Southern Illinois News

Illinois Eastern Community Colleges Board of Trustees met Oct. 15.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

1. Call to Order & Roll Call – Chairman Gary Carter called the meeting to order at 6:15 p.m. and directed the Board Secretary Sonja Wease to call the roll.

Susan Batchelor: Present

John Brooks: Present

Roger Browning: Present

Gary Carter: Present

Brenda Culver: Present

Jan Ridgely: Present

Barbara Shimer: Present

Jorri VanDyke

Student Trustee: Present

Present: 7. Absent: 0

Also present at the meeting, in addition to trustees:

Ryan Gower, Chancellor

Tona Ambrose, President of Lincoln Trail College/Vice Chancellor Institutional Outreach

Chris Simpson, President of Olney Central College/Vice Chancellor Business Operations

Matt Fowler, President of Wabash Valley College/Vice Chancellor Student Affairs

Ryan Hawkins, Chief Financial Officer/Treasurer

Andrea McDowell, Executive Director of Human Resources

Alex Cline, Chief Information Officer

Paul Bruinsma, Chief Academic Officer

Sonja Wease, Board Secretary

2. Welcome from the Chair – Chairman Carter welcomed all who were present for the meeting.

3. Recognition of Visitors and Guests

3.A. Visitors and Guests – Steven Hnetkovsky, Dustin Wiggins and Zoey Wiggins.

3.B. IECCEA Representative - None

4. Public Comments - None

5. Reports

5.A. Trustees - Student Trustee Jorri VanDyke reported that the Student Advisory is working to increase student activity and engagement across all four campuses.

5.B. Chancellor – Chancellor Gower reported that the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) fully recognized IECC through 2029. He also announced there are ongoing conversations with the State of Illinois about funding for community colleges.

5.C. Presidents & Divisions - Reports were presented by the Presidents & Vice Chancellors of each division.

5.D. Division Report: Upcoming HLC Accreditation Visit – Chief Academic Officer Paul Bruinsma presented the HLC Reaffirmation of Accreditation Visit information. There will be five representatives from the Higher Learning Commission (HCL) on December 2-3, 2024.

6. Approval of Consent Agenda

Motion to approve consent agenda as presented. This motion, made by Barbara Shimer and seconded by Jan Ridgely, Carried.

Susan Batchelor: Yea, John Brooks: Yea, Roger Browning: Yea, Gary Carter: Yea, Brenda Culver: Yea, Jan Ridgely: Yea, Barbara Shimer: Yea, Jorri VanDyke (Student Trustee): Yea

Yea: 7, Nay: 0

6.A. Disposition of Minutes – Open meeting minutes as prepared for the regular meeting held on September 17, 2024 were presented for approval.

6.B. 2024 Annual Review of Student Complaints – All written and formal student complaints filed with the Chancellor, Presidents, Deans/Chief Academic Officers, and/or Office of Admissions for FY2024 were presented for acceptance by the Board.

6.C. Policy 400.20 Family Medical Leave Act – Changes were made to Policy 400.20 that lowers the threshold from 1,250 hours to 1,000 hours within the twelve months before the leave begins for FMLA eligibility.

6.D. Affiliation Agreements – Chancellor Gower recommended approval of affiliation agreements with Harsha Behavioral Center and PT Solutions.

7. Action on Items Removed from Consent Agenda - None

8. Policy First Reading (and Possible Approval) - None

9. Policy Second Reading - None

10. Staff Recommendations for Approval

10.A. Bid Exception Under 805/3-27.1

Motion to approve the purchase of a Lincoln Electric VRTEX 360 Compact virtual welder from American Welding & Gas, Inc. for $34,898.94. The expenditure is 100% supported by the Postsecondary Perkins award passed through the Illinois Community College Board. This motion, made by Susan Batchelor and seconded by Jorri VanDyke, Carried. Susan Batchelor: Yea, John Brooks: Yea, Roger Browning: Yea, Gary Carter: Yea, Brenda Culver: Yea, Jan Ridgely: Yea, Barbara Shimer: Yea, Jorri VanDyke (Student Trustee): Yea

Yea: 7, Nay: 0

10.B. 2025 Employee Health & Dental Insurance

Motion to accept medical and dental insurance plans and premiums for calendar year 2025 negotiated with a self-insured plan through the Community College Health Consortium (CCHC). The District network will still be through BlueCross BlueShield and rate renewals will remain flat against 2024 premiums. This motion, made by Roger Browning and seconded by Jan Ridgely, Carried.

John Brooks: Nay, Susan Batchelor: Yea, Roger Browning: Yea, Gary Carter: Yea, Brenda Culver: Yea, Jan Ridgely: Yea, Barbara Shimer: Yea, Jorri VanDyke (Student Trustee): Yea

Yea: 6, Nay: 1

John Brooks: Nay

10.C. 2025 Employee Health Savings Accounts

Motion to approve a Health Savings Account contribution of $1,000 for each eligible employee who is enrolled in the District's Qualified High Deductible Health Plan for calendar year 2025. This motion, made by Roger Browning and seconded by Barbara Shimer, Carried. Susan Batchelor: Yea, John Brooks: Yea, Roger Browning: Yea, Gary Carter: Yea, Brenda Culver: Yea, Jan Ridgely: Yea, Barbara Shimer: Yea, Jorri VanDyke (Student Trustee): Yea

Yea: 7, Nay: 0

10.D. HLC Assurance Argument 2024

Motion to accept the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) Assurance Argument as prepared by the HLC Steering Committee and authorized Chancellor Gower to submit to the HLC. The document demonstrates how the District continues to meet the HLC's Criteria for Accreditation. This motion, made by Susan Batchelor and seconded by Barbara Shimer, Carried.

