Notes from the Council of Deans meeting on March 27, 2008

The Governor’s commonwealth budget is up about 4.2% for FY 2009, but the appropriation to Pitt is only increased by about 1.5% by his calculation and by 1.2% by the University’s calculation. The Legislature is reportedly supportive of the appeals being made by the Chancellor, but the outcome will remain uncertain for several months. Without a larger appropriation, a significant tuition increase is likely, as is an even greater need for us to reallocate funding toward essential priorities.

The Learning Outcomes Assessment returned very mixed results in its first year. The SIS experience was mirrored across campus, with the largest differentiator being between programs with accreditation processes in place and those without.

CIDDE is recruiting a specialist to support the University’s expansion of online education.

Child care on campus is becoming an issue, in that demand is exceeding supply, there are inadequate 3rd-party sources, and the current business model does not scale to meet the need. We can look forward to active discussion of viable options within the faculty senate and the administration as the University strives to address this fairly.

The Fall Break has been approved for the Monday closest to Columbus Day (October 12).

A computer-based training module has been developed to support federal compliance on effort reporting for research projects. George Klinzing is heading up the compliance effort dictated by OMB Circular A-21. Individuals required to be certified will be notified.

UPMC is changing their phone system. Calls to UPMC from campus will require a full 10-digit number.