Editor’s note: This piece has been corrected to reflect that Eric Wasowicz retained his position as the chair of the Board of Trustees and Montel Gayles as board member. The building of the new nursing building will also not be completed by Fall 2023.

DeKALB – Board of Trustees members began their April 3 meeting by voting on Board of Trustee positions. Eric Wasowicz retained his position as chair of the board, Rita Athas as vice chair and Montel Gayles and Dennis Barsema members.

SALE OF NURSING BUILDING

The Board of Trustees approved the real estate sale of the nursing building located at 1240 Normal Rd. The sale comes after consideration of the building as a surplus and the relocation of the school of nursing to 3100 Sycamore Road until the new nursing building is finished.

Sale of the property has been approved to DeKalb Community Unit School District 428. Funds from the sale will go toward campus maintenance and emergency repair requirements.

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT

NIU approved a collective bargaining agreement between itself and the tenure and tenure-track faculty union, United Faculty Alliance, Local 4100 of the University Professionals of Illinois. This comes after a tentative agreement reached last February for salary increases, recognizing faculty services, technology upgrades, job and research advancements. This agreement begins retroactively from July 1, 2022 and will last until June 30, 2026.

STEVENSON AND GRANT REPAIRS

Stevenson and Grant Residence Halls have been approved to enter phase two of repairs. Repairs were initially approved in March 2022 to address exterior water infiltration entering the buildings. The repairs needed for phase two of this project will address remaining water infiltration by patching precast panels and replacing sealants on the residential buildings.

LAW STUDENT FEES INCREASE

After postponing a vote affecting Law student tuition and fees, the Board of Trustees agreed to increasing fee costs to cover costs of operation. Law students will see an increase in health and wellness charges will increase by 25 cents, university advancement fees for capital improvement charges and transportation access by 45 and 70 cents respectively. Law excellence charge will increase by $40. Tuition will remain the same seeing a 0% increase.