NORTH GEORGIA TECHNICAL COLLEGE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Meeting Minutes
November 5, 2008
Opening:
Mr. Jeff Gooch called the Board of Directors’ meeting to order at 12:06 p.m. on November 5, 2008, in the Boardroom of the Visual Arts Building on the Clarkesville Campus. The reporting period for committee reports is August 16 – October 15, 2008.
Present: Don Jamison, Joe Hatfield, Toby Goodlett, Jim Wade, Jeff Gooch, Beth Wright, Joe Wilbanks, and Kathy Blalock
Absent: Jeff Patterson
Staff: Steve Dougherty, Mark Ivester, Mike King, Judy Taylor, George Sanders, Larry Culpepper, Jim Watkins, and Jeannie Barrett
Guests: Adie Shimandle, TCDA Director; Gene Brown and Lynn Jackson, Lanier Tech Board of Directors; and Becky Smith, Lanier Tech Administrative Assistant
A. Invocation and Introductions
George Sanders gave the invocation for the meeting. Adie Shimandle will be conducting New Board Member Orientation and Governance of Technical Colleges following the meeting. Kathy Blalock, Joe Wilbanks, Gene Brown, and Lynn Jackson will be attending the training the training session.
B. Approval of Agenda
A motion to approve the agenda was made by Mr. Wilbanks and approved by all.
C. Approval of Minutes
A motion to approve the minutes of the July 25, 2008, meeting was made by Mr. Jamison and approved by all.
D. Committee Reports
Administrative Services (presented by Mark Ivester)
· The shipping and receiving position was filled internally with Kelly Vaughn. The position now includes tracking and reconciling all fixed assets for all three campuses. The position was vacated by the recent retirement of Frank Raper.
· General Education classes were successfully relocated from the Parker Nellis Building to the Visual Tech Building for the start of fall quarter. The newer Visual Tech Building provides students a much improved learning environment.
· The 3n Emergency Awareness System was successfully implemented on all three campuses fall quarter. All students and employees were asked to register by providing up to six contacts. The system fills a much needed void as a means of communicating to students and staff during emergency situations.
· The 2008 financial audit has been completed. The audit resulted in zero findings. Additionally, due to the merger with Appalachian Technical College, it was determined that more detailed audit procedures must be performed in order to satisfy COC requirements. The auditor returned the following week and performed additional tests and reviews. The business office, under short notice, received no audit findings.
· A proposed reduction in force plan was submitted to Commissioner Jackson for approval. The plan included eliminating the following positions: (1) culinary arts instructor; (1) CIS instructor; (1) machine tool instructor; vineyard tech instructor; Director of Special Populations; Director of Special Services; (1) Faculty Secretary. These steps were necessary in order to operate within an 8% reduction in funds in the 2009 base allocation.
· Continued work on 5-year facility master plan.
· Preparation for the possibility of additional budget reductions from the state.
A motion to approve the financial report as presented was made by Mr. Hatfield and approved by all.
Blairsville Campus (presented by Beth Wright)
· Dorothy Mayfield and Larry Culpepper attended a planning meeting with the 21st Century Director on August 20. This is the fifth year at Blairsville Campus. Attendance at these sessions is between 90 and 190 participants.
· Work Ready testing is ongoing. Several individual tests were conducted and all of the Towns County High School seniors were tested.
Currahee Campus (presented by Toby Goodlett)
· The 21st Century Grant was resubmitted for approval, and Stephens County Middle School did not get approved for the grant.
· There were 139 Work Ready tests administered this month.
· There were 2,587 guests that attended events at the conference center.
· The Fall Festival to benefit March of Dimes was held October 30, and $1400 was raised.
Economic Development (presented by Joe Wilbanks)
· Judy Taylor, Vice President of Economic Development, announced her retirement effective January 1, 2009. She will begin a new job at the Habersham Chamber of Commerce.
· The Economic Development Department hosted the kick-off meeting for the Habersham Chamber of Commerce Leadership 2008-09 Class on August 27. After remarks from Steve Dougherty, the session focused on Leadership Training.
· Economic Development hosted a book signing, lecture and luncheon by a nationally recognized author, Craig Cochran, on September 18. About 40 people attended, and the evaluations were very positive.
