Tag Archives: FOCUS Act

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Haslam announces governing board for Tennessee State University

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam has announced the eight appointees to the newly created Tennessee State University state governing board, giving the university increased autonomy to support student success as the state continues its Drive to 55 initiative.

Tennessee State University’s governing board is one of six to be appointed by the governor, a result of the governor’s FOCUS Act passed by the General Assembly earlier this year.

“Student success at Tennessee State University is paramount,” said TSU President Glenda Glover. “To that end, we commend Governor Bill Haslam on the slate of appointees for the newly created TSU state governing board, and look forward to working with them. These are exciting times for the University and we are immensely pleased with these board members. The work of this administration will always be to continue a standard of excellence for the University.”

The appointees to the TSU board are:

 

  • Deborah Cole, president and CEO of Citizens Savings Bank & Trust Co.;
  • Stephen Corbeil, president of TriStar Division of Hospital Corporation of America;
  • Bill Freeman, chairman of real estate development firm Freeman Webb, Inc.;
  • Richard Allen Lewis, owner of Lewis & Wright Funeral Home;
  • Pam Martin, president of Cushion Employer Services and member of the Tennessee Higher Education Commission;
  • Obie McKenzie, managing director of BlackRock, Inc.;
  • Edith Peterson Mitchell, president of the National Medical Association and clinical professor of Medicine and Medical Oncology for the Kimmel Cancer Center; and
  • Bishop Joseph Walker III, pastor of Mt. Zion Baptist Church of Nashville and International Presiding Bishop of the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship.

 

“There is incredible momentum around Tennessee’s college enrollment rate, which increased to a historic high of 62.5 percent in 2015. With Tennessee Promise and Tennessee Reconnect we’ve been successful in increasing access to higher education, but as we change the conversation and culture of expectations in our state we have to ensure our colleges and universities are supported in their efforts to create student success,” Haslam said.

“These six local governing boards will provide more focused support to the institutions as we continue the Drive to 55, our push to have 55 percent of Tennesseans with a degree or credential by 2025,” Haslam added.

Haslam also appoints members to local governing boards for Austin Peay State University, East Tennessee State University, Middle Tennessee State University, Tennessee Technological University and the University of Memphis.

Subject to confirmation by the General Assembly, the board appointments are effective January 16, 2017. If confirmed, board members will undergo orientation and professional development delivered by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission. The TSU board will assume responsibility upon the first called meeting by Haslam.

The six state universities will have increased autonomy with the authority to appoint the campus president, manage the university budget and set tuition, and oversee other operational tasks.

To learn more about the appointees and the FOCUS Act, visit http://www.tnstate.edu/president/focus/news.aspx.

Department of Media Relations

Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331

About Tennessee State University

With more than 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 25 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.

Alumni, EVENTS, FACULTY, FEATURED, NEWS, SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES

TSU forms impressive team to assist with implementation of FOCUS Act

Tennessee State University President Glenda Glover has formed a Transition Advisory Committee to assist the University with implementing the new FOCUS Act.

It is a group from diverse backgrounds to take on the task outlined in the legislation, which is currently awaiting Governor Bill Haslam’s signature. The committee will provide thoughtful leadership, and assist in determining how the institution will advance from the current Tennessee Board of Regents structure to the new state university board governing structure. The major role of this external committee will be advisory in nature with the ultimate goal of developing the strategy for implementation of the FOCUS bill.

“The University has formed this Transition Advisory Committee to assist the leadership, and my office from a strategic execution standpoint as we advance to this new governance structure,” said TSU President Glenda Glover. “The men and women serving on the TSU Transition Advisory Committee represent a cross section of professionals with extensive backgrounds in higher education, board governance, and executive management.”

The members of the TSU Transition Advisory Committee are: Traci Otey Blount- Executive Vice President, Corporate Marketing & Corporate Affairs, Robert L. Johnson Entertainment and former Communications Director, 2008 Hilary R.Clinton Presidential Campaign; Attorney Charles Robert Bone- Chief Executive Officer, Bone McAllester Norton, PLLC,; Lauren J. Brisky- Retired, Vice-Chancellor for Administration and Chief Financial Officer, Vanderbilt University; Beverly Carmichael- Senior Vice President, Chief People Officer, Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.; Colleen Conway-Welch, Dean Emerita and Professor Emerita, Vanderbilt School of Nursing; George L Davis Jr.- Co-Owner/Chief Technology Officer of Ultimate Progress Incorporated; Dr. Kelley Castlin-Gacutan- Superintendent, Birmingham Public Schools; Dr. Fred Humphries- Retired President, Florida A&M University and former President Tennessee State University; Jamie Isabel- Owner, Dalmatian Creative Agency, Inc.; Richard Lewis- Owner, Lewis & Wright Funeral Home; Dr. Edith Peterson Mitchell-President, National Medical Association; Wendell Moore- Senior Public Policy Advisor, Baker Donelson Law Firm, PLLC and former Deputy Governor State of Tennessee; Dr. Shirley Raines- former President, University of Memphis; Dr.Maria Thompson- President, Coppin State University, Baltimore, MD; Bishop Joseph W. Walker, III- Presiding Bishop, Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship International & Sr. Pastor Mt. Zion Baptist Church; and Brenda Wynn- Davidson County Clerk.

