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*Original agenda materials, along with meeting handouts, are kept with the minutes in KCTCS offices. Meeting audiotapes also are available. |
MINUTES* Kentucky Community and Technical College System June 22, 1998 The Kentucky Community and Technical College
System (KCTCS) Board of Regents met on June 22, 1998, at 8:30 a.m. (EDT)
at the Council on Postsecondary Education, Frankfort, Kentucky. Chair
Johnson presided. The press was notified on June 15,
1998. ROLL CALL The following members were present: Mr. Banks, Mr. Bean, Ms. Fiorella, Dr. Hanel, Mr. Hoseus, Ms. Johnson, Ms. Littrell, Ms. Lutz, Mr. McCool, Mr. Powell, Ms. Read, and Mr. Russow. Ms. Davis and Mr. O’Neal did not attend. WELCOME Chair Johnson welcomed Board members, the audience, and those viewing the meeting from the telecast sites--Somerset Community College, Hazard Center for Rural Health, Paducah Community College, Hopkinsville Community College, Ashland Community College, Southeast Community College, Elizabethtown Community College, Henderson Community College, Prestonsburg Community College, Kentucky Tech—Jefferson, Mason County High School, Madisonville Community College, and Owensboro Community College. INTRODUCTIONS Chair Johnson introduced Walter Lichtenberg from Kentucky Tech—Central and Anita Williams from Prestonsburg Community College. Mr. Lichtenberg and Ms. Williams, elected student members of the Board for the 1998-99 academic year, will be sworn in at the September Board meeting. APPROVAL OF MOTION: Ms. Littrell moved, seconded by Ms. Lutz, to approve MINUTES the minutes of May 20, 1998. VOTE: The motion passed unanimously. PRESIDENTIAL SEARCH Mr. Bean said that in accordance with the Board’s request, he and Chair Johnson had continued the process to employ an individual or firm to assist with the presidential search. He introduced Dr. Bob Barringer, the consultant selected to assist with the continuation of the search process. Mr. Bean said that the goal is to be able to bring a slate of three additional candidates to the Board for its consideration in September or October. MOTION: Ms. Fiorella moved, seconded by Dr. Hanel, that the Board ratify the employment of Dr. Bob Barringer as the consultant to assist with the presidential search. VOTE: A roll call vote was taken, and the motion passed with 10 "yes" votes. Mr. Banks abstained, and Ms. Read was not present when the vote was taken. EMPLOYMENT OF INTERIM PRESIDENT Chair Johnson said that the Board had authorized her to work with staff to find an interim president, and she was pleased to introduce Dr. Jeff Hockaday as the Interim President of KCTCS. Dr. Hockaday served as Chancellor of the Pima County Community College District in Tucson and Chancellor of the Virginia Community College System. In 1995 the American Association of Community College Trustees named Dr. Hockaday the National CEO of the Year. He will serve as KCTCS Interim President from July 1 to December 31, 1998. MOTION: Mr. Russow moved, seconded by Ms. Littrell, that the Board ratify the employment of Dr. Jeff Hockaday as Interim President. VOTE: A roll call vote was taken, and the motion passed with 10 "yes" votes. Mr. Banks abstained, and Ms. Read was not present when the vote was taken. PRESIDENT’S REPORT Dr. Ramsey said that he was pleased to recommend to the Board the employment of Dr. Thelma White as President of Elizabethtown Community College and that the Board would be asked to ratify her employment. The College’s Board of Directors recommended Dr. White for the position of president. Dr. Ramsey said that the University of Kentucky had announced the employment of Dr. James Kerley as President of Lexington Community College. Carl Barnett will serve as Interim President at Hopkinsville Community College during the presidential search process to replace Dr. Kerley. Over the last year, new presidents have been employed at Ashland, Owensboro, Elizabethtown, Madisonville, and Maysville Community Colleges. Many individuals have worked hard to achieve the diversification goals of the Board. Four of the new presidents are women and one is African-American. Dr. Ramsey reported that he, Dr. Newberry, and Dr. Davies, President of the Council on Postsecondary Education, met with Dr. James Rogers, the Executive Director of the Commission on Colleges, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), and other key staff on June 1. One of the items discussed was an issue raised in a letter by the Chairman of the UK Board of Trustees, former Governor Ned Breathitt, as to whether or not the Community College System had received notification from SACS of any concerns that need to be addressed. UK’s position is that it is not known whether or not there are any significant accreditation issues