LANE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
BOARD OF EDUCATION MINUTES
April 13, 2016

1. Attendance

Board members present: Philip Carrasco, Susie Johnston, Matt Keating, Gary LeClair, Tony McCown, Rosie Pryor, and Sharon Stiles. President Mary Spilde; Vice President Brian Kelly; Interim Vice President Dawn DeWolf; Lane Community College Education Association President Jim Salt; Lane Community College Employee Federation Vice President Alen Bahret; and Associated Students of Lane Community College President Ashley Jackson.

A. Chair Tony McCown called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m.

B. President’s Report

I’d like to offer condolences to Jim Salt on the passing of his mother.

I’d like to give my warm congratulations to Brian Kelly who has been awarded a prestigious Aspen Presidential Fellowship. The Aspen Institute is an educational and policy studies organization. Brian has proved himself on many levels in both instruction and college services. As a vice president he has led numerous efforts to transform the college. His commitment to our values and mission is strong. The fellowship will give him additional tools that will benefit Lane.

Four of our faculty won grants from Open Oregon for open educational resources projects. Congratulations to:

• Jennifer Von Ammon in English who will adopt the OER textbook “Writing for Success” for her WR115 classes;
• Tom Burton and Meredith Keene-Wilson in Media Arts who will revise and remix elements from multiple sources for Art 216;
• Alise Lamoreaux In ABSE/GED who will author a textbook for non-traditional students on transitioning to college;
• Teryk Morris of Advanced Technology who will partner with Peter Lauf of Lane ESD to develop an educational Digital Readout to help instructors create sharable projects for manufacturing and fabrication students.

JS Bird and Susan Lowdermilk recently presented on their sabbatical artist residencies to talk about “Projects and Perspectives, Painting and Printmaking: A Discussion of Art and Art–Making.” This was part of the Faculty Professional Development Academic Colloquium series.

Dr. Lisa Benson, Chef Vince Giglia, Mat Kline, our dean of Conference and Culinary Services, and our students won Best Savory Bite at Chef's Night Out! Their Smoked Shrimp with Cornmeal Spaetzel and Heirloom Cauliflower won the night. We also won an Honorable Mention for Presentation and Hospitality.

Brandon Beins, a Culinary Arts student, received the West Family Culinary Award presented by Food For Lane County. Brandon is completing his first year at LCC.

I am pleased that Dr. Jennifer Frei has accepted permanent appointment as our Executive Dean for the School of Arts and Sciences. Jennifer has served as Interim Executive Dean since September 2015 and was our Social Science dean before that.

Finally, hats off to our women’s basketball team and Coach Greg Sheley, who went on from earning the Southern Region title to capturing their 5^th Northwest Athletic Conference Championship last month.

For spring term 2016, as of Monday, the third week of classes, total registrations for all classes are down 12.0% compared to the same point last year.

EWEB has acknowledged that a human error on their part resulted in the water main break led to our main campus closure on March 24 and 25. They will reimburse us for expenses and correct some misinformation that circulated after the event.

As a result of the heavy rains in March, we have to remediate some of our buildings that got water in them.

You might have seen the blog post by Matt Reed in the April 12 edition of the online newsletter, Inside Higher Ed. He covered a panel presentation at AACC on the Umpqua Community College tragedy that I gave along with former UCC President Rita Cavin, and Anne Marie Levis who managed their crisis communications. We had a very engaged Q&A. Campus safety is, of course, a growing concern for everyone. We have Lane staff participating in trainings and meetings including one sponsored by the HECC and Oregon State Police last month in Salem. There is one coming up on May 12 at the University of Oregon to provide input to the governor’s taskforce on safety which had its first meeting a couple of weeks ago. There will be a national conference on campus safety in June in Portland and will give us information and help us develop further plans.

Our annual Powwow on April 2 was another great event honoring our elders and celebrating our Native American community. Thanks to James Florendo and our Native American Student Association for keeping this event vibrant for our local and regional communities.

Our Learning Commons team hosted dance instructor Bonnie Simoa and student Jessica Ealy who performed the rare Balinese dance called the “Legong Kutir” last week. It was a great way to enrich students’ experience and use our wonderful new space in the Center Building.

