USF Lakeland Campus Board Chair John Ramil convened the meeting of the USF Lakeland Campus Board at the USF Lakeland Campus at 9:00 a.m. with the following members present: Mr. John Frost, Mrs. Carole Philipson, Mr. John Ramil, Chair. Excused Absences: Ms. Kelly Underhill and Ms. Seretha Tinsley. Dr. Judy Genshaft, represented by Provost S. David Stamps, and Dr. Preston Mercer, Vice President and Campus Executive Officer, were also present.

1. Introductions

Mr. Ramil welcomed the Board and interested friends of USF and congratulated USF Lakeland for their hard work in turning out approximately 100 highly qualified graduates in 2002.

Provost Stamps also congratulated the Lakeland faculty and administration for increased enrollments and new programs. Dr. Stamps indicated he has been working closely with Dr. Mercer to develop a full complement of classes on the Lakeland campus and reiterated his appreciation of Dr. Mercer and his spirit of cooperation during this rapid growth time at USF Lakeland. Mr. J. D. Alexander from the Polk County Legislative delegation was present and was thanked for his support of the USF Lakeland Campus initiatives. Dr. Mercer discussed the important economic impact of the arts in Polk County. A report has been developed and was well received by the community. Copies were offered to anyone interested in reading it. The report is also located on our website (http://www.lakeland.usf.edu). The findings in the report support the conclusion that cultural arts are a strong magnet for economic growth in the region. Dan Stetson, President of the Polk County Cultural Arts Board included a letter of support as a part of the report as well.

2. Approval of May 3, 2002 Minutes

Ms. Philipson motioned to accept minutes as presented. Mr. Frost seconded the motion. The minutes were approved unanimously without correction.

3. RFP for Land Acquisition

Before discussion began, Dr. Mercer indicated that there were some changes in the guidelines for land acquisition and asked the Chair’s permission to substitute the most current and correct RFP process for the copy that is in the agenda. The Board agreed. Dr. Mercer shared some history:

In 1999, Chancellor Adam Herbert put forward an idea that USF Lakeland should have a separate campus due to the growth of the campus and this was being discussed openly when Dr. Mercer arrived in 1999. Clear Springs Land Development President Stan Phelps contacted Dr. Mercer and indicated that there was land available in the NE quadrant of Bartow and offered it to USF for campus development. President Genshaft has been very supportive of the Regional campuses and has given USF Lakeland more autonomy along the same lines as that granted to Sarasota/Manatee and St. Petersburg by the last Legislative session. USF Lakeland and Dr. Mercer appreciate and value our relationship with USF Tampa and the tremendous resources available from Tampa but also realize that a measure of autonomy is healthy. Dr. Genshaft and Dr. Mercer talked with the high tech corridor group and announced at that time that we were interested in participating in the development of the Research park that was being discussed by the Williams Company. They contacted us and indicated that land was available to USF to build a campus in the research park. We have two offers for land to develop a new campus site. There may be opportunity for more than one site.

Dr. Mercer attended a national meeting of regional campus administrators and brought back a new word for more than one location or site; “twigs.” Twigs are created by branches which grow branches of their own. Branches nationwide are expanding into their communities and developing “twig” sites. The possibility of a central campus developing sites or locations in the service area where cohorts can be taught and the public served in Polk, Highland and Hardee counties might be possible for USF Lakeland. A presence in our service area can act as a cultural and economic magnet for expansion. Our faculty are prepared to go out into the community to teach and plan to use distance learning and blended courses (a mix of teaching in person and over the net and other media avenues) to better serve the area.

Dr. Carl Carlucci, Chief Financial Officer at USF Tampa, and Dr. Mercer talked about developing a new campus. Dr. Mercer responded that community involvement from the bottom up was responsible for interest in developing a new site. Polk County and central Florida are rapidly growing and research qualified faculty and graduate students partnering with industry will help accommodate this growth.