and that this will not be known until after the SACS team visit in October. Dr. Ramsey said that his and Dr. Newberry’s position is that the SACS Fact Finding Report that was submitted to the KCTCS Board in January raised some significant issues that need to be addressed prior to the team visit in October. During the June 1 meeting, Dr. Rogers confirmed that the issues raised in the Fact Finding Report are most definitely significant. Additionally, Dr. Rogers stated in his June 3, 1998, letter addressed to Dr. Ramsey, Dr. Wethington, and Dr. Newberry "that it is essential that UK, KCTCS, and UKCCS work together in the joint development of appropriate resolutions to the concerns and questions contained in the Special Fact Finding Committee’s report of November 1997, prior to the arrival of the substantive change committee." Dr. Ramsey said that KCTCS will communicate to Dr. Wethington and Governor Breathitt a strong desire for the two institutions to work together to resolve the four or five issues raised by SACS in the original Fact Finding Report. Sheryl Snyder, through a personal service contract, is providing legal advice regarding the options available under House Bill 1 to resolve the issues raised by SACS. At this time, Mr. Snyder has not completed his legal research. Dr. Ramsey continued by saying that UK and KCTCS need to do everything in their power to reach resolution of the SACS issues by mid August at the latest. Dr. Rogers indicated in his June 3 letter the kind of information and materials that need to be prepared prior to the mid-October visit. These materials should be prepared six weeks in advance of the visit, or by the end of August. All issues need to be resolved when these materials are sent to SACS. Dr. Newberry has a writing team to provide the information requested by SACS. Dr. Chuck Stebbins from Elizabethtown Community College is the writing team leader. Also, Dr. Gordon Davies will provide assistance from CPE, and KCTCS will enter into a contract with consultants from the SACS Consulting Network. Dr. Ramsey reported that an option is being studied to establish the Office of the President at Spindletop on Iron Works Road in Lexington. The facility has 9,000 square feet of office space available immediately. Another 2,500 square feet of space could become available over the next six to nine months. The goal is to move both branches to one central location. Additionally, it is imperative that a long-term location plan be developed consistent with the Board’s criteria. The long-term plan may include a new facility on the Spindletop land, which would provide a campus-like setting. At least one and maybe two major bond-rating agencies, Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s, will schedule KCTCS visits over the next several months. Prior to the special legislative session and the enactment of HB1, Moody’s raised some issues concerning the separation of UKCCS from the University of Kentucky and what credit implications that would have for both the University of Kentucky and the Community College System. Dr. Ramsey said that these concerns were addressed a year ago. Recently, Standard and Poor’s indicated that they want to be educated on how the transition of the Community College System is progressing, and they want to make an on-site visit. This is not unusual at all; in fact, it is very good to reach out to the bond rating agencies and invite them to visit KCTCS sites. Secretary John McCarty and Beth Hilliard will be the point people in coordinating invitations to the agencies for separate visits. Dr. Ramsey said that he had asked Bryan Armstrong to continue to develop a communications plan and strategy for KCTCS. While a kick-off event is scheduled for July 1, internal and external communications must continue on an on-going basis and must include the KCTCS mission and goals. This is very important in terms of student enrollment. KCTCS is moving forward on an enrollment management plan. Discussions are underway regarding the relationship between local boards and the need for two local boards—one for the community colleges and one for the technical colleges. Also, work is continuing on foundations. In closing, Dr. Ramsey expressed his appreciation to Nelson Grote for his service to KCTCS. He thanked the staff in the Office of the President, Ron Carson in the Governor’s Office for Policy and Management, and Beth Hilliard for their key roles in KCTCS. Chair Johnson responded by saying that all members of the Board appreciate and thank the individuals mentioned by Dr. Ramsey. TRANSITION TO TECHNICAL COLLEGES Dr. Ramsey said that additional information regarding the transition of the Kentucky Tech institutions to colleges had been sent to Board members. On July 1 KCTCS will inherit Kentucky Tech institutions