April 2009 CSN Cabinet Notes

Ripped from the Monday June 8 CSN "All" email [paragraphing mine]:

Cabinet Notes
April 13, 2009

Cabinet Members:
President Mike Richards
John Bearce, Interim Director of Institutional Research
K.C. Brekken, Manager of Communications
Kim Brown, Chair, Administrative Faculty Assembly
Thomas Brown, Chief Campus Administrator, Cheyenne
Art Byrd, Vice President, Student Affairs
Sondra Cosgrove, Faculty Senate Chair
Patty Charlton, Senior Vice President for Finance & Facilities
Darren Divine, Interim Vice President, Academic Affairs - absent
Richard Hinckley, General Counsel - absent
Penny McCollum, Campus Site Administrator, Henderson Campus - absent
Joan McGee, Chief Campus Administrator, Charleston Campus
Larry Mason, Interim Vice President, Diversity & Cultural Affairs
Jacque Matthews, Executive Director, Foundation
Francisco Porras, Chief Information Officer - absent
Mark Rauls, Faculty Senate Chair-elect - absent
Kevin Stich, President, Classified Council
David Waterhouse, Student Government President
Anne Zemek de Dominguez, General Counsel

Guests:
Hyla Winters
Anneli Adams
Mugunth Vaithylingam

The meeting was called to order by Dr. Richards at 9 a.m.
The notes of the March 9, 2009 cabinet meeting were approved.
Dr. Richards reminded everyone about the Legacy of Achievement Gala on April 25 at the “M” Resort, and about commencement at the Thomas & Mack on Monday, May 18. He briefed everyone about the Board of Regents meeting in Carson City, April 2 & 3.

The Board approved CSN’s Mission and Vision Statements. The Board also approved some improvements to the Charleston campus: grading on the southwest corner, paving after the grading (which will provide 440 more parking spaces), and additional parking lot lighting in the lot south of the “L” Building.

Another important approval from the Board came in the form of $1.50 per credit technology fee to pay for the Student Information System portion of the ERP. This fee will become effective Fall 2009. At the June meeting some improvements the Board will vote on include street improvements on a section of Torrey Pines, a drainage system across the campus from Community College Drive to Torrey Pines, a new access road south of Del Rey, and additional parking south of the Engelstad Health Sciences Building.

Hyla Winters distributed a summary of her interpretation of the new accreditation standards from NWCCU. She explained a move toward a more holistic view of institutions, and the number of standards dropping from eight to five with the ten-year cycle becoming a seven-year cycle.

This new system is more comparable to the accreditation cycles the individual programs are subject to. CSN should be able to learn from the institutions that are piloting this new system currently. The new standards are as follows:

Standard One – Mission, Core Themes, Goals and Outcomes
Standard Two – Resources and Capacity
Standard Three – Planning and Implementation
Standard Four – Effectiveness and Improvement
Standard Five – Mission Fulfillment, Sustainability, and Adaptation

Hyla believes the assessment functions of the accreditation process will be spotlighted for all institutions for the foreseeable future. It is critical also that the strategic planning CSN is working on presently aligns with Standard One.

There will be new components to the strategic plan, including enrollment management, efficiencies, and effectiveness; and a major project for Fall 2009 is to develop and refine it accordingly. The reporting on Standard One will be due in Fall of 2011.

John Bearce reported on the ERP progress. The Student Financials IDP is ending, and will begin the testing phase. CSN will continue to work closely with TMCC during the testing period. Although the progress with the ERP is on schedule, the Universal ID piece is problematic. There are millions of records that the computer cannot evaluate effectively (for duplicates, errors, etc.), so the records will have to be evaluated manually. The NSHE institutions are working collaboratively on a solution, but it will be a big job to complete. Progress is being made on the shared instance portion of the ERP.

Dr. Richards told the group about money available to CSN through the Department of Employment, Training, and Rehabilitation (DETR). A task force has been formed to maximize CSN’s potential to obtain some of that funding. The task force includes people from the Division of Workforce and Economic Development, DETR, some faculty members and other community members. The focus is on sustainability and green technologies.

Another initiative CSN will be targeting is adult education. Dr. Richards wants CSN to actively seek out students to bring in to the education system.

Dr. Richards also shared a letter from Chair Wixom and Vice Chair Geddes about the Efficiencies and Effectiveness Committee. The committee will require each institution to
1) conduct an internal review,
2) seek outside consultants to review the issues and solutions, and
3) engage community leaders for input and guidance.

