OPC_-_Commissioner_Report__-_12-6-17

Council on Postsecondary Education Meeting Wednesday, December 6, 2017, 5:30 p.m Community College of Rhode Island – Room 4090 400 East Avenue, Warwick, Rhode Island 02886 Rhode Island Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner Commissioner’s Report Dear Members of the Council on Postsecondary Education, I am pleased to provide the Council with an update on the many initiatives that the Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner is currently implementing Rhode Island Nursing Education Center Grand Opening I was thrilled to join many here at the Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting of South Street Landing and the RI Nursing Education Center (RINEC) last week Thank you to RINEC Executive Director Bess Wilbur for her hard work, in a short period of time, in organizing this event that showcased the innovative model of nursing education that RINEC offers We enjoyed a great turnout and, from what I saw, the attendees were quite impressed with the beautiful space, the state-of-the-art resources, and the collaborative design of the space Special thanks to Chair Cottam, Chair Foulkes, and Presidents Dooley and Sánchez for taking part in the event Innovation and Effectiveness Initiative I am pleased to announce that we have engaged the services of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges Institutional Strategies (AGBIS) to facilitate a strategic system review to assist our system office and three institutions with finding solutions for enhancing our system’s innovation and effectiveness This sixmonth engagement will culminate in a final report to the Council detailing recommendations for both operational effectiveness and alignment of degree pathways to market needs Thank you to Chair Foulkes for convening a steering committee made up of representatives from each of the institutions and the system office that will help guide this work The AGBIS project team includes:    William (Brit) Kirwan, Ph.D (Project Team Co-Lead): Currently a Senior Fellow with AGBIS, Dr Kirwan led a similar nationally-recognized effectiveness project at the University System of Maryland while serving there as Chancellor Prior to serving as Chancellor, Dr Kirwan served as President of Ohio State University and as President of the University of Maryland at College Park Cornelius (Neil) Kerwin, Ph.D (Project Team Co-Lead): Currently a Senior Fellow with AGBIS, Dr Kerwin is recognized as a national expert in public policy Prior to joining AGBIS, Dr Kerwin served as President of American University and founded American University’s Center for the Study of Rulemaking He remains actively engaged in research Jim Hundrieser, Ph.D (Project Support): Currently an Associate Managing Principal at AGBIS, Dr Hundrieser is recognized as a national expert in student enrollment, retention, and success In his 25+ years working in higher education, Dr Hundrieser has served as Vice President of Noel-Levitz and Vice-President at both Plymouth State University and Lynn University The project team will keep the Council updated on their on-going work and plans to present both an interim and final report at future Council meetings Attainment Plan Release As you are aware, OPC has been working for months with Education Strategy Group (ESG) on the development of recommendations for us to meet our statewide postsecondary attainment goal of 70% by 2025 We know that to move us from the national average of 46% to a national leader requires targeted strategies to meet the needs of underrepresented communities, adults with and without some college experience, opportunity youth, veterans, and immigrants The release of the plan and the launch of the work in earnest to reach our attainment goal will coincide with the kick-off of OPC’s professional development series, funded by a grant from the Rhode Island Foundation We are excited to be near completion of the plan, and we anticipate a January release More information will follow Pilot of Delegated Purchasing Authority for URI The University of Rhode Island, the State Division of Purchases, and OPC met recently to discuss a pilot project that would provide increased delegated purchasing authority to the University This delegation agreement will contain limitations for various procurement activities, reporting, oversight, and structure that will allow the University to streamline the procurement function in a way tailored to its specific needs The Director of the Department of Administration and the Chief Purchasing Officer would grant the authority after reviewing a request for such from the University The agreement will include reporting requirements back to both the Department of Administration (DOA) and OPC Additionally, the group discussed similar delegations that could be tailored to the needs of the other postsecondary entities, if interested, in the future We anticipate that the agreement with URI and DOA will be effective as of January 1, 2018 Complete College America Conference A team from Rhode Island, consisting of representatives from RIC, URI, OPC and the Governor’s Office, joined their counterparts from across the country last week in New Orleans for the annual Complete College America (CCA) conference The team heard from national experts in higher education on a range of topics, including closing equity gaps, reaching attainment goals, implementing co-requisite math and English, student advising, research on returning adults, assessment and placement, and more At the conference, CCA announced new “gamechanger” strategy – “A Better Deal for Returning Adults.” CCA is challenging states and institutions to rethink how we can better serve adults by providing credit for prior learning, restructuring class schedules, providing accelerated classes, and allowing for year-round enrollment Rhode Island is poised to be a leader in this work, and I look forward to working with the Council and our institutions as we explore how we can continue to meet the needs of Rhode Island adults returning to college OPC Strategic Facility Plan The OPC team is finalizing a strategic facility plan to address some functional deficiencies, support collaboration, integrate the latest in appropriate technology, and create flexibility to easily accommodate changes in the organization The first step in the plan involves improvements to our office space OPC has requested funding from the Rhode Island Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM) to secure an architecture and engineering firm to assist with optimizing our workspace The desired outcomes would be:      Optimal building systems (e.g., HVAC, wireless service, fire suppression systems, lighting) Open office plans – to encourage interaction and enhance productivity Hot desking or hoteling – To accommodate visiting colleagues, those from other agencies and guests Common spaces – to foster a community feel and provide space for meetings Sustainable – to reduce energy consumption in the long term Additionally, the study will provide options for segmenting a portion of the office to create rentable space on the first floor Finally, we are also pursuing state funds for needed technology upgrades, which will be take place once the office renovations are complete Export of Westerly Model As you know, Executive Director Amy Grzybowski and her team at the Westerly Education Center have exceeded all expectations in their first year of operation In fact, since we last updated you, the team there has determined that in the spring they will need to operate 24 hours/day on some days of the week to accommodate all the courses slated to be offered It is clear that this Center is fulfilling an educational need in the southern part of our state, and I believe that this is a model that can and should be exported to other parts of the state We have begun discussions with industry partners and institutions to gauge interest in a similar center in northern Rhode Island Preliminary conversations have proved promising, and I will keep the Council apprised as the discussions continue Personnel Update I am thrilled to announce that we will soon have two new staff members joining the OPC team Karyn Lowe will begin next week as our Legislative and Policy Advisor Karyn comes with a wealth of knowledge on postsecondary policy after serving for eight years as the Senior Policy Analyst and Education Specialist with the RI Senate Policy Office Karyn also spent time in California working with the State Office of Public School Construction, with the General Court of Massachusetts, and with the RI Workers’ Compensation Court Karyn earned her B.S from Bryant University and her J.D from the University of Massachusetts Law School I am also happy to inform you that we will soon have a new Director of Communications and Outreach on board Nicole Shaffer-Thomas joins us from Chiefs for Change, where she currently serves as the Director of External Affairs She previously served as Director of Development and Communications with Building Excellent Schools and as Strategic Relations Planner with RIDE Nicole, who holds a B.S in journalism from Ohio University and a M.A in international communication from American University, brings with her an extensive background in education, communications and stakeholder engagement She will join the team the first week of January The search continues for the Associate Commissioner position We recently revised the job posting to provide more context about the office and the position and to add an emphasis on the importance of our focus on closing equity gaps We are sharing the posting widely and hope to begin interviews shortly in the new year