In his opening remarks at Thursday’s Board of Trustees meeting, President B. Joseph White acknowledged the upcoming months would be a time for the University to develop plans to be prepared for difficult financial times in the future.

However, White emphasized the quality of the education provided at the University of Illinois would not suffer, and the courses available to students would not be limited or restricted.

White chose to remove an agenda regarding Global Campus to become independently accredited after an Urbana-Champaign Senate meeting last week that showed dissatisfaction among faculty. At the faculty-student Senate meetings on the Champaign and Springfield campuses, there was also discord as to the Board should approach the future of Global Campus.

White said he felt it was important for Global Campus to continue, especially so that more people can have access to the quality education the University of Illinois provides, but at the low tuition level Global Campus offers.

The original intention was for Global Campus to not be independently accredited with the idea that faculty members would propose and develop the programs of study, but White said faculty had not been active in forming new programs.

The Board also appointed officers for the University’s entity in Singapore. This is a research program in cooperation with the government of Singapore which will allow the University to send professors and students to the country for technology research purposes.