Chancellor Perlman Response to Recommendations Regarding Divisionof Continuing Studies - Fiscal Year 2002 & 2003 Budget Reduction Process

TO: Professor Craig Eckhardt, Chair, Academic Planning Committee
FROM: Harvey Perlman, Chancellor
DATE: October 7, 2002
RE: APC Recommendations regarding Division of Continuing Studies


Thank you for your letter of October 5 relaying to me the recommendations of the Academic Planning Committee regarding my recommendation with respect to the Division of Continuing Studies. I very much appreciate the Committee's careful and timely consideration of this particular recommendation. We have many employees in the Division who are anxious to know what the future holds and several of the units that are being asked to become self-sustaining need to begin to move forward.

Let me respond to each of your recommendations as you presented them to me.

I. The APC endorses the Chancellor's proposal to dissolve the DCS as an administrative unit. The APC expects that plans for restructuring and reassignment of functions be presented to APC as they are developed.
  I accept your recommendation to dissolve the Division of Continuing Studies. I will be pleased to keep you informed as we move to restructure the functions currently housed in the Division and any changes that would require APC review will be submitted to you for that purpose. The dissolution of the Division will require Board of Regents approval.
II. The APC accepts the proposed Division of Continuing Studies budget reduction, not including the Learning Centers, of $773,467.
  I accept your recommendation and I recognize that UNL 's support for the learning centers in Grand Island and North Platte remain undecided at this point. Of course, the precise amount of the actual savings from the DCS budget by this restructuring will not finally be known until the restructuring is completed.
III. The APC supports the continuance of the functions of Distance Education and Evening and Weekend Programs. Related faculty and student units should be involved in developing plans for these programs.
  I accept this recommendation. We may need to create a faculty advisory committee on distance education to be regularly consulted on matters related to distance education and students are traditionally involved in both the implementation and reconfiguration of student services.
IV. The APC supports the proposed closure of the hotel located at the Hardin Center for Continuing Education.
  I accept this recommendation.
V. The APC endorses the Chancellor's recommendation that the Independent Study High School and Conferences and Professional Development will be expected to be self-supporting within 18 months, after which reassessment will occur. This reassessment should involve the APC.
  I accept the recommendation to make the Independent Study High School and Conferences and Professional Development self-supporting. Your suggestion that the reassessment occur only after the 18 month transition causes me some uneasiness. My intention is to give each unit a fair opportunity to demonstrate its ability to become self-supporting. However, if it becomes clear that unit cannot achieve success prior to the end of the 18 month period, I must retain the option to act more quickly. I will keep you informed on our ongoing process in this regard and, of course, any action that may require APC review will be submitted to you for that purpose.
 
Again, I do appreciate the effort the Committee is making under the most trying of circumstances.


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