Our annual job fair will be April 21. We have 54 employers signed up. Last year about 700 job-seekers attended the event.

Shakespeare’s “Cymbeline” will be offered by our Student Production Association from April 22 through 30. The guest director is Bill Hulings, a seasoned performer with companies such as Seattle Repertory Theatre, The Guthrie, Shakespeare Santa Cruz, and others. You can get tickets at lanecc.edu/tickets.

Our semi-annual prescription drug take-back day will be Saturday, April 30, hosted by Public Safety. This year we’ll also accept food donations for local food banks. Hours are 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and drop off stations will be on main campus in front of the CML, and downtown in front of our Academic Building.

We will be closed Friday, May 6, for our spring conference. Our keynote speaker will be Julianne Malveaux, former president of a historically black college, and there will be workshops throughout the day.

On May 10, the Lane Library will host storyteller Rebecca Hom who will talk about Oregon Chinese pioneers Ing Hay and Lung On. They built the Kam Wah Chung Chinese center in the 1870s in John Day. Hom’s talk is part of a series sponsored by the Oregon Historical Society in partnership with Oregon libraries. The talk will be at 2 .m. in the Haugland Commons in the Center Building.

Food Scene Eugene will be held on main campus on May 13 and 14. The event will offer guests a culinary adventure focusing on how food and drink intersect with art, innovation and technology. Our mission is to connect the community to the local food and drink scene, Lane's future Culinary & Hospitality industry professionals, and educate them on innovative, creative, and new technology all related to food. Tickets are online and a link will be on our home page.

There are a few items regarding downtown development I’d like to share:

1.) There is a proposal to redevelop the property at 844 Olive, the former location of the Rogue Ales. Eugene-based developer Granite Properties is proposing to add four stories and 35 housing units above the existing building. We’ve been in discussion with the city about this project because it involves the transfer of ownership of a small piece of publicly-owned property in the alley which backs up to the KLCC building. Additionally, an added four stories would block the transmitter and knock KLCC off the air, so we are taking steps to prepare any actions we may need to take while working with city staff to determine ways to minimize any fiscal impact to the station.

2.) The Eugene City Council is currently considering a list of downtown improvement projects. As you know, there is interest is possibly including our former downtown center site. Other projects include installing high speed fiber, an upgraded Farmers Market, and improved parks and open spaces. Each of the projects will have a work session scheduled before the council holds a public hearing on downtown improvements on May 23. The council is also discussing how to fund any projects that move forward; some support amending the current Downtown Urban Renewal Plan while others support asking voters to raise taxes to purchase general obligation bonds. As I mentioned last month, we have been in discussion with community groups who are interested in working with us to create a multi-tenant hub that would serve as an incubator to support the arts and tech communities. We will have information to present to the board on this next month. The city council currently has a work session scheduled for our project on Wednesday, May 18 at noon.

We were happy to hear last week that we were one of two school districts selected in Lane County to receive funding from Business Oregon for seismic upgrades. We will receive $686,000 toward upgrades in Building 18. Congratulations to Jennifer Hayward and staff for all of their work to get that money.

Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) introduced new legislation on March 15 that would authorize the America’s College Promise initiative. The bill, known as In the Red Act of 2016, includes College Promise language from her earlier bill as well as new provisions that would allow the refinancing of student loans and would amend the tax code to offset the projected costs associated with the legislation.

There’s been a lot of discussion going on about the Oregon Promise, and I have been invited to a national symposium at the beginning of June as one of fifteen community college folks as well as business people, second lady Jill Biden, and Martha Kanter, to talk about ways to finance the Oregon Promise in states. They are looking at a number of ways that would help us in Oregon have a more competitive promise to our students.

I would like to welcome Michael Jones as the new Oregon Student Association campus organizer. Michael understands community colleges well and was a student at Linn Benton. He arrived during the middle of a voter registration drive and student government elections, so needless to say he’s had to hit the ground running. Welcome, Michael!

I will close with a flashback. It was one year ago on April 14 that a tornado touched down in our parking lot west of building 19 and overturned two cars, without any injuries. We were so fortunate and you just never know what’s going to happen next.

