Committee Meeting Information

January 31, 2006

Room 302, Capitol Building

Cheyenne, Wyoming

 

Legislative Members Present

Senator Grant Larson, Co-Chairman

Representative Randall Luthi, Co-Chairman

Senator Jim Anderson

Senator Hank Coe (by telephone)

Representative Jeff Wasserburger (by telephone)

 

Legislative Members Absent

Representative Debbie Hammons

 

Other Members Present

Representative Pete Jorgensen, Governor’s Office Representative

Judy Richards, University of Wyoming Board of Trustees

President Tom Buchanan, University of Wyoming

 

Other Members Absent

Cynthia Lummis, State Treasurer

Max Maxfield, State Auditor

Joe Meyer, Secretary of State

Jim McBride, State Superintendent

 

Legislative Service Office Staff

Mark Quiner, Assistant Director

 

Others Present at Meeting

Please refer to Appendix 1 to review the Committee Sign-in Sheet
for a list of other individuals who attended the meeting.

 

Call To Order ()

Co-Chairman Luthi called the meeting to order at 10 a.m..  The following sections summarize the Committee proceedings by topic. 

 

Approval of Minutes

Minutes from the September 27, 2005 Committee meeting were approved without amendment.

 

Report from Steering Committee

The Committee received the final report from the Steering Committee entitled "Building Business Education in Wyoming:  A Feasibility Study and Recommendations to Develop Business Education in Teton County and Throughout Wyoming."  Dean Brent Hathaway, Maggi Murdock and Ron McCue of the Steering Committee explained the recommendations in the report.  Appendix 2.  Dean Hathaway reviewed the recommendations for the Committee.

 

Ron McCue related that a first impression is always important.  There needs to be a good plan which is well funded and well executed for the first summit to be held.  This will take a while to prepare and we're probably looking at 2007 before a first-class summit could be sponsored.

 

Maggi Murdock indicated that the core of the study is to build the College of Business.  Along that order, the institute can have a big influence on business practices in this state and beyond.

 

President Tom Buchanan indicated that the highest priority of the University right now needs to be to strengthen the College of Business, since it is important for economic and workforce development in the state.  The college has experienced consistent growth over the past 5 or 6 years with the highest on-campus enrollment numbers ever.  It is a challenge to recruit top faculty since the market for such has accelerated away from UW even though there has been great state financial support for UW in the past few years.  He feels the College should have a stronger presence in Teton County and other places around the state.

 

Ms. Judy Richards of the UW Board of Trustees indicated the College of Business is on the board's radar as well.  The trustees agree that the college needs some help and needs more faculty to handle the growing number of students.  She indicated the board is grateful for the Legislature's help in improving the College of Business.  The proposed institute would provide an outreach piece that UW needs throughout the state, and this should be done at a quality level.

 

The members of the Committee expressed their gratitude for the hard work of the Steering Committee and the consultants in putting the report together. 

 

Following discussion, Senator Anderson moved that the Committee receive the report and forward the report along to the UW President, the UW Board of Trustees and the Dean of the College of Business.  The motion passed.

 

Representative Jorgensen moved that the 2 recommendations contained in Dean Hathaway's November 15, 2005 letter to the Oversight Committee be reversed in their order of priority.  The recommendations are:

 

The motion would further amend the second recommendation by inserting the phrase "for the benefit of UW students and businesses in Wyoming based upon recommendations received from the UW administration and trustees" after "College of Business".  The motion failed for the lack of a second.

 

After discussing specifically Recommendation #4 in the report (page 3 of Appendix 2), Representative Jorgensen moved that the name "Steering" be changed to "Oversight", and that "will" be changed to "could".  The recommendation would then read:

"In order to build a premier business faculty in the sustainability field, a visionary investment in UW is essential.  The Oversight Committee recommends creation of a Center for Sustainable Business Practices at the University of Wyoming College of Business that could complement the creation of the Teton Institute.  This investment should include funding for at least 12 incremental faculty, facilities and program support."

The motion passed.

 

Cochairman Larson moved:

1 - That the Legislature invest aggressively in the University of Wyoming College of Business in order to enhance business education in Wyoming;

2.  That a Center for Sustainable Business Practices be created at the University of Wyoming College of Business that could complement the creation of the Teton Institute.

To meet these objectives, the Legislature shall appropriate $708,500 for the hiring of 3 additional faculty in the College of Business.  The motion passed.

 

The Committee then engaged in discussion regarding the importance of the funding for the 3 additional faculty members and the need for long-term funding to attract and retain tenure-track faculty.  Following discussion, the Committee requested a bill be drafted for the funding of the 3 new faculty members at the College of Business.

 

Meeting Adjournment

There being no further business, Co-Chairman Luthi adjourned the meeting at 12:10 pm.

 

Respectfully submitted,

 

 

 

Representative Randall Luthi, Co-Chairman

 

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