Highlights from the July 21 Board of Trustees Meeting

07/25/2014

The Jacksonville State University Board of Trustees met on Monday, July 21, at 10 a.m. on the eleventh floor of the Houston Cole Library.

Although many of the day's proceedings were temporarily eclipsed by University President Dr. William A. Meehan's announcement of his July 1, 2015 retirement, among other business the board approved three resolutions and adopted the University's 2014-2015 Interim Operations Budget.

View the July 21, 2014 Board Agenda

After recognizing incoming Faculty Senate President Dr. Melanie Wallace and Student Government Association President Brett Johnson, the board adopted minutes from the April 21 regularly scheduled meeting, and also the June 16 special called meeting.

Read the April 21, 2014 Board Minutes
Read the June 16, 2014 Board Minutes

The board then welcomed several city leaders, including Jacksonville Mayor Johnny Smith and City Council President Mark Jones, who were available to discuss future development on West Mountain Avenue, as well as a proposed land swap.

For consideration by the board was Resolution 560 authorizing University President Dr. William A. Meehan to negotiate terms of a property swap between the University and the City.

The swap would exchange University-owned property made up of the Kitty Stone Elementary School campus (including Forney Hall), the Eastwood School and 12 acres for City-owned property on the site of the former Union Yarn Mill, a total of 10.51 acres.

Mayor Johnny Smith told the board that the city has considered several prospective uses for the Kitty Stone Elementary School campus, including moving Jacksonville City Hall there. He stated that plans for Forney Hall are uncertain at this time because the City does not have an assessment of the cost of restoration. Future use of Eastwood School also remains to be determined. Jacksonville State University is interested in acquiring the mill property for Physical Plant and Warehousing.

The Board voted unanimously in favor of the resolution.

Read Resolution 560

Next up for consideration and a vote was Resolution 561 authorizing the University to charge the increased cost of Public Education Employees' Health Insurance Plan (PEEHIP) to active employees. JSU has participated in PEEHIP since 1996 with funding for the employer cost of the insurance being provided by the Alabama Legislature through O&M appropriations. This year, however, state funding will not be sufficient to cover the increased cost. As a result, active employees will pay between $46 and $114.67 more per pay period for their coverage. The resolution passed with no opposition.

Read University Statement Regarding Resolution 561
Read Resolution 561

Also before the board was Resolution 562, a Parameters Resolution that allows the bonding agency (Merchant Capital) to sell refinanced the Series 2008 Bond issue. Standard and Poors rated the university with an "A" rating and a stable outlook.

Read Resolution 562


Also taking place at Monday's meeting was approval of the University's 2014-2015 Interim Budget of $110,141,711. Among the largest estimated expenditures are $41.7 million for instruction, $17.1 million for institutional support, $16.7 million for scholarships and fellowships, and $10.9 million for student services.

View the 2014-2015 Interim Operations Budget


In other business the board:

  • heard an update from Dr. Alicia Simmons, executive director of JSU's Office of Planning and Research, regarding the CORE initiative and the Second Annual CORE Academy, which was held June 3-5 at JSU;
  • heard an update on the impact of the University's partnerships with Chinese universities;
  • were introduced to new faculty members Joseph Scott Morgan (Center for Applied Forensics) and Seth Johnson (new Art Department head), as well as were notified that David Thornton is now interim department head in MCIS due to the recent retirement of Donnie Ford.
  • received the following administrative reports (click to read reports)

President
Provost
Athletic
Vice President for Information Technology
Vice President for University Advancement

The next quarterly meeting of the board will be October 20, 2014.