Trustees adopt presidential priorities, elect officers

The Central Michigan University Board of Trustees voted Thursday to adopt five presidential priorities for fiscal year 2025-2026. The priorities, proposed by CMU President Neil MacKinnon, will form the basis for measuring presidential performance and institutional progress over the next year.

Trustees also elected Board officers for 2026, appointing Trustee Denise Williams Mallett to chair the CMU Board of Trustees beginning in January. Trustees Todd Regis and Ed Plawecki were elected to serve as vice chairs of the board in the new year.

During formal session, trustees and the president also discussed the importance of adopting change management practices to support the strategic work happening university wide.

President’s annual report and priorities

In his annual report to the Board of Trustees, President MacKinnon laid out progress over the last year on all four priorities of the university’s 2023-2028 Strategic Plan. He also cited CMU’s designation as an Opportunity University as proof that the university is living its mission by focusing on access to a quality education and career success.

MacKinnon highlighted progress on each strategic priority, including:

• Priority One: Achieving a high Career Outcomes Rate and expanding opportunities for student-faculty collaborative research.
• Priority Two: Offering Ojibwe language and culture academic courses and engaging communities through CMU hubs in Traverse City and Detroit.
• Priority Three: Developing an Employee Value Proposition and gaining media attention to highlight faculty research.
• Priority Four: Launching the University Transformation Office and setting a fundraising record.

To fuel momentum for the entire strategic plan, Mackinnon said Go Grant funded initiatives are beginning to show results.

“Go Grant projects not only show determination to meet the priorities of the strategic plan, they also demonstrate tremendous buy-in from our faculty, staff and students to push in the same direction toward success,” he said.

For the year ahead, the five presidential priorities proposed by MacKinnon and adopted by the Board of Trustees are:

• The completion and successful implementation of year one of the Strategic Enrollment Management Plan.
• The successful implementation of year one recommendations from an assessment of CMU Innovation and Online, and the development of the year two implementation plan.
• The completion of satisfactory progress with the majority of the key performance metrics for fiscal year 2025-2026 in the strategic plan.
• The completion of a proposed facilities master plan through to 2030 for the board’s consideration.
• Creation of an updated heat map of major risks and the development of mitigation strategies for those major risks.

“I believe these five presidential priorities represent areas where we can make considerable impact resulting in progress toward meeting our institutional goals in the university’s strategic plan,” MacKinnon said.

Preparing for change

Embracing change was a prominent theme in Thursday’s formal session. In his opening remarks and annual report to the Board, President MacKinnon noted that significant change would be required across the university as the result of the university’s adoption of the new strategic enrollment management plan, changes to CMU Innovation and Online, and ongoing implementation of the CMU 2023-2028 Strategic Plan.

“There are many new initiatives and plans for change and innovation in the works right now. Several of these have big, bold goals and will require significant changes in the ways we work and in the risks we take,” MacKinnon said. “We know that significant change can be unsettling, and the natural inclination may be to resist it. Yet, this moment of transformation offers a unique opportunity to forge new partnerships and work together, drawing on our strengths to build a more dynamic institution.”

MacKinnon recognized several members of the Change Champion Network who were in attendance at the meeting. They are working with the University Transformation Office to engage colleges and departments university-wide in discussion about innovation, upcoming initiatives, and challenges related to change.

Trustees also weighed in on the challenges of change management and highlighted the need for a framework to implement organizational change.

“We can’t underestimate the importance and necessity of communicating often and throughout the entire change effort,” Trustee Sharon Heath said. “You need buy-in from the team to make sure it is successful, because when you start changing processes and systems, you’re also changing culture.”

Responding to Heath’s comments, Chair Regis charged MacKinnon with the development of a change management plan.

“Change is important. We, as a board, encourage you and challenge you to make change happen, and to be inclusive and transparent as it moves forward. It has to happen for the future of Central Michigan University,” Regis said.

Enrollment and retention

During Wednesday’s meeting of the Academic and Student Affairs Committee, chaired by Trustee Sharon Heath, Vice President of Student Recruitment and Retention Jennifer DeHaemers shared preliminary fall enrollment and retention numbers with the board.

DeHaemers said overall headcount for fall stands at 14,135, which represents a slight year-over-year decrease. She attributed the decline to the loss of hundreds of accepted international students who were unable obtain visas to study in the United States, a common issue facing universities nationwide.

She said enrollment of domestic students has actually increased, and if it were not for the visa issues for international students, CMU’s overall enrollment would have increased this fall. She also noted that online credit hours are at their highest level since 2016.

DeHaemers also shared positive news on CMU’s retention rate of first year students, saying that it has jumped from 74.9% to 78.3%.

“For us to be up three points in one year is amazing. We have a lot of great programs across the university that are impacting our retention rates,” DeHaemers said. “It truly takes an entire university to make this kind of impact on retention.”

