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What's New at the DHE
Board Meeting: June 4, 2009
The Board of Higher Education met on June 4, 2009. Among the Board's business was:
- Approval of new academic programs at:
- Presentation (.PPT) on degrees conferred during the previous academic year (2007-08), including detail on trends in degrees conferred by discipline area, race/ethnicity, and other factors.
All motions from this meeting, as well as prior meetings, are available in the Policy and Report Library.
Board Meeting: April 30, 2009
The Board of Higher Education met on April 30, 2009. Among the Board's business was:
- Approval of new academic programs at:
- Presentations on the 2008 performance reports of Massachusetts' two public special-mission colleges, Massachusetts Maritime Academy and Massachusetts College of Art and Design, as well as MassArt's 2004–2009 pilot Partnership with the Commonwealth, which has allowed MassArt greater flexibility and autonomy with its mission and operations. The proposed renewal of MassArt's Partership with the Commonwealth is expected to come before the Board of Higher Education in June.
- Discussion of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also known as the federal stimulus bill. (The Department's website will be updated soon with the latest information on the stimulus funding.)
All motions from this meeting, as well as prior meetings, are available in the Policy and Report Library.
Commissioner Freeland testifies before Joint Committee on Higher Education
On March 23, the Joint Committee on Higher Education, with newly appointed chairs, Senator Anthony Galluccio and Representative David Torrisi, held the first of four oversight hearings to hear testimony from the primary leaders in public higher education. Commissioner Richard Freeland offered testimony, providing a broad definition of the public higher education system and outlining the current areas of focus for the Department of Higher Education, as well as long-term goals for higher education.
Current areas of focus outlined by the Commissioner include better coordination with the systems of K-12 and early education to improve college readiness, efforts to increase affordability of higher education, and improved alignment of public higher education programs with the Commonwealth's workforce needs. Longer-term goals include greater financial support from the state for public higher education and financial aid, as well as enhanced integration and coordination within and among each segment of the public system and between the public system and private institutions.
Text of Commissioner's testimony
Governor Patrick swears in Richard Freeland as Commissioner of Higher Education
Photo courtesy of Office of Governor Deval Patrick
On February 26, Governor Deval Patrick swore in Richard M. Freeland as the new Commissioner of Higher Education for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Board of Higher Education Chair Charles Desmond and Education Secretary Paul Reville joined the Governor and representatives from more than 40 higher education institutions from around New England, including President Elsa Nunez of Eastern Connecticut State University, Commissioner Freeland’s wife.
“Dr. Freeland’s accomplishments are rooted in patience and a leadership style for the long-term that focused on making Northeastern a high-quality, student-centered, and practice-oriented university,” said Governor Patrick at the ceremony. “Today, I am asking him to expand that same vision to the Commonwealth’s higher education system as a whole.”
The ceremony took place at Framingham State College.
Text of Commissioner's remarks
Dr. Richard M. Freeland Appointed Commissioner of Higher Education
Secretary of Education Paul Reville has approved the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education's recommendation to appoint Dr. Richard M. Freeland as Commissioner of Higher Education. His decision followed a special Board of Higher Education meeting held Friday, December 5, 2008, which provided an opportunity for the full Board to interview Dr. Freeland in a public forum and get a sense of his vision for higher education in the Commonwealth.
Dr. Freeland is to assume the post on January 20, 2009.
The Commissioner Search Task Force presented a unanimous recommendation to the Board of Higher Education at their meeting on November 21 to consider Dr. Freeland for the position.
Board of Higher Education Press Release on Recommendation (.DOC)
Executive Office of Education Press Release on Appointment 
Board Meeting: February 5, 2009
The Board of Higher Education met on February 5, 2009. Among the Board's business was:
- Approval of the 2008 Performance Measurement Report, that highlights key data around access, affordability, student success, and effective use of resources at our state and community colleges.
- Approval of Tuition Rates for FY2010. Tuition will remain the same as in the prior nine years, though there will be a review of the current rate structure in order to inform FY2011 tuition rates.
- Approval (.PDF) of FAFSA Completion Provision, which encourages students to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) when applying for admission to public higher education institutions.
