January 2006 Board Meeting Minutes

The Board of Trustees of Illinois Valley Community College District No. 513 convened a regular session at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, January 25, 2006 in the Board Room (C307) at Illinois Valley Community College.

Members Present

Deborah L. Sweeden, Board Chair
David L. Wilcoxson, Vice Chair
Paula J. Endress, Secretary
David O. Mallery
Lori E. Scroggs
Thomas C. Setchell
Dennis N. Thompson
Matt Simko, Student Trustee

Members Absent

Others Present

Chuck Novak, Interim President
Jerry Corcoran, Vice President for Business Services/Finance
Harriet Custer, Vice President for Academic Affairs
Robert Marshall, Vice President for Student Services
Jim Peters, Attorney

RECESS

It was moved by Mrs. Scroggs and seconded by Mrs. Endress to recess the meeting to take a tour of the East Campus.

Student Advisory Vote: “Aye” – Mr. Simko. Roll Call Vote: “Ayes” – Mrs. Endress, Mr. Mallery, Mrs. Scroggs, Mr. Setchell, Mr. Wilcoxson, and Mrs. Sweeden. “Nays” – None, motion carried.

EAST CAMPUS FACILITIES TOUR

The administration conducted a tour of the East campus for the Board. Areas visited were horticulture, welding, manufacturing, auto technology, and the early childhood education center.

Mr. Thompson entered the meeting at 6:57 p.m.

The meeting was reconvened at 7 p.m.

Dr. Novak announced the recipient of the 2006 Faculty Excellence Award - Koshu Jagasia.

Diane Christianson, Early Childhood Education instructor and director of the program, introduced members of the staff at the Learning Ladder at Ace Hardware in Princeton. The Learning Ladder received accreditation by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. The accreditation process extended over a period of nineteen months to complete and included observations, interviewing of staff, and examining the overall program. Both the Learning Ladder and the Early Childhood Education Center are both nationally accredited centers. Both centers have reached the highest professional standards in serving families and children in the community. This ensures families in the community that their children are receiving the highest quality of care in early learning experiences. It also ensures the students in the Early Childhood program the importance of reaching the highest standards set forth in serving our children and families.

COLLEGE PROGRAM OVERVIEW – DEVELOPMENTAL EDUCATION

Marianne Dzik, Dean of the English, Mathematics, and Education Division, provided information on Developmental Education and the Underprepared Student. The program’s goal is to help students reach their goals and succeed. Students in the program are identified by asking for assistance, by placement testing, or are referred by members of the faculty. Examples: returning adults who are displaced homemakers or displaced from a job and need to be retrained. They may have learned the material in high school and have forgotten it. The traditional student who does not believe they can succeed academically. They don’t know what college is. Many times it has not been their family history to attend college. Developmental education courses provide organizational skills, time management skills, etc. Mathematics is provided on an individualized basis and the assessment center is equipped with a computer lab to help the students prepare for college level courses. Academic support services include the writing center, peer tutoring center, and special needs services. The writing center is an initiative of Title III and helps any student in any area of the writing process – proper documentation, brainstorming a topic, writing a thesis statement, etc. The peer tutoring center offers instruction for any course and is staffed by peer tutors who have taken the course, recommended by their instructor and received an A or B in the course. Of the 445 students served last semester, 78 percent of the students received a C or better in the course they were tutored.

CONSENT AGENDA

It was moved by Mrs. Scroggs and seconded by Mr. Thompson to approve the consent agenda as presented with the extraction of Items 6.4 (Personnel – New Position, ESL/GED Program Manager) and 6.8 (Part-time Faculty Payroll).

Student Advisory Vote: “Aye” – Mr. Simko. Roll Call Vote: “Ayes” – Mrs. Endress, Mr. Thompson, Mr. Mallery, Mrs. Scroggs, Mr. Setchell, Mr. Wilcoxson, and Mrs. Sweeden. “Nays” – None, motion carried.

The following items were approved in the consent agenda:

Approval of Minutes – December 21, 2005

Approval of the Bills

Education Fund - $1,212.527.08; Operation and Maintenance Fund - $123,765.04; Operation and Maintenance Fund (Restricted Fund) - $7,800.00; Bond & Interest - $680,538.75; Auxiliary Fund - $260,561.89; Restricted Fund - $54,797.34; Liability, Protection and Settlement Fund - $15,005.64.

