November 6, 2020
Dear TCU Campus Community,
Texas Christian University’s Board of Trustees held its regularly scheduled fall meetings this week, which concluded this afternoon. The Board and the University continue to lead significant strategies that ensure TCU delivers its educational mission with an ongoing focus on the Vision in Action: Lead On strategic plan.
The challenges of 2020 have profoundly affected our community, leading me to once again state our priorities for this most challenging year: Safety, Sustainability and Justice, which you will see reflected in the summary that follows.
Our every action is focused on creating success for our students - from a strong academic foundation to the knowledge, preparation and confidence to thrive in today’s complex world. For faculty and staff, this work is ongoing and the effort is not forgotten. Board Chairman Mark Johnson issued a resolution on behalf of the Board that you may read in full below, and in part it states:
“The Board conveys its profound gratitude to the entire TCU community for working together to navigate the way through this unprecedented time in our history to ensure that TCU will not just remain sustainable, but continue to flourish.”
I ask that you read the Board summary that follows in full, but I want to highlight impactful news about the annual tuition rate. The Board of Trustees today announced there will be no tuition increase for the 2021-2022 academic year.
Long before the pandemic emerged, our Board was working toward building the TCU Endowment and calling on leadership to craft a sustainable path forward by optimizing our budget. This approach will allow us to offer lower tuition increases and make the TCU experience more accessible to the most talented and academically gifted students.
Within our Horned Frog Family, equal to the uncertainty that all have experienced is optimism – unwavering, expansive, optimism for a shared future. Even as our nation and our world continue to grapple with a pandemic, we have many reasons to be hopeful for a brighter future. In every critical moment, I’ve seen the TCU community step up to adversity with compassion, respond to impossible challenges with answers, and offer leadership during these most anxious times.
Because of this dedication, Horned Frogs will continue to make a difference in the world and for the world.
Sincerely,
Victor J. Boschini, Jr.
Chancellor
Chancellor’s Report to the Board of Trustees
Several updates and reports were provided to inform the Board on important and ongoing discussions, including the Chancellor’s goals in support of the strategic plan.
The report for the fall 2020 12th class day provided enrollment statistics with a comparison to fall 2019 and fall 2020 enrollment. Enrollment remained healthy at 11,379 for fall 2020 despite the uncertainty of the pandemic. Provost Teresa Abi-Nader Dahlberg provided a detailed review of the demographics of undergraduate and first year students.
Dr. Darron Turner reported significant progress with Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, including the creation of the Office of Institutional Equity that is led by the recently promoted Sharon Gooding, director of the Office of Institutional Equity. Aisha Torrey Sawyer, director of Diversity and Inclusion, launched the Inclusive Excellence Framework that provides a structured process to identify and enable strategies that advance DEI objectives at TCU. Mandatory training for faculty, staff and students has been launched and TCU’s inaugural DEI conference, Diversity Day, was hosted virtually on October 1.
Dr. Frederick Gooding, associate professor of African American Studies and chair of the Race & Reconciliation Initiative (RRI) Committee, provided an update on the progress of the work of the committee, and its effort to involve the Fort Worth and TCU communities in the academic exploration of our history. Progress includes joining the Universities Studying Slavery international consortium; the hosting of monthly town halls covering topics related to RRI and the development of seven research task forces.
Resolutions on Budget Items
In November 2019, the Fiscal Affairs Committee charged the University’s administration to begin creating a more financially sustainable operating model that included lowering cost structure, increasing financial aid, and reducing annual increases in tuition. Those efforts were underway when the pandemic emerged, causing further financial and operational strain. The estimated effect of pandemic-related costs ($90 million to date) necessitated budget revisions to accommodate immediate financial aid and tuition assistance for students. Other significant cost/revenue impacts include housing and dining revenue, technology and infrastructure investment and significantly modified athletics schedules.
Primary expense reductions included deferral of merit increases; voluntary pay reduction; no hiring for open positions; changes in employee benefits and departmental budget cuts. The original Fiscal Year Operating Budget expenses were $551.5 million; the revised Fiscal Year Operating Budget expenses total $493.8 million.
The University has committed to permanently retain the previously mentioned immediate aid allocation of $65 million to students by reducing operating costs. The net effect of this move will be to increase TCU’s discount rate, thereby lowering TCU’s average net price to students. This increases the University’s net price advantage compared to peer and other universities, and makes the TCU experience more accessible to talented and academically gifted students.
The Board approved no tuition increase for the TCU 2021-2022 academic year, leaving the tuition rate at $51,570. Additionally, tuition at the TCU and UNTHSC School of Medicine will remain unchanged at $60,318.
Governance Group Leaders to Present at Spring Board of Trustees Meeting
A task force of the Board was convened to meet with governance leaders to discuss shared governance and identify opportunities for additional interactions at the Board level. While the consensus from these meetings is that the current governance structure is collaborative and works efficiently, there was a desire for governance leaders to be more engaged in the communication process so they can provide valuable input and help carry the communication messages to their respective constituencies. Beginning April 2021, governance leaders (Student Government Association President, Graduate Student Senate President, Faculty Senate Chair and Staff Assembly Chair) will be asked to provide a panel presentation annually at the Board’s official business meeting, which is held each spring.
