Atlanta — July 30, 2004

As one of his first official acts at the helm of the governing body for public higher education in Georgia, Board of Regents Chair Joel O. Wooten, Jr. is piloting a new meeting format aimed at helping each of the regents become more informed about the board’s different committees.

Instead of conducting concurrent meetings of the board’s standing and special committees, the chairman is testing a new schedule in which the various committees will meet consecutively beginning on Tuesday and extending into Wednesday. The result is that all 18 members of the Board of Regents now will have the opportunity to attend any committee meeting of their choice - regardless of whether or not they serve as an official member of that particular committee.

According to Wooten, the goal is expanded communication. “We can assess how well these changes work after we try this new board agenda,” the chair said. “We are particularly interested in seeing if our new members feel that these changes help them to be more informed about different committees and to become more involved more quickly.”

Previously, the committee meetings all were conducted on Tuesday afternoon, with the full board convening first thing on Wednesday morning. Now, on Wednesday morning, the Academic Affairs committee will conduct its meeting, followed by a major educational seminar.

“Some of our future monthly meetings will be focused committee meetings and/or workshops to enable us to do a much more in-depth analysis of the system’s needs and challenges,” Wooten added. “My goal is to enhance discussion as we set the policies and principles we need for future growth and direction.”

In addition to implementing the new meeting format, Wooten also has completed the selection of chairpersons for the Board of Regents special and standing committees for the next year. He has tapped the cited regents to lead the following respective committees:

• Committee on Academic Affairs, Regent William H. Cleveland
• Committee on Strategic Planning, Regent Donald M. Leebern, Jr.
• Audit Committee, Regent Glenn S. White
• Committee on Informational and Instructional Technology, Regent Michael J. Coles
• Committee on Real Estate and Facilities, Regent Martin W. NeSmith
• Committee on Organization and Law, Regent James R. Jolly
• Committee on Finance and Business Operations, Regent Patrick S. Pittard

In his leadership role, Wooten also serves as chair of the Executive and Compensation Committee.

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