A meeting of the Academic and Student Affairs Committee of the Board of Trustees convened at 9:03 a.m. on Friday, June 11, 2021, on the Purdue University campus in West Lafayette, Indiana. The meeting was held in Stewart Center, Room 214, to allow for social distancing amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Restrictions were placed on the number of observers in the room, and other members of the media and the public who wished to observe the meeting virtually were provided such instructions. Everyone in the room was wearing a mask.

All committee members were present: JoAnn Brouillette, chair; Vanessa Castagna; Malcolm DeKryger; Noah Scott; and Professor Steve Beaudoin (ex-officio). All other trustees were present: Sonny Beck; Michael Berghoff; Theresa Carter; Michael Klipsch; Gary Lehman; and Don Thompson (virtually). This was Noah Scott’s last meeting as a member of the Committee, as his term would end on June 30, 2021.

Officers and administrators in attendance were: Mitch Daniels, president; Jay Akridge, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs and diversity; Chris Ruhl, chief financial officer and treasurer; Jim Almond, senior vice president, assistant treasurer, and assistant secretary; Steve Schultz, general counsel; Trent Klingerman, deputy general counsel (virtually); Janice Indrutz, corporate secretary and senior executive assistant to the Board; Ron Elsenbaumer, chancellor of Purdue University Fort Wayne (virtually); and Tom Keon, chancellor, Purdue University Northwest (virtually).

I. INTRODUCTION OF UNIVERSITY SENATE CHAIR

Trustee Brouillette introduced Dr. Steve Beaudoin as the new chair of the University Senate and ex-officio member of the Committee. Dr. Beaudoin further introduced himself as a professor of chemical engineering and director of the Purdue Energetics Research Center, and said he looked forward to working with the Board. Trustee Brouillette shared that Vice Chairman Lehman and she had visited Professor Beaudoin’s lab in the Purdue Energetics Research Center, which she described as fascinating.

II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Upon proper motion duly made and seconded, the Academic and Student Affairs Committee voted unanimously to approve the minutes of its last meeting convened on April 9, 2021.

III. APPROVAL TO AWARD POSTHUMOUS DEGREE TO RUTUJ S. GAVANKAR

Provost Akridge respectfully requested approval to award a posthumous Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering degree to Rutuj S. Gavankar, who was a student in the Purdue School of Engineering and Technology at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. He informed the Committee that Rutuj, originally from Mumbai, India, was an exceptional student with a double major in physics and electrical engineering. Provost Akridge discussed Rutuj’s accomplishments, which included having been named a Top 10 IUPUI student in 2020. He confirmed that, by having completed 92% of his degree at the time of his death on November 8, 2020, Rutuj had met the requirements for a posthumous degree and would have been a candidate for graduation in May 2021.

Dr. Brian King, chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering in the Purdue School of Engineering and Technology at IUPUI, was in attendance virtually and stated that Rutuj was an outstanding student and had provided key assistance with labs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Andrew Gavrin, chair of the Department of Physics in the Purdue School of Science at IUPUI, was also in attendance virtually and said Rutuj’s passing was a huge loss to the community. He said not only was Rutuj brilliant and a shining star, he was recognized for his enthusiasm, humility, and kindness, as well as his mentorship of students. With emotion, Trustee Brouillette remarked that she wished she had the opportunity to meet Rutuj.

Upon proper motion duly made and seconded, the Academic and Student Affairs Committee voted unanimously to recommend full Board approval to award a posthumous degree to Rutuj S. Gavankar. Trustee Brouillette thanked Dr. King and Dr. Gavrin for the personal reflections they shared about Rutuj, and she asked them to express the Board’s sincere sympathies to his family. Supporting materials were filed with the minutes.

IV. APPROVAL TO AWARD POSTHUMOUS DEGREE TO MELISSA J. ESH

Provost Akridge respectfully requested approval to award a posthumous Doctor of Philosophy degree to Melissa J. Esh. He informed the Committee that Melissa was a Ph.D. student in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. He explained that, at the time of her death on December 9, 2020, Melissa had met the Graduate School’s requirements for a posthumous degree by having completed 90 credits, passing preliminary examinations, and submitting a number of original articles; she would have been a candidate for graduation in May 2021. Provost Akridge described Melissa as intelligent, creative, and passionate. He noted classes she had taught and said she had assisted the Office of Institutional Data Analytics and Assessment with Purdue’s submission to the Higher Learning Commission’s accreditation review.

Upon proper motion duly made and seconded, the Academic and Student Affairs Committee voted unanimously to recommend full Board approval to award a posthumous degree to Melissa J. Esh. Trustee Brouillette lamented that Melissa’s was another wonderful life cut short, and she asked that the Board’s sincere sympathies be extended to her family. Supporting materials were filed with the minutes.

