ADELPHI, Md—Calvin W. Lowe, president of Bowie State University (BSU), will present his institution's 2002-2012 facilities master plan at the upcoming meeting of the University System of Maryland (USM) Board of Regents Finance Committee. The meeting is scheduled to begin at 10 am Monday, August 30, in Room 003 of the University of Baltimore's Thumel Business Center. The center is at the corner of Charles Street and Mt. Royal Avenue.

The BSU plan reflects the institution's ongoing expansion beyond its traditional teacher education role to enhance and/or develop programs in nursing, entrepreneurship, information technology, and bioscience. It also addresses the need to accommodate a growing student population, which increased 15 percent from fall 2001 to fall 2003.

In other business, the Finance Committee will discuss a proposal for an annual $100 student fee to help fund facilities renewal. If implemented, the fee would raise about $10 million each year to help the system and its institutions address critical facilities renewal needs. No action on the proposed fee is scheduled for the August 30 meeting.

The Finance Committee also will consider:

• USM Chancellor William E. Kirwan's recommendations to update the system's institutional real property inventory, and to identify existing and future assets that might be available for alternative uses, disposition, and/or holding for future development of the system and its institutions;
• authorizing the issuance of $35.3 million in bonds for the system's FY 2005 projects approved by the Board of Regents and the Maryland General Assembly. These include projects at BSU; Towson University; University of Baltimore; and University of Maryland, Baltimore County; and facilities renewal system-wide;
• the annual contract between the University of Maryland, Baltimore, and the University of Maryland Medical System Corporation.

Full agendas and background information will be available at the Finance Committee meeting. Sign language interpreters and/or other appropriate accommodations for eligible individuals with disabilities will be provided upon request. Please call 301.445.2756 (voice) or 301.314.7683 (TTY/ITT) to make special arrangements.

Contact: Anne Moultrie

Phone: 301/445-2722
E-mail: amoultrie@usmd.edu