Athens Technical College
Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
Athens, GA
September 20, 2011
10:30 A.M.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Mr. Rusty Adams
Ms. Patricia Barron
Mr. Bill Cabaniss
Mr. Terry Chandler
Mr. Vince Dooley
Mr. Scott Hardigree
Mr. Ed Geddings
Dr. Mixon Robinson
Ms. Carol Williams
MEMBERS ABSENT
Mr. Larry Conn
Mr. Stephen Felker
Ms. Pet Williams
GUESTS
Mr. Paul Holmes, State Board Chair, Technical College System of Georgia
Ms. Judy Taylor, Director of Resource Development, Technical College System of
Georgia
Mr. David Hartleb, Achieving the Dream Coach
Ms. Rhonda Glover, Achieving the Dream Coach
Mr. James King, Athens Technical College Student
CALL TO ORDER/WELCOME
Chair Patricia Barron called the meeting to order at 10:30 a.m. welcoming
everyone to the September Board Meeting.
INTRODUCTIONS OF SPECIAL GUESTS
Chair Barron introduced Mr. Paul Holmes, State Board Chair for the Technical
College System of Georgia, and Ms. Judy Taylor, Director of Resource
Development for the Technical College System of Georgia.
Dr. Dan Smith introduced Mr. James King, Athens Technical College student who
is participating in the NASA National Community College Aerospace Scholars
Program (NCAS). Mr. King is enrolled in our Machine Tool Technology Program
and is the only student from Georgia to be asked to participate in the program. He
designed a rover to be used for core drilling on Mars.
Mr. King spoke a little bit about the NCAS program and the rover he designed. He
passed out a drawing of the rover. He will travel to Marshall Space Flight Center
in Alabama in November to participate in the program. The team will work on
developing a rover to be used on Mars. His childhood dream has been to work for
NASA.
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September 20, 2011
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NEW BUSINESS
Chair Barron introduced Mr. Rusty Adams, our new board member representing
Elbert County. Mr. Adams replaces Mr. Don Fortson who rolled off the board in
June. Chair Barron swore in Mr. Rusty Adams and a photo was taken of the
swearing in.
SPECIAL PRESENTATION
Dr. Dan Smith introduced the guests for the September meeting. Topic: “Achieving
the Dream, Ms. Rhonda Glover and Mr. David Hartleb, Achieving the Dream
Coaches”. Achieving the Dream began in 2004 and is a national initiative to help
community colleges succeed. It focuses on students of color and low income.
Athens Technical College was the only college in Georgia to be designated as an
Achieving the Dream college. This is our first year of Achieving the Dream and we
are currently in the process of collecting data.
Mr. Hartleb gave the board an introduction to Achieving the Dream.
Achieving
the Dream has four principles which include committed leadership, use of
evidence to improve programs and services, broad engagement, and systemic
institutional improvement. Its goal is student success and completion and it
focuses on identifying which student groups are struggling. Achieving the Dream
understands that colleges face a lot of challenges in today’s society.
Ms. Glover presented some data information on Achieving the Dream. Both
quantitative and qualitative data is collected and examined to help the college
better serve students. Between the years of 2008 and 2010 enrollment in two year
colleges increased 15%. Undergraduate enrollment at colleges across the nation
has increased 35%. By the year 2018, 63% of all jobs will require a college
education. A majority of students who enter college will never finish. Statistics
show that only about 45% will graduate.
There are some key factors that help Achieving the Dream achieve higher levels of
improvement which include willingness to view unflattering data and challenge it;
visible leadership support; development of improvement intervention; and
consistent evaluation and assessment. It is important to hear from everyone
involved including students, faculty, staff, board members, and community leaders.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Chair Barron called for approval of the May minutes for the Local Board. After
reviewing, there were no changes to the minutes. Carol Williams made a motion
to approve the minutes and Ed Geddings seconded the motion with the remainder
of the board in agreement. The minutes were approved.
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September 20, 2011
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COMMITTEE REPORTS
ACADEMIC AFFIARS
Dr. Joyce Sansing requested some program approvals. The first two Technical
Certificates of Credit (TCCs), Automotive Collision Specialist and Automotive
Refinishing Specialist, are for the Athens Campus. These TCCs will provide
additional training to students in Automotive Body Repair and they are eligible for
PELL. The third TCC, Advanced CAD Technician, is for the Athens Campus, and
will allow Drafting students to have advanced coursework. It is also eligible for
PELL. The fourth is a TCC, Heavy Diesel Service Technician, for the Elbert
County Campus, and it is part of the Diesel Equipment Technology Program. It
will allow us to work more closely with Caterpillar and prepare our students for
employment with them. The fifth is an Associate Degree, Electrical Systems
Technology, for the Athens Campus. We have gotten inquiries from employers
about us offering an associate degree in this program.
Dr. Sansing asked the board for approval of the new TCCs and Associate Degree
Program. Terry Chandler made a motion to approve and Bill Cabaniss seconded
the motion with the remainder of the board in agreement. The new TCCs and
Associate Degree Program were approved.
Dr. Sansing presented a comprehensive list of semester supply fees for approval.
These are supply fees for courses which have been converted to the semester
system.
Dr. Sansing asked the board for approval of the semester supply fees. Ed
Geddings made a motion to approve and Vince Dooley seconded the motion with
the remainder of the board in agreement. The semester supply fees were
approved.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SERVICES
Mr. Jerry Barrow gave board members an update on Economic Development
Services. Manufacturer of the Year Luncheon has been announced for April 19,
2012. We will nominate a company for the award.
Tenneco in Hartwell is working very intensely right now. They make ride control
products for the automotive industry. Its employees are working seven days a
week. They have over 750 employees and still growing.
