Members of the UO Board of Trustees will discuss several issues important to students when they hold a joint committee meeting this Friday.
The Finance and Facilities Committee and the Academic and Student Affairs Committee will hold a joint meeting at 9 a.m. May 8 to discuss proposed changes to the Student Conduct Code and to review student health and counseling services, including a proposed business model change for care and insurance benefits.
The purpose of the meeting is to provide information about matters on the agenda and to allow an opportunity for questions to be answered in advance of the board’s meetings in June when action may be taken. No action will be taken at the May 8 meeting.
In September 2014, the board adopted some permanent and temporary changes to the Student Conduct Code. Since that time, the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards — after consultation with students, faculty and staff — has completed a review of the Student Conduct Code and recommendations from the University Senate. The proposed changes relate to the conduct adjudication model, deadlines for response to allegations, appeals processes and other changes.
The trustees will also learn more about healthcare services for students.
The University Health Center and University Counseling and Testing Center provide many services for students, including general health care, pharmacy and dental services, an x-ray clinic, physical and sports therapy, nutrition counseling, a travel clinic, immunizations, mental health outreach and individual and group therapy. Last year, there were 80,485 student visits to the health center and 7,758 student counseling sessions, and visits are keeping staff at capacity on a daily basis.
The university is developing plans to implement a new program called UO Care. It is a new way of funding health care services and providing insurance for UO students.
The goal of UO Care is to provide students with more comprehensive coverage for health services, including ambulance, urgent care and high-cost imaging tests, and offer students options to be in compliance with the federal Affordable Care Act. For the next few months, the university will focus on helping students and families understand the program and its affects in individual situations so students can make the best choices on coverage options.
“As a university, it is critical that we provide exceptional health and counseling services to ensure our students stay healthy and enrolled at the UO,” said Robin Holmes, vice president for Student Life.
This joint committee meeting is open to the public and will be held in Room 403 of the Ford Alumni Center. More information is available at trustees.uoregon.edu/meetings.
—By Julie Brown, Public Affairs Communications