COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

President’s Board Room

College of Charleston

Charleston, South Carolina

April 8, 2003

8:30 a.m.

Others in attendance:  President Lee Higdon, Drs. Andrew Abrams, Jeri Cabot, William Lindstrom, Amy McCandless, and Susan Morrison; Messrs. Fred Daniels, Daniel Dukes, Greg Evans, Sam Jones, and Gary McCombs; Mses. Priscilla Burbage, Virginia Friedman, Elizabeth Kassebaum, Laura Lageman, Chris Schlosser, and Monica Scott; also Dr. Hugh Wilder, Speaker of the Faculty; Ms. Alicia Lea Scherini, President of the Student Government Association; Mr. Nick Glover, President-Elect of the Student Government Association; and Ms. Allison Bruce, Post and Courier.

(In accordance with requirements of the S. C. Freedom of Information Act, news media was notified of the time, location, and agenda for this meeting).

The regular meeting of the College of Charleston Board of Trustees was called to order at 8:30 a.m. by Chairman Small.

Chairman Small called for approval of the minutes.  It was moved (Daniel) and seconded (Berry) that the minutes of the January 24, 2003, Board of Trustees meeting be approved.  All in favor.

Chairman Small introduced two guests:

(1)   Mr. Nick Glover, President-Elect of the Student Government Association.  Nick is from Columbia and is a double major in Political Science and Corporate Communication.

(2)    Mr. Greg Evans has accepted the position of Vice President for Development at the College.  Greg has 30 years of experience and a record of success in higher education development work, including major gift fund raising, capital campaigns, planned giving, annual fund programs and alumni services.  He comes to us from the Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina where he served as Executive Director of Development and as Secretary to the Business Partnership Foundation.  He began his new position on April 7, and he will report to Dr. Sue Sommer-Kresse, Senior Vice President for Institutional Advancement.

Chairman Small expressed his sincere thanks to the members of the Search Committee for their time and effort spent on this very valuable service to the College:

Norine Noonan, Dean of the School of Sciences and Mathematics

Hugh Wilder, Speaker of the Faculty

Karen Chandler, Director of the Avery Research Center

Amy McCandless, Associate Provost

John Jordan, Alumnus and Member of the College of Charleston Foundation Board

Sue Sommer-Kresse, Senior Vice President for Institutional Advancement

Finance Committee:

Trustees Larry Miller, Annaliza Moorhead and Joe Thompson attended the meeting.  They were joined by members of the Business Affairs Staff -- Gary McCombs, Priscilla Burbage and Sam Jones.  Others included President Higdon; Allison Bruce, Post and Courier; Hugh Wilder, Speaker of the Faculty; Alicia Scherini, President of the Student Government Association; Virginia Friedman, Daniel Dukes and Eric Forsberg.

Larry Miller reported that at the committee meeting Sam Jones addressed the March 31, 2003 Financial Statements.  Sam covered the Budget Adjustments shown on the foldout sheet at Tab III of the Board Booklet.  Items of interest included Line 13 (allocation of Spring adjunct funds), Line 18 (3.73% state budget cut in February 2003), Line 19 (5% state budget cut in December 2002), and Line 20 (5% departmental budget reductions).

Larry Miller moved that the budget adjustments to the Financial Statements be approved as presented behind Tab III of the Board Booklet.  All in favor.

Larry Miller gave background information about the approval process for the Series 2003D Draft Bond Resolution (Parking Deck & Residence Life) Issue not to exceed $20 million.  He noted that the Board of Trustees approved a General Bond Resolution in April 2002.  Series A purchased the Kelly House, Series B refunded the 1992 Auxiliary Bonds, Series C purchased McAlister Hall, and Series D will be used to purchase the New Parking Garage and fund the renovations of Berry, McConnell, and Craig Residence Halls.  Items of particular interest in this resolution are on Page 3, Section 2.1, F, G and H, of the Bond information located at Tab III of the Board Booklet. 

Larry Miller moved for the approval of the Series 2003D Bond Resolution in substantially the form presented with such further changes as the Chairman shall approve.  A copy of the resolution is presented behind Tab III of the Board Booklet.  All in favor.