Treasurer’s Report

Bid Approval

Authorize the Business Office to accept the bid of $10,900 from Vanguard Construction, Pekin, Illinois as the lowest, more responsible bid for the Resource Center LRC-E Wall Panel Installation.

TRN 0901 Tuition Waiver

Authorize a tuition waiver of a .5 credit for TRN 0901 for the Fall Semester of 2006 and the Spring Semester of 2007. Mr. Mallery noted that this was a good venture and a good use of Tuition waivers.

Conferring of Degrees and Certificates (December Graduates)

Authorize the conferring of degrees and/or certificates on the December, 2005 graduates as presented.

Staff Resignation – Pamela Masterson, Horticulture Instructor at Sheridan Correctional Center

Accept with regret the resignation of Ms. Pamela Masterson, Horticulture Instructor at Sheridan Correctional Center effective January 13, 2006.

Staff Resignation – Jacqueline Fox, Director of Human Resources

Accept with regret the resignation of Ms. Jackie Fox, Director of Human Resources, effective February 28, 2006.

AGENDA ITEM 6.4 – NEW POSITION, ESL/GED PROGRAM MANAGER

It was moved by Mrs. Scroggs and seconded by Mr. Simko to approve the new full-time position of ESL/GED Program Manager assigned to the Adult Education Department.

This item was extracted from the consent agenda because of a concern of approving new positions in the consent agenda that were not included in the budget. This position will allow Adult Education to take better advantage of opportunities for growth that would increase State Performance funding and maximize State Apportionment dollars. The position is partially grant funded. There was concern if the grant is not continued what happens to the position. In most grant funded positions, the College makes a commitment to institutionalize the program and the salaries are phased off of the grant and into the general budget. The position is being recommended because it is needed and not because it is grant funded. L. Scroggs was in support of the position but wanted to know if the staff was prepared for Spanish speaking students. The College has identified staff that are bilingual and the Adult Education and Records personnel have attended a command Spanish course to better prepare them in serving this population.

AGENDA ITEM 6.8 – PART-TIME FACULTY PAYROLL

It was moved by Mr. Mallery and seconded by Mr. Thompson to approve the part-time faculty payroll as presented.

Mr. Wilcoxson raised the question of two deans receiving pay for teaching. The response was that there is an administrative procedure that full time faculty and staff can teach. They are required to make this time up if they are teaching during regular work hours. The deans teach a course because they are unable to find a full-time or part-time faculty member to teach.

INTERIM PRESIDENT’S REPORT

The IVCC staff have been revising the strategic planning material that was sent to the Board. All revisions are due January 30. After all this information is compiled, it will be sent to the Board. A meeting will be set up for the Board to discuss strategic planning. This is very important and will be the only item on the agenda. Dr. Novak noted that furniture was purchased by the student activities fund. The furniture was placed in the interconnects as well as other areas throughout the College. Students are using the furniture and during peak times all the chairs are occupied. The plan is to purchase more furniture when the money becomes available. IVCC has received approval from the ICCB for the revised Capital Renewal Project (Roads and East Campus Paving). The State is starting to release funds and moving towards the year 2003 which is the year the original project was approved. Dr. Novak will be writing letters to our representatives and encouraged the Board to do the same. At the February Board meeting recommendations for granting tenure will be an agenda item. This is an extensive process and Dr. Novak suggested that the Board celebrate with the tenure candidates over dinner. The portfolios of the faculty being recommended for tenure will be displayed at the February Board meeting. It was suggested to approve the tenure recommendations, recess for the dinner celebration and reconvene the regular meeting.

