The official minutes of the University of South Carolina Board of Trustees are maintained by the Secretary of the Board. Certified copies of minutes may be requested by contacting the Board of Trustees’ Office. Electronic or other copies of original minutes are not official Board of Trustees' documents.
Board of Trustees
December 18, 2000
The Board of Trustees of the University of South Carolina met Monday, December 18, 2000, at 10:20 a.m. in the Board Room at the Carolina Plaza.
Members present were: Mr. Mack I. Whittle, Jr., Chairman; Mr. Herbert C. Adams, Vice-Chairman; Mr. Arthur S. Bahnmuller; Mr. James Bradley; Mr. Alexander English; Mr. A.C. Fennell, III; Dr. C. Edward Floyd; Mr. Samuel R. Foster, II; Mrs. Helen C. Harvey; Mr. William C. Hubbard; Mr. Toney J. Lister; Mr. Miles Loadholt; Mr. M. Wayne Staton; and Mr. Othniel H. Wienges, Jr. Trustees absent were: Mr. Robert N. McLellan; Mr. J. DuPre Miller; Ms. Darla D. Moore; Mr. Michael J. Mungo; Mrs. Inez M. Tenenbaum; and Mr. John C. von Lehe, Jr. The faculty representative, Professor Caroline Strobel, and the student representative, Ms. Jotaka Eaddy, were both present.
Others present were: President John M. Palms; Secretary Thomas L. Stepp; Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Jerome D. Odom; Vice President and Chief Operating Officer J. Lyles Glenn; Vice President for Research William C. Harris; Vice President and Chief Information Officer William F. Hogue; Vice President for Human Resources Jane M. Jameson; Vice President for Student and Alumni Services Dennis A. Pruitt; Interim Vice President for Development Robert E. Staton; Executive Dean of Regional Campuses and Continuing Education Chris P. Plyler; General Counsel Walter (Terry) H. Parham; Interim Chancellor of USC Aiken Thomas L. Hallman; Chancellor of USC Spartanburg John C. Stockwell; Columbia Campus Deans: Ralph E. White of the College of Engineering and Information Technology and Patricia G. Moody of the College of Hospitality, Retail, and Sport Management; Regional Campuses Deans: Jane T. Upshaw of USC Beaufort, Ann Carmichael of USC Salkehatchie, Leslie C. Carpenter of USC Sumter, and James W. Edwards of USC Union; Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, USC Aiken, Blanche Premo-Hopkins; Director of Athletics Michael B. McGee; Retiring faculty members: Shirley Kuiper of The Darla Moore School of Business, and Edward H. Bodie, Julian V. Minghi, Robert B. Patterson, Robert M. Rood, and J. Boyd Saunders of the College of Liberal Arts; Interim Director of the Office of Sponsored Programs Thomas A. Coggins; Director of Facilities Management and University Architect Charles G. Jeffcoat; Director of the Department of University Housing and Alumni Services Gene Luna; Chairman of the Department of Computer Sciences and Engineering Duncan A. Buell; The Reverend Donald L. Jones; Director of University Housing Gene Luna; Director of Planning Services, Office of Facilities Planning and Construction, Donna Collins; Director of Periodicals, University Publications, Chris Horn; Trustee Emeritus Paul S. Goldsmith; Trustee Emeritus William E. Whitney, Jr.; Director of Public Affairs Russell McKinney; Public Information Coordinator, Office of Media Relations, Jason Snyder; Mrs. Barbara Salmons; and a representative from the media.
Chairman Whittle commended the University administration for the new quarters in the Carolina Plaza, which accommodated today's meeting, and would accommodate future Board of Trustees' meetings and University foundations' meetings.
Chairman Whittle stated that notice of the meeting had been posted and the press notified as required by the Freedom of Information Act; the agenda and supporting materials had been circulated; and a quorum was present to conduct business.
Chairman Whittle welcomed everyone present and acknowledged the retiring members of the faculty who had been awarded honorary titles during the October Board meeting. Chairman Whittle thanked the faculty for their service to the University of South Carolina.