Larry Miller gave background information about the approval process for the Initial Authorizing Resolution – State Institution Bonds (School of Business – Issue not to exceed $7.2 million).  The project was approved for $8 million in April 2002 ($6 million in bonds and $2 million in private funds).  In January 2003, the Board of Trustees approved increasing the total project to $9 million with the corresponding increase to $7 million in approved bond funding due to the expansion of the project to include enclosing the ground floor.  Additionally, $200,000 is included to cover the cost of issuance and other incidental expenses.

Larry Miller moved that the Initial Authorizing Resolution, “Authorizing the submission of an application to the South Carolina State Budget and Control Board requesting the issuance of State Institution Bonds for the College of Charleston pursuant to Chapter 107, Title 59, Code of Laws of South Carolina 1976, as amended” be approved.  A copy of the resolution is presented behind Tab III of the Board Booklet.  All in favor.

Gary McCombs presented a PowerPoint Presentation to the Finance Committee, and the same to the full Board, illustrating the current and future fiscal challenges and the need for financial flexibility. 

Eric Forsberg, Internal Auditor, introduced himself to the committee and talked about his scope of responsibility and reporting line. 

Chairman Small thanked Sam Jones, Gary McCombs and President Higdon for their input.  Also he thanked Annaliza Moorhead and Joe Thompson.

Chairman Small expressed his concern about Vincent Price’s health.  Vincent is out of the hospital and is doing much better.  The staph infection is gone, but he is still taking antibiotics. 

Chairman Small asked for a motion to propose a resolution to nominate an assistant to the Board of Trustees’ Secretary.

It was nominated (Bell) and seconded (McMaster) that Marie Land serve as assistant to the Board of Trustees’ Secretary for the purpose of attesting the signature of the Board of Trustees Chairman.  All in favor.

Facilities Committee:

Trustees Creighton McMaster and Bobby Marlowe were joined by Dwight Johnson via conference call from New Orleans.   Also attending were Monica Scott and Susan Morrison.

Mr. McMaster asked Monica Scott to give an update of the Facilities Committee Report. 

Mrs. Scott reported that Ballinger from Philadelphia was chosen to design the Science Center Expansion/Renovation.

The firm of Stevens and Wilkinson is proceeding with the design development phase of the Simons Center Expansion and Renovation.  It is anticipated that the project will be under construction by November 2003.

The design consultants (Hillier/LS3P) have completed the design development drawings for the construction of the School of Business and are finishing the construction documents to advertise for bids by May.  The target completion date is June 2004.

The estimated completion date for the multi-cultural center at 207 Calhoun Street is Fall 2003.

 The final phase of the renovation of the Avery Research Center was never completed.  The work to be done now includes the renovation of the main auditorium and an archive storage area on the third floor.  The College proposes to use Glick Boehm and Associates, architects for the last project, to design this final phase.

Construction of the library continues to progress.  The roof is 65% complete, and the exterior skinning of the building has begun.    Completion of the project is scheduled for Spring 2004.   

The completion date for the parking garage is scheduled for June 2003 in time for the Fall Semester.

Heery, International, and its consultants are proceeding with the evaluation of the 5,000-seat basketball arena approved by the Board of Trustees on January 24, 2003. 

Ayers, Saint Gross is proceeding with the development of the College’s Master Plan.  An update of the project will be presented at the July Board meeting.  The final draft will be presented to the Board at its October 2003 meeting.

The College is seeking approvals from state and city agencies to demolish the College Lodge by August 2003.  The site will be used in the short term as the lay down area for the construction of the Simons Center Expansion until the program for the replacement residence hall is planned and designed. 

The College completed the first phase of the renovation of the Stern Center this past academic year with the expansion of the food court and the creation of the fitness center.  College personnel have been working with LS3P, the consultants who conducted the renovation feasibility study in 2002, to determine the program and cost to complete the building’s renovation.  The initial estimate for the work is $5,000,000.  The consultant’s report will be presented at the July Board meeting. 

Mr. McMaster noted that most of these projects have funding, but future bonds must be issued.

Student Affairs Committee:

Trustees Marie Land, Don Belk, and Cherry Daniel were joined by Jeri Cabot and Bill Lindstrom.

