University of Virginia Library

REPORT BY THE PRESIDENT

The President distributed a draft of an "Institutional Profile" document containing a wealth of information about the University. He explained that this draft was edited by Nancy Tramontin. He expressed his thanks for an outstanding effort.

He spoke of the academic process which the University is now following, and advised the Board that drafts of the planning documents will come to the Board at the March meeting, following which these may be further refined. Dr. Detmer and Mr. Kelly and members of the staff are already working intensely on the document which he anticipates will be superb.

The President told the Board that he, the Rector, Mrs. Morie, and other University officials had visited residential colleges at Yale and at Harvard Universities. In examining these, he was impressed by the academic importance of these colleges. He noted that the Master of one of these is usually a scholar with established credentials. He pointed out that the commons rooms for faculty and students are essential to the intellectual life of the college. It was his observation that the arrangements for the colleges are not idyllic or perfect, and that they tend to pose some problems, but that the value of the colleges far outweighed the problems that they pose.

Mr. Casteen reported that the group came away from the visit with the impression that setting up residential colleges here is feasible, and that we can identify currently available houses which can be converted to structures that will house residential colleges. He noted that the challenges to what one might call the University's culture will be great.

At both Harvard and Yale, the first year students live together as they do at the University of Virginia, however after the first year the students at Harvard and Yale continue to be housed together in the same quarters for three years. He noted that at the University of Virginia we do not have available housing on the grounds for all of the undergraduate students. He also pointed out that here we find a culture where a large number of students reside in fraternity or sorority houses, and that some students enjoy the experience of living in apartments off grounds during some part of their undergraduate experience.

He advised the Board that he is in contact with other universities that have good residential college programs, and that conversations with our deans are underway. When these are completed, he said, there will be further reports about residential colleges to the Board of Visitors. He noted that we have a lot of work to do in this area.

The President concluded his remarks by stating that he is greatly impressed by the success of Monroe Hill College, and interest that has been shown in it.