College Council Meeting Minutes - May 8, 2026

Present

  • Mili Makhijani, Chair
  • Nicolette Fiore-Lopez 
  • Jayda Jarvis
  • Cania Infante
  • Martha Maffei

Call to Order/Welcome

  • Chair Mili Makhijani called the College Council meeting to order at 12:30 p.m. on Friday, May 8, 2026. Acknowledging that everyone received a copy of the May 8, 2026, College Council meeting minutes. The chair called for a motion to approve the minutes. Council member Infante motioned to accept, seconded by Council member Fiore-Lopez.

President’s Report

  • Dr. Sams began his President’s report by discussing the updates he will be providing in the framework of the strategic plan and other updates/expectations in regard to the upcoming summer and into the fall. 

  • President Sams informed all that we are at the tail end of our performance plan process and that the community has until Sunday to complete their voting. 

  • The proposals are shaped by the strategic plan priorities that the Cabinet identifies throughout the summer. The priorities will then be announced in the Fall and then subsequently the Campus is invited to propose proposals that speak to those priorities. 

  • The ’26-27’ Strategic Plan Priorities are as follows:

    • Engagement & Belonging 

    • Student & Enrollment Success

    • Signature Programs 

    • Revenue Generation 

    • Strengthening Processes and Infrastructure 

    • A.I. Everywhere

  • The six priorities should shape the final twelve proposals that are under final consideration. 

  • By the beginning of the summer, we will settle on which of those twelve will be funded in the upcoming year. 

  • President Sams displayed the final twelve proposals, providing a sense of the variety of offerings and the depth of thought that people across the campus put in as they responded to the process. 

  • President Sams next began providing updates:

    • Goal 1: Academic Excellence, and Research 

      • Approved new and expanded programs 

        5 Ba. to Ma.; 1 Ba.; 2 Ma.; 1 Cert.; 5 Micro. 

        • Ensuring we’re preparing our students for what’s outside of campus and the needs of our country. 

        • Faculty have embraced this goal within the strategic plan and lurked forward in this work. 

      • Launching the return of the Music Program/Performing Arts 

      • Planning to revamp Pre-Medical and Pre-Professional Programs 

      • Planning to expand our STEM offerings

      • Completing Phase 1 of NSB Renovation/Expansion (Summer ’26)

      • Professionalizing all undergraduate advising (Fall ’26) 

        • Faculty will have even more time to do undergraduate research mentorship of both new faculty and our students, while at the same time giving a professionalized experience to advising dynamics. 

        • Faculty who would like to still advise can do so. 

    • Goal 2: Innovation and Creativity 

      • Opened a Teaching, Research, and Innovation Center for Excellence (TRICE)

      • Opened a Makerspace

        • Designed to capture ideas and give students the opportunity to build prototypes of those ideas through the use of 3D printing and laser cutting.

      • Launched the AI-EI Initiative

      • Within striking distance of Carnegie Class Research Colleges and Universities (RCU) status - $2.5 Annually

  • Goal 3: Institutional Resilience and External Profile

    • Continued to strengthen our enrollment enterprise

      • Expanded external communications (streaming, social media)

      • Adding a Golf Fundraising event

      • Launching a new hiring process & performance evaluation effort

      • Hiring a Faculty and Staff Administrative Liaison

        • Administrative Hub

    • Goal 4: Student and Enrollment Success

      • Launched Academic Momentum Program

        • Enjoyed an over 95% success rate in terms of getting students here in the Fall to return in the Spring.

      • Secured a new Shuttle

      • Upgrading Athletics facilities, including fields and tennis courts

      • Added refrigerated food lockers to Panther Care Center

      • Went from 2 (FY ’25) to 7 (FY ’26) playoff berths

    • Enrollment Update as of 5.4.26

      • President Sams asked B. Terry to provide an Enrollment Update:

        • 2,690 – Number of Students currently registered for Fall 2026 compared to 2,151 at the same time last year

    • Other Updates

      • Reducing the use of Reserves to balance the budget

        • $3.3 M (’23) to $2.4 M (’25), goal is $0 by 2028

      • State Budget

        • Over a month late

        • Expecting at least what we received last year, plus part of the collective bargaining increases, minus transformational funds.