as technical colleges. The statute provides for technical colleges, but it does not define specific criteria and process for that to occur. The Workforce Development Cabinet and Kentucky Tech defined criteria to move the technical institutions to colleges. All the technical institutions meet the criteria, and the Workforce Development Cabinet approved the change. The Governor and Transition Team tacitly approved the change. The Council on Occupational Education (COE) approved the change. The change does not require the approval of the Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE), and the CPE Chairman is comfortable with the transition. Dr. Ramsey summarized a proposed resolution to recognize the Kentucky Tech institutions as colleges effective July 1. He emphasized that the technical colleges will be subjected to all future actions and reviews as other colleges and universities, including program review and approval, budget review, and accountability measures. Mr. Bean asked why the Kentucky Advanced Technology Institute (KATI) is the only Kentucky Tech institution that does not have "college" added to its new name. Dr. Ramsey asked Dr. Ann Cline to response to the question. Dr. Cline said that KATI, previously known as Kentucky Advanced Technology Center, just recently received COE approval to use the term Institute; and KATI requested that it be permitted to keep its current name. KATI will be going through a reaffirmation of accreditation in early fall, and it is critical that published materials reflect the correct name. MOTION: Mr. McCool moved, seconded by Mr. Banks, to adopt the resolution recognizing the technical colleges in Kentucky. VOTE: The motion passed unanimously. (The Resolution Recognizing the Technical Colleges is attached as Agenda Item G.) 1998-99 KCTCS BUDGET RECOMMENDATION: Sandy Gubser presented the following recommendation: That the Board of Regents adopt the 1998-99 Budget Resolution. Ms. Gubser presented the executive summary of the budget as included in the KCTCS 1998-99 Annual Budget document distributed prior to the meeting and listed the following as budget priorities:
Following the summary, Mr. Bean asked what would happen if income were not up and if expenses were greater than projected. He said that he is concerned with the response that he received the last time he asked this question—"that everything is okay because needed funds would be taken out of contingencies." He said that he could not tell from the budget the amount of the contingency funds. He asked if the amount of the contingency funds is identified in the budget reduction plan. Ms. Gubser replied that contingency funds are not displayed in most postsecondary education institutions’ budgets. Historically, the community colleges have addressed many of their unforeseen financial situations through contingency funds, and the Community College System has adequate funds to cover contingencies. Kentucky Tech has not had contingency funds in the past, but is now being encouraged to adopt a collegiate model budgeting process and to identify contingency funds. Ms. Gubser said that she sent Board members a plan that outlined the steps that would be followed to address a significant decrease in projected revenue. Additionally, if a shortfall develops, staff will inform the Board, recommend a cutback plan, and request the Board to approve the proposed plan before it is implemented. Mr. Bean stated that his concern is that KCTCS as a new system may have expenses that are not anticipated. He said that the Board has encouraged the colleges to establish reserves and the Board has encouraged staff involved in the preparation of the budget to create reserves. Additionally, he encouraged staff at the local level to advise state-level staff and state-level staff to notify the Board in a prompt manner if an income or expense problem occurs or if the need arises to make a major expenditure out of contingency funds. He requested that the Finance Committee and the Board be kept informed. Dr. Ramsey said that management responsibility and accountability are being placed at the local level as much as possible. Local managers will be allowed to make decisions that they have not been able to make in the past, allowing them to economize and realize savings. They will have the opportunity to carry savings forward as these funds will not be recaptured at the central level in all cases. This provides a strong incentive and promotes management accountability at the local level. MOTION: Mr. Banks moved, seconded by Mr. Powell, to adopt the KCTCS 1998-99 Budget Resolution. VOTE: A roll call vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously. (The Budget Adoption Resolution is attached as Agenda Item I.) Dr. Gordon Davies, President of the Council for Postsecondary Education, joined the meeting and Chair Johnson introduced him. Dr. Davies thanked the Board for their support and commended them on their wisdom for soliciting the services of Dr. Hockaday. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INFRASTRUCTURE Dr. Ronald Moore, Interim Vice President for Information Technology, reported that the software vendor for the administrative, academic, and student information systems should be identified by June 24. Also, individuals from Bell South and GTE and other networking engineers are working to develop the network design. Dr. Moore is working with the state Department of Information Systems (DIS) on ways to improve the state’s "Kentucky Information Highway" in order for it to be able to handle KCTCS requirements. There is a lot of synergy between the Commonwealth Virtual University (CVU) and the Commonwealth Virtual Library (CVL), both of which will require the newest technologies in order to support postsecondary education. Dr. Ramsey expressed his appreciation to Dr. Moore for his leadership in this project. He continued by saying that the project does have some risks, and several sources for funding are being explored. He mentioned positive conversations with CPE staff about opportunities for partnerships with the CVU and discussions with Lee Todd who is heading the CVU Distance Learning Advisory Committee effort. The Workforce Development Trust Fund is a potential source of funds to help with the project. Chair Johnson stated that she believes that the technology infrastructure is very important and fund raising efforts through the foundations could be used if needed. Mr. Bean asked if the project is being developed based on an assumption that the required infrastructure will be available and thus state-of-the-art hardware and software are being included. Dr. Moore responded that the infrastructure needed is currently not within the Commonwealth, but the Commonwealth is looking at upgrading the Kentucky Information Highway in order to handle the software KCTCS needs. The software is very powerful and requires very high-speed lines. The idea is to put together a plan in conjunction with the Commonwealth to upgrade those lines in a timely fashion. The CVU and CVL will require the same kinds of lines. There are over 100 KCTCS sites, and the CVU and CVL must reach those sites if the HB1 goals of seamless education and statewide student access are to be accomplished. A server on loan from IBM is running at the University of Louisville until a permanent site can be located. It will provide e-mail and Internet access for KCTCS, and the new domain for KCTCS is kctcs.edu. The technical colleges will be the first to use the new network because the Community College System is currently being served by the University of Kentucky. Mr. McCool asked what the estimated monthly operating cost would be for the technical colleges. Dr. Moore explained that the budget was not broken down by branch, but the total budget is about $18 million. His suggestion would be that the network cost be borne by the central administration as a cost of doing business for the whole System. The schools should pay for the wiring and networking on their campuses. Mr. Powell asked for a list of the 15 hub sites. Dr. Moore said this would be mailed to Board members. Additionally, he said the sites would be at population centers in the state and more than likely at research or regional universities. If there is no regional or research university at the location, a community college or technical college will serve as the site. The design engineers will take the approach of determining the lowest-cost way to accomplish the objective. Mr. Hoseus asked if there would be cost sharing among the various partners—CVU, CVL, and corporations. Dr. Moore replied that work is underway on this. Ms. Littrell said that the Board’s goal is to develop a world-class Community and Technical College System, and to do so requires the System to be on the cutting edge of technology. She said that she is convinced that the administrative systems are critical to providing the support services that the campuses need to provide first-class instruction to students and to business and industry, and she introduced a resolution to implement the administrative systems. MOTION: Ms. Lutz moved, seconded by Mr. Powell, that the Board adopt the resolution as presented by Ms. Littrell. VOTE: The motion passed unanimously. (The Resolution to Implement the Administrative Systems is attached as Agenda Item H.) PERSONNEL POLICIES RECOMMENDATION:Ms. Gubser presented the following recommendation: That the Board of Regents adopt the personnel policies delineated in the Personnel Policy Manual. (Manual was distributed prior to the meeting.) Al Bunnett of the Hay Group