Susan Batchelor: Yea, John Brooks: Yea, Roger Browning: Yea, Gary Carter: Yea, Brenda Culver: Yea, Jan Ridgely: Yea, Barbara Shimer: Yea, Jorri VanDyke (Student Trustee): Yea

Yea: 7, Nay: 0

10.E. Emergency Repair Clemence Elizabeth Cox Hall Building Roof Replacement Motion to approve the expenditure to allow the District to begin the process of replacing the east roof of the Clemence Elizabeth Cox Hall at Frontier Community College. This motion, made by Roger Browning and seconded by John Brooks, Carried.

Susan Batchelor: Yea, John Brooks: Yea, Roger Browning: Yea, Gary Carter: Yea, Brenda Culver: Yea, Jan Ridgely: Yea, Barbara Shimer: Yea, Jorri VanDyke (Student Trustee): Yea

Yea: 7, Nay: 0

11. Bid Committee Report

Motion to approve the bid committee recommendation for acceptance of the bid for purchase of two new electric zero turn lawn mowers for Frontier Community College from Act Tire & Auto for $22,450.00 and Outdoor Power LLC for $20,199.00 for a combined total of $42,649.00. This

motion, made by Roger Browning and seconded by Jan Ridgely, Carried. Susan Batchelor: Yea, John Brooks: Yea, Roger Browning: Yea, Gary Carter: Yea, Brenda Culver: Yea, Jan Ridgely: Yea, Barbara Shimer: Yea, Jorri VanDyke (Student Trustee): Yea

Yea: 7, Nay: 0

12. District Finance

12.A. Financial Report

12.B. Approval of Financial Obligations

Motion to approve payment of district financial obligations for October 2024 in the total amount of $959,458.61. This motion, made by Jan Ridgely and seconded by Barbara Shimer, Carried.

Susan Batchelor: Yea, John Brooks: Yea, Roger Browning: Yea, Gary Carter: Yea, Brenda Culver: Yea, Jan Ridgely: Yea, Barbara Shimer: Yea, Jorri VanDyke (Student Trustee): Yea

Yea: 7, Nay: 0

13. Executive Session

Motion to enter executive session under Open Meetings Act Exceptions 2(c)(2) Collective Negotiating Matters at 6:29 p.m. This motion, made by Susan Batchelor and seconded by Barbara Shimer, Carried.

Susan Batchelor: Yea, John Brooks: Yea, Roger Browning: Yea, Gary Carter: Yea, Brenda Culver: Yea, Jan Ridgely: Yea, Barbara Shimer: Yea, Jorri VanDyke (Student Trustee): Yea

Yea: 7, Nay: 0

Motion to exit the executive session under Open Meetings Act Exceptions 2(c)(2) Collective Negotiating Matters at 7:03 p.m. This motion, made by Susan Batchelor and seconded by Roger Browning, Carried.

Susan Batchelor: Yea, John Brooks: Yea, Roger Browning: Yea, Gary Carter: Yea, Brenda Culver: Yea, Jan Ridgely: Yea, Barbara Shimer: Yea, Jorri VanDyke (Student Trustee): Yea

Yea: 7, Nay: 0

14. Approval of Executive Session Minutes - None

15. Approval of Personnel Report

400.1 Employment of Personnel

A. Professional, Non-Faculty, Exempt

1. Darrell Handelsman, Interim Head Baseball Coach, OCC effective September 30, 2024

B. Professional, Non-Faculty, Non-Exempt

1. Jennifer Jennings, Assistant Director, TRIO Upward Bound effective October 21, 2024

2. Jayden Pinkston, Information Systems Technician, LTC effective October 21, 2024

400.2 Annual Bonus for MIT Instructors

400.3 Employee Position Title Changes

A. Position title change for all TRIO Student Support Services Academic Counselors to TRIO Student Support Services Academic Advisors

1. Annie Lankford

2. Caleb Kamplain

3. Annie Matthews

4. Cindy Smith

400.4 Approval of Proposed Non-College Employment

Name Employer Hours/Days per Academic Month

Becky Coleman Richland Nursing & Rehab 4 days per month Olney, IL

400.5 Resignation Ratification

1. Vanessa Lowe, Nursing Instructor, WVC effective September 20, 2024

2. Joseph Brown, Truck Driving Instructor effective October 8, 2024

400.6 Retirement Ratification

1. Pauletta Gullett, Nursing Instructor, LTC effective December 31, 2024

Motion to approve the foregoing personnel report as presented. This motion, made by John Brooks and seconded by Roger Browning, Carried.

Susan Batchelor: Yea, John Brooks: Yea, Roger Browning: Yea, Gary Carter: Yea, Brenda Culver: Yea, Jan Ridgely: Yea, Barbara Shimer: Yea, Jorri VanDyke (Student Trustee): Yea

Yea: 7, Nay: 0

16. Collective Bargaining – Chancellor Gower gave an update on the collective bargaining process and announced the next sessions with the Association are scheduled for October 25th & October 30th.

17. Litigation – Chancellor Gower announced that he would contact the Trustees in the following week with updates.

18. Other Items - None

19. Adjournment

Motion to adjourn at 8:30 p.m. This motion, made by Jorri VanDyke and seconded by Jan Ridgely, Carried.

Susan Batchelor: Yea, John Brooks: Yea, Roger Browning: Yea, Gary Carter: Yea, Brenda Culver: Yea, Jan Ridgely: Yea, Barbara Shimer: Yea, Jorri VanDyke (Student Trustee): Yea

Yea: 7, Nay: 0

https://meetings.boardbook.org/Documents/WebViewer/2652?file=525a7691-10ed-403d-8ed2-567fd16ed43e