LANE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
BOARD OF EDUCATION MINUTES
December 10, 2014
1. Attendance
Board members present: Bob Ackerman, Pat Albright, Gary LeClair, Matt Keating, Tony McCown, and Rosie Pryor. Sharon Stiles participated by video conference. Also present were: President Mary Spilde; Vice President Brian Kelly, Interim Vice President Dawn DeWolf; Lane Community College Education Association President Jim Salt; and Lane Community College Employees Federation President Bob Baldwin.
A. Chair Albright called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m.
B. President's Report
Welcome everyone. It's finals week, and I just want to say how proud I am of everyone for all their hard work this term, especially our students who work so hard to achieve their educational goals.
In particular, I'd like to congratulate Wesley Bryant who is studying at Lane to get his paramedic license. As just about the whole world knows, Wesley won a $20,000 scholarship from Dr. Pepper in a competition that included a half-time football toss at last week's Arizona-Oregon Pac 12 championship game. Applicants had to post a video about themselves online at drpeppertuition.com, and you can see Wesley's story there. Another Oregon student, Sarah Roundtree of the UO, won a $100,000 scholarship in the same competition.
Before we get to college business, I want to express my sadness, and my sympathy for the friends and colleagues of a few members of our Lane family who have passed away:
Barbara Hasbrouck passed away at age 85, surrounded by her three daughters. Barbara worked at Lane from 1970 to 1992 as a much loved and admired administrative assistant for the English Department, now known as Language, Literature and Communication.
Richard Archambault, long-time volunteer supporter of Lane's Longhouse and a much-loved colleague, passed away after long term health issues. Richard was especially instrumental in securing and processing the beautiful logs and timber used in the construction of the longhouse. He also was the key photographer for the Native American Student Association Longhouse, and the opening of our Robert Maxwell Student Veteran Center. He was humble, always focused on others, and warmed everyone with his distinctive chuckle and good humor. His contributions are immeasurable. His passion and commitment for getting the job done was always present. Richard also was a veteran. We have set up an account in his memory in the Foundation, called the Richard Archambault Student Assistance Fund. This fund will assist Native American students in need at Lane. We will let you know when memorial plans are finalized.
John Cooney, longtime volunteer at KLCC and producer of the show, "Natural World," passed away from lung cancer. He was at home surrounded by family. A memorial service is being planned. John was been a vital part of KLCC since 1979. The "Natural World" began in 1999 but he also created and was first host of "Straight Street" which remains one of KLCC's top music shows. He also created a long-running weekend program called "This Sunday Morning."
Ron Mitchell, former chair of Social Science, passed away November 21. Ron started teaching social science at Lane in 1966, and then taught psychology starting in 1976. He coordinated the Cooperative Work Experience program, and chaired the Social Science department from 1988 until his retirement in 1995.
Marshall Sauceda, Board of Education member from 1996 to 1997 in the zone 5 position, passed away December 4. Marshall had a lasting and positive influence on the college. He was a mentor of students and a leader for communities of color. He directed the UO multicultural office, and in 1997 he received a Martin Luther King, Jr. Award. He was also known to many as a huge Duck fan.
We will miss each and everyone one of these colleagues and are the richer for having had them in our lives.
I applaud the Board of Education for going the extra mile this past month on behalf of the college and its students, from the board's weekend retreat last month and your focus on student success, to the series of Community Conversations to help inform our strategic planning. I'd like to mention Donna Zmolek, Elizabeth Andrade, and Brett Rowlett for their extra support to the board and administration for helping make this possible.
I'm also grateful to the faculty and staff who have participated in our robust discussions in the Global Conversations series. We've talked about Trends in Community Colleges, the Future of Public Higher Education, and Student Success, Progression and Completion. Turnout has been across all groups and disciplines, which is very encouraging.