Chairman Whittle recognized those Trustees Emeriti who were present.
Chairman Whittle invited those present to introduce themselves. Mr. Snyder introduced the representative from the press. The Reverend Donald L. Jones delivered the invocation.
Chairman Whittle stated there were personnel matters with respect to honorary faculty titles, an award of tenure, an appointment with tenure, appointments to the Board of Visitors, as well as contractual matters with respect to Gift Naming Opportunities that were appropriate for Executive Session.
Mr. Bradley moved to enter Executive Session and Mr. Fennell seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
The following persons were invited to remain: Dr. Palms, Mr. Stepp, Dr. Odom, Mr. Glenn, Ms. Jameson, Dr. Pruitt, Mr. Parham, Dr. Stockwell, Dr. Hallman, Mr. Robert Staton, Mr. McKinney, Ms. Hyatt, and Ms. Tweedy.
Executive Session
Return To Open Session
There were no other additions, deletions, or corrections to the minutes; therefore, they stood approved as distributed.
Dr. Robert A. Chubon would be awarded the title Distinguished Professor during his final year of service. That title would change to Distinguished Professor Emeritus at retirement.
Dr. Marilyn B. Chassie would be awarded the title Emerita Professor at her retirement.
On behalf of the Academic Affairs and Faculty Liaison Committee, Mr. Bradley moved approval of those honorary faculty titles. Mr. Adams seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
On behalf of the Academic Affairs and Faculty Liaison Committee, Mr. Bradley moved to award Karen Taylor tenure at the rank of Assistant Librarian in the Law Library. Mr. Staton seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
Dr. Graf would be awarded tenure at the rank of Professor in the Department of Geography, College of Liberal Arts effective with his appointment as Professor in the Department of Geography, College of Liberal Arts.
On behalf of the Academic Affairs and Faculty Liaison Committee, Mr. Bradley moved approval of Dr. Graf's appointment with tenure as presented. Mr. Staton seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
On behalf of the Academic Affairs and Faculty Liaison Committee, Mr. Bradley moved approval of the establishment of this program as presented. Mr. Bahnmuller seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
On behalf of the Academic Affairs and Faculty Liaison Committee, Mr. Bradley moved approval of the establishment of this program as presented. Mrs. Harvey seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
6. Removal of Honorary Degree Candidates from the Table:
David Satcher, Surgeon General of the United States, and Rita Derrick Hayes, Unites States Trade Ambassador, would be receiving honorary degrees from the University of South Carolina at the December Commencement exercises later today.
On behalf of the Academic Affairs and Faculty Liaison Committee, Mr. Bradley moved to remove the names of David Satcher and Rita Derrick Hayes from the table. Mrs. Harvey seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
During the Executive Committee meeting of October 19, assignments to the Standing Committees and Ad Hoc Committee on Advancement had been made.
During the Executive Committee telephone conference call of October 31, the Committee had approved the acquisition of Ernest Hemingway's literary materials entitled, "The Papers and Books of Maurice J. Speiser, A Catalogue" from Ellen Speiser Katz.
During the Executive Committee meeting of November 13, the Committee had discussed the University budget and the status of the budget office. Fiscal reporting procedures had been discussed at length, and legislative priorities of the University had also been reported.
During the Executive Committee meeting of November 16, the Committee had approved a proposed contract with the Institute for Scientific Information for a continuation of access to their electronic databases, and a contract representing the second extension of an affiliation agreement with Manchester (Taiwan) International, Inc.
During the Executive Committee meeting of November 21, the School of Public Health had been named the "Norman J. Arnold School of Public Health."
On December 1, the Executive Committee had discussed budget, debt, organizational, planning, and legislative matters.
