I am pleased to report the results of our recent vote on campus governance.

Results are as follows:

Yes - 79
No - 2
Abstain - 0

Soon there will be another communication which will describe transition plans for our new governance system.

Thank you for your patience and perseverance as we have discussed a new governance structure for UMD. I look forward to even greater collaboration as we continue to build an outstanding shared governance process.

Sincerely,

Lendley "Lynn" C. Black
Chancellor

RE: Revised Proposal for a New Shared Governance Model

Attached you will find the most recent revised proposal for a new shared governance structure for UMD. The proposal is based upon feedback we received from faculty, staff, and students since the last proposal was distributed on March 22. We will discuss this latest proposal at the Campus Assembly meeting on May 14, and it will be voted on by Campus Assembly members soon after that meeting.

Some people have asked why we need to keep voting on a change in campus governance and why only members of the Campus Assembly can vote. Our current Campus Assembly governance structure is imbedded in the UMD constitution, and the constitution is referenced in the UEA Collective Bargaining Agreement. Any change in the constitution requires a two-thirds vote of the members of Campus Assembly. Even though the actions of the Campus Assembly are advisory actions to the chancellor, the chancellor cannot unilaterally change or void UMD's constitution. A change can only be made by a two-thirds vote of the current Assembly members.

You will note that this latest proposal returns to a system of voting membership on all committees. Although some people liked the non-voting aspects of the March 22 proposal, there was significant opposition to a system that eliminates voting from the work of the committees. We can make this voting system work well, if we focus on a collaborative shared governance process that values diverse opinions.

The attached documents include: 1) committee descriptions and membership, 2) the comparison of representatives in the current and proposed structure, and 3) a new graphic display of the proposed structure. Please review these documents and contact me or a member of the Campus Assembly if you have questions or comments. A list of the Campus Assembly members and our current constitution may be found at: http://www.d.umn.edu/committees/

The Campus Assembly meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, May 14th at 2:00 p.m. in the Kirby Ballroom. There will be a social beginning at 1:30. After this Assembly meeting, we will conduct another vote of the Assembly membership, using the same electronic voting process we used before. It is important that every member of Campus Assembly vote. Since we need two-thirds of the membership to approve the constitutional change, if you do not vote or if you abstain, it's the same as a "No" vote.

Thank you again for your input and for your interest in having an effective and collaborative shared governance process at UMD.

<Governance Comparison of current and proposed 0Governance Structure 050813.pdf50813-1.pdfGovernance Comparison of current and proposed 050813-1.pdfCommittee Descriptions and Membership 050813.docx

Chancellor Lendley C. Black

A site has been set up for those who wish to provide anonymous feedback on the revised governance proposal that was sent last week:
http://www.d.umn.edu/vcaa/governance_comment_form.html

The email that was sent last week along with links to the proposal structure and committee details can be found here:
http://www.d.umn.edu/vcaa/campus_governance.html

Please take a few moments to review this proposal and provide feedback. The deadline for comments is April 1st.

From: Chancellor Lendley C. Black

Subject: Academic Calendar Change

After significant input from the UMD Campus Community, the Chancellor's Cabinet has approved changing the Academic Calendar, effective fall of 2015.

Fall semester classes will begin the Monday before Labor Day, and there will be a mid-semester break on a Thursday and Friday in October.

Spring semester classes will begin the Wednesday before the observance of the Martin Luther King holiday on the third Monday in January.

The 2015-16 calendar is available at: http://www.d.umn.edu/calendar/academic_cal_15-16.html

From: Chancellor Lendley C. Black

Subject: Campus Budget Forum

You are invited to a Campus Budget Forum on Tuesday, February 19 from 12-1:30 p.m. in the Kirby Ballroom.

For the first half of the forum, Mike Seymour, Vice Chancellor for Finance and Operations, will join me in providing an update on the legislative process and its impact on the upcoming biennial budget. We will also provide an overview of how the UMD budgeting model is being changed to best meet the campus needs. During the second half of the forum, faculty and staff will meet in smaller groups within their administrative areas to discuss the impact of the change in the budgeting process.

We encourage you to join us for this important discussion. I hope that your semester is going well, and I would like to thank you again for all that you do for UMD and the success of its students.