As most of you know by now, the Governor's Recommended Budget was released last week and included a recommendation of $500 million for the Community College Support Fund. The amount is $19 million less than the HECC recommendation. Additionally, the budget did not include any funding for deferred maintenance projects. The largest investment in the budget was made in K-12, of which $400 million is earmarked for early learning and an initiative to make sure 90% of all third grade students can read at that level in five years. The governor also proposed a 26% increase in funding for the Oregon Opportunity Grant program. The increase in funding will support a redesign of the program to align eligibility with federal Pell Grants, prioritize making awards to students with the highest needs, eliminate first-come first-served awarding, and guarantee second-year awards to first year students who meet specified academic benchmarks. Also in the GRB is $31 million general fund for a workforce fund; a $25 million community leverage fund; and $1.6 million for an innovation center that is to be housed in HECC. There is also $15 million for CTE in the Department of Education budget. I'm going to pass out what I received at the OEIB meeting yesterday when the Governor presented his budget to the board which lays out his investments. I would say that it was generally well received. People were complimentary about making investments in the things they believed mattered. I, however, pointed out that although I cannot fault any of the investments as an OEIB member, as a college president I know that there is no way this will work. $500 million is the allotment community colleges received in 2007, and we know that expenses have gone up. We may as well get real about 404020. It is moving from an aspirational goal to an unattainable dream.
In addition, the Governor and HECC both continue to show interest in outcomes based funding, despite research that shows this type of distribution formula has little or no impact on student learning outcomes. I wrote to the Governor about this, and Chair Albright wrote to the HECC to make our concerns clear.
In a meeting on Monday, the co-chairs indicated they were not that excited about performance based funding, so if we organize we can make a difference. A couple of the community college presidents support it, but I will be lobbying from the perspective that we should not replace a faulty system with another broken system.
One piece of good news is that the co-chairs will be trying to develop their budget by January 12. We've heard that they are going to try to pencil us in as $550 million, not $500. It would be great if they could get their budget out earlier, because then we can use that as the basis for our projections.
I'd like to thank Brett Rowlett and Pat Albright for joining me yesterday to talk with some of our legislative delegation about the budget picture.
As you may have seen recently in the news, both the cities of Eugene and Springfield are in the process of updating their urban growth boundaries. Springfield is exploring the possibility of expanding their UGB to cover the Seavey Loop area between LCC and Mt. Pisgah as well as another proposal that would cross Interstate 5 and bring parts of Goshen into Springfield. And at a work session earlier this week, Eugene city staff reported their recommendations to the Eugene City Council, which includes extending Eugene's UGB over the hill into the LCC basin area. Both cities' actions have the potential to impact the college, so we are following them closely and will provide you with updates as things move forward. The entire process is expected to take about 1.5 years.
Beginning this week, the college is partnering with Cover Oregon to help more local residents sign up for health insurance. Cover Oregon will be using the Downtown Campus for weekly enrollment open houses. The first open house was held earlier today.
Hopefully no one will need to use their insurance due to Ebola. We are monitoring this issue and are aligned with the Lane County Ebola Screening and Transport Plan, in the event of any local occurrence. This is a coordinated plan to ensure the safety and care of any potential patients, responders, residents and visitors and is itself in alignment with the State Health Department, Centers for Disease Control, and World Health Organization protocols. Our Health Clinic is prepared to do any screening and our Public Safety and Emergency Planning teams are keeping informed. Ebola was a big topic at the AACC conference in Washington, D.C. It was clear that Lane is doing everything that was recommended there.
Our downward enrollment trend continues with winter term registrations down 26.4% compared to the same point a year ago.
I am pleased to announce that the Coeta and Donald Barker Foundation funded our grant request for a veteran-specific orientation and veteran-specific student resource handbook. A big thank you to Sharon Hainley for all the work she did in putting together our successful application.
Congratulations to our fall term Faculty Recognition Award winners, Steve Candee in Social Science, and Patti Jackson in ABSE. They are each extremely deserving of the award, and it was a privilege for me to be there for their surprise presentations.
Last week our Titan Toastmasters club held its charter celebration meeting. It's a great team, and I was pleased to attend the meeting. Thanks to Jim Lindly for getting this chapter going, and to Thomas Price for serving as club president.
I would like to thank Jim Garcia, Greg Evans and our students for bringing Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Sonia Nazario to Lane to talk about immigration and her book, "Enrique's Journey," and to Lane's Puertas Abiertas Leadership Academy, MEChA de LCC students, and ASLCC for their sponsorship. It was a pleasure to introduce her and to hear her presentation. Sonia's book describes the harrowing journey of a boy who traveled from Honduras to the United States, largely riding atop freight trains through bandit territory, to reunite with his mother after 11 years apart.