Lisa Bricker of Clear Springs Land Development gave Dr. Mercer a copy of the letter Stan Phelps wrote to Chancellor Blackwell offering some land he would like to donate to USF Lakeland for a campus. Mr. Blackwell responded that under the legislation that will go into effect in 2003, the process for planning and implementing of a new branch campus starts at the university level with the development of a detailed proposal. Dr. Mercer interpreted this to mean it would be appropriate to begin the process here in our community and with our Board. University Board Of Trustees would then be asked to approve the proposal and move it forward to the Florida Board of Education and ultimately to the Legislature for action. Mr. Blackwell suggested that Mr. Phelps work with the President at USF to develop a proposal and consensus at the local level. At this point the discussions are general and preliminary considerations for land acquisition. Mr. Ramil agreed to have the corrected document showing the current process for land acquisition given to the Board to replace the document that was reviewed by the Board prior to the meeting.
Many processes are changing as there is clearer understanding of the new governance in place, as mandated by the Legislature.

Dr. Mackey discussed the process of acquiring land as we look for new sites for the USF Lakeland Campus. Mr. Frost was concerned about a possible conflict of interest and disclosed that his law firm has represented the Clear Springs Land Development Company. He is also involved on the same side of a law suit with Williams Company in another matter. Mr. Lavandera felt that there was not a conflict of interest at this time. He also indicated that the document that had been distributed to the Board prior to the meeting for their review was not substantively different from the one that the Board members are now receiving. Dr. Mercer indicated that no action would be requested regarding the document.

Dr. Mackey reiterated that President Genshaft and Vice President Mercer had asked that the preliminary considerations for land acquisition be examined. The key issues are outlined in the document’s first paragraph (document attached). After January 7 of 2003 the University Board of Trustees will be granted full powers that are being delegated. Any land acquired should be vested in the UBOT subsequent to that time. In the past, the USF Foundation has been involved in the gifting and titling of property. The statutory language will have to be interpreted to help us decide whether the State Board of Education will have to be involved in the approval process prior to the acceptance of a gift of property. As USF moves forward in this process all stages will be reported to the USF Lakeland Campus Board. A master plan will be developed according to the State Statutes is in the preliminary stages. The process for reviewing land proposals would allow us to view the proposals we now have on the table in a practical and comprehensive way along with others that we may receive will be developed. The Lakeland Campus Board will be involved in reviewing of proposals and decision making for land consideration A suggestion would be development of a work group consisting of representatives from University departments and other representatives chosen to work on this.
The goal will be to have a thorough understanding of what is required and review of all proposals using some common ground and measures against which to make judgments and recommendations. Possible actions are outlined in the USF Lakeland Campus Land Acquisition Plan document distributed today to the Board. There is a specific process that would need to be implemented. Our goal is to have this process underway in the fall term this year.

The terminology of new versus existing campus locations was introduced by Provost Stamps. The Statutes under which the Boards operate are new and this is the first issue of property to a university since the changes. The University shall submit to the Board of Education any new or relocated campus sites for approval. Whether or not this is will be a new campus or moving an existing campus may be important to clarify. We can assume that we will be approaching the State Board of Education at some time during this process. Dr. Mackey commented that Dr. Mercer’s concept of “twigs” might be an important concept when determining the process. Ms. Philipson inquired about any statutory language that defined the term ”new campus.” The consensus was that there was not.

The school code re-write and the devolution of authority to the Boards of Trustees was one of bringing local control to the Universities. The Boards will have primary responsibility for operational issues and some policy decisions, while the Board of Education will develop overarching policy. Dr. Mercer asked if we should drop the word “new” from the discussion of the campus moving to a different location. Serving the needs of citizens of this community is our priority and we might want to hold open the option for location and defining the terminology to be used as long as possible.

To allow the flexibility of keeping our campus enterprise going in the proper direction, Mr. Alexander was recognized and pointed out that the Board of Education is still subordinate to the Legislature and that the ultimate policy maker for the State is the Legislature so the Legislative delegation can provide direction to the State Board of Education during the next legislative session. Mr. Ramil indicated that we should be as flexible as possible and not limit options in any way. Mr. Ramil spoke for the USF Lakeland Board in indicating that a way will be found to make this relocation happen and encouraged the administration to continue the process. No action by the Board at this time was requested. Dr. Mackey indicated that the support and encouragement to pursue this issue by the Board, at this time, was all that was being sought and wanted the record to show that.