The new legislation creates state university boards for the six public universities now under the Tennessee Board of Regents system, including TSU. The committee is a part of the University’s overall Transition to FOCUS Initiative. An internal working group is also a part of this initiative.

“This committee is not the long-term state university board that will be appointed by the Governor, rather it is transitionary in nature designed specifically for planning purposes,” Glover explained. “The duration of the committee will be for approximately one year.”

The other four-year institutions under TBR that will have its own independent boards under the FOCUS Act are Austin Peay State University, East Tennessee State University, Middle Tennessee State University, Tennessee Technological University, and the University of Memphis.

Please visit the TSU website at www.tnstate.edu/president/focus for detailed information on the TSU Transition Advisory Committee, along with the original FOCUS Act legislation and related news items and updates.

Department of Media Relations

Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331

About Tennessee State University

With more than 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.

Alumni, EVENTS, FACULTY, FEATURED, NEWS, Uncategorized

Senate Education Committee delays vote on legislation that would restructure higher education governance

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – TSU students and administrators gathered at the state Capitol and saw the Senate Education Committee delay voting on legislation that would restructure higher education governance.

The students, along with TSU President Glenda Glover, packed the hearing at the Legislative Plaza on March 2 to hear lawmakers discuss the Focus on College and University Success Act. After some lengthy debate, a vote on the legislation was delayed until next week after committee chairwoman Dolores Gresham attempted to amend the proposal to provide legislative oversight.

Committee members said they wanted more time to review the proposed amendment. TSU distributed a list of questions regarding the Act that highlighted the negative impact it would have on the institution.

The legislation, which is being pushed by Gov. Bill Haslam, had been rapidly moving through the legislative process before the delay. It’s scheduled to be taken up in the same Senate committee on March 9.

TSU student Jordan Spencer attended the Senate hearing and said she was glad to see the bill delayed.

“I’m really concerned as to the benefit it will give to our school,” said Spencer, a 20-year-old biology major. “We need specifics, and there are no projected specifics.”

Aarian Forman, a junior at TSU majoring in business administration, said he believes the strong attendance by students “made a statement to legislators.”

“We will continue  to stand strong as a student body to make sure this bill is not passed, or at least in its present form,” Forman said.

The day before the Senate committee meeting, TSU students and administrators also attended the House Government Operations Committee where the FOCUS Act was also debated. Rep. Jeremy Faison, the chair of the House committee, welcomed the crowd of students and commended them for seeking more information on the legislation.

“Y’all have been extremely respectful, and I’m proud to have y’all in my committee,” said Faison, whose committee advanced the bill with a positive recommendation. He explained to students that his panel could only review the bill; not make changes or kill it.

“What I want you to know, is that regardless of the outcome of the bill, you walk out with your heads high and know that you live to fight another day,” Faison said.

Even though the FOCUS Act is likely to pass the Legislature, TSU students, faculty, and administrators contend it could be hurtful to the State’s only public HBCU.

TSU President Glenda Glover has expressed numerous concerns about the legislation. They include the possibility of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville growing even stronger because it will be left intact while the TBR is dismantled; unnecessary duplication of programs; and probably most important, maintaining an equitable funding process.

“What will the funding formula look like?” Glover said to reporters after the House committee meeting. “The legislation only broadly describes it, but no formula is in place at this point. The (Tennessee) Board of Regents ensures balance. They do all they can to make the playing field fair. “

Currently, the Board of Regents oversees 46 institutions: six public four-year state universities (including TSU), 13 community colleges and 27 technical colleges.

Under the FOCUS Act, TBR would oversee the state’s community and technical colleges only, and focus on promoting graduation rates at those institutions. Haslam has said the legislation is the next step in his “Drive to 55” initiative, which seeks to increase the percentage of Tennesseans with a postsecondary credential to 55 by 2025.

“With 46 institutions, it is difficult for TBR to meet all of the diverse challenges of the system,” according to the governor’s website about the legislation. “Community colleges arguably need greater focus at a system level in the Drive to 55, while TBR’s four-year state universities could benefit from greater autonomy.”

Despite her concerns, Glover said she’s still willing to work with the governor’s office to make the proposal less hurtful to TSU.

“We’ve been in contact with the governor’s office, and we’ve expressed concerns,” she said. “And to their credit, they’ve listened to quite a few of them. I have to be optimistic that we’ll continue to work with the governor’s office to work out the remaining differences.”

The FOCUS bill will have to pass finance committees in the House and Senate before reaching a full vote on the floors of both chambers.

According to the Tennessee General Assembly’s website, the legislation is scheduled to be heard in the House Finance, Ways and Means Subcommittee on March 9 at 10:30 a.m. It’s scheduled for 2:30 p.m. in the Senate Education Committee on the same day.