Mugunth Vaithylingham showed a short video about CSN’s Data Center. The facility is unique in that it utilizes many green initiatives. Fire suppression is provided with a system that removes the oxygen from the area, instead of using chemicals or water. There are no raised floors in the data center. Instead, fiber optics are routed overhead for improved airflow and cooling efficiency. OTS gave a tour to 48 visiting CIO’s from across the United States, and reported that the CIO’s were impressed with the facility. The video and FAQ’s will be posted soon on the OTS web site.

K.C. Brekken distributed a copy of this year’s “Report to the People,” which was produced with funds donated by CSN’s Foundation. A copy was mailed to each legislator, and about 13,000 copies will be distributed with the Las Vegas In Business weekly publication. K.C. reviewed the findings of the communication survey conducted in February. A total of 380 respondents participated in the survey which was designed primarily to understand CSN event marketing preferences.

Secondary purposes for the survey include discovering how CSN employees prefer to be informed about college events and announcements, learning what information CSN employees want to receive via the “All” e-mail, gauging interest in a regular newsletter, and determining if the “All” e-mail’s significance has been diminished by overuse.

A majority of respondents would like a master calendar of events on the CSN Web Home Page as a primary method of event communication. This calendar would have a function to allow users to RSVP and save events to their Outlook Calendar for reminders.

Almost all respondents (90+ %) wanted an “All” e-mail when there was news of great importance from the President or HR, and a smaller majority (72%) wanted information about events on the campuses via the e-mail. Other events communication options included the weekly NewsWeb electronic newsletter; a new kind of newsletter in which faculty and staff submit event articles and photos; and creating an e-mail address specifically for upcoming events communications and ensuring those communications have specific subject lines.

The subject lines would prompt students, faculty and staff to decide to open the e-mail or not. K.C. also reminded everyone of the “Publicize My Event” link currently in use on the web site for those who would like to see an event publicized by sending an All e-mail, displaying it on the I.C.S. system (monitors on the campuses), and/or posting it on the web site. The link can be found on the Public & College Relations page of the web site: http://www.csn.edu/pages/488.asp

Thomas Brown gave an update on Sexual Harassment Training and forwarded a list of employees who have not completed the required training to the Vice Presidents for follow up with them. He reminded the VPs that the training is required by state law and is offered monthly. An abbreviated version is currently being developed for the two-year refresher course, and should be ready to offer this summer.

Thomas also shared with the group a thank you letter from the U.S. Census Bureau for the use of space on the Cheyenne campus for employee training. The Cheyenne campus administration is working with The Nevada Youth Alliance to plan the annual North Las Vegas Back to School Fair which has been held at Cheyenne for the past five years. Another upcoming event is Family Enrichment Day on April 25; and in April and May there are various performing arts events. Sondra Cosgrove updated the group about Faculty Senate. Chancellor Rogers was a guest at the last meeting, and everyone enjoyed his visit.

The policy concerning faculty evaluations passed. Department chair elections were completed. The new department chairs are: Janice Glasper – Dental, Diagnostic and Rehabilitative Services Randy Harwood – Computer and Engineering Technology John Hollitz – Social Sciences Tom Myers – Media Technologies Robert Petrucci – Health Related Professions Mary Williams – Business Department John Ziebell – English Department

Faculty Senate is also involved currently with an RFP for the Bookstore.
Patty Charlton gave an update of the Biennial Budget/Legislative news. She reported that the revenue projections for the 2009-2011 biennium continue to fluctuate and the impact of the stimulus funding is still being reviewed.

NSHE leadership continues to work with Legislative leadership to assess the affect of revenue shortfalls, stimulus funding, and the funding formula on operating budgets. CSN has reviewed and provided information at operating budget hearings with
various budget funding scenarios which include a wide range of potential funding levels including, but not limited to: Governor’s original proposed reduction of 37% Reductions of 5%, 7%, and 9% of existing funding Reductions of 5%, 7%, and 9% of formula funding (with new enrollments) Funding at FY06 level (18.75% reduction) Funding at FY06 with projected stimulus funding (about 79% of the formula)

A number of Bill Draft Requests have been presented to the Legislature for consideration which include bills regarding tuition and fees, State Public Works Board, multiple bills regarding the Millennium Scholarship Program, and various other bills.

The Governor’s proposed salary decrease of 6% for state employees will probably be discussed after the May 1st Economic Forum projections have been released. The Legislature should complete the 120-day session June 1, 2009. Final funding levels, salary and benefit decisions, and legislative actions are not anticipated to be completed until close to this date. Funding available for Capital projects has been reduced from original projections and only limited projects may be supported.