Mrs. Land asked the Board to turn to Tab V of the Board Booklet.  She reported that they met Nick Glover, the newly elected President of the Student Government Association.  The elections for the Vice President and the Secretary of the SGA require run-off elections.

She reported that the visitation policies in McAlister, Berry, Craig and Kelly residence halls have been modified, but no significant differences in visitation violations were found between previous Spring semesters and Spring 2003.  An assessment will be conducted at the end of the semester, and if the pattern holds, a vote on visitation will be held again in early Fall 2003.  All residence halls will revert back to the standard visitation policies for the opening of the Fall 2003 Semester. 

Applications for theme housing are going well.  The Wellness Community (two houses) is almost full.  The French and Spanish houses have a few beds open.  Honors Hall has a few male beds still open.

Mrs. Land expressed excitement about the major renovations of Berry Hall.  There have been some problems over the years that will be corrected, including a new roof and HVAC system. 

She reported that 1,003 students are returning to on-campus housing for 2003-2004, which is an increase of 27% from the previous year.  There are 2,357 beds available.  Bobby Marlowe asked about the number of freshmen – 2,040.  President Higdon noted that the tuition deposit and the room deposit have been decoupled – a better reflection for the freshman class.  As a result, a lot of students are paying the dorm deposit and not the tuition deposit, but they still have until May 1 to pay the tuition deposit.  April 1 was the deadline for paying the housing deposit.  Mrs. Land noted that tiered housing fees were locked in after the January Board meeting. 

Mrs. Land reported that the committee was given printed information that was distributed to students living off campus.  Through community outreach newsletters, Student Handbook, community outreach webpage address, etc., these students are receiving more information.  A new orientation session has been scheduled for residential students planning to live off campus. City of Charleston Police assigned to the Livability Court will attend, the neighborhood association will have a representative there as well as a Student Affairs representative.

 The committee toured the Stern Student Center and looked at areas that can be changed – expand the fitness center, new gamerooms, new meeting rooms, etc.

The College has established an Emergency Preparedness link on the campus webpage.  Links include:

(1)               A letter to the parents from the acting Senior Vice President for Student Affairs

(2)               Travel advisories issued by the Center for Disease Control

(3)               Student and parent-centered emergency preparedness information

(4)               Links to state, federal and county emergency agencies

Mr. Belk informed the Board that Nick Glover, the newly elected SGA President, invited all Board members to attend the SGA meetings.  Mr. Belk wished Nick good luck.

Institutional Advancement Committee:

 Trustees Charlotte Berry and Philip Bell were joined by staff members Sue Sommer-Kresse, Cindy Johnson, Karen Jones, and Greg Evans; and Y. W. Scarborough, III, of the College of Charleston Foundation.  

Mrs. Berry reported that the committee discussed no action items.  She expressed delight in having Greg Evans join them and gave the following committee report:

Karen Jones, Director of Alumni Services, announced that Dan White, an independent consultant, has been hired to assist in developing a strategic plan in alumni relations that would complement the 4^th Century Initiative.  An Alumni Survey will be conducted to provide a basis for assessing and re-assessing normal ways of doing business and measuring future progress resulting in the development of a strategic plan.

Cindy Johnson, Director of Major Gifts, outlined the goals and opportunities for the future of fund raising.  She reported that $400,677 has been raised from January 1, 2003, through March 31, 2003.

Cindy also discussed the 2003-2004 fund raising goals, including the Annual Fund and Major Gifts categories. 

The committee reviewed the quarterly fund raising report, and Mrs. Berry reported that all areas of fund raising are down.  She hopes to energize people to the point where they will want to give.    She noted also that there are exciting goals for each area of development.

Karen and Cindy reviewed the calendar of events for Development, Alumni Services and Admissions.

The committee discussed Joe Thompson’s letter to Chairman Small concerning the College’s move into its Capital Campaign phase.  Mrs. Berry noted that this is not the time to start a Capital Campaign, but it will be in the works shortly.  She thanked Mr. Thompson for his idea, but the College doesn’t want to begin the campaign until the economy is right. 

