HARFORD COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Board of Trustees Work Session
February 24, 2012
The Board of Trustees of Harford Community College met on Friday, February 24, 2012, at
9:00 a.m. in the Chesapeake Center Board Room.
Trustees present: Mrs. Doris G. Carey; Mr. John F. Haggerty; Rev. Cordell E. Hunter, Sr.;
Mr. Bryan E. Kelly (arrived at 9:05 a.m.) ; Mr. Richard D. Norling; Mr. Bradley R. Stover;
(arrived at 10:15 a.m.); Dr. James J. Valdes; and, Dr. Dennis Golladay as Secretary-
Treasurer
Trustees absent: Mrs. April L. Fritts and Mrs. Susan E. Mull
Staff present: John Cox, Deborah Cruise, Annette Haggray, Cheryl Hickson, Brenda Morrison,
Annie Pagura, Carol Sherman, Valerie Swain, and Lisa Tittle
Call to Order. J. Valdes called the work session to order.
Middle States Commission on Higher Education Site Visit March 4-7, 2012. A visiting team from the Middle States Commission on Higher Education will be on campus for the College’s decennial re-accreditation visit. Events that involve the Board are:
March 4 - Reception and dinner at 6 p.m. in the Chesapeake Center dining rooms.
March 5 – Trustees meeting with the team from 4-5 p.m. in the Chesapeake Center dining room west.
March 7 – Team Chair’s report to the campus community on the findings of the team at
11 a.m. in the Chesapeake Center theater.
The focus of team discussions with the Board will likely relate to leadership and governance.
Questions from the Middle States Standards of Excellence were discussed. Background information and current activities were reviewed. Specific points of discussion related to:
Collegial Governance . Collegial governance is a vehicle for the college community to provide input into decision making. The current body is the College Advisory Council which is comprised of representatives from students, faculty, administrators and staff. This structure is being reassessed and the task force which reviewed the current model will be sharing findings with the campus community. The task force’s proposal may undergo further change as input from the campus is received. When a recommendation is finalized, it will be forwarded to the President. Final recommendation from the President will be presented to the
Board. The Board requested that trustees receive a copy of the report from the task force when it is shared with the campus community. Three guiding principles for any revision to the structure were outlined at the beginning of the task force’s work. Those principles were:
(1) structure had to be inclusive; (2) the structure had to be recognized as advisory in nature; and (3) issues should be delineated as either appropriate or not appropriate for the governance process.

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Board Structure/Board Documents . Board website was previewed and the Board Manual for
By-Laws and Policy is available from the web as well as from the internal portal OwlNet.
Much of the authority of the Board is delineated in the Community College article of the
Annotated Code of Maryland.
Orientation of New Members . An orientation manual has been created and a formal orientation session to review the manual will be scheduled. Additionally, an annual Trustee
Day which includes tour of campus and brief overviews of areas visited was begun last year.
Event is held in the spring.
Board Assessment . Since Board assessment has been periodic, the self-study document recommends that assessment be annual.
Selection and evaluation of the President . The president’s contract outlines the process for the president’s evaluation.
Opportunities for Student Input .
These are provided through the College Advisory Council, the Student Government Association (SGA), and through the Student Life Office.
Additionally, a public comment section is included as a standing Board agenda item and students may address the Board at that time. Student input is also garnered through a number of student surveys, the largest is through the nationally normed community college survey of student engagement. Furthermore, the president of the SGA has direct contact with the
College President on issues that need to be addressed.
Constituent and Public Opinions/Interests . Trustees serve as advocates for the College in the community. Through participation in community events, community groups and councils,
Trustees are afforded the opportunity to learn public opinion and interests.
Updates on College mission, resource management and academic issues . There is a program presentation/academic report at the monthly Board meetings. Additionally, the Board audit committee meets quarterly with College staff and/or the auditors to review financial information.
Other areas the team may inquire about concern adequacy of the size of the Board to fulfill its responsibilities, expertise of the Board to assure fiduciary responsibilities can be fulfilled, compliance with ethics laws and guidelines on conflict of interest.
D. Golladay reviewed activities that have occurred over the last two years in preparation for the team’s visit. A steering committee, co-chaired by Valerie Swain and Lisa Tittle, and a number of sub-committees were appointed to take an in-depth look at the College. The culmination of that activity was the preparation of a self-study document that addresses the fourteen standards of excellence defined by Middle States in its publication Characteristics of Excellence .
D. Golladay reviewed steps in the re-accreditation process. Following the site visit, the team chair prepares a report of the team’s findings. The draft of that report will be shared with the
President and the College may correct any errors of fact. The report is then submitted to Middle
States. The report can include recommendations, suggestions and commendations. The College will be required to address any recommendation. In June, the team chair presents the report to the

