 | Board of Visitors minutes June 9, 2006 |  |
APPROVAL OF COMMITMENT TO MEET AN ADDITIONAL STATE GOAL INCLUDED IN THE RESTRUCTURED HIGHER EDUCATION FINANCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE OPERATIONS ACT
WHEREAS, on June 11, 2005, the Board of Visitors approved a resolution committing the University to meet a set of eleven statewide goals as specified in Chapter 4.10, Section 23-38.88 B. of the Restructured Higher Education Financial and Administrative Operations Act; and
WHEREAS, the General Assembly in 2006 passed HB346 which added a twelfth goal, “Seek to ensure the safety and security of the Commonwealth’s students on college and university campuses;”
RESOLVED that the Board of Visitors of the University of Virginia commits to the Governor and General Assembly to meet the additional state goal related to safety and security; and
RESOLVED FURTHER that the Board of Visitors requests the President to transmit this resolution to the Governor and to the Secretary of Education.
- - - - - - - - - - - - -Mr. Block recalled the Board’s interest in graduate student fellowships and noted that good graduate students are a vital part of the research and education mission of the University. Previously, graduate education at the University had been administered by the individual schools, but a centralized effort was deemed necessary to bring graduate education to the same level of national prominence as the undergraduate and professional schools. Accordingly, in May, 2004, Ms. Roseanne Ford, Professor of Chemical Engineering, became the Associate Vice President for Research and Graduate Studies and was charged with coordinating these efforts.
Mr. Block introduced Ms. Ford, who gave a presentation on graduate students at the University.
Ms. Ford made the point that to “rank among the best educational institutions, universities must recruit and retain the most talented graduate students.” Further, “top-ranked universities invest heavily in graduate students by providing consistent and predictable revenue streams.”
She then cited statistics showing the relative rankings of support offered graduate students at various institutions – the University does not rank well in these computations. Graduate student support, which is to say compensation packages, typically includes three elements: tuition and fees, health insurance and stipends/fellowships. Support for students at the University varies among the disciplines: graduate student teaching assistants in Biology, for example, fare better than graduate student teaching assistants in History.
Ms. Ford made the point that private funding is a significant element in supporting graduate students at some of the University’s peer institutions.
The Rector and several other Members commended Ms. Ford on her presentation. Mr. Rainey observed that the needs Ms. Ford outlined are important considerations for the Capital Campaign; the Rector said graduate student support no doubt will be an important part of the Agenda of the Educational Policy Committee in the forthcoming year.
This portion of the meeting ended at 2:45 p.m.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - | Board of Visitors minutes June 9, 2006 | |