Three board committees meet for April off-cycle meetings

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Three Penn State Board of Trustees committees met virtually on April 18 in a series of off-cycle meetings. 

The committees meeting included Legal and Compliance; Academic Affairs, Research and Student Life; and Outreach, Development and Community Relations. 

The Committee on Academic Affairs, Research and Student Life: 

• Received an update from Jeff Adams, interim vice provost and dean for Undergraduate Education, and Margo DelliCarpini, vice president for Commonwealth Campuses and executive chancellor, on current University programs for incoming first-year students that positively impact student success. They highlighted several of the most effective longstanding summer bridge programs: Pathway to Success Summer Start (PaSSS) at select Commonwealth Campuses; Learning Edge Academic Program (LEAP) at University Park; and Smart Track to Success at World Campus. In addition to highlighting how these programs contribute to student success, they noted challenges in expanding some of the programs, including financial limitations and resource availability, and discussed opportunities to address those challenges. 

• Heard from Andrea Dowhower, interim vice president for Student Affairs, and Barry Bram, interim assistant vice president for Student Affairs, on efforts to develop a centralized multi-tiered resource hub for undergraduate students to access resources related to curricular and co-curricular experiences. The hub will leverage artificial intelligence via a website and virtual assistant to provide a customized experience in helping students identify critical resources. Students seeking information beyond the capacity of online self-service will be connected with a Penn State staff member for personalized follow up. Additionally, a physical, staffed space at University Park will serve the same purpose as the online platform and allow students at the campus to walk in and seek resources and personalized assistance. Commonwealth Campus students will also be able to connect virtually with students and staff working in the physical space at University Park for personalized assistance. The platform will go through beta testing this summer and is expected to launch in fall 2024. 

The Committee on Outreach, Development and Community Relations: 

• Heard from Paul Clifford, CEO of the Penn State Alumni Association, who discussed the ongoing alumni trustee election; the association’s recent 2024 Alumni Association Inclusive Excellence Award from Insight Into Diversity magazine; and efforts to further align Penn Stater magazine storytelling with President Neeli Bendapudi’s goals. 

• Heard an update from Dave Lieb, interim vice president for Development and Alumni Relations, on the University’s next fundraising campaign. 

• Heard from Renata Engel, vice provost for Online Education, who provided updates on student engagement opportunities, student awards and new academic programs at Penn State World Campus. She also provided a breakdown of statistics on the 1,536 World Campus students who will earn degrees in May. 

• Heard from Rachel Pell, vice president for Strategic Communications, who provided examples of effective promotion of student success and the research enterprise at the University through paid campaigns, proactive media placements and social media. 

• Heard from Mike Stefan, vice president for Government and Community Relations, who provided an update on recent Advocate Penn State efforts, including Capital Day in Harrisburg and Capital Day on Campus. 

• Received an update from Larry Terry, vice president for Penn State Outreach, who shared new and ongoing initiatives for the organization, which supports Penn State’s land-grant mission and collective impact on communities across Pennsylvania. A few of the initiatives that Terry discussed that support this goal are: 

  • The Outreach Imagination Summit, held in October 2023, which brought together more than 190 individuals representing 10 colleges, 19 campuses and 55 centers, units and institutes to collectively imagine the future of outreach at Penn State. 
  • GSV x Penn State: The Global Impact Forum (TGIF) 2024, a summit established through a partnership between Penn State and Global Silicon Valley (GSV) to collectively empower communities, businesses and individuals to accelerate positive impact, economic development and upward social mobility through education and innovation. The first event is scheduled for Sept 22-25 in Philadelphia. 
  • The Keystone Collective Impact, a research-based model through which University and community stakeholders can collectively address public problems.  
  • Efforts to enhance student success through several Outreach programs, including the Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center’s Student Engagement and Experiential Discovery (SEED) program and the Nittany AI Alliance Advance program. 
  • Efforts to foster diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB), such as infusing inclusive practices into organizational processes, and building external partnerships to deliver DEIB programming beyond Penn State. 
  • Reviewed a demonstration of a prototype of the Community Impact Map, delivered by Steve Chichester, director of organizational strategy and organizational effectiveness for Penn State Outreach and Online Education, as part of Terry’s presentation. The map, which is expected to launch in fall 2024, is a data-driven platform to visually display the University’s combined outreach efforts from every college, campus and unit across the commonwealth, highlighting outreach efforts’ impact in real time. 

The Committee on Legal and Compliance: 

• Heard from Amber Grove, chief ethics and compliance officer, who provided an overview of recent investigations and reports made to the Penn State Ethics Hotline, Labor and Employment Relations, Office of Equal Opportunity and Access, Office of the Vice President for Educational Equity, and the Office of Ethics and Compliance. Grove’s presentation was an update to data she shared with the committee in its March 21 meeting, to reflect investigations and reports made in the first quarter of 2024. 

The Board of Trustees is scheduled to hold its next meetings May 2-3 at the University Park campus and via livestream.