College Council Meeting Minutes: February 11, 2022

College Council Meeting: February 11, 2022, 12:30pm

Virtual Meeting, conducted via Zoom

Present  

  • Mili Makhijani, Esq. (Chair)
  • Melissa Archbold
  • Cania Infante
  • Martha Maffei
  • Theresa A. Regnante
  • Scott Reich
  • Oluwademilade O. Ogunlade, Student Representative

Chair Welcome

  • Chair Makhijani opened the meeting by introducing and welcoming Mr. Jefferey Fischer Smith, the new Vice President of Institutional Advancement and Executive Director of the Old Westbury College Foundation. Acknowledging that everyone had received a copy of the December 3, 2021, College Council meeting minutes, Ms. Melissa Archbold made a motion to accept, seconded by Ms. Cania Infante. The Council approved by unanimous vote the minutes.

Report from the President

President Timothy E. Sams reported on the following items:

  • School of Education AAQEP Approval - The President shared that the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation has affirmed the quality of SUNY Old Westbury's teacher preparation programs by awarding the School of Education full accreditation.
    • The accreditation commission's affirmation stands as a testament to Old Westbury's values and commitment to preparing teacher-leaders with the pedagogical content knowledge and skills to educate learners in diverse and socially just classrooms. The accreditation for OW's nine Bachelor's and 10 Master's programs is effective through 2028.
  • Impact of Change in SUNY Chancellor's Office - The President discussed the impact of the new SUNY Chancellor, Dr. Deborah Stanley.
    • Dr. Stanley is the recently retired President of SUNY Oswego, a fellow comprehensive college. In recent discussions with Dr. Stanley and President Sams, she provided him with her commitment for the College to have a back-to-back Phase One & Two construction plan of the NSB. She also supported SUNY Old Westbury's DEI and STEM efforts and Social Justice and Sustainability initiatives. Dr. Stanley is a huge supporter of the governor's proposed State Budget for the next fiscal year. The budget is viewed as being responsive to the needs of SUNY and its support of students and faculty.
  • State Budget - The President shared that there were positives surrounding the state budget that include:
    • Funding for additional full-time faculty at State-operated campuses and Community Colleges
    • Complete elimination of the "TAP Gap" in 22/23, as opposed to the multi-year phase-in included in the 21/22 Enacted Budget
    • Additional capital funding to support new construction and critical maintenance
    • Full support for State-operated Campus employee benefits and debt service costs
    • Large-scale investments in the Opportunity Programs of approximately 10%
    • Reform of the academic program review process.
    • Some of the items that SUNY is still advocating for include:  
      • 20% increase in funding for SUNY's Opportunity Programs to help 1,000 additional students and expand the Pre-Med Educational Opportunity Program.
      • $2M in new funding to SUNY to support disability services.
      • $3M to support diversity initiatives such as the Hispanic Leadership Institute, Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and immigration support.
  • Spring Semester Start - The President reviewed the preparations for the Spring 2022 semester, which included the following:
    • The College started the first two weeks to move to "Yellow" status on campus, which allowed classes to be half in-person and half remote.
    • The low presence of COVID in our campus community, as shown through both campus testing and off-campus testing results, allowed the community to move back to "Green "on February 10. Surveillance testing will begin next week.
    • The College received a note from the Chancellor that we will continue with the mask mandate and will receive guidance on moving campuses toward removing the requirement based upon campus metrics.
  • The President turned the floor over to Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs Michael Kavic who provided an update surrounding the SUNY Old Westbury Middle States Supplemental Information Report.
    • His presentation included background information, guiding principles used to develop the SIR, a summary of its progress and current status, preparation for submission, and preparation for the MSCSHE follow-up visit.
    • Chair Makhijani applauded all the work in the area of assessment. However, she also reiterated that a critical component of assessment is consistent engagement to identify areas of weakness to improve in those areas and identify areas you are doing well.

