Taylor Baird

President Betz's inauguration speech articulates a vision for the University of Central Oklahoma, centered on fostering a culture of learning, leading, and serving. The speech outlines a strategic direction to prepare students for success in a global knowledge economy through transformative learning, emphasizing critical thinking, collaboration, creativity, and innovation. Key focus areas include the 'Central Six' framework, aiming to become a top 10 Metropolitan University, strengthening collaborations with regional partners, and advocating for character, civility, and community, all with the overarching goal of student success and contributing to the state's development.

This address outlines the strategic planning initiative for the University of Central Oklahoma, known as "Vision 2020." The seven-year plan aims to establish the institution as a Metropolitan University, prioritizing transformative learning focused on learning, leading, and serving. Key objectives include fostering lifelong learning, enhancing student success, and deepening community engagement. The speaker also notes significant achievements in budget management, including salary increases for staff and faculty, and a boost in student scholarship funds.

The meeting included discussions on the Faculty Handbook revision regarding an AI policy and reports from various standing and university committees. College representatives raised concerns regarding the implementation of a new attendance tool and its integration with student success software. Additionally, there was a review of campus accessibility efforts, a status update on recent campus network maintenance, and announcements regarding upcoming deadlines for Oklahoma Research Day.

The document describes the Oklahoma Creativity Project, an initiative aimed at fostering a statewide collaboration to empower Oklahomans and promote creativity and innovation across commerce, culture, and education. The project seeks to encourage diverse creative thinking, harness the state's capacities for new ideas and business opportunities, and enhance cultural provision, with the overarching goal of positioning Oklahoma as a significant player in the 21st century.

The Faculty Senate meeting included a Special Session where IT personnel briefed the body on the mandate requiring attendance tracking for 1000- and 2000-level courses starting in Spring 2026. The briefing detailed the pilot program for attendance tools integrated with D2L, the selection timeline, and planned faculty training, emphasizing the goal of integrating data into the student success module for retention efforts. A UCOSA representative presented an informational proposal regarding the potential establishment of a 'dead week' before finals, which generated faculty feedback expressing concerns about content compression and instructional flexibility. Reports from the Senate Executive Committee highlighted progress on the Digital Accessibility Compliance Plan and AI Policy recommendations, as well as discussions concerning potential 90-credit hour bachelor's degrees. The Personnel Policies/Adjunct Affairs Committee reported on researching adjunct pay competitiveness and the temporary suspension of a CFAD overload pay policy. The Research, Information Resources, and Technology Committee detailed the multi-step software approval process and provided an update on the DoJ DSS compliance timeline. The Core Curriculum Committee reported on the proposed addition of MCOM 1123 to the core curriculum.