HARFORD COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Board of Trustees Work Session
December 2, 2011
The Board of Trustees of Harford Community College met on Friday, December 2, 2011, at
9:00 a.m. in the Chesapeake Center Board Room.
Trustees present: Mrs. Doris G. Carey; Mrs. April L. Fritts; Mr. John F. Haggerty (arrived at
9:20 a.m.); Mr. Howard K. McComas, IV (excused at 11:25 a.m.); and, Dr. Dennis
Golladay as Secretary-Treasurer
Trustees absent: Mr. Bryan E. Kelly; Mrs. Susan E. Mull; Mr. Bradley R. Stover; Dr. James J.
Valdes; and Dr. Douglas G. Wright
Staff present: John Cox, Gregory Deal, Victor Dodson, Nancy Dysard, Christine Fisk, Annette
Haggray, Cheryl Hickson, Ken Krsolovic, Annie Pagura, and Carol Sherman
FY 2013 Capital Budget. J. Cox reviewed the FY 2013 capital budget and capital improvement
program. Projects include:
Susquehanna Center additions/renovation – The FY 2013 budget includes supplemental
State funding to support additional options in the new building, including a loading dock, 115
parking spaces, additional seating, and a wastewater lift station and pipeline. The local match
for this State funding was provided through the College’s previous allocations to the project.
College funding is provided for equipment and technology not included in the State’s
approved items; typically the state funding does not cover items that could to be relocated to
other facilities. The additional items supported with College funding include 67 desktop
computers, 25 spinning bikes, indoor scoring tables, auxiliary gym indoor netting, drop-down
cage, wall padding, 4 flat screen TVs for the building, 5 TVs for the fitness center, VOiP
phones, surveillance cameras and networks, theater audio hardware, and a Genie lift.
Roof replacements – State funding is requested through unallocated funds available in the
Community College Capital Grant. The College’s previous allocations account for the
required local match in this project. The project includes the Student Center and Chesapeake
Center.
Site and parking lot improvements – Project includes reconfiguration and resurfacing the
roadway between Fallston Hall and the Susquehanna Center and the removal of the
Entrance 2 exit roadway in preparation for construction of the nursing and allied health
building.
Computer equipment/technology – Funding of $283,750 is provided through College funds
($173,750) and a portion of the consolidated fee designated for technology ($110,000). The
FY 2013 projects include completion of the upgrade to the wireless network on campus and
the refresh of approximately 15 Macs, 15 laptops, and 175 pcs.
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Plant services annex – The project provides for additional storage and preparation areas to
support facilities operations and computing and technology services. The building will
replace an existing portable building and trailers for storage service and include a secure area
for computing and technology services to receive and prepare hardware for delivery and
installation on campus.
Sports complex entrance and grounds – This project will improve access to the area, enhance
the stadium area, and increase availability of a practice area. Other improvements provided
by this project include addition of artificial turf to the outfield and sidelines of ballfield 4 and
outdoor batting cage and addition of padding to the dugout safety fence. The $231,000
project cost will be funded with consolidated fee revenue dedicated to athletics.
Library infrastructure – The project provides improvements for the data center cooling
system and construction of two group study rooms.
Water and wastewater – The second phase of the wastewater project will be completed in
FY 2013. Phase 2 includes connection of all remaining buildings (Susquehanna Center and
Chesapeake Center were included in phase 1) on the East campus to the new wastewater
treatment system.
Nursing and allied health – A change in County funding may result in a delay for
construction of the nursing and allied health building. HCC is requesting the capital funding
be split over two fiscal years beginning in FY 2013 with completion in FY 2014.
Construction would be delayed until the latter part of FY 2013 which would address County
concerns related to debt service while preserving the State match.
The FY 2013 capital program totals $11,856,983 of which $1.6M will be supported through
College funds, $341,000 from the consolidated fee.
Projects for future years were noted: (1) expansion of the Higher Education and Conference
Center; (2) Edgewood Hall renovation; and (3) Maryland Hall renovation.
A campus map with proposed road names was distributed. The proposal for naming campus
roadways, which are private, has been shared with Harford County Planning and Zoning for
review to ensure that proposed names are not the same as or very similar to names of County
roads in close proximity to campus. After County review, information will be submitted to the
College Advisory Council for comment. Once names are finalized, the road names will be
integrated into the County system and campus road signs will be erected.
In response to a question from Trustee Haggerty, J. Cox gave an update on the roundabout at
Entrance 3. Funding is in place; issues related to the storm water management permit are being
resolved; utility poles are being moved and construction is anticipated for late spring. There will
be a period of about 2.5 weeks when the section of Thomas Run Road at Entrance 3 will be
closed during the work day and alternate traffic patterns will be in place.