1) Personnel

The college’s current personnel appointments were presented.

C. Board Agenda Review/Changes

Stiles moved to move discussion Item 3-D, Tuition, to item 3-A. LeClair seconded.

Motion passed unanimously.

D. Statements from Audience

Steve Webb, Diesel Instructor, invited the board to Diesel Days, an open house event for our Diesel Technology program which will be held here at Lane on May 13 and 14. Several businesses in Lane County will be present and displaying equipment.

Justin Blakely, former student, expressed dissatisfaction with services he received as a student from the Center for Accessible Resources.

Mat Kline, Dean of Conference and Culinary Services, stated that the Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management programs are doing more to engage the student population. He invited the board to the Food Scene Eugene event on May 13 and 14.

Melanie Frei, Administrative Specialist in Conference and Culinary Services, gave details about the Food Scene Eugene event to be held here at Lane on May 13 and 14.

Eben Yemoh, student, urged the board not to raise tuition.

Mariana Paredones, Oregon Student Association Coalition co-chair and Higher Education Coordinating Commission student appointee, urged the board not to raise tuition.

Maria Dresser, student, ASLCC vice president, urged the board not to raise tuition.

Shawn Goddard, ASLCC Multicultural Program Coordinator, spoke in favor of a tuition increase.

2A. Consent Agenda

Pryor moved, and seconded by LeClair, to approve the Consent Agenda consisting of:

• Approval of the March 9, 2016, Minutes
• Policy Review

1. Gambling, BP 625

2. Security of Personal Information, BP 645

• Bond Refinance, Resolution No. 604

Motion passed unanimously.

3. Discussion/Action Items

A. Tuition

Vice President Kelly presented budget projections which showed a $2.1 million deficit for 2016-17. The proposed balanced budget includes adjustments such as a tuition increase of $3 to correspond to the Higher Education Price Index as approved by the board in November 2015, a bad debt adjustment, savings in materials and services, savings as a result of the early separation incentive, and using an additional 2% of the ending fund balance.

Pryor opposed a tuition increase. Enrollment has declined for four years, and raising tuition will make it more challenging for low income students to take advantage of the benefits Lane has to better their lives through education.

Pryor moved that this proposal be revised to instead of a tuition adjustment and the attendant additional revenue that could be expected from it, that that dollar amount be derived from our Ending Fund Balance. LeClair seconded.

LeClair stated that enrollment has continued to decline, but negotiations are taking place that will most likely result in a step and salary increase and more health care costs. He challenged the unions to present numbers of any organization who has as good of health care and at the same employee costs as Lane. As a business man, he did not feel it made sense to increase salaries and health care contributions.

Keating reminded the board that he and Bob Ackerman were the only two board members who voted against a tuition increase last year. He also voted against the review of BP 725, Tuition, because it ties the board’s hands into increasing tuition every year. He applauded creative thinking and taking the amount needed from the ending fund balance although to do so would be in violation of BP 725.

Johnston appreciated that students are not able to pay the high cost of tuition. She recalled her time as a student, and financial reasons were part of the consideration of not continuing to pursue an education after graduating from Lane. She hoped to find a way to comply with board policy and support the students.

McCown noted that every year the compromised budget has included a tuition increase. This is the year the board is leaning against it and counting on Initiative Petition 28, and this may be a good year to go in this direction. The current proposal reduces the ending fund balance from 10% to 8%, and adding the additional amount would drop it to approximately 7%, not a dramatic decrease. For tuition to be $100 and beyond is way too much. This has become an affordability issue. The board policy BP 725 can be reviewed to consider a change in the language.

