ACCT's Trustee Quarterly | FALL 2012

Reimagining the Talent | Rethinking the College Org Chart Executive Compensation in Six Pipeline Steps | Moving Towards Better Measures of Success

FALL 2012

Defining Student Success Partnerships | Innovation | Evidence

The 2012 ACCT Leadership Congress stresses collaboration as a key to expanding the mission of community colleges.

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New Release from Rowman & Littlefield Publishing

FIRST IN THE WORLD: COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND AMERICA’S FUTURE

By J. Noah Brown

REVIEWS This book is a defining work at a defining time in our nation’s future.

Our community colleges are a national asset, and this book is both a call to arms — and a call to opportunity!

— William D. Green, chairman, Accenture

Noah Brown understands not only the work of community colleges but also the basic tenets of a democratic society. When he speaks of the immense potential of community colleges to affect societal change, his deeper message is about reimagining the nation’s commitment to educational opportunity. This is a book that deserves the attention of everyone who cares about that tradition.

— Eduardo J. Padron, president, Miami Dade College

Noah Brown points out eloquently that community colleges prepare our students for additional education, as well as for jobs and ultimately careers. It is my hope that First in the World will help renew interest in our community colleges and move us toward a focus on strength and support for them. It is the right thing to do in order to provide opportunities for our students, as well as to serve

DISCOUNT for ACCT Members!*

From his unique vantage point as President and CEO of the Association of Community College Trustees, J. Noah Brown writes about the intersection between community colleges and America’s need to regain economic momentum and its position as first in the world with respect to college attainment. By connecting past economic and education policies and investments to possibilities for the future and continued national progress, Brown reminds us that restoring America’s prominence is within reach. More importantly, he succinctly advocates for the power of community colleges to increase educational attainment, thereby reducing income inequality by allowing more Americans to access real economic opportunity. *Available to ACCT members exclusively for $35.00. Retail price is $49.99.

See order form on inside back cover or e-mail acctinfo@acct.org.

our communities, our states, and our nation.

— Richard W. Riley, former U.S. Secretary of Education

MEET THE AUTHOR J. Noah Brown is president and CEO of the Association of Community College Trustees, a nonprofit educational organization of governing boards representing more than 6,500 elected and appointed trustees who govern over 1,200 community, technical, and junior colleges. To schedule an interview with Noah, contact dconner@acct.org.

Available November 2012 from Rowman & Littlefield Publishers rowman.com/ISBN/9781442209992 978-1-4422-0997-8 • Hardback • $49.95 • (£31.95) 978-1-4422-0999-2 • eBook • $48.99 • (£29.95)

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BOARD OF DIRECTORS

2011-2012

From the Chair

CHAIR Roberto Uranga Long Beach City College, CA

CHAIR-ELECT Jean Torgeson North Iowa Area Community College, IA

VICE CHAIR John W. Sanders John A. Logan College, IL

SECRETARY-TREASURER LeRoy W. Mitchell Westchester Community College, NY

IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR Peter E. Sercer, Sr. Midlands Technical College, SC

CENTRAL REGIONAL CHAIR Jeffrey A. May Joliet Junior College, IL

NORTHEAST REGIONAL CHAIR Bakari Lee Hudson County Community College, NJ

PACIFIC REGIONAL CHAIR Anita Grier City College of San Francisco, CA

SOUTHERN REGIONAL CHAIR David H. Talley Palm Beach State College, FL

WESTERN REGIONAL CHAIR Colton J. Crane Central Wyoming College, WY William E. Coleman, Jr. Mercer County Community College, NJ Stanley Edwards Halifax Community College, NC Robert “Bob” Feit Southeast Community College, NE Mary Figueroa Riverside Community College District, CA Jim Harper Portland Community College, OR Donna Horgan Cecil College, MD Randall “Mack” Jackson, Diversity Committee Chair Midlands Technical College, SC Vernon Jung Moraine Park Technical College, WI Clare Ollayos Elgin Community College, IL Clemon Prevost College of the Mainland, TX George Regan Robeson Community College, NC Dorothy “Dottie” Smith State Center Community College District, CA Robin M. Smith Lansing Community College, MI Nancy Watkins Hillsborough Community College, FL Frederick “Fred” Whang Tacoma Community College, WA Roberto Zárate Alamo Colleges, TX

Planting a Seed, Watching it Grow When last we met in Dallas, I took the gavel and set an agenda for the year that would take ACCT to the next level by building on relationships that would bear fruit as we moved forward. I planted a seed.

Over the past year, those relationships have helped solidify ACCT as a leader in not only student success and access, but also in advocacy for community colleges. Among the bridges we built were engaging the National School Boards Association in conversation regarding student success and the need to collaborate with K-12 systems to address our shared challenges. We will continue that conversation in Boston, with the hope of expanding the relationship to include the support of mutually beneficial initiatives and legislation to address our students most in need of support.

Our relationships have also expanded globally — to Birmingham, England, where we attended the Association of Colleges (AoC) Conference; to Beijing, Xiang, and provinces throughout China, where we experienced the country’s educational system; and to Nashville, Tenn., where ACCT was recognized with the Phi Theta Kappa Alliance for Educational Excellence Award. This award, not given every year, recognizes ACCT for its outstanding leadership in addressing the Community College Completion Challenge and for being the first of six national partner organizations to organize a Community College Completion Summit to create a national awareness of the completion initiative. The 2012 ACCT Symposium, Achieving Student Success: Metrics, Data, and Evidence, which will take place before the 2012 Leadership Congress in October, will be a continuation of the completion dialogue begun in Dallas and promises to be an excellent opportunity for trustees, college presidents, and stakeholders, including our friends in philanthropy, to foster and grow student success.

I wish to thank The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Kresge Foundation, Lumina Foundation, the ACCT Corporate Council, and all our friends and supporters who make ACCT’s work on behalf of community colleges possible. Without their generosity and willingness to collaborate, without their vision for building a promising future for student success, and without their insistence on setting the bar for college completion, ACCT would be hard pressed to meet its own goals for trustee leadership development and advocacy.

ACCT has an amazing staff of professionals and support personnel who, beginning with President and CEO J. Noah Brown, labor day in and day out to ensure the Association’s success. If this year were a thermometer by which to measure the staff’s success, 2011-12 was hot! Great work.

I began the year with planting a seed. We have nurtured it, and it is flowering. Does 2012 mark the end of an era, as prognosticated by the Mayan calendar, or is it the beginning of an evolutionary process that will take ACCT to newer, brighter, and greater heights in community college leadership and advocacy? I leave that answer to you, the membership, and encourage you to get involved and to participate in ACCT’s committee structure. It is where change happens.

(;{ ROBERTO URANGA LONG BEACH CITY COLLEGE, CALIF. T R U S T E E Q U A RT E R LY

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TRUSTEE

QUA RT E RLY

The Voice of Community College Leaders

From the President & CEO

FALL 2012

Editorial Team

First in the World

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF J. Noah Brown President & CEO

MANAGING EDITOR DAVID CONNER Marketing & Communications Specialist

EDITOR Mark Toner CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Jee Hang Lee Director of Public Policy

Narcisa A. Polonio Vice President for Education, Research & Board Leadership Services

Ira Michael Shepard ACCT Legal Counsel

EDITORIAL ASSOCIATES Julie Golder Alion Elizabeth Alvarado Keyshia Jimerson John Steinecke PROOFREADER Kit Gray Wolverton DESIGN & PRODUCTION www.moiremarketing.com – Washington, D.C