Regents to focus on enrollment and tuition at December meeting

What: University of Minnesota Board of Regents meeting
When: Thursday, Dec. 13 and Friday, Dec. 14, 2018
Where: Sixth floor, McNamara Alumni Center, 200 Oak St. S.E., Minneapolis

The University of Minnesota Board of Regents will focus on several priorities at its December meeting. Topics will include diversity in undergraduate enrollment on the Twin Cities campus, the President’s recommendation for nonresident/non-reciprocity tuition on the Twin Cities campus and an interview with the finalist for University of Minnesota president.

Diversity in Twin Cities campus undergraduate enrollment

In February 2018, the Board approved a Resolution Related to Diversity in Twin Cities Undergraduate Enrollment, addressing goals to enhance recruitment efforts; retention and graduation rate metrics; and student satisfaction survey results for students of color and American Indian students. This month, the Board will receive an update on the University’s efforts in these areas, focusing on metrics and the variety of University initiatives in place to meet those goals.

The Board will also receive an overview of the University’s newly established Multicultural Student Success Committee (MSSC). The MSSC aims to improve the retention and graduation of undergraduate students of color on the Twin Cities campus by identifying barriers to student success, assuring alignment among the programs, services and units working with multicultural student populations and recommending strategies for improvement to address graduation gaps for multicultural students.

Twin Cities undergraduate nonresident/non-reciprocity tuition

The Board is also expected to act on the President’s recommended fiscal year 2020 undergraduate nonresident/non-reciprocity tuition on the Twin Cities campus. In October, the Board reviewed the President’s recommended 10% increase, reflecting comparative rates in the Big Ten, the quality of experience offered to students, the potential impact different rate increases would have on recruitment and the effectiveness of corresponding discounting strategies.

The President’s recommendation includes a commitment to holding the tuition rate of currently enrolled nonresident/non-reciprocity students to an increase of no more than 5.5%.

Interview finalist for President of the University of Minnesota

At a special meeting on December 5th, the Board named Joan T. A. Gabel as the sole finalist for the position of 17th President of the University of Minnesota.

Gabel will visit all five campuses for public forums Dec. 10–13. Information gathered during these forums, as well as feedback that continues to be received at president-search.umn.edu, will inform the Board when it publicly interviews Gabel on Friday, Dec. 14 following its regular business.

The Board is also expected to:

• Discuss enrollment planning processes and strategies at the University of Minnesota Duluth.
• Take part in a discussion about graduate education, with specific attention to the role of graduate students in advancing knowledge and research that impacts the state, the nation and the world. The presentation will conclude with two students summarizing their thesis work.
• Review proposed amendments to the Regents of the University of Minnesota Traffic Regulation Ordinances as they apply to electric scooters used on campus and establish a public hearing date to allow public comment on the proposed amendments.

Committee meetings begin at 7:45 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 13. Committee work continues Friday, Dec. 14 at 7:45 a.m., followed by the full Board meeting expected at approximately 9 a.m. For more information, including meeting times and locations, visit the Regents website at Regents.umn.edu.