Approval of minutes. The minutes for the meeting of February 19, 2003 were approved as amended.

The proposal for a major and minor in Africana Studies was approved. This proposal was first approved by the Curriculum Committee and forwarded to the Academic Council after review by the subcommittee on Academic Affairs.

The proposal for an Interdisciplinary Studies major was approved. This proposal was first approved by Curriculum Committee and forwarded to the Academic Council after being reviewed by the subcommittee on Academic Affairs.

The proposal for a Master of Fine Arts in The Writing Seminars was approved. This proposal was first approved by the Graduate Board and forwarded to the Academic Council after review by the subcommittee on Academic Affairs.

The proposal for a Master of Science in Bioinformatics was approved. This proposal was first approved by the Arts and Sciences Advanced Academic Programs Committee and forwarded to the Academic Council after review by the subcommittee on Academic Affairs.

The proposal for a dual Master of Science/Master of Business Administration degree in Biotechnology was approved. This proposal was first approved by the Arts and Sciences Advanced Academic Programs Committee and forwarded to the Academic Council after review by the subcommittee on Academic Affairs.

President Brody joined the meeting and assumed the chair.

Remarks by the Chair. President Brody asked that Commencement comments be sent to Jerry Schnydman or the President. He commented that the one disappointment was that the morning events were poorly attended. He said that a lot of effort had gone into revamping the ceremony and making it a more memorable one for the students. So far, the feedback from families has been positive.

The Governor vetoed the budget. Hopkins has been lobbying the Board of Public Works, which is comprised of the Governor, the Comptroller (former Governor Schaefer), and state treasurer and former delegate Nancy Kopp. Both Schaefer and Kopp are strong supporters of higher education. President Brody said he did not know where all of this was going. Probably the biggest potential downside would be another million and a half dollar cut overall to Hopkins. We have budgeted at that level, so we are prepared for that. The Governor feels that private higher education can fundraise its way out of the problem. The budget problems are forecast to get worse.

The good news is that on the fundraising front in less than three years we have crossed a billion dollars. This is extraordinary given the state of the economy. It helps being on the East Coast. Hopkins has an efficient fundraising operation that includes marketing strategy and a development information system. Effort is being put into cultivating donors.

President Brody reported that the SARS epidemic closed the Nanjing center early. The program has moved to Hawaii for first semester.

The President reported that they are in the final stages of searches for replacements for Audrey Smith for Human Resources and Ilene Busch-Vishniac for the Dean of the Whiting School. The search for a new general counsel is in the early stages.

President Brody thanked Council members for another great year. He thanked the Deans for their leadership and the Faculty for their great work.

Open Discussion. Professor Lattman commented that President Brody gave a magnificent Commencement address. It is on the Hopkins website. Dean Weiss added that it was an exceptionally brave speech. Professor Lattman noted that in going through the Commencement programs, awards for academic excellence are lacking. He wondered if this was a philosophical issue or an accident. Dean Douglas said that on the undergraduate level there has been a concerted effort not to load up the Commencement ceremony. The Whiting School has a separate awards ceremony, as does Homewood Student Affairs. Professor Lattman said that there are probably twenty or thirty undergraduate awards listed in the program and not a single one is for overall academic excellence. Dean Weiss said that in the inaugural lecture of Daniel Coit Gilman outlining the vision for the University, there are twelve points and one of them is that the University should distribute its benefits liberally and its awards sparingly. Dean Falk commented that an important issue facing the Homewood schools is in what ways is it necessary to think more globally about the undergraduate experience. Professor Williams commented that if competition among students is a concern, why add prizes as a new level of competition.

Professor Bryan said her farewell since next week is her last meeting. She thanked everyone and said that serving on Council had been a wonderful experience.

Proposals for a Master of Science degree in Environmental Planning and Management and Graduate Certificates in Environmental Engineering were approved.

The Council then returned to the subject of teaching evaluations as it pertains to the Council's review of appointment and promotion cases. The idea of requesting additional supporting material was discussed. The Deans agreed to work with the appropriate subcommittee over the summer on what things could be incorporated into the Council's checklist.

The Council approved the appointments of Professors Kevin Hemker, (Mechanical Engineering), Pablo Iglesias, (Electrical and Computer Engineering), and Veena Das (Anthropology) to serve on the Board of Review. The terms for Professors Hemker and Iglesias will be three years through August 31, 2006. Professor Das' term will be for one year through August 31, 2004 and she will serve as the Council liaison. The on-going members are: Professors Richard Katz (Political Science), Holland Ford (Physics and Astronomy), Alan Stone (Geography and Environmental Engineering). Professor Richard Katz will serve as the Chair during 2003/04.

The appointment of Dr. John Boland as Professor Emeritus in the Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering effective July 31, 2003 was approved.

The meeting adjourned at 5:28 p.m.

© 2003 The Johns Hopkins University. Baltimore, Maryland. All rights reserved.
Last updated 09Nov03 by dgips@jhu.edu