Dr. Palms announced at that meeting the appointment of Mr. Allan Barber as the Interim Vice President and Chief Financial Officer effective January 15, 2001. In addition, a budget review and five year audit of budget processes, a format similar to the one Mr. Barber utilized at the University of Georgia, had been described. A balanced budget was in place for FY 2001, and budget considerations for FY 02 and FY 03 were in progress.
Mr. Barber had presented a Bond Indebtedness Report to the Committee, and had informed the members that the University's bonding position was sound. Mr. Bradley had very actively solicited this information from the finance area. Chairman Whittle asked Mr. Stepp to distribute copies of this information to all Board members for future reference when reviewing the University's master plan.
The Committee had met prior to this Board meeting and discussed the steps needed to accomplish the Goals for 2005 that the Board had discussed at the Retreat; reviewed proposed legislative initiatives and formulated the beginning of a plan to accomplish those initiatives during the 2001 legislative year; and approved a contract with Action Sports Media at the request of the Athletics Department.
Mrs. Harvey moved approval of signatory authority for Mr. J. Lyles Glenn of the Athletic Facilties Bond Anticipation Notes (BANs), as stated in the materials distributed for this meeting. Mr. Bradley seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
Mr. Bradley moved approval of these appointments to the Board of Visitors as presented to the full Board in Executive Session. Mr. Foster seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
The Buildings and Grounds Committee met on October 16. During the meeting, it was reported that the budget of the North Inlet Winyah Bay Reserve Headquarters project was increased administratively in accordance with Board policy.
The following items required action by the Board this day:
On behalf of the Buildings and Grounds Committee, Mr. Loadholt moved to establish a project to install vinyl wallcovering in the guest rooms of the National Advocacy Center, as described in the materials distributed, with a total project budget of $300,000 to be funded by the U.S. Department of Justice. Mr. Bradley seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
On behalf of the Buildings and Grounds Committee, Mr. Loadholt moved approval of allowing the administration to proceed with design/development of the Phase III New Residence Hall, as described in the materials distributed; to refine the proposed project scope, site and elevation schematics; and to develop accurate cost data prior to seeking full project approval. Mr. Hubbard seconded the motion. Mrs. Harvey asked if Housing funds would provide the resources; Chairman Whittle replied affirmatively. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
On behalf of the Buildings and Grounds Committee, Mr. Loadholt moved approval of the establishment of a project to replace the roof on Hamilton College, as described in the materials distributed, with a budget of $329,000 funded with State Capital Improvement Bonds from the 1997 Bond Act. Mr. Adams seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
g. Dean's Administrative Suite named for McNair Law Firm, P.A.:
On behalf of the Buildings and Grounds Committee, Mr. Loadholt moved to establish the Dean's Administrative Suite named for the "McNair Law Firm, P.A." Mr. Fennell seconded the motion. The vote was taken, and the motion carried.
The Student-Trustee Liaison Committee hosted the annual reception for Carolina students on November 16, 2000, at the Russell House. This reception provided an opportunity for students to meet Board of Trustees members and share thoughts and ideas. Attendance was excellent from students and Board members.
Mr. Bahnmuller thanked those individuals who participated. He also thanked Ms. Jotaka Eaddy, the current Student Government Association president, for the excellent student turnout and for the exchange of ideas in this informal setting. He extended a special thank you to President Palms for his remarks to students and Board members and Mr. Bahnmuller encouraged all Trustees to attend next year's reception.
Dr. Hallman further stated that the report of that work documented an outstanding institution, one that was effective and productive. He indicated that this study had generated only two recommendations and 14 suggestions which, he felt, reflected the level of competence at which the campus operated. Primarily the recommendations related to undergraduate and graduate advisement. Other suggestions included the creation of a centralized office to track graduates, and the continuation of monitoring the integration of assessment and planning.
Dr. Hallman concluded by stating that USC Aiken was anticipating a visit with the chair of their committee on February 2; the 15-person committee would be meeting with them from April 16-19, after which he hoped to return to a full Board meeting and report a successful USC Aiken reaccreditation visit.
