President's Report 10/6/23

October 06, 2023 / Lyndsay Rhodes

President Timur Visit

Reminder that President Timur will attend Senate October 20th, 2023. She will give a brief presentation followed by Q&A. I survey went out Tuesday October 3rd, 2023, to collect questions for this meeting. The survey will close October 17th, 2023, to allow us time to organize questions into themes to facilitate the conversations. Please share this survey with your faculty.

President’s Cabinet Town Hall

The President and her cabinet will be holding a town hall on October 25th, 2023, in the Cohen Center Ballroom. Topics will include FGCU’s funding sources, current operating budget and allocations, and the upcoming legislative session. This will be a great opportunity to ask questions on how the budget works for our university and have a dialogue with university leadership. Additional details to come.

Board of Trustees & Board of Governors

The BOT met September 26th, 2023, for a full day Strategic Planning workshop. The BOT heard reports on topics including regional growth and demographic projections, campus master plan, budget, and student success. The day ended with a panel of community partners including Mr. Syd Kitson (Chairman, CEO, Kitson & Partners), Mr. Reinhold Schmieding (President, Founder, Arthrex), Mr. Mike Swindle (Superintendent of Hendry County), Ms. Rosemary Fllori (Executive Director, Glades County Economic Development Council), and Dr. Larry Antonucci (President, CEO, Lee Health). There was productive discussion among board members and the Strategic Planning Committee. The President is meeting with BOT members individually to follow up on input to the strategic plan.

The next full BOT meeting will be December 7th, 2023. The next Board of Governors meeting will be November 8-9th at UCF. The Trustee Summit and orientation will also be held during this meeting. More information to come once I receive a schedule of activities.

Strategic Plan

The Strategic Plan Steering Committee sent out a survey to gather feedback on drafts of the FGCU mission, vision, and goals. The survey was emailed out to all faculty on Wednesday, October 4th, 2023. This should only take approximately 15 minutes to complete and is due by October 10th. Please encourage faculty to take the time to review this information and provide feedback. The Steering Committee will continue to have several more events this semester and more information can be found on their website.

Eagle Advocacy Legislative Kickoff

The Eagle Advocacy Legislative Kickoff for the 2024 Legislative session was held October 5th, 2023. President Timur presented an overview of the BOT approved agenda and requested support from the Southwest Florida Legislative Delegation. Legislated budget request items include funds for operational support to enhance degree completion programs, development of three-year degree programs, micro-credentialing, and digital badges, among other initiatives ($10.9 Million in recurring funds) and capital projects: AB-10 ($49 Million), Read Hall renovations (Phase I, $2.6 Million), and the Wilson G. Bradshaw Library and Annex Renovations ($13.9 Million).

Office of Public Policy Events

The Office of Public Policy Events directed by Provost Rieger was created to foster civil discourse on contemporary public policy issues of interest to our FGCU community. The next event will take place on October 16, 2023, from 2-3pm in the Cohen Center Ballroom. The Event will feature Cornel West and Robert George debating Affirmative Action and the Cost of Higher Education, moderated by Christopher Phillips. An email with the details was sent out on September 29th, 2023.

Annual Training Reminders

Annual training in Workday is due October 9th, 2023. There is an additional required training module on Active Assailant that is due November 10th, 2023. I encourage you and all faculty to complete this training in a timely manner.

John Herman Award for Excellence in General Education

You received an email September 19, 2023, with information on the John Herman Award including the guidelines document. In memory of John Herman’s contribution to general education at FGCU, this award recognizes one member of our teaching community for their commitment to enhancing the liberal arts experience of FGCU students. Nominations should be sent to the Director of General Education, Dr. Joseph V. Ross (jvross@fgcu.edu) by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, November 17, 2023.  