This year’s officers, as submitted by the Governance, Trusteeship and Nominating Committee, are Diane Medley (chair), Larry Benz (vice chair), Brian Lavin (treasurer), Sherrill Zimmerman (secretary) and Diane Porter (at-large member).

Allie Rose Phillips, president of the , was sworn in as the new student constituency representative. Faculty Senate Chair Eugene Mueller continues his role as faculty constituency representative; and Staff Senate Chair Kevin Ledford continues as staff constituency representative.

Schatzel shared a which highlights the many achievements that the university realized over the past year. Following the presentation, she acknowledged the ongoing commitment to the university’s success demonstrated by the senior leadership team, faculty, staff and students.

Trustees attributed the university’s ongoing success to Schatzel’s outstanding leadership and commitment to bring UofL to the next level. Their remarks were part of Schatzel’s annual performance evaluation, conducted by trustees and representatives from the university community. Medley noted Schatzel’s efforts to build a strong senior leadership team, establish a solid working relationship with Kentucky state legislators and commit to many worthwhile and ambitious goals for the university.

The trustees approved the university’s in June. One of the drivers for that budget is the university’s strong philanthropy efforts. Keith Sherman, executive director and chief operating officer, reported that UofL’s main endowment pool stands at $914 million with investment returns at just over 11%. Additionally, FY 2023-24 fundraising was about $47 million.

continues to thrive as a premier health system in Kentucky. ULH CEO Tom Miller noted several recent achievements including the much anticipated opening of UofL Health – South Hospital in Bullitt County, Ky., this past March. Some of ULH’s strategies for 2025 include the expansion of the mental health services program across the commonwealth, buildout of the and seeking National Cancer Institute designation for the .

Jon Klein, UofL’s interim executive vice president for research and innovation, shared exciting news about a $24 million investment in clinical research infrastructure – the largest such investment in the university’s history. Funding, $12 million of which comes from the National Institutes of Health, will support the development of a clinical and translational research program at the university. A formal announcement will be made to the university community in the coming weeks. Watch UofL News for more information.

The University of Louisville Board of Trustees committees will meet Thursday, Sept. 19, at 1 p.m., in Grawemeyer Hall. Meeting agendas, minutes and other information is available on the .

Interim President Lori Gonzalez provided senators with current student enrollment and retention figures. A decline in undergraduate enrollment compared to last year was reported. Gonzalez said that administration anticipated this decrease and despite the current dip in student enrollment, current figures for the fall 2022 term show promise. Figures for the fall 2022 semester include a 6% increase in student applications, 14% increase in admissions and 30% increase in deposits.

Gonzalez further reported an increase in student retention rate of 91% from the fall 2021 to spring 2022 semester, improving upon the 86% student retention rate reported the previous year.

“Our fall to spring retention for first-year students is back to pre-pandemic levels, which is pretty amazing,” Gonzalez said. “Getting back in class and having the right kind of experience, I think, has made a big difference.”

Dan Durbin, executive vice president for finance and administration, and Keith Sherman, executive director and chief operating officer of the , presented information on the university budget and available funding currently offered through the foundation. Durbin provided an overview of the university’s $1.3 billion budget for fiscal year 2022. General or unrestricted funds are used to cover the unrestricted operating expenses incurred by the university; this funding accounts for about 40% of the institution’s total budget.

“Our unrestricted funding is made up of tuition, fees and state appropriations. Tuition and fees are influenced by external and internal factors, so we have very limited latitude when it comes to increasing unrestricted operating funds from tuition and fees,” Durbin said. “Our state appropriation is about $130 million a year; $127 million of that is base, and we have to earn the other $3 million through the Performance Funding model, so that $3 million is always at risk.”

Performance funding is reallocated each year based on each university’s performance relative to other institutions in the state. UofL performed better than the sector average in seven of the 11 performance metrics used to determine state performance funding. Despite a slight increase in 2022, state funding for the university has generally declined over the past decade.

The university’s general fund budget will soon face several significant challenges, including inflation, employee compensation increases and the 2025 demographic cliff projected to impact higher education enrollment and institutional aide nationwide. As neither state allocation nor tuition increases can meet these financial obstacles fully, units have been encouraged to take advantage of the $82 million that is currently available through the University of Louisville Foundation.

Sherman reported the total foundation funding, which includes both endowment and current use funds, is available to each UofL school and college. Senators were also provided with a recommended order of spending for all funding, both restricted and nonrestricted, to reduce general fund spending and maximize UofL’s budgetary efficiency.

“Grant monies typically need to be returned to the grantor if you don’t spend them, so you should spend those funds first. Then go to your restricted endowments and your restricted non-endowed gifts [before spending] your unrestricted money. Your unrestricted money is gold because you can do anything you want with it. We recommend spending unrestricted gifts before your unrestricted endowments because non-endowed gifts don’t grow.” said Sherman.

Committee reports and a of the meeting can be accessed on the . The next Faculty Senate meeting is scheduled for Feb. 8 and will take place remotely via Microsoft Teams.

Chief of Police Gary Lewis provided senators an overview of the current state of campus security. Lewis reported that the number of security cameras across UofL has nearly doubled over the past year. In addition to the increase in number, many of the new cameras are more advanced and offer a wider range of visual coverage. Lewis also informed senators of the continuing effort to standardize access control among all university campuses.

“On Belknap campus, only about 60% of the campus is access controlled. Health Sciences Campus is 100% access controlled. We’re improving some technologies [on Belknap] so that card readers will be able to provide you with the ability to gain access entry into all buildings,” Lewis stated. “Our goal is 100% access control on Belknap campus similar to HSC.”

