LANE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
BOARD OF EDUCATION MINUTES
March 9, 2016

1. Attendance

Board members present: Philip Carrasco, Susie Johnston, Matt Keating, Gary LeClair, Tony McCown, Rosie Pryor, and Sharon Stiles. President Mary Spilde; Interim Vice President Dawn DeWolf; Lane Community College Education Association Vice President Adrienne Mitchell, 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

First things first. My grandbaby was born two weeks ago in Eugene. Her name is Sloane, which is Gaelic for warrior. It’s awesome, for those of you that haven’t had this experience yet. I’m looking forward to spending more time with her.

It was an honor to accept the Outstanding Intergovernmental Team Award on behalf of the college, at the Lane Council of Governments annual dinner on February 26. The award recognized our work to support Umpqua Community College after the shooting there in October. A special thanks to board member Matt Keating for nominating Lane for the award.

I am pleased to report that our accrediting agency, the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, has accepted our fall 2015 Year One Mission and Core Themes Report. The report was expanded to address recommendations 1 and 3 of the fall 2014 Year Seven Peer Evaluation Report. The commission determined that the recommendations and our seven year report are now substantially in compliance with criteria for accreditation. Within the last couple of weeks we submitted the ad hoc report which addressed the rest of the recommendations, only two of which need to get back into substantial compliance. I am confident that when we get the report back from the commission, probably in early summer, that we will be in full compliance on all of the recommendations.

Kudos to Oregon SBDC Network director Mark Gregory and his team. For the first time, OSBDCN has achieved full accreditation without conditions. This is a huge accomplishment.

Last week we had a site visit from the Office of Civil Rights. This was part of a regular cycle of visits to community colleges who receive Perkins funds primarily related to career and technical programs. Thanks to the many staff who escorted the OCR team and especially to Terrie Minner, who hosted the visitors, and to Todd Smith and Jennifer Hayward of Facilities. Some of the buildings are over 50 years old. Todd and his staff fixed things on the spot when possible. We will be reviewing recommendations to ensure we are within the purview of regulations.

Our workers compensation experience rating for the next premium has gone down .60. This means we have experienced 40 percent fewer safety and health claims during the past three years and it will make our premiums 40 percent lower, saving the college more than $100,000 dollars in premiums. More importantly, it shows how successful our employees and managers have been in ensuring a safe and healthy working and learning environment for Lane.

We are working on an opportunity to refinance our 2009 bond. Every so often, bond counsel reviews this to see if we can save money, and it looks like we can. While this would not affect Lane’s operating budget, it would save taxpayers close to $1 million for the life of the bond. As the fiscal agent, this is the right thing to do for taxpayers in our district and would keep tax dollars in the district.

Congratulations to Dr. Paul Ruscher for his appointment as our new Science Division Dean. Paul has been interim dean since summer, and has taught at Lane since 2012. He is an expert on meteorology, atmospheric sciences, geosciences, and water resource science.

Junction City School District has been nationally recognized by the College Board for creating opportunities for traditionally underrepresented students, including participating in Lane’s Puertas Abiertas program. Thanks to program coordinator Jim Garcia for working with the district to provide this important opportunity to Junction City students.

Kudos to the Lane Titans Women’s Basketball Team and Coach Greg Sheley. They clinched the Northwest Athletic Conference Southern Region Title last month and are competing in the NWAC championship. Last Saturday, Lane point guard Shelby Snook, in her final home game as a Titan, scored 17 first-half points and finished with 25 total, leading Lane to an 89-39 win over Everett in the first round of the Northwest Athletic Conference championship. The Titans now have a 29-1 season record and a spot in the elite eight for the fifth straight year. They play Centralia in Everett, Washington, tomorrow.

Congratulations to The Torch for winning Best of Show for two-year colleges at this year’s Associated Collegiate Press conference in Los Angeles. The Torch was up against numerous community colleges from throughout the western United States. Kudos also to faculty advisors Charlie Dietz and Dorothy Wearne for their quiet and consistent support for Lane students.

Some of you will remember Josh Canaday, former ASLCC president. He called to let me know that he began his master's program in public management at Sonoma State University last fall. I wrote a letter of recommendation for him to use to get into the program, so he wanted to let us know that he was in the program and doing well.

