Faculty Meeting Minutes
February 20, 2020
Gannett Auditorium
MINUTES
Michael Orr, Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs, called the meeting to order at 3:34 p.m. He apologized for the last-minute cancellation of the February 6, 2020 Faculty Meeting due to the weather and thanked everyone for their understanding. Since President-elect Conner was scheduled to attend the February 6, 2020 Faculty Meeting, plans are underway for him to visit campus again later this semester and the faculty should have another opportunity to meet with him. Due to the cancellation of the February 6 Faculty Meeting, a make-up Faculty Meeting will take place on March 20, 2020.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
DOF/VPAA Orr asked if there were any corrections to, or comments regarding, the minutes of the Faculty Meeting held December 6, 2019. Hearing none, he announced the minutes were approved.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
President Glotzbach reported that he and Marie have been traveling around the country attending Advancement events to celebrate the conclusion of our Campaign and the end of his tenure as President. President Glotzbach emphasizes to our alumni and donors, and something he stresses to prospective students and families at Accepted Candidates Days, that Skidmore does a great job of preparing our graduates to address the complex, multi-dimensional problems that are making these times so interesting to live in: climate change, the political polarization in our society, the coming second industrial revolution fueled by artificial intelligence, and, now, the Coronavirus. It is important to find ways to distinguish Skidmore from other schools that our admissions candidates are considering, such as the interdisciplinarity of our faculty, the elements in our new general education curriculum that facilitate students’ making connections across different elements of their academic life, and our focus on creativity. These aspects all speak to the quality of the experience that our students have here, and indicate how valuable it is in preparing them for their post-Skidmore lives.
President Glotzbach stated that Admissions is very much on his mind these days, as it always is, but especially because of the changing context that he has mentioned in other campus communications–notably, the demographic shift that is leading to fewer traditional college-aged students, a trend that will continue for the next ten years. A fall Chronicle survey reports that 52 percent of private institutions responding reported they missed both enrollment and net-tuition revenue goals last summer. Another trend that makes this something of a perfect storm is the projected future increases in our comprehensive fee. These issues are real, and they are not going away.
Thereupon, Mary Lou Bates, Vice President and Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid, provided an update on this year’s Admissions. VP Bates reported that, for the first time, we did not have more applications this year than the previous year; while we are down 6 percent in applications from last year, we still have received over 10,000 applications. Many of our peers are down as well, with many down more than our 6 percent. Despite our decrease in applications, our early decision applications are up this year, and VP Bates projects that over half of the class will have applied and enrolled in one of the two early decision rounds. The percentage of students seeking financial aid has been steadily increasing in recent years, from 63 percent of applicants applying for financial aid in 2011 to 79 percent in 2019. While the percentage of students seeking financial aid actually decreased slightly this year, down just 1 percent to 78 percent, both the percentage and the overall number of full pay applicants has also decreased.
VP Bates further reported that this year’s class target is 711, which includes 36-40 in the London program. The percentage of applications from domestic students of color is down slightly (from 34 percent last year to 32 percent this year). However, applications from international students are up over 5 percent from last year, which is contrary to national trends. Admissions will be finalizing decisions over the next ten days; they will post decisions online and notify students via email that their portal has been updated. Admissions will then send accepted students an acceptance package through the mail in mid-March. Once the decisions have been made, Admissions will pivot to the recruitment mode. Three Accepted Candidates Days are scheduled for April 3, April 13, and April 17; and the Discovery Tour, which brings to campus admitted students from underrepresented backgrounds, will be held April 15-17.
VP Bates concluded her report by reminding everyone that deposits are due May 1. However, this year, she stated there is a little more uncertainty, as the U.S. Department of Justice changed some of the rules by which students and colleges are governed, and one of the changes is that now colleges can incentivize early decisions and colleges also can now reach out and recruit students enrolled somewhere else. Therefore, we plan to increase the number built into summer melt so that we will be on target with our enrollments in September. She thanked everyone for all their efforts in helping to bring a great class. A round of applause was given to VP Bates.
