Trustees Minutes May 2023 | National Park College

NPC Minutes of the Board of Trustees Meeting

May 24, 2023

The National Park College Board of Trustees met in regular session on May 24, 2023, beginning at 3:30 PM. Trustees present were Mike Bush, Joyce Craft, Jim Hale, Rhonda Harrington, Bev Joe, Lance Porter, Forrest Spicher, Renee Westfall, and Raymond Wright.

Staff, faculty members, and guests present were Bill Allison, Thia Armstrong, Blake Butler, Chris Coble, Wade Derden, Jessie Ellis, Jennifer Evans, Kelli Embry, Roger Fox, Michelle Godwin, John Hogan, Brad Hopper, Lisa Hopper, Jill Houlihan, Brian Kroening, Julie LaRue, Melony Martinez, Mark Oliver, Andrew Pennington, Scott Post, Kristin Quintanilla, Bill Ritter, Nathan Ritter, Miki Smith, Jerry Thomas, Rich Thompson, Darla Thurber, Lynn Valetutti, Amy Watson, Tim Webb. Also in attendance were Leigh Ann Biernat with Stephens Inc., Ryan Bowman with Friday Firm and Gary Troutman with Hot Springs Chamber of Commerce.

The media was notified of the meeting.

Chair Joyce Craft opened the meeting with a welcome.

Trustee Hale provided the invocation.

Items for Action

Trustee Wright made a motion to approve April 26, 2023, minutes as presented. Trustee Porter seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.
Trustee Spicher made a motion to approve the March 2023 financial statements as presented by Andrew Pennington, Controller, during the Finance Committee Meeting. The motion passed unanimously during the Finance Committee Meeting, negating a second.
Wade Derden, Vice President for College Advancement, presented the proposed addition of the new Policy 4.540 Background Checks. A draft was vetted by Human Resources and the Attorney General’s office. Proposed revisions were opened for the required public comment period. Trustee Westfall moved to accept the addition of Policy 4.540 Background Checks. Trustee Joe seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.
Wade Derden, Vice President for College Advancement, presented the proposed revision of Policy 5.000 Responsibilities of Faculty. A draft was presented to the President’s Cabinet for review. Proposed revisions were opened for the required public comment period. Trustee Bush moved to accept the addition of Policy 5.000 Responsibilities of Faculty. Trustee Porter seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.
Wade Derden, Vice President for College Advancement, presented the proposed revision of Policy 5.140 Faculty Status. A draft was presented to the President’s Cabinet for review. Proposed revisions were opened for the required public comment period. Trustee Wright moved to accept the addition of Policy 5.140 Faculty Status. Trustee Westfall seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.
Vice President for Administration, Kelli Embry, presented a resolution (2023-C) to approve the tuition and fee structure for the academic, fiscal year 2023-2024. Trustee Joe noted the per-credit-hour amount is $15 and the fee amount is $5; Embry concurred. Trustee Porter asked if there was a cap. Embry explained that students can take more than 15 credit hours but tuition is capped at 15 credit hours. Trustee Spicher made a motion to approve Resolution 2023-C as presented. Trustee Harrington seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.
Vice President for Administration, Kelli Embry, presented a resolution (2023-D) to approve the FY 2024 annual budget. Embry explained that the FY24 budget is fiscally conservative and balanced based on projected revenue of $20,762,023. Trustee Wright asked how the FY24 budget compared to the FY23 budget. Controller Andrew Pennington explained that the FY23 budget was 19.9M and the FY24 budget is 20.7M. Trustee Bush made a motion to approve Resolution 2023-D as presented. Trustee Joe seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.
Vice President for Administration, Kelli Embry, presented a resolution (2023-E) to approve the intent to issue bonds. Resolution 2023-E authorizes the College to issue bonds and finalize the service agreement so we can continue with the new residential facility project. The anticipated cost of the housing project is 10.5M, financed with bond proceeds and College funds. Trustee Hale asked the following questions: what does the approval of the resolution mean for the College; are we going to incur service costs; If we approve this today, what will we get back if it comes in at 15M? Kelli Embry noted that the College doesn’t engage the architect. The architect will work under Servitas as the Colleges’ developer and the maximum for this project will be 10.5M. Trustee Hale expressed concern that the College would have to pay the architect and engineers to develop drawings and specifications so the contractors and subcontractors could do their work. Dr. Hogan explained that the cost would depend on the process once the program management agreement was executed. Additionally, this process is identical to the agreement the first time housing was built. The final plan will be presented to the Board at the June meeting. Trustee Hale asked if the Board or College could give input on who the contractor would be going forward. Dr. Hogan clarified that the Board would have input but the relationship would be between Servitas and the construction manager. The advantages and disadvantages of negotiating the final agreement largely depend on selecting a contractor, which depends on whether the contractor can have a project within the budget. Trustee Porter made a motion to approve Resolution 2023-E as presented. Trustee Westfall seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.
Jerry Thomas, Vice President for Academic Affairs, presented academic program revisions. The following technical certificates are being modified to better prepare students for employment. The computer literacy component is being replaced with a career strategies course. Students will receive instruction on resume writing and interview skills and practice. This change will reduce the following technical certificates by two hours.

