The Northeast Texas Community College Foundation held its annual business meeting on Tuesday, April 18th in the Community Room on the NTCC campus. This is the one time each year that the Foundation Board gathers to address action items and hear reports from various departments and subcommittees.
The meeting was chaired by President of the Foundation Board, Rick Nelson. After a tabletop discussion over a catered lunch, members voted on several action items before hearing reports on various topics. Two board offices were filled with Jill Lowry being elected Vice President and Mary Katherine Milam being named Secretary/Treasurer.
Dr. Ron Clinton was first on the agenda with a legislative update. He said that the Texas Association of Community Colleges (TACC) has been working hard to ensure that Texas colleges receive their funding allotments prescribed by HB8, which passed last session.
"Essentially, for the first time ever, we are now being funded almost completely by how well we do our job. It's not just about enrolling students - it's about making sure they are successful and seeing them through graduation and beyond," Clinton said. He also added that this would be his last Foundation board meeting, as he is retiring in June. Clinton said the search for the next president is currently underway, with applications closing February 21st.
Brandi Cave, NTCC Vice President for Administrative Services, gave an update on the Foundation’s annual audit and investments. She explained that the NTCC Foundation is audited at the same time as the college and that the auditing firm issued a clean opinion with no findings or recommendations. She said that the Foundation’s investments are doing well with an improved net position.
Dr. Jon McCullough, NTCC Executive Vice President for Advancement, gave a report on giving and scholarships. He said that donations to the Foundation continue to grow, with 2024 being the strongest year for fundraising (gift and grants) to date.
Nita May and Maria Gonzalez from the Development office gave an update on scholarship applications. They asked for volunteers to consider serving on the committee to read and score scholarship applications for the 2025-2026 school year. President Nelson added that he has served on this committee for several years and finds it to be a very rewarding to read the student essays and learn about their motivation for coming to college. Gonzalez said that applications are currently open and they anticipate many will come in before the priority deadline in March.
Mason May, Director of Work4College, gave a brief update on how the Whatley Employment Enhancement Grant (administered by the Foundation), helped him purchase landscaping materials for the Spring 2025 Work4College students. The tools are being used to complete various campus beautification projects. The students each stood up and talked a bit about their experience in Work4College. These students included: Pablo Badillo-Navarro of Rockwall, Juan Benzor of Pittsburg, Peter Donnan of Glasgow, Scotland, Lochlan Scott of Glasgow, Scotland, & Ethan Wagner of Odessa.
McCullough gave a brief update on upcoming events before Nelson adjourned the meeting.
Members of the NTCC Foundation Board include:
President: Mr. Rick Nelson
Vice President: Jill Lowry (newly-elected)
Secretary/Treasurer: Mary Katherine Milam (newly-elected)
Ms. Carolyn Adkins
Dr. Jim Archer
Ms. Kelly Baker
Ms. Kaye Brison
Mr. John Bryan
Mr. Russell East
Mr. Chad Elledge
Ms. Shelly Elliott
Ms. Sondra Fowler
Mr. Tim Lambert
Mr. Marc McDaniel
Ms. Mary Lou Mowery
Ms. Stacy Ratliff
Dr. Eric Reed
Mr. Robin Sharp
Ms. Stephanie Thurman
Mr. Kerry Wootten
Ex Officio Members include:
Ms. Amy Adkins
Ms. Brandi Cave
Dr. Ron Clinton
Ms. Carolyn Franks
Ms. Maria Gonzales
Dr. Anna Ingram
Ms. Kim Irvin
Mr. Mason May
Ms. Nita May
Dr. Jonathan McCullough
Ms. McKenna Neal
Ms. Jodi Pack
Dr. Kevin Rose
