Members of the Washington State University Board of Regents approved several proposals during their Friday meeting on the Spokane campus.
Among the action items approved by regents was the establishment of a WSU Investment Policy within the University Policy and Procedures Manual. This policy establishes parameters for the investment of university working capital as well as setting performance metrics, internal controls, and procedures for managing institutional funds. Invested working capital typically ranges from $500–$700M depending on cyclical cash flows.
Regents also set their meeting schedule for 2027 and approved a revised accreditation report to the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities.
Two bachelor degree programs at WSU Tri-Cities — fine arts and hospitality business management — were also discontinued by regent vote. There are no students currently certified in those programs.
President’s report
During her report, WSU President Betsy Cantwell provided a broad overview of myriad efforts ongoing throughout the university system. While the university continues its longstanding work on bolstering enrollment, significant strides are also being made to ensure students are retained and ultimately graduate, Cantwell said.
“The Provost’s Office does remain keenly focused on first-year enrollment and transfer student enrollment, but we are very focused on student success,” Cantwell said.
She also noted the recent efforts to adopt a workload policy for faculty, as well as ongoing undertakings related to the system-wide redesign process and reforming the undergraduate education experience.
Cantwell also called out progress on the President’s Big Idea’s Initiation, a $2 million investment by the university to accelerate interdisciplinary work in high-impact areas of research. Invitations to submit full funding proposals were sent to investigators of 43 projects representing 34 units system-wide.
WSU Board of Regents Chair Jenette Ramos praised the variety of the work highlighted in the president’s report.
…I just really appreciate the focus on high impact and service to all of Washington state and our communities.
Jenette Ramos, chair
WSU Board of Regents
“With a future focus in operational excellence, this is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of all of the things that are happening across the system, and so I just really appreciate the focus on high impact and service to all of Washington state and our communities,” Ramos said.
During Thursday’s committee meetings, regents heard more than a dozen presentations on topics ranging from ongoing developments around the Health Sciences enterprise to updates on outlooks for state and federal funding.
Regents also recognized the service of Judi McDonald, the university’s first-ever faculty regent, whose term on the board ended last fall.
The next scheduled meetings of the WSU Board of Regents will take place on the Vancouver campus March 5–6. More information on the Board of Regents, including past meeting notes and agendas, is available online.
