris, Vice President for Administrative and Information Services, reported that Marline Faherty, the former Chair of the Staff Senate, has resigned from the institution, and will be replaced by the Chair-Elect, Kelly Barnts.

11. Finance:
a. Development Report --- Mr. Brent Dunn, Vice President for University Advancement, reported on the Development report for July and August of 2007. After a very good month of August, we are up about $500,000 in total gifts received when compared to last year.

b. Financial Report --- Mr. Kent Kay, Chief Financial Officer, presented the financial statement for the year ending June 30, 2007. He then presented the following resolution for the Board’s consideration:

Approval of purchases exceeding $100,000 from August 31, 2007 through September 13, 2007 (Purchasing Activity Report No. 305-07).

Moved by Mr. Winston. Seconded by Ms. Washington.

Motion passed 7-0.

Mr. Kay next commented that the Finance Committee had requested that a one-page budget calendar be prepared showing key dates of the annual budget process. He distributed a copy of what has been prepared. Mr. Winston, Chair of the Finance Committee, commented that this calendar is very clear and helps very much in showing the important dates in the budget cycle.

12. Human Resources --- Mr. Burris then presented the following resolution for the Board’s consideration:

Approval of changes to the Employee Medical Insurance Plan (Human Resources No. 1247-07).

Moved by Mr. Duggan and seconded by Mr. Hammons.

Motion passed 7-0.

13. Unfinished Business --- Mr. McAlear distributed a resolution (Board Policies No. 51-07) revising the 2008 Board of Governors meeting schedule. The revision was necessary to reflect the new starting time of 1:00 p.m., when board committees meet in the morning, as well as adjusting the schedule to better match up with the Budget Calendar just presented by Mr. Kay. This will result in not having a meeting in September of 2008. Moved by Mr. Hammons and seconded by Mr. Duggan.

Motion passed 7-0.

Ms. Washington asked if the schedule could be set so that governors can attend the graduation ceremonies in West Plains. Dr. Nietzel responded that we will take a look at this to see if we can accommodate the board’s schedule.

Ms. Sheid next commented that we need approval of the Executive Committee members that were named at the August 3, 2007 meeting. Those members are Michael Duggan, Phyllis Washington, Gordon Elliott, and Mary Sheid (ex-officio). Moved by Mr. Hammons and seconded by Ms. Smith.

Motion passed 7-0.

14. New Business --- Mr. John Black, General Counsel, presented a copy of the revised bylaws for the Board’s review. He explained that it was necessary to revise some of the bylaws to bring them in confirmation with statutory amendments that has given the University a statewide board. The bylaw revisions include changing the title of Board President and Vice President to Board Chair and Vice Chair. The revisions also include a more accurate description of the non-voting board committees and that officers will be elected at the first meeting of the fiscal year on an annual basis. Mr. Black pointed out that Mr. Hammons had located some additional changes necessary due to references to sections of the Faculty Handbook that have been modified. Mr. Black explained that there needs to be a 30 day advance notice of bylaw changes – he will send out a complete set of revised bylaws in the next few days so that the Board can formally adopt the new bylaws at the October 26, 2007 board meeting.

15. Date of Next Meeting --- The date of the next scheduled meeting was set for 1:00 p.m. on October 26, 2007 in Room 313 of the Plaster Student Union on the Missouri State Campus in Springfield, Missouri.

16. Adjournment --- Ms. Sheid adjourned the meeting at 2:50 p.m. on the motion of Mr. Duggan, the second of Ms. Smith, and the unanimous vote of the Board.


John W. McAlear
Secretary