NORTHERN ESSEX COMMUNITY COLLEGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
MINUTES OF MEETING (OFFICIAL) – November 3, 2021
A meeting of the Northern Essex Community College Board of Trustees was held in Room TC103A&B in the Hartleb Technology Center at the Haverhill Campus on November 3, 2021 at 5:00 pm. A Zoom Teleconference option was also available.
Present:
Ms. Borislow
Mr. Cox
Ms. Fernandez (arrived at 5:21 pm)
Mr. Guilmette
Mr. Linehan
Ms. Modeen
Ms. Sanchez
Ms. Worden (via Zoom)
Not Present: Ms. O’Rorke, Ms. Paley Nadel, Ms. Quiles
Also Present: President Glenn
CALL TO ORDER:
Chairwoman Borislow called the meeting to order at 5:02 PM with a roll call of attendance and a quorum present.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
Chairwoman Borislow asked for a motion to approve the June meeting minutes.
On a Motion presented by Trustee Linehan and seconded by Trustee Guilmette, by roll call vote, the Board unanimously approved the October 6, 2021 minutes as presented.
CORRESPONDENCE:
There was none.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS:
a) Introduction of Newly Hired Employees (Verbal)
President Glenn welcomed one new employee who joined the meeting via Zoom. He introduced Charlotte Foudy, NECC’s new Full-Time COVID Response Team & Contact Tracing Assistant. The Board welcomed Ms. Foudy.
EDUCATION REPORT:
a) First Ninety Days Report by Vice President Paul Beaudin (Verbal)
President Glenn introduced Dr. Paul Beaudin, Vice President of Academic Affairs, who provided a report on his first 90 days.
Dr Beaudin thanked the Trustees for the opportunity to report on his start at NECC. He noted that much of his focus throughout his career as a teacher or as an administrator in higher education has been framed within the context of value, and to celebrate the value of formal study for poor and working-class students. Dr. Beaudin went on to note that he believes that the student experience here at NECC is unbelievably valuable, and that NECC is truly valuable in what it provides to the student. The college’s value, he noted, is not just the cost of attendance, but that it is an open access institution where the desire for a better life is the only admission requirement.
Dr. Beaudin noted that since arriving on campus in early September, faculty and staff consistently express their care and concern for our students and for their success. It is unusual, he noted, if the care and concern for students is NOT part of the conversation, and noted that this was not necessarily his experience at his last five colleges. His focus has been on the academic value of community colleges, and, unlike baccalaureate institutions, community colleges support students with smaller classes and greater student support services. NECC’s recent NECHE report, he noted, showed this incredible support.
In addition, Dr. Beaudin commented on the college’s recent well-attended Assessment Day and the upcoming International Virtual Exchange program where over 100 students (with the assistance of faculty and Director of Center for Instructional Technology Melba Acevedo) will be participating in a college exchange program in France.
Dr. Beaudin outlined several goals for his first 7-8 months, a few of which were: 1) engaging with faculty governance; 2) support NECC’s academic centers and bring the initial vision of the centers to fruition; 3) bring back 75+ course sections to campus this spring; 4) expand our honors program and bring it to the Lawrence campus as well; 5) update and increase our joint admission agreements with both public and private institutions; 6) collaborate and guide faculty with governance leadership; 7) increase training for faculty to help increase faculty/student interaction in the college’s online offerings; and 8) collaborate with the Deans, faculty, and governance bodies to define new innovative academic programs to provide our graduates with a living wage to live in our local economy.
In closing, Dr Beaudin noted that he is committed to ensure that NECC is the academic college of choice, and he thanked the trustees again for their time.
With no questions, President Glenn and Chairwoman Borislow thanked Dr. Beaudin for his impressive report.
b) All College Assembly Report by ACA Chair Sheila Muller (Verbal)
After his report, Dr. Beaudin then introduced Assistant Professor, Chair of the Business Administration Department, and Chair of the Executive Committee and All College Assembly Sheila Muller who presented the annual report of the ACA for academic year 2020-21.
Ms. Muller noted that much of the work involved in this report covers the ACA work during the Covid era and our back-to-campus efforts.
