Entrepreneur, former NFL player and UofL alumnus Frank Minnifield was elected chair of the board. A Georgetown, Ky., resident, Minnifield is president of Minnifield Enterprize Inc. Murray, Ky., physician Robert Hughes, also a UofL alumnus, was voted the board’s vice chair.
Several trustees spoke glowingly about outgoing chair Owsley Brown Frazier. Ramsey praised Frazier, who was chair for three years, for his support of UofL’s administration and the community in general. Vice President for Athletics Tom Jurich said Frazier was instrumental in building support for women’s athletics at UofL and in the construction of what is now known as Owsley Brown Frazier Cardinal Park.
Also at the meeting, the board approved a six-year capital plan that includes more than 180 projects at a budget of almost $1.85 billion between now and 2018. The plan, which must be submitted to the Capital Planning Advisory Board and the state Budget Office, is updated every two years and forms the basis for UofL’s biennial budget request for capital projects.
The university’s top priority on the plan is construction of a $77.6 million academic building for Belknap Campus, followed by a $67 million instructional building for the Health Sciences Center.
In other action, the board approved 2011-12 institutional goals as well as goals for Ramsey and his executive leadership team. Based on the 2020 Plan, UofL’s strategic plan, the institutional goals are in these areas: educational excellence; research, scholarship and creative activity; community engagement; diversity, opportunity and social justice; and creative and responsible stewardship.
The goals are the basis for the board’s evaluation of the president and his leadership group. They will be posted under “2012 scorecard” on the president’s website. Last year’s scorecard, including results, also is online.
The board also approved:
- Naming the walkway and landscaped area near the College of Business’s Big Red sculpture the Jane Goldstein Garden. Goldstein is the assistant dean for development in the College of Business. Ramsey said Goldstein “has done a great job of raising money for the university and has been a great friend to many.”
- A change to the university’s retirement plan that includes medical residents, post doctoral scholars and visiting faculty as “eligible employees.” The change allows residents to make voluntary contributions in the retirement plan, although the university will not match those contributions.