 

Department of Media Relations

Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331

About Tennessee State University

With more than 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.

Alumni, EVENTS, FACULTY, FEATURED, NEWS, SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES

TSU delves into governor’s FOCUS Act with students, faculty, administrators and alumni

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University President Glenda Glover and State Rep. Harold Love, Jr. held a forum at TSU to discuss a legislative proposal that would restructure higher education governance.

Protest-4
TSU student Kyara Murry waits in line with other students to discuss the FOCUS Act, a legislative proposal that would restructure higher education governance. (By John Cross, TSU Media Service)

Students, faculty, administrators, and alumni packed the Floyd-Payne Student Center auditorium on the university’s campus on Feb. 23 to learn more about the Focus on College and University Success Act and express their concerns about the proposal being pushed by Gov. Bill Haslam and that’s advancing in the legislative process.

Love, who represents the university in House District 58 and is also an alumnus of TSU, said he wanted to address concerns about the impact the legislation could have specifically on Tennessee State University.

“I felt it was important to make myself available to answer questions,” Love said before the event. “Tennessee State University has great leadership, students, faculty and alumni and it is my intention to convey their concerns to my colleagues in the Legislature and the Governor’s office.”

Currently, the Tennessee Board of Regents oversees 46 institutions: six public four-year state universities (including TSU), 13 community colleges and 27 technical colleges.

Under the FOCUS Act, TBR would oversee the state’s community and technical colleges only, and focus on promoting graduation rates at those institutions. Haslam has said the legislation is the next step in his “Drive to 55” initiative, which seeks to increase the percentage of Tennesseans with a postsecondary credential to 55 by 2025.

“With 46 institutions, it is difficult for TBR to meet all of the diverse challenges of the system,” according to the governor’s website about the legislation. “Community colleges arguably need greater focus at a system level in the Drive to 55, while TBR’s four-year state universities could benefit from greater autonomy.”

Glover said she has concerns about the legislation, but noted that of the nine amendments the university has proposed to the governor, four have been accepted.

She said one of her main concerns is that the legislation maintains an equitable funding process for all of the four-year public institutions, especially TSU.

“We have a mission that is far different from the other five institutions,” Glover said. “The proposed legislation can’t be viewed as one size fits all. This difference must be recognized. I have communicated these and other concerns to the governor’s office and they are working with us. I remain hopeful that the final legislation will be fair and equitable for our students, faculty, and staff, but most important, our university. We’re going to get through this together.”

Glover said she would be persistent in talking to lawmakers about what’s in the best interest of the university.

“Our university is in the planning stages of implementing FOCUS.  We will host several meetings in an effort to keep the TSU family updated on any amendments to the bill as well as where we are in the implementation phase.”

Protest-3
Rep. Harold Love, Jr. speaks about FOCUS Act and takes questions from the audience. (By John Cross, TSU Media Service)

Another concern is the bill’s makeup of local boards that will oversee the state’s six four-year institutions. Some attending the forum questioned whether the eight members appointed by the governor for the 10-member panels should be handling certain higher education issues, such as schools’ leadership, tuition, faculty tenure, and curricula.

“This bill appears to weaken the institutional leadership of the university and potentially allow a university board to manage the day-to-day operations whereby their credentials and vision may conflict with that of the president of the university, “ said Dr. Samuel Hargrove, dean of TSU’s College of Engineering. “However, if this is the intent of the bill, I am confident TSU will respond strategically to continue its mission and purpose.”

Faculty Senate Chair Michael Catanzaro said he’s received phone calls and emails from the Faculty Senate regarding concerns about the bill and its potentially negative impact on the university.

“Each college and school within Tennessee State University has specific curricula and requirements for diplomas and degrees as determined by accrediting agencies,” Catanzaro said. “The FOCUS bill enables a Board of Trustees that may comprise people with little or no knowledge of accreditation requirements to have the power to develop curricula that may adversely affect the quality of education as well as violate the ‘academic freedom’ of professors.”

Students also voiced their concerns about the proposal, with questions ranging from a name change, available funding for campus improvements, to student involvement on the newly formed university board.

SGA President RaCia Poston said she had spoken with her counterparts regarding student participation with the board on student-related programs, fees, and activities.

“I’ve talked with student leaders from the other TBR four-year institutions and shared my concerns about the student representative being a non-voting member of the board,” Poston said.

“As a legislative intern, I’m lobbying lawmakers during my time at the Capitol on why the student vote should count.”

Love urged everyone to email the governor and lawmakers their concerns, as well as attend legislative committee meetings where the bill is being debated. If the measure passes, it is expected to be fully implemented late next year.

Tennessee State University is the only four-year public institution in Nashville and the only public four-year HBCU in the State of Tennessee. TSU offers 45 bachelor’s degree programs and 24 master’s degree programs and awards doctoral degrees in biological sciences, computer information systems, engineering, psychology, public administration, curriculum and instruction, educational administration and supervision, and physical therapy. In entirety, Tennessee State University comprises eight colleges and schools.

 

Department of Media Relations

Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331

About Tennessee State University

With more than 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.