A report focusing on enrollment management and admissions will be one of the informational reports presented at the University Faculty Senate meeting today.

Faculty Senate Chair Kim Steiner said even though there is no legislation being passed at today's meeting, some of the reports are rather significant, given the rising cost of tuition.

"[The report] shows that we're having some trouble meeting our targets [for admission retention] in all locations, and it's a great concern for the university," she said.

John Romano, vice provost and dean for enrollment management, said it is important to understand that Penn State is affected by outside factors.

"There are real threats in the external context, having to do with demographics, competition and the relatively high cost of tuition at Penn State," he said. "All those factors play on or affect the admissions outcome each year."

Romano said the report aims to promote awareness of these factors and encourage finding ways of mitigating them. "What I intended to do was ... to hopefully alert the entire university community to some of the issues at play because I think every single one of us has an important role to play in the admissions recruitment retention at the university," he said.

There will also be a report on the increasing prices of the library's serial journals, which impact the library's ability to purchase other materials.

According to the report, costs have risen as much as 260 percent, and the library is trying to find ways of combating costs by eliminating some journal titles and resorting to electronic journals.

Peter Potter, editor-in-chief and associate director of University Press, is part of Penn State's Office of Digital Scholarly Publishing, a new venture between the University Libraries and University Press that will experiment with forms of digital publication.

"We are going to explore different options that electronic publishing makes possible," he said, adding that in the long run, it might reduce library costs. "We will be publishing in a more cost-efficient manner than some of the publishers use now."

Another report will focus on the progress of outreach in the past year.

Outreach is comprised of four units: continuing education and distance learning, cooperative extension, public broadcasting, and Office of Economic and Workforce Development.

Vice President of Outreach Craig D. Weidemann began reviewing and restructuring outreach where necessary to improve it for faculty members and the community.

"We are really focusing on outreach programs to meet the needs of people who utilize them," said Amy Neil, outreach communications and news manager.