Academic Affairs Committee:

Trustees Cherry Daniel, Don Belk and Creighton McMaster attended the meeting, along with Dr. Amy McCandless, Dr. Susan Morrison, and Ms. Beth Murphy from Academic Affairs; Dr. Hugh Haynsworth from the Graduate School; and Dr. Hugh Wilder, Speaker of the Faculty.

Cherry Daniel reported on information found at Tab VII of the Board Booklet:

Undergraduate enrollment has remained relatively unchanged.  Headcount is up 0.4% and FTE is up 1.5%.  Undergraduate enrollment for Fall 2003 is projected to be 100 less than in 2002 – 10,003 in 2003 vs. 10,105 in 2002.  Undergraduate admissions applications are down 7.56% as are paid-to-date admissions down 36.05%.

Hugh Haynsworth informed the committee that graduate enrollment is down.  Headcount is down 28.6% and FTE is down 20.3%, largely because of a drop in Professional Development classes.  Because of the school district’s budget cuts, fewer teachers are taking graduate level courses.

Residency proportions for all students are predicted to remain similar – Spring 2003:  69.4% South Carolina residents and 30.6% non-residents.

Dr. Jack Parson is stepping down as Director of International Education and Programs and will be returning to full-time teaching in the Political Science Department.  The position was advertised among tenure-track faculty, and applicants will be interviewed by the Faculty Search Committee. The new director will assume duties on July 1, 2003.

Athletics Committee:

 Trustees Philip Bell, Dwight Johnson (by telephone) and Bobby Marlowe attended the meeting, along with Jerry Baker and Laura Lageman.

 Mr. Bell gave a recap of athletic programs to date:

Women’s tennis stands at 19-2 and 8-0 in the Southern Conference.  They lost the first two games, but won 19 games in a row, with two games remaining.

Women’s softball stands at 31-5 and 8-1 in the Southern Conference. 

 Troy Wheless and Mary Sabatino received two of the six Southern Conference post graduate scholarships.  

 Mr. Bell continued a discussion of the Student Athletes Advisory Board – Two athletes from each of the teams meet once a month for the purpose of community outreach.

The tennis center is under construction, but there are some drainage issues.  The original architectural design left the area with some soggy places.  The batting cages are still to be constructed. 

Nancy Wilson has returned as the College’s new Women’s Basketball Coach. 

Men’s and Women’s golf continues to do well.  Men’s Golf is 17^th in the country and Women’s Golf is 3^rd.

 Governmental Affairs Committee:

Trustees Joe Thompson, Charlotte Berry, Larry Miller and Tex Small attended the meeting, as well as Daniel Dukes and President Higdon.

Mr. Thompson reported that the House of Representatives concluded their work on the Appropriations Bill on March 13, 2003, and the Bill is now in the Senate.  Due to a decline in state revenues, the College received 8.73% across-the-board cuts in FY 2002-03 which were annualized for FY 2003-04.  In addition, state agencies took additional appropriated cuts of 9.88% for FY 2003-04.

Other items in the House version of the Appropriations Bill that affect the College of Charleston include:

(1)               The House approved 23.75 new FTE lines.

(2)               The Lottery Spending Bill:  The recurring funds for technology infrastructure improvements for the four-year colleges and technical schools was reduced from $11.1 million to $10 million.

(3)               The Tuition and Fees Proviso allows institutions to raise their in-state undergraduate tuition a maximum of $250 per semester above the increase in the Higher Education Price Index.  If an institution’s tuition and fees are below the state average, then this restriction does not apply.  The state average shall be calculated separately considering any tuition rebates.

(4)               Fully funded all state scholarships.

(5)               No funds were appropriated for any state pay raises.

(6)               State employees will be required to pay an average of $48 additional each month for health insurance coverage.

The South Carolina Senate will begin their deliberations of the FY 2003-04 Appropriations Bill in April.

The United States Congress has completed work on all FY 2002-03 Appropriation Bills.  The Final Labor HHS Bill includes an appropriation of $1.8 million for science facilities at the College of Charleston.  With this new appropriation, there’s a total of $11.3 million ($4.0 million from state funding and $7.3 million from federal funds) for the construction of a new science center and the renovation of the existing building.  President Higdon will continue to work with state and federal elected officials to secure the funding necessary to complete the project budget.