Please join me on Saturday, February 9 to attempt to break a world record in the snow while raising money for clean drinking water in Ethiopia.

Make Your Mark: Angels for a Cause will bring thousands of people to campus to break the Guinness Book of World Records' standard for the most snow angels made simultaneously. The current record is 8,963, set in North Dakota.

Duluth can break the record with your help!

UMD has a challenge with the College of St. Scholastica and Lake Superior College to see which college can get the largest percentage of its students, faculty and staff out for the Make Your Mark event. Be sure to wear your UMD colors and tell the gate attendant that you are representing UMD.

Gates to Malosky Stadium will open at 9:30 a.m. and the record attempt will be at 11:00 a.m. in the various athletics fields on the UMD campus.

The suggested donation is $5 for individuals or $10 for families.

The Rotary Club of Duluth and Proctor High School DECA have organized this event, and 100% of the profits raised from Make Your Mark will go to the Global Team for Local Initiatives, an organization that supports the indigenous people in Ethiopia affected by climate change.

You can register in advance online at makeyourmarkduluth.com and get updates on Facebook at www.facebook.com/makeyourmarkduluth. Anyone who registers online will be automatically eligible to win $1,000 in cash. Registration is also available at the door.

I look forward to seeing many of you there to show the world that Those Who Can, Duluth!

Lendley Black
Chancellor

Thank you for another great year at UMD! Our students continue to excel in academics, athletics, and many other areas of student life. Our faculty, staff, and alumni are amazing in their achievements and in their support of UMD.

2012 was also a challenging year. We made great progress in our efforts to create a positive and inclusive campus climate, but we had incidents of racism and other harmful behaviors that are counter to our core values and university goals. We will continue to be diligent in advancing equity, diversity and social justice, and we will not stop until we have a safe and welcoming campus for everyone.

I also want to thank you for your involvement in the Duluth community. Every week I hear stories about the difference our faculty and staff are making through research, volunteering, and contributing time, expertise, and financial support to agencies that need our help.

I am proud of our donations to CHUM's Food Shelf and to the Union Gospel Mission during our End of Semester Buffet. You gave 515 pounds of food for CHUM's Food Shelf and $706.44 to the Union Gospel Mission. It would be impossible to meet the needs of our neighbors without the generous support of community partners. Your generosity is greatly appreciated.

You have my best wishes for a safe and enjoyable holiday season. While we celebrate this time of year in many different ways, I hope that you will have a chance to rest with those who are close to you and to work for peace and an end to violence in this country. The children and families who were affected by the tragic shooting in Newtown, Connecticut are in particular need of our best wishes and commitment to create a safer space for everyone.

I look forward to great things in 2013, and I am proud to be your Chancellor and your colleague.

Sincerely,

Lynn Black

It is incumbent upon us as leaders at the University of Minnesota to create an inclusive culture for our students, faculty and staff and to uphold values of respect, inclusiveness and equity.

At UMD, we have been working for over two years on a major initiative to create a welcoming campus where students live, study and learn from and about each other in a supportive environment. As is the case throughout the system, we are creating a campus culture where we respect and embrace the diversity of individuals, perspectives and ideas. Creating a positive climate is an ongoing process and we will not let setbacks overshadow the many strides forward made by students, faculty and staff.

A video with offensive racial slurs created off campus by a UMD student has had widespread impact throughout the University of Minnesota system. We abhor the hurtful video and immediately addressed the situation at UMD. This is not acceptable behavior for anyone at any time--whether at the university or beyond. Information about individuals involved is considered private so we cannot publicly share details related to the incident.

It is a challenge when individuals join our university community who do not share the UMD core value of inclusiveness. While we have taken many steps to teach others to respect and to embrace the diversity of individuals, perspectives and ideas, changing deep-seated beliefs and behaviors takes time. The video is an extreme example that nonetheless serves as a reminder that bias and discrimination fall along a broad spectrum and that even small instances of prejudice and thoughtlessness can have damaging repercussions.

Advancing equity, diversity and social justice across the board requires persistence and long-term effort at all levels of our campus community. As was shared in Reimagining Equity and Diversity: A Framework for Transforming the University of Minnesota (pdf): "Equity and diversity efforts must be led not only by people with formal authority, but also by faculty, staff, students and administrators at every level of operation and responsibility." At UMD, our action plan can be found here: http://www.d.umn.edu/chancellor/climate. Today, we take this opportunity to renew this promise made to our campus community and beyond, and look forward to working with all of you to realize our goals.

