October 2007 Board Meeting Minutes
The Board of Trustees of Illinois Valley Community College District No. 513 convened a regular session at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, October 24, 2007 in the Board Room (C307) at Illinois Valley Community College.
Members Physically Present
David L. Wilcoxson, Board Chair
Dennis N. Thompson, Vice Chair
Lori E. Scroggs, Secretary
David O. Mallery
Thomas C. Setchell
Deborah L. Sweeden
Elizabeth Kunkel, Student Trustee
Members Absent
Paula J. Endress
Others Physically Present
Dave Louis, Interim President
Jerry Corcoran, Vice President for Business Services and Finance
Bob Marshall, Vice President for Student Services
Sue Isermann, Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs
Walt Zukowski, Attorney
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
It was moved by Mr. Setchell and seconded by Dr. Scroggs to amend the agenda by removing: Item 11. – Illinois Sustainable University Compact and Item 20. - Closed Session and adding A New Faculty Position – Nursing Instructor (Item 11.) and ICCTA Distinguished Alumnus Award Nominee (Item 16a.). Motion passed by voice vote.
CONSENT AGENDA
It was moved by Mr. Thompson and seconded by Ms. Kunkel to approve the consent agenda as presented. Motion passed by voice vote.
The following items were approved in the consent agenda:
Approval of Minutes –Board minutes of the September 18, 2007 Meeting
Approval of the Bills - $1,210,664.01
Education Fund - $731,025.74; Operation and Maintenance Fund - $114,252.62; Operation and Maintenance (Restricted Fund) - $22,492.00; Auxiliary Fund - $265,228.26; Restricted Fund - $59,720.61; Audit Fund - $14,000.00; Liability, Protection and Settlement Fund - $3,944.78.
Treasurer’s Report
Personnel
Approved the stipends for the pay periods ending September 8, 2007; September 22, 2007; and October 6, 2007 as presented.
Bid Approval – Display Case Renovation – Bldgs. A, B, D, and E
Approved the architect’s recommendation to accept the bid of $80,466.62 from TyJax Builders, Inc. – Streator, IL as the lowest, most responsible bid for the display case renovation project.
Bid Rejection – Emergency Call Boxes and 2-Way Radios
Authorized the Business Office to reject all bids and re-bid this project at an estimated cost of $75,000.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
Dr. Louis reported that IVCC became an AQIP (Academic Quality Improvement Program) Institution a few years ago and began working on the new accreditation process. Jamie Gahm coordinated the submission of the Systems Portfolio and the College recently received the Appraisal Report. The report is detailed and positive. Dr. Louis commended Jamie Gahm in her efforts to coordinate this program. The next step is to have various groups throughout the College meet and discuss the report. This will culminate with a team of eight staff members and a Board member who will attend the AQIP Strategy Forum in Lisle, IL – January 22-25, 2008. Dr. Scroggs will represent the Board at the Forum. The team will discuss the Appraisal Report, focus on action projects, and the three-year cycle will begin again. Dr. Louis referred to the report of the first textbook rental cycle prepared by Lauren Sandberg, IVCC Bookstore Manager. Ms. Sandberg was available for any questions. She was very proud to announce the textbook rental program saved the students $64,248 the first semester. The next step of the program is the return of the rented textbooks and the turnaround of those books to rent again for the spring semester. Ms. Sandberg hopes to build on this success by adding a number of textbooks to the rental program each semester. Dr. Louis congratulated Dr. Jerry Corcoran on his recently published article entitled “Fiscal Realities and the Illinois Community College’s System’s Strategic Plan” in the October issue of the Community College Journal of Research and Practice. Dr. Louis reported enrollment for the fall semester is up 2.3% in credit hours and 5.1% in headcount. Enrollment statewide is down in credit hours and up in headcount. Dr. Louis attended a reception honoring IVCC student, Arianna Medema, who received a $1,000 scholarship from the Illinois Community College Faculty Association. She was one of six students selected from across the State. Selection was based on both academic achievement and community service.
TRUSTEES’ REPORT
Ms. Kunkel created a written report for this month and distributed the report to all Board members. She reported a Blackboard account has been created for SAC meetings and the next meeting is scheduled for November 9th and 10th in Chicago. Ms. Kunkel thanked the Board for the opportunity to attend The Association of Community College Trustees Leadership Congress in San Diego. She met a lot of great people, gained a better understanding of many issues and had a chance to tour a beautiful area. Ms. Kunkel also distributed a report on the FY08 Student Organization Budgets.
Dr. Scroggs had an opportunity to be part of a delegation of higher education professionals who traveled to Russia. They met with people who were involved in higher education and she found Russia to be an amazing and changing place. She took memorabilia from Bradley University and IVCC with her.
