Park Ridge, Ill. —The Big Ten Conference office announced that Indiana University President Michael McRobbie will begin his second year as the chair of the Council of Presidents/Chancellors (COP/C). McRobbie will be joined on the COP/C Executive Committee for the 2011-12 academic year by University of Iowa President Sally Mason as vice chair, along with two past chairs in Michigan State University President Lou Anna K. Simon and Penn State President Graham Spanier. These four individuals will also serve as the Executive/Compensation Committee for the Big Ten Conference.
“The Big Ten Conference was founded following a meeting of university presidents in 1895 and current presidents and chancellors have maintained a leadership position in its governance,” said Big Ten Commissioner James E. Delany. “The Council of Presidents/Chancellors and the Executive Committee are actively involved in setting the direction of the conference and its member institutions. I want to thank them for their vision and their efforts in maintaining the conference’s preeminent position as a leader in providing quality athletic and academic experiences for our student-athletes.”
The ultimate authority and responsibility in Big Ten Conference governance is vested in the COP/C. All policy is decided at the COP/C level, including the annual budget for the conference office and all other financial matters. Other responsibilities of the COP/C include, but are not limited to, hiring and determining duties of the Big Ten Commissioner, enforcing conference rules, agreements, appendices and bylaws, amending or repealing bylaws and admitting new institutions into membership. The COP/C meets twice each academic year.
The COP/C Executive Committee conducts the regular business of the COP/C between meetings and provides direction to the commissioner in the conduct of the day-to-day operations of the conference. The Executive Committee consists of four presidents or chancellors, and is composed of the chair, two past chairs and one other president or chancellor. The Executive Committee is responsible for nominating the incoming chair, who serves a two-year term. In turn, the chair seeks the endorsement of the COP/C for the Executive Committee composition for the coming year. The selection process for the chair and Executive Committee is structured to encourage diversity and the inclusion of presidents and chancellors from across the conference over the long term.
In addition, Delany is an officer of the COP/C along with Deputy Commissioner and COP/C Treasurer Brad Traviolia and Associate Commissioner and COP/C Secretary Jennifer Heppel.