Sincerely,

Lendley Black
Chancellor

To: UMD Campus Community

From: Chancellor Lendley C. Black

Subject: Director of External Affairs

I am pleased to announce that Twin Ports native Gina Katzmark will join UMD as the director of External Affairs, effective December 17. Gina received strong support from the UMD community, and I am pleased that she will be bringing her outstanding media and marketing expertise to this key position on the Chancellor's Cabinet.

Gina currently serves as the associate director of communications at Wake Forest University Schools of Business in Winston-Salem, N.C. A former television journalist, Gina began her career in Duluth as a reporter/producer and served in various managerial roles over 15 years including executive producer, managing editor and news director.

As director of External Affairs, Gina will provide leadership and cabinet-level administrative oversight to UMD's media and public relations, community relations, government relations, marketing, communication, publications and photography.

"I am honored to return home to serve as a passionate advocate for the people and programs of UMD," said Katzmark. "I look forward to being an ambassador of the 'Those Who Can, Duluth' brand while sharing UMD's success stories with the rest of the world."

Katzmark earned a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and is currently a Master of Business Administration degree candidate at Wake Forest University. She is the daughter of Edward and Kathleen Katzmark of Superior. She and her husband, Joshua Schmidt, will be living in Duluth.

I would like to thank the members of the Search Committee (Tricia Bunten, Development Office; Mary Cameron, Human Resources; Mark Emmel, Lion Hotel Group; Betty Greene, External Affairs; Lucy Kragness, Chancellor's Office, Chair; Jim Riehl, Swenson College of Science and Engineering; and Mimmu Salmela, KUMD) for sharing their time and their expertise working on this important search.

Please join me in welcoming Gina to UMD.

To: UMD Campus Community

From: Chancellor Lendley C. Black

A video with unfortunate racist content has been brought to the attention of the University of Minnesota Duluth administration. We have seen the video; we abhor it. This is unacceptable behavior for anyone, and we at UMD are extremely unhappy to be associated with it in any way.

We take appropriate action in instances like this, but information about individual students is private, and UMD cannot share any information about any particular student. However, we can affirm our disapproval of the video, and reaffirm our goal of providing an environment where students live, study, and learn from and about each other in an inclusive and supportive way. We hope that out of this distressing incident will at least come some broader understanding and personal growth.

I hope you are having a productive and enjoyable summer! As I near the end of my second year at UMD, I would like to thank you for your continued support and for the outstanding work you do every day on behalf of our students and to further our research and public engagement mission. There have been several administrative changes at UMD over the past two years, and many of you have been involved in helping shape my Chancellor's Cabinet team. While other changes in the vice chancellor areas may be announced within the next few months, I wish to share the following updates.

Bill Wade is stepping down as Vice Chancellor for Advancement on July 31. He will take on a new assignment as a major donor development officer and will continue to oversee temporarily the operations of the KUMD radio station. We will celebrate Bill's dedication to UMD at a special campus reception on September 7, with a formal invitation in August. During his tenure at UMD, Bill has overseen university relations, alumni, development, KUMD, and intercollegiate athletics. His many accomplishments and contributions to UMD will be highlighted in future communications regarding the September 7 reception.

After looking closely at the campus organizational structure, I have decided to make the following changes to improve administrative efficiency, effectiveness, and excellence:

• The Vice Chancellor position that Bill Wade held will be eliminated.

• Lucy Kragness has been promoted to Chief of Staff/Associate to the Chancellor, and in this role she will assist me with a wide range of operational issues and projects to ensure the effectiveness of the Chancellor's office and of all units reporting directly to the Chancellor.

• The Development and Alumni offices will continue to work together as an Office of Advancement. Advancement, Athletics, and External Affairs will report directly to the Chancellor with operational oversight and assistance from Lucy Kragness.

• A national search to refill the Director of External Affairs position will begin this month.

Many of you have already met Mike Seymour, who began July 2 as the Vice Chancellor for Finance and Operations. Please join me in welcoming Mike to campus.

