SOUTHWEST COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOUNDATION

REGULAR MEETING

Los Angeles Southwest College

President’s Conference Room, Cox Building

December 12, 2012

6:00 PM

SUMMARY NOTES

(Action Items are underscored)

  1. Call to Order

Meeting was called to order by Chairman Hale at 6:12pm and Avis Boyd was welcomed as our new Director, charged to help build the board operations and funding. Present were members Gene Hale, Marva Smith Battle-Bey, Dr. Sandra Cox, Harold Dickens, Donald Lancaster, Mary Nathan, Ambassador Sidney Williams, and Jack Daniels, Ali El krim and Avis Boyd (each ex-officio).

  1. Public Comment

None

  1. Approval of Summary Notes (October 30, 2012)

Approved Unanimous

  1. Chair’s Report

Chairman Hale reported he met with Avis and that she also met with other board members. Again the goal is to move the agenda the right way, following the strategic plan so there’s no guessing as to the gameplan for the rest of the year. This means a more formal structure with officers. A Vice Chair is needed in the Chair’s absence. Donald Lancaster is interested and available so the Board approved that appointment. Additionally, members were reminded to make their contribution of $1000, or make payments in installments, plus Avis suggested use of a planned campaign approach, namely “45 for 45” might assist garnering the funds. Hale noted that in the past, a payment plan was not necessary and the obligation was freely met. Avis will follow-up regarding the list of those yet unpaid. Dr. Cox suggested individuals affected be approached instead of hosting the topic as a group discussion. Ms. Battle-Bey agreed to work with Avis to secure the outstanding member contributions.

  1. President’s Report

President Daniels announced the 5th floor offices of the Cox Building would be moving to temporary facilities around the campus as remodel construction work commences on the building after January 1st. The construction noise levels necessitated the move.

Daniels acknowledged that Mr. Ali El krim, President of the Associated Student’s Organization (ASO), was in attendance. Since many district colleges have ASO students sit on the board as ex-officio members, Mr. El krim is now invited for that purpose.

Daniels presented that Feb 1st LACCD is hosting a workshop on Foundation matters, to include our role with the district, resources, and beneficial relationships for success. Letters of invitation were extended to Chairman Hale and Mr. Lancaster, and Daniels and Boyd will also attend.

Daniels echoed Avis’ efforts to introduce herself and the Foundation around campus, often availing herself beyond her .5 hourly designation, and expressed his gratitude.

  1. Director’s Report

Boyd expressed her gratitude to be a part of the organization and indicated her first 30 days were filled with meetings, readings, and understanding the finances. She’s met with Board members, staff, students, and faculty to obtain community ascertainments to inform writing the plan and the Board. People have been most gracious and informative. We need not reinvent the wheel but attach our efforts where appropriate with existing college initiatives. She endorsed the new Public Information Officer as the message crafter for LASC which we will echo in our communications, and the PIO will update the Foundation website per Boyd’s inputs. The Board Profile Forms will serve to create bios that can be publicized online. Other documents requiring updates include the letterhead, business cards for Board members (use of hers with Board info included on back). Next 30 days will be spent reconciling documents and creating the Strategic Fund Development Plan, citing press opportunities to garner more public awareness, and social media use to attract people with affinity for the mission. She noted the Foundation office will move to the Student Services Building (SSB) Room 217D in the CalWorks office area of the college.

  1. Finance Report

Daniels presented the financial report (see attached). It was unanimously approved.

He addressed the completed Financial Audit for Fiscal Years ended June 30, 2012 and 2011. There were no significant audit findings or material deficiencies. General recommendations included consideration of multiple banking institutions through which to spread the risk and investment strategy instead of using only one institution; preparing an annual Foundation budget *; use of another accounting software program, such as QuickBooks (QB) instead of Excel, to optimize the accounting processes*; use of a part-time accounting staff position for the indicated workload, especially at year-end – though the Director can assume some roles, a bookkeeper is still advised; making timely deposits (at least every two weeks) – which the addition of the Director will accommodate; regular reconciliation of bank statements with the accounting software used*; securing appropriate insurance coverage for the Foundation*. Two copies of the audit along with the summary correspondence were forwarded to LACCD, where the documentation becomes a part of the district’s audit.

Dr. Cox thought we were using QB but Daniels noted he had not made the transfer of data because there was never a large amount of activity. However he concurs with use of the software’s professional version.

