January 14, 2015 Minutes

Jim Strodel with CAPTRUST Financial Advisors spoke about new regulations around 403(b) retirement plans, how universities are responding to these new regulations, and the charge of the WFU 403(b) Retirement Plan Investment Committee. Also, John Shenette, Associate VP of Facilities & Campus Services spoke about Facilities’ current and preferred benchmarking and projects.

Jim Strodel, (Captrust)
shared retirement plans currently available to us at Wake. They are:

  • Vanguard
  • Fidelity
  • TIAA-CREF

Wake hired Captrust to review our current plan investments to determine if these are the right vendors and the right investments that we should be offering. Captrust represents the “employees” not the “employer”.

We currently have hundreds of options; would like to narrow the list and organize it into a more manageable list and present a “best in class” that have been vetted by the committee for us to select from.

Captrust will continue to be highly engaged through the process offering a quarterly review/evaluation of the funds to make sure they are performing

This will likely not go into effect until September, October or maybe even next January

Jennifer Killingsworth has agreed to keep the SAC updated as the 403b Investment Committee Progresses.

John Shenette, Associate Vice President, Facility and Campus Services

  • Gave us history / background on his journey here – started here on March 1, 2014
  • Discussed concept of benchmarking and why it is important; it allows us to look at both the money side of things (annual stewardship and asset reinvestment) and the operational success side (customer service and operational effectiveness). In benchmarking, we compare ourselves to the following institutions as they are similar in size and building type/structure: Boston College, Brown, Davidson, Duke, Princeton, University of Chicago, Notre Dame, Vanderbilt, and Washington University in St. Louis
  • His first 10 months; he reiterated that his experience at WFU and the people he works with are the best in his career.
  • Upcoming projects on campus:
    • Gym Renovation (in Phase 1 of 3)
    • Indoor Practice Facility / Golf House
    • Health and Exercise Science Wing
    • Intramural Fields
  • Site Improvements:
    • Landscaping on the sides of Wait Chapel – for outdoor class space
    • Trail/Pathway to Reynolda Village – plan to put benches, lights, and a new surface
    • Chiller Plant
    • Reserved Parking Signs (by Farrell)
    • Lost a sugar maple by Wait Chapel; they repurposed the wood and are planning to make it into furniture for classrooms

Outside Committee Report-out
Events: a meeting has been scheduled in January for the 2nd annual Employee Picnic.
No other report-outs due to time constraints and low attendance by SAC members.

General Announcements
Healthy Outcomes: The program is based on completing activities to earn credits. If you earn at least 120 credits by March 31, 2015, Wake Forest will reduce your medical plan premiums by $200 in June 2015.

Upcoming Meetings
February: Malika Roman-Isler, Director of Well-Being
March: Charles Iacovou, Dean, School of Business
April: Adam Goldstein, Dean of Students & Benefits Update
May: Business Session only

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