Friday, Sept. 23, the Board of Visitors convened and passed 20 resolutions, led by Rector Charles E. Poston J.D. ’74 who succeeded former Rector John Littel in April.
Poston, President Debbie Sydow of Richard Bland College of William and Mary and College President Katherine Rowe all began with introductory remarks. Rowe announced to the 17 board members that the College will guarantee scholarship aid to cover at least the cost of tuition and fees for all undergraduate, in-state, Federal Pell Grant-eligible students starting in the 2023-24 school year.
“I want to share one wonderful announcement of a new commitment to affordability that we’re pioneering this fall, which is that William and Mary will guarantee scholarship aid to cover at least the cost of tuition and fees for all in-state Pell Grant-eligible students,” Rowe said. “This is consistent with our commitment to excellence.”
Rowe told the board that the College’s goal is to increase their in-state Pell Grant recipient demographic to 20%, three percent higher than it sits currently. This new program will also apply to in-state Pell Grant recipients who are already enrolled in the College.
During his Closing Student Address to the Board, Student Assembly President John Cho ’23 discussed what this new scholarship meant for him.
“As a Pell Grant recipient myself, I can’t tell you all how much hearing the announcement of Pell scholarships means to me,” Cho said. “I want to thank the President and the Board of your continued commitment towards helping FGLI students and allowing for a more equitable experience for all students.”
“As a Pell Grant recipient myself, I can’t tell you all how much hearing the announcement of Pell scholarships means to me. I want to thank the President and the Board of your continued commitment towards helping FGLI students and allowing for a more equitable experience for all students.”
This year also marks the fifth-year that the College has held the rate of tuition consistent for in-state students.
“We have strong commitments to affordability at William and Mary and that is critical,” Rowe said. “We’re in the fifth year of keeping tuition flat this year…. It’s taken extraordinary discipline, creativity and commitment from our faculty and staff, as well as leadership.”
Rowe also commended the success of the recent expansion of the Sadler Center, calling its multifaceted facilities a “neighborhood of student life.” Regarding Vision 2026, which lists data as one of its four initiatives, Rowe discussed the possible creation of a computing and data science school.
After the passing of the resolutions, Rowe brought up the possibility of the College switching to a multi-year tuition plan, which would mean setting tuition rates for several years at a time instead of the current year-to-year plan.
Many of the board members responded positively to this idea, emphasizing that this could foster more financial stability regarding tuition payments for families.
“Excellence and quality can not be left behind.”
“The predictive factor is really going to be the angle…,” BOV Member Marie Aponte said. “Excellence and quality can not be left behind.”
Resolution 1: The Committee on Audit, Risk and Compliance was granted unanimous approval by the Board on their new Crisis and Emergency Management Plan. Every four years, the College is required by law to work with various local municipal Emergency Management Agencies to develop a comprehensive crisis response plan.
Resolution 2: Richard Bland College of William and Mary, a branch of the College that awards two-year degrees, was given approval for their newly revised fees for the 2022-2023 academic school year.
Resolution 3: Resolution 3 approved Richard Bland’s 2022-2028 six-year plan, which all Virginia colleges are required to submit to its Board of Visitors by October 1 of each odd numbered year and to provide revisions to the plan, if approved by the Board of Visitors, in each even numbered year. This iteration of Richard Bland’s six-year plan was created through the framework of the Board of Visitors’ 2020-2025 “Seize Your Potential” initiative, which aims to prepare students for university transfer through academically rigorous programs grounded in the liberal arts tradition of the College
Resolution 4: The Richard Bland College of William and Mary committee passed a resolution appointing educators to fill vacant positions in its instructional faculty.
Resolution 5: The Richard Bland College committee passed a resolution appointing educators to fill vacant positions in its professional faculty.
Resolution 6: Resolution 6 honored the retirement of Karen Henley, Student Services Specialist of the Richard Bland College of William and Mary.
Resolution 7: The Committee on Academic Affairs passed a resolution appointing educators to fill vacant positions in the College’s instructional faculty.
Resolution 8: Executive Appointments
Resolution 9: Designated Professorships
Resolution 10: Faculty Leaves of Absence
(pages concerning these resolutions are missing from agenda book)
Resolution 11: This resolution concerned William and Mary’s official Faculty Handbook. Revisions were made in the section outlining the terms of faculty suspension or reassignment in case of violations of policy.
Resolution 12: This revised policy removes the distinction between different types of joint appointments and more clearly spells out the conditions related to appointment procedures, memoranda of understanding governing the appointments and the expectations, evaluation and allocation of resources.
Resolution 13: William E. Cooke, longtime member of William and Mary’s physics faculty, retired.
Resolution 14: Michael A. Unger, (PHD of W&M), retired. Dr. Unger’s research at the College most recently focused on the chemical and physical behavior of aquatic pollutants.
Resolution 15: The Board of Visitors of the College developed a succession plan in order to train and retain executives and other key personnel.
Resolution 16: The Virginia Institute of Marine Science amended its employee benefits plan. The sponsors of the resolution aim to increase employee benefits plans by allowing excess benefits to roll over to savings accounts.
Resolution 17: Former Rector Mr. Littel spoke candidly regarding the pragmatic direction the College needs to take in the next several years to respond to growth-related difficulties.
Resolution 18: Resolution 18 approved William and Mary’s 2022-2028 six-year plan, which all Virginia colleges are required to submit to its Board of Visitors by October 1 of each odd numbered year and to provide revisions to the plan, if approved by the Board of Visitors, in each even numbered year.
Resolution 19: Resolution 19 approved the Virginia Institute of Marine Science’s 2022-2028 6-year plan, which all Virginia colleges are required to submit to its Board of Visitors by October 1 of each odd numbered year and to provide revisions to the plan, if approved by the Board of Visitors, in each even numbered year.
Resolution 20: The College updated its policy regarding a rainy day fund in case of financial calamity. The College’s auxiliary enterprises will have these reserve targets: (a) operating reserves equivalent to at least one month, and up to three months, of operating expenses and (b) annual capital expenditures or contributions to capital reserves of at least 1.5% of the replacement value of buildings.