Draft Committee Meeting Minutes - December 12, 2002

BOARD OF VISITORS
Student Affairs Committee
Board of Visitors Conference Room
August 29, 2002
8:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.

MINUTES (draft)

Mrs. Carrington, Chair, called the meeting to order at 8:00 a.m. Roll call indicated that the following committee members were in attendance and that a quorum was present:

Committee Members Present:

Mrs. Teresa H. Carrington, Chair
Ms. Delores E. Archer
Mr. Willie Brown

Committee Members Absent:

Mr. Alfred Austin
Mrs. Maria A. Ortiz

Other Board Members Present:

Dr. Alvin Bryant, Rector
Mr. Jack L. Ezzell, Jr.
Mr. Colvin Gibson

Members of NSU Staff Present:

Dr. Marie V. McDemmond, President
Mr. Larry Curtis, Vice President for Student Affairs
Mrs. Michelle Marable, Director of Admissions
Mr. Marty Miller, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs
Mr. Orby Moss, Director of Athletics
Mrs. Terricita Sass, Associate Director, Office of Planning & Budget
Dr. Alvin J. Schexnider, Executive Vice President
Mr. Curtis Wall, Chair, NSU Faculty Senate
Mrs. Deloris H. Smith, Recorder

Student Representative Present:

Ms. Christine Carter, President, Student Government Association

Others Present:

Mr. Phil Walzer, Reporter, Virginian-Pilot
Mr. Jasper Hendricks, NSU Student

Mrs. Archer motioned, seconded by Mr. Brown and unanimously voted by the Committee to approve the minutes of the August 29, 2002 meeting.

Admissions Report - Mrs. Michelle Marable, Director of Admissions, reported the following regarding completed applications and admissions offers:

• For 2002, 4,700 freshmen completed the admissions process, and 3,640 received admission offers, for a yield rate of 77.45% vs. 80% in 2001.
  

• Of the 4,700 freshmen who completed the application process, 1,178 actually enrolled, for a yield rate of 25.06%.
  

• Of the 3,640 admission offers made, 1,178 actually enrolled, for a yield rate of 32.36 %.

3. Enrollment Report - Mrs. Terricita Sass gave a PowerPoint presentation pertaining to the enrollment and enrollment trends. Some of the information presented is as follows:

• For the Fall of 2002, the final student headcount was 6,839; the FTE was 5,492.
  

• An increasing number of students (including freshmen) are attending part-time
  

• Students who attend full-time and are seeking a degree are better prepared and more likely to progress.
  

• The total number of graduate students this year is 871--the highest increase since 1996. This total has increased by 15% in one year--which is astronomical. Social Work had the highest percentage of degree-seeking students.
  

• Severe disabilities (Graduate School--MA) had an enrollment of 40--their largest number ever.
  

• The average SAT score for entering freshmen was 873; the average high school GPA 2.64. The number of new freshmen was 1,178 (58% female; 42% male). A special campus male initiative program has contributed to the increase in male students (up from 39% in Fall 2001). The average number of hours entering freshmen enrolled in per semester was 14. Most of them (57%) came from in-state, and 74% resided in the residence halls.
  

• Freshman retention has reached 71%. Several factors contributed to this increase (ACCESS Program, advising, tutoring, increased academic support, reduced course loads, financial aid support, etc.).
  

• With reference to enrollment trends, in 1999, the credit hour change was instituted. In 2001, satisfactory academic progress was instituted. These trends did affect enrollment. There was not a negative affect in the Fall of 1999 because enrollment actually went up. The 2.3 GPA and 800 SAT admissions policy instituted in the Fall of 2001 had a direct affect on the number of freshmen that actually enrolled. This is what the University would want because it was seeking better prepared and better qualified students.
  

• Retention was also affected by the newly instituted policies. Retention tended to go up and down, which indicated that we really did not have a good handle on maintaining consistent retention. Students who were here in 1998 were impacted the most by the policy changes when they returned in 1999.They were the ones who received the "sticker shock" when coming back in 1999. Those from out of state were impacted even more with the tuition increase. When the higher SAT and GPA were instituted in 2000, students came back in 2001, which is an indication that a higher GPA and SAT will yield higher retention. Mr. Curtis added that more structured support services programs in residence halls; ACCESS Program initiatives and academic advising have contributed to retention also. These factors should help increase the graduation rate in the six-year time period.

Mrs. Carrington said that these policies were put into place in 1999 and 2001, whereby an assumption is made that these students would probably be sophomores. She then requested that for the next meeting, a report be given to show how this population has progressed (what the retention has been for this population from the sophomore to the junior level). Mrs. Sass said that she will provide this information at the next meeting.

Mrs. Carrington asked if it would be feasible or possible to try to get a better yield than 72% for entering freshmen. Mrs. Marable responded that we must keep in mind that because we are bringing in better qualified students, the competition for these students is fierce. Communication with these students has been increased to get them to select Norfolk State. Mrs. Sass added that we are not only competing with other public institutions both in state and out of state, and private institutions, but for-profit ones schools as well.

Mr. Curtis gave a brief overview of the tuition and fee schedule, which show the various fees, tuition amounts per semester hour, and housing costs for students.