Spilde informed the board that the language in the board policy was intentional by the board at that time. Prior to establishing the policy, there was a decade of no tuition increases that really eroded our base. As ballot measures 5, 47, and 50 came into play, tuition was the only thing that the board had control over. In some respects it was to provide some cover for the board to do an inflationary increase every year because the idea of the $11 increase in 2002 and the $14 increase in 2003 really impacted our enrollment. Spilde is a student advocate and very well aware of hunger, homelessness and food insecurity concerns. It’s a national conversation in this country which has led to the idea of America’s Promise. Sara Goldrick-Rab at the University of Wisconsin Madison has done amazing research on this topic. She’s been the one from a policy and research standpoint who has been really focused on trying to make America’s Promise first dollar in real for community college students. Spilde is working on the national level to make that a reality. She understood LeClair’s concerns about bargaining and that can be considered at the bargaining table, but it was our faculty and staff stepping up during the recession and the 43% enrollment increase and making lots of concessions during that time that helped us deal with that increase, and as we come out of that we are reducing staff. We are trying to keep all of our regular contracted staff, but we have been reducing part-time staff, which has an impact on all of the contracted staff because there’s more to do with less bodies to do it. We’re not quite there yet, but you can see that increase in employee FTE and you can see us coming down out of that as our enrollment has gone down. With that context, nobody in this room wants to raise tuition, but taking it out of the ending fund balance is taking a big bet. If IP 28 passes, then maybe it’s not such a big bet because there will be more money in the state budget. Spilde has heard that the opponents of IP 28 will be spending anywhere from $35 to 53 million on this campaign. If it doesn’t pass, there is $4 million in this budget that we won’t have any more. There is already got a gap of $4 million--add to that a PERS increase and other costs. It is predicted that if IP 28 doesn’t pass, the state budget is going to be $1 billion short for the next biennium. The tuition would be at the base, it wouldn’t be at a raised base. She asked the board to think about the two-year impact of this decision. Last year, two programs were eliminated that were worth about $600,000. The deficit will be over $4 million for the year 2017 if IP 28 doesn’t pass. She asked the board to think about the context in which they want the new president to work.

LeClair stated that we need to explore the reasons for increasing personnel costs when we are serving fewer people.

Kelly stated that, as stewards of public funds, we play long games sometimes. Two of the long games we play are reflected in the board policy on the inflationary rate and the ending fund balance policy. Hearing of a potential deviation from both of those, he wanted to address those. The assumption is that a $3 increase will affect enrollment. What we know, factually, is that in 2002 when we raised tuition $11 and in 2003 when we raised tuition $14, enrollment tanked. Therefore, we came up with an idea to mitigate that from ever happening again in the future, and that’s board policy 725 with a HEPI increase that would spread this out over years so this wouldn’t happen again. That’s why this was established, because we have facts. We have an evidenced-based decision that if we raise tuition twice like that, it will really affect enrollment. So there is a strong argument to say that if we real want to support enrollment, we would use the HEPI based on facts. He looked at one-time sources being used in this budget proposal. We won’t have the financial stabilization reserve next year. That’s $2.3 million that won’t be there. If the HEPI adjustment is not made, that’s another $700,000 that won’t be there. When the board established the policy on the ending fund balance, a conversation was had about three months of operating costs, which is essentially 25%. The board also thought that 15% was a good comfortable number. Then it settled on 10%. And on 10%, that was a year with a $100 million budget. So 10% was about $10 million, and that was our savings account. Our budget now is $80 million. We are a smaller college. We have less staff, we have less students. So now we have 10% of 80 million, which is about $8 million. In order to look into the future and say IP 28 could happen, the budget and finance subcommittee was willing to put in some of that money in the budget so as to not cut programs. So no programs or services are eliminated in this budget; no one loses their job. If IP 28 isn’t there, we don’t have that money, we don’t have the financial stabilization reserve, and we don’t have any tuition revenue. There are a lot of one-time pieces in here that are moving in the wrong direction. Borrowing money is hard for public institutions. Unemployment is the lowest it has been in Lane County in 40 years. That is directly affecting the enrollment of Lane Community College. We can only borrow money against our property tax base. That’s about $17 million. We don’t get to borrow against all of that. There is a formula and percentage of what we can borrow from that. We are put into a position where if that ending fund balance isn’t there, and we know PERS is coming up, and we don’t know what enrollment looks like, and we hit that bank account, it becomes very difficult for us to borrow money, and there is a limit to that money which is somewhere south of half of that property tax. Those are factors he asked the board to consider when thinking about the ending fund balance board policy and the HEPI.