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Middle States Commission on Higher Education and the Commission will take formal action on the report.
Update on State Completion Agenda. Drs. Haggray and Cruise provided an update on the completion agenda. The completion agenda is a national initiative to increase the number of adults who obtain a degree. Governor O’Malley has set a goal for Maryland and community colleges are working to support that goal. Actions taken at Harford Community College in its focus on completion include:
Establishment of a Completion Task Force in Spring 2012
Services/programs supporting student retention and success
Targeted advising
Removal of administrative and policy barriers
Marketing and outreach to students and specific populations.
Currently, in assessing completion the focus is on degrees. The community colleges are encouraging the state to consider certificate attainment; the American Association of Community
Colleges and the Association of Community College Trustees is working at the national level to have the definition of completion expanded to include certificates and other certified credentialing.
Drs. Cruise and Haggray reviewed services and programs supporting student retention and success such as the First Year Experience, summer STEM scholars STEP Up Program, modifications to transitional studies educational approaches and strengthening alliance with the
Harford County Public Schools to increase high school graduates’ level of college preparation, and strong college articulation agreements. Additionally, the enrolled completer outreach project,
“Reverse Transfer” degree, and outreach to first generation at-risk students is a focus for targeted advising. Data from the enrolled completer outreach project showing its success was shared
Some administrative and policy barriers that have been removed include:
Elimination of $25 graduation fee
Reduction in minimum number of credits required for degree to align with COMAR (60 credits)
Elimination of requirement for last 15 credits to be “In-Residence” at HCC to align with
COMAR)
Two future initiatives are (1) review credits required for additional degrees and (2) review twocredit physical education requirements. Goal for Harford for 2025 is a 15% overall increase on top of the natural increase attributed to enrollment growth.
Classification Study. B. Morrison provided an overview of the classification study. She noted that it has been more than ten years since the current classification system was put in place and the salary and fringe benefits committee requested a classification review. A comprehensive study was initiated and the Waters Group served as consultant for the project. The scope of work

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The process involved employees completing a job questionnaire which was reviewed by the supervisor. Supervisors completed a job evaluation based upon criteria identified and weighted in a job evaluation manual. The consultants collected the data related to the job. They also compiled salary data from surveys of Maryland community colleges, local government, public schools, library, CUPA (College and University Personnel Association) and ERI (Economic
Research Institute).
B. Morrison reviewed general findings of the consultant. The Waters Group will meet with the vice presidents in April and presentation will be made to the Board of Trustees at the April meeting. Following that, the Waters Groups in conjunction with Human Resources will hold employee information sessions. These are currently scheduled for April 12 and 13. Human resources will follow-up with some smaller group sessions.
C. Hunter inquired about opportunities for upward mobility. B. Morrison referred to recent change to advertise positions up to Grade 5 internally; she also referred to procedures for promotion in rank for faculty.
Status of Towson University Project/Strategies to Move Project Forward. J. Cox reviewed the history of this initiative noting that initial dialog began in 2006 when the presidents of Towson and Harford laid the groundwork. Subsequently, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed.
Initial plans for funding were through MEDCO with the College serving as guarantor over a
20-year time frame. The College received an investment grade rating. Plans evolved and consideration was given to the University System of Maryland underwriting building construction with Towson providing the funding. Options to address issues with wastewater were considered. Initially the plan was for a drain field system; however, that required a 50 acres parcel to address nitrogen levels. More recent discussions have centered around a small package treatment facility to serve the building.
At the present time, the College is awaiting a decision from the Maryland Higher Education
Commission on approval of the program. Once approval is received, the ground lease will be revisited. The intent is that the building will revert to the College. Building design is completed.
The College will need to go back for County Development Advisory Council approval.
The project is stalled until recommendation from the Maryland Higher Education Commission is received. The College has been actively engaged in efforts to move the project forward.
Additionally, the County Executive has been supportative of the project and discussed the significance of the project to Harford County with legislators. On other fronts, the University
System of Maryland has been in contact with Senator Conway, Chair of the Senate Education and Health Committee, and asked her to facilitate a meeting with the presidents of Towson
University and Morgan State University.

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There is the potential for additional legislation to be introduced to move the project forward.
Should MHEC turn the project down, College staff will follow-up and request additional information from MHEC so that any further concerns can be addressed.
Staffing and Events Planning for Susquehanna Center Arena. Renovation of the current building is on schedule for fall re-opening. Due to weather conditions, the arena is behind schedule and will open later in the fall or early spring. The arena operation will be handled as an auxiliary budget. The goal is for the facility to be self-supporting, however, that will take time and in the initial years funds will be provided from the operating budget.
Plans for marketing the venue are underway and options of initial programming are being explored. Possibilities under consideration include a “Battle of the Bands”, Harlem Globetrotters, well-known comedian, and/or concert. A major campaign is in progress to gather data on types of events and ticket price range that the community would support.
On February 27, a major gift will be announced and the naming partnership for the arena will be celebrated with a reception. In addition, a campaign to sell seats in the arena will be kicked-off.
Other.
B. Kelly thanked trustees for attending the work session. He also encouraged trustees to attend the Naming Partnership announcement and reception on Monday and other campus events as they are announced.
The work session adjourned at 1 p.m.
____________________________________
Dennis Golladay
Secretary-Treasurer
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Bryan E. Kelly
Chair