Julie LaRue, Director of Human Resources, presented the ratifications of personnel actions. Trustee Hale made a motion to approve the ratifications as presented. Trustee Joe seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.

Items for Report

Vice President for College Advancement, Dr. Wade Derden, shared an update on National Park College’s 50th-anniversary celebration and pointed out the display provided by the NPC Library. The display was entitled “Graduation Through the Years.” The College Advancement department showed an NPC 50^th celebration video.

Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Jerry Thomas, provided a 2023 graduation report. Dr. Thomas reported that, including summer 2022 graduates, there were 518 total unduplicated graduates for the academic year (AY) 23, an increase of 13 students over AY22. NPC conferred 833 degrees and certificates to 518 graduates in AY23. 164 degrees/certificates were awarded to 139 summer graduates. 422 degrees/certificates were awarded to 221 spring graduates. Overall conferrals were up 5.7% from last year, the highest number of degrees/certificates conferred ever. Dr. Thomas also shared the breakdown of graduation participation. Of the 268 graduates, 213 NPC, five SAU, four Concurrent/Mountain Pine High School & Home School, 38 Adult Education and 12 Apprentices. The level of participation increased by 23% from 2022. 72 faculty and staff participated in the processional and 55+ volunteers and crews worked behind the scenes. New degrees conferred were AS-LAS – Health Services Administration, AS-LAS – Geography – Geospatial Technology, AS – Computer Science – Cybersecurity & Privacy, AS – Science Middle-Level Education and CP – Certified Teaching Assistant. The top associate degrees were AS – Science in Registered Nursing, Associate of Liberal Studies, Associate of Arts, AS – Business and AS – Education. The top technical certificates were practical nursing, pre-nursing, emergency medical services, marine repair and allied health. The top certificates of proficiency were automotive, emergency medical technician, marine engine fundamentals, welding and mechanical systems. Graduation was live-streamed, providing an accessible option for students and guests. The live stream was viewable via Zoom and had 128 views from USA, Mexico and Australia. The live stream was archived.

Board Chair Report - Chair Craft thanked everyone for being with us today. Chair Craft noted the 50th-year celebration and commended NPC for the record number of degrees and graduates. She remarked that these were significant milestones and how proud she was of the students, faculty and staff who worked to achieve success.

President’s Report - President Hogan recognized the Outstanding awardees from the Employee Recognition Day last week. He congratulated Tikima Simpkins for the Outstanding Staff award, Lindsey Vondenstein for the Outstanding Faculty award and Bill Barnes for the Outstanding Alumni award. Dr. Hogan thanked Dr. Thomas and his staff for preparing the graduation report and leading the commencement. He acknowledged that the partnership with SAU bore its first fruits as five bachelor’s degree graduates participated in commencement. Additionally, Dr. Hogan expressed gratitude to SAU for their partnership to help NPC provide these degrees in Hot Springs. He pointed out that seeing the apprenticeship graduates attend the commencement ceremony was special. Dr. Hogan thanked the board for their thoughtful support for the Bond Resolution and consideration of the annual budget. He concluded by thanking Kelli Embry and her team for their efforts.

Trustee Hale noted his appreciation for Darla Thurber’s swift action and ability to remain calm under pressure during the alarm at graduation.

Trustee Westfall appreciated all the information provided during the Board Retreat. She recognized the representatives of Stephens Inc. and the Friday Firm.

There was no further business. Trustee Wright motioned to adjourn, and Trustee Westfall seconded. The meeting adjourned at 4:40 PM.

Joyce Craft, Chair
Beverly Joe, Secretary/Treasurer

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