      • Middle States Visit (MSCHE), Monday, May 11th 

      • Commencement, May 20th

    • Expectations (Anxieties)

      • Lincoln Tech is moving into the old Sears building (across from IKEA)

      • Adjustments to curricular expansion

        • Externally

        • Internally-budget, governance, space

      • Budgetary constraints and pressures 

      • Requirement to retain and graduate more students

       

Old Business

Draft Policy on the Use and Distribution of Recordings - Dr. David Lanoue

  • Chair Makhijani began by acknowledging Council Member Reich for the fantastic job of correcting this policy. It strikes the right balance between protecting students' rights and also protecting the needs and expectations of the faculty. 
  • Council Member Infante asked if there were any concerns from the faculty.
  • President Sams informed all that the Deans and Provost feel comfortable that this policy reflects what we’re going for. 
  • Chair Makhijani called for a motion to approve the policy, Council member Infante motioned to accept, followed by Council member Maffei, all Council members in favor. 

SUNY Old Westbury AI Roadmap - Dr. Michael Kavic

  • Dr. Kavic introduced the two co-chairs of the campus’s task force: Dr. Renu Balyan and Dr. Runi Mukherji. The AI task force presented on the Institute for Artificial Intelligence and Ethical Innovation. 
  • Dr. Kavic discussed the six foundational pillars:
    • Pillar 1: Policy and guidelines 
    • Pillar 2: Teaching, Learning, and Pedagogy 
    • Pillar 3: AI Skills Training & workforce readiness
    • Pillar 4: Infrastructure & AI Resource Ecosystem 
    • Pillar 5: Academic Integrity & AI 
    • Pillar 6: Environment, Sustainability, and Social Justice

  • B. Mukherji provided all with survey results:

    • Survey data shows that 88% of students use AI, with over 50% using it weekly, but many fear wrongful accusations of AI misuse. 

    • 91% of Faculty express concern about student AI dependency, 60% of those do not know where to go with AI questions or concerns, and 72% of those who do not feel prepared to guide students in AI critically. 

    • Survey data shows that 85% of staff are integrating AI daily, but lack formal training and express concerns about appropriate use and evaluation. 

  • R. Balyan informed all that SUNY System had published an AI Policy. In this policy, new guidelines for the 64-campus system expand the use of artificial intelligence in teaching and student support while adding guardrails for data privacy for high-risk uses. As part of the systemwide policy, all SUNY campuses must adopt or update their own AI guidelines by Dec. 31 of this year. 

  • R. Balyan discussed the first and next steps for the institute to include the following:

    • AI Advisory Council – Establishment of a permanent AI Advisory Council 

    • Faculty Workshop Model – Training Old Westbury faculty to design AI-enhanced courses that raise cognitive demand. 

    • Institutional AI Policy

    • Longitudinal Data Collection

    • AI Micro-credential 

    • AI Resource Ecosystem 

    • Academic Integrity 

    • AI Faculty Fellows

    • AI Student Geek Squad

    • AI Conversations & Trainings

  • Chair Makhijani strongly suggested having AI policies on the books for students, faculty, and staff by the end of the summer. 

  • President Sams said that the list of recommendations can be done and then, throughout the course of the fall semester, look to get the policy finalized. 

  • Council member Jarvis inquired if this policy will include something that the faculty are not able to generate material through AI to teach students?

  • President Sams noted that Council member Jarvis, as Student Government President, has spoken about this before, and her concern is that increasingly faculty are using AI in a way that replaces them instructionally. 

  • Chair Makhijani asked for another slide to be generated to discuss the student concerns surrounding the use of AI. 

Council Members - General Comments

  • There were no comments from the council members

Faculty Representative: Dr. Stephanie Schneider

  • Dr. Stephanie Schneider was not present to report.

Alumni Representative: Dr. Lorraine Cochrane

  • Dr. Cochrane was not present to report

Student Representative: Ms. Jayda Jarvis

  • Ms. Jarvis informed all that the Student Government Association committed $31,000 for the installation to the Wudu station in the Student Union building.  
  • Ms. Jarvis also noted that $15,000 was committed to campus groups. 

Open Meeting

  • Chair Makhijani reviewed the upcoming dates and asked for a motion to adjourn approved by Council member Infante, seconded by Council member Maffei.