TRUSTEES’ REPORT

Mr. Setchell, Mr. Wilcoxson and Mr. Corcoran met with the Mayor and City Manager of Princeton to discuss the proposed TIF and Mr. Thompson, Mr. Wilcoxson and Mr. Corcoran attended the Joint Review Board meeting. Mr. Setchell reported that it is good for the College to take a position individually on each new TIF that is developed and to have conversations with the mayors and councilmen and become partners with them. As a partner, it is good for the Trustees to be involved in the planning process and communicate with the TIF attorney. The College’s attorney can then prepare agreements to protect the College because community colleges have a different funding formula than the grade schools and high schools. IVCC is the largest governmental entity in these TIFs but has the smallest base and receives the smallest attention by the planners. Mr. Wilcoxson stated communication with the Princeton City officials was excellent. They discussed courses being taught in the Princeton area by IVCC and noted that Princeton is the only high school in the district that provides scholarships to attend IVCC for all their students meeting certain requirements.

MASTER PLAN

It was moved by Mrs. Scroggs and seconded by Mrs. Endress to adopt the Master Plan as presented.

Mr. Corcoran reported that over the past year, there have been several committees and a number of focus groups representing faculty, students and other college stakeholders that have discussed their vision for a new Master Plan. Last month Dominick Domonica of Legat Architects summarized the plan and welcomed feedback from the Board. The Plan has been on display for further review and Mr. Corcoran has received comments and suggestions. Mr. Corcoran reminded the Board that it is simply a long term plan and plans can change. ICCB has recommended that each college update their master plan at least every five years. Mr. Corcoran asked the Board to consider adopting the Master Plan as presented so that administration could move forward in preparation of the paperwork for submittal of the RAMP documents. A meeting is tentatively scheduled for February 1 for preparation of the RAMP documents and Mr. Corcoran invited the Board members to attend.

BOARD MEETING DATE CHANGES

It was moved by Mr. Wilcoxson and seconded by Mr. Thompson to approve to change the date of the August Board meeting from Wednesday, August 23, 2006 to Wednesday, August 30, 2006; the November Board meeting from Wednesday, November 22, 2006 to Wednesday, November 29, 2006; and the December Board meeting from Wednesday, December 20, 2006 to Tuesday, December 19, 2006.

BOARD POLICY – CONTRACT APPROVAL

It was moved by Mr. Wilcoxson and seconded by Mrs. Scroggs to adopt the Contract Approval Policy 4021 as presented.

BOARD POLICY – BANKING AND INVESTMENTS POLICY

It was moved by Mr. Setchell and seconded by Mrs. Scroggs to adopt the Banking and Investment Policy 4015 as presented.

Even though this policy was presented as a second reading with changes, the Board was in agreement to approve it.

BOARD POLICY – RECORDS RETENTION

This policy was presented for a first reading and was not recommended for adoption at this time.

TRUSTEES TUITION WAIVERS

Tuition Waiver Summary Reports were provided from Athletics, Student Government, and one from Music, Theatre, Journalism and Art. Board members expressed their concerns that the reports had different time frames for different questions and this made it hard to compare. It was not clear if the questions were answered by the students or the person completing the report. One report was not nearly informative as the others. Dr. Novak will review this item with the administration.

TUITION

Dr. Novak presented college tuition information and historical data regarding the College’s budget and a projection for FY07 funding. The FY07 projection assumes a $2.00 increase in tuition. The administration will recommend a $2.00 increase in tuition at the February Board meeting. The staff will be meeting with students to discuss this issue. Mr. Thompson stated in order to maintain tuition at a lower level, it is necessary to limit the students’ opportunities and control when the courses are offered. If there are not high numbers in classes, sections must be eliminated. Courses with low numbers have to be cancelled. This is an element in the discussion on tuition. At IVCC there is more flexibility. Mr. Thompson is supporting the raise in tuition on this proposition. Mr. Simko was pleased that the IVCC staff is talking to the students. He stated that if the students are given all the facts and justification for the increase, they will understand and make good decisions. Mr. Mallery was concerned that the fees have a greater impact on the students than the tuition. Using a course (CAD 2200) that had been used as an example in the administration’s Oct. 26, 2005 lab fee presentation, Mr. Mallery expressed concerns about the effect of high lab fees on the overall student costs. Mr. Mallery presented graphs that showed IVCC’s tuition and universal fees to be the least expensive of the seven schools mentioned. He, however, indicated that the surveyed schools ranged from $187 to $253.75 with IVCC being the highest for the selected course or equivalent.

