Idaho Falls Education Advisory Council

Meeting Minutes

August 13, 2003

Samuel H. Bennion Student Union Building

 

Attendees:  Jim McFadden (Chair), President Bowen, Jonathan Lawson, Jennifer Fisher, Ann Howell, Brian Pitcher, Chuck Hatch, Bob Stiger, Scott Hamilton, Max Checketts, Scott Hamilton, Libby Howe, Lew Rodriguez, Edith Irving, Mark Paulson, Dave Radford, Cal Ozaki, Scott Hinschberger, Jerry Wixom, Harold Blackman, Ken Erickson, Carol Baldwin, Mark Young, John Hansen, Carol Lowe, Marge Foster, Keith Hinckley, Janice McGeachin, Michael Lineberry, Carol Johnson, Randy Hurley, Bart Davis, Jerry Brady, Ann Howell, Connie Gomez

ITEM 1:  Welcome and Approval of the April 9, 2003 Meeting Minutes

Chair Jim McFadden welcomed the new members of the council and announced that Harold Blackman has agreed to chair the Community and Business Education Needs committee.

Edith Irving moved approval of the April 9, 2003 minutes.  Marge Foster seconded.  Motion carried.

ITEM 2:  Introduction of Attendees

Attendees introduced themselves.

ITEM 3:  Committee Reports

Community and Business Education Needs:  Keith Hinckley gave an update on the Diversity subcommittee.  The first goal of this subcommittee was to design a brochure to provide parents with information and resources for their children’s education.  This brochure has been completed and is available in English and Spanish.  The subcommittee is asking for help in distributing the brochure.

 

Facilities Planning: Jim McFadden gave the report for Linda Milam.  Construction on the new entrance into University Place and parking lot additions was to begin within the week.  The construction is being paid for wholly by parking fees.  The new parking spaces and entrance are in compliance with the Master Plan.

 

Public Relations and Community Awareness:  Marge Foster reported that the committee has met twice.  They reviewed the new marketing campaign for the 2003-2004 school year that features instructors from ISU, UI and EITC. 

 

ITEM 4:  The Advisory Council and the Institutions

This item involved an open discussion regarding the relationship between the institutions and the Advisory Council.  The purpose of the session was to evaluate the Advisory Council activities considering the changes that have occurred at University Place, the INEEL contract renewal, and the impact of the slow economy on higher education funding.  Jim McFadden provided a brief summary of the current status of the three committees, and then asked the institution representatives to make a few remarks.  The comments are summarized in the following.  The discussion focused on what the advisory council is doing and is it doing the job that is needed and wanted by the presidents.  The governance document being written by the State Board of Education (SBOE) and how it will affect the delivery of Higher Education around the state was discussed.  Jim reminded everyone that the SBOE is meeting at EITC on the 14th and that the advisory council is hosting a reception for the SBOE, this day from 5 to 7 pm at University Place. 

ISU - President Bowen stated that with no new funding the institution is in a holding pattern.  The past dependence of increased student fees to replace limited state funding may not be an option in the future.  There is a statewide resistance from students, newspaper editorial boards, and others to any additional student fee increases.  The state budget office has informed the institutions that there will be no new money for this year or next year.  He discussed the activities associated with developing the revised governance document that the SBOE is considering.  The latest draft indicates that the presidents and the institutions can continue with their current operations, including the joint operations such as University Place, if they decide to do so. 

UI - Brian Pitcher reported that UI is under the leadership of interim president, Gary Michael.  He stated that if the needs of students in Idaho are going to be met, each institution has to pick their strongest points and work together in an effort to provide the programming.  The design of the CST is being reviewed to see if the building could be constructed in phases dependent on the availability of funds.  In the first phase the building would be scaled down to suit UI and ISU’s needs.  The primary role for UI in Idaho Falls is graduate level instruction and research, and program expansions are on hold until more funding becomes available.  UI believes that the partnerships they have with other institutions are working nicely and should be retained.

EITC - Ken Erickson introduced Scott Hamilton, who is replacing Mary Ann Carlson as Dean of Instruction at EITC.  Ken discussed EITC’s role and mission and how EITC fits in with the partnership of ISU and UI at University Place.  The practical nursing programming is being delivered to Driggs, Salmon and Arco using distance learning.  There has been a 400% increase in the health education students in the last four years.  EITC also conducted a fire fighter training program for the Bureau of Land Management, with 800 people completing the training.

BYU-Idaho - Max Checketts explained that the fall enrollment figures would top 11,000.  BYU-Idaho has 16 Associate degrees and 49 Bachelor degrees.  BYU-Idaho will admit approximately 4,000 freshmen this year.  BYU-Idaho is trying not to duplicate programs that are offered at University Place.  Instead BYU-Idaho is trying to create agreements with ISU and UI that will enable students to take classes at both locations, and the institutions will be responsible for transferring the fees.  This will eliminate the need for students having to apply to each institution.

The discussion next involved University Place staff and the Advisory council members.  Jennifer Fisher and Bob Stiger were asked to discuss areas that the Advisory Council could provide support at University Place.  The first mentioned involved fund raising/scholarship fund.  The second item was informing the community about what is available at University Place.  The third item is having the Advisory Council evaluate the institutions’ performance at University Place.  The Advisory Council members were asked to provide their thoughts on issues that the Advisory Council would like to spend their time and efforts as well as their perceptions of the Council.  The discussion centered around three items:

-                      the governance changes and the possible impact on the University Place operations,

-                      advocating for University Place and higher education in Idaho including the need for adequate funding, and

-                      the interaction of University Place with other bodies such as the INEEL, the Eastern Idaho Technology Corridor, and the Governor’s Science and Technology Advisory Committee. 

 

The discussion on governance was focused on the need to retain the current co-operative programs at University Place and in Idaho Falls, and to stress this to the State Board of Education (SBOE).  This resulted in the following motion by Senator Bart Davis, with a second by Dave Radford.  Motion:  The Idaho Falls Higher Education Advisory Council strongly urges the State Board of Education to not act on any policy change that would dilute, modify or limit the cooperative educational delivery of higher education to the Idaho Falls region.  Further, we urge the State Board of Education not to act on proposed changes regarding the delivery of post-secondary education without obtaining input from the Idaho Falls, Coeur d’Alene, Twin Falls, and Boise areas where these cooperative programs now exist.

The motion was passed by a voice vote, with one member dissenting. (Note: This resolution was presented to the SBOE when the matter of governance of post-secondary education was discussed at their meeting on August 14, 2003.)

Jim McFadden said that he would have the Executive Committee consider all the items discussed in this session when they review the Advisory Council committee structure.

Jim McFadden reminded the members of the reception (August 13) for the SBOE, and noted that the next Advisory Council meeting would be on Wednesday, December 3, 2003.  Meeting Adjourned.