 Mr. Thompson reported that the committee discussed President Higdon’s letter to the Board of Trustees, dated April 4, 2003, regarding proposed Higher Education Reform Legislation.      

Strategic Planning Committee:

Present were Trustees Marie Land and Annaliza Moorhead.  Also present were Andy Abrams and Chris Schlosser. 

In Joel Smith’s absence at the committee meeting, Mrs. Moorhead presented the committee’s report. 

She reported that on July 26, 2000, the Board of Trustees adopted a Vision Statement announcing the institution’s goal to become a “nationally preeminent Public Liberal Arts and Sciences University for the 21^st Century.”  In order to ensure the attainment of this goal, the Board asked the Long Range Planning Committee to establish a strategy to implement the newly adopted Vision Statement, incorporating the input and advice of major constituent groups at the College. Mrs. Moorhead noted that the Vision Statement is on the College’s website, that the Board received a draft copy of the document (dated December 11, 2002) in January, and also that there’s a copy included in the Board Booklet at Tab X.

Mr. Andy Abrams stated that in keeping with the Board’s charge, it is an inclusive process.  We have moved into the specifics.  The President is very insistent about the committee, by our interest, and the support of the faculty and administration.  Mr. Abrams noted that the document integrates with the 4^th Century Initiative.  We must get the committee to think in terms of action – Tell us where the College is heading, how we plan to get there, and how to be measured.  The committee approved the document and made the motion to adopt the plan as presented.  All in favor.

Chairman Small noted that there are so many good things about the Strategic Plan, particularly the communication and writing component for the students is so significant and important.  He looks forward to seeing updates. 

In addition, President Higdon noted that we have a vision, a direction and strategy to achieve our goals. Funds have been allocated for this plan. Among the major benefits is bringing the very best faculty to the College.

President’s Report:

President Higdon pointed out the faculty publications located on the credenza and noted that these speak to the scholarship that our colleagues are generating at the College.

He reminded everyone that May Commencement will be held on May 10 and May 11.  Graduate students will receive their diplomas on Saturday, May 10, and Dr. Shirley Malcom will be the speaker.  The ceremony will be in the Sottile Theatre at 2:30 p.m.  The undergraduate ceremony will be at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 11, on the Cistern; and the speaker will be Mr. Terry McGraw, chairman, president and chief executive officer of The McGraw-Hill Companies.  Mr. Guy Beatty also will receive an honorary degree.  There will be a record number of graduates this year – over 1,400.

Final enrollment figures for the current semester show an undergraduate headcount increase of 0.4% and a graduate student headcount decrease of 28%.  The graduate school decrease was in the area of professional development, not degree-seeking graduate students.

The undergraduate FTE increased by 1.5%, graduate FTE decreased by 21%, and the total FTE increase was .01%.

New student admissions for the fall are at a critical point in the year.  There has been a reduction in applications, but not in the quality of the applicants.  An area of concern is the reduction in the number of African-American students who have applied. 

Early in the fall semester, the presidents of The Citadel, the College of Charleston, and the Medical University agreed to establish a Task Force Committee to investigate ways in which the College could realize savings by sharing resources and information which might benefit one or more of the participating institutions.  Members of the Task Force were appointed, and Mr. Marion Woodbury was asked to serve as chair.  The College was represented by Elizabeth Kassebaum and Fred Daniels.  The committee has met, on average, once a month.  The areas reviewed for possible sharing and cost savings covered all areas of administration, including Procurement, Computing Technology, Telephone Services, Motor Pool, Public Safety, Parking and Public Transportation, and Printing.  At this point, the areas of greatest opportunity appear to be in telephone service costs, which the State recently reduced by approximately 9%, an annual savings of approximately $52,000.  The presidents of the three colleges have co-signed a letter asking the Budget and Control Board for an additional reduction of 10%.  Another opportunity may be parking and public transportation.  Presentations have been made on possible satellite parking, additional parking garages on the peninsula, and the use of public transportation to get employees and students to and from the colleges and hospitals. 