V. APPROVAL TO APPOINT THE REILLY PROFESSOR OF BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING

Provost Akridge respectfully requested approval to appoint Dr. George R. Wodicka as the Reilly Professor of Biomedical Engineering. He informed the Committee that Dr. Wodicka was an internationally recognized researcher, educator, collaborator, and entrepreneur, and he elaborated on Dr. Wodicka’s successful leadership of the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering and his significant impact on the biomedical engineering program. Provost Akridge also discussed Dr. Wodicka’s patented inventions and their successful applications in the medical field, and he cited one of five letters received in support of Dr. Wodicka’s appointment, the writer of which said very few people in the world had accomplished what Dr. Wodicka had accomplished for the field of biomedical engineering.

Trustee Scott remarked, and Trustee Brouillette concurred, that Dr. Wodicka’s work was incredibly impressive. Upon proper motion duly made and seconded, the Academic and Student Affairs Committee voted unanimously to recommend full Board approval of Dr. Wodicka’s appointment as Reilly Professor of Biomedical Engineering. Supporting materials were filed with the minutes.

Dr. Wodicka introduced his wife and said they were proud members of the Purdue Boilermaker family. He told the Committee about Vincent Reilly, for whom the appointment was named, and he thanked the Board.

VI. APPROVAL TO APPOINT THE LEWIS B. CULLMAN PROFESSOR OF MANAGEMENT

Provost Akridge respectfully requested approval to appoint Dr. Yanjun Li as the Lewis B. Cullman Professor of Management. He informed the Committee that Dr. Li was a world-renowned researcher in the area of integer programming and combinatorial optimization, and said he had significantly advanced the solvability of particularly complex optimization problems. Provost Akridge said Dr. Li’s work had implications in the fields of computer science, artificial intelligence, data mining, and machine learning, and he also noted the many honors bestowed to Dr. Li by the Krannert School of Management. To conclude his recommendation, Provost Akridge cited one of nine letters received in support of Dr. Li’s appointment, the writer of which said Dr. Li’s work had provided the foundation for and direction of research in the integer programming community.

Trustee Brouillette remarked that Dr. Li’s body of work and his accomplishments were incredible and impressive. Upon proper motion duly made and seconded, the Academic and Student Affairs Committee voted unanimously to recommend full Board approval of Dr. Li’s appointment as Lewis B. Cullman Professor of Management. Supporting materials were filed with the minutes.

Dr. Li said he was humbled, and he expressed his gratitude to the Krannert faculty and Dean David Hummels for their support.

VII. APPROVAL TO APPOINT THE OLSON PROFESSOR IN MANAGEMENT

Provost Akridge respectfully requested approval to appoint Dr. Joshua Chan as the Olson Professor in Management. He informed the Committee that Dr. Chan was one of the leading Bayesian econometricians in the world and the inventor of a technique called “the precision sampler.” He said Dr. Chan’s models had been used by policy institutions, including the European Central Bank the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, and the International Monetary Fund, and he announced that Dr. Chan would be a keynote speaker at the upcoming 11th European Central Bank Conference on Forecasting Techniques. Provost Akridge noted Dr. Chan’s professional service, and said, since joining the Purdue faculty three years ago, Dr. Chan had quickly become an integral part of the Krannert School of Management’s efforts to build a leading research group in his field. Provost Akridge concluded his recommendation by citing one of ten letters received in support of Dr. Chan’s appointment, written by the chair of management in econometrics at the University of Melbourne Business School in Australia.

Trustee Castagna simply remarked, “Wow.” Trustee Scott pointed out that Dr. Chan had been rated remarkably high on teaching evaluations, which, he said, was commendable given the complexity of the subject matter he taught. Upon proper motion duly made and seconded, the Academic and Student Affairs Committee voted unanimously to recommend full Board approval of Dr. Chan’s appointment as Olson Professor in Management. Supporting materials were filed with the minutes.

Dr. Chan was joined by his wife. He said he was deeply honored and happy to have joined Purdue because it was a stimulating environment.

Trustee Brouillette concluded approval of the faculty appointments by saying, “We have the cream of the crop here at Purdue University” and the professors were a great reflection of Purdue’s wonderful faculty.