Lead On: A Campaign for TCU Report
The Board received an update on the progress of Lead On: A Campaign for TCU, which seeks to invest in people and programs and build the endowment in support of the Board’s goals of ensuring financial sustainability for the University. Thirty-five gifts of $100,000 or more, totaling $17,700,823 were received and approved between March 1, 2020 and September 30, 2020. Despite the year’s challenges, the campaign is currently at 68 percent completion with $680.4 million committed thus far, including:
- $441.3 million for people and programs (65%)
- $212.5 million for scholarship support
- $226 million for endowment
- $412 million from alumni, parents and friends
Academic Affairs Updates, Dean Search and Teaching Plans for Spring
Provost Teresa Abi-Nader Dahlberg provided several Academic Affairs updates to the Board. She noted TCU’s 17 spot rise in the U.S. News & World Report rankings, and the significant rise in Peer Assessment score, a particularly difficult measure to move. A focused marketing campaign and news surrounding the School of Medicine supported the effort. The department has integrated Inclusive Excellence strategies into its ongoing core mission of excellence, and continues to focus on achieving operational sustainability.
The Academic Affairs committee provided background information on the May 2020 launch of the TCU Connected Campus Plan – with the goal of maintaining the Horned Frog experience as we ensure instructional continuity. This plan, and its subsequent execution has required a significant investment of time and talent including moving more than 3,000 courses online and establishing remote work norms. For spring 2021, we have endeavored to increase the number of safely hosted on-campus classes by continuing to offer flexibility for faculty, but with new modalities that encourage participation and commit to excellence in pedagogy.
This year, Academic Affairs welcomed three new deans and currently has one open dean search for the College of Science & Engineering, in preparation for long-serving Dean Phil Hartman’s announced retirement at the end of this academic year. Further discussion on the interim dean positions for the John V. Roach Honors College and the School of Interdisciplinary Studies will be held in spring 2021.
Discrimination Policies
The Board approved two new discrimination policies: TCU policies 1.008 “Prohibited Discrimination, Harassment, Sexual Misconduct and Retaliation” and 1.009 “Responding to Reports of Prohibited Discrimination, Harassment, Sexual Misconduct and Retaliation.” The new policies replace a prior similar policy, and the policies include changes to comply with new Title IX Regulations adopted by the United States Department of Education earlier this year. These new discrimination policies also include changes to create a streamlined approach for all reports of illegal discrimination and harassment, to simplify the University’s discrimination policies, and to increase transparency and accountability.
Update from the Study/Advisement on University Social Issues Subcommittee
In July 2020, the newly-formed subcommittee named Trustee L.T. Tomlinson as its chair. The subcommittee met this week and heard updates from Ms. Aisha Torrey-Sawyer, director of Diversity and Inclusion, on progress being made on issues of equity, equality and greater access to campus leadership. The subcommittee will continue to meet and discuss the issues as presented.
Resolution of Demonstrated Support for the TCU Community
In recognition of the unprecedented accomplishments by the TCU community and TCU leadership in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Chairman Mark Johnson issued the following resolution:
WHEREAS, Texas Christian University opened its campus and welcomed the return of students for the Fall Semester 2020 during an incredibly challenging time of a pandemic when many thought it would not be possible;
WHEREAS, unlike many other universities, TCU’s workforce has remained steady during an unprecedented period of challenges, without the need for furloughs and layoffs;
WHEREAS, TCU’s faculty was able to pivot and deliver online instruction during the Spring Semester 2020 and resume, to some extent, in person classes with social distancing measures in place in addition to online instruction to meet the needs of students;
WHEREAS, TCU’s enrollment of incoming students exceeded projections, resulting in 2,287 first year students and overall 11,379 students;
WHEREAS, TCU jumped 17 positions in the 2021 U.S. News & World Report Rankings , from #97 to #80 on the listing;
WHEREAS, TCU devised a financial aid package that included $50 million in additional financial aid awards to students/families for regular in person courses that had been changed by the University to an online course format and to assist students/families with $15 million in additional need-based aid during a time of great financial hardship;
WHEREAS, TCU closed its books for Fiscal Year 2020 on May 31st posting the second highest fundraising year on record with total new gifts and pledges of $103.4 million;
BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED, that the TCU Board of Trustees unanimously endorses and praises TCU Chancellor Victor J. Boschini, Jr., and the administration for these remarkable outcomes; and, commends faculty and staff members for contributing time and talent on the successful opening of campus; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Board conveys its profound gratitude to the entire TCU community for working together to navigate the way through this unprecedented time in our history to ensure that TCU will not just remain sustainable, but continue to flourish.
Signed: Mark L. Johnson, Chairman of the Board of Trustees