Mr. Thompson reported that after the last facilities meeting, he had requested the Board to submit any questions or concerns to him regarding the Early Childhood Education Center (ECEC) facilities, but had received none. The facilities committee will be meeting again on the long term PHS projects and at that time he would like to address any concerns. He also asked the Board if they needed any information on the ECE program or center. It was decided an in-depth report on the ECE program would be beneficial at this time. Items to be included in the report were: 1) focus and intended future of the program; 2) enrollment in the program, employment results, and employment location of the students in the program; 3) the ECEC enrollment - the number of children attending broken down by staff and students’ children; 4) hours of service if a decision is made to open the Center to the community; 5) partnerships with other agencies; 6) data on daycare in LaSalle County - waiting lists; demographics; geographic location; 6). When the report is completed, it will be sent to all Board members.
Dr. Scroggs reported on the Presidential Search. The advisory committee met on October 10 and Dr. Scroggs commended Glenna Jones and George Needs on their thorough presentation of the IVCC hiring procedures and the importance of completing the presidential search with integrity and efficiency. The committee reviewed the interview questions and will be making suggestions for changes and revisions. The deadline date for applications is November 8 but applications will be considered after that date. The committee will be screening the applications the middle of November and will meet again on November 28 to make a decision on the semifinalists. As of this date, thirteen applications have been received with eight completed.
Mr. Mallery also attended the Leadership Congress in San Diego and sent a report to all Board members. He received a wealth of information. Policy Governance was a reoccurring theme and is a part of the strategic plan. Unique features of some strategic plans identified the goals completed, not completed, or work in progress by color coding. Discussion also centered on the strategic plan being placed on the Web for the community to review. This may create opportunities from the community in helping the college attain goals. Mr. Mallery also spoke on attending sessions on ethics and program assessments. He distributed an article entitled “The Care and Feeding of Presidents” which he found to have many noteworthy items. He thanked the Board for the opportunity to attend the conference. He found it interesting to know that other colleges have similar issues and concerns and how they solve them.
Mr. Wilcoxson attended the Leadership Congress in San Diego and also attended the session on program assessments. He noted that some inefficient programs continue to be funded because of socially embedded mandates to deliver the program. An example: Allied Health. The role of the community college in the community – is it tied into the education aspect or another aspect the community college should be serving? Sometimes there are programs that are not profitable and organizations would like to transfer them to institutions that will take them and community colleges become recipients of those programs. It is a question of measuring the overall benefits. Mr. Wilcoxson brought back information on the programs he attended and he would be happy to make copies for those Board members interested in receiving them.
Mr. Wilcoxson reported IVCC will be hosting the Northwest Region Trustees Meeting on Thursday, November 1 with Walt Zukowski presenting. Expected attendance is twenty-two. The local Rotary sponsored career day and Mr. Wilcoxson brought high school students interested in accounting to the campus. He thanked Jerry Corcoran, Cheryl Roelfsema, and faculty members for a great presentation to these students. A suggestion was made by one of the IVCC faculty members to invite college students to attend Rotary and Mr. Wilcoxson intends to follow up on this suggestion.
RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING PREPARTION OF THE 2007 TAX LEVY
It was moved by Mr. Setchell and seconded by Mr. Thompson to adopt the resolution to authorize and direct preparation of the tentative calendar year 2007 Tax Levy as presented. Motion passed by voice vote.
PROTECTION, HEALTH, AND SAFETY PROJECTS FOR TAX YEAR 2007
It was moved by Mrs. Sweeden and seconded by Mr. Thompson to approve the two Protection, Health, and Safety projects as presented for a combined total cost of $1,739,508, and authorize submission of the appropriate resolutions for each to the Illinois Community College Board.
The first project is to replace Aluminum Feeder Wire and Branch Panels in Buildings A and B at an estimated cost of $1,241,240 plus contingency, A/E fees and reimbursable bid cost ($251,124) for a total cost of $1,492,364. The second project is to construct Fire-Stop Corridor Walls to comply with the International Building Code at an estimated cost of $201,495 plus contingency, A/E fees, and reimbursable bid cost ($45,649) for a total cost of $247,144.
When the facilities committee met, the architect helped the committee prioritize a huge list of projects and estimated the electrical work could be completed on four buildings. When the estimates from the suppliers were received, they were much higher than anticipated and now only two buildings will be able to be completed. The Board was concerned over the huge difference in numbers. In order to receive better numbers, they asked if the architect could do more work up front so that the preliminary numbers and the estimates are closer together. The purpose of the initial facility meeting was called for the architect to receive ideas from the committee before proceeding to gather estimates on projects that the committee might not select as priority projects for the year. Dr. Corcoran reassured the Board that they will receive better numbers in the future. There was also concern that the wiring work completed in past years was done without regard to the fire-stop walls and has resulted in redoing the fire walls in certain buildings. The Board Chair asked that measures be in place to prevent this from happening again. Motion passed by voice vote.
TRANSFER OF FUNDS
It was moved by Mr. Setchell and seconded by Dr. Scroggs to transfer $800,000 from Fund 01 (Education Fund) to Fund 03 (Operations and Maintenance Fund [Restricted]) for future building needs and transfer $100,000 from Fund 07 (Working Cash Fund) to Fund 01 (Education Fund).