Athletic Director’s Report - Mr. Moss reported the following:

• The Athletics Foundation now has more than 100 members. Several new board members have also been added. Emphasis is now on getting members to be active participants rather than just donors. A Hall of Fame Banquet is planned for the spring of 2003.
  

• The P. Diddy Concert held on Labor Day was not a financial success. It was learned that more support and resources are needed to sponsor a concert than a football game. Even so, the department still feels that it is an excellent idea to have a concert during this particular weekend and thus will make plans to have another one next year.
  

• The Athletic Department had a 7 million dollar budget this year but was forced to cut $225,000 during the football season because we had four rainy dates out of seven home games. Thus, revenue expectations were not met. This should have been a good financial season for football because it is very rarely that a school would have seven home games out of eleven.
  

• A search was conducted, and a new football coach has been hired--Coach Rick Comegy.
  

• He is an excellent coach with a lot of experience at our level. He is familiar with HBCU campuses (he comes to us from Tuskegee), and he has a record for winning. Two of his current staff members have made commitments to come to NSU. His contract will be for four years with a salary between 120 and 130 thousand dollars. He is pleased with the football budget and is very impressed with the facilities and the staff. He would like to see improvements in the weight room. The department has plans to make improvements in this area.

1. New Residence Hall - Mr. Curtis reported that a meeting was held last week with several investment banking companies to obtain bids from these financial institutions. Several vendors came and made presentations. The Foundation is working on transfer of the land to American Campus Housing, and permits are being obtained. Parking for this facility is being studied, with the idea of using shuttle busses. The proposal will be presented to the legislature in January in order to obtain permission to outsource this project to a private vendor. The timeline for completion of this project is June 2004.

Dr. Bryant asked if we had any other initiatives dealing with parking on campus. Mr. Miller cited various additions that had been made regarding campus parking, surveys that have been conducted, as well as personal observations that have been made. Shuttle bus transportation is provided for students throughout the campus during the day and night. The idea is being explored to have students purchase bus passes and ride the local bus versus driving. Satellite parking at Harbor Park has been used for football games. Mr. Wall cited a number of parking problems encountered by faculty members--many involving students parking in spaces specifically designated for faculty members. Mr. Miller said that tickets are written daily, but a major problem regarding on-campus parking is the fact that anyone can simply drive onto the campus with or without a parking decal. The only manned gate on campus is the gate in front of the Administration Building. Thus, there is no one to prevent people from driving onto the campus. Dr. Bryant recommended that the University take a closer look at the parking situation to remedy any existing problems for athletic and other events held on campus. Mrs. Carrington asked Mr. Miller to provide an update on the parking situation at the next meeting. Mr. Miller said that he would do so.

2. New Student Center - The student activities staff and several students, including the SGA President, visited student center facilities at several colleges and universities in November Ms. Carter stated that they included Virginia Tech, James Madison, Virginia Commonwealth, and the University of Virginia. She said that they were most impressed with the facility at James Madison and have requested the architect to use that at a pattern Norfolk State’s new building. They would like for it to include three levels, a swimming pool, amphitheater, coffee shop, fitness center, lounge, quiet area, game room, food court, etc. Mr. Curtis said that this is an 18 million dollar facility which will be funded with student fees. A survey was conducted with students to get their permission to proceed with the project; seventy per cent voted favorably for it. They will pay an additional $400 annually to cover this cost. The new building will not house any administrative offices. The current student center, built in 1968, will be renovated for those offices. This proposal will be presented to the General Assembly for approval in January. The time line for this building is 2004.

3. Student Government Report - Ms. Carter gave an overview of the various events sponsored by the SGA for Homecoming 2002. She said they had a very successful. Homecoming and commended the SGA advisor, Ms. Valerie Holmes, for her hard work with them during this period.
   

4. Graduates: Job Placements and Graduate School Enrollment Report - Mr. Miller stated that Dr. Cuevas had conducted a "graduating exit student survey" to look at what the job placement rate was for students actually employed. He then reviewed a summary of the survey results, which showed that decreasing percentages of students are reporting having jobs at graduation. Also, graduates increasingly are reporting plans to search for a job after graduation. It was found that more students are enlisting in the military due to increased enrollment in ROTC programs and the country’s economic situation. Career Services is now following those students who are not employed to check their employment status six months from now.

A job fair was held in October. More than 2,000 attended. Students were encouraged to go prepared, and they were. The University received very positive comments from business representatives regarding students who attended.

Career Services brings various representatives from business and industry to the campus to interview students. Many of them are participants in the Cluster Program. The office also conducts various activities to prepare students for the world of work. The director seeks internships for students. A schedule of recruiters coming to the campus is published and distributed monthly, and students sign up to come in for interviews. Mrs. Carrington requested that Mr. Ellis, Director of Career Services, be invited to the next meeting to give a report on job placement. Mr. Ellis will be invited. The committee would also like to know more about Congressman Scott’s job fair and the possibility of coordinating the two efforts.

There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 9:40 a.m.

	Respectfully submitted,
	_______________________________
	Larry Curtis Vice President for Student Affairs
	_______________________________
	Teresa Carrington, Chair Student Affairs Committee

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