REPORT TITLE:
UH


DESCRIPTION:
Establishes a committee to formulate proposals for the future of
the University of Hawaii.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        
THE SENATE                              S.B. NO.           2510
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII.


BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that Act 115, Session Laws
 
 2 of Hawaii 1998, granted the University of Hawaii autonomy in
 
 3 wide-ranging, landmark legislation designed to increase the
 
 4 strength and reputation of the university as a world-class
 
 5 educational institution.  In the intervening two years, the
 
 6 University has only begun to address the opportunities this
 
 7 legislation has engendered.
 
 8      The legislature further finds that rather than bringing
 
 9 about a spirit of collaboration, as the Act intended, the
 
10 university community remains at odds on how best to deal with
 
11 contentious issues and move forward into a new era of educational
 
12 excellence.  The president of the University of Hawaii, in a
 
13 September speech to the presidents of six nations in Hiroshima,
 
14 spoke on the future of higher education, citing technology in the
 
15 delivery of academic programs, intellectual property rights, the
 
16 university's role as an economic entity, and the changing
 
17 expectations of education as issues to be faced.  Yet, on
 
18 campuses of the University of Hawaii system, students and faculty
 
19 express increasing frustration with just how the university is to
 
20 respond to these and other challenges.
 

 
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 1      In an opinion published in September 1999, the chair of the
 
 2 department of political science decried the structure of
 
 3 governance at the university, the lack of voice for both faculty
 
 4 and students in shaping university operations, and the dearth of
 
 5 opportunities for involvement in decision making in important
 
 6 issues regarding the future of the institution.  The author
 
 7 further expressed his concern that morale at the university is at
 
 8 its lowest ebb in decades, and that only bold steps to reexamine
 
 9 the university as an institution could ameliorate this situation.
 
10 As a solution, the author called for an ad hoc, broadly
 
11 representational committee appointed to formulate proposals for
 
12 the future governance of the university.
 
13      The legislature finds that this thoughtful recommendation
 
14 from a member of the university community would be an important
 
15 step in resolving the issues facing the University of Hawaii.  In
 
16 addition, it fulfills the purpose of Act 115, which states in
 
17 part that collaboration within the university community and
 
18 collaboration between the university and the broader community is
 
19 critical.  Therefore, the purpose of this Act is to convene such
 
20 a committee to formulate proposals for the future of the
 
21 University of Hawaii.
 
22      SECTION 2.  The board of regents of the University of Hawaii
 
23 shall convene an ad hoc committee to address and make
 

 
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                                     S.B. NO.           2510
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 recommendations for the future direction of the University of
 
 2 Hawaii system, including but not limited to identification of
 
 3 the:
 
 4      (1)  Components critical to a successful, academically
 
 5           acclaimed university;
 
 6      (2)  Academic programs that meet the needs of an evolving
 
 7           student body, i.e., the growing numbers of part-time
 
 8           students, the use of technology in delivery of courses,
 
 9           and the structure of course offerings in meeting the
 
10           needs of both full- and part-time students;
 
11      (3)  Dual roles of research activities in support of
 
12           academic programs, as well as a contributor to the
 
13           State's economy, including the resolution of ownership
 
14           rights;
 
15      (4)  Determination of a means of accountability and the
 
16           relationship to the university's benchmarks system of
 
17           measurement of performance pursuant to section 304-4.5,
 
18           Hawaii Revised Statutes;
 
19      (5)  Governance throughout the university system as a means
 
20           of delivering a more efficient administrative
 
21           structure; and
 
22      (6)  Roles of faculty, students, and the administration in
 
23           an ongoing, efficient communications network.
 

 
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                                     S.B. NO.           2510
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1      SECTION 3.  The committee shall consist of one
 
 2 representative each from university faculty, students, the board
 
 3 of regents, the legislature, the business community of their
 
 4 choice, with participation by the president of the university.
 
 5 The board of regents of the university shall convene the
 
 6 committee no later than July 1, 2000, and shall work with the
 
 7 members of the committee to assure that the committee responds
 
 8 fully to the issues listed in section 2 of this Act.
 
 9      SECTION 4.  The committee shall report its findings and
 
10 recommendations to the university by December 31, 2000, and, at
 
11 the same time, shall submit these same findings and
 
12 recommendations to the legislature for informational purposes.
 
13      SECTION 5.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
 
14 
 
15                       INTRODUCED BY:  ___________________________