CSN continues to focus on two Cheyenne Campus projects: fire suppression system replacement along with campus revitalization, and remodeling and upgrading the Science Labs.

Patty Charlton reported on Facilities, HR and Financial Services also. Facilities CSN received approval at the April Board of Regents meeting for Phase I of the Charleston campus infrastructure improvements that will include additional parking and lighting for the fall semester and various ancillary upgrades. These upgrades will consist of grading in preparation for the City of Las Vegas Fire Station/CSN Instructional Center. Phase II will be presented at the June meeting and includes ½ street improvements to Torrey Pines, campus drainage installation, and easements associated with the campus improvements.

The Engelstad and Fire Station projects are moving forward on schedule. Construction on the Engelstad addition should begin in August of 2009, and the Fire Station in October 2009. A ground-breaking ceremony will be scheduled for the Fire Station project, probably in May. Human Resources Evaluations for professional administrative employees are due to HR by April 27.

A new online evaluation process is in the pilot stage and should be ready to roll out next year. Finance & Facilities employees are completing their evaluations using the new process, and have identified some nuances to the system. Modifications are being addressed by People Admin to correct the problems. Financial Services A comprehensive listing of the Financial Services Policies was recently posted on the web, and the listings and links were provided to VPs, AVPs, Deans, Directors and Department Chairs. Finance policies are primarily dictated by the Board of Regents policies, recommendations from external and internal audit processes, and external compliance with the IRS.

The purchasing cut-off date was April 3. Final deadlines for mileage, travel, printing, and motorpool charges are listed on the year-end closing memo issued by Financial Services. Patty reminded everyone to adhere to the deadlines listed there.

Jacque Matthews thanked Larry Mason for his fundraising efforts that brought in $25,000 through various events. She also thanked K.C. for the effective media coverage and Sondra Cosgrove for puppy-sitting the puppies to be auctioned at the Gala. So far there have been 50 tables sold and they are still selling. She thanked SunGard for being a Gala premier sponsor for the third year also. Jacque had some not-so-good news to report for the Foundation as well. Some of the challenges included a $3 million pledge being rescinded, a large naming gift and some scholarship endowments put on hold, and banks receiving stimulus funds being prohibited from purchasing tables.

Jacque remained upbeat, however, and shared with the group some positive things happening with the Foundation. They are working on making new contacts, strengthening ties with CSN’s friends, focusing on planned gifts, working on an alumni direct mailing and several other encouraging projects.

Joan McGee said the Charleston Campus Steering Committee held its first meeting in February and the group provided valuable information about projects, schedules, equipment needs, etc. Dr. McGee bought each committee member a copy of the books, You Don’t Need a Title to Be a Leader, and 1000 Ways to Reward Employees. Both books are very motivational and include great ideas for the committee members.

The MOU that CSN has with Nellis Air Force Base is being revised to reflect current practices and update old information. Dr. McGee is working with Richard Hinckley on some points of legality in the MOU. The ACE/OWHE Conference theme for the October 16th event is Resilience in Difficult Times.

About 17 CSN people will be overseeing details for the conference, such as transportation, registration, lodging, and food for the attendees. The Horn Theater has been reserved for the event. Dr. McGee told everyone to let her know if they have ideas for activities for “Take Your Daughters And Sons to Work” day on April 23. She is coordinating with Linda Foreman on the details.

Joan has participated in many activities and events since the last cabinet meeting, including attending the Henderson Chamber of Commerce membership campaign, judging a Rotary Club speech contest, attending a Henderson campus Black History Month event, attending Budget Hearings, Women’s Excellence Awards, a UNLV College of Education Alumni event, and the Budget Rally on April 6 at Cheyenne Campus’ June Whitley Lounge.

David Waterhouse reported the recycling initiative for CSN is close to being finalized, pending agreement on some contract language. The book exchange program is complete. A student lobbying trip to Carson City will leave from UNLV this week, with students from UNLV, CSN and NSC traveling together. Student Government elections will take place April 28 & 29, and David will bring his successor to the next cabinet meeting for introductions. The cabinet members thanked David for his tireless work.

Anne Zemek de Dominguez reported briefly that a system is being devised to ensure that part-timers with student contact complete the mandatory sexual harassment training.

Dr. Richards closed by telling the group how much he enjoyed his meeting with the employees who have 30+ years with CSN. He looks forward to meeting with them each year. Dr. Richards also told cabinet he is planning town hall forums before summer to address budget concerns, answer questions, and update everyone on the financial situation of the college. He is planning the forums at each campus in May. Meeting adjourned at 10:30 a.m.

Next meeting scheduled May 11, 2009.