Let me give you a sneak preview of MLK Day. Lane will have actress and activist Holly Robinson-Peete as our guest speaker, thanks to the work of Greg Evans. You may know Holly from her roles as Judy Hoffs on "21 Jump Street," Vanessa Russell on "Hangin' with Mr. Cooper," or as Dr. Malena Ellis on "For Your Love." She is a graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and speaks four languages. She wrote the children's book, "My Brother Charlie," which won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work in 2011. Our MLK event will be in the Center for Meeting and Learning. Mark your calendars now for January 19.
It's been a busy month. I just returned from the League Executive Leadership Institute in Phoenix. Before that was the AACC Fall meeting in DC where I attended a meeting regarding the student loan default rate, and while back east, I also attended the TIAA CREF meeting in New York.
And now it's time for the winter holidays. The college will be closed to the public from Dec. 22 to 28 and again on New Year's Day. I wish everyone a safe and happy holiday and a chance to recharge before we meet back here in 2015.
1) Personnel
The college's current personnel appointments were presented.
C. Board Agenda Review/Changes
No changes were made to the agenda.
D. Statements from Audience
Dennis Gilbert, Physics instructor, addressed the board regarding policy BP 325, College Governance System, and course maximums.
Beth Landy, Counseling faculty, commented on the proposed plan to combine Workforce, Cooperative Education, and Career and Employment Services, stating that there are many important aspects to consider. Pursuing career and technical education and employment should be part of the plan but not the entire focus. Appropriate staffing also needs to be considered.
Kate Sullivan, Writing instructor, stated that course maximums for composition classes need to be reduced to 20 students to achieve desired outcomes.
Gail Stephenson, Instructional Support Specialist and part-time Writing instructor, stated that overloading classes is a blatant affront to student success and the goals of the college.
Sue Williams, Writing instructor, spoke about concerns around increased class sizes. She read a statement from Siskana Naynaha, Writing instructor, regarding the same.
Drew Viles, Writing instructor, gave an analogy comparing the increased maximum in writing classes to apple picking.
Ken Zimmerman, Writing instructor, spoke about concerns around increased class sizes.
Carol Watt, Writing instructor, spoke about concerns around increased class sizes.
Robert Schumaker, ASLCC Chief of Staff, urged the board to support a warming center on campus.
Anthony Melanary, OSPIRG Officer, reported that OSPIRG has passed a resolution supporting the warming center.
Jace Smith, Public Safety Director, reported that Public Safety supports establishing a warming center on campus.
Justin Blakely, former student, expressed dissatisfaction with services received from Disability Resources.
2A. Consent Agenda
Ackerman moved, and seconded by Pryor, to approve the Consent Agenda consisting of:
• November 4, 2014 minutes
• Readings of Board Policies:
o Agenda Planning
o Board Committee Principles
o Board Job Description
Motion passed unanimously.
A conversation was held regarding the change in the consent agenda to include a first reading of board policies as was discussed at the Board of Education Retreat on November 15, 2014,.
Keating moved to reconsider placing the policy readings on the consent agenda. Ackerman seconded.
Motion failed 2 – 5. McCown, Stiles, Pryor, Albright, and LeClair dissented.
3. Discussion/Action Items
A. Auditor's Report
Greg Holmes, Chief Financial Officer, and Scott Mueller, auditor from Kenneth Kuhns & Co., answered questions and responded to comments regarding the audit report.
B. Board Retreat Follow Up
President Spilde shared a follow-up chart from the board retreat which was held November 15 and 16 at the Downtown Center. The chart includes work, timeline, and responsible administrator for each of the items discussed at the retreat.
One of the items discussed at the retreat was implementing a practice to limit the reports at the end of the board meetings to three minutes, as is done with statements from the audience. Board members clarified that they are interested in hearing the reports, and limiting each to three minutes would help ensure that meetings do not take longer than necessary.
Pryor moved that board adopt a practice that the meeting end wrap-up reports be limited to three minutes. LeClair seconded.
Motion passed 6 – 1. McCown dissented.
