The Northeast Texas Community College Board of Trustees held its regular January meeting later than usual on Tuesday, Feb. 7th. The meeting was delayed due to scheduling conflicts. All seven board members were present.
Dr. Ron Clinton, NTCC President, announced that spring enrollment is tracking flat after the census date. Numbers are very similar to last spring, with about a .5% decrease in head count and 2.1% increase in contact hours.
“We are seeing trends that are consistent with enrollment patterns at other colleges across the state. Even though we continue struggling to regain students that were lost during the pandemic, we feel that we are moving in the right direction,” Clinton said.
Clinton gave a brief legislative update. He said that February is a relatively slow time in the legislative process as committees and sub-committees are newly formed and just beginning their work. However, he said that the preliminary budget bills by both the House and the Senate are very encouraging, as they include the $650 million in additional funding for community colleges recommended by the Commission on Community College Finance.
“This is very good news and shows evidence of support on both sides of the legislature. We are hopeful that it will result in favorable outcomes during this session for Texas community colleges,” Clinton said.
Clinton and Board Chairman, Chuck Johns, accompanied several students and faculty members to Austin on January 26th to celebrate Community College day at the capitol. Clinton said it was an exciting day and the group had the chance to meet with local legislators.
After approving the consent agenda, the board denied a request for a waiver of penalty and interest on Camp County property #8046. Johns commented that the board has historically denied these types of requests and didn’t want to set a precedent for doing so.
Dr. Jonathan McCullough, Executive Vice President for Advancement, presented a proposal for the board to approve a building project that will add additional space to the Carroll Shelby Automotive Program. He recommended that the board approve a bid from Stansell Construction for $226,853, which they did unanimously. The project is being completed using funds raised by the NTCC Foundation.
The board approved the hiring of three employees for the new position of College Navigator. The board also released three employees from their contracts. These included the Director of Testing, Head Men’s Soccer Coach and the Director of Residential Life.