Following VP Bates’ report, President Glotzbach introduced Julia Routbort, Associate Dean of Student Affairs for Health and Wellness. Associate Dean Routbort provided an update on the Coronavirus situation, noting that a link has been established on Skidmore’s main webpage to provide updates. This is an evolving situation, and her office is in communication with the Saratoga County Health Department and Saratoga Hospital. As the situation evolves, updates will be posted. Associate Dean Routbort stressed that the Center for Disease Control continues to classify the risk to the general population as low, and there is a lot of good, accurate information on the New York State public health website. She further stressed that New York State continues to see a large number of seasonal influenza cases and encouraged anyone feeling ill to stay at home. In concluding, she urged everyone to continue to be vigilant in basic hygiene to help stop the spread of viruses and to reach out to her office if anyone has any specific questions or concerns. Following Associate Dean Routbort’s report, brief discussion was held regarding the process that would be followed in the event any student were to go Health Services with any respiratory issues. A round of applause was given to Associate Dean Routbort following her report.
Thereafter, President Glotzbach provided an update on the recent Board of Trustee’s retreat. He reported that a major focus of this year’s retreat was student health and wellness, focusing on mental health and some of the innovative things we have been doing to address the increase in expressed need for services by our students. He also reported that the Trustees received an update on the Athletic facilities project, including the pause in schedule and some of the issues that have arisen in the campus community. The Board also discussed budgets, both short-term and long-term issues; held in-depth conversations about net tuition revenue; and heard plans from Advancement to increase our annual fund giving. In actions taken by the Board, President Glotzbach reported that the Board also approved a $1.5 million investment in the City’s hockey rink and approved an action to refinance approximately $20 million in series 2011 bonds (from 5% to ~3.5%) and issue an additional $30 million in debt. The Board then plans to invest other available funds in the endowment. The projected endowment returns will offset the debt service and provide additional funds for the operating budget. However, a final decision regarding this action will depend, in part, upon the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic. President Glotzbach also reported that President-elect Marc Conner and his wife, Barb, attended almost all of the Board meetings, which provided an opportunity for President-elect Connor to meet the Trustees and see how the Board operates.
In response to President Glotzbach’s report on the recent Board meeting, a question was raised asking what the College’s cost was for tuition remission for employee dependents for last year (2018-19 AY). President Glotzbach stated that he did not have that figure but would provide that information at a later date.
Thereafter, President Glotzbach provided an update on the Athletics facilities project, noting that community input is being considered and a number of different elements of the plan are being discussed. In addition, the issues raised with regard to sustainable building are being considered as well. Further, he noted that the College is committed to keeping the Greenberg child care center open and is looking at the possibility of moving Greenberg to the Pine Cottage Annex complex on North Broadway. President Glotzbach then invited Vice President for Finance and Administration and Treasurer Donna Ng to provide further details on the relocation of Greenberg. VP Ng reported that the College is in the process of determining what is needed in terms of size and space and is working with architects to develop a preliminary floor plan and possible addition, outdoor play space, and parking needs. With regard to timelines, if the College were to move forward with the relocation of Greenberg, it is estimated that the new Greenberg site could be open by April, 2021.
President Glotzbach then provided an opportunity for questions relating to the Athletics facilities project. Discussion was held regarding the implications for the construction of the athletics facilities project of the possible relocation of the Greenberg child care center, the development of a sustainable building policy to ensure new buildings are constructed using sustainable guidelines; whether raising money for projects is more challenging once the construction of the project has begun; a reminder that the IPPC and President’s Cabinet endorsed the Campus Sustainability Plan in 2015; the importance of considering return on investment when evaluating the sustainability of future building construction; and the need for better athletics facilities to attract more students given the increasingly competitive admissions landscape in Higher Education.
President Glotzbach concluded his report by noting that we are entering a very uncertain time and have a robust agenda for the next couple of months. The Cabinet will be working on the FY ’21 budget, and there will be community discussions about future financial challenges, heath insurance, and the HEDS data, discussions about the implications of the new Title IX regulations, upcoming Accepted Candidate’s Days, and the presidential transition. All of this work is important and will help us to be a better College in the future. A round of applause was given to President Glotzbach for his report.