Chair's Report

  • Chair Makhijani thanked Ms. Regnante for her suggestion to find action items in the last College Council meeting minutes, work on those items between that meeting and the next meeting and then address those items at the following College Council meeting to follow up and track progress. 
    Unified State Court Outreach
  • Chair Makhijani shared that the Chief Judge of the Unified State Court System, Janet DiFiore, appointed sectary Jeh Johnson to do a thorough review and analysis of the Unified Court System to point out areas where there are problems in equal justice and access to justice. As a result, Secretary Johnson produced a 100-page report that identified significant areas of improvement, which include a more diverse workforce more access to justice, especially from disadvantaged backgrounds. As a result, Judge Mendelson was appointed to take the 10-12 action items from the report and execute them. One of the items is for the local court systems to develop an Equal Justice Committee to foster these initiatives.
    • Chair Makhijani was appointed as the Chair Continuing Education sub-committee about educating attorneys, judges, and other court staff about bias. In addition, the Outreach sub-committee is charged with increasing knowledge and awareness to the public about what the courts are doing to increase access to justice. Recently, these two sub-committees were profiled, and during the Outreach Sub-Committee Chair report, they mentioned meeting with President Sams to develop programs. She was so impressed and delighted that Presidents Sams' outreach efforts have made it that far to help increase job placement for SUNY OW students, and it increases diversity in the court system.
    • President Sams added that the College was formally asked if we would play a role in helping Nassau County to increase the number of Black and Brown officers. After College administrators met and organized themselves to make that happen, the College is now prepared to reach back to the Chief of Police in terms of support, resources, purview and ensure that this is viable.
  • The Chair asked Dr. Kavic to present an update on the action item from the previous meeting surrounding our engagement with Brookhaven National Lab & Cold Spring Harbor Lab. After his presentation, the ensuing discussion among Council members included:
    • Ms. Regnante asked if the College knows of any students or alumni that either lab employs. Dr. Kavic shared that he is not aware of any students/alumni who are currently employed but added that faculty had encouraged future relationships to be built for future opportunities for students after they graduate. Dr. Quarless said that he is aware that we have some students that the labs have employed, and he will get a list to share with the Council of names.
    • Chair Makhijani added that in the chat, Director of Career Planning and Development Jerylin Marinan shared that Career Planning organized representatives from BNL to visit two Industrial Labor Relations classes last semester to discuss internship and employment opportunities. Chair Makhijani wanted to know what the result of that visit was. Dr. Kavic shared that the new accelerator will have a required outreach portion in their budget, which will make SUNY Old Westbury a prime candidate due to the College's diverse student body. Provost Duncan Quarless added that they have been expanding the opportunities and speaking more directly to the ILR type connection. Recently, the College has built a relationship with its business office so that the School of Business can access this for internships and potential career opportunities. Dr. Quarless and the CDO have been working on creating these opportunities and advancing the plan to get better integrated with the labs' activities.
    • Ms. Regnante recommended that the College contact David Manning to help with the partnership. She also suggested that Dr. Sams or another designee create a President's Council/Circle of stakeholders. This group could be made up of 20 organizations critical to student success regarding employment that meets twice a year. Dr. Quarless shared that they have connected with David Manning in the past. He also added that he met with CDO to strategize about the outreach. Mr. Kinane added that David Manning helped with My Brother's Keeper, which would align with what they were looking to expand upon from the My Brother's Keeper program.

