At its Oct. 3 meeting, members of Faculty Council learned about the effort to explore alternate budget models and the latest happenings at the CSU Spur campus.

Executive Vice President Rick Miranda led the budget model discussion, noting that Faculty Council Executive Committee members Jennifer Martin and Rob Mitchell are serving as presidential Leadership Fellows to help collect feedback this fall. An open forum on the topic is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. on Oct. 25 in the Lory Student Center, Rooms 376-78, and additional Lunch & Listens and Coffee Chats will be held in November.

Miranda said three groups are being formed to guide the process during the coming year: an Executive Sponsor Committee, a Steering Committee and a Technical Committee.

Alternatives to incremental budgeting

He explained that currently CSU has an “incremental” budget model, meaning that the budget is based on the previous year’s amount, plus or minus any changes in funding. Miranda said alternate models invest a larger percentage of the budget – not just the increase or decrease over the previous year – and use “stimulating formulas” to achieve desired outcomes, such as improved retention or graduation rates.

One open question, he said, is how much funding CSU would distribute in that way if an alternate model were chosen. Miranda added that changing the budget model doesn’t necessarily generate additional revenue immediately, but ultimately it can stimulate growth in areas that are priorities.

More information about the budget model redesign process is available online.

CSU Spur

Jim Bradeen, associate vice president for Spur strategy, spoke to Faculty Council about the CSU Spur campus in Denver, noting that it “really does create new opportunities to extend our impact.”

He said there are currently 55 projects from CSU Fort Collins underway at Spur, representing all eight colleges and including many interdisciplinary connections. Whereas the initial impression of CSU Spur may have been that it was focused on K-12 students, Bradeen said, its reach is much broader, more like “pre-K to gray.” Lifelong learning, graduate coursework and career advancement are among the offerings at Spur, including professional/personal development opportunities and certificate programs.

He added that Spur is also home to research, innovation and industry partnerships in fields like agriculture, water and sustainability. Bradeen encouraged council members to share ideas with him on how to engage more faculty and department heads in activities at Spur.

Other matters

In other action at the Faculty Council meeting:

• Council members heard a presentation from ASCSU Director of Academic Affairs Theo Reese about an effort to create a syllabus bank that students can draw on to learn more about courses they are considering registering for. He said that to protect faculty’s intellectual property, the syllabi would be in a secure database that CSU students would need to log into for access.
• Council elected new representatives to committees, including the Committee on Scholarship, Research and Graduate Education; the University Policy Review Committee; and several standing committees.
• Council also approved several revisions to the Academic Faculty and Administrative Professional Manual, including increasing the minimum membership of tenure and promotion committees from three to five.

The next Faculty Council meeting will be on Tuesday, Nov. 7, over Microsoft Teams. For the schedule of Faculty Council meetings, approved minutes and agendas, lists of members of the Council and its committees and other information, visit the Faculty Council website.