Thursday, November 21, 2024
HomeNewsCampus & LocalHouse soon to hear UT board reduction bill

House soon to hear UT board reduction bill

UPDATED ON FEB. 23:

The PacerĀ reached out to Chancellor Keith Carver regarding his stance on the legislation. While he supports the reduction of the board, he also says there are too many moving pieces at this time to truly gain a sense of what would change.

“AĀ size-reduction is a good move because governing boards nationally are decreasing,” but as far as removing student positions and understanding the implementation of local advisory boards, “Right now itā€™s like throwing darts at a moving bullseye.”

The faculty senate at UTM has not released their stance on the issue yet. Their next meeting is set for Tuesday, March 20 at 3:15 p.m. in the Legislative Chambers UC 111.

Continue to followĀ The Pacer online as the story develops.

 

ORIGINAL STORY:

The Tennessee House has deferred action on HB 2115, legislation that would reduce the size of the University of Tennessee Board of Trustees (BOT), until Feb. 27.

At the beginning of February, Gov. Bill Haslam proposed, as part of the FOCUS Act, legislation that would establish a seven-member advisory board for each campus in the UT system while reducing the current BOT number from 27 to 11.

Though the reduction of the board would remove the current student positions, Eddie Smith, R-Knoxville, says that each campus advisory board would have spots for one student and one faculty member.

The reduction in members includes the governorā€™s position, and though the change would not take place immediately, its reduction would affect the new governor taking office in January. Five of the six candidates for governor have told The Tennessean that they do not support the change.

Kara Gilliam, immediate past governor of TISL (Tennessee Intercollegiate State Legislature) from Knoxville, gave testimony against the legislation on behalf of TISL and the UTK faculty senate, according to a statement inĀ The Weekly Watch from the UT Advocacy Department.

Because of the deferment of the legislation, students and faculty still have the opportunity to reach out to sponsors of the bill to voice their support for or concerns about the legislation.

David Hawk, R-Greenville (rep.david.hawk@capitol.tn.gov), and Mark Norris, R-Collierville (sen.mark.norris@capitol.tn.gov), are the sponsors of the bill. Norris can also be found on Twitter @senatornorris.

FollowĀ The Pacer online to keep up with the status of this legislation, or view it online atĀ http://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/BillInfo/default.aspx?BillNumber=HB2115&GA=110.

All BOT news can be regularly accessed atĀ https://trustees.tennessee.edu/. The board’s spring meeting is scheduled for March 22-23 in Memphis.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Rachel Moore
Rachel Moore
I like strong coffee and breaking the news. UTM Communications Major, Graduating May 2019.
RELATED ARTICLES

Most Popular

Recent Comments

Stephen Yeargin on About
Colby Anderson on About
Charles E. Coleman on About
Jeanna Jordan on God’s chosen Cowboy
Josh Lemons, former PacerEE on Trotting back to Martin
Tiffany Griffin on Trotting back to Martin
Laura Crossett on Advertising
Jennifer on Advertising
Marcus Allen Wakefield on DC vs. Marvel: The fight everyone wins
Concerned UTM Alum on Pacer addresses YOUniversity issues
Alex Wilson - Former SGA President on Pacer addresses YOUniversity issues
Chris Morris (Pledge Trainer) on UTM ATO chapter to close
Recent Alumnus on Voice It!: ATO closes at UTM
Anonymous 2 on UTM ATO chapter to close
Chris Morris (Pledge Trainer) on UTM ATO chapter to close
Otis Glazebrook on Voice It!: ATO closes at UTM
Jim bob tucker on UTM ATO chapter to close
Jennifer Witherspoon on Student remembered, celebrated for life
Samantha Drewry on Two killed in motorcycle crash
Anecia Ann Price on … and in with the new