The Illinois Board of Higher Education changed chairs at the start of the board meeting Tuesday.

James Kaplan replaced Steven Lesnik as chair. The change was unexpected, said interim President Lou Hencken.

“I do know Mr. Kaplan is a member of the same political party as the governor,” Hencken said, adding he did not know another reason for the switch.

He said the meeting was fairly uneventful after “bombshells from that.”

The board approved a sprinkler system for University Court apartments and turf for O’Brien Stadium without question, he said.

Sprinklers will be installed this summer and the next around all 10 apartment buildings for an estimated $1.2 million.

The installation will be paid for by bonds.

The other project will install artificial turf on the football field and the areas between the field and track for $750,000.

The project will be paid for through outside sources and by last month $600,000 had been raised, director of athletics Richard McDuffie said.

He said the amount is still the same this month, but the turf could also be funded through state grants.

The board’s approval was not surprising, McDuffie said.

“We were optimistic in the fact that it didn’t require student fees or appropriated dollars,” he said.

The final bid for a company installing the turf will be reviewed by the Board of Trustees April 14. Turf construction begins June 1.

The board also discussed faculty diversity in higher education.

The agenda item was in response to a 2001 report on a study of diversity.

The report, “Gateway to Success: Rethinking Access and Diversity for a New Century” focused on minority faculty, but also researched female and handicapped faculty, according to a report to the board.

Discussion centered on ways to recruit diverse faculty members to campuses, Hencken said.

Board members will have specific recommendations in August.

Eastern is comparable to other state institutions in hiring diverse faculty.

“Our statistics are just about the same as state averages,” he said. “As more and more minority students attend college, I think it’s more important to hire minority faculty.”

About 11 percent of Eastern’s tenured and tunure-track faculty are minority members, but the rate of employing minority groups and women has increased over the last decade, said Cynthia Nichols, director of the Office of Civil Rights and Diversity.

Legislation was also discussed.

Discussion focused on a bill to change the “makeup of the state university retirement system.”

Hencken said that would lead to change of membership on the board.

A bill on tuition income was also a top issue.

House Bill 1263 would require public universities to deposit tuition income in the state treasury instead of holding revenues locally.