President Higdon reported that the rugby team is going to the nationals for the second consecutive year.   The College is really proud of them.

Women’s basketball has had a very good year.  They made first team All-Conference and All-Tournament.

The sailing team qualified for the nationals.

The equestrian team is hopeful of competing again for a national championship. 

The baseball team had several players who received significant pre-season recognition by being named to the All-Conference Pre-Season Team as well as Pre-Season Conference Player of the Year.

The women’s golf team won the Cougar Fall Invitational.  The team finished in the Top 10 in two tournaments.  They are presently ranked third in the Conference in stroke average, with one player ranked fourth and one player ranked fifth in individual stroke average.

The men’s golf team won the Cleveland Golf/Kiawah Island Intercollegiate Tournament and won second place in the Vanderbilt Invitational Tournament.  The team won the Cleveland Golf Pacer Invitational.  They finished in the Top 10 at five other tournaments.  They lead the Conference in best stroke average.  Two college golfers ranked first and second in Conference stroke average.

The men’s and women’s tennis teams have never had better seasons.  Nineteen straight wins are extraordinary.  

In addition to the publications, there are other faculty accomplishments and awards.  Trevor Weston is a recipient of the Goddard Lieberson Award for “Mid Career Composers of Exceptional Gift.”  The award was made by the American Academy of Arts and Letters.  Trevor also has been honored by being awarded a residency at the Virginia Center for Creative Arts.

Dr. Charles Beam was awarded the 2003 Governor’s Award for Excellence in Science Awareness at the Annual South Carolina Academy of Science meeting.  The award was made in recognition of “the highest level of research at the undergraduate level.”  Dr. Beam has a long history of awards and special distinctions, particularly, for his work in mentoring undergraduate students.

Dr. Larry Carlson received a Governor’s Distinguished Professor Award.  Dr. Carlson has a long history of scholarship, teaching and service to the students of the College.

Dale Rosengarten was awarded the first Governor’s Archives Award for developing the College’s Jewish Heritage Collection.  Since 1995 she has been recording oral history interviews and building archives of the Southern Jewish materials for the College of Charleston Libraries Special Collections Department.  In 2002 she was awarded the Jewish Historical Society’s Annual Arts and Cultural Achievement Award.

Once again our students distinguished themselves at the Annual South Carolina Academy of Sciences meeting.  Aadra Bhatt won two awards – one for outstanding presentation by a female undergraduate in all categories, the second for the best undergraduate research paper in cell biology.

Best oral presentation of a research paper in chemistry was awarded to Patrick Dunn.

Computer Science majors Alexey Bogomolov and James Crawford won oral presentation awards in computer science. 

Rusty Day, a graduate student in marine biology, was honored for his research paper at the 23^rd Annual Symposium on Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation in Kuala, Lumur, Malaysia.

In sociology, Joseph Valenti won the award for the best undergraduate poster at the Southern Sociological Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana.

President Higdon called the Board’s attention to the press clipping booklet.  He congratulated everyone involved in getting the wide range coverage that the faculty and staff are experiencing.

President Higdon noted that an alumni survey is being developed to garner greater alumni interest and support.  Media Relations visits are planned for President Hidgon and Virginia Friedman to the major newspaper editorial boards in Columbia, Greenville and Charlotte. 

The 28^th annual Governor’s School will begin on June 8 and will run through July 5.  Approximately 225 of South Carolina’s brightest students will attend.

President Higdon informed the Board that Virginia Friedman will head a national search for a Senior Vice President for Student Affairs in the near future.  He expressed his thanks to Dr. Jeri Cabot for serving the College so well since Dr. George Haborak resigned his position more than a year ago.  Jeri will be a candidate for this position.

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration was a great success again this year.  The response from the College and the community is very gratifying. 

Chairman Small made the motion to go into Executive Session at 10:05 a.m. and Marie Land seconded.  All in favor. 

After coming out of Executive Session at 11:50 a.m., they viewed the video of Charlotte Berry being awarded the United Way’s Humanitarian of the Year Award.

There being no further business, it was moved (Bell) and seconded (Daniel) that this meeting of the Board of Trustees be adjourned.

All in favor.  Meeting adjourned at 12:15 p.m.