Dr. Mercer will work with the Board to develop a proposal regarding the RFP process. With the Board’s concurrence, Mr. Ramil will report the discussions today to the UBOT at its next meeting. Mr. Alexander appreciated the Board looking at the issue of enlarging the educational opportunities with a relocated campus based on the 600,000 citizens in the service area, compared to the 800,000 in Pinellas County. He indicated that there was justification for this based on our population here in Polk County, and we should be moving to enlarge educational opportunity and economic development for the future of our community. Given his discussions with his legislative colleagues, administration at USF and this community, he is confident that this is the direction we need to take, and he will work to help USF move this forward in support of USF Lakeland, the university and education in general and indicated that we are fortunate to have USF in this community. Mr. Ramil thanked Mr. Alexander for his continued support to USF. Jeff Muir from USF Government Relations indicated that he would do what he could to assist in the process.

4. USF Lakeland Board Procedures

Adequate insurance coverage for the Board members was discussed. Legal Council for the USF Lakeland Board, Mr. Hank Lavandera, indicated that this Board was not created by statute but mirrors in authority and obligations the two statutorily created Boards for USF Sarasota/Manatee and USF St. Petersburg. The question of directors and officers insurance coverage for this Board was researched and it was determined that the insurance currently in force covers the regional Boards and it is assumed that the Lakeland Board is also covered (Refer to letter dated April 15, 2002 and by reference is incorporated into these minutes). In his estimation the Board is acting as an agent of the State and is covered by the insurance policy through risk management. The Board would be defended as any other state agency would be.

After some further discussion, a motion by Mr. Frost to approve and adopt the USF Lakeland Board Procedures was made and seconded by Ms. Philipson. The vote to approve and adopt the USF Lakeland Board Procedures as presented was unanimous. Mr. Ramil will present the “Procedures” to the University Board of Trustees at their next meeting.

5. Budget presentation and Approval

Dr. Mercer introduced information regarding continuation of the budget of $5M from last year (2000-2001) as well as the new budget approved for the new fiscal year beginning July 1, which was increased by approximately 50% over last year. Dr. Mercer indicated that our budget has increased 300% in the last three years, with a 50% increase just this year. Documents have been sent forth for funds requested for July 2003 and this information has been provided to the Board. We have created a plan to increase programs, augment current programs and hire faculty and support staff to support these new and augmented programs. A $2.7M increase brings our 2002/03 budget to over $8.5 M. OB1 and OB2 designations describe state forms that are submitted each year to describe how the funds will be allocated. Branch campuses receive funding from Branches and Centers to grow new programs and increase access for citizens of our service area. The last document provides information to support our need for additional space to house new faculty. A contract to purchase four modular buildings to hold 35 to 40 new faculty and staff has been let to construct this needed space. This will be financed with the carry forward funds from this last fiscal year. Distance learning will play a larger part in our course delivery system and new equipment will be purchased for that as well. The Education, Information Technology and Business programs are responsible for an 88% increase, and this is where we are hiring the bulk of our new faculty. We have gone from 6 faculty in 1999 to 25 this fall, and we are ready to move forward with another 10 faculty searches. We want to have qualified people and are hiring tenure track faculty with research agendas in order to grow this campus as an academic scholarly research environment. Our student population has grown from about 600 students in 1999 to about 1210 students on campus this summer. We are currently working in conjunction with Sarasota to develop shared programs to bring additional programs and opportunities to both campuses.

Josh Bresler identified some items on the budget and explained what those amounts were. A single entry under reclassifications and salary adjustments were for 11 employees. After further discussion Mr. Ramil requested a motion to approve the budgets as presented. Ms. Philipson motioned to accept the budgets as presented which was seconded by Mr. Frost. The vote was unanimous.

Dr. Mercer told the Board about a grant to USF Lakeland to provide training for the elder care givers in Polk County which puts our faculty out in the community. We are writing grants with the Polk County School Board to train principals and working with the Central Florida Development Council. We want the community and our service area to think of USF Lakeland as “their university.” Dr. Mercer thanked the Board for helping us move forward.

Before adjourning the meeting, Mr. Ramil requested that the Board be polled to determine a date the next Board meeting and requested that Lorie Miros proceed to do that.

Minutes recorded and transcribed by Lorie Miros