Another item which was discussed at the board retreat was implementing a new practice to list board policy reviews on the consent agenda item unless there is a suggested revision or a board member wants to spend time in the meeting discussing the policy. Keating expressed concern with this practice, but ultimately agreed that policies could be taken off the consent agenda and added as a discussion/action item if necessary.
C. Spotlight on Student Success: Student Success Definition and Board Policy and Student Success/Access
Maurice Hamington submitted the following definition of student success in response to a request made at the board retreat.
Student success is the journey through which our students develop, progress toward and achieve their goals. Lane supports student success by providing high quality and accessible learning experiences, structures and practices to support our students in reaching their goals.
Board members discussed revising the definition to make it more concrete. The challenge in providing a specific definition is that it would be difficult since there are so many programs, degrees, and avenues students take to achieve success. Certain board members also felt that defining success too narrowly would be similar to creating performance measures.
A suggestion was made to change "journey" to "educational process." LeClair moved to approve the definition with that change. Ackerman seconded.
Motion failed 2 – 5. McCown, Pryor, Stiles, Albright, and Keating dissented.
The definition as originally provided by Hamington was adopted.
Spilde reminded the board that they had talked about the possibility of adopting a board policy on student success, but the board was reluctant to do so until more work has been done, perhaps in a future work session.
D. Tuition Rate Adjustment
At the November meeting, the board voted to adopt the Higher Education Price Index (HEPI) for 2015-16 tuition rate inflationary adjustments, which would increase the tuition rate to $99.50 per credit hour for resident students and $243 per credit hour for non-resident students. The administration suggested maintaining the current rates for internationals students and non-credit students. The board requested the percentage rates of international and non-resident students.
LeClair moved to adjust the tuition rates as recommended. Stiles seconded.
Board members held a discussion regarding the budget and tuition for the upcoming year.
Keating moved to table the motion. Ackerman seconded.
Motion to table the previous motion passed 5 – 2. LeClair and Stiles dissented.
Tony McCown left the meeting at 9:00 p.m.
Several aspects of this topic were discussed, such as student debt, public disinvestment in education, Oregon community college tuition rates, and budget reductions. As an alternative to raising tuition, the board expressed interest in looking at reductions in expenses. The board requested that the administration bring back proposals for reductions to the January meeting.
E. Recommendations for One-Time Expenditures
In compliance with board policy BP 245, Ending Fund Balance, the administration proposed recommendations for one-time expenditures with the excess in the Ending Fund Balance. President Spilde explained the two recommendations; the first is $458,000 for initiatives to manage the student loan default rate. The second is $692,298 to reorganize the Cooperative Education Department to include Workforce Development and Career and Employment Services.
Keating moved to approve the one-time expenditures. LeClair seconded.
Motion passed unanimously.
A. Second Reading
1. Borrowing, BP 315
Pryor moved to approve the second reading of BP 315, Borrowing. LeClair seconded.
Motion passed unanimously.
Policy Number: BP 315
Category: GOVERNANCE AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTIONS
Policy Title: BORROWING
The board may authorize borrowing for the college, in compliance with state laws, by resolution stating the upper limit to be obligated at any one time. The president or designee may initiate emergency borrowing prior to board approval should a quorum of the board not be available to authorize borrowing.
ADOPTED: November 9, 1998
REVIEWED: May 12, 2004
REVIEWED: November 9, 2005
REVIEWED: November 5, 2008
REVIEWED: September 17, 2011
REVIEWED: December 14, 2014
2. Personnel, BP 545
Stiles moved to approve the second reading of BP 545, Personnel Services. LeClair seconded.
Motion passed unanimously.
Policy Number: BP 545
Category: HUMAN RESOURCES
Policy Title: PERSONNEL SERVICES
The president or designees shall be authorized to commit the college on such items as personnel transactions, voluntary and non-voluntary payroll deductions, and in those personnel matters requiring immediate resolution.
ADOPTED: November 9, 1998
REVIEWED: May 12, 2004
REVIEWED: December 14, 2005
REVIEWED: December 3, 2008
REVIEWED: November 16, 2011
REVIEWED: December 14, 2014
3. Board Duties and Responsibilities: Budget Making, BP 210
Pryor moved to approve BP 210, Budget Making. LeClair seconded.
