APPROVED Minutes April 05, 2019
Western Washington University
Board of Trustees
Meeting Minutes
Friday, April 5, 2019

CALL TO ORDER
Board Chair Earl Overstreet, called the Friday, April 5, 2019 meeting of the Board of Trustees of
Western Washington University to order at 8:01 a.m. in the Old Main 340 Board Room in
Bellingham, WA.
Earl Overstreet, Chair
Chase Franklin, Vice Chair
John Meyer, Secretary
Citlaly Ramirez
Faith Pettis
Karen Lee
Mo West
Western Washington University
Sabah Randhawa, President
Brent Carbajal, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
Richard Van Den Hul, Vice President for Business and Financial Affairs
Donna Gibbs, Vice President for University Relations and Marketing
McNeel Jantzen, Faculty Senate President
Paul Cocke, Director of University Communications
Paul Dunn, Chief of Staff to the President, Secretary to the Board of Trustees
Barbara Sandoval, Senior Executive Assistant to the President
Rayne Rambo, Assistant Secretary to the Board of Trustees

3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
MOTION 04-02-2019

•

Trustee Pettis moved that the Board of Trustees of Western
Washington University, upon the recommendation of the
president, approve the following minutes:

Board of Trustees Meeting February 7, 2019

The motion passed.
4. PUBLIC COMMENT
As per Amended RCW 28B.35.110, the Board of Trustees provided time for public comment.
There were no requests for public comment.

APPROVED Minutes April 05, 2019
5. BOARD CHAIR REPORT
Board Chair Earl Overstreet provided the following report: “The snow is gone, flowers are
blooming, and your long wait to hear my February report, skipped at the February meeting to
conclude early due to bad weather, is over. This report continues to look at our goals for the
2018-19 academic year, but from a different prospective. This time I will try to answer a burning
question that probably keeps some of you up at night. “What is the trustee’s role in creating and
executing the University’s plan each year?” I hope that this brief explanation of trustee
responsibilities will be helpful refresher for the trustees and those who work with us on a regular
basis and will also be useful to others who want to better understand our responsibilities in
Western governance.
The Western Washington University Board of Trustees is the university’s governing body whose
broad responsibilities are to supervise, coordinate, manage and regulate Western Washington
University as provided by state statue.
The best source of information regarding trustee responsibilities and how we interact with the
University is the Board of Trustees Rules of Operation found at trustees.wwu.edu/bylawsdocuments. I think the four most important takeaways are as follows:

1. Board Authority Established by Law. The authority to govern Western Washington
University is vested by law in the Board of Trustees of the University.
2. Governance Development. The Board believes that the educational interests of the
University are furthered by encouraging an environment of collegiality. Therefore, it has
established a system of shared governance in which the various elements of the
institution are encouraged to participate. Without limiting its duties or authority, the Board
directs its attention to matters of general policy relating to the institution’s mission,
educational program, operation, and Strategic Plan.
3. Policy Development. The Board delegates responsibility for the development and
administration of policies and management of the institution to the President, or his or
her designees, including the appropriate unit or units of internal governance.
4. Channel of Authority. The channel of authority from the Board to the faculty,
administrative officers, staff, and students shall be through the President.
How does this work? Our responsibility is to use our independent, external perspective in three
key areas. I will borrow some language from Cathy Trower, a Board consultant to describe our
top three priorities:
1. Oversight - Protecting the institution from actions or inactions that damage the integrity,
reputation, or compliance of Western and its ability to perform its mission.
2. Stewardship - Ensuring that the institution is obtaining and effectively utilizing resources
to fulfill its mission.

APPROVED Minutes April 05, 2019
3. Foresight – Helping the institution identify obstacles and opportunities on the horizon
and to mitigate or take advantage of them to advance the work of the University
We manage these three tasks by receiving and requesting information, asking questions,
providing feedback, and taking action. Our revamped committees – Student Success and
Finance, Audit, and Enterprise Risk Management (FARM) are already paying dividends getting
timely, appropriately detailed information, providing feedback, informing and making
recommendations to the Board, and ensuring that the Board fulfills its role.”

6. UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT REPORT
President Randhawa reflected and noted the historical importance of the creation of the Office
of American Indian/Alaska Native and First Nations Relations and the warm welcome extended
to Laural Ballew the day before, as the inaugural Executive Director of the Office and Tribal
Relations Liaison was a proud moment for Western and the First Nations. Randhawa
acknowledged that this is the end of a long journey, but the beginning of a new journey that will
continue to require patience, persistence, and a belief in values to reach Western’s goals of
student success.
President Randhawa reported that the meetings with legislators from the Olympic Peninsula
have emphasized Western’s continued presence on the peninsulas at Olympic College in
Poulsbo and Bremerton. He added that Senator Drew Hansen would like to see Western
provide more expansive and detailed proposals on that account in the upcoming legislative
session.
President Randhawa asked Vice President Melynda Huskey to provide an update on two new
positions: Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management and the Executive Director of
Counseling Health and Wellness. Huskey added that the search for the Director of the
Counseling Center is still in progress with a hopeful new hire in the near future.

7. FACULTY SENATE REPORT
McNeel Jantzen, Faculty Senate President provided an overview of the work of the Faculty
Senate. She noted the senate’s role to speak and act for the faculty with responsibility in the
following areas: curriculum, academic programs, scholarly activities, the education of students,
the mission of the university, and institutional and administrative effectiveness. Jantzen noted
that these are not covered by the contract between Western Washington University and the
United Faculty of Western Washington. She reported that an important part of the work of the
Faculty Senate in the past year has been to clarify and communicate its role in shared
governance at Western.
Jantzen reported that with the expansion and changes within the Graduate School, the
Graduate Council has expanded into the College Governance Council which provides college
shared governance for faculty. She noted the work of updating the Faculty Code of Ethics
pertaining to faculty/student relationships. She added that the Faculty Senate is currently
participating in a review of University Administrators and working to update the review materials
to a provide a more thorough feedback document that is then provided to the administrator for
their review.

APPROVED Minutes April 05, 2019
Jantzen stated that the Faculty Senate’s Research Advisory Committee within Research and
Sponsored Programs is reviewing the process in which internal grants are reviewed and funded.
She noted that the Research Advisory Committee is now comprised of fifteen faculty members.

8. ASSOCIATED STUDENTS REPORT
Millka Solomon, Associated Students President, reported that the Associated Students (AS)
Board of Directors recently passed three resolutions; raise wages for Graduate Students,
support the movement “Shred the Contract” which is related to dining services on campus, and
support students who are campaigning for the university to divest from fossil fuels. Solomon
noted that there has been work towards restructuring the board positions within the Associated
Students. She added that the AS is in the process of hiring for the next academic year. She
acknowledged that the AS Board of Directors continues to have difficult conversations to
support diversity, inclusion, and equity on campus and is working with the university president to
plan for a follow up student forum, along the lines of the one held in December.

9. FINANCE, AUDIT AND ENTERPRISE RISK MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE REPORT
Trustee John M. Meyer, Committee Member, Finance, Audit and Enterprise Risk Management
(FARM) Committee reported the Enterprise Risk Management Committee continues to make
progress with identifying and reviewing risks and will be preparing to present to the Executive
Leadership in the upcoming month. Meyer also noted good progress in the search for the Title
IX Director position.
Meyer explained that the Minority and Women’s Business Enterprises (MWBE) Inclusion Plan
team, met with the state’s Assistant Director for the MWBE’s office in Olympia. He noted that
Western has made good progress with setting initiatives in this regard, and that the collaborative
work will help in setting realistic goals for a more inclusive work force.
Meyer noted that the committee continues to make progress in the determination of Institutional
Reserves that will be presented to the full board at the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees
in June. He added the committee reviewed the FARM committee self-assessment tool and will
continue its review of the charter.

