Contact:
Kelly Layman
Executive Director of Communications
850-245-0466
Kelly.Layman@flbog.edu
News
01/13/2012
ACTIONS TAKEN: Select Committee on USF Polytechnic, Florida Board of Governors, Jan. 12
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — January 12, 2012
FOR MORE INFO:
University of South Florida: Lara Wade, larawade@usf.edu, 813-974-9060
Florida Board of Governors: Kelly Layman, kelly.layman@flbog.edu, 850-245-0466
“ACTIONS TAKEN”: MEETING OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON USF POLYTECHNIC, JAN. 12
ORLANDO—The Florida Board of Governors' Select Committee on USF Polytechnic met today, and highlights of presentations and topics covered are below.
Please consult our web site at www.flbog.edu for the meeting agenda and other materials. The USF web site related to the transition is located at: http://system.usf.edu/ (click on USF Polytechnic: Tracking Progress to the Future.)
Select Committee Chair Morteza "Mori" Hosseini of Daytona Beach opened the meeting, and asked his fellow members and everyone in the conference room to introduce themselves. All three members of the Select Committee were present: Chair Hosseini, Richard "Dick" Beard of Tampa, and Norman Tripp of Fort Lauderdale. Additional Board members present at the meeting were Michael Long of Sarasota, the student representative on the BOG, and Tico Perez of Orlando, Chair of the Board's Budget and FInance Committee.
USF Board of Trustees member Brian Lamb is serving as the Chair of the Polytechnic transition group for USF and made opening remarks outlining the major areas of organization and activity to date. The USF BOT's Oversight Committee is Chair Lamb, and USF BOT members Stephanie Goforth, Stephen Mitchell, Byron Shinn, and Jordan Zimmerman, as well as President Judy Genshaft, and Interim Chancellor and CEO David Touchton at Polytechnic. Chair Lamb was joined by several members of the USF Oversight Committee at this meeting. USF President Judy Genshaft also was present, along with several members of her leadership team for budget and finance, academic affairs, facilities and infrastructure, and other institutional operating areas.
Interim USF Polytechnic Chancellor David Touchton provided an update on the process to start implementing the Board of Governors' benchmarks, including the new committees that have been formed for specific purposes. He indicated that some of these work groups formed have held campus-wide meetings that will continue, and that there is an overall transition committee.
USF's team provided to the Select Committee an initial draft of preliminary sections for the accreditation application that has been updated since the first correspondence with the regional accreditation body in 2010. This is an ongoing work product that will be finalized soon. Several BOG members had questions about timing, and requested more details about timing of pursuing all of the benchmarks at its next meeting. Accreditation is a major issue, Chair Hosseini noted, that the BOG select committee considers a primary item of interest due to the voluminous information required to be independently reviewed and granted, and the time that will require.
USF's team also reported that the final design documents will be received from the architect this month, and that construction company is providing its final timetable soon. The final updated master plan for the campus is about to be received as well. Currently, USF Polytechnic utilizes academic space in a joint-use facilities arrangement with Polk State College.
BOG members also heard from a representative of the search firm hired by USF to conduct the process for a new Regional Chancellor for USF Polytechnic. The search committee members who have been asked all have agreed to serve, and USF President Genshaft asked the BOG members for any additional nominations beyond appointments made so far from the community, business leaders and from campuses.
The next meeting of the Board's Select Committee will be determined, and the meetings will be held quarterly. Chair Hosseini will provide an update on this meeting to the full Board of Governors at its next regular meeting, Jan. 18-19, in Tallahassee.
