Assistant Vice President for Research and Innovation Doug Gage will present the Gift, Grant and Contract Report. Between Aug. 14 and Nov. 16, there were 767 gifts, grants and contracts in addition to 11 consignment and non-cash gifts that total over $193 million. 

Speaker Emilio Moran, Hannah distinguished professor, will give a research presentation titled: Innovative Solutions for Off-Grid Communities: Food, Water and Energy Challenges in the Amazon Basin. 

Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Teressa Woodruff will give the personal actions and information reports. Following will be committee reports. Two professors are to receive tenure appointments, assuming the board approves the action.

The Committee on Budget and Finance recommends the reappointment of Randy Cowen to the Investment Advisory Subcommittee. Cowen served on the MSU Foundation Board of Directors since 2010 and currently serves as the chairman for the board. 

The committee also recommends that the administration proceeds with replacing the steam production capacity on campus. The T.B. Simon Power Plant provided electricity to MSU for over 50 years. Units one and two of the of the original equipment was installed in 1965. As the need for electricity rises, the power plant becomes less efficient. 

The T.B. Simon Power Plant modernization project will add a new natural gas-fired boiler to a new building west of the power plant located on Service Road south of campus. The project will cost over $17.5 million. 

The Committee on Academic Affairs will recommend that the board adopts the President Performance Evaluation Policy. This committee is responsible for evaluating the president’s performance and has the power to adjust the president’s compensation and the term of his appointment. 

Lastly, the Committee on Audit, Risk and Compliance will present contract terms between MSU and the Corporation for Digital Scholarship where Associate Professor in the department of history Sharon Leon serves as the vice president.

People interested in addressing the board by participating in public comment must fill out a request to address form no later than 48 hours before the meeting.