Pryor felt that the need to borrow money was not likely to happen. She stated that the budget was balanced last year by eliminating two programs, but that is the first time that has happened in years. She clarified that the ending fund balance would drop to 6.6%, which is better than it has been in a lot of the years that she has been on this board.

Spilde stated that Lane did have to borrow money to make payroll in 2005-06. And while we may not have cut programs, we have cut services and part-time staff, which impacts students and all of the employees.

Legal counsel Meg Kieran reminded the board that the motion in front of the board is in violation of its own policy. That doesn’t mean it can’t happen, but the board needs to consider the impact of doing so.

Motion passed unanimously.

A clarification was made on the motion that the amount necessary to cover the amount from expected revenue was $720,000.

B. Spotlight on Student Success: High School Connections

Deron Fort, Director of High School Connections, provided an overview of the High School Connections programs.

The College Now program offers free college level courses in Lane County high schools for students who meet the academic requirements. These classes include both academic transfer and career/technical courses. Over the past five years, 4,991 students have taken 38,162 college credits through their high schools. This has saved approximately $3.8 million in tuition for these students and their parents. College Now represents 9% of Lane’s FTE. Numbers have consistently grown since 2011, and the 2015-16 are on track to surpass the prior year.

The Regional Technical and Early College (RTEC) program offers career/technical courses not available at the local high schools. Lane works with school districts to sponsor students to take classes at Lane with Lane instructors and students. The RTEC program serves 175-250 students per year. Approximately 70% of these students continue at Lane after graduation.

Other programs and services available through High School Connections includes the GED program, Career Pathways, Early College and Career Options, and a gateway to college and careers course which prepares students to be comfortable and successful at Lane.

High School Connections sponsors a Hands-On Career Day, a half-day event bringing over 300 high schools students on campus for learning sessions in career technical programs. Lane also participates in the Eugene Coder Dojo program, a nationally connected and locally developed open-source computer coding project designed for elementary, middle, and high school students to receive code training in a college environment. The Dojo is a collaboration between the City of Eugene, Lane Community College, Eugene 4J School District, local computer industries and organizations, and the University of Oregon.

Fort introduced three students who have participated in High School Connections programs.

Heidi Detels is the recipient of a 4J Advanced Career Technical scholarship. She began taking College Now as a sophomore and had 40 college credits when she came to Lane. Her sponsorship pays for books and supplies at Lane. High School Connections works closely with students to ensure their success, and it has been helpful to come in as a freshman knowing where to go for services.

Paige Nelson has been involved with High School Connections since her sophomore year. She started taking Lane classes during the summer of her sophomore year, and she is now graduating from Thurston High School with her high school diploma and her associate’s degree at the same time. She is grateful for the head start and leap that High School Connections and Lane have given her.

Amber Schmitt graduated from Early College and Career Options. The advisors and staff at Lane have given her the confidence to attend Lane and step out of her comfort zone. She is grateful for the opportunities High School Connections has given her.

Spilde clarified that Lane does not charge tuition for the College Now courses, and we cover the costs of the coordination of the program. Lane receives FTE reimbursement from the state, but that does not cover all of the expenses.

The board took a ten-minute break at 8:15 pm.

Phil Carrasco left the meeting.

C. Bond Planning

Anne Marie Levis from Funk-Levis and Associates, provided a summary of the bond polling. A mix of 400 younger and older likely voters in Lane’s district were surveyed from March 10 – 13, 2016. The results show that a majority of people feel that Lane is doing a good job and nearly half believe the facilities at Lane are in either excellent or good shape. Those surveyed were asked if they would support a bond at either $40, $60, or $80 million. As expected, results were higher for a $40 million bond. Each project proposed polled above 60% with safety, improved classroom space, and efficient use of taxpayer dollars polling highest. At the end of the survey when likely voters were asked again about the overall bond results improved, indicating that with additional information voters can be persuaded to support a bond. That would take a vibrant campaign leading up to the bond requiring perhaps $150,000 to support the effort.

Levis’ observations: Lane should look at the $40-$60 million range. The political landscape needs to be considered. Many Lane County voters are concentrating on Initiative Petition 28; there is also a presidential election this year.

