By Neosho County Board of Trustees
CHANUTE, Kan. —The Neosho County Community College (NCCC) Board of Trustees held its September 2024 Board of Trustees Meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024. The meeting was called to order at 9 a.m. and adjourned at 10 a.m.
Board Vacancy
In accordance with Kansas State Statute 71-201, the Board unanimously approved the appointment of Mike De La Torre as a Board of Trustees member to fill the unexpired term of Charles Boaz through 2026. The appointment will become effective upon De La Torre taking the oath of office.
De La Torre was one of two candidates who applied and interviewed with the Board to fill the role. He has previously served on the NCCC Foundation Board for many years and currently serves as the Chanute High School girls tennis coach.
RNR and Budget Hearings
The Board held hearings for the Revenue Neutral Rate (RNR) limit and the 2024-25 budget. There was no public comment, and the Board approved the budget and RNR amount at rate of 39.509 mills, which is the same rate as 2023-2024.
President’s Report
NCCC President Dr. Brian Inbody reported an increase in enrollment of 16.28% for the summer semester, an increase of 0.37% for the fall semester, a total increase of 1.72% for the 2024-25 academic year.
Dr. Inbody provided updates on various projects across campus; the final piece of equipment for the Automotive Lab at the Mitchell Career and Technology Center (MCTC) is ready to be delivered; the former Energy Management House was craned into place at the MCTC and will be used by the various programs on-site as a secondary laboratory; new, smaller boiler units were installed in Rowland Hall; the
drainage phase of the Student Union Plaza project is underway.
Dr. Inbody also reported the approval of an Amazon Locker to be placed on the Chanute Campus. Amazon Lockers are a self-service delivery location which can be accessed 24/7.
“This free service from Amazon will allow students — and eventually, members of the community — to have packages delivered to secured outdoor lockers,” Dr. Inbody said. “Students will be able to pick up packages as soon as they are delivered, instead of waiting for the package to go through our process. I think this will be highly popular among our students and improve their experience here on the Chanute Campus!”
The locker will be situated next to the bike rack outside of the Chapman Learning Center. All internet and electrical preparations for the locker have been completed, but an installation date is yet to be confirmed.
In alignment with the Strategic Plan to increase communication with the public, Dr. Inbody reported that a Yearly Report magazine will be distributed to all Neosho County residents. The Yearly Report will serve to highlight the accomplishments of students and employees, and provide a more detailed look into the college’s operations and service area impact to Neosho County residents.
Operations Department Report
Operations Department ReportNCCC Vice President for Operations Kerry Ranabargar presented the Operations Department’s annual report to the Board.
The Operations department is currently in charge of custodial support for over 311 thousand square feet across 19 buildings, groundskeeping for 65 acres, security services for approximately 280 residents and nearly 300 home sporting events, and I.T. infrastructure management of over 500 computers and 20
servers. The department also completes annual reviews and updates to the Emergency Action Plan, the Capital Improvement Plan, and the Facilities Master Plan.
Ranabargar reported a 6% increase in work orders for 2023-24 over the previous year, though most of the increase was due to preventative maintenance and cleaning of new areas. Nearly half of all workorders are related to safety or routine inspections, and another 25% are custodial or package-related orders.
Ranabargar highlighted the department’s list of projects for the year which included renovations to the baseball, softball, and volleyball facilities, roof and parking lot work at the MCTC, and ceiling and carpet replacement in the Chapel, the CAVE, and Sanders, Stoltz, and Rowland Halls.
Major upcoming projects for the department include the Student Union Plaza project which began September 3, and renovations to the auditorium which are expected to begin Fall 2025.
Director of Nursing Resignation
Trustees approved the resignation of Pamela Covault as Director of Nursing.
“I will very much miss Pam,” Dr. Inbody said. “Her leadership of the Mary Grimes School of Nursing has been explementary. “Thank you, Pam for a wonderful career!”
In other business, trustees:
—Approved the minutes from the August 14 meeting.
—Heard a Treasurer’s report from Chief Financial Officer Sandi Solander and approved claims for disbursement for the month of August.
—Heard a report from Board member David Peter on the Kansas Association of Community Colleges (KACC) Annual Meeting. Peter reported topics of discussion included Employee Assistance Programs, artificial intelligence, and solutions for data collection and analysis.
—Heard a report from Faculty Senate President Paul Walcher. The Honors Program will have 13 students this year, the highest group since 2016. The Theatre department had 14 students audition for the fall musical, “Almost, Maine.” Math faculty attended training from the Kansas Board of Regents on Math Pathways and corequisite design. First Year Seminar classes have been evaluating goals and comparing those goals to the student’s course load.
—Approved the following hires: Jodi Murrow as Adult Basic Education Instructor, and Alayna Finuf as Administrative Assistant to the Vice President for Student Learning.
—Approved an updated Tobacco Use Policy, which includes guidelines for tobacco use only within personal vehicles on campus.
—Approved a pay increase for employees in the Title III program on par with raises approved for other college employees during the May 8 Board of Trustees meeting.
—Approved the serving of alcohol on the Chanute Campus at the Diamond Jubilee event on Friday, Nov. 22, 2024, from 6-8 p.m.
—Approved a date of Wednesday, Oct. 30, at 8:30 a.m. in the board room for their fall retreat.
—Heard no public comment.