For winter term as of Monday, the start of week 10 of classes, total registrations are down 8.8%.

The HECC reported 16,502 students completed Oregon Promise applications by the March 1 deadline, and an additional 5,804 submitted incomplete applications. After further review we will hear the final of number of eligible students who will enroll at least half time.

I want to thank KLCC for bringing NPR Education Correspondent Claudio Sanchez to Eugene. He talked about the “3 P's of Education Reform: Politics, Policy & Pedagogy.” Claudio also lectured at the UO and Lane and taught a workshop for our KLCC reporters.

We had a fabulous presentation and a great turnout for using guided pathways as a design process, with Davis Jenkins of the Community College Research Center at Columbia University. He co-wrote “Redesigning America’s Community College.” Will have a follow up with Lane folks in spring term.

The Oregon Legislature wrapped up its one-month session last Thursday. It was a contentious five weeks with majority Democrats passing out major legislation and frustrated Republicans using parliamentary procedures to slow the process down. The minimum wage increase was the biggest policy bill of the session and something that will impact community colleges as the increase is implemented over the next six years. Unfortunately, the statewide capital construction ask for safety and security needs did not move forward. A combination of not enough time and too many questions led legislative leaders to postpone this issue. They plan to wait until the governor’s workgroup on campus safety releases recommendations later this year, and then they will consider a larger safety package during the next session. I will be sitting on the governor’s workgroup and we meet the end of March. A compromise bill to preserve fifth year programs for qualifying students passed in the final days of the session as well as a bill that will provide campuses with small amounts of funding for student success initiatives serving Oregon Promise and other students. OCCA has released an end-of-session report with more information, available on their website or from Brett.

Last month, Dan Findley stepped down as Director of the Office of Community Colleges and Workforce Development. He has been replaced by Patrick Crane, who should be a great fit for the position.

We attended the ACCT National Legislative Summit in Washington. I had the opportunity to participate on a panel with Andrea Henderson from OCCA and Vanessa Becker, chair of the Umpqua Community College board. We discussed safe campuses in the wake of last fall’s tragic event. We also met with Oregon’s Congressional delegation and discussed issues ranging from America’s Promise to the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act.

We have begun to have conversations about the future of the former downtown center property. As you may have read in the paper, the Eugene City Council asked city staff to consider including our building in a possible list of projects funded by an extension of the downtown urban renewal district. Two weeks ago we held a meeting with interested community members, city staff and members of the tech and arts communities to discuss their needs for space downtown and whether it makes sense to develop a shared space concept for the building.

On February 24 we hosted a training on holding conversations through deliberative dialog. This is an initiative of the Democracy Commitment funded by a grant through the Kettering Foundation. About 20 students, staff and faculty attended the training presented by Alberto Reyes-Olivas, executive director of the Congressman Ed Pastor Center for Politics and Public Policy at Arizona State University, and John Theis, director of the Center for Civic Engagement at Lone Star College. Susie and Matt also attended. This spring, students will host campus conversations using the skills learned at the workshop. Thanks to Karen Krumrey, Brett Rowlett and Christina Walsh for organizing the training.

Finals are next week, and then it’s spring break starting March 20. I’m sure every person in this room is looking forward to that.

1) Personnel

The college’s current personnel appointments were presented.

C. Board Agenda Review/Changes

Keating moved to move discussion item 4-E, Presidential Search, to item 4-B. Pryor seconded.

Motion passed unanimously.

D. Statements from Audience

Pat O’Connor, Dean of Advanced Technology, told the board about an event held in February – Manufacturing Day at Lane. The event was held in partnership with the Eugene Chamber of Commerce, Lane ESD, Lane Workforce Partnership, and local manufacturers who have stated a need for more qualified workers in the area. Over fifty local high school students attended this day-long event.

Stephen Caffey, Manufacturing Technology Instructor, spoke about the Manufacturing event held last month. Work is being done to build a stronger connection to high school manufacturing programs. In addition to Manufacturing Day, he is meeting this term with four groups of UO manufacturing students. At the Haas Technical Education Conference, Lane’s Manufacturing Technology program secured $15,000 in scholarships to help recent high school graduates attend our program at Lane.

Quentin Swader, Lane Manufacturing Technology student, expressed his appreciation for the program and the support he has received. Many high schools are no longer offering manufacturing technology programs.

