To: All Faculty & All Academic Professionals & All Civil Service Staff
           <everybody@illinois.edu> 
    From: "Thomas Hardy" <hardyt@uillinois.edu>

Reply-To: hardyt@uillinois.edu
 Subject: MASSMAIL - Admissions

June 1, 2009

  The University of Illinois president and the chancellors of the 
university's three campuses said Monday that they will create a task 
force to review aspects of the university's admissions process through 
which many constituents inquire about and advocate for applicants for 
admission.

  The review will examine how contacts from legislators, trustees, alumni 
and others have been managed in the past, what best practices are at peer 
institutions and what changes should be made going forward to ensure the 
integrity of the admissions process. 

  The task force will be comprised of university personnel, including one 
or more faculty representatives, and external members who will bring 
expertise and perspective to the review. The task force's work will be 
reviewed by the Board of Trustees as the process unfolds. The make-up of 
the panel and a timetable for its work will be announced shortly. The 
university's campuses in Urbana-Champaign, Chicago and Springfield 
recently wrapped up the admissions cycle for their fall incoming classes, 
and the next major admissions cycle begins in September.

  The university also announced it has suspended use of the so-
called "Category I" list until the review is completed and 
recommendations on new practices are considered. The list consisted of 
the names of about 160 Urbana campus applicants on behalf of whom 
admissions inquiries were made by public officials, alumni and others. 
With 26,000 applicants for 7,000 seats in the 2009 incoming class, the 
university received thousands of contacts in the past year about 
admissions cases.

This mailing approved by:
The Office of the President

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