Strategic Planning Committee Minutes, April 29, 2002

Strategic Planning (SPC) Committee Minutes
April 29, 2002

MEMBERS PRESENT:: Bruce Morton, Mark Sheehan, Betsy Centa, Mary Noll, Jaynee Groseth, Michelle McLendon, Kay Chafey, Chuck Nelson, John Carlsten, Jon Wraith.

MEMBERS ABSENT: Greg Johnson.

OTHERS PRESENT: Kathy Attebury, Ben Sharp.

The meeting was convened at 3:00 PM by Chair Bruce Morton. Chuck Nelson, Registrar, attended the meeting to discuss campus space and enrollment issues, from the standpoint of the Registrar's Office.

According to the Registrar, the current process for making space allocation decisions is more of an issue than the decisions themselves. At one time, MSU's University Facilities Planning and Utilization Board, a campus-wide committee, made space allocation recommendations, which were then considered by the administration. There now appear to be various space management committees and places where space allocation decisions are being made. There needs to be one committee, advisory to the President, to make decisions on space. It appears that current decisions are not necessarily planning decisions but are reactions to voiced needs, and problems occur when decisions are made regarding university classrooms for a small group without input from the entire university.

MSU's "general-use classrooms" are scheduled through the Registrar's Office. Classrooms have personalities, and there are politics affecting their use. There need to be enough of these rooms so the university, through the Registrar's Office, has some flexibility in classroom scheduling. In addition to being used for classes, the classrooms are used for other purposes, such as discussion groups, help sessions, tests, and meetings. At least eight of the general-use classrooms have been lost to other purposes in the last several years.

MSU has only four classrooms that seat over 200. There are 25 classrooms that seat between 60 and 200. Classrooms are all in use between 9 a.m. and noon on MWF. Adding just a few students to a section can trigger the need for a larger room (or an additional room), making it impossible to schedule classes at peak times. Decreasing the size of classes and offering more sections has ramifications because of the added demand for classrooms.

MSU is a traditional institution, and students and faculty prefer classes between 8 a.m. and 2 PM. Reasons for this may include the need for students to have blocks of time for work or recreation (which is considered a draw to MSU), faculty research, and the needs for blocks of time for student labs.

Some curricula are able to increase enrollment without creating the need for additional space. However, in some curricula (MTA, Art, Business, Political Science, Sociology, Spanish) increases in student enrollment at this time, through recruitment or retention, will trigger needs for additional space.

During the last 10 years, MSU has generally grown 1-2% per year. If MSU's enrollment increases 2-3% per year, the university will need to plan so there is physical space for it.

There is evidence that late day and evening classes are desirable for some students, because the classes now offered during those hours seem to fill. However, unless MSU develops an evening program, the classes that can be offered in the evening are limited. On-line courses are one way evening classes can be offered.

Registrar Nelson mentioned the successful collaboration of eight universities, including MSU, to set up a Master's Degree in Personal Finance. Students will be able to enroll in any one of the eight participating schools and take courses at various universities using the internet. A $1 million FIPSE grant has made this possible.

MSU is making progress in technologically up-dating classrooms, but making classrooms more sophisticated can limit them for lecture classes. For example, if computers are installed in a classroom, classes that don't need the capability will probably have less access to the room.

Regarding allocation of space, there does not appear to be a crisis in the amount of space available if it is allotted effectively. There needs to be a university-wide, on-going group to consider space decisions. A computer program, "Scheduler 25" is used at some universities to schedule space, but it cannot make decisions based on particular needs or personalities of rooms and classes. However, it could be of use to MSU to study space.

It was pointed out that the Space Management Committee is a good process for setting up procedures and standards for space allocation, but generally the Registrar's Office does a better job of managing space than departments do. Guidelines that allow space to be controlled by a department are usually historic or relate to particular needs of a department.

There is a general feeling on campus that there's room for increased enrollment. However, there is not an understanding that a class growing from 40 to 45 students can create a problem. A larger classroom is then needed and the number of rooms in this size range are limited, particularly at certain times of the day.

Modest growth in enrollment can probably be handled with available space. However, even modest growth in some areas will create challenges, and it's difficult to channel students into particular disciplines.

Directing students to another campus is a possibility, but when the MSU system was established, it was not created as a system where students would first attend one of the smaller campuses and then transfer to the main campus. Admission standards do not encourage students to attend one of the smaller units. In addition, the method of providing state funding to the schools does not encourage units to decrease enrollments.

The meeting adjourned at 4:00 PM.