Dr. Stockwell indicated that the committees covered administration, educational programs, athletics, education support services, faculty, financial resources, institutional resources, and student development. Each committee produced an audit of compliance based upon SACS criteria, as well as brief explanations and multiple documents to support those explanations. Each committee also wrote essays analyzing the status of that part of the USC Spartanburg operation it was assigned to review.
Dr. Stockwell noted that, for the most part, the recommendations were fully addressed; however, there were fourteen recommendations which the USC Spartanburg administration believed needed attention. A supplement addressing the manner in which these recommendations would be handled would accompany the final report submitted in January.
Dr. Stockwell explained that the most significant findings related to under-funding of the operations budgets. USCS was funded at approximately 68 percent of the Mission Resource Requirement (MRR); the average for comprehensive teaching institutions was substantially above that figure, some as high as 92 percent. In addition, USC Spartanburg had received the least amount of capital improvement bonds during the history of bond funding since the late 1960s. For example, although the library collection was excellent, space for the library was inadequate.
There were various software and technology needs cited in recommendations; issues of near campus housing; issues regarding the relationship between USC Spartanburg and USC including increased user friendliness of USC databases for USCS management purposes; and other systemic issues.
Dr. Stockwell stated that Dr. Philip L. Hall, Vice President for Academic Affairs at Mary Washington College, had chaired the visitation team and had been at USCS for three days the previous week to prepare for the team visit. The team would visit the campus in late February; the self-study would be completed and presented to the team by mid-January. Copies of this report would be provided to the Board office.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
This time of year is a good time for reflection. Let me just follow up on the good news from both Aiken and Spartanburg on the improvement of the quality of the faculty. We have had a wonderful opportunity here at a time when we've had a lot of faculty retiring. There was an influx of faculty in the sixties and many of those are taking retirement now. We've added, in the last four years, almost 600 faculty from a ‘buyer's market.' We have been able to employ first-class faculty. On the Columbia campus approximately 70 percent of those come from AAU institutions. That has had a major affect on the academic culture of all of our campuses; but, also, it raises expectations. When you come from those kinds of cultures where the resources are more sufficient, then, of course, needs are forcefully expressed and, of course, our challenge is to try to meet those.
Our students are getting recognition all over the country. Campuses are attracting Palmetto Fellows who are outstanding students. As you know, a couple of years ago, we had a Truman Scholar here. We had a Rhodes Scholar last year. The other very prestigious scholarship is called the Marshall. Two weeks ago we heard that we had a Marshall Fellow here, too. So, we are now in that category of institutions that recognizes the most outstanding students. That is very, very important for us. This, of course, raises our SAT scores and it also helps us attract those outstanding faculty. Good faculty want to teach good students. All the campuses, therefore, have recruitment as a very important mission.
I want to tell you about athletics. The fact that we have made such improvements in all of our sports on all of our campuses is very significant and important. The academics of all of our athletics teams are also improving. I was talking to Coach Holtz the day before yesterday and he said, ‘we are not leaving for the Bowl until I have the grades in, and those who have not performed are not going to go.' That's the kind of message that you are hearing from our coaches. They not only want to produce great athletes, but they want to be sure that they remain student athletes. We are very proud of that.
The research and scholarly efforts on all of our campuses, enhanced by your approval of the changes in the criteria for promotion and tenure, and the understanding that you expect the faculty to be engaged in serious substantial professional activities and scholarship along with the teaching has helped us a great deal. This is more than just bringing in research dollars, which has been at an all-time high -- over $120 million.
With respect to fund raising and the endowment, let's keep our fingers crossed that the market has a little better year than it has had in the last six months. But fund raising is going well, although you already can see some slowdown as an effect of this downturn in the market. Some people are postponing their gifts slightly. We need to be a little more aggressive and we will do that. But Bob Staton is here and has reassessed this situation and re-evaluated what our potential is for next year. We are on track. We have some great potential and a lot of backlog. If we work hard, we will be successful in meeting the $500 million campaign goal.