Currently, the Executive Committee is working on developing several amendments to our 2012 charter which will bring the ACA up-to-date on the college’s Equity Imperative work and will provide students with more opportunities to have a voice in the governance system, as the voice of the student trustee will now be included in the charter. These changes, she noted, will be presented and voted on at the December 6th All College Assembly meeting. In addition, Ms. Muller provided a brief update on the following committees:
1) The IT standing committee has been working on its role within the governance system as well as working on some ongoing communication issues that were expressed during the Covid pandemic. The committee worked with the IT Chair and the Chief Technology Officer to ensure and maintain open and transparent meetings.
2) The Student Affairs standing committee has been active in return-to-campus activities scheduling task force meetings, preparing for class schedules, cleaning, etc. In addition, the Student Affairs committee also has developed a new award for faculty and staff. The Golden Lamp Award will be bestowed upon a member of the faculty and staff and the award is similar to the Student of the Month award.
3) The Finance Committee continues to collaborate with the college’s CFO ensuring that the transition back-to-campus is smooth and that all IT needs are met.
All of the committees will continue their collaborative efforts and continue to explore and activate so that our students have the resources and materials they need on the first day of Spring 2022 classes.
Ms. Muller also briefly noted that the NECHE site visit included a review of our governance system, and the report was well received. One item of note was how often the ACA surveys our contingency on the effectiveness of our governance system., and another comment noted that the current charter is lacking of faculty participation, due to some extent of fewer faculty. With that said, Ms. Muller noted, the ACA will be surveying faculty, and recruiting them to join the committees and meetings with a commitment to do the work.
In closing, Ms. Muller noted that she and the Executive Committee will be working on the following items during the upcoming year:
1) Cataloging the ACA knowledge and institutional memory into an ACA book or warehouse that will include the history of recommendations and actions;
2) Develop document protocols for all ACA work;
3) Develop an onboarding process for new members and new chairs so that members know their role, and there is an adequate transfer of knowledge.
Chairwoman Borislow asked what percentage of faculty are adjunct. Ms. Muller noted that the college has full-time, part- time and adjunct (contract-based) faculty, and those numbers change slightly every year. Last Spring, the college had approximately 77 full-time faculty, and 143 adjuncts and that those numbers had been higher in the previous spring. Ms. Muller noted that the goal of this governance body is to have participation from all faculty, but the reality is that we do not pay stipends to adjuncts to participate, and that voice is important.
President Glenn noted that this fall we are back up to 85 full-time faculty, and our goal for the past several years has been to have at least 65% of our daytime courses taught by full-time faculty, a figure we have exceeded for the past couple of years.
CHAIR REPORT:
Chairwoman Borislow thanked Trustees Linehan and Cox again for their willingness to continue to serve as Trustees well beyond their 10-year commitment to the school.
She then reminded Trustees again of the deadline for completing the Trustees’ required training program and noted that the deadline had been extended to December 1, 2021.
Lastly, Chairwoman Borislow noted that she was fortunate to attend the recent DHE Statewide Trustee Convening. She noted the pride she felt being associated with NECC, and she noted that when sharing information and best practices at NECC, she realizes that NECC tends not to have the challenges that other institutions have, and that is a direct reflection of the hard work of the NECC faculty, staff and leadership team. She thanked the staff for their continued great work to benefit our students.
REPORT OF BOARD COMMITTEES:
a) Audit and Finance Sub-Committee (Verbal)
Sub-Committee Chairman William Cox noted that the committee did not meet this month, so there is no report. The sub-committee will meet in December.
b) Alumni Advancement Sub-Committee (Verbal)
Sub-Committee Chairwoman Pati Fernandez thanked the Trustees who have been able to meet with Vice President of Institutional Advancement Allison Dolan-Wilson to review ways in which this Trustee Committee can assist her and make connections with former Trustees. She encouraged Trustees who had not yet met with Allison to schedule a brief meeting with her. Trustee Fernandez also noted that the sub-committee is still researching the best time to host a Past Trustee breakfast which will be held to help the college re-engage with its past Trustees. When a date is decided, Trustees will be invited to attend.
c) Equity Imperative Sub-Committee (Verbal)
Chairwoman Borislow asked Vice President Noemi Custodia Lora to provide a brief Sub-Committee report. Dr. Noemi Custodia Lora noted that the search for the Chief Officer for the Center of Equity and Social Justice is well under way. Round one interviews will be held this week, and the college expects to name three finalist who will come to campus for a full day visit in mid-November.
d) Nominating Sub-Committee (Verbal)
Chairwoman Borislow noted that there is no update at this time from the Nominating Committee. The College is still waiting to hear about new appointments from the Governor’s Office.
