The James Madison University Board of Visitors met Friday, October 5, 2001, in the Board Room of JMU's Chandler Hall. Following is a summary of actions taken by the board and key areas of discussion at the board meeting:
- The board was told by JMU President Linwood H. Rose that five JMU faculty members have recently received high honors. The faculty members were introduced to the board:
- Gregory R. Versen, associate professor of social work, who received the 2001 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Virginia chapter of the National Association of Social Workers.
- Dr. Jonathan Monroe, associate professor of biology, who received the 2001 Excellence in Teaching Award from the American Society of Plant Biologists.
- Dr. Nicholas Bankson, professor of speech-language pathology and head of the department of communication sciences and disorders, who will receive the Honors of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association in November.
- Dr. Virginia Andreoli Mathie, professor of psychology, who has been selected by the American Psychological Association as winner of the 2002 Distinguished Contributions of Applications of Psychology to Education and Training Award.
- John W. Woody, associate professor of media arts and design, who has been selected to join the Apple Distinguished Educator Program for 2001-2002.
- Among other items Rose told the board in his President's Report:
- For the eighth consecutive year, JMU has been ranked as the top-rated master's level public university in the highly-regarded annual poll on academic quality conducted by U.S. News & World Report.
- Yahoo! Internet Life magazine included JMU in its 2001 listing of "The Nation's 100 Most Wired Universities," a listing of universities that are doing the best job in preparing students to deal with today's computerized society.
- The Madison Center has re-opened at JMU, under the direction of Phil Bigler, a JMU alumnus who is the former national public school teacher of the year.
- Donna Harper has been named as executive assistant to Rose. She was formerly associate vice president for student affairs.
- Summer school tuition and fees were established for the summer of 2002. The percentage increases mirror the increases for the current regular session. Tuition is unchanged for Virginia undergraduate ($52/hour) and increased from $248/hour to $270/hour for out-of-state undergraduates. In-state graduate rates increase from $114/hour to $118/hour; out-of-state graduate rates increases from $402/hour to $440/hour.
- The board approved a recommendation to change the name of the Graduate School to the College of Graduate and Professional Programs. The new college combines the current graduate school with the continuing education program.
- Charles W. King Jr., vice president for administration and finance, told the board that the state Department of Planning and Budget had pre-approved the following 11 capital outlay projects at JMU and asked the university to provide additional information on the projects:
- CISAT A-3, a $28.4 million project.
- Center for the Arts, $43.8 million.
- Music Recital Hall, $27.8 million.
- Technology infrastructure, $8.8 million.
- Library for campus area east of Interstate 81, $24.8 million.
- Six renovation projects: Harrison Hall and Annex, $11.9 million; Miller Hall, $16.6 million; Cleveland Hall, $7.1 million; Roop Hall, $12.1 million; Bluestone residence halls, phase 3, $9 million; and Warren Hall, $1.8 million.
- The board approved a request to ask the Governor and General Assembly to increase JMU's base operating budget by $12 million, the first $6 million in 2003 and an additional $6 million in 2004. A recent legislative study said that JMU should have an additional $24-$26 million in its annual operating budget. This request would meet half that goal.
- The board approved a revised manual for the Board of Visitors
- In closed session, the board discussed the possible purchase of two pieces of property near the university. The board directed the university's administration to proceed with negotiations and purchase of the properties.
Board of Visitors
