Henry Brown, Committee Chair, called meeting to order at 1:05 P.M. on Saturday, February 28, 2004.

Welcome and Introductions

Attendance: Gregory Ardrey, Lindsay Bagnall, Valentino Bates, Mary Bird, Henry Brown, Andrew Cleveland, Mareisa Crow, Jessica Smoot duMaine, Arlan DeKock, Connie Eggert, Kandy Elder, Jacques Fransaw, Lawrence George, Jay Goff, Floyd Harris, Paula Lutz, Frank Mack, Gregory McClain, Alexandria Merritt, Robert Mitchell, James nicks Jr., Omoghene Obahor, Michael Ojo, Debra Robinson, Y.T. Shah, Gregory Skannal, Arica Spillers, Lynn Stichnote, Gary Thomas, and Henry Weibe.

There was a motion to approve the minutes of the October 12, 2003 meeting. There was a second and the motion passed.

Subcommittee Reports

NSBE/PCI – This report was given by Andrew Cleveland.

• Shared the results of the successful Pre College Initiative (PCI) weekend events and thanked the committee for their help and financial support.
• Indicated that funding for the 2004 PCI weekend did not cover all of the expenses; the cost exceeded the available funs by $800.00 and additional funds are needed for other NSBE events
• There was 48 participants in the 2004 PCI program.
• Greg McClain stated that John Deere would provide financial support for PCI in 2005and asked that he be provided with a license plate.
• Greg McClain wanted the committee to commit to a figure
• Henry Brown stated that NSBE should provide the committee with a written formal request for funding to support the PCI weekend and other recruitment activities.
• NSBE was asked to provide the number of seniors participating in the 2004 PCI.
• Lawrence George indicated all committee members, not just those in attendance, should be informed of commitments made during the meetings because such commitments are the responsibility of the entire committee.

Retention- Jessica Du Maine

• UMR is doing well retaining students. In view of this, Du Maine questioned the need for restructuring.
• There was a point of order because restructuring was not related to retention and administrative decisions are not a part of the committees’ responsibilities.
• Chair Brown suggested that questions related this issue be directed to the Chancellor or the Provost in a private meeting at a later date and time.

Recruitment Committee-The report was given by Lawrence George for Margaret Stockdale

• Stockdale worked with George and Lynn Stichnote in Admissions to increase the number of PCI participants from the Kansas City region.

Committee Reappointments

Lawrence George noted that several terms would end this year and requested feedback from the committee regarding potential candidates. Some are eligible for reappointment and he will contact them at a later date. He indicated that a female student is needed to fill the slot held by Alex Merritt. Merritt recommended Jessica Roberts be considered as the female student representative. A list of nominees that are predominantly engineering alumni was provided.

Reorganization -This report was presented by Jay Goff

• There is a drastic need to diversify, not only to increase the population of minorities but women, too.
• There are significant opportunities for recruiting underrepresented students due to the new the School of Business Management and Information System and the increased emphasis in Biological Sciences.
• A committee dedicated to the market of underrepresented students
• Coordination with other campuses is needed to enable UMR to match and/or exceed the enrollment and retention goals
• Focus points will be on Recruitment, Academic Support and Student Life.
• A chart describing the new organizational structure was distributed.
• Some positions will be reclassified.
• A concern was raised regarding the focus being shifted from minority students with the use the word diversity.
• Chancellor Thomas stated indicated that UMR needs get more of all types of students (women) not just African Americans and not just engineering majors.
• There was a suggestion to have a diverse marketing team for recruiting purposes.
• Val Bates indicated that we need to start recruiting students at the middle school level or lower.
• Chancellor Thomas indicated that we are trying to start a pre-college program to reach students in the lower grades (pre-K to 4th grade)

Scholarships- This report was prepared by Lindsay Bagnall and given by Connie Eggert

• The George scholarship has a balance of $175,917. The George scholars were:
• Fall 2003:

Andrew Thomas Cleveland $2,030

Christopher Allen Riney $1,970

• Winter 2004:

Andre L. Davis $1,720

Andrew Thomas Cleveland $2,280

• .MEP scholarship Endowment balance is $13,360

The guidelines for this endowment state that no scholarship will be given until the principal reaches $10,000, and it has recently reached that amount. The first scholarship will be granted for fall 2004 semester.