Dr. Corcoran explained that for a number of years it had been the practice to set aside $400,000 per year for building match commitments. In the past few years the College has backed off of that amount but it was decided to take advantage of the FY07 surplus and the amount budgeted in FY08 to make up for those years and keep the commitment for the much needed facilities.
The $100,000 transfer is the interest earned from the Working Cash Fund. Motion passed by voice vote.
NEW FACULTY POSITION – NURSING INSTRUCTOR
It was moved by Mrs. Sweeden and seconded by Mr. Thompson to approve the new position of nursing instructor with the salary being paid by the local hospitals for three and one half years.
Gloria Bouxsein, Director of Nursing, explained the Nurse Practice Act will be revised in 2008 to change the instructor-student clinical ratio to 1:8 with no more than 1:10. It is unsafe for one instructor to be responsible for 10 students which means the instructor is responsible for 20-30 patients. The hospital clinical sites have also voiced concerns regarding student ratio and patient safety. Also there are Licensed Practical Nurses waiting for admission into the Associate Degree program but there are not enough instructors to accommodate these students. With the addition of a nursing instructor, these issues could be addressed. It was suggested to increase the starting salary of this position to attract applicants, but it was noted that the current faculty contract has provisions for higher salaries for instructors in high demand areas. Motion passed by voice vote.
WESTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY TRANSFER PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT
It was moved by Mr. Thompson and seconded by Mr. Setchell to approve the transfer partnership agreement between Illinois Valley Community College and Western Illinois University as presented. Motion passed by voice vote.
AURORA UNIVERSITY, COLLEGE OF EDUCATION, COLLABORATING ACADEMIC PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM
It was moved by Mrs. Sweeden and seconded by Mr. Mallery to approve the graduate study professional development partnership agreement between Illinois Valley Community College and Aurora University as presented. Motion passed by voice vote.
The Aurora University agreement will provide graduate study for teacher development courses. The Western Illinois University will facilitate transfer of IVCC students to its Bachelor of Arts Degree program without campus attendance at Western.
INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT WITH THE CITY OF MARSEILLES
It was moved by Mr. Setchell and seconded by Mr. Thompson to approve the intergovernmental agreement with the City of Marseilles as presented. A number of taxing bodies along with IVCC entered into litigation on a TIF district in the City of Marseilles. A court date was set to begin on November 14. This agreement is considered to be a good resolution and better than the possible outcome if the litigation continued. Motion passed by voice vote.
STRATEGIC PLAN
It was moved by Mr. Setchell and seconded by Dr. Scroggs to approve the Strategic Plan as presented. Mr. Mallery had concerns with some of the measures not being quantified or the benchmarks being identified, but he was reminded that the Board is only approving the goals and objectives. The activities and performance measures are work in progress. Motion passed by voice vote.
ICCTA DISTINGUISHED ALUMNUS AWARD NOMINATION
It was moved by Mr. Setchell and seconded by Mrs. Sweeden to approve Bill Taylor as IVCC’s nominee for the 2008 Illinois Community College Trustees Association Distinguished Alumnus Award. Motion passed by voice vote.
AUDIT REPORT
Dr. Corcoran was pleased with the feedback from the Audit/Finance Committee. The Audit Report was very positive with no management letter. He commended Cheryl Roelfsema for the tremendous job she does as controller.
ATHLETIC PROGRAM DISCUSSION
Dr. Louis began the discussion with the fact that the Board has been reviewing the athletics program and a great deal of information on athletics has been provided. There are misconceptions and unwarranted questions about athletics among staff and the community and he would like to see the Board review the material and come to a conclusion. The material is a complete picture in a financial sense and asked the Board if this information is what they need at this time. Mr. Wilcoxson stated the Board needs to decide whether to increase funding, maintain funding, decrease funding or discontinue funding in the athletic program. Mr. Mallery was concerned with the number of out of district athletes vs. the in-district athletes and with the misconceptions of the numbers by the public. He was also concerned with the academic success of the athletes. Dr. Marshall stated the current athletic director is striving for 80/20 balance in all sports for in-district vs. out-of district. Dr. Scroggs liked the idea of 80/20 but cautioned having a hard and fast rule. She would like the coaches to have some flexibility. Dr. Louis suggested the Board decide on their philosophy of athletics. After continued discussion, it was the consensus of the Board to retain athletics. Dr. Louis then suggested a way for the Board to receive information from the community and college students to assist them in ideas to improve the athletic program. The information provided to the Board on athletics will be posted on the IVCC Web. Any interested community member or collectively as a group may make comments on the information by sending a letter or email to the President. The President’s Office will collect this information and distribute to Board members for the November meeting. Discussion will continue on athletics at the November Board meeting.
PUBLIC COMMENT
No comments.
TRUSTEE COMMENT
No comments.
ADJOURNMENT
It was moved by Dr. Scroggs, seconded by Mr. Setchell, and carried unanimously to adjourn the meeting at 9:03 p.m.