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FY 2013 Operating Budget. Proposed budget for FY 2013 totals $46,588,634, an increase of
0.61% over FY 2012. As part of the budget review process, $850,900 in requests was removed
during the budget development process.
With regard to revenue, the following was noted:
The estimated reduction in other revenue reflects a decrease in earnings on investments as
well as the loss of our portion of the State’s FY 2012 one-time grant Keeping Maryland
Community Colleges Affordable.
Estimated increase in state funding of $268,698 represents an offset to the Keeping Maryland
Community Colleges Affordable grant.
An enrollment increase of 0.5% is projected for credit tuition and fee revenue. Noncredit
revenue in FY 2012 is projected to be below budget by approximately $200,000 and this
projection remained flat in FY 2013. Additionally, a tuition increase of $5 from $82 to
$87/credit hour is included. The net effect is a projected increase of $268,698 in tuition and
fees.
J. Haggerty reiterated his concern with any proposal to increase tuition, stating that he can not
support a tuition increase until he is absolutely sure that the College has done everything possible
to keep the budget lean. He stressed the importance of looking within the budget to identify
further reductions. He is specifically concerned for working families who don’t qualify for
financial aid.
Dr. Golladay noted that as other revenue sources are reduced, increase in tuition becomes
necessary to supplant the revenue loss so that the College can continue to maintain the excellent
education and services that are expected. Further, students who would be most affected by an
increase, would be eligible for the maximum Pell grant, thus the impact would be minimal.
H. McComas expressed the need to increase tuition incrementally rather than have a significant
increase after several years. Further, even with the $5 increase, Harford’s tuition will remain
among the lowest in the State.
The significant reduction in state funding per FTE student was illustrated graphically. In
FY 2008 state funding was $2,307 per FTE and by FY 2012 the amount was reduced to $1,898
per FTE.
J. Cox reviewed research on a tuition alternative, i.e., capping full-time tuition at a specified
number of credit hours. Capping full-time tuition at 15 credit hours results in $313,542 in
displaced revenue which equates to $2/credit hour. If the cap were reduced to 12 credit hours, the
total displaced revenue equals $695,875 which equates to $5/credit hour. J. Haggerty suggested
that capping tuition at a specific credit hour limit would encourage students to take more credits
and achieve graduation earlier. D. Golladay reported that experience in other areas does not
support the premise that flat tuition encourages students to take greater number of credits per
semester, but rather the credit load students carry is based more on other commitments that
students have (such as jobs) that limit the number of classes they can take.
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D. Carey inquired about how the College evaluates its curriculum to ensure that the skills
businesses need in our graduates are being taught. A. Haggray referred to the curriculum
advisory committees which are comprised of business community representatives. These
individuals identify skills and training needed of graduates, and the input from curriculum
advisory committees shapes the curriculum.
Regarding expenditures, the following was noted:
Approximately 68.5% of the budget is assigned to salaries and benefits which accommodates
the Board of Trustees’ guideline to keep such expenditures at no more than 75% of the entire
budget. If the budgeted contracted services portion of costs for security, housekeeping and
grounds are included, the ratio would be approximately 75% of the operating budget.
The budget includes wage and benefits adjustments
○ 2 new faculty positions
$122,631
○ Increase in adjuncts to support 25 course and lab sections
$54,446
○ Medical benefits 9% projected increase
$281,000
○ 2% wage adjustment for all eligible employees
$526,686
Contracted services adjustments include:
○ Continuing education programs, including CDL training,
$23,000
summer camps, and discovering college
○ Power to Achieve Campaign
$42,000
○ Instructional consulting and business program
$20,000
accreditation
○ Software maintenance agreements, price escalation,
$61,000
additional modules
○ BlackBoard lease escalation for eLearning
$15,700
○ Cultural events on-line ticketing
$17,500
○ Escalation of housekeeping and grounds
$185,500
○ Snow removal
$20,000
○ DegreeWorks implementation
$120,000
Other expenditure adjustments
○ Communications
$21,401
○ Professional development/training
($89,352)
○ Utilities
($79,308)
○ Fixed charges
$50,217
Waivers and Transfers:
○ Transfers to capital budget programs for support of
$1,601,583
Susquehanna, computer equipment and technology, plant
services annex, library infrastructure, water and
wastewater
○ Transfer to support scholarships
$470,064
○ Decrease for tuition waivers to align with current trending
($27,569)
○ Transfer to support the Susquehanna facility
$143,411
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J. Cox also discussed the arena operation. The goal is to make this a self-supporting operation.