presented a summary of the major changes made in the policies since the Board’s meeting in May. Following the presentation, Mr. Bean referenced the last sentence of the fourth paragraph on Page 47 in the manual. He suggested the following editorial change: that the word "additionally" and a comma be inserted at the beginning of the last sentence. The revised sentence would read "Additionally, each party pays for its own cost of representation." This makes it clear that the cost of representation does not fall under the 5 percent cap. Also, Mr. Bean said that he wanted to thank Steve Bolton for his letter and that he had read it. Chair Johnson thanked the ad hoc committee members for their work and said it was time to dissolve the committee and to send future personnel policy issues to the Finance, Administration, and Technology Committee (FATC). Chair Johnson requested that the FATC review the additional personnel items from Mr. Bunnett and the issues listed in Mr. Bolton’s letter and include these in the Committee’s report to the Board in September. She also said that Dr. Hanel has indicated that he would like to continue to be involved in personnel issues. Dr. Hanel said that it is very important that the faculty and staff representatives from both branches continue to be involved in personnel issues. It was agreed that these individuals would be included in the review of future personnel issues either through FATC or a subcommittee of FATC. MOTION: Ms. Fiorella moved, seconded by Mr. McCool, to adopt the personnel policies delineated in the Personnel Policy Manual and as clarified on Page 47 of the Manual. MOTION TO AMEND: Mr. Russow moved, seconded by Dr. Hanel, that the motion be amended to include changing the word "without" to "with" on the second line of the first bullet on Page 5 in the Manual and changing the word "every" to "demonstrated" on the third line of the same bullet. VOTE ON MOTION TO AMEND: The motion passed unanimously. VOTE ON AMENDED MOTION: A roll call vote was taken and the amended motion passed unanimously. COMPREHENSIVE POLICY ON JOINT AND RECOMMENDATION:Dr. Newberry presented the following recommendation: That the Board of Regents adopt a resolution COLLABORATIVE endorsing the development of a policy on joint and collaborative PROGRAMMING programming between the Community College System and the Technical Institutions Branch which both promotes the establishment of an integrated, coordinated system of postsecondary education and ensures compliance with the standards of regional accrediting agencies. Dr. Newberry explained that this resolution would set the stage for the adoption of guidelines for a new policy that is central to the success of KCTCS. HB1 has a very high vision, which includes the creation of a seamless system of postsecondary education that includes maximizing access to students and a powerful collaboration between the two branches of KCTCS. Dr. Newberry said that the two branches have different accrediting bodies. The technical colleges are accredited by the Commission on Occupational Education, and the community colleges are accredited by the Commission on College, SACS. The SACS Fact Finding team identified five broad areas of concern and one of the areas was "credit transfer policies." The Fact Finding Team Report advised the Community College System that the System needed to give careful consideration to the accreditation implications of any cross-branch programming, and they made reference to key components of the criteria for accreditation. Basically, this mandates that we make sure that faculty members are making the decisions and validating the awarding of credit that is transferred from other institutions. This resolution attempts to establish a balance between the mandate to forge new collaborative programs and the need to adhere to the standards of accrediting agencies. This resolution puts in place the Board’s commitment to ensure that staff members continue to do that in the future. This resolution sets the stage for staff to develop a complete policy document to bring to the Board for review and adoption in September. MOTION: Mr. Bean moved, seconded by Mr. Banks, to adopt the resolution on the development of a comprehensive policy on joint and collaborative programming. VOTE: The motion passed unanimously. (The Resolution on the Development of a Comprehensive Policy on Joint and Collaborative Programming is attached as Agenda Item K.) RATIFICATION OF PERSONNEL ACTION Dr. Ramsey presented the following recommendation: That the Board of Regents ratify the employment of Dr. Thelma J. White as President, Elizabethtown Community College. MOTION: Ms. Lutz moved, seconded by Dr. Hanel, that the Board ratify the employment of Dr.White as President of Elizabethtown Community College. VOTE: The motion passed with 11 "yes" votes. Mr. Banks abstained. RESOLUTIONS OF APPRECIATION RECOMMENDATION: Chair Johnson presented the following recommendation and read the proposed resolution. That the Board of Regents adopt a Resolution of Appreciation to be presented to Donna Davis for her leadership and contribution to the Board during the 1997-98 academic year. MOTION: Chair Johnson moved, seconded by Mr. Bean, that the resolution be adopted. VOTE: The motion passed unanimously. Chair Johnson presented the following recommendation and read the proposed resolution. RECOMMENDATION: That the Board of Regents adopt a Resolution of Appreciation to be presented to Charles O’Neal for his leadership and contribution to the Board during the 1997-98 academic year. MOTION: Ms. Littrell moved, seconded by Mr. Bean, that the resolution be adopted. VOTE: The motion passed unanimously. Chair Johnson read a resolution honoring Dr. James R. Ramsey. MOTION: Chair Johnson moved, seconded by Ms. Read, that the Board of Regents adopt the Resolution of Appreciation to be presented to Dr. Ramsey for his leadership and contribution to KCTCS. VOTE: The motion passed unanimously. Dr. Ramsey expressed his appreciation to the Board members and thanked them for the opportunity to work with them. He challenged them to think about what they and KCTCS are doing to improve the economic opportunity and standard of living in Kentucky. He said that KCTCS is absolutely critical for long-term economic development in the Commonwealth and that Board members should think about that every time they meet. (Resolutions of Appreciation are attached as Agenda Item M.) OTHER BUSINESS COLLABORATIVE EFFORTS The Louisville Area Workforce Development Council, Jefferson Community College, and Jefferson Technical College continue to explore ways the two colleges can expand their collaborative efforts. Representatives from the Council and the two colleges will propose a memorandum of agreement to the Board for its review and consideration at the September meeting. JULY 1 CELEBRATION Chair Johnson encouraged everyone to attend the July 1 celebration in Somerset. REMARKS FROM BOARD MEMBER Ms. Lutz expressed her appreciation to the Board for its efforts and said that she had enjoyed serving on the Board. She said that she had removed her name from the nomination list because of job and personal reasons. Chair Johnson responded that the Board appreciated Ms. Lutz’s service and views that she shared during the past year. PRESIDENTIAL SEARCH Bob Barringer discussed two topics—a proposed procedure for the presidential search and the values important for a leader. Dr. Barringer’s procedure includes a timeline, selective recruitment, in-depth reference checking, and 2-3 day visits for the three finalists. The schedule for the 2-3 day visits should include an opportunity for people who are a part of KCTCS to meet the candidates. Presidents should have an opportunity to meet the candidates by themselves and local board representatives should meet with the candidates. All of these groups will be asked to provide feedback to the Board. A team will visit the home site of the top candidate, possibly the top two candidates. Dr. Barringer said that he hopes to bring candidates to the Board by September or early October. Chair Johnson asked if the search committee will meet in August to review written resumes and Dr. Barringer said that was correct. Bryan Armstrong distributed to Board members a copy of the presidential search brochure. Dr. Barringer said that he could summarize the section pertaining to presidential leadership in seven words--system, role, resources, innovation, advocacy, articulation and support. He asked the Board if the leadership expectations stated in the brochure are still accurate. Mr. Bean asked Dr. Barringer if he would add or exclude any of the items. Dr. Barringer replied that "accountability" is very important, and candidates should be able to show evidence of accountability. Dr. Barringer reviewed the professional qualifications listed in the brochure and said that he would try to document that the selected candidates have those characteristics. Also, he said that the selected candidates must understand both branches and must be able to demonstrate their understanding. NEXT MEETING Chair Johnson announced that the next meeting would be September 15-16, 1998. EXECUTIVE SESSION MOTION: Mr. Hoseus moved, seconded by Mr. Banks, that the Board move into executive session. VOTE: The motion passed unanimously. The Board went into executive session at 12:10 p.m., and came out of executive session at 12:20 p.m. AJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 12:20 p.m. Respectfully submitted, _____________________________________ Cynthia L. Read KCTCS Board of Regents Secretary |