Of the twenty-five technical colleges, Athens Technical College produces 6% of all
Work Ready Certificates in the state. They are currently testing high schools
students in our service area.
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September 20, 2011
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On October 11th there will be an Agricultural Summit held on campus to discuss
the future of agriculture in this area. It is a Joint Development Authority five county
region meeting.
On October 19th there will be a Master Timber Harvester conference in White
Plains, Georgia. Secretary Brian Kemp will be the keynote speaker. He and Dr.
Tydings are planning to attending.
The Greene County Campus has nine dual enrolled students for Fall Semester.
Mr. Jimmy Hogg, Director of Walton County Campus, has been working on
building relationships with the high schools. Yesterday, he met with about twenty
high school counselors from the area.
Vampire Diaries filed part of their television episodes on the Walton County
Campus last week.
FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION
Ms. Kathryn Thomas presented the Student Account Write-Off Summary which is
write-offs of student accounts that have never been paid. The State Accounting
Office has to approve the write-off list every year. This year there was $77,647 in
write-offs. Before an account can be considered for write-off three letters have to
be sent to the student, with the third letter being certified. If students do not pay
holds are put on their accounts
Ms. Kathryn Thomas presented the Fiscal Year 2011 Year-end Summary. There
was approximately $13 million in locally generated funds, approximately $14
million in TCSG funds, and approximately $2 million in external grants/contracts.
Ms. Kathryn Thomas presented the FY 2012 Initial Budget. The projected revenue
this year, which is based on last year, is approximately $25 million. The budget
does not reflect the most recent 2% state cut. The cut may be restored at the end
of the year because the state’s revenue is up.
Dr. Tydings commented that from 2004 to date we have lost 20% of our state
funding.
Ms. Thomas asked the board for approval of the FY 2012 Initial Budget. Ed
Geddings made a motion to approve and Bill Cabaniss seconded the motion with
the remainder of the board in agreement. The FY 2012 Initial Budget was
approved.
Ms. Thomas presented the 2012 Local Budgets to the board members for review.
These are budgets for the different departments at the college.
Ms. Thomas presented the Financial Report as of August 31, 2011. At this time
our percentages should be around 16% or 17% which is about where we are.
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September 20, 2011
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STUDENT AFFAIRS
Ms. Andrea Daniel gave board members an update on Student Affairs. She
handed out a Fall Semester Event Overview which shows upcoming college
events for the Fall. She invited board members to attend any of the events. We
recently had an ATSAC retreat which had approximately forty-five officers
attending. We also had a parent family orientation for students’ families.
Our enrollment this year for Fall semester is 5,114 students. Last year for Fall
Quarter it was 5,744 students. When credit hours were converted to semester,
our full time enrollment increased by 12.9%.
The college will be having an ATC Day of Service on October 22nd for students,
faculty, and staff volunteers to give back to the community.
Ms. Daniel thanked Dr. Tydings for leading the college through the quarter to
semester conversion. Students have been optimistic about it.
PRESIDENT'S REPORT
Dr. Tydings presented the President’s Report. She thanked everyone for their
work on the quarter to semester conversion. HOPE money is an issue for
students who cannot afford their textbooks. She is serving on a state committee to
look for alternatives for textbooks to help cut back costs for students. Our
bookstore reported high sales and long lines out the door.
Dr. Tydings announced that the college is going to have a choir. She thanked Mr.
Yancey Gulley for working on this project.
The two land swaps are still in progress and she hopes they will be completed by
the November meeting.
The 500/600 building renovations and repairs has been completed and the 300
building was ready for Fall Semester. The automotive building renovation and
repairs should be completed by October. The program had grown so much that
they were out of space. They have moved into an additional building which was
the old facilities and maintenance building.
The dam repair in Elberton is almost completed.
There is a new facilities and maintenance building being built on the Elbert County
Campus. The money left over from the Technical and Industrial Systems building
that was built on that campus is being used to build the new facilities and
maintenance building. Once this building it completed there will be a domino
effect on the campus. Cosmetology and barbering will move to the area where the
bookstore is, and the library, bookstore, and academic support center will move
into the building that used to house Early Childhood Care and Education. We are
in the final phase of designing and planning the renovation on that building.
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September 20, 2011
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OTHER BUSINESS
Chair Barron mentioned to the board that they have been given an organizational
chart to show the faculty/staff at the college and a new local board member
directory.
She asked that the board approve the 2012 local board meeting schedule. There
is one change to the schedule. The board will no longer meet in May and will
begin meeting in August. Carol Williams made a motion to approve and Bill
Cabaniss seconded the motion with the remainder of the board in agreement. The
2012 local board meeting schedule was approved.
Chair Barron announced a challenge to the board members. She would like to
have 100% of the board members attend the 2012 graduation on May 3, 2012.
She would like to begin including on the board meeting agenda each month
activities that board members have participated in. She would like each board
member to participate in an event at least twice a year and then report it to the
board.
Chair Barron asked for approval to nominate Don Fortson and Fred Boatwright to
the status of local board member emeritus. Both retired from the local board in
May, 2011. Scott Hardigree made a motion to approve and Carol Williams
seconded the motion with the remainder of the board in agreement. Don Fortson
and Fred Boatwright were elected to local board member emeritus status.
ADJOURNMENT
Being no further business, Chair Barron adjourned the meeting with appropriate
motion and second at 12:30 p.m.
_______________________________________
Flora W. Tydings, President
Rebecca Allen
Administrative Assistant
9/21/11
Next scheduled Board Meeting: October 18, 2011.
* Denotes action items that require a vote for approval by the local board.