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Committee Report | April 2012

Tuesday, April 24, 2012 - 11:00pm

Report of

REGENTS CULTURAL EDUCATION COMMITTEE

to

The Board of Regents

April 24, 2012

Regent Roger Tilles, Chair of the Cultural Education Committee, submitted the following written report.

Your Committee on Cultural Education Committee had its scheduled meeting on April 24, 2012.

In attendance were committee members: Regents Tilles, Dawson, Bendit, Cea, Jackson, Cottrell

Absent was Regent Rosa.

In addition to CE Committee Members, in attendance were:  Chancellor Tisch, Regents Chapey, Cashin, Phillips, Brown and Young as well as Commissioner King and Executive Deputy Commissioner Grey.

ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION

Chair’s Remarks: Regent Tilles welcomed everyone and opened the meeting

Deputy Commissioner Jeffrey Cannell provided a brief update on the status of the Advisory Council on Museums, reporting on the positive reception he received at a recent meeting of the Museum Association of New York.


CE (A) 1 – Report of the Regents Advisory Council on Libraries – Creating the Future: A 2020 Vision and Plan for Library Service in New York State

The Deputy Commissioner introduced presenters Gerald Nichols, Chair and John Hammond, Vice-Chair of Regents Advisory Council (RAC) on Libraries.  The Regents Advisory Council on Libraries, as the oldest continuing Regents advisory body, is responsible to keep the Board of Regents informed about the conditions and needs of the State's libraries, and to suggest policies and actions that would make those libraries more useful for the residents of New York State.

Chairman Nichols began by saying “Two years ago we met with you and asked for your concept of library service in the twenty-first century.  Your response was to challenge us to articulate a vision that reflected the needs of our citizens and to develop a strategy to get there.  The report before you is the work not only of this Council, but of literally hundreds of library users, supporters and professionals.  

But before we talk about this report, let us first acknowledge that we have a problem.  Actually, we have many problems. 

We know that too many of our children are entering school unprepared to learn.

Too many students are leaving school without the knowledge necessary to survive, let alone thrive, in an information-based economy. 

Too many citizens are struggling to retrain, to learn new skills and to find work. 

Too many seniors feel out of touch with the world.

And there is too little opportunity for civil discourse about these and the other challenges that we as a society must face together. 

Simply put, how do we provide the opportunities and, indeed, empower, all the people of New York to lead a productive and meaningful life.

We, you, have to do better.  That is our mission.

We are here today to offer you, as the leaders of the University of the State of New York, an opportunity to fully utilize one of your most valuable assets in order to meet these challenges.  Perhaps we have many problems, but with your support, the libraries of our state can offer many solutions.  We believe this report offers models of success and a series of practical recommendations to help all our state’s libraries to get there.

Regent Dawson moved to accept the report from the Advisory Committee.  The motion was seconded by Regent Cea and passed unanimously.

The committee recommended that Deputy Commissioner Cannell and his staff analyze the report and provide an action agenda for the Board of Regents based on the recommendations in the report.

A copy of the Regents Advisory Council recommendations was distributed to committee members prior to the meeting.

Meeting adjourned at 11:55

Last Updated:

April 24, 2012