Spilde noted that the board would not need to decide right away. A lot of energy in the community will be focused on IP 28, both for and against. Based on the results of the survey, Lane needs to be clear about what was done with the last bond and what will be done with a new bond. It may be better to look at next May’s election.

D. Presidential Search

1. Selection of Search Consultant

McCown reported that three organizations responded to the RFP for a presidential search consultant. Based on the qualifications, experience with community colleges, commitment to diversity, experience in attracting a national pool of applicants, experiences in the Northwest and Oregon, timeline, and cost, we are recommending Gold Hill Associates.

Keating moved to approve the selection of Gold Hill as the presidential search consultant firm. Stiles seconded.

Motion passed unanimously.

2. Appointment of Presidential Search Advisory Committee Members

Chair McCown presented the names of the proposed Presidential Search Advisory Committee members as follows:

Presidential Search Advisory Committee	Committee Member
LCC Board of Education Chair	Tony McCown
LCC Board of Education Vice Chair	Sharon Stiles
LCC Board of Education Member	Rosie Pryor
LCCEA Union Designate	Jim Salt
Faculty Member at Large	Wendy Simmons
Faculty Member at Large	Kristina Holton
LCCEF Union Designate	Bob Baldwin
Classified Member at Large	Elizabeth Andrade
Classified Member at Large	Carrie Lawson
LCC Management Designate	Susan Carkin
LCC Management at Large	Russ Pierson
LCC Management at Large	Alyse Stone
Executive Team Member	Jennifer Frei
ASLCC Student Body Designate	Anastasia Vail
Student Representative at Large	Jordan Banks
Student Representative at Large	Mariana Paredones
K-12 Representative	Colt Gill
LCC Foundation Designate	Mike Stickel
University of Oregon Designate	Roger Thompson
Eugene Chamber of Commerce Designate	Dave Hauser
Springfield Chamber of Commerce Designate	Mike Eyster
City of Eugene Designate	Jon Ruiz
City of Springfield Designate	Gino Grimaldi
City of Florence Designate	Erin Reynolds
City of Cottage Grove Designate	Alan Bass
Lane County Designate	Greg Rikhoff
LCC Zone 1 Representative	Rick Yecny
LCC Zone 2 Representative	Sue Prichard
LCC Zone 3 Representative	Nancy Golden
LCC Zone 4 Representative	Jessica Alvarado
LCC Zone 5 Representative	Joel Lavin
LCC At Large Representative	George Russell
LCC At Large Representative	Denise Callahan

Keating moved to approve the presidential search advisory committee members. Johnston seconded.

Motion passed unanimously

4. Accountability/Reports

A. Facilities Update

An update on the status of bond and facility projects was presented.

5. Reports

ASLCC President Ashley Jackson reported that Ashley is now dual enrolled at the University of Oregon. The transition was not smooth. The experiences Ashley had here at Lane as a student and in student government gave Ashley an edge. The commitment to Title IX at UO is strong. Ashley would like to see the same commitment at Lane. There are stereotypes in centers claiming to honor Title IX which are disadvantaging students. We need to seriously look at the stereotypes we are perpetuating. Ashley has been spending a lot of time in the Music Department. There, students embrace their differences for the love of music and entertainment and it enriches their lives. Ashley thanked the board for their courageous conversation on tuition. That sends a message that the board deeply cares about the students attending Lane.

LCCEF Vice President Alen Bahret attended the AFT Oregon convention last week in Portland. There were a lot of politics and motivation around Initiative Petition 28. Ancillary workers fighting for a contract at PeaceHealth rose in support of them. The nurses are part of AFT, as well as now the hospitalists who are now accreting into that same bargaining unit so a large majority of the PeaceHealth employees will be under the AFT umbrella soon. The union is in contract negotiations and are currently focusing on cleaning up the language in the contract. There is an interesting partnership happening with Public Safety and the Lane County Sherriff’s office in support of public safety. The reserve academy has been housed at Lane for 10 years. It promotes a good connection with Social Science, and the reserves come out of the academy with 13 credits. All of Lane’s Public Safety officers – contracted and hourly – have completed the reserve academy. Public Safety is looking into the use of Tasers. Officers have spent the last three years researching those devices.