REPORT OF ADMINISTRATION:
a) FY22 Budget Update (Verbal)
President Glenn noted that the budget update remains the same as last month. The college’s budget/spending is on track.
b) NECC 2021 Strategic Plan (Verbal)
President Glenn noted that the college has launched a strategic planning process utilizing a broadly engaging tool called Appreciative Inquiry. Currently, we have a large Core Team (30+ faculty and staff), and a Lead Team (Allison Dolan Wilson, Audrey Ellis and Cheryl Goodwin) guiding the process. The team has spent a good amount of this semester conducting interviews, hosting SOAR forums, and exploring different themes/topics as a result of those forums. Just yesterday, the Core Team met and a first draft of very broad goals were presented: Community Engagement, Creativity and Academic Innovation, Assessment and Informed Practice, Student Support (expansion of ISE), and Employee Excellence.
President Glenn then briefly reviewed the updated Strategic Planning timeline and noted that the team will be refining those goals over the next four weeks and anticipate presenting them to the college community for feedback at the December 6th joint ACA/President’s General Staff meeting. He noted that trustees will also have an opportunity to provide input as will the Board of Higher Education and one of our strategic partners, EAB, for a review of best practices and fine tuning.
From January to June, after goals and strategic initiatives are developed, the Core Team will dissolve and implementation/goal teams will begin their work.
c) Haverhill Campus (Verbal)
By way of campus updates, President Glenn invited trustees to attend the President’s Night Performance of Tiny Beautiful Things which will be held as a live, outdoor performance on Friday evening. He noted that the play is being directed by Professor Brianne Beatrice and a talented group of NECC student performers.
In addition, to note, 100% of the NECC Radiologic Technology graduates passed their exam at very first try which is testament to quality of our healthcare programs.
President Glenn noted that we are midstream in implementation of the upcoming vaccine requirement. Students have been notified of the requirement, and we are still impact- bargaining with the unions for the faculty/staff implementation phase. Our IT department has developed a vaccine portal so that faculty/staff/students will be able to upload their vaccination documents. An accommodations process is in place, but we expect that the granting of accommodations will be very rare. President Glenn thanked Dr. Jennifer Mezquita, Michael McCarthy, and their staff for their work on this important project.
d) Lawrence Campus (Verbal)
President Glenn noted that across both campuses, for the Spring 2022 semester, the college is aiming to have 75% of our classes with some in-person component. He thanked Vice President of Academic Affairs Paul Beaudin for his leadership in this effort and noted that he is thankful for his combination of experience and for his goals for the year.
e) Overview from October 27 DHE Statewide Trustee Convening (Verbal)
President Glenn thanked the several trustees who attended the Trustee Gathering. Commissioner Santiago and board chair Chris Gabrielli outlined a number of important agenda items including the DHE Equity Agenda and financing for higher education.
President Glenn also thanked NECC’s Director of Institutional Effectiveness who led one of the DHE breakout session on enrollment and the use of our dashboards in decision-making.
In closing, President Glenn noted that he is looking forward to getting back to gathering for a Trustee Holiday Dinner. This year’s dinner will take place on December 1st, immediately following the meeting, and Cheryl Goodwin will be in touch with details.
NEW BUSINESS
a) Grants
President Glenn noted that the two (2) grants totaling $32,541, listed below and are slated for approval.
1) Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education: Transition to Community College Supplemental (ADM-3704-110321)
$12,000
2) Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education: Adult Basic Education Supplemental Funds (ADM-3705-110321)
$20,541
On a Motion presented by Trustee Cox, and seconded by Trustee Worden, by roll call vote, the board unanimously approved the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education: Transition to Community College Supplemental grant (ADM-3704-110321) in the amount of $12,000; and the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education: Adult Basic Education Supplemental Funds grant (ADM-3705-110321) in the amount of $20,541.
ADJOURNMENT: With no other business, Chairwoman Borislow adjourned the meeting at 5:58PM.
