Turning Points | Photo by Soham Parikh | The Wright State Guardian
The Wright State University (WSU) Faculty Senate met virtually on Jan. 25 and discussed retrenchment procedures, coronavirus updates and classroom upgrades.
Provost’s report
Interim Provost Dr. Douglas Leaman began the meeting by addressing retrenchment procedures currently in motion at the university.
“Financially, the university is laser focused on managing its resources effectively to ensure that Wright State will continue to be here for the students and the community,” Leaman said. “As Provost I have not made any final determinations around closure of any programs.”
Leaman is set to present his recommendations for retrenchment proceedings to WSU President Dr. Sue Edwards on Feb. 6.
A retrenchment committee, formed in December of last year, will simultaneously be presenting their separate recommendations for retrenchment proceedings to Edwards that very same day.
“My retrenchment recommendation to the president will come in the form of an aggregate number of faculty positions to retrench, broken down by the affected college,” Leaman said. “I remain convinced that Wright State can and will emerge stronger, and will serve its students and the community in a way that ensures their future success.”
Following retrenchment discussion, Leaman gave a brief update on coronavirus testing at the university and the potential for WSU to be utilized as a vaccination site.
“As planned, the spring asymptomatic testing of high-risk students is in progress as outlined and piloted in the fall,” Leaman said. “In our last meeting concerns on the supply of tests were raised, however the supply of antigen tests for student testing has clarified significantly. We plan to continue to comply with the Governor’s request that we test students in our high-risk groups.”
In terms of coronavirus vaccination at WSU, Leaman was unable to provide specifics on when the approved WSU physician’s site would begin vaccinating qualified individuals but said that, “Physicians will provide vaccinations to anyone eligible under the state’s coronavirus vaccination program. In addition, Wright State will not prioritize its own patients nor prioritize Wright State employees.”
Leaman ended his presentation to the Faculty Senate by addressing the search for the founding Dean of the new College of Health, Education and Human Services.
“The position for founding dean has been posted and the search is accruing applicants at this time,” Leaman said.
Dr. Thomas Traynor and Dr. Brenda Roman have been seated as co-chairs in the search committee for the founding Dean position, and Leaman also announced the target date to begin the review of applicants is the end of February.
President’s report
Edwards followed the presentation given by Leaman, updating the Faculty Senate on one-time funding given to the university by way of the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF), classroom upgrades and finally answering Senator questions regarding retrenchment.
Around $17 million dollars has been allocated to the university, with the first priority of funds being designated for students in the form of emergency grants according to the president’s presentation.
“At this point it is somewhere in the region of $5 million or more should we deem it necessary,” said Edwards.
Edwards also stated that the Inter-University Council of Ohio (IUC) is working to understand the broader authorizations for the use of funds for institutional purposes.
Previous emergency funds have been utilized to upgrade classrooms on both WSU’s Dayton and Lake campuses.
“We have 129 rooms completed with 119 of those rooms at the Dayton campus and 10 rooms at the Lake campus,” Edwards said.
Classroom upgrades include installing fully digital cameras, ceiling mounted microphones, digital projection systems, Cisco codecs and panels.
Edwards said these room upgrades support the need for remote delivery instruction, but additionally address overdue maintenance concerns and upgrades.
Edwards is set to give her retrenchment recommendations after considering the recommendations of the provost and the retrenchment committee to the Board of Trustees on Feb. 19 during the Board of Trustees meeting.
The Board of Trustees meeting schedule may be accessed here.
The next Faculty Senate meeting is set to take place virtually on Feb. 22.
