2/11/04 Administrative Council Meeting Minutes

In attendance: Dr. Claudia Limbert, Dr. Sheila Adams, Nora Miller, Scott Rawles, Dr. Bucky Wesley, Perry Sansing, Patsy McDaniel, Mary Margaret Roberts, Anika Perkins, Dr. Barbara Hunt, Carol Morgan, and Dr. Narem Reddy.

Absent: Dr. Mark Bean and Cynthia Hembree.


The minutes from 1/28/04 were approved.

General Update:

Dr. Claudia Limbert reported that her trip to Washington, D.C., February 2-5 with Scott Rawles, Perry Sansing, and Mary Margaret Roberts went well. Due to the ricin scare at the Senate Building, Mr. Sansing rescheduled appointments with Senator Thad Cochran and Senator Trent Lott at alternate locations. She said the meetings with MUW’s congressional delegation went well. Dr. Limbert and the group presented six new proposals, gave a campus update, and thanked them for funding two of MUW’s four proposals last year. She said that the congressmen were very complimentary. She said they also had good visits with donors in the area. In addition, they met with representatives of Korn Ferry who will assist with MUW’s Provost/VPAA search. Dr. Limbert said she will appoint a new campus search committee soon.

Dr. Bucky Wesley said the Office of Admissions is very busy with recruiting efforts. A Spring W Day was held February 6 with 60 prospective students in attendance. The next Spring W Days are scheduled for March 5 and April 23. The annual W Day is set for March 27. He said they are scheduling dinners at the President’s Home for prospective students from MSMS and Heritage Academy in an effort to recruit more local students. Early registration will be held on April 2 to make registration more convenient for incoming students. A counselor luncheon for area schools will be March 4, and one will be scheduled for Starkville too. A mailout will go out in April to 10,000 prospective students who are juniors. Dr. Wesley stressed that the assistance of the entire university community is needed with recruiting. He said Patsy McDaniel has given him a list of alumni who would be helpful, and he said his office will provide funding for some student organizations to send postcards to prospective students.

Carol Morgan mentioned that a staff member has expressed concern about who is invited to the diversity breakfast. Several Administrative Council members noted this event is held in conjunction with Black History Month. They said some people do get special invitations to show special appreciation, but that the event is open to everyone on campus.

Dr. Barbara Hunt announced that the Faculty Senate wants to recommend something be done to honor the late Dr. Joe Portera. She said naming a building was the first response, but she has received other suggestions from faculty members. These suggestions will be given to Dr. Limbert soon.

Dr. Limbert added that the Student Programming Board has made a proposal for something to be done for Dr. Portera as a green space next to Mabel Ward Home.

Dr. Hunt said some confusion among the faculty with P.S. 1313 (Criteria and Procedures for Faculty Salary Increases) has been cleared up. She said she recently was invited to Jones Community College to make a presentation and give out materials to education majors. She had the opportunity to speak one-on-one with several prospective students.

Dr. Narem Reddy said that the Director’s Council is working on making a recommendation for allocating $25,000 for staff professional development. He also noted his office is collecting the Staff Benefits Survey. He said there has been a strong response to this survey.

Patsy McDaniel noted the Lowndes County Chapter’s Valentine Fund Raiser is set for February 14 at the home of Sarah and Russell Kyle. The Commercial Dispatch had a full page about the event in last Wednesday’s paper that has created a lot of interest. The Alumni Achievement Award Committee met in early February to choose the next honorees. They are Eddie Betcher, Josephine Tierce, Susan Puckett, Jenny Katool, and Gail Laws. They will be honored during a reception in the Puckett House before Homecoming Convocation in April. Dr. Barbara Garrett will be honored at Homecoming with the Celebration of Service Award. The New Orleans Chapter will meet March 14, and the Jackson Metro Chapter will meet April 3. She said many other chapters are looking at dates to schedule meetings. She announced that alumna Alma Turner has been named to the Columbus Municipal School Board, and alumna Terry Lynn Richardson was named Columbus Municipal School District Teacher of the Year for 2004. She said the Alumni Board Winter Workshop is scheduled for February 20 and 21 with approximately 50 alumni to attend.

Anika Perkins mentioned the IHL Storybook Project, which will be distributed to all third grade classrooms in Mississippi during March or April. The storybooks will include lesson plans and a power point presentation. She said her office is working on the next issue of Visions, which will come out in March.

Nora Miller announced that representatives from MEMA visited campus recently to work on closing out several small projects. She said MEMA indicated they are pleased with the progress that has been made. The PEAB removal project has been extended two weeks because the landfill couldn’t keep up. Poindexter is in the preplanning stage for estimates for a complete renovation. The engineer who has looked at the project expressed some concerns about a stability issue in the auditorium, so the auditorium has been closed. Alternative sites are being arranged for activities that are normally held in the auditorium. Bids for Martin Hall will be advertised soon. She said there has been talk about making changes with the state’s health insurance. Several options have been mentioned, but there are no definite plans yet. She said the proposed freezes on hiring of personnel and purchasing of equipment should not effect us. She also mentioned the McCoy Initiative, which is a plan to increase economic development in Mississippi. She said IHL has come up with several proposals for the McCoy Initiative.


Perry Sansing said the Staff Classification Committee has held meetings with staff members. The committee is now compiling the information and will make a recommendation soon.

Mary Margaret Roberts noted that the planned giving and annual fund mailers will go out in February, several small development dinners are planned at the President’s Home for February and March, and they are working on a speaker for October’s Welty Weekend.

Scott Rawles said the Foundation has received almost $4 million in gifts, pledges, and grants for FY 04 with several months remaining in the fiscal year compared to $764,000 for FY 02. He said the Foundation Board met recently to hear the presentation for the prospective campaign plan.

Dr. Sheila Adams gave an update from the academic divisions. The annual Health and Kinesiology Health Fair is scheduled for March 3 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. H&K is implementing a newsletter with information for undergraduate and graduate majors. Josh Hollis, a communications major, will receive an award this month at the Southeastern Journalism Conference in Troy, Alabama. The Division of Business and Communication has been approved as a host site for the Distinguished Lecture Series. The series is designed to encourage women and minorities to pursue graduate education in computer science and engineering. The Cooperative Teacher Luncheon and Workshop is set for March. The speech-language pathology faculty are exploring ways to expand some of their services to hearing impaired children ages 3-5 through grant money. The Division of Science and Mathematics is hosting the annual Mississippi Regional Science Bowl on February 21. The mathematics faculty will attend the Mathematical Association of America meeting March 4-6 with a team of four students who will compete in a team mathematics competition. The Division of Nursing is working on a nurse camp proposal, and Nursing Career Day is scheduled for February 12. The Women’s Managerial Workshop will be March 24. She said the Honors College has several events coming up. They are: the Honors Poster Session on February 14, a presentation by Dr. Brian Anderson on 911 on February 19, a presentation by Dr. Gloria Bunnell on Harry Potter on February 26, and a presentation by Dr. James Roth on how the brain works on March 4.

Dr. Hunt mentioned that TGIF, sponsored by the Division of Education and Human Sciences, will be held April 2.

Mr. Rawles announced the Women’s Leadership Forum is set for March 25.

Dr. Limbert said Ricki Garrett will be presented the first MUW Woman of the Year Award at the Women’s Leadership Forum.

Dr. Wesley announced Milly McDonnell, executive director of recreational sports, is now on campus.

Dr. Limbert mentioned that the Miss W Pageant went well this past weekend.

Dr. Hunt added that the Red Dress Day to benefit the American Heart Association was successful.