MEMORANDUM

March 29, 2007

On February 22 and 23, the Board of Trustees met on campus for two days of committee sessions and the winter board meeting. I am pleased to report that the first action of the Board when it met on Friday, February 23, was to elect Rebecca R. Geller as the university’s first student trustee. An AU graduate, Ms. Geller is a J.D. candidate at the Washington College of Law and was enthusiastically recommended to the Board’s Trusteeship Committee by the leaders of the undergraduate, graduate, and law student governments

Following the new trustee election, the most important Board action was approval of the university budget for the next two fiscal years, FY2008 and FY2009. Since its adoption in FY2004, the university’s two-year budget cycle has fostered multi-year initiatives and improved operational efficiency. The reconstituted University Budget Committee, which was composed of faculty, students, staff, and administrators, sought broader participation from the university community, increased information, and enhanced transparency.  Town hall meetings and open forums also served as an effective means for educating the campus community about the budget process and provided broad consultation on various issues and priorities.

The Board-approved budget sets the tuition and residence hall rate increases at six percent for the next two years. The summer 2007 and summer 2008 undergraduate tuition rates will be held at the same rate as the rate for summer 2006, and the current MBA and graduate business tuition rates will hold steady for FY 2008 with only a three percent rate increase for FY 2009. The new two-year budget provides for increased full-time faculty and reduced teaching loads; competitive salaries and benefits for faculty and staff; enhanced academic programs; increased library resources; increased financial aid; improved student services; increased support for the fund-raising campaign; new marketing initiatives; new sources of revenue; and increased facilities modernization and equipment funding while meeting increased external expenses such as utilities and health insurance.

In other actions, the Board authorized proceeding with the construction planning for the proposed new School of International Service building and the Kogod School of Business building expansion. The Board also authorized proceeding with the final planning, design, and funding for the proposed McKinley Building renovation for the School of Communication.

In academic matters that fall under the Board’s jurisdiction, the Board approved the appointment of Haig Mardirosian, D.M.A., as dean of academic affairs. Dr. Mardirosian had been serving as acting dean of academic affairs and, previously, was responsible for the University College program. The Board also approved, upon the recommendation of the Faculty Senate and the Interim Provost, new language for the Faculty Manual to allow full-time faculty members who serve in a temporary capacity to be appointed to multi-year contracts under particular circumstances.

In other matters, the Board re-elected the current vice chair and chairman, Tom Gottschalk and me, to a second two-year term. Our new term begins in May when our current term ends. In addition, the Board approved two more committee charters, those for the Trusteeship Committee and the International Affairs Committee. Both of these charters are now posted with other committee charters on the Board’s website. We expect to complete and post the remaining committee charters in May.

Finally, during the Board’s general session, I summarized the recent activities of the presidential search committee. On February 21, the search committee and its consultants met with the Faculty Senate in a special meeting to discuss faculty concerns about the confidential nature of the process and their interest in interacting with the presidential finalists. During the meeting, I emphasized that the committee intends to continue to have as consultative a process as possible without compromising its confidentiality or that of any candidate. After our meeting with the Faculty Senate, the search committee met to review applications that had been received since the committee’s previous meeting. I am happy to report that the caliber and diversity of the candidate pool continues to be both gratifying and impressive. The committee will be meeting again soon, and I will summarize what occurs then in a future memorandum to the community.