· Judy Taylor and Sandra Maughon attended the Georgia Energy and Industrial Construction Consortium at the Georgia Power Corporate Office Auditorium on October 6. The meeting was very informative and presented information for the nine technical colleges participating in the energy grant.
· Work Ready is gaining momentum, and most area high school seniors are scheduled for testing before Christmas or shortly after the first of the year. Towns County High School seniors were tested October 15 and Habersham County High School is scheduled for November 12 and 19. Franklin County has had several community assessments, and a Saturday paper and pencil test is scheduled at the Royston First Baptist Church on November 1.
· Economic Development will be hosting Creative Economies Summit III on November 20 at the Blairsville Campus.
· The Department will be utilizing an ARC grant to develop a Local Food Guide by the end of December.
Institutional Effectiveness (presented by Don Jamison)
· Prepared and submitted letters regarding new programs and program revisions to COE and COC.
· Worked with Administrative and Educational Support Units and instructors in completing their FY08 Annual Plans along with the applicable sections of the FY09 Annual Plans.
· Relocated Gale Watkins’ office from Mobley Building to Carlton Center, Academic Affairs area.
· Preparing the COE Annual Report for 2008.
A motion to approve the continuation of the full statement of mission for another year as presented was made by Mr. Hatfield and approved by all. Dr. Wade made a motion that the mission statement be amended as necessary, and the motion approved by all.
Academic Affairs (presented by Kathy Blalock)
· Chicken and Grits/Advisory Board meetings were held on October 14 at 5:30 pm in the dining hall on the Clarkesville Campus. Roger Tutterow was the guest speaker and gave an excellent presentation on the economy.
A motion to approve Synergy Health as a clinical site for the Nursing program in Blairsville was made by Joe Wilbanks and approved by all.
A motion to approve USavIt Pharmacy (Clayton) as a clinical site for the Pharmacy Technology program was made by Don Jamison and approved by all.
Student Affairs (presented by Jim Wade)
· NGTC participated in the Habersham County Relay for Life event held on August 22, 2008, and raised $4,000.
· Pioneer RESA hosted a meeting to establish additional courses that NGTC will provide which offers computer classes for PLU credits earned by teachers to be used for certification/recertification.
· Grace Duvall prepared a recommendation for Nurse Education, Practice, and Retention grant which would provide $250,000 to develop and implement a bridge program from Certified Nursing Assistant and Licensed Practical Nursing to Registered Nursing.
· There were 170 students checked into Bryant Resident Hall for Fall Quarter.
· A Job Fair/Career Expo was held at the Currahee Campus on October 10 with 40 employers participating. Many of the NGTC students attended the Expo.
Chairman’s Report
· Mr. Gooch reminded everyone that the reporting period was August 16 – October 15.
· The Local Board Bylaws have been reviewed and discussed at a previous meeting. The final version approved by the State Board was distributed prior to this meeting. Mr. Gooch asked for any additions to the bylaws or discussion that the board may have.
· Copies of newspaper articles that included NGTC were distributed.
A motion was made by Dr. Wade to accept the bylaws as presented, and the motion was approved by all.
President’s Report
· A new Master Plan is being developed. The Foundation will be asked to help with some of these projects.
· A new Strategic Plan is also being prepared which is off schedule due to the initial merger plans.
· The Appalachian merger will not be going forward; however, Fannin County will be added to the NGTC service area probably by January 1. This will possibly include two board members: Lynn Doss and John Chastain.
· The Career Academy grant was pulled. NGTC was ready to move forward but Habersham County schools could not afford the commitments required of them at this time.
· Dual enrollment will be continued with Habersham Central.
· NGTC has implemented the 8% budget cut that was requested. There is reason to believe there will be another cut and if so, a reduction in force will be necessary.
· An Articulation Agreement has been made with North Georgia College and State University. A news release and picture were shared with the board members.
Adjournment:
Mr. Gooch adjourned the meeting at 1:10 p.m. The next meeting will be December 3, 2008.
Minutes submitted by: ___________________________
President
North Georgia Technical College
Approved by: ___________________________
Chair
North Georgia Technical College