APPOINT CHAIR/VICE CHAIR-PRESIDENTIAL SEARCH ADVISORY COMMITTEE

It was moved by Mr. Mallery and seconded by Mrs. Endress to appoint Mrs. Lori Scroggs as the Chair to the Presidential Search Advisory Committee.

It was moved by Mr. Simko and seconded by Mrs. Scroggs to appoint Mr. Dennis Thompson as the Vice Chair to the Presidential Search Advisory Committee.

Student Advisory Vote: “Aye” – Mr. Simko. Roll Call Vote: “Ayes” – Mrs. Endress, Mr. Mallery, Mrs. Scroggs, Mr. Setchell, Mr. Wilcoxson, and Mrs. Sweeden. “Nays” – None. “Pass” – Mr. Thompson, motion carried.

COMPREHENSIVE MARKETING PLAN

It was moved by Mr. Wilcoxson and seconded by Mrs. Endress to authorize the administration to enter into an agreement with Dr. Tim Aurand and Dr. Elisa Fredericks of Northern Illinois University for the purpose of conducting a Customer Segmentation Analysis for a Strategically Focused Marketing Plan, said agreement not to exceed the cost of $25,000.

Dr. Novak stated that educators tend to market their institutions with the same vehicles – catalogs, brochures, ads, etc. and they tend to think their audience is captive. That is not true – the K-12 audience is captive. Community colleges are more like businesses and have more potential customers that any other sector of higher education. The better the community college serves the district, the better the college drives the economic development. The College currently spends $160,000 a year for publications and advertising. The College does not have a formal targeted marketing plan. The staff knows that the evening population is declining – 28% from 2001-2005. The staff knows the adult population is declining but does not know why. The College is proposing a marketing analysis. It will connect market demographics, consumer segmentation and behavioral and life styles of the people who live in the district. It will link all of the internal data at IVCC with external market perspectives and tells us where the greatest opportunities are. The College did not print as many schedules because everything is online. The adult population dropped – is this why? Should we print just for the adults? Dr. Novak went on to say that this study will begin to profile our entire district with demographics, personal preferences, and identify what the people desire in education. It will bring us more students and for the students we already serve, we will serve them better. It will be able to answer the questions of why we are losing adults. It will also answer questions about what would happen at new extension centers. The College serves approximately 650 students from Ottawa, 500 students from Streator, 200 students from Princeton, and 1,000 students from the LaSalle-Peru-Oglesby area. We need to now how many people would go to extension centers, how many would shift, what new pipelines would we develop, what kind of programs should we offer? The location and the traffic patterns would affect what we do. The research would answer these questions. By approving this plan, the College will receive a marketing plan that the College does not currently have. Mrs. Scroggs asked if the College has a marketing plan, would it make the College more competitive for grants and Dr. Novak confirmed this. Mrs. Endress has worked with the Center for Governmental Studies and the Marketing department at Northern Illinois University. She stated the College is shooting in the dark if it does not have a plan and the College has a tremendous diverse market. She supported the plan and stated the College has to attract the students here to be able to serve them. Times have changed considerably and the College needs to find other ways to reach people. Mr. Wilcoxson inquired about references. Dr. Novak noted that NIU works primarily with the private sector and Dr. Aurand has worked with major corporations.

CLOSED SESSION

It was moved by Mrs. Scroggs and seconded by Mr. Simko to convene a Closed Session 1) the appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance, or dismissal of specific employees of the public body or legal counsel of the public body, including hearing testimony on a complaint; and 2) the purchase or lease of real property for the use of the public body, including meetings held for the purpose of discussing whether a particular parcel should be acquired and 3) minutes of closed session meetings.

On a motion by Mr. Simko, seconded by Mrs. Scroggs, and carried unanimously, the regular meeting resumed at 10:14 p.m.

CLOSED SESSION MINUTES

It was moved by Mrs. Scroggs and seconded by Mr. Thompson to approve and release the Closed Session minutes of December 21, 2005.

OTHER

It was moved by Mr. Thompson and seconded by Mrs. Scroggs to approve the administration’s recommendation to suspend with pay employee # 35814 until a decision can be reached on the recommendation for termination by the February Board meeting.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved by Mrs. Endress, seconded by Mrs. Scroggs and carried unanimously to adjourn the meeting at 10:16 p.m.