So, in the last blog we got into some background on Title IX and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Collaborative Committee to address Sexual Misconduct.

They’d been working diligently on a report when new Title IX guidelines were issued by the Department of Education.

By this time, the Collaborative had already been divided into six committees: three student committees and three faculty committees. They were assigned to address the following three topics: prevention and education; intervention; and policies and procedures. Their goal was to provide guidance and recommendations to the Chancellor that would ensure a safe, transparent, and trauma-informed approach to responding to sexual misconduct.

Basically, the committees were tasked with addressing legal and societal issues we have struggled with a long time. No pressure, right?

As the report was being prepared, the Board of Regents and the Chancellor were receiving letters expressing concern about UNL’s policies from women’s organizations in Lincoln. Understanding the need for change, we let them know about the upcoming report and asked for their patience in addressing their concerns.

For those of us regents who had heard the young women speak in the public portion of the Board’s public meeting, we decided to take it a step further. Jim Pillen, Elizabeth O’Connor, Ronni Miller (a UNL student regent and Collaborative committee member) and I set up a zoom meeting to listen to hear their perspective.

With something this important, we wanted to do our utmost to get it right.

Before I continue, I want to say that I appreciate everyone – Collaborative members, advocates, our University of Nebraska family and the public alike – who helped to create this report. Without the courageous and thoughtful testimony, without diligent research, we would not be able to improve our systems to better protect against and respond to sexual misconduct.

After the Chair of the Collaborative, Dr. Susan Swearer, circulated a final draft to all members for approval, she submitted the final report to the Chancellor this fall.

There’s a lot to it, and I encourage you to read the full report here. It’s a Roadmap for creating and maintaining a caring campus community.

The committee agreed on 35 recommendations, and provided resources. I won’t get into all of them here, but the good news is that of those recommendations, 15 are already done and 15 more are in process.

A few examples of the changes being made:

• Creating a Sexual Misconduct Commission to oversee the applications of changes to meet with Chancellor on a regular basis and ensure accountability.
• Remove gendered language in policy
• Adopt affirmative consent policy
• Review timelines for investigation & adjudication
• Provide accommodation for disabilities
• Include an amnesty policy provision
• And others on training and trauma-informed Training

One recommendation I thought was a good start on educating the whole campus is: “Require a syllabus statement on sexual misconduct for every class.” We are also extending the university services and resources to issues that arise during university programs off campus and abroad.

So, what about the other five issues the committee raised?

This is where our world – and bureaucracy – get more complex. There are legal issues and Title IX complications that may make these impossible. However, we are examining all avenues to protect all our students.

After the report came out, we had a great conversation with the women from the Lincoln community. They liked the changes and offered their assistance in any of the education and training being implemented.

Here’s the bottom line: our work on this issue is not finished. We are on a journey together, an imperfect one, but one that holds safety and wellness as our highest priorities. It is a partnership that I believe brings the best to our students. It is a partnership that I hope brings out the best for all of us.

*Barbara’s thoughts as written by Kate based on weekly (fascinating) conversations.

Well, I don’t know about you, but I’ve already broken most of my New Year’s resolutions in one way or another. No judgment, of course. We’re all doing our best. In fact, that’s the one resolution of mine left standing: work on being a better regent.

This may sound silly (bear with me), but one of the unexpected challenges of being a regent has been learning all the acronyms. Honestly, it almost feels like learning a new language sometimes.

To that end, I’m excited that I’ve gone from not knowing what IANR stood for (Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources) to not batting an eye when talking about IANR’s oversight of the new CAP program. CAP stands for Center for Agriculture Profitability, and it’s one of many exciting new programs the university is introducing this year. This particular one focuses on how to use research and economics to help Nebraska farmers strategically utilize resources to make a better living.

Another aspect of this whole regent business that I feel more comfortable with at this point is making my voice heard.

It was difficult for me, initially, to speak out on a number of issues as I was learning the ropes of the position. It feels really good to be in a place where I have a lot more confidence engaging in discussions and brainstorms. You might be thinking, “okay, good for you, why does this matter?”

It matters because the whole reason I’m here is to represent the values that we share, the ideas we want presented, and the future we want to work toward together. Yes, I am my own person, but I’m also a conduit. I’m here for you.