LCCEA President Jim Salt reported that he and Adrienne Mitchell recently gave a presentation at a NAHE conference on Lane’s Faculty Professional Development model. Our model is the envy of the country. He encouraged everyone to refer to IP28 as Better Oregon and asked for signature cards to be returned. 50,000 signatures have been gathered so far. He appreciated everyone’s support. A report will be provided containing details on a gross violation of faculty rights by a manager. Regarding the HEPI issue, Salt strongly recommended that people pull back from the politics of the issue and think in terms of the policy and how we want to do business and to recognize that inflation is a common part of a capitalist system. A piece meal approach is a mistake. Bargaining has begun. We had anticipated a quick process, but instead the college came in with the most aggressive proposal we have seen. It is not good for the board, the union, the college or the community. He asked that the approach be reconsidered. On a personal note, he appreciated everyone’s good wishes.

Interim Vice President Dawn DeWolf reported that another campus discussion on enrollment was held at Lane and generated many good ideas to address the enrollment challenges. The first phase of meeting with focus groups on aligning core themes with strategic directions is finished. There will be an all campus follow up meeting for refinement on April 27. Those will be brought to the board in June. DeWolf attended the Native American Powwow. It was a terrific event with lots of families and involvement from the community. She attended the AACC meeting and the annual awards breakfast of the American Association for Women in Community Colleges.

Vice President Brian Kelly thanked the Budget and Finance subcommittee for their work this winter and spring. He recognized Jennifer Hayward for driving to Salem on New Year’s Eve; her efforts paid off in obtaining funding for redesigning Building 18 which will include a seismic upgrade. He distributed information on a campus and community conversation kit to roll out with the strategic plan. He attended the Staton Luncheon on Monday. The Staton family has given over $2 million to Lane in scholarship funding. It was a wonderful event and reminded Kelly why he does the work here at Lane.

Board Reports

Pryor thanked her colleagues for being willing to govern in real time, she has confidence in the ability of the Budget and Finance team to take the policy choices the board makes and make stellar outcomes from them. She congratulated the team mentioned by Spilde who are pursuing Open Education Resources. Students cannot afford a $500 textbook, especially among multiple textbooks. She would love to see the faculty council take a leadership position in exploring OER at Lane. We have to be working on all fronts to reduce the cost of education to America’s young people.

LeClair congratulated Jennifer Frei on her new position and Brian Kelly for his acceptance into the Aspen Presidential Fellowship. He expressed interest in the Taser classes as tactical training is one of his hobbies. Taser is nice for short range, but ineffective beyond seven yards. Since we have trained people, he called upon the board to have a discussion about arming our security officers.

Johnston congratulated Frei and Kelly. She attended the OCCA meeting at PCC’s Sylvania campus in March. She thanked Will Fleming for coordinating the League for Innovation Literature competition at Lane and congratulated Lane’s student Kaitlyn Piper for her one act play in the competition.

Keating encouraged everyone to attend the Student Production Association’s production of Cymbeline playing this April. He gave his condolences to Dr. Salt. He congratulated Jennifer Frei on her new position and Brian Kelly for his acceptance into the Aspen Presidential Fellowship. He reminded everyone that the way to reduce the cost of college is to vote in this May election. There are 11 days to the voter registration deadline.

Stiles thanked High School Connections for their presentation. She congratulated Kelly and Frei. She thanked Facilities for the upgrade on card readers and lockdown capability at the Florence Center. She thanked Todd Smith for the tour of the CLASS Building and Spilde for joining the group for lunch at the Renaissance Room.

McCown reported that he attended the Native American Powwow, one of his favorite events at Lane. He encouraged all to attend next year. He welcomed Michael Jones. He noted that the tuition policy is an important one, but when the tuition rates starts out too high and the inflationary rate is added, it is too much.

6. Date, Place, and Proposed Agenda Items for the Next Regular Meeting

Wednesday, May 11, Boardroom, Building 3, Lane Community College

7. The board meeting unanimously adjourned at 9:29 p.m.

______________________________

Mary Spilde, President/District Clerk

_____________________________

Tony McCown, Board Chair

Prepared by: Donna Zmolek, Executive Assistant to the President/Board