• The Georgia Mae Smith Nash scholarship Endowment balance is $151,043. The Nash scholars were:

• Fall 2003:

Lachelle Dion Prude $2,500

• Winter 2004:

Lachelle Dion Prude $2,500

• Martin Luther King (MLK) scholarship Endowment balance is $193,687; scholarship funds available total $13,253. The MLK scholars were:

• Fall 2003:

Ike Muonelo $2,002

Alexandria Merritt $2,943

• Winter 2004;

Ike Muonelo $3,352

In addition to the scholarship monies, the MSM-UMR Alumni Association has an NSBE-PCI Holding Account which has a current balance of $5,820 to be passed on to NSBE upon request to meet expenses for 2004 PCI.

Status of the Campus-This report was presented by Chancellor Thomas.

• There is a new Mission Statement
• Tuition will increase by 10%
• State appropriations will remain the same or decrease slightly
• There is changes in the degree programs offered at UMR (new MS Degree in Biomaterials, New MS Degree in Geotechnics, History and Political Science)
• The Committee’s Mission is to:

Help enhance educational opportunities for African-American students

Assist with recruitment and retention of African-American students, including long-term pre-college programs

Serve as role models for current African-American students

• Any personnel issues can be directed to the Chancellor his door is always open
• Debra Robinson addressed the new student life programs
• Kandy Elder will be moving to the Havener Center and heading up new programs
• Enrollment management is working with Athletics to recruit minorities
• Greg McClain indicated that the no child left behind will need to be part of this effort.
• Jessica Du Maine indicated that there are numerous programs that are being used to enhance k-12 recruiting and expressed interest in assisting with this iniative.

Dual Degree-

• The UM transition Conference will be on the 11th and 12th (Alex Merritt will be presenting
• The UM transfer system is responsible for over 45 model schools, 800 prospective transfers, 500 applicants per year, hundreds of course equivalencies (bringing in credit from other schools), review dual enrollment credit
• Our goal is to bring in 350 students in the Fall and another 100 in the Winter
• Increase transfers in under-enrolled areas
• Increase transfer diversity
• Atlanta University has a dual degree program with Georgia Tech (3+2 program)
• We are working on a program with the support of our community colleges (2+2) program.
• We have course equivalency outlines to show the classes needed for a student to get a dual degree
• There was an articulation agreement drawn up between UMR and Atlanta University
• There are Corporate Transfer Programs for Minority Students…Admissions would love to broaden this, and have it not just geared to engineering students.
• Greg McClain was concerned with the quality of math students may receive from other institutions
• Admissions is confident that they can analyze course content and reach an agreement on the amount credit allowed for courses transferred from another school
• Lawrence George informed the committee that he is still pursuing articulation agreements between UMR and Dillard and Xavier Universities.
• It was brought to the committee’s attention that the Hispanic population is increasing and there may be a need to rethink the committee’s charge. The committee decided to address this issue as needed.
• Henry Brown stated that over time the committee’s structure may evolve to include other minorities.

Reports

• Dr. DeKock indicated that the school of Business Management and Information Systems have 14% of minorities enrolled in its program.
• The college of Arts and Sciences have about 15%.
• UMR is looking into providing an Elementary Education Degree
• The MBA and a Masters degree in Biology are high on the priority list

New Business

• Mary Pulley is no longer the chair of the African American Cultural Recognition Committee (AACRC). Lawrence George is serving as the interim chair at this time.
• The 2005 joint Missouri Association of Blacks in Higher Education (MABHE)/Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Conference (LS MoAMP) will be held on the UMR campus
• MABHE is not a 501.c.3 entity yet, but will happen within the next year

Announcements

• Dinner to Jazz
• African Gala Night in April
• Diversity Panel
• Sub Committees need to start reporting results

Henry Brown, Committee Chair encouraged the committee to take advantage of Blackboard.

Mr. George stated that all the materials presented in today’s meeting along with the minutes, would remain on blackboard for at least month.

Upcoming Meetings

October 17, 2004 (Homecoming)

Meeting Adjourned at 3:20 p.m.

Supplemental information is available on the Blackboard, which can be assessed from the CAC AARRC web site.