* NOTE: Action was already underway since the previous Board meeting, to accomplish these matters.

  1. Committee Reports
  1. Fund Development / Marketing (Reddock/Dickens)

Dickens noted they have some agenda items but had not met yet.

  1. Governance (Lancaster)

D & O Insurance being addressed with broker from Kaercher & Campbell. Applications to be submitted include quotes for D & O with Employment Practices Liability (EPLI), General Liability, Non-Owned/Hired Commercial Auto, Improper Sexual Conduct, Accident Coverage, and Crime Protection.

By-Laws need updating. Suggested areas of change were provided to the Board. The plan is to identify proposed revisions with specific language amendments at the next Board meeting. Even the name of the organization must be addressed since it is different than that of the college – namely, Southwest Community College Foundation.

Board manuals will be created to include copies of financial reports, minutes, and other pertinent Foundation documents to be available for reference and informed discussions at the meetings.

A Board Profile Form was distributed and completed, plus all were asked to submit short bios to assist ED in compiling information to share publicly regarding our Board constituents

The committee will meet again in mid-January and Lancaster invited any interested member to attend.

The protocol of election of the board and officers versus arbitrary appointments was questioned. Lancaster concurred with the question at hand and agreed to consult By-Laws for timing of formal elections, but noted some things need immediate attention. It was suggested a Nominating Committee be formed to address such future policy. Hale suggested people read the job descriptions provided and consider volunteering now until formal elections. In lieu of that, the Board approved the appointment of Mary Nathan as Secretary since it was questioned if conflict of interest might apply in her role as Treasurer since we bank with her institution, and Harold Dickens was appointed as Treasurer.

  1. Program (Nathan)

Fund development ideas for a signature event in May and a mentoring program are being addressed. Daniels asked they consider something different than the mentoring program, and consider not only the strategic plan but the college’s strategic initiatives, remembering the Foundation supports the college. He also cautioned the committee address the cost of their initiatives and formulate a budget for any events. Nathan noted these items will be added to agenda. Lancaster expressed an interest for Board members to be involved in some college programs such as the mentoring program for young men. Daniels also encouraged the Foundation get an orientation to the physical campus and its programs. El krim suggested members attend events to be able to share personal experiences with potential funders. Daniels suggested a schedule of campus activities be sent to the Board monthly and El krim and Boyd will work on this.

  1. Finance/ Audit (Battle-Bey)

Marva noted her desire to chair the Audit Committee since Dickens will now be Finance Committee Chair as Treasurer. Authorized signatures on financial paperwork was addressed and reviewing auditors for next year starting now. Daniels will research potential audit companies and two or three will be invited to be part of an RFP in January or February for a May 1 award. Also looked at monthly expenditures and need for a bookkeeper. The check volume is low but someone is still needed. Boyd will address hiring someone.

The 2012-2013 Budget was presented, noting expenses only because revenue is to come from the Fundraising Committee. We need to raise money to cue any spending of that money. Year-end is June 30th with expenditures outlined from 7/1/12 to 6/30/13. Lancaster questioned if any grant opportunities were yet identified and Boyd replied no. Battle-Bey is on the Fundraising Committee and Hale endorsed her public exposure and asked since there is no Vice Chair that in Reddock’s absence, Battle-Bey will pitch-in and support their efforts, while he also will make the commitment he would actively support fundraising however necessary. The Board approved the budget as presented.

  1. Future Meeting Dates and Places

Chairman Hale expressed general satisfaction with the Board’s direction but emphasized the need for board members to participate and to get to meetings on time so there’s no energy lost. Everybody’s time is valuable. Our mission is to help people obtain an education. He again availed himself to help wherever needed. Positive board reports encourage everyone!

Boyd expressed a need to be able to address account matters with California Federal Credit Union, though not a signature on checks. The Board will draft a letter requesting Boyd have general finance question authority.

NEXT MEETING place was discussed. Daniels indicated a request was made of Ms. Battle-Bey to host our meetings at Vermont Slauson Economic Development offices located at 1130 W. Slauson Avenue in Los Angeles, while the Cox Building is under construction. Battle-Bey concurred and Board moved meetings to the 2nd Wednesday of each month, beginning in February - February 13th. Boyd will provide the Strategic Fund Development plan to the Board via email for Jan 9th, with opportunities for committees to vet the plan in January with a full discussion at the February Board meeting.

Meeting adjourned at approximately 7:30 pm.

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