Trustees received reports from the University Senate Conference and from the University of Illinois Alumni Association during the Sept. 13 meeting, including updates on shared-governance proposals and alumni engagement programming.

Sandra de Groot, chair of the University Senate Conference, told trustees the conference acts as a coordinating body among the three campus senates and currently has five statute-change proposals under review. She described USC's advisory role to the president and board and outlined the conference's committees (academic affairs and research; finance, budget and benefits; statutes and governance) and ongoing work on issues such as workplace behavior, research integrity and background checks.

David Bambry, president of the University of Illinois Alumni Association, reviewed the association's structure and programming and highlighted engagement metrics. He said the association engaged about 161,000 contactable alumni in 2024 (about 31% of contactable alumni) and described four engagement categories the association uses: experiential, communications, volunteer and philanthropic. Bambry said clubs and programs such as IlliniLink (a networking and mentorship platform with more than 14,000 users) and homecoming activities are key tools for connecting alumni and students.

The Academic and Student Affairs Committee also reported on a system-led effort to streamline the transfer process and said the system supports tools used by community colleges and universities across Illinois to facilitate student transfers.

Why this matters: University governance and alumni engagement are central to long-term institutional health; senate statute changes can alter campus governance procedures and alumni-engagement programs support recruitment, philanthropy and student outcomes.

Next steps: USC said statute-change proposals remain under review and plans an October retreat on strengthening shared governance; the Alumni Association said it will continue scaling programming such as IlliniLink and club activities.