10. STUDENT SUCCESS COMMITTEE REPORT
Trustee Mo West, Chair, Student Success Committee, reported that the Student Success
Committee was updated on the changes within Extended Education, including a name change
to Outreach and Continuing Programs as a first step in comprehensive rethinking of online
courses and the future of online learning. Topics that particularly engaged the committee were
the potential to expand summer quarter to help facilitate faster graduation rates and creating
more opportunities for online learning for remote areas of the state that include the Olympic
Peninsula.

APPROVED Minutes April 05, 2019
11. APPROVAL OF 2019 SUMMER SESSION TUITION AND FEES
President Randhawa explained that approval of Summer Session Tuition rates is separate from
the next academic year tuition rates so that students are able to register for upcoming summer
courses.
The board was provided an overview of proposed Summer Session Tuition and Fees, after
which the following motion was made by Trustee Franklin.
MOTION 04-03-2019

MOVED, that the Board of Trustees of Western Washington
University, on recommendation of the President, approves the
recommended Summer Session tuition for 2019: specifically, that
resident undergraduate and graduate tuition will rise to $261 and
$323 per credit, respectively; and non-resident undergraduate and
graduate tuition will increase to $409 and $477 per credit,
respectively. Tuition rates for programs for the MBA program are
estimated not to exceed the approved rates from the academic
year: $374 per credit for resident graduate and $933 for nonresident. Student tuition will be charged on a per credit basis for
Summer Session.

The motion passed.

12. APPROVAL OF HOUSING AND DINING RATES
Melynda Huskey, Vice President for Enrollment and Student Services introduced Leonard
Jones, Director, University Residences, Amanda Thomas, Nash Residence Hall President and
Joshua Gaylord, Residence Hall Association President. Jones provided an overview of the
proposed housing and dining rates for the 2019-2020 academic year noting that the proposed
5.0% increase has been vetted by the residential student advisory group and that ongoing
student leadership input will be incorporated into the proposed rate increase. He added that
major influences on the proposed budget and rate planning included inflation, reallocation of
current program funds to establish a student intercultural advisor program, and the capital plan,
system renovation and new facility planning. Leonard explained that rate increase responsibly
responds to inflationary pressures, maintains the functions of Western’s quality residential
program, and helps position the Housing and Dining System for forthcoming planning work. He
concluded that the recommended budget meets the standards of necessary reserve fund
balances, planned major maintenance, debt service coverage, and capital planning.

MOTION 04-04-2019

The motion passed.

Trustee Meyer moved, that the Board of Trustees of Western
Washington University, upon recommendation of the Residence
Hall Association and the University President, approve the
Housing and Dining rates as proposed. The 2018-2019 proposed
rates call for a 5.0 percent increase in residence hall room and
board rates and Birnam Wood apartment rental rates.

APPROVED Minutes April 05, 2019
13. APPROVAL OF UNIVERSITY RETIREMENT PLAN CHANGE
Chyerl Wolfe-Lee, Assistant Vice President for Human Resources provided an overview of the
proposed update to the current WWU Retirement Plan. She noted that the Human Resources
Department and the University Retirement Plan Advisory Committee recommended revision of
the definition of retirement age, as defined in Section 2.19 of the Western Washington
University Retirement Plan. She added that the proposed change will be consistent with the
plans of other four year state public higher education institutions.

MOTION 04-05-2019

Trustee Ramirez moved, that the Board of Trustees of Western
Washington University, upon the recommendation of the
President, approve modifications to Section 2.19 of the Western
Washington University Retirement Plan, to read as follows:

2.19. Retirement Age: normal retirement age means the last day of the calendar month
in which age 65 is attained; early retirement age means the last day of the calendar
month in which either (a) age 62 is attained or (b) age 55 is attained with ten or more
years of service completed without a Break in Service.

The motion passed.

14. COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES SOCIAL SCIENCE STATE OF THE COLLEGE AND
LINGUISTICS PLANNING UPDATE
Paqui Paredes-Mendez, Dean, College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) and Kristin
Denham, Linguistics Program Director, provided an overview of the state of the College of
Humanities and Social Sciences. Paredes-Mendez noted that CHSS is the key pillar in
supporting the cultural and intellectual life of the university through collaborative learning
environments that foster individual, social, cultural, creative, and scientific exploration. She
facilitated a conversation regarding the national narrative that questions the value of the liberal
arts and sciences in general and humanities in particular. She noted that nationwide there is a
decrease in enrollment in Humanities programs, but that this is not the case at Western and that
Humanities majors are maintaining their enrollment. Trustee Lee inquired as to how Western is
maintaining strong enrollment numbers when other universities are seeing decreases in
enrollment numbers. Paredes Mendez responding by noting that Western has outstanding
programs were students have the ability to explore opportunities within the Humanities typically
when engaged in General Undergraduate Requirement (GUR) classes and discover the value
of being able to pursue their passions within the Humanities. She noted that one of the
challenges of strong enrollment numbers continues to be space needs particularly programs
that share space with other programs.
Kristin Denham, Linguistics Program Director, provided an update on the progress of the
Linguistics Program becoming a department. She noted the benefits of having departmental
status would allow for stronger advocacy from faculty and students for the study of language, for

APPROVED Minutes April 05, 2019
the values of linguistic diversity on Western’s campus, for the protection of linguistic minorities,
for pedagogical partnership between linguistics and other disciplines at Western, and for
partnership with other local institutions, including Northwest Indian College and Whatcom
Community College. She also added that having department status would allow for better
recruitment and retention of faculty and the potential for a graduate program.

15. LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
Becca Kenna-Schenk, Executive Director of Government Relations provided an update on the
current legislative session that is scheduled to conclude on April 28, 2019. Kenna-Schenk
reported that Western representatives testified twenty times before the legislature committee
during the session. She added that Western also requested legislation, HB 1755, which would
authorize the boards of trustees at Western Washington University, Central Washington
University, and Eastern Washington University to approve applied doctorate degrees in
education (Ed.Ds). She added that the bill has passed the House of Representatives and will
next move through the Senate.
Kenna-Schenk explained that many of Western’s 2019-21 operating and capital budget
requests, as approved by the Board of Trustees, have been included in the House and Senate
budget proposals. (ATTACHMENT A). She noted that (ATTACHMENT A) provides a
comparison of the budget proposals from the Governor, House and Senate. She added that
higher education leaders in the House of Representatives introduced the Workforce Education
Investment Act (HB 2158), which would create a new dedicated state fund for higher education
investments. She said the fund would be supported by a targeted tax rate increase for certain
businesses. She explained that for the 2019-21 budget cycle, funding generated under the
proposal would go toward financial aid, Expansion of STEM degree programs, and student
support services at the state public colleges and universities, including Western.

16. INFORMATION ITEMS
a. Professional Leave Report
Provost Carbajal provided a written report with a list of faculty professional leave
proposals that have been approved for the 2019/20 academic year and brief summaries
of the research projects and scholarly activities.
b. Tenure and Promotion Report
Provost Carbajal provided a written report listing the faculty granted tenure and/or
promotion effective September 2019.
c. University Advancement Report
Vice President Bowers provided a written report on the University’s Alumni Relations
and Western’s Foundation activities.
d. Capital Program Report
Vice President Van Den Hul provided a written report on the University’s capital projects.
e. University Relations and Marketing Report

APPROVED Minutes April 05, 2019
Vice President Gibbs provided a written report documenting recent activities of
University Relations and Marketing.
f.

Admissions and Enrollment Report
Vice President Huskey provided a written report regarding the university’s general
enrollment and admissions

17. EXECUTIVE SESSION MAY BE HELD TO DISCUSS PERSONNEL, REALESTATE AND
LEGAL ISSUES AS AUTHORIZED IN RCW 42.30.110
Executive session was not held.
18. DATES FOR NEXT REGULAR MEETING
June 13 & 14, 2019

19. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 11:36 a.m.

APPROVED Minutes April 05, 2019

ATTACHMENT A