Meeting Notes - July 28, 2022
Importance of Place Committee Meeting: Thursday, July 28 at 1:00 pm
Present: Bonnie Irwin, Bruce Torres Fischer, Hualani Loo, Michele Ebersole and Kathleen Baumgardner
Meeting purpose: Big Picture discussion continues
Chancellor Irwin joined our meeting to discuss lost opportunities, project starts and stops.
We talked about how we can institutionalize ideas, classes, and projects.
Many granting organizations want to see plans for institutionalization. For example, with LSAMP, NSF was looking for sustainability.
We hope to see continued growth and success for Kuleana and Community. Perhaps it could become a required course. The departments and deans need to be part of this conversation so faculty coverage is available. The value of the course should be expressed and emphasized from the top. We want full-time faculty to teach the course to build continuity and provide a great experience truly grounded in place. Can we clear the roadblocks for potential teachers of the course? All faculty in the pilot were paid through overload. Departments are set in their curricula, but could Kuleana and Community be rolled into program review? With enough investment in the course, departments could have their own sections. There has been a discussion with housing, but the course is currently not a requirement for the LLCs.
Other issues discussed: Who decides and how is a decision made regarding institutionalization priorities? How do we avoid tapping the same people over and over for committees and projects? How do we define ourselves as a Hawaiian place of learning? How do we avoid solo efforts in different pockets on campus that are repetitive/overlapping? What about institutionalizing grant funded efforts that are not currently in the action plan?
We lose programs and initiatives when funding runs out. One example is Opihi, which helped improve retention and graduation rates. When the funding ran out, we didn’t have the resources to support the effort.
Should there be a PI meeting for projects where a grant will end, but there is a need for the effort to continue? How do we decide what to let go of? Does the LRBPC get involved or is there another process?
We should work institutionalization of projects into the upcoming CVC retreat agenda to identify, prioritize, and support projects. Could there be a rubric that ties to mission, student success, equity, etc? Ongoing work and innovation through signature projects should also figure into promotion and tenure.
Time concluded for the meeting.