UT System Regents to meet Aug. 19-20

AUSTIN — The University of Texas System Board of Regents will meet Wednesday and Thursday, Aug. 19-20, in Austin. The meeting will be held on the ninth floor of Ashbel Smith Hall, 201 W. 7^th St.

The agenda book and links to the live webcast for the meeting are posted online. Parking for news media is available at the guard kiosk on Colorado Street between 6^th and 7^th streets.

The meeting will be live tweeted from @utsystem.

Below are highlights from the Board agenda. All times approximate and more information about these items as well as additional agenda items can be found in the agenda book:

Wednesday, Aug. 19

9 a.m. – Audit, Compliance, and Management Review Committee

9:30 a.m. – Academic Affairs Committee

• Consider request from UT Austin to rename B.M. Whitaker Field to honor the late Professor Charles Alan Wright and officially recognize the Whitaker Fields and Tennis Complex at the Berry M. Whitaker Sports Complex

• Consider approval of Doctor of Philosophy degree program in Kinesiology at UT Arlington.

• Presentation on 3D printing by Ryan Wicker, professor and director of the W.M. Keck Center for 3D Innovation at UT El Paso.

10:30 a.m. – Health Affairs Committee

• Consider request from UT Health Science Center at Tyler to name the circle drive surrounding the Herbert C. and Melvina Buie Fountain of Hope as Buie Circle.

• Consider approval of Doctorate in Occupational Therapy degree program and the Doctor of Clinical Laboratory Sciences degree program in the School of Health Professions at UT Medical Branch – Galveston.

• Consider allocation of $15 million to fund the second phase of the Diabetes Obesity Control initiative, which is leveraging technology and big data to improve health outcomes for diabetes patients in Texas.

11:30 a.m. – Technology Transfer and Research Committee

• Presentations from UT MD Anderson President Ron DePinho and UT Austin President Greg Fenves about the development of industry research partnerships.

• Consider allocation of $10 million to the UT Horizon Fund, which supports UT System-related start-up companies.

1 p.m. – Finance and Planning Committee

2 p.m. – Facilities Planning and Construction Committee

3:30 p.m. – Meeting of the Board in open session

• Annual meeting with officers of the UT System Faculty Advisory Council.

• Recognition of the 79 educators who are receiving the 2015 Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award. They will each receive $25,000 – for a total of almost $2 million – for excellence and innovation in the classroom.

4:30 p.m. – Recess

Thursday, Aug. 20

8:30 a.m. – Meeting of the Board in open session

• Consider creation of the UT System Health Care Advisory Committee, which would be composed of experts in the field who would provide strategic guidance to UT System leaders.

• Consider changes to admissions policies and procedures for academic institutions. David Daniel, UT System deputy chancellor, will present the recommendations.

• William Inboden, executive director of the Clements Center for National Security at UT Austin, will give a presentation about the nationally-renowned research and policy center.

10 a.m. – Executive session

2:30 p.m. – Meeting of the Board in open session

• Consider creation of research consortium and institute at UT MD Anderson.

• Consider approval of UT System operating budget for FY 2016.

3 p.m. - Adjourn