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The Graduate U-Council MINUTES Minutes of a meeting of the Council of the Princeton University Community held on Monday, January 17, 2001. Present were the following: Mr. Amaya, Vice President Dickerson, Ms. Fallon, Mr. Glass, Ms. Goodman, Professor Groth, Ms. Hale, Dr. Halliday (secretary), Mr. Kiczek, Mr. Kim, Dean Malkiel, Professor Muldoon, Mr. Nemeroff, Provost Ostriker, Mr. Ramakrishnan, Mr. Salvatore, Professor Schutt, President Shapiro, Vice President Spies, Mr. Studley, Mr. Vachharajani, Mr. Vere, Ms. Wheeler, and Vice President Wright. The President opened the meeting by proposing modest changes to the minutes of the December 11, 2000 meeting, which were accepted and the minutes were then approved. The Question period began with a discussion of projected development of the former Princeton Nurseries land between Lake Carnegie and Route 1. Mr. Spies described the land as part of the Forrestal Center property that was being developed according to a plan formulated in consultation with Plainsboro and South Brunswick. He mentioned that land between Mapleton Road and the canal would be preserved as open space. The President emphasized that the land in question was not categorized as part of “campus” land by the Trustees, but rather designated as being eligible for development for investment purposes. Mr. Spies also addressed a question concerning University contributions to the United Way and whether these funds could be used by the United Way to support the Boy Scouts, an organization that discriminates on the basis of sexual orientation. Individual members of the University may target their personal contributions to the United Way to any of the organizations supported by the United Way. The University’s contribution to the organization, based on total employee contributions, is made to the United Way without stipulating where the funds should be directed, leaving that decision to the community process that governs the United Way organization. Finally, there was a brief exchange about planning for graduate student housing, and mention that Associate Provost Joanne Mitchell and Vice President for Facilities Kathleen Mulligan would convene a committee examining short-term solutions in the near future. Report from the University Librarian The President then introduced Karin Trainer, University Librarian, for an update on what is new or in planning stages at university libraries. Ms. Trainer gave a demonstration regarding online catalogue “refurbishments.” Facilities would also undergo important renovations in the near future. These include infrastructure renovation of Marquand Library, in part to facilitate access to computer technology. Firestone Library, a model of its time (1930s), is scheduled for major renovation, and a master plan is being developed with input from faculty and students about updating technology, for example. Ms. Trainer also answered a question about assignment of carrels which are given out according to a system that first meets the needs of seniors and graduate students writing dissertations, but which are available to other graduate students when space permits, as was now the case. In the discussion that followed, it was noted that parts of the Gest Library had recently been renovated as an offshoot of Frist Campus Center construction project and a new librarian, from Hong Kong, would join the staff later in the year. Examination of the possibility of combining science collections in one space at Ivy and Washington Roads was also underway. Such a facility could foster interdiscipline study and free up much needed space in science departments for use as laboratories. The President thanked Ms. Trainer for her report. Art Museum Update The President then introduced Susan Taylor, the Director of the Art Museum, who had joined the University earlier in the academic year. Ms. Taylor outlined her plans for the museum, emphasizing steps to build connection to the community and enrich the teaching and research mission of the University. She was seeking ways to make the museum more accessible and attractive for users, for example by providing better interpretive material such as exhibit descriptions. The museum was collaborating more with faculty, and she gave the example of an upcoming exhibit on Corbusier which had been developed with help from faculty in the School of Architecture. She sought ways to show the permanent collection to greater advantage, using it as part of special exhibitions, and developing computerized data bases and information that could be put online. She also mentioned using contemporary art, and possibilities to meet “living artists” to attract new audiences to the museum. During the discussion that followed her presentation, students remarked on the jazz series introduced by Ms. Taylor which attracted students to the museum. The President thanked Ms. Taylor for her presentation and wished her well with her ambitious plans. Presidential Search Vice President and Secretary Thomas Wright gave an update on the presidential search. Outreach efforts continued as the committee considered criteria to guide them in reviewing candidates. Update on Medical Benefits for Graduate Students The Provost referred to a Graduate Student Government survey on medical benefits for graduate students which had been discussed at a previous CPUC meeting. The Provost was taking steps to address concerns voiced in the report. After work done by Laurel Harvey in Risk Management, the University would soon be able to offer graduate students enhanced benefits including a dental plan and improved pharmacy discounts for prescriptions. Ms. Harvey and the Provost reiterated their efforts to continue to explore other ways to improve health care for graduate students. Final Recommendations of the Priorities Committee The Provost then reviewed with the Council the final recommendations that the Priorities Committee was making to the President for transmission to the Trustees for the FY02 operating budget. The Committee’s report is available online at: http://www.princeton.edu/~provost/ Among the comments made by the Provost are the following points:
In the discussion that followed a question was asked about salaries for service staff. The Provost referred to issues raised recently by a student organization, Princeton’s Workers’ Rights Organizing Committee, about these salary levels and said that the Vice President for Finance and Administration with colleagues was gathering information to answer these and other issues raised by the group. Meetings between the administration and the campus group were planned. Finally, the President recognized Mr. Nemeroff ’01 who paid tribute to the important contributions outgoing USG president P.J. Kim ’01 had made during his tenure to enrich campus life and in particular to the effectiveness and value of the CPUC. His remarks were met with applause by Council members.
Respectfully submitted,
Ann Halliday
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