14 June 2006

The Board of Trustees met on Wednesday 14 June 2006, in the Boardroom,   Building AD, Werrington North. A summary of matters discussed is provided   below.

Confirmation of Minutes
  The minutes (PDF, 38Kb) of the April meeting   of the Board of Trustees were confirmed.

Main items considered by the Board

Board Membership

The Chancellor welcomed the two new ministerial appointees, Mr Ian Stone and   Dr Michael Bezzina. The Board noted with regret the resignation of the Graduate   Member, Mr John Heath and conveyed to Mr Heath its gratitude for his   contribution while a Board Member. The University’s By-Laws provide the process   for determining a replacement Graduate Member.

The Chancellor also expressed the Board’s sympathies on the recent deaths of   Linda Burney’s partner, Mr Rick Farley, and Carolyn Norberry, a long-serving   member of the University’s HR staff.

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Vice-Chancellor’s Mid-Year Report

The Vice-Chancellor spoke to her report which included the following matters   noted by the Board:

Student enrolments
  The target of 2% over-enrolment may   not be met and the level of Commonwealth Grant Scheme funding associated with   the University’s student load is less than expected. A significant mid-year   intake strategy has been put in place to address this shortfall against the   enrolment targets and colleges are focusing on areas where offers could be made   to increase enrolments with particular attention to increasing the CGS funding   outcomes.  There is an increase in income from local fee-paying students of   $1.4m. The fee income from onshore international students is being carefully   monitored.

Financial performance
  On the basis of results to date,   the University does not see any major variation to the projected break even   financial result for 2006.

University strategic plan and review
  The University has   been undertaking a process to integrate all of the plans and strategies now in   place into a clear and concise representation of the “vision in action for UWS   2015”. This matter will be considered in detail at the August meeting of the   Board, which will have a strategic planning focus.

Staffing strategy
This strategy has been titled “Our   People 2015” and a staffing strategy taskforce is being established. This group   will consult widely and develop a comprehensive, multi-layered strategy to   enable UWS to:

• attract and retain high quality staff in areas of focus and growth
• implement systems and procedures that identify, engage and nurture staff   from diverse career backgrounds
• sharpen its reward, recognition and incentive systems
• address key issues for succession planning and professional   development.

VSU

The DVC Corporate Services addressed the Board on a proposed strategy for   managing student services in the post-VSU environment from 1 January 2007, and   identified services seen by the University as essential, highly desirable and   non-essential respectively. Mr Tim Jarrett, President of UWSSA presented the   Association’s views to the Board together with a proposal for service delivery   under VSU. Mr John McGuire, General Manager of PAUWS also spoke briefly.

There was extensive discussion on how services to students might be funded   while complying with the VSU legislation and bearing in mind the University’s   limited financial resources. The Board agreed to establish a committee to work   with the University executive on this matter, bearing in mind the various views   expressed. The Committee will comprise Kim Yeadon, Genevieve Kelly, Gabrielle   Kibble and Mary Foley. This matter will be discussed in detail again at the   August meeting.

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AUQA

The Board noted the summary overview of the trial audit outcomes and the   Trial Audit Report, which outlined a range of findings. The University has   prepared an action plan in response to these findings and the Performance   Portfolio is in the final stages of preparation for submission to AUQA by 3 July   2006.

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Draft International Strategic Plan

A draft international strategy was considered by the Board and will be   considered in more detail at the August meeting. The strategy is a whole of   University plan to guide internationalisation and to assure quality and   diversity in all international activities.

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Medical School

The Australian Medical Council (AMC) Accreditation Team undertook a week-long   site visit 22-26 May. The team acknowledged the hard work that has resulted in   the progress to date, and identified some areas where concentrated focus needs   to be applied in the next three months. An overarching project plan has been   developed to ensure these are addressed, working parties have been established   and additional staff deployed.

The Board authorised the Chancellor to sign the agreement with the TAFE   Commission for the School of Medicine accommodation at Liverpool TAFE. This will   be done at an event at Liverpool at 21 June and the Minister for Education and   Training, the Hon. Carmel Tebbutt MP, will sign for the TAFE Commission.

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Delegations Relating to Finance

The Board approved recommendations to vary current financial delegations   relating to capital works, facilities and infrastructure, subject to the Audit   and Risk Management Committee’s formal endorsement of the proposals. In future   all such delegation changes will be considered by the ARMC, prior to   recommendation to the Board for approval.

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UWS College

The Board: 

• approved the new entity being known as UWS College
• noted the timetable for the creation of the new entity
• noted that pending further investigation, the BCRI site is the preferred   site for UWS College.

DRG

To date, the DRG Implementation Project has made substantial progress on six   of its twenty sub-projects. Of the sub-projects remaining, five organisational   change proposals have been recently released and five are nearing completion,   with four sub-project recommendations subject to further review. 2006 savings   from the Project will be less than anticipated due to the lengthy process   involved when implementing changes and formalising reductions in staffing. To   compensate, divisions are being asked to find additional savings to ensure the   overall 2006 savings target is met.

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Audit and Risk Management Committee

The Board approved the amendment to the Charter of the ARMC, as outlined at   the April Board meeting.

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Academic Senate

The Board noted the Academic Senate report and approved the new Academic   Governance Policy covering the Academic Senate and Senate’s Committees. The new   Academic Governance Policy is available on the Policies and Procedures Directory.

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Other Reports and Items Considered by the Board

• Vice-Chancellor's Report
• Report of 1 June 2006 meeting of the Strategy and Resources Committee
• Report of 8 May 2006 meeting of the Campus Development Committee and   Progress Report on Campus Development Funding for 2006
• Report of 30 March and 25 May 2006 meetings of the Regional Council
• Occupational Health and Safety Report
• Staffing Matters
• Progress Report of Major Capital Buildings Projects
• Progress Report on Callista
• Bologna Process
• National Protocols for Higher Education Approval Process
• Federal Budget 2006 and Higher Education
• Research Investment
• Auditor General’s Report to Parliament