Meeting of the Board of Regents | February 2009

                                                                       Report of

                                     REGENTS HIGHER EDUCATION COMMITTEE

                                                                              to

                                                           The Board of Regents

February 10, 2009

              Your Higher Education Committee held its scheduled meeting on February 10, 2009.   All members were present except for Regents Cofield, Cohen and Chapey, who were excused.

Consent Agenda

Your Committee recommends that the Board of Regents authorize the State University of New York Board of Trustees to confer the Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree on duly qualified students successfully completing registered B.S. programs at the State University College of Technology at Canton effective February 10, 2009.   [HE (CA) 1]

Your Committee recommends that the Board of Regents approve the proposed permission to operate effective February 10, 2009, to authorize the University of Pennsylvania to use five clinical agencies in New York for clinical education of students in six of its Master of Science in Nursing degree programs.    [HE (CA) 2]

Action Items

The Committee discussed the recommendations of the State Professional Standards and Practices Board for Teaching on New York State Professional Development Standards.  The discussion included feedback and comments concerning the amount of time teachers spend on professional development and the value of test scoring as a means of professional development.  The Committee recommends that the Regents endorse the proposed New York State Professional Development Standards and that Department staff proceed with implementation as appropriate.   The Department will disseminate the Professional Development Standards widely and will develop a guidance document to accompany the Standards. In addition, the Department will propose amendments to pertinent sections of Commissioner’s Regulations to add reference to the Professional Development Standards in district professional development and annual professional performance review processes. 

[HE (A) 1]

MOTION FOR ACTION BY FULL BOARD

              Mr. Chancellor and Colleagues:  Your Higher Education Committee recommends, and I move, that the Board of Regents act affirmatively upon each recommendation in the written report of the Committee's deliberations at its meeting on February 10, 2009, copies of which have been distributed to each Regent.

MATTERS NOT REQUIRING BOARD ACTION

CUNY Master Plan – 2008-2012 – The Committee discussed the introduction and first two chapters of the 2008-2012 CUNY Master Plan.  Committee members discussed the importance of dropout and retention rates in all community colleges and whether CUNY has specific strategies designed to address these problems.  The issues in the CUNY Master Plan directly affect many of the P-16 policy issues of the Board of Regents (closing the achievement gap, teacher preparation, CTE, etc.).  CUNY leadership has been invited to the March meeting of the Board of Regents to discuss how their work coincides with the work of the Department.   In addition to those already invited, the Committee suggests that invitations also go out to a CUNY Dean of Education; a staff person from the Chancellor’s office who manages the program for students with disabilities; and an opportunity programs specialist.  It was also suggested that someone who represents the Black Male Initiative would be helpful to this policy conversation the Board of Regents are having on the low performance of Black males.   [HE (D) 1]

Overview of Higher Education in New York State: Looking at the Data – Staff provided an overview of higher education data (enrollment, performance, faculty, degrees earned and student financial aid).   The Committee members asked staff to bring back this information for a full Board discussion, taking into consideration latest developments associated with the downturn in the economy and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Stimulus Package).   [HE (D) 2]

              That concludes our report.

                                                                                                  _______________________________

                                                                                            Harry Phillips, 3rd, Co-Chairperson

                                                                                            ________________________________

                                                                                            Milton L. Cofield, Co-Chairperson