This year I also had the privilege of being on the Presidential Search Committee and to work with fellow regents on the Risk and Assessment Committee to evaluate our progress. Though we may have different approaches, we are working on creating an objective evaluation tool so that if we’re not doing our jobs well enough, we will know it.

Introspection and self-assessment can be tricky, but it’s like a muscle – you have to keep working it to make it stronger. It’s the same with creativity and imagination.

And I’m happy to say, continuing to work hard to improve is exactly what I intend to do.

*Barbara’s thoughts as written by Kate based on weekly (fascinating) conversations.

Well, here we are. Mid-winter, mid-pandemic, and I am completing my second year as a regent. Despite the bizarre, surprising, and sometimes unsettling turns of events over the past couple of years, I feel as though I am finding my way a bit better. 

This year I had the pleasure of joining the Academic Affairs Committee, which is more in my area of expertise.

Since COVID-19 changed how the whole university had to work, I am hoping to have another year on the committee to get deeper into non-pandemic-related issues. Of course, it may take another year for us to really emerge from this crisis, but I tend to be an optimist. With the right leadership, the right focus, initiative and resources, it’s entirely possible that higher education can emerge better and stronger.

The first meeting of 2021 is coming up on February 12^th, where we will elect new officers and make committee assignments for the year. We’ll be seeing new Regent faces such as, Dr. Jack Stark, and familiar ones such as Tim Clare. Personally, I think the rotations both within the Board and with elections gives us the opportunity to look with fresh eyes at the things that need to get done.

As though it’s the first day of school, I find myself excited about all the possibilities.

For example, I’m really looking forward to sharing more about a number of new programs and degrees in the coming weeks. One such degree in process is a new Master’s Degree in supply chains, which I think is fascinating and highly useful in our modern world. The issues around getting syringes, vaccines, PPE, ventilators, and oxygen in the right numbers to the places they are needed is a perfect, practical example.

And in addition to new programs and degrees, there’s an institute you are definitely going to want to hear more about. Have I piqued your curiosity yet?

So while I wait with bated breath to discover which committees I’ll be assigned to this year, perhaps you can reflect on what has helped you – and can help us – to continue navigating toward a better future.

*Barbara’s thoughts as written by Kate based on weekly (fascinating) conversations.

I’m entering this year hopeful. That’s my resolution.

Will I work diligently? Yes. Will I face difficult issues head-on with compassion and pragmatism? Yes. Will I sometimes look at my stack of required reading and want to hide under the covers? Sure. But through it all, I will carry hope.

It may sound like a simple resolution, but I think hope is sometimes difficult to come by and tricky to hold onto.

That said, I remain steadfast in my belief in our community and what we can achieve when we work together. And in that spirit, here are a few things I’m hoping for out of this blog in 2021:

1. Connecting the dots. Access to higher education has a massive impact on the societal and economic health of our community and state. Decisions about education happen at the legislative level. Your vote and communication with your representatives matter, so I will do my best to discuss important issues affecting the university.
2. Shedding light. There are so many interesting and exciting things that the University of Nebraska does that few people ever hear about. On top of my campaign promise to provide as much transparency as possible, I will endeavor to continue highlighting the remarkable people and projects that are making waves big and small.
3. Building community. Sometimes I get the question, “why am I paying tax dollars for students to go to University of Nebraska?” The answer is pretty simple. A city (or state) needs qualified, intelligent people in order to function well. Whether that’s teachers, nurses, engineers, social workers, journalists, doctors, scientists, or entrepreneurs, investing in education means we’re investing in our own future. All of us.

2021 will be the year of the budget. It will be the year we hopefully are able to unite our IT systems across campuses. We are trying to create more meaningful internships to encourage talent to put down roots in Nebraska. Governance is a big issue this year as well.

The real question is: how is higher education going to come out of the pandemic? Are we going to make the big changes that create more opportunities for students? Are we going to face forward? Universities have essentially been doing the same thing since the 1700’s while the world keeps changing.

There’s so much potential. I’m hopeful that we won’t simply face the future, but that we’ll embrace it.

*Barbara’s thoughts as written by Kate based on weekly (fascinating) conversations.