Senators were also introduced to Kari Aikins, the recently appointed director of Total Rewards. Mary Elizabeth Miles, VP of Human Resources, informed senators that Total Rewards encompasses retirement, compensation and benefits. Aikins will also serve as co-chair for

Keith Sherman, chief operating officer and executive director of the , provided senators with an overview of the foundation’s record-setting portfolio. The UofL Foundation and the UofL Real Estate Foundation boasted combined Total Assets of just over $1.3 billion, the highest in the history of both foundations. Total Endowment Assets also reached an all-time high at $922 million. The main endowment pool, which serves as the source of nearly all available endowment funding across the university, also reached a record $817 million as of July 12.

Sherman stated, “We saw 33% returns in the stock market through May; for perspective, our goal is 6.2% a year. Over the last year, we’ve returned five times what we expect to get in the marketplace, which is unbelievable. That 33% return for an endowment will probably put us in the top 10% of all endowments across the country.”

Sherman credited the overwhelming growth of the main endowment pool to several changes made by the foundation over the past year.

“We made a lot of changes this year. We changed investment advisors, we changed our investment strategy, we simplified things and sometimes it is just important to be good as well as lucky. We made some good, thoughtful decisions and when the market went crazy after the COVID-19 drop last March, we were perfectly positioned to maximize our returns,” Sherman said.

Committee reports and a of the virtual meeting can be found on the .

The Staff Senate will not meet during the month of August in order to provide orientation for the 21 first-time Staff Senate representatives. The next Staff Senate meeting is scheduled for Sept. 8 via a hybrid format with the option of remote attendance via Teams, or in-person attendance at Ekstrom Library’s Chao Auditorium.

Joining the Academic Programs Committee for a three-year term are Evan Frederick, Erin Gerber, Reg Bruce and Ryan Schroeder.

Ben Schoenbachler joins the Committee on Committees and Credentials. Rob Barker, Eugene Mueller and David Simpson join the Executive Committee. Diane Chlebowy has been added to the Part-Time Faculty Committee.

Monica Delano joins the Planning and Budget Committee. Sarah Carter and Ryan Schroeder are now on the Redbook Committee.

Also, Patrick Harris joins the Academic Technology Committee; Olfa Nasraoui joins COSW; Tom Simmons joins the Parking Advisory Committee; Karen Turner joins the Parking Appeals Committee; and Patrick Harris is the SGA representative.

During the regular Faculty Senate meeting, Dr. Bob Myers from the College of Business was recognized for his 48 years of service on the senate.

“I am indebted and honored. I wish you the best wishes for your continued quest for collegiality and shared governance. I really believe that’s what makes this a great university,” Myers said, to a standing ovation.

President Neeli Bendapudi provided an update on a number of issues, stating that there has been much positive news recently, including with the recently announced IBM partnership. She provided a personnel update, including the renewal of Dean Toni Ganzel at the School of Medicine, and Dean Craig Blakely at SPHIS, as well as the new Dean of the School of Music, Teresa Reed, and the new CIO, Rehan Khan. Further, she noted that Bradley Shafer has been named as the permanent VP of Advancement.

Bendapudi also thanked Keith Sherman, executive director of the UofL Foundation, for supporting the university as it continues to work through budget shortfalls. The foundation recently invested $13 million in UofL’s Bucks for Brains program, for example. Bendapudi noted this investment will yield a strong return, and already has as evidenced by the recent announcement that Talaris – a UofL-founded company created through the program – secured $100 million.

“The impact Bucks for Brains has to the university is several million dollars and it will bring in predictable funding,” she said.

Bendapudi also provided an update to the Strategic Plan, noting that feedback has been received by more than 3,000 different people throughout campus.

“That is remarkable, to have that many people providing input,” she said. “We intend to be nimble and action-oriented with this and not have it be some book on a shelf.”

Bendapudi urged senators to continue to be patient as administrators continue to work to clean up the budget mess, stating that she is confident next year we will be in a much better place. She is aiming for a 2% raise in January.

Provost Beth Boehm also provided an update, stating that she has charged a committee to review and streamline the Redbook, and has also created a committee to examine the consensual sexual policy and faculty accountability.

Boehm said enrollment numbers are down 2% for the summer and 4% for the fall at this point and urges senators to engage with students and help with the recruitment and retention process.

“When we’re down on numbers, it’s like taking another budget cut,” she said.

We are recruiting students in new areas like Chicago, and working to make sure those students find a cohort once they get to campus.

ULF’s Sherman also provided a report, ensuring senators that “we’re in a much better spot today than we were just a year ago.” Specifically, we have faculty, staff and student representation on the foundation board and have therefore become a benchmark for governance.

We’ve also improved transparency, reporting live item budgets monthly and quarterly.

Sherman encouraged senators to spend their current use, endowment and general funds.

“It is easier for us to ask donors for money if we’re spending the money they give us wisely,” Bendapudi said.

Sherman said a new system will be in place starting July 1 that will allow those who work with endowments and endowment donors to see their accounts online whenever they so choose.

“This is part of our work toward more transparency,” he said. “Hopefully it will lead to more discussions on the best way to use that money.”

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Gail DePuy provided an update on the strategic planning process, stating that work group committees have collected and reviewed the data and are now working on action plans.

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Other reports, including the Chair’s report and committee reports, .Ěý

The next Faculty Senate meeting is June 5 on the HSC campus.