March 8, 2005

President Wilson convened the seventh SPSC meeting of the Spring 2005 semester at 8 a.m. The group approved a report of its March 4 meeting and asked Professor Gardner to distribute it. Professor Gardner reported that a department head had recently written her to ask whether every department is expected to submit a departmental plan to the SPSC within the next few weeks. Professor Gardner had advised her colleague that not only were departmental plans not required now, but that preparing a plan might not be the most effective use of faculty-staff time and energy since there is not yet a community understanding of University-wide priorities. Other SPSC members heartily agreed and suggested that such advice be distributed to all faculty and staff via this report.

President Wilson then turned to the planning schedule. He stated that he would like to complete this stage of the SPSC's work as soon as possible. The Committee agreed that moving forward is important and asked Professor Gardner to arrange for two open community forums to discuss the SPSC's proposal for strategic goals no later than April 1.

The Committee then turned its attention for the remainder of the meeting to a draft goals document that Professor Chapman had prepared. President Wilson stated that he would make revisions in the document based on the discussion. The President will also prepare a cover letter that places the statements in context and invites all community members to provide written feedback or to attend the open forums that are to be scheduled. The SPSC will review the President's revisions after Spring Break with the intent of distributing the goal statements to the community several days in advance of the forums.

Members adjourned their last meeting before the break wishing that it really were spring.

Distributed to all faculty and staff: 3/22/05