Motion passed unanimously.
Policy Number: BP 210
Category: FINANCE AND BUDGET
Policy Title: BOARD DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: BUDGET MAKING
The board of education has the responsibility to:
1. Adopt the annual budget before July 1 of the budget year.
2. Act as the levying board in the budget process.
3. Assist in presenting the needs of the college to the public and assist in the adoption, through the formulated budget process, of a budget that will address these needs.
4. Appoint the seven members with whom they shall serve jointly as the budget committee.
5. Review student tuition rates annually.
ADOPTED: November 9, 1998
REVISED: December 10, 2003
REVIEWED: December 12, 2007
REVIEWED: October 13, 2010
REVIEWED: December 14, 2014
4. College Governance System, BP 325
The board held a discussion regarding this policy during the work session prior to the meeting. Those changes will be incorporated, and the policy will be brought back to the January meeting for a second reading.
5. Accountability/Reports
A. Facilities Update
An update on the status of bond and facility projects was presented.
Bob Ackerman left the meeting at 9:20 p.m.
6. Reports
LCCEF President Bob Baldwin congratulated the Graduate Teaching Fellows at the University of Oregon for achieving a fair and reasonable contract. There is an arbitration set for February regarding an inappropriate termination. And we have an unfair labor practice charge going against the college regarding conduct on investigations and investigatory files.
LCCEA President Jim Salt stated that he would try to adhere to the new three-minute time limit, but he felt that the board should hear from the representatives of the hundreds of faculty and classified staff on campus. Every year we are told the numbers are correct in the audit, but Salt has files that show key figures showing what was originally budgeted and the actuals. The Ending Fund Balance now has $10 million, but in the spring only $8 million was projected. Salt urged the board to let the administration and employee groups work together to balance the budget. The sky is not falling. Even with the Governor's proposal, we can expect a 7.5% increase, but hopefully we will get more than that. Enrollment numbers are now at a decrease of 26%, but that number should go down as we get into the term. Two arbitrations were held this fall, and four are left to be scheduled. He continues to encourage the college to work with the Association to resolve our issues. He applauded the chair's skepticism that the board can define success, attach numbers to it, and take that to Salem, but that's not how education works.
Interim Vice President Dawn DeWolf noted that the board will begin receiving the Academic and Student Affairs highlights with the board packet. She thanked the board for their approval of the Workforce one-time expenditure. Bringing those three units together will provide a continuum of service for our students.
Vice President Brian Kelly reported that the first seven applications for LaneStarter will be reviewed beginning tomorrow. He thanked everyone who made it possible to have Stiles join by video conference. A final thought on the audit - one of the greatest gifts as stewards of public funds is to be able to show transparency in the budget. Kelly thought it was a worthy investment of time to spend twenty minutes on the audit every year.
Board Reports
Stiles thanked everyone who made it possible for her to join the meeting by video conference. She noted that the board has a lot of work to tackle in the coming months.
Pryor thanked the faculty who came to speak before the board. She would welcome faculty to go back to the drawing board and find ideas of where the funds would come from if class sizes reverted to the maximum before the new contract was implemented.
LeClair stated that Salt's point was well taken – the sky is not falling. However, Lane has never seen a 26% decrease in enrollment. We need to move fast and stay ahead of the ball. We need creative solutions from the union.
Keating thanked the faculty who came in and spoke. Keating attended the OCCA conference this fall. He recently saw "Constance and Sinestra" in the Theatre Department. It was a great show. The community conversations have been beneficial. We should do them every year. He congratulated Lida Herburger on her new position as Director of the Cottage Grove Center.
Albright appreciated the report and comments on the audit. He mentioned talking to legislators. It is a supportive delegation, but it will require the electorate to support education. Until that happens, the board is limited in its ability to maintain the college's mission without taking unfavorable action.
7. Date, Place, and Proposed Agenda Items for the Next Regular Meeting
Wednesday, January 14, 2015, Lane Community College Main Campus, Boardroom
8. The board meeting unanimously adjourned at 9:41 p.m.
______________________________ _____________________________
Mary Spilde, President/District Clerk Pat Albright, Board Chair
Prepared by:
Donna Zmolek, Assistant to the Board