I appreciate how well the campus community has come together to provide a smooth transition for me and for my new administrative team. Working together, we will continue to make significant progress on the Strategic Plan and provide the excellent academic experience that our students expect and deserve.

Sincerely,

Chancellor Lendley C. Black

I am pleased to announce that Dr. John A. Arthur has been chosen to be the new Chancellor's Faculty Fellow for Strategic Planning effective August 1, 2012. Dr. Arthur is well qualified to take our planning initiatives to the next stages of implementation and to provide a faculty perspective to the Chancellor's Cabinet. Dr. Arthur is a professor of sociology-anthropology and is the founding director of the African and African American Studies Program. He has been a faculty member at UMD since 1993, and he has served in several administrative positions including as department chair and as director of the Study in England program. He has a Ph.D. in sociology from Pennsylvania State University, a master's degree from the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton, Canada, and a law and sociology degree from the University of Science and Technology in Ghana.

Dr. Arthur will work closely this fall with Dr. Denny Falk, the outgoing Faculty Fellow. I would like to recognize the outstanding work of Dr. Falk over the past two years. He assisted me in each phase of creating the strategic plan and was a tireless advocate for an inclusive planning process. He has also made several other contributions to my administrative team. I would also like to thank Professor John Hamlin, Instructor Michael Mullins, Associate Professor Joyce Strand, and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Andrea Schokker for assisting me with the selection of the new Faculty Fellow.

Please join me in congratulating Dr. Arthur on his new appointment and in thanking Dr. Falk for his many contributions to UMD.

Sincerely,

Chancellor Lendley C. Black

Contacts: Chuck Tombarge, University News Service, (612) 624-5551

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (07/03/2012) --The University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) has indefinitely suspended its membership in the Duluth-area Un-Fair Campaign pending a change in the campaign's emphasis and creative approach. The campaign's recent public service announcement (PSA) and its focus on white privilege are divisive and have alienated some UMD alumni, supporters and others in the broader community.

At UMD Chancellor Lendley C. Black's request, the controversial public service announcement was pulled from the campaign's website on June 28 (it had not been aired publicly). Representatives from the 18 partners of the Un-Fair Campaign met on Monday, July 2. While they reaffirmed the group's fundamental goals to promote racial equality and create a constructive dialogue about eliminating racism, they also recognize the messaging and creative emphasis has been divisive. A subcommittee has been formed to reassess the messaging. The partners will reconvene on July 17 to discuss whether to change the creative direction.

UMD continues to advance its strategic goal of creating a positive and inclusive campus climate for all by advancing equity, diversity and social justice 
(http://www.d.umn.edu/chancellor/planning/). UMD also remains committed to collaborating with area educational, civic and social service agency colleagues on productive approaches to these challenging issues.

Still, we have received calls and emails expressing concern about the University of Minnesota, Duluth's (UMD) participation in the Un-Fair Campaign. We understand that the recent Un-Fair Campaign public service announcement (PSA) is divisive and has alienated some people. That's concerning to us as a public institution whose goal it is to provide a welcoming environment for all people.

While we fully support the foundations and principles of the Un-Fair Campaign, we feel the PSA is divisive and we do not agree with the creative strategy. UMD expressed displeasure to the partnership that the PSAs were aired without a chance for our review. We will continue to discuss our concerns with the partnership and will require review of all future campaign materials and efforts to ensure they foster constructive dialogue and do not alienate people in our community.

Contrary to some media and blog reports that suggest UMD is the sole sponsor of this PSA, the fact is that UMD is one of 18 community partners in the campaign working toward a common mission: "To raise awareness about white privilege in our community, provide resources for understanding and action, and facilitate dialogue and partnership that result in fundamental, systemic change toward racial justice." Other campaign partners include the City of Duluth, St. Louis County Public Health and Human Services, the NAACP, the YWCA and the University of Wisconsin, Superior, as well as others.

As a community, we believe it is critical to have a serious discussion about diversity and racial equity. Duluth has had a difficult and long history of challenges regarding racial equity and justice that we have not entirely overcome. For example, in spring 2010, an African American woman studying in a campus residence hall was the subject of other students' racist comments on social media. Other people of color on campus shared similar concerns and experiences. Such concerns led to an on-campus summit that led to the formulation of our Campus Change process that continues today.