All motions from this meeting, as well as prior meetings, are available in the Policy and Report Library.
Dr. Richard M. Freeland Appointed Commissioner of Higher Education
Secretary of Education Paul Reville has approved the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education's recommendation to appoint Dr. Richard M. Freeland as Commissioner of Higher Education. His decision followed a special Board of Higher Education meeting held Friday, December 5, 2008, which provided an opportunity for the full Board to interview Dr. Freeland in a public forum and get a sense of his vision for higher education in the Commonwealth.
Dr. Freeland is to assume the post on January 20, 2009.
The Commissioner Search Task Force presented a unanimous recommendation to the Board of Higher Education at their meeting on November 21 to consider Dr. Freeland for the position.
Board of Higher Education Press Release on Recommendation (.DOC)
Executive Office of Education Press Release on Appointment
Governor Patrick appoints new Board of Higher Education Chair, new member
Governor Deval Patrick has announced the appointment of Charles F. Desmond, Ed.D., as Chair of the Board of Higher Education. Dr. Desmond replaces Frederick W. Clark, Jr., who announced at the November 21 Board meeting that he was stepping down from the Board.
A Fulbright Scholar, Dr. Desmond currently serves as Executive Vice President of the Trefler Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to improving educational opportunities and success for Boston's urban youth. Prior to this, Dr. Desmond worked for 30 years at the University of Massachusetts Boston, with a focus on student affairs and community collaboration. He was appointed by the Governor to the Board of Higher Education in September 2008.
Governor Patrick also appointed Nancy Hoffman, Ph.D., to the Board of Higher Education. Dr. Hoffman is Vice President at Jobs for the Future, where she guides the activities of JFF’s Youth Cluster's activities, the Early College High School Initiative, dual enrollment policies and practices and efforts to make college opportunity affordable. She has held positions at several institutions of higher education including Brown University, Temple University, Harvard Graduate School of Education and the University of Massachusetts Boston. Hoffman holds a B.A. and Ph.D. in comparative literature from the University of California, Berkeley.
Board of Higher Education Chairman resigns
Board of Higher Education Chairman Frederick W. Clark, Jr., has announced his resignation from the Board. In a letter sent to Governor Deval L. Patrick on November 20, 2008, Chairman Clark cited "serious and sudden economic conditions in my private sector profession" as the reason for his resignation and thanked the Governor for allowing him "the tremendous honor and privilege of serving you and the people of Massachusetts as Chairman of the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education."
Chairman Clark's resignation becomes effective on December 6, 2008, the day after a special Board meeting for the public interview of Dr. Richard M. Freeland, the finalist for the position of Commissioner of Higher Education.
Full letter of resignation from Chairman Clark (.DOC)
Board Meeting: November 21, 2008
The Board of Higher Education met on November 21, 2008. Among the Board's business was:
- Approval (.PDF) of FY2010 Budget Request for the public higher education system, including the 15 community colleges, nine state colleges, and five campuses of the University of Massachusetts. Upon this approval, the Budget Request is forwarded to the Executive Office of Education, who then compile a budget request on behalf of all sectors of public education for submission to the Governor in January.
- Approval (.PDF) of a new Community College Student Success Indicator for the annual Performance Measurement Report, which expands the definition of student success at the community colleges to capture a larger proportion of both students and successful outcomes.
- Creation (.PDF) of a Task Force on 21st Century Skills, charged with making recommendations on how 21st century skills—such as global awareness, critical thinking, and ethical leadership—can be more fully integrated into college student learning to better prepare students for today’s career and citizenship challenges and demands. This Task Force follows the work of a similar task force formed by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education , which released in November 2008 its recommendations to integrate such skills into the K-12 system.
- Announcement by the Commissioner Search Task Force of the selection of Dr. Richard M. Freeland as the finalist for the position of Commissioner of Higher Education. The Task Force has forwarded its selection to the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education, who will hold a special meeting on Friday, December 5, 2008, to interview Dr. Freeland and vote whether to forward the recommendation to the Executive Office of Education for approval. See the Commissioner Search section of the website for more information.
All motions from this meeting, as well as prior meetings, are available in the Policy and Report Library.
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