News
At the Board
Archived article from Oct 18, 2004
The following actions took place at the Oct. 7 Board of Governors meeting held at the Camden Campus Center:
President’s Strategic Goals Outlined President Richard L. McCormick outlined a list of five strategic goals for the coming years. They reflect ongoing university initiatives and include academic excellence; students and campuses; service and constituency relations; resources for Rutgers; and leadership and administration. These areas encompass 29 individual efforts, including:
• Increasing financial support for undergraduate programs
• Investing in new initiatives through the Academic Excellence Fund
• Increasing faculty diversity
• Continuing student service improvements
• Improving campus attractiveness
• Following up on the Constituency Research Project
• Encouraging faculty, staff and students to contribute service to New Jersey
• Increasing external access to lifelong learning programs
• Seeking increased federal support
• Preparing for the next capital campaign
• Promoting increased state appropriations
• Completing leadership searches and appointments
• Investing in staff development and recognition
• Increasing diversity of university leadership
McCormick said the list will serve as a management tool and provide a measure of progress at Rutgers. The goals are part of the larger mission to achieve greater academic distinction and bestow greater service beyond campus and to New Jersey. Each academic year, the President will report on the advancement of these goals to the board of governors and the university community. Faculty representatives Paul Leath and Martha Cotter and student representative Shashi Dolandas said that faculty and student reaction to the ongoing and future goals has been positive.
New board of governors professor named Glenn Shafer, a professor of accounting and information systems at the Rutgers Business School-Newark and New Brunswick, was conferred a Board of Governors professorship on Oct. 7. He is the second member of the RBS faculty to receive this honor. Shafer, the most frequently cited member of the RBS faculty, is the author of 69 refereed scholarly papers in philosophy, history of statistics, expert systems, artificial intelligence and accounting. He is best known for the Dempster-Shafer theory of belief functions, first presented in his 1976 book, “A Mathematical Theory of Evidence,” widely used today in expert systems. His most recent book, “Probability and Finance: It’s Only a Game” (2001), provides a foundation for probability based on game theory. As director of the Ph.D. in Management program, Shafer has been responsible for redesigning the doctoral curriculum, working with the faculty to obtain additional funding for students, increasing the quality and diversity of the student body and introducing an innovative professional development series. Shafer is also the 2004 recipient of the Daniel Gorenstein Memorial Award, which recognizes outstanding scholarly accomplishments and dedicated service to Rutgers. He was the first member of the RBS faculty and the first Rutgers-Newark professor to receive the Gorenstein Award.
Other business The board approved two resolutions affecting traffic on the Busch and Livingston campuses anticipating increased congestion caused by Route 18 expansion projects. The speed limit on Avenue E on Livingston was reduced from 40 to 35 mph, and the board approved a four-way stop sign at the intersection of Frelinghuysen and Sutphen roads on Busch campus.
The board ratified the award of two construction contracts to begin the renovation of the ASB II in New Brunswick and the Center for Advanced Infrastructure and Transportation on Busch campus. The board also announced plans for the College of Nursing building in downtown New Brunswick. The project is scheduled to go out for a bid in 2005 and construction is expected to take 14 to 16 months. An advisory committee will be headed by nursing dean Felissa R. Lashley.
The board discussed a proposal to convert College Avenue into a green mall, eliminating vehicular traffic. The proposed plan would enhance the appearance of the College Avenue campus and entice students. Still in its infancy, the project’s proposed cost is $10 million.
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