Amendment to Board of Regents bylaws approved

The board amended the Board of Regent bylaws. The new amendment will help protect board members from fines, penalties, expenses and other penalties that could arise from threatened, pending or completed legal action, as long as the board member acted in good faith on behalf of the university.

President Gary Ransdell said the amendment had been in the works for a while and did not arise out of any particular lawsuit or legal action.

DUC renovation update

Downing University Center’s renovation is set to begin this spring and continue until the project is complete, which is scheduled for 2014.

The renovations will be done in three phases. Selective demolition and renovation make up phases one and two, while major renovations and construction will conclude the project.

Construction and renovations will begin in March on the Avenue of Champions side of the center.

Enrollment Update

Brian Meredith, associate vice president for enrollment management, told the board that enrollment numbers for the winter and spring terms are below average, but he likely knew the cause.

Meredith attributed the slightly lower than normal winter enrollment, down by about 70 students, to the lack of federal Pell Grants for summer and winter terms. Previously, Pell Grants could be used for special terms such as summer and winter, but now only applies to fall and spring terms.

“We believe Pell is absolutely driving this,” Meredith said.

Though overall enrollment was down, especially among freshmen, senior enrollment in winter and spring classes was up. Meredith said this is proof that retention efforts are working.

South Campus room Dedicated to John Wassom

Approved unanimously at the first quarterly Board of Regents meeting on Friday was the naming of a classroom on the WKU South Campus in honor of John Wassom, who died in July.

Wassom joined WKU in 1971 as an associate professor in the economics department in the Gordon Ford College of Business. He would continue to rise in the college, eventually becoming head of the economics department and interim dean to the College of Business.