NACUBO Notes, May 2016 | Business Officer Magazine

Learn More About NACUBO’s 2016 Annual Meeting Speakers

This year’s NACUBO 2016 Annual Meeting will be held in Montréal, July 16–19, at the Palais des congrés de Montréal. The conference will feature engaging and dynamic general sessions, with keynotes who will cover a range of topics of particular interest to business officers. Here are some highlights of our general sessions speakers’ careers, publications, and passions.

Sir Ken Robinson

SPEAKER, AUTHOR, AND CONSULTANT

An internationally recognized leader in the development of creativity, innovation, and human resources in education and business, Robinson, has provided insightful commentary on education and won numerous awards for his work.

"The problem with conformity in education is that people are not standardized to begin with."

From his book, Creative Schools

Johnnetta Cole

MUSEUM DIRECTOR, ANTHROPOLOGIST, AND EDUCATOR

Currently the director of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, Cole has served as president at two historically black colleges for women—Spelman College, Atlanta, and Bennett College, Greensboro, N.C. Throughout her career, she has shared her knowledge about education and has been honored with some of the top awards in her field.

"The first thing that I would say to anyone who is about to go off to college is choose the college based, not on what career you want exclusively, but where you can get a quality liberal arts education."

Interview with Higher Education Today on UDC-TV, published on Oct. 24, 2013

Bryan Stevenson

LAWYER, ACTIVIST, AND PROFESSOR

Dedicated to helping the poor, incarcerated, and condemned, Stevenson founded the Equal Justice Initiative shortly after finishing law school. His dedication as an activist has been recognized through numerous awards and honors over the past 15 years.

The Equal Justice Initiative has prevented the deaths of 115 male prisoners and persuaded the U.S. Supreme Court to end life sentences without parole for minors as young as 13. In February 2016, Google announced that it would donate $1 million to the initiative.

Regarding the justice system, Stevenson says, "We have a justice system in this country that treats you much better if you are rich and guilty than if you are poor and innocent. Wealth, not culpability, shapes outcomes."

From a 2015 TED Talk, "We Need to Talk About an Injustice"

Ray Suarez

JOURNALIST, AUTHOR, AND SPEAKER

Known for his passionate presentations that connect with listeners, Suarez has written several books, including Latino Americans: The 500-Year History That Shaped a Nation (Penguin, 2013).

Suarez’s careful and considerate news reporting has earned him the following honors:

Co-recipient of the Alfred I. Dupont–Columbia award for NPR’s on-site coverage of the first multiracial elections in South Africa (1993).
Awarded the Ruben Salazar Award from the National Council of La Raza in 1996.
Inducted into the Hall of Fame, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, in 2010.
Founding member of the Chicago Association of Hispanic Journalists.

About Latinos, Suarez says that they are fighters who overcame their obstacles. "They fought for the right to vote, fought against social exclusion, and they kept on fighting until they were part of the whole."

Mark Zandi

POLICY ADVISER, ECONOMIST, AND AUTHOR

Zandi, chief economistof Moody’s Analytics, who frequently testifiesbefore Congress on the U.S. economic outlook, continually shares his insight on economics in the United States. Over the past few years, he’s had this to say about the economy:

"It is easy to be pessimistic. These are extraordinarily difficult times, and the collective psyche is teetering. But we are closer to righting the wrongs that got us into this economic mess than most of us believe."

"The most important point is, in a time of crisis, there is no way out but for the government to be bold and aggressive."

"In a normal time, I don’t think economic policy makes a large difference one way or another. But in times of crisis it makes all the difference in the world."

Webcasts on Power Purchase Agreements, Title IX

Utilities are one of the largest nonpayroll operation costs at institutions across the country. Collectively, colleges and universities spend approximately $7 billion—up to eight percent of their budgets—on utilities on a yearly basis. Volatile energy commodity markets expose risks and cause unpredictable price fluctuations that can be challenging for institutions to manage and predict.

During NACUBO’s recent webcast, Containing Cost and Risk With Renewables—the Power Purchase Agreement Story, speakers from Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., and Georgetown University, Washington, D.C., along with consultants from Altenex and Customer First Renewables, discussed how they have been successful in bringing beneficial power purchase agreements to their institutions.

Attendees learned how to manage and reduce energy price risk exposure; utilize technology to see benefits regardless of physical space limitations; and overcome common obstacles in creating a renewable energy strategy.

In another webcast—Title IX: Key Issues Surrounding Institutional Compliance— business officers and their staff received guidance as required by Title IX on managing the intake and resolution of complaints related to sex-based harassment and discrimination.

The webcast, co-hosted by the National Association of Clery Compliance Officers and Professionals (NACCOP), discussed new Title IX requirements to help campuses remain compliant and gave advice on mitigating risk associated with noncompliance prior to an audit.

Attendees learned about the importance of training and prevention, and the specific steps that they need to take in order to adhere to the new requirements.

Both webcasts will be available on-demand for one year from the original air date. For further information, visit the "Distance Learning" page at www.nacubo.org.

NACUBO Notes

May 2016