Adrienne Mitchell, Academic Learning Skills (ALS) instructor and LCCEA Vice President, commented on the recent guided pathways workshop held at Lane. The implications of the guided pathways model need to be critically analyzed to understand the negative ramifications. By narrowing the focus, we lose some of the very coursework that contribute to a thinking populace and lose some of our most marginalized student populations. The ALS faculty dedicate unwavering dedication, and Mitchell asked the board to consider inviting ALS faculty to present a spotlight on student success at a future board meeting.

Jessica Alvarado, Counselor, addressed the challenges, barriers, and confusing processes that students have to navigate to be successful at Lane. Those challenges often become insurmountable. Alvarado offered to participate in finding sustainable and effective solutions to help our students be more successful.

Rolando Figueroa, community member, introduced himself to the board. As a potential appointee to the budget committee, he looks forward to working with the board on behalf of the students.

Madison and Charles, Lane Track and Field athletes, distributed information about the Track and Field meet schedule and championships and invited the board to attend events.

Aaron Fredrickson, student, opposed the advertising on campus and would like to have the students vote on whether or not they want to be exposed to advertisements.

Shawn Goddard, ASLCC Multicultural Coordinator and Diversity Council chair, noted that cultural competency trainings are a challenge for any institution to implement. The student clubs will be holding events in the spring that they are hoping can be included as part of the trainings.

2A. Consent Agenda

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

• Approval of the February 3, 2016, Minutes
• Policy Review

1. Advertising, BP 605
2. Conflict of Interest, BP 610
3. Monitoring President’s Performance, BP 540

Motion passed unanimously.

3. Discussion/Action Items

A. Spotlight on Student Success: Career Center and Pathways Program

Al King, Dean of Career and College Connections, presented information on the Career Center and Pathways Program, along with staff members Rosa Lopez, Career Pathways Coordinator, and Randa Law, Project Coordinator.

The recently formed Career and College Connections Division brought seasoned Lane Community College professionals together to better serve the needs of the LCC community as well as the larger community of Lane County and beyond.

Career and College Connections is an amalgamation of Workforce Development, Cooperative Education, student employment, career counseling staff, student recruitment and High School Connections/College Now to develop, support and deliver high levels of career development, workforce development, job search and employer connections to our students and community. This new endeavor creates a great symbiotic relationship that includes practical disciplines of career planning, education, internships, job search and student support to name a few.

The Career Center is one of the heartbeats of campus where friendly faces and services work to move students toward permanent and excellent employment. The center offers classes and workshops to brush up on skills, preparing for interviews, and producing resumes. Staff assist students and the community with career development and job search.

Special projects include:

Ready to Work – designed for individuals who have barriers to employment to get them into a solid work situation

Working with DHS – to give public aid recipients training to prepare them for employment

Returning Citizens Work – helping returning citizens (formerly “Ex-Offenders”) re-enter the workforce

Learn and Earn – on campus student employment program

Lane Job Connection Website – for job seekers as well as on and off campus employers

Ongoing Partnerships – both internal and external

The Career Center also provides general student support such as basic admission information and answering overall questions about Lane. Events held include the Job Fair, Employer Panels, and Open House.

The Pathways program continues to be a vital working partner of Career Center services. Pathways work focuses on helping students have a clear and attainable path into education, certification, progress and completion. This work is both symbiotic and a vital part of Career Center work. Career Pathways focus on easing and facilitating student transition from high school to community college; from pre-college courses to credit postsecondary programs; and from community college to university or employment.

With the Pathways program, there are multiple entry and exit points aligned with industry and skills sets. Intentional connections with partners are made, and student services are integrated within the programs themselves. Pathways fully integrates credit Career Technical classes, contextualized Adult Basic Secondary Education and/or English as a Second Language, and college success skills.

Successes of the program include an award from the National Council of Workforce Education, a feature in the American Association of Community Colleges Journal, better prepared students moving into Associate of Applied Science degrees, and high completion and transition rates.

B. Presidential Search

In order to accomplish a timely and inclusive search for Lane’s 7^th president, several decisions must be made in order to launch the search immediately. Board chair Tony McCown, vice chair Sharon Stiles, and board member Rosie Pryor have been engaged in discussions to begin the process. A search firm must be identified, and the board had discussed a range of options in executive session.

