Provost Teresa Woodruff will ask the board to approve two faculty tenure appointments. Woodruff will also recommend the appointment of vice president for legal affairs and general counsel Brian Quinn to acting secretary and chief of staff to the Board of Trustees. The former secretary and chief of staff Eric Scorsone, vacated the position on Sept. 9.

The agenda includes the 2024 capital outlay request and five-year capital plan. The outlay request, which asks the federal government for funding toward a specified project relating to an academic or research need, is for the construction of a new Engineering and Digital Innovation building. The goal of the building is to provide space for interdisciplinary research and learning.

The five-year capital plan has to be approved annually by the Board of Trustees. The plan outlines current information on the university's needs and priorities and is sent to state policymakers. The five-year plan and capital outlay request will be addressed during the budget and finance report.

Following the president's report, communicative sciences and disorder assistant professor Maryam Naghibolhosseini will give a presentation on high-speeding imaging and voice disorders.

On top of the five-year capital plan and outlay request, the budget and finance report will include the authorization to plan the upgrading of teaching labs in the Chemistry Building. The upgrades will include new research labs as well as new ceilings, lights, paint and furniture in existing labs.

The audit, risk and compliance committee will request the approval of the university’s financial statements through June 30, 2022. Audit, risk and compliance will also ask for approval of a contract between the university and Advertent Biotherapeutics, a Michigan company that develops therapies to improve musculoskeletal injuries. 

The project outlined in the agreement says that MSU will produce a drug protein for the company to use in muscle degeneration therapy.