VIII. APPROVAL OF CIVICS LITERACY PROFICIENCY GRADUATION REQUIREMENT

Responding to a Board directive, Provost Akridge respectfully requested approval to implement a civics literacy proficiency graduation requirement. He summarized that, at the request of President Daniels, in January 2019 the University Senate began to explore a civics literacy graduation requirement which would allow students to graduate from Purdue with a foundational understanding of civics. Provost Akridge stated that the written proposal provided to all Board members described the background, purpose and need, and structure of the requirement. He said the proposal also outlined the work that had been completed over the past two and one-half years to develop the proposal, including surveys, working groups, presentations, and reports, with input from faculty, staff, and students across the West Lafayette campus. Ultimately, he said, the proposal called for establishing a civics literacy proficiency graduation requirement for baccalaureate degrees offered by the accredited institutions within the Purdue system – West Lafayette, Purdue Fort Wayne, Purdue Northwest, and the Purdue colleges at IUPUI.

To continue, Provost Akridge indicated that the requirement would be effective in Fall 2021 for all incoming undergraduate students on the West Lafayette campus. He recognized that, because faculty, staff, and students at Purdue Fort Wayne, Purdue Northwest, and the Purdue colleges at IUPUI had not benefitted from the full discussions held on the West Lafayette campus, implementation of the requirement for all incoming undergraduate students on these campuses would be delayed until Fall 2022. He noted that a transcripted civics literacy proficiency would be available on a voluntary basis for all other current undergraduate students on the West Lafayette campus.

Provost Akridge then explained that students would have the opportunity to satisfy the civics literacy proficiency requirement any time between their freshman year and graduation by doing the following:

(1) Achievement of one of the following three options:

(a) Completing 3 hours of course work from an approved list of civics literacy proficiency courses;

(b) Completing 12 podcast learning modules created by the Center for C-SPAN Scholarship and Engagement; or

(c) Attending 6 civics-related, Purdue-hosted and sponsored events; and

(2) Successful completion of a civics knowledge test.

Provost Akridge stated that Purdue Fort Wayne, Purdue Northwest, and the Purdue colleges at IUPUI would be tasked with developing a set of criteria that would fit their respective campuses and would not be limited to the criteria outlined for the West Lafayette campus. However, all students across the Purdue system would be required to pass the civics knowledge test. Moreover, he said, the requirements for these campuses would require Board approval during the 2021-2022 academic year for implementation in Fall 2022.

To conclude, Provost Akridge expressed his belief that the criteria for meeting the civics literacy proficiency requirement were creative and flexible, would promote engagement in civics educational activities, and ultimately demonstrate that Purdue graduates had attained a foundational level of civics understanding.

Trustee Brouillette expressed her belief that the proposal spoke extensively to the need that had been identified for undergraduate students to gain civics knowledge and an understanding of how a democracy works. She thanked the past chairs of the University Senate for their efforts to move the proposal forward, and she recognized the many hours invested by the working groups over the last two and one-half years to develop a strong program. Trustee Brouillette also reiterated that the requirement would be implemented on the West Lafayette campus with the graduating class of 2025, but the regional campuses and the Purdue schools at IUPUI would have a year to shape the criteria they would implement in Fall 2022. Trustee DeKryger remarked that the Committee had an opportunity to view the C-SPAN podcasts which he described as fascinating and compelling. To conclude discussion, Professor Beaudoin expressed his appreciation for how faculty were involved from the beginning with developing the proposal and criteria, and he said he was pleased that each of the regional campuses would be able to develop their own appropriate criteria. He offered the University Senate’s support as the West Lafayette campus implemented the requirement.

Upon proper motion duly made and seconded, the Academic and Student Affairs Committee voted unanimously to recommend full Board approval of the proposal to implement a civics literacy proficiency graduation requirement as discussed. Supporting materials were filed with the minutes.

IX. FOR PURDUE NORTHWEST: APPROVAL TO REORGANIZE THE COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES, EDUCATION, AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

Provost Akridge respectfully requested approval to reorganize the College of Humanities, Education, and Social Sciences at Purdue Northwest. He proposed that the (1) Department of English, (2) Department of History and Philosophy, and (3) Department of Political Science, Economics, and World Languages and Cultures be reorganized into the (1) Department of English and World Languages and (2) Department of History, Philosophy, Politics, and Economics. Provost Akridge expressed his belief that reorganizing the departments would better align them and allow for greater collaboration among the faculty. He added that discussion about reorganizing the departments was faculty-driven, comprehensive, and supported by the PNW Faculty Senate.

Chancellor Tom Keon, who was in attendance virtually, echoed that reorganizing the College better aligned the departments, and he informed the Committee that the proposed reorganization would further PNW’s efforts to decrease administrative overhead. Upon proper motion duly made and seconded, the Academic and Student Affairs Committee voted unanimously to recommend full Board approval to reorganize the PNW College of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences. Supporting materials were filed with the minutes.

X. ADJOURNMENT

By consent, the meeting adjourned at 9:38 a.m.