Pryor moved that the board contract a presidential search firm using a three-quote bid process to identify and hire the firm. Keating seconded.

Motion passed unanimously.

Consultant selection criteria were discussed. A handout was distributed containing criteria for the search firm:

1. Vendor qualifications and experience;
2. Plan for, and approach to, search that can recruit a national pool of qualified community college presidential applicants;
3. Proven experience conducting successful searches in community colleges;
4. Deep understanding of the Pacific Northwest and, specifically, Oregon, tailoring process to the professional environment of the area;
5. Firm’s principal is highly involved in conducting the search and working with the board;
6. Proven experience and understanding of equity and inclusion in the search process;
7. Available to provide services on a timeline that fits the college’s needs;
8. Pricing.
9. Consideration will be given to minority, women, and small businesses.

Staff will identify three firms and forward those to the board so that a decision can be made at the April meeting.

The board should identify a subcommittee of three board members to serve on and lead the Presidential Search Advisory Committee. The subcommittee will be advisory only; the entire board will make the final decision. The subcommittee will make a monthly report at the board meetings.

LeClair moved to appoint McCown, Stiles, and Pryor to the board subcommittee. Johnston seconded.

Motion passed unanimously.

The board should appoint a Presidential Search Advisory Committee (PSAC) made up of internal and external members that reflects the diversity among the board’s constituents.

Pryor moved to appoint a Presidential Search Advisory Committee. Carrasco seconded.

Motion passed unanimously.

The search consultant will play a key role in working with the advisory committee.

The board discussed the makeup of the PSAC and the importance of including students on the committee as well as other representatives.

Keating moved to expand membership on the PSAC by four members – one for each member of the board not populating the PSAC. Carrasco seconded.

Motion failed 1 – 6. Pryor, Johnston, Stiles, LeClair, McCown, and Carrasco dissented.

Keating moved to omit the Chamber of Commerce and City Leadership designees from the PSAC.

Motion failed for lack of a second.

Pryor moved that the categories of membership and methods of appointment on the Presidential Search Advisory Committee be as follows:

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
Faculty Member at Large
Faculty Member at Large
LCCEF Union Designate
Classified Member at Large
Classified Member at Large
LCC Management Designate
LCC Management at Large
LCC Management at Large
Executive Team Member
ASLCC Student Body Designate
Student Representative at Large
Student Representative at Large
LCC Foundation Designate
K-12 Representative
University of Oregon Representative
Eugene Chamber of Commerce
Springfield Chamber of Commerce
City of Eugene
City of Springfield
City of Florence
City of Cottage Grove
Lane County
LCC Zone 1 Representative
LCC Zone 2 Representative
LCC Zone 3 Representative
LCC Zone 4 Representative
LCC Zone 5 Representative
LCC At Large Representative
LCC At Large Representative

Motion passed 6 – 1. Keating dissented.

The board discussed appointing a member of the Executive Team to shepherd the presidential search process.

Stiles moved that Vice President Brian Kelly be appointed as the board’s liaison to direct staff resources, as needed, to support the search process. Keating seconded.

Motion passed unanimously.

C. Cultural Competence Update

Spilde presented a report on the progress of the cultural competency work. A lot of the work will be done with the college at large at the spring conference on May 6. The board discussed the possibility of accelerating the cultural competence program. Spilde informed the board the Greg Evans had been named interim Chief Diversity Officer and that a search will take place to fill the position permanently once there is an official vacancy. Work is being done to backfill Evans’ work as the college multicultural coordinator so that he will have just one assignment.

D. Siltcoos Property

Spilde informed the board that a buyer has agreed to the college’s counter offer of $250,000 on the Siltcoos property in Florence with a cash offer. Pending Board approval, the close of escrow will be scheduled for March 17, 2016. All proceeds from the sale will be used for scholarships for students as stipulated when the property was donated to the college.

Stiles moved to accept the counter offer of $250,000. Pryor seconded.

Motion passed unanimously.

E. Budget Committee Appointment

Board member Phil Carrasco, Zone 5, recommended Rolando Figueroa as his Budget Committee appointee, who will serve effective immediately and ending June 30, 2018.

Carrasco moved to appoint Rolando Figueroa to the Lane Community College Budget Committee. Keating seconded.