New Business

  • The President shared the following:
    • In the last meeting, a great deal of concern was expressed around the progress made on the renovation of the Natural Science Building. The College has been working a great deal, including talking with the SUNY Construction Fund (SUCF) & Chancellor about getting a commitment for a 1-phase renovation. Those conversations resulted in a real commitment that we will have back-to-back phases (the bids for Phase 2 will start toward the end of Phase 1), which reassures the College that they will not be waiting a great deal of time to complete both phases.
      • The President will be talking with Bob Haelen, who oversees the construction fund, to align efforts regarding surge space. Building A in the Academic Village is set to hold the Center for Social Justice, Sustainability, and Innovation. The College would put the Natural Science Building offices and instructional spaces in Building A during the construction. We would have used the funding to rent/purchase 17 different trailers to upgrade Building A to make this transition possible. Once faculty move back to the Natural Science Building, the College will then have a refreshed Building A to place the Center for Social Justice, Sustainability, and Innovation.
    • The Center for Social Justice, Sustainability, and Innovation would be where the College would put its efforts in being a leader in social justice, sustainability, and innovating locally and globally (Millenium project and the UN Sustainable Development initiatives).
      • Chair Makhijani stated that Ms. Maffei would be a great contact and resource for creating the Center for Social Justice, Sustainability, and Innovation. The President agreed and added that he and Ms. Maffei have a conversation about this effort, and she will be one of the principles located in this space. Ms. Maffei said that she would be happy to work on this project and contact the President to start the planning.
  • The Chair then asked Dr. Quarless for a Faculty Working Group Update. Dr. Quarless shared the following in his update:
    • As part of the continuous improvement efforts, the College is establishing a faculty working group that will help strengthen the College's infrastructure, which includes the well-being of Old Westbury community members. There are concerns around the processes around replacing faculty, pay equity, and related supports around teaching, research, and service in governance. The charge of the group will be the following:
      • Review budget constraints request for faculty positions and make recommendations concerning faculty line replacements
      • Complete research and recommendations to redress outstanding equity and merit concerns (e.g., mechanisms/processes to evaluate at the systemic level of the institution and not individual cases)
      • Explore sustainable resource allocations to address equity concerns, prioritized list, and the time sequencing that contributes to sustainability
        • Chair Makhijani asked if the concerns arise from recruiting high-quality faculty or the process by which new faculty are selected and hired. Dr. Quarless stated that it is a combination of both.
  • The President recommended pushing the Enrollment Presentation to the end if time permitted due to time constraints.
  • Faculty Senate Chair Report -- Senate Chair Jennie D'Ambroise thanked the President for providing the Natural Science Building advocacy and the plan with the SUCF. Additionally, she thanked Dr. Kavic for providing the Middle States report. Finally, Dr. D'Ambroise shared the following in her report.
    • Faculty response to the Old Westbury Model: The name change from Residential College Model to OW Model was a positive step from feedback from the faculty sharing that name does not align with the goals of Old Westbury. Getting the faculty fully on board will take more work and conversations, so the components being worked on now are focused on Student Affairs & Advising. The Community Talks hosted by the President are also a great way to start the conversation around the OW Model.
    • Presidential Committees: Faculty are excited to collaborate with the President's Office, including untenured faculty who now have the opportunity to collaborate with people directly working with the President.
    • Strategic Planning & Budgeting: Faculty expressed some concerns that strategic planning and budgeting did not occur last semester, but the College was able to address the concerns and clear up implementation details. Currently, it looks to be on track for this semester.
    • Faculty Governance: Faculty Governance is looking to assess its practices and is currently in the midst of a bylaws review and update. Faculty Governance is looking to improve some areas: (1) representation of all members; (2) and developing a standardized response for faculty senate resolutions.
      • Chair Makhijani asked if there had been a change or review of the number of participants within the Faculty Senate. Dr. D'Ambroise shared that attendance at meetings has increased due to the remote option. Additionally, the Faculty Senate has gathered faculty feedback in a few ways for initiatives like the Hanover projects Residential College Model. The key was allowing faculty to provide feedback anonymously. However, she added that work still needs to be done, which is why assessing the governance structures is so important to help in this process.
  • Alumni Representative Report - Alumni Association President Lionel Chitty shared the following:
    • The Alumni Association is finishing up its strategic plan. This plan is to align with the Colleges plans, with a focus on fundraising for the association and events to expand the visibility of the association and the College. Most of the events will be held virtually to ensure the safety of our participants.
    • The association is excited with the Presidents initiatives, including a full-time faculty task force, performance planning, office hours with the President, Community Talks, Student Collection, and School-based lectures.
    • The Alumni Association will continue to support the College with scholarships, event participation, and spreading the message of the College. They are looking forward to meeting with Mr. Fischer Smith and working with his team.
    • Elections for the Alumni Association are coming up soon, and they have more recent graduates looking to volunteer their time to help move our efforts forward.
    • The outreach efforts that the President and the College have been doing have been excellent. This includes serving on County Executive Blakeman's transition team and being a keynote speaker for Nassau County's Black History Month event.
    • The Alumni Association is a resource if the College is looking to speak to an organization/business to help move initiatives for the College.
  • Student Government Association Report -- SGA President Ms. Ogunlade shared the following:
    • This year is vote mandatory, so SGA will be campaigning during the exact timeline of their elections.
    • SGA is working with University Police to better the relations between students, faculty, and UP. University Police have been open and receptive to feedback and ideas.
    • SGA has worked with Auxiliary Services to get dining refunds for December graduates because many places were not open on campus, which resulted in a lot of leftover money remaining. Additionally, they could get Freshens here to have more healthy and sustainable eating options.
    • SGA is working with Claudia Newman, who runs the food pantry, to get consistent funding.
      • The President asked if the inconsistent funding means not enough food in the pantry for students. Ms. Ogunlade shared that she is unaware that the pantry gets a consistent allotted amount each year or semester. Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs Cris Notaro added that the pantry does not get money from the College; it is donation-based, so the growth is limited based on the funding. The pantry has been trying to buy food items that match the students' needs and wants as they balance their available resources. Chair Makhijani added that someone in the pantry should develop a plan/report to quantify demand and supply. Vice President for Institutional Advancement Jeffrey Fischer Smith was nodding his head in agreement with Chair Makhijani's statement and noted that he would be reaching out to Dr. Notaro to find out more about the places they have reached out to be able to support. Ms. Archbold added that you can reach out to local agencies for food and that she has a food pantry that helps in Long Island. She wanted to know how she could help and send a list of the students' food needs. Chair Makhijani asked if Ms. Jenkins could connect Ms. Archbold, Dr. Notaro, Mr. Fischer Smith, and Ms. Ogunlade to start this discussion.
  • The President and Chair Makhijani agreed to table to enrollment presentation at the next College Council meeting.

Open Meeting

  • Chair Makhijani opened the floor for public comments.
  • Hearing no comments from the floor, Chair Makhijani asked for a motion to adjourn. Melissa Archbold moved the motion to adjourn, and Ms. Cania Infante seconded the motion. All voted in favor. Meeting adjourned at 1:58 p.m.