OLD BUSINESS
There was no old business.
NEW BUSINESS
There was no new business.
REPORTS
Healthcare Working Group
On behalf of the Healthcare Working Group, Associate Professor Tim Harper and VP Ng presented a PowerPoint presentation on proposed changes to the College’s health care benefits. Professor Harper assured everyone that the working group understands the importance of this work and noted that, while this is a difficult assignment, there was a lot of empathy in the decision-making process. The PowerPoint presentation included a review of the process for revising the employee cost share, which was based upon feedback from the Institutional Policy and Planning Committee (IPPC) and from the community forums held last spring; proposed changes to the salary bands for employee share and cost sharing structure, intended to address perceived inequities between the lowest and highest bands; a comparison of the current premium status compared to the true premium (the cost to the College); and employee impact scenarios based upon various salaries and coverage. VP Ng also shared topics for future community input to include plan design (deductible, co-insurance, copays, out of pocket maximum, etc.), prior authorization for specialty medication, and spousal coordination. VP Ng further indicated that the Healthcare Working Group will also be working with Cambridge Hill Partners to develop a process for seeking feedback and that there will be opportunities for further discussion and opportunities for feedback.
Following the presentation, discussion was held concerning whether the HealthCare Working Group considered moving from being self-insured to joining a larger risk pool and what determines whether a medication is considered a specialty drug.
Curriculum Committee
On behalf of the Curriculum Committee, Associate Professor Michael Marx reported that the Curriculum Committee has completed its review of the proposal for the Black Studies minor. In accordance with Curriculum Committee’s Operating Code, a discussion forum will be opened on the Skidmore Exchange for comments and will remain active until noon on Tuesday, March 17, 2020. Professor Marx will send an email with details concerning the discussion forum and thanked all the faculty who have been involved in developing the proposal, especially Professor Winston Grady-Willis.
FACULTY EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
As Chair of the Faculty Executive Committee (FEC), Associate Professor Kendrah Murphy provided an opportunity for discussion regarding the report of the December, 2019 Committee of Committees meeting that was distributed recently. Discussion focused on the role of IPPC, concerns about how it functions, and its place within the system of shared governance as an all-college committee. Some faculty reported that concerns about IPPC’s role in institutional decision making have been raised periodically by faculty for a number of years, that faculty members have struggled with what their role is on the IPPC, and that there is a perception that IPPC meetings are informational-only with decisions being made outside of the IPPC. Further discussion was held on the need for more faculty, staff, and student participation in decision-making processes, with a suggestion made that the Chair of FEC not serve on IPPC so that it would be clearer that the IPPC needs to consult with FEC on matters.
OTHER
Professor Mark Youndt announced that the Sustainability Office is working on the STARS (Sustainability Tracking Assessment and Rating System) recertification process (3-year cycle) and explained that the STARS process assesses a very wide range of areas, including Academics/Curriculum, Research, Campus and Public Engagement, Buildings, Energy, Food and Dining, Grounds, Purchasing, Transportation, Waste, Water, Diversity, Investment & Finance, Well-Being, and Innovation. Professor Youndt shared a PowerPoint presentation that included 17 Sustainable Development Goals and indicated that an email survey will be sent to every faculty member shortly inquiring as to whether their teaching and research addresses any of these goals. He concluded his report by encouraging everyone to respond to the brief survey.
DEAN OF THE FACULTY AND VICE PRESIDENT FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRS’ REPORT
As the meeting was already running late, DOF/VPAA Orr provided a brief report. He announced that Beth DuPont will be sending an email shortly with more information about the implementation process for the Spring, our new course management system. He also reported that members of the Committee on Intercultural and Global Understanding and Institutional Research have been reviewing the results of the HEDS campus climate survey that was administered last year and that they had provided IPPC with an update earlier in the day. A brief report of the results will be provided at the March 20 faculty meeting with a much more detailed presentation for faculty tentatively scheduled for April 17.
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 5:11 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,