Motion passed unanimously.

F. Enrollment Update

DeWolf explained that open forums are being held on campus for the college community related to enrollment. Presentations will be on the strategic enrollment management plan, enrollment trends, open educational resources, and the predictive model. Project Manager Don McNair distributed a handout that addressed some questions raised at the last board meeting including tuition with relation to unemployment, the Community College Support Fund resources, the HEPI Index Value, and enrollment. He also showed how enrollment trends compared with unemployment. DeWolf stated that a blog has been established where staff can offer ideas to increase enrollment. There is a Monday morning group looking closely at the enrollment process.

LeClair left the meeting at 9:10 p.m.

4. Accountability/Reports

A. Facilities Update

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

B. Emergency Presidential Succession, BP 350

The Emergency Presidential Succession Monitoring Report was presented to the board.

6. Reports

ASLCC President Ashley Jackson thanked for board for their discussion on tuition. Last year, the students went to Salem to lobby for community college funding and Lane received what had been asked for. Jackson will be unable to send their children to college if the tuition keeps rising. If funding is dependent upon completion, we should look at what keeps students from graduating, like requirements such as math courses. Jackson would like the board to review those barriers.

LCCEA Vice President Adrienne Mitchell reported that the issues in Health Professions are troubling. The investigation is not yet complete. Collective bargaining negotiations begin on March 29. He thanked Human Resources Managers Dennis Carr and Aneita Grogan for their analysis of part-time faculty assignments. Workshops will be offered to deans and administrative coordinators. He thanked board members and the Lane community for collecting signatures for the Better Oregon campaign. He looks forward to robust conversations about the need for Lane’s next president and working with the board on that.

Interim Vice President Dawn DeWolf congratulated Paul Ruscher on his new position. She attended the Achieving the Dream conference along with President Spilde and Lane staff Susan Reddoor, Greg Evans, Kyle Schmidt, and Lida Herburger. She attended the NWCCU training along with Lane staff Craig Taylor and Ce Rosenow. Lane is already preparing for the next accreditation report in Fall 2017. The college will begin presenting four core theme team meetings beginning tomorrow to advise the work on the strategic plan.

Board Reports

Johnston attended the LCOG dinner and thanked Keating for nominating Lane for the award. She attended the Association of Community College Trustees National Legislative Summit where Lane presented on school violence and guns on campus. She congratulated the Lane Women’s basketball team for their championship and the Torch on its award. She attended the guided pathways conversation with Davis Jenkins.

Keating congratulated Governor Kate Brown’s work to create a workgroup on campus safety and congratulated Spilde for serving on Lane’s behalf. He suggested engaging our community in a town hall to have a real conversation about where we are as a campus and exploring concepts such as the one he raised to contract out canines for sniffing out guns. On the topic of wages, he was the only elected official in Lane County to endorse the $15 minimum wage. He applauded Carrasco’s work and the legislature. He wished the students good luck as we approach finals week and thanked his colleagues for the spirited discussion.

Stiles welcomed Rolando Figueroa to the budget committee. She congratulated the Torch on its award. She enjoyed the presentation on the Career Center and Pathways Program. She thanked Dawn DeWolf and Don McNair for their work on enrollment.

Pryor congratulated the Lane Women’s basketball team for their championship and the Torch on its award. She noted that difficult, qualitative conversations like the ones held in tonight’s meeting are the reason she ran for the board.

Carrasco noted that the conversations like the one at tonight’s meeting have substance and are the reason why we have values we do at Lane- we care about the broader and internal communities. He congratulated the Torch on its award. He recognized Jim Garcia for going out across the county to promote Lane and his program. There are an increasing number of Latino youth signing up for Puertas Abiertas. He attended the NAACP dinner and saw former board member Bob Ackerman receive an award for his involvement in civil rights and social justice. He congratulated the work on raising the minimum wage in Oregon. He is working with the Human Rights Commission to establish an Indigenous People’s day and asked people to attend the Eugene City Council meeting on March 14 to support the effort.

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

Wednesday, April 13, Boardroom, Building 3, Lane Community College

8. The board meeting unanimously adjourned at 9:30 p.m.

______________________________

Mary Spilde, President/District Clerk

_____________________________

Tony McCown, Board Chair

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