Foundation Board of Trustees Fall 2019 Meeting
Foundation
Highlights from the Oct 11, 2019 Board Meeting
Board of Trustees Fall Board Meeting
The JMU Foundation committee and board meetings were held on October 10-11, 2019 at Hotel Madison and Shenandoah Valley Conference Center.
The Meeting began with committee reports to the full Board which included the following action items and important facts:
Administration and Finance Committee – The increased emphasis on licensing and brand awareness is paying dividends as new products are being introduced and royalties are being tracked and audited. The Foundation will also engage a third party consultant to complete an IT audit.
Development Committee – Dr. Nick Langridge provided an update on the Unleashed Campaign’s growth to $153 million and announced that recent tours in New York, Philadelphia and Charlotte were a success. The next stop on the Unleashed Tours will be November 7 in Harrisonburg. Dr. Langridge also shared trends that indicated a drop in college age students and the many new approaches our Admissions Department is considering to ensure a stable population of new students each year.
Audit Committee – Brown Edwards (CPA firm) presented a draft for the audited financials for June 30, 2019 and reported another year of an unmodified or “clean” opinion. The Financial Statements were approved and accepted by the full Board.
Governance Committee – Dr. Brian Charette, Special Assistant to the President responsible for Strategic Planning, provided overviews of the proposed Board Assessment and the timeline for creating and implementing the new Strategic Plan. Foundation Board Vice Chair Barry Purcell will chair the Strategic Planning Committee.
Real Estate Committee – Announced that the new office building construction is on schedule and the building will be named Foundation Hall.
Risk Assessment – Kristian Horneber presented an enterprise risk assessment of the JMU Foundation and a plan to complete a full review of the Foundation to understand potential risks and consequently align strategy and policy. This will be an ongoing process in FY 20.
Board Assessment and Strategic Planning – Dr. Brian Charette led the Board through a Board Assessment survey process which will be conducted every two years. The assessment will gauge Board member involvement and monitor how well the Board is following the Strategic Plan of the Foundation. Dr. Charette also shared details on the establishment of a Strategic Planning Committee which will be led by Vice Chair Barry Purcell. The timetable for this committee should lead to the implementation of a new five year Strategic Plan at the beginning of FY 21.
The Meeting adjourned at 12:15 and the Board joined other invited guests of the University for the Grand opening of Paul Jennings Hall located on East Campus.