The arena will be set up as an auxiliary fund and budget spreadsheet for the auxiliary fund was
distributed.
Information on funding for equipment and technology was also shared; $1,009,954 to support
equipment and technology is included through several funding sources as indicated:
Funding Source
Operating Budget
Susquehanna Capital Project
Equipment Replacement Reserve
Innovative Partnership in Technology
Computer Equipment/Technology Capital Budget
Capital Projects
Fundraising
Total
Amount
$28,764
$231,960
$45,700
$289,734
$261,330
$121,000
$31,466
$1,009,954
Towson Building. Due to the time that has passed since initial approval by the Development
Advisory Council (DAC), the project will need to be presented to DAC again for approval.
Additionally, stormwater management requirements have been revised and issues will need to be
addressed. Currently, the College is awaiting program approval from the Maryland Higher
Education Commission (MHEC). During the deliberations of the Regional Task Force on Higher
Education in the Northeast Region, some issues were raised by Morgan State University as well
as the Maryland Independent College and University Association.
The College continues to pursue avenues to move the Towson project forward.
HCC and County Master Plan. In the County Land Use mapping definitions, HEAT is defined as
“Area designated for the Higher Education and Conference Center (HECC) at HEAT (Higher
Education Applied Technology); a planned higher education and research development park. The
HECC initiative brings Maryland’s finest institutions of higher education together to offer
programs that are in demand by residents and businesses. The Center is located at Aberdeen at
Maryland Route 22 and I-95.”
Staff met recently with Richard Hall, Secretary of Planning for the State of Maryland, to discuss
having the East campus designated.
Staff also continue to pursue having the College acknowledged on the County water and sewer
master plan. Discussions will continue with the County Executive indicating that the long-term
growth of the College requires public water and sewer. With the Executive’s support, the College
would work with the County Department of Public Works to prepare a technical analysis for how
best to access water and sewer and the cost implications.
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Website Redesign. A. Pagura, vice president for information technology, and Nancy Dysard,
director for marketing and public relations, provided and overview of the website redesign
project. The College website has been in place for a number of years and needs to be redesigned
to provide an updated look, incorporate video, and provide a format compatible for mobile
devices. Additionally, a content management system is needed to more effectively and efficiently
manage content. Information was gathered through focus groups and stakeholders and best
practices were reviewed. An RFP was issued to identify a vendor for the re-design project.
Currently, submissions are being reviewed and additional information obtained from prospective
vendors. The total project is expected to cost $145,000-180,000 and funding is in place. Existing
staff will handle some of the work, but an outside firm is needed to setup the framework and
design new templates. Students will be able to assist with moving content, but lack the expertise
for the depth of the entire redesign project.
Classification Study. The current classification system has been in place for twelve years and
College practice has been to review the system periodically. In late spring, the College
contracted with the Waters Group to review the current classification system. Information
sessions for College employees were held, and job documentation information was collected for
each full-time administrative and staff position. Job descriptions and salary schedules were
reviewed; local, regional and national data was gathered. The focus of the study was to ensure
internal equity in job classification. At this point, the Waters Group has provided
recommendations for new pay structures and president’s staff is reviewing the recommendations
to make sure that they align with College values and to ensure that employees are treated fairly.
Initial findings are that most current salaries are on par with regional trends. There are a few
instances where employees are below the new recommended range and a few at the maximum
potential. Estimated cost to implement the recommendations is $45,000.
The study noted that with the limited number of grades many diverse positions are within the
same grade while the complexity of the positions varies greatly. The next steps are for
president’s staff to finalize recommendation to the president. The president’s recommendation
will be submitted to the Board for approval.
General discussion followed on organizational structure and the need to staff appropriately to
address the complexity of leading a higher education institution. The process for reviewing
vacant positions to affirm the position was also reviewed.
Self-Study and Middle States Visit. The self-study report will be submitted to the Board for
approval at the December meeting. Following submission of the self-study report to Middle
States, the next step for the College is to finalize preparations for the Middle States site visit
team. There will be events during the team site visit (March 4-7, 2012) that will involve the
Board; trustees were encouraged to reserve time on their calendars to participate in these
activities. Specifically noted were (1) a welcome reception for the team the evening of their
arrival; (2) breakfast or luncheon meeting sometime during their visit; and (3) oral report to the
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campus community by the team chair the morning of the team’s departure. Since the team’s
schedule is set by the team chair, specific dates and times are not yet available. Once the detailed
schedule is known, it will be shared with the Board.
The work session adjourned at 11:40 a.m.
____________________________________
Dennis Golladay
Secretary-Treasurer
____________________________________
Bryan E. Kelly
Chair