Board Report – November 2011

I'd like to begin by giving my deepest thanks to Susie and the board for nominating me for the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) Chief Executive Officer of the Year award, for those of you who were there with me to share the moment, and for tonight's reception. I also appreciate all the congratulations everyone has shared. I will just keep saying that things like this happen only because we have such a great team working together here at Lane. I am touched and humbled.
Next I would like to introduce Tamara Pinkas who is our liaison with the League for Innovation in the Community College. She will tell you a little bit about the League and about a special guest we have with us:

Pinkas stated that she enjoyed her work in the League and commented on the opportunities that League membership allows, including access to grants. She introduced Philos Molina, who works at Lane in Enrollment Services and won second place in the essay category of the 2011 League for Innovation National Student Literary Competition. His essay is titled, "Of Pupusas and Love."

It is my honor to present Philos with his award certificate and check for $200.00.

I also want to thank the Foundation for another wonderful Shining Star scholarship reception. Hearing students' stories in person is inspiring and affirming of the work we do.

Congratulations to the men's team for winning the NWAACC Cross Country Southern Region Championships, and to the women's team for placing two runners in the top-5, including capturing the women's individual title.

Thanks to Athletics for again hosting the annual OSAA State High School Cross Country Championships which attracted more than 4,000 spectators and athletes to campus.

Athletics also hosted the OSAA 3A and 2A state volleyball championships. Athletic Director Greg Sheley said that the OSAA organizers, coaches and participants from past years were totally impressed by the transformation that our gym and lobby has undergone since last year. All the dull grey concrete is now bright white and you can "Feel the Power" of Lane Titans everywhere!

At your places is an announcement of the upcoming "Taste of Lane" cookbook that will debut at next year's Harvest Dinner. Students, staff and the community are excited about our first cookbook. Marketing has long wanted this project and is working closely with Brian Kelly and his division to make it happen. As a matter of fact, I have been invited to contribute one of my favorite recipes.

Marketing is about half way through a significant project to update all the videos for our Career and Technical programs, funded by Carl Perkins and in partnership with the Career and Technical Deans. This involves faculty, staff and students from each of the programs and will be a key element on our new website. We look forward to showcasing a few of those programs later this year.

Marketing is working with Florence Dean Mary Jeanne Kuhar to brand Florence marketing materials to match the college brand. Everything from the class schedule to advertisement templates in the Suislaw News will be brought into alignment with our core branding, which will strengthen our identity across the district.

Lane has been designated a partner in a Next Generation Learning Challenges Grant from the Gates Foundation and Educause. We are the only west coast college in the project. Central Piedmont Community College is the lead college. As a partner, we will receive several online tools to help developmental students become more successful.

Fourth-week enrollment figures for fall term are now in. Our total reported FTE is up 2.3 percent. Credit-only FTE is up 3.0 percent and non-credit FTE is down 3.4 percent.

LTD is exploring a possible EmX route to campus along McVay Highway, using federal grant funds. That would be good news for students.

I'd like to commend Vice President Sonya Christian for coordinating two back-to-back statewide events on campus this month, the Win Win Conference, where I presented remarks along with Commissioner Cam Preus, and the DQP, or Degree Qualifications Profile Conference. Cliff Adelman was the keynote speaker. He is co-author of a Lumina report on degree qualifications and is a senior associate with the Institute for Higher Education Policy. A total of 347 people participated either in person or via webcast, from 14 Oregon community colleges, 7 Oregon University System institutions, and state agencies.

I attended the 21st Century Commission and American Association of Community College (AACC) meetings, in addition to the ACCT Annual Congress. I'd like to thank Pat, Rosie, Sharon, and Brett for joining me at the Oregon Community College Association (OCCA) annual conference, where we discussed student success, completion, education system reform, and the upcoming legislative session.

The next state revenue forecast will be announced tomorrow morning in Salem. Budget leaders have indicated that they expect the forecast to be down, the question is whether the reduction in tax revenue exceeds the amount of the reserve fund created by the Legislature when they held back 3.5 percent from budgets earlier this year.

The Oregon Education Investment Team continues to meet pending confirmation by the Senate, which should have happened today in the hearing. We are working on a job description for the chief education officer. The team's primary goal in the February legislative session is making progress on achievement compacts. The Oregon Community College Association and the Oregon President's Council have active groups working on shaping what these compacts should look like.

In Washington, the budget and the federal deficit continue to dominate the discussion. This Friday, the current stop-gap funding measure that keeps the government running is set to expire. In order to keep the government funded beyond November 18th, the House and Senate plan to take up another short-term funding continuing resolution that will run through mid-December.

There will be a legislative town hall on campus next Monday, November 21 from noon until 1:30 PM. Local state representatives and senators will be on campus to discuss issues important to the Lane Community College community. The event will occur in the Boardroom and is open to the public. Staff, faculty and students are encouraged to attend. Contact Brett Rowlett for details.

Coming up on November 22 and 23, we will host six college administrators from China who will learn about our campus and best practices. This is part of AACC's goal to help Chinese institutions understand the community college system. AACC chose Lane as a host institution.

I'd like to conclude by wishing everyone a happy Thanksgiving.