University President Ron Liebowitz provided an update from the Sept. 11 and Sept. 12 Board of Trustees meetings to the Brandeis community in a Sept. 27 email.  

Liebowitz welcomed David Harris, who served as the Chief Executive Officer of the American Jewish Committee from 1990 to 2022, as a new trustee. Additionally, Brandeis’ new Dean of Arts and Sciences Jeffrey Shoulson and the new Vice President of the Rabb School Cameron Aguilar were both introduced to the Board. 

During preliminary meetings, President Liebowitz updated the Board on “strategic” approaches to support and sustain an “excellent undergraduate liberal arts education and a stellar research endeavor.” Additionally in his email, President Liebowitz wrote about speaking with the Board regarding the work of the Task Force on Academic Administrative Structure, Ph.D. and M.A. degree reviews, the class of 2027, Brandeis’ upcoming 75th anniversary, initiatives against antisemitism, and Brandeis’ efforts to strengthen its relationships with other institutions.

The Board accepted recommendations to grant tenure to Profs. Linda Bui (ECON), Faith Smith (AAAS/ENG), Douglas Theobald (BIOCHEM), and Joseph Wardwell (FA).

Board Committees Meeting Highlights:

During the Academy Committee meeting, topics in discussion included enrollment trends in undergraduate education, the role of master's programs at Brandeis, and a report presented by Provost Carol Fierke on tenure and tenure-track faculty hires in 2023-2024.

Prior to the Sept. 11 and Sept. 12 board meetings, members of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee came together to discuss the goals of the committee. LeManuel "Lee" Bitsóí, vice president of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, presented and invited discussion regarding a draft of a DEI professional development survey. Additionally, Liebowitz writes that Bitsóí “shared a draft DEI addendum to the Framework for the Future for discussion [and that Bitsóí] will be moving forward to finalize that document.”An institution-wide “DEI Strategic Plan” is also in the works. 

During the Institutional Advancement Committee meeting, Senior Vice President Hannah Peters and Vice President of Development Stephen Rodriguez, presented fundraising results for fiscal year 2023 and discussed both Institutional Advancement’s fiscal year 2024 goals and next steps for the future fundraising campaign. Liebowitz also spoke to the committee about the upcoming 75th anniversary celebration, which will take place between Oct. 13-15. 

Members of the Nominating and Governance Committee met before the Sept. 11 and Sept. 12 board meetings and discussed Trustee candidate recruitment. 

All Trustees were invited to the Resources Committee meeting, where they discussed fiscal year 2023 operating results and predicted fiscal year 2024 operating margins. Other pertinent discussions included “strategic planning for near- and long-term capital investment in campus housing, the Science 2A project, and addressing the significant backlog of deferred maintenance across campus buildings.”

The Risk Management and Audit Committee received updates from many entities on the University’s financial statements for fiscal year 2023, “the state of higher education and accounting ... current efforts to improve internal cyber security ... Public Safety ... services now being provided by DPV, Brandeis’ new transportation operator.”

On Sept. 20, the Student Life Committee, which is made up of both committee members and student representatives, focused on campus priorities including housing and dining issues. “Fostering community, technology, sustainability, and safety” were the driving themes in the housing discussion. According to President Liebowitz’s email, updates with respect to the new dining plans, accessibility improvements around campus, and upgrades to the Shapiro Campus Center were also discussed.

The next Board of Trustees meeting is scheduled for Jan. 29-30, 2024.