Student success strategy

The Academic and Student Affairs Committee welcomed Executive Director of Advising and Student Succes Evan Montague to discuss academic advising services and student retention.

Montague explained how Student Success Seminars are contributing to a higher student retention rate. He said there is a check-in process for students who fall below a 2.0 GPA that invites them to participate in the five-week no-cost, non-credit seminars.

He said the seminars are building momentum, with the retention rate of those who complete the course 12% higher than those who do not complete it.

He said he also expects the Go Grant-funded workshop series, called “How to College,” to improve retention, uniting the efforts of academic advisors, counselors and peer advocates.

Provost and Executive Vice President Paula Lancaster pointed out the vital role academic advising plays in keeping students on track to a CMU degree.

“When we think about student success and retention, our academic advisors do their work in spaces and places we don’t often see, but they are really the unsung heroes in our students’ success,” Lancaster said.

University Engagement and Student Affairs

In Wednesday’s meeting of the Academic and Student Affairs Committee, Vice President of University Engagement and Student Affairs Shawna Patterson-Stephens provided an update on the newly formed division’s progress.

Patterson-Stephens said the focus over the summer and into the fall semester has been restructuring the unit and filling key leadership positions. She announced the appointment of Nick Sweeton to be the new executive director of residence life and Erica Johnson to be the associate vice president of student affairs. A national search continues to fill the position of associate vice president of university engagement.

University Engagement and Student Affairs goals for the year ahead include developing a sustainable budget, policies, a marketing campaign and a residence hall capital plan.

CLASS Hub

The Trustees-Faculty Liaison Committee, chaired by Trustee Sharon Heath, welcomed faculty member Matthew Katz to describe the early success of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Hub.

Katz said the CLASS Hub offers internship and employment advising, resume consultations, new student recruitment and career pathways exploration. Katz said they also are developing new career advising, mentoring and peer-to-peer support programs to help students synthesize a course of study that will prepare them for successful careers.

Trustee David McGhee said the CLASS Hub provides the tools, skills and resources to help students connect their education to a career.

“It is a reminder that one’s path might not be linear, but that doesn’t mean it is not logical,” McGhee said. “This is intentional encouragement of a path that may or may not feel traditional but also may not need to be figured out right now. It’s the level of intentionality that I appreciate.”

College of Business Administration initiatives

Following a tour of the College of Business Administration, trustees welcomed associate deans Sanjay Kumar and Misty Bennett to formal session to provide updates on new and ongoing initiatives.

Bennett said CBA’s student success initiatives include a committee on engagement and wellness, a student success taskforce and a first-year mentorship program. She said faculty and staff in the college are focused on preparing students for successful careers.

“We want to prepare our students to step out tomorrow and be able to walk into any organization having respect and a great reputation,” Bennett said. “We hear frequently from employers that you can count on CMU students to be prepared.”

Campus improvements

The Finance and Facilities Committee, chaired by Trustee Ed Plawecki, received an update from Associate Vice President of Facilities Management Jonathan Webb. Webb reported the completion of several projects, including an augmented and virtual reality lab in the College of Education and Human Services building, and renovations of Park Library study space and Foust health clinic space. He said ongoing campus projects include Merrill Dining renovations and installation of security access controls, which stands at 75% completion.

Celebrating 60 years of leadership

Following Wednesday’s committee meetings, current and former trustees gathered for a special ceremony honoring the Board’s legacy of service to CMU.

A new recognition wall, located just outside the University Center’s third-floor auditorium, features the names of the 69 individuals who have served as members of the CMU Board of Trustees. At the wall’s unveiling, Board Chair Regis, President MacKinnon, and Michelle Richard, senior literacy advisor in the Executive Office of Governor Whitmer, shared reflections on the history of the Board and its 60 years of leadership and governance.

“The Board’s leadership has supported the university through times of struggle and times of triumph, ensuring, year after year, that the university achieves its critical mission of education, research and service,” MacKinnon said to the current and former trustees. “We thank each of you for accepting this responsibility and for your efforts to make CMU a wonderful place for students to pursue their dreams.”

Additional board actions

The CMU Board of Trustees also approved several other items Thursday, including:

• Renaming Graduate Housing as University Apartments.
• Approval of prospective summer 2025 graduates.
• Approval of the 2025-2026 University Strategic Plan goals and measures.
• Acceptance of the Office of Research and Graduate Studies quarterly report.
• Approval of Public School Academy activities.
• Approval of contracts and gift agreements.
• Acceptance of the Advancement Private Support report.
• Approval of new endowments, awards and scholarships.
• Approval of a special meeting on October 27 to accept the university’s external financial statement audit report.
• Revisions to Board of Trustees Bylaws.

An electronic copy of the president’s report will soon be available on the Office of the President web page, and meeting minutes will be added to the Board of Trustees webpage following their approval at the next meeting.