Table of Contents
I. REPORT FROM THE VICE CHANCELLOR II. ACTION ITEM:
A. Approval of the Minutes of the Meeting of May 3, 2021 ...2 III. INFORMATION ITEM:
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The meeting was called to order by Secretary Gayle M. Horwitz at 5:16 p.m. The following people were present:
Committee Members:
Hon. Una S. T-Clarke, Chair Hon. Sandra Wilkin, Vice Chair Hon. Michael Arvanites
Hon. Mayra Linares-Garcia
Faculty Member:
Prof. Hugo Fernandez, faculty representative
Student Member:
Ms. Alexia Christopher, student representative
COP Liaison:
President Jennifer Raab
Trustee Observer:
Hon. Juvanie Piquant
Trustee Staff:
Senior Advisor to the Chancellor and Secretary of the Board Gayle M. Horwitz
General Counsel and Senior Vice Chancellor Derek Davis
University Staff:
Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodriguez Interim Vice Chancellor Denise Maybank
Deputy to the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management Ian James
Statement of Secretary Gayle M. Horwitz:
"On March 7, 2020, Governor Cuomo issued Executive Order 202 declaring a State of Emergency in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. On March 13, 2020, Governor Cuomo issued Executive Order 202.1, which included a suspension of law allowing the attendance of meetings telephonically or other similar service.
Article 7 of the Public Officers Law, to the extent necessary to permit any public body to meet and take such actions authorized by the law without permitting in public in-person access to meetings and authorizing such meetings to be held remotely by conference call or similar service, provided that the public has the ability to view or listen to such proceeding and that such meetings are recorded and later transcribed.
In accordance with the Executive Order, this committee meeting is being held via videoconference with a live stream found at the CUNY Board of Trustees' website.
A copy of the calendar (agenda) is also available online at the CUNY Board of Trustees website. Additional items may be added during the meeting. As a reminder, please mute your audio so we can ensure that everyone can hear."
The agenda item was considered and acted upon in the following order:
I. REPORT FROM THE VICE CHANCELLOR
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In terms of Mental Health Services, with everything that has transpired in recent months from natural disasters, such as the devastation on the island of St. Vincent stemming from the volcanic eruptions, to the impact of additional deaths during the trial of the officer convicted of the murder of George Floyd and the ongoing impact of the COVID crisis with new strains of the virus, the wellbeing and attention of our students are challenged daily. Accordingly, our student leaders hold us accountable to assure the awareness and provision of necessary mental health services.
Among some of the tools that have been procured for this purpose is the Crisis Text Line, which launched in February, makes it possible for CUNY students to access crisis counseling on a 24/7 basis. The 10-Minute Mind app provides mindfulness meditation and stress reduction exercises on demand. TalkSpace goes live this week for out-of-state and international students, providing access to a therapist via text, audio, picture, and video messages at any time, with responses 5 days a week.
Additional tools and resources to enhance the training and preparedness of mental health practitioners across the University have also been procured. Among these are: TeleHealth Certification; Kognito, which through simulation training supports faculty and staff with tools and resources to help students facing mental health issues; and access to the Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms software to monitor student use, needs, symptoms, and changes in mental health status. We also participate in the Clinical Psychology Fellowship Program. A cohort of 16 doctoral student trainees will increase clinical services by over 11,000 visits during the academic year. The Clinical Psychology Fellowship Program is a collaborative effort between Student Affairs, The Graduate Center, and the Clinical Psychology Doctoral Programs at John Jay College, Queens College, City College, and Hunter College. This mutually beneficial arrangement enables increased service to students through CUNY Counseling Centers, American Psychological Association credentialed educational experiences and experiential learning for doctoral students.
With additional resources coming to the University for mental health services through the state budget allocation, we anticipate making some difference in the ratio of clinicians to students, a long awaited change.
Resource Centers built on the Single Stop model have existed on the Community College campuses and at John Jay College over the past few years. We have now identified Resource Center efforts on all campuses. The offerings may differ, but students across the system will have a place to go for support as they arrive at, transfer across, and continue their studies. We look forward to being able to further develop the services of all of the Resource Centers in the interest of meeting student essential needs. I'm pleased to report that the University has launched a massive education and outreach campaign to empower CUNY students to apply for SNAP benefits. On April 28, CUNY sent emails to 232,000 presumptively eligible students to inform them about changes in state and federal policy that may make them newly-eligible for SNAP.
As you may be aware, students ages 18-49 and enrolled in college half-time or more are ineligible for SNAP unless they satisfy one of the law's exemptions. However, recently, additional exemptions have been added on both the state and federal levels, that allow thousands of CUNY students to now be eligible for SNAP.
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I want to express my sincere thanks to the Office of Student Inclusion, the Office of the University Registrar, CUNY Computer Information Systems, and the Office of Communications & Marketing for their remarkable leadership and partnership in this effort.
Programming throughout the past few months has included a Neurodiversity Conference, looking at the challenges that some of our students face, and employing the interest and attention of those from around the globe to hear top notch speakers in the area. We also hosted the Accessibility Conference, launched the LGBTQI+ Hub, had robust programming in recognition of Black History Month, Women's History Month, and Disability Awareness Month.
I also bring to your attention a coordinated effort between the Office of Admissions and student affairs units across the University to engage students who have applied to CUNY. The University–wide Open House, held in six sessions, exposed over 750 incoming students to the programs and services they will experience once enrolled. This is a way to maintain a connection with incoming students and to communicate that we want them to attend CUNY, and this is where they belong.
I end by noting a milestone. For those keeping track along with me, I reached my 100th day in my role during the first week in March. I can tell you the work of the SAEM team, the support of colleagues throughout the Central administration and across the campuses has been unparalleled. We have a collective of people keeping our students the priority no matter the specific task or responsibilities. CUNY is all about the success of the hundreds of thousands of amazing students we serve. Thank you."
Members of the Committee, University staff, and Trustees thanked and congratulated, and welcomed Interim Vice Chancellor Maybank on her 100th day at CUNY while expressing their eagerness to working
with her for years to come.
Committee Chair Una Clarke concluded by thanking Interim Vice Chancellor Maybank for her engagement, dedication, and service, not only with faculty and staff but also with the community of Medgar Evers College.
Committee Chair Clarke stated, "Given that all Board members are participating remotely via zoom and we cannot see everyone at once, I will announce the resolutions and ask for members to respond only if you would like to abstain or oppose an item, otherwise your vote will be recorded as a Yes vote. If you are voting no or abstaining, please state your name and vote. Additionally, if you wish to second an item or have any questions, please state your name first for the record and let us try to avoid speaking over one another."
II. ACTION ITEMS:
A. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE MEETINGS OF NOVEMBER 24, 2020 AND JANUARY
11, 2021. Moved by Committee Chair Clarke and seconded by Prof. Hugo Fernandez, the minutes
were unanimously approved as submitted.
B. POLICY CALENDAR:
1. Approval of the 2021 Jonas E. Salk Scholarship Awards. Committee Chair Clarke asked the Committee to approve the 2021 Jonas E. Salk Scholarship Awards.
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III. INFORMATION ITEM:
A. 2019/2020 New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG) Annual Report
Interim Vice Chancellor Maybank introduced the NYPIRG representatives to address the Committee by stating, "As required by the Bylaws, we have invited officials from the New York Public Interest Research Group, NYPIRG, to present their annual report summarizing the campus programs at CUNY during the 2019-2020 academic year."
NYPIRG Project Leader and QCC Student Diahann Perez presented an overview of the NYPIRG annual report, highlighting activities and accomplishments for the 2019-2020 academic year despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic that resulted in the shift to all-remote learning in March 2019.
A discussion about the NYPIRG annual report followed, including outreach, training, and activism. USS Chair and Trustee Piquant stated, "I want to say thank you to NYPIRG for coming here today. I got my start in student activism and involvement with NYPIRG, which was the first student organization that I joined. Ever since then, it's been history. So thank you so much for the work that you all do. I still collaborate with you all, even though I'm on the USS side of things and without NYPIRG, I wouldn't have learned all about all the wonderful organizing and activism that New York City students are capable of, and its extraordinary work for environmental work, higher education, civic voter awareness, registering students to vote on campus. So thank you so much for the work that you do, and I look forward to seeing all that you continue to accomplish."
Committee Chair Clarke noted, "This is the first year for ranked choice voting in the City of New York, and so many of our students vote," and asked, "Is there going to be training on campuses or in the community where ranked choice voting among young people will be a topic?" NYPIRG Deputy Director Farouk Abdallah responded, "In fact, we have already begun. We are gearing up for the primary elections, happening in June. We've done a series of forums to educate students on ranked choice voting, everything from how exactly it works to the benefits of it, and we will be doing a big 'Get Out To Vote' campaign for CUNY students because we think it's very important that CUNY voices are being heard at the ballot box."
Committee Chair Clarke then asked, "Can we get the information from USS and from the schools where you are already participating? "NYPIRG Deputy Director Abdallah responded, "Yes and I can send you information, as well."
Prof. Fernandez stated, "I want to congratulate NYPIRG. I've been watching you do your work for the last five years, particularly with the University Student Senate, Chairperson Piquant and her team, who have done such great work. She was Vice Chair of Legislative Affairs last year, and now she's the chair. With the level of success of the support that we've gotten from the state, I personally attribute to the work NYPIRG and the University Student Senate has done to educate legislators in Albany about the things that not only CUNY needs but CUNY students need. So congratulations and keep up the good work."
