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This Month in History

EMPLOYEE MEDICAL BENEFITS AFFECTED IN POLYTECHNIC REDUCTION PLAN

Medical benefits for Polytechnic non-union staff and faculty will change as of July 1 as part of the administration’s $12 million expense reduction plan (see February ePoly Briefs for details of the reduction plan).

The announcement came at a March 24 Town Hall meeting, held in the Dibner Auditorium and teleconferenced to the Westchester and Long Island campuses. Human Resources Director Sue Karavolas told the audience that a proposal has been drafted for both the basic and premium medical plans that will affect what employees pay for office visits, deductibles, prescriptions, out-of-pocket expenses, alternative medical treatments and emergency room visits. In addition, the Polytechnic dental plan will be eliminated under the new proposal and a voluntary plan offered—a model of the current coverage where employees are responsible for coverage—if more than 50 percent of the employees agree to participate. The proposal is “comparable to other universities,” said Karavolas, as benchmarked by the Fringe Benefits Committee.

Karavolas said the proposal will be finalized once the marketing and renewal have been received, and could be subject to change. The new plan will be announced once the details are settled.

Together, the proposed medical/no-dental program will save the University $421,000, a little less than the $500,000 the administration wanted to save annually in medical benefits to reduce Polytechnic’s deficit and balance the budget by June 2005.

At the meeting, President Chang promised that “when we have the resources to reinvest, we will take a hard look at [revising the medical benefits].”

Karavolas asked employees to either contact her at ext. 3343 or by e-mail to discuss the new plan in detail. There will be an open enrollment for the July 1st change-over.

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STUDENT APPLICANTS, FACULTY INITIATIVES AND LONG ISLAND AND WESTCHESTER CAMPUSES DISCUSSED AT TOWN HALL MEETING

President Chang provided an update on new students for fall '03, with the numbers slightly lower for undergraduates than last year and substantially higher for graduate students. “We have good news and bad news,” he told staff and faculty at the March 24 Town Hall meeting, “and, under the circumstances, we’re doing the best that we can.”

The application pool for full-time graduate students is up 45 percent, compared to this time last year; however, applications from future full-time undergraduates is down six percent from last year. From that figure, the number of prospective undergraduates who will commute to the University is down 12 percent, and the number of residential students is up eight percent.

Among undergraduates applying to Polytechnic, those selecting to major in computer science or computer engineering are down 23 percent, which, Chang explained, reflects a nation-wide trend following the dot.com bust and the collapse of the information-technology industry. Previously, 50 percent of Polytechnic’s total new-student body majored in either of those two disciplines. Whereas computer science and computer engineering are experiencing a decrease in applicants, Chang said, there has been “tremendous growth in mechanical engineering,” with a 24 percent increase in applicants for the fall. The pre-med program has also seen an increase.

Chang expressed his appreciation for faculty and staff who have been helping in the current recruiting effort, and promised to continue to keep the Poly community abreast of the enrollment trend as it moves forward.

During the meeting, Barry S. Blecherman, associate dean for undergraduate education and innovation, discussed several faculty initiatives. He outlined plans for an Honors College, under the auspices of the Othmer Institute, to attract outstanding students to earn a dual BS/MS in four years. The Honors College is expected to be approved by faculty the first week of April. With an Honors College, Blecherman said, Polytechnic would be competing with such institutions as MIT and Carnegie Mellon in recruiting quality students.

Blecherman also announced that the Department of Chemical Engineering, Chemistry and Materials Science has changed its name to the Othmer Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences and Engineering (see article below), and will soon offer a new executive track program, in conjunction with Management, at 55 Broad Street in Manhattan.

In addition, the faculty has redesigned the freshman schedule to make it more balanced, including holding exams on Mondays, instead of Fridays, and scheduling math courses in one-hour, not two-hour, blocks. A revamping of the freshman curriculum is being proposed, with changes to the first math course, “to get students into calculus and physics courses in a more timely way.” Blecherman also said that the faculty is working to enroll high-quality transfer students, and is considering offering new minors in different disciplines to give students more breadth in knowledge.

A question-and-answer period ended the meeting. One employee asked why the budgets of the Othmer Institute and Campaign 1-2-3 weren’t cut to defray the deficit. Both Executive VP and Provost Ivan T. Frisch, who oversees the Othmer Institute, and VP Richard S. Thorsen, who directs Campaign 1-2-3, explained that the budgets of both programs have been reduced. In the case of the Othmer Institute, its $1.2 million budget was cut in half, with $300,000 going toward establishing the Honors College, and the remainder to fund faculty research.

Another question concerned the fate of the Westchester campus. Chang said that, in the next couple of weeks, the Board of Trustees will examine the campus to see in what “new directions we can take it.” Earlier in the meeting, Chang said that the sale of the Farmingdale campus “looks good.” For the past three months, the developer interested in buying the property has been paying the University interest, amounting to $93,000 a month.

Regarding a question of merit increases, Chang promised that salary increases “will be available when Polytechnic gets past the flat enrollment.” Concerning a question of Grumman remaining on contract at Poly, Chang said that issue has not been resolved.

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DEPARTMENT CHANGES NAME TO REFLECT ADVANCES IN BIOLOGY AND BIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

Responding to increased national attention on health care and biotechnology, the Department of Chemical Engineering, Chemistry and Materials Science has changed its name to the Othmer Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences and Engineering.

The department proposed the name change to reflect the unprecedented impact of biology on the chemistry and chemical engineering professions and to attract more undergraduate students and financial support for graduate studies and research from companies and federal agencies committed to human health and biotechnology. Many of the new faculty hires in the department will be expected to have solid biology or bioengineering backgrounds.

“The new name has scientific symmetry, emphasizing the similar roles of chemistry and biology,” says Department Head Christos Georgakis. "The last decade has seen remarkable breakthroughs in biochemistry, biophysics, genetics and molecular biology. Chemists are needed to provide a chemical understanding to many of these breakthroughs, while chemical engineers are playing key roles in applying these discoveries. Our students must be knowledgeable about the basic biology of cells, enzymes and large-scale bioprocesses to compete in tomorrow’s industry.”

The department will have two divisions: Chemical and Biological Engineering and Chemical and Biological Sciences. Details are presently being finalized to transform the undergraduate curriculum in chemical engineering to one in chemical and biological engineering. The department will also be proposing a new BS pre-med program in biomolecular sciences and considering a similar action in the graduate program.

The new name also honors Donald F. Othmer, Polytechnic's greatest benefactor and a long-time Poly professor of chemical engineering.

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