Our biggest challenge, as the Executive Committee has heard, is the state's budget. The words you have read in the newspaper about the possibility of budget cuts in the state are not being welcomed in the academic community very well. We had a request last week from the Ways and Means Committee as to how we might respond if the budget were to be cut by 5 percent, by 10 percent, or by 15 percent. That would just be completely unacceptable to us. The majority of the budget that comes from the state is for personnel and with those kind of cuts we would have no choice but to cut personnel. And, so, we are engaging in a campaign with all of the presidents and chancellors and deans to assure that education will be exempt from those cuts in this state. We have made too much progress in all of our institutions to turn the situation around and have to cut our budgets. We have brought faculty here. We have hired new leadership. The expectations are that we would continue the rise in our quality.
The good news on collaboration and cooperation with other institutions is particularly with the research universities. I have had several meetings, the latest one of which was on Friday with the presidents of Clemson and MUSC. We met for over two hours with our provosts and with our vice presidents for research to explore further the particular areas in which we could be engaged collectively in research. This involves information technology and the joint proposal that we are filing. It involves cancer research with the Cancer Center at MUSC and here and the cancer work going on in Greenville. I think the cooperative spirit, the trust that we are developing among those principal administrators, is boding well for what we might be able to achieve in the future. We just do not have the critical mass of research scholars in any one institution to be able to address some of these great potentials.
The budget that the Congress passed last week has tremendous increase in support for basic research. You have heard the words nano-science and nano-technology. There is almost $500 million that has been put in the national budget just for that kind of research. The budget of NIH is up considerably. We are doing our share and that's another thing that the state has to realize. States that are not standing still are supporting their universities because they realize that they are so directly linked to economic development and the quality of life.
You have received an invitation to attend several press conferences we will be having on Wednesday at which we will talk about a study that has just been completed to show the total economic impact of the University of South Carolina and all of its alumni. There is a $3.8 billion impact reflecting 54,000 jobs. The brochure before you carefully points out for every campus what the economic impact is and the number of jobs that are created by our institution. This information is what the state really needs to absorb and understand and promote and appreciate. And the citizens of this state, seeing this, I believe, will exempt education from any possible budget cuts. If you look at the investment that's been made in higher education and the economic results, the impact on the quality of life of communities surrounding our campuses, it is just hard to perceive that the state could move forward without continuing to support higher education. And, so, I urge you to use this information and to try to influence as many legislators as possible.
Last week we had some very bad weather. I hope that is not the case on the 10th of January, Mr. Wienges, as we kick off the Bicentennial Celebration on the Horseshoe. I want to thank you again. Terrific plans have been made. We are very excited about this upcoming event and the year of activities that will follow.
Mr. Chairman, that is my report. I want to thank the Board and to wish them a very, very merry Christmas and a happy holiday season. To those of you who are going to Tampa, Go Gamecocks.
Chairman Whittle recognized Mr. Chip McKinney who announced that this meeting was the last Board session for Jason Snyder from the media relations office; he had accepted a position in the private sector. Board members extended a round of applause to wish Mr. Snyder well in his new career.
Mr. Stepp advised Board members of a very real loss, as he had expressed to them previously in writing, to the Office of the Board of Trustees and to each one of the members of the Board. Ms. Tammy Pridgen Hyatt of the Board of Trustees Office had accepted a position in the Office of Information Technology at the University of South Carolina. Mr. Stepp indicated that the Office of the Board of Trustees would honor Ms. Hyatt appropriately at a later time. But he did not want this final meeting for her to pass without everyone expressing appreciation to Ms. Hyatt who had served in the Board Office for approximately 15 years. He felt that she was, above all, a friend and confidante to all of the Board members, as well as an outstanding member of his office staff. Ms. Hyatt stood and graciously received an extended round of applause.
There were no further matters to come before the Board of Trustees, and Chairman Whittle declared the meeting adjourned at 11:32 a.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Thomas L. Stepp
Secretary