Agenda

• Coronavirus Update (Jeff Dayton Johnson)
• Student Council Update & Student Curricular Input Proposal (Jaewon Oh)
• Strategic Planning Work (Jeff Dayton Johnson)
• ILG Reporting Practices & Curricular Change Role (Jeff Dayton Johnson)

Notes

Coronavirus Update (Jeff Dayton Johnson)

• There will be no Institute-supported travel to China through the end of Summer 2020. 
• Students who are traveling from China may encounter quarantine restrictions or other travel delays. 
• The State Department travel advisory for China is set at at “Do Not Travel” and anyone attempting to travel to China may experience travel delays or other restrictions.
• Barbara Burke is the central point of contact, please contact her if you have any questions or receive questions from students.

Student Council Update & Student Curricular Input Proposal (Jaewon Oh)

• Like the ILG, the Student Council has using restorative practices at the start of their meetings with proactive circles and team questions. They are also holding monthly social dinners to build community between council members.
• The Student Council held a retreat at the start of the year, the main goals for their work continue to be increasing avenues for student input, and increasing transparency around information and decision-making processes that impact students.
• Student Council is organizing two upcoming open meetings for students:
  • March: Budget & Financial Overview
  • April: Academic Input from Students
• Professional Development Funding (PDF) for students is close to running out. While this happens almost every year, last year the funding was not depleted, so some students are experiencing this for the first time. Student Council is working to identify the best way to allocate remaining funding given that current applications exceed the available funds.
• Elections for the executive committee spots coming available will take place before the end of the semester.
• Student Council is in the process of developing a proposal for gathering student input on curriculum, and will be reviewing the proposal with the ILG in March.
• The International Bazaar will be on April 18th.

Strategic Planning Work (Jeff Dayton Johnson)

• The Institute Council has been working on articulating the Institute vision for 2025. The ILG is being asked to provide input in preparation for the Town Hall with faculty and staff on February 27th.
• Institute Mission
  • The Middlebury Institute of International Studies educates professionals to advance understanding, promote peace, and drive change in pursuit of a more just world.
• In support of that mission, our overall objective centers on career outcomes of our graduates.
• There are four top-level areas of work:
  • Effective Programs (How we educate professionals)
  • Learner Success (How we support learners)
  • High-Performing Organization (How we operate)
  • Thriving Community (How we engage one another)
• We are focused on making this vision translate into action, measurable, and monitor-able results.
• The ILG discussed each of these areas in greater detail in preparation for the town hall meeting, where more information will be shared.

ILG Reporting Practices & Curricular Change Role (Jeff Dayton Johnson)

• Reporting Practices
  • There were previously regular reporting expectations for ILG members, and with the expansion of the group we need to revisit these practices.
  • The goal of ILG updates is to open communication and information sharing between departments, and allow ILG members to bring relevant information back to their areas.
• Curricular Change Role
  • In the Institute curricular change proposal review process, APSIC reviews curricular change proposals, followed by the ILG, followed by the Council and final VPAA decision.
  • In the future, APSIC recommendation letters will be shared with the ILG as consent agenda items. ILG members will be expected to review these items in advance of the meeting, and we will reserve a brief agenda item to allow the APSIC chair to provide an introduction and open the floor to any concerns before the proposal moves to the Council/VPAA.
  • There will soon be a tracking space available on sites.middlebury.edu/miis-info where curricular change proposals and reviewer feedback can be viewed by all faculty and staff.