Friday Memo

              December 12, 2008
IBHE Approves Public Agenda for Illinois Higher Education
On a unanimous vote, the Illinois Board of Higher Education approved the Public Agenda for College and Career Success, a year-long initiative to build a master plan to guide higher education policies and budgets for the next decade and beyond. The Board‟s approval follows a unanimous endorsement of the plan by the Public Agenda Task Force last month.
“This has been a long undertaking – a gestation of almost exactly 12 months,” said Carrie J. Hightman, chairwoman of both the IBHE and the Task Force. “The thoughtful, deliberative and collaborative process over those many months has yielded an agenda that will improve the lives of Illinois residents, and improve the state‟s future economic and social well-being, for a generation or more.”
Dennis Jones, President of the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS) and a consultant for the Public Agenda, said Illinois‟ planning process was the most collaborative of any state where NCHEMS had worked. And he congratulated the Board and Task Force for the final product: “You got it right,” he said. Aims McGuinness, senior associate at NCHEMS, told Board members that the success of the Public Agenda rested with them. “You should not be spending time on yesterday‟s mission,” he said. “With the adoption of the Public Agenda, you ought to have a very different agenda. All work that you do, ask the question: „How does this connect with UPCOMING
December 15-16 General Assembly Special Session
16 Ill.HS to College Success Report Regional Forum, Harold Washington College, Chicago January 9 ICCB meeting, Springfield 12-13 95th General Assembly Session 14-15 96th General Assembly Session 20 Presidential Inaugural 27 IBHE meeting, Springfield 30 ISAC meeting, Benedictine University, Lisle Friday Memo will be returning in 2009. Happy Holidays and New Year.
The Illinois Board of Higher Education discussed the final draft of the Public Agenda for College and Career Readiness, at its December 9 meeting. It was adopted on a unanimous vote.