ACADEMIC BOARD REPORT 6/95 30 AUGUST 1995

A pretty average and non-controversial meeting last week, although i took
a while as the discussion on a couple of items was protracted.

Perhaps the single agendum which really concerned FCIT at the last meeting
was the approval to advertise the DLAR chair. It was passed without
discussion among all the other unstarred items.

As usual, I'll concentrate on the items that were discussed at the
meeting. I don't think there was anything else worth reporting from the
papers.

We had a brief report from the ad-hoc committee which has met the
Chancellor about the selection of the next VC. They had produced a list of
five criteria for the position, and there was considerable discussion on
the items, the subtlety of the wording, etc. etc.

The VC briefed the Board about the University's involvement with one of
the tenderers for the real estate of Bond University. He wanted his
briefing kept confidential, so I won't broadcast the details. The Board
passed a 7-point resolution endorsing the position being taken. I think it
was nearly unanimous. (I guess you'll get all the details in a Wednesday
`Australian'. I don't think anyone is very confident, and with two Qld
universities also involved in bids, and legislation being required in the
Qld Parliament to sort out the post-Bond mess, I can't see a wicked
Southern States interloper being allowed in.)

DVC Darvall said he was happy with the way the "Q3" Quality visit went,
but less happy when he heard that all the other universities were happy
too. He quoted some comments from the team to the effect that the
universities had all learned the trick of the system, and made sure that
all the staff meeting the panel were briefed, etc. etc.

The selection panel for the VC has been extended by a professor or two,
and that David Caro (ex VC of UoM, taught me nuclear physics in first year)
was joining it as well.

DEET is reviewing university management and governance, and we had a
draft submission in the papers. It transpires that the Council is doing
one of its own. Mal was rather tetchy about it, and one suspects that
relations in the stratosphere are a tad strained.

The brawl continues about medical student intake numbers. (I suspect this
is going to be a loss, as the exam/quota system that the AMA and Dept of
Health have been using for years to maintain a semi-closed shop has just
been unravelled in the Federal Court, and there are lot of foreign-trained
medicos here waiting for registration. Combine that with predictions of an
oversupply of doctors, and it is inevitable that saving $18,000 per EFTSU
looks attractive to the bean-counters.)

Edward Lim, the University Librarian, was asked to explain the comment in
the Library Committee minutes about the "Boyd Archive" being moved to the
State Library in return for material of equivalent value. Edward explained
that it was the collection of architectural papers from Robin Boyd's
practice, and was mainly used by students at Melbourne and RMIT. It turned
out that Mal had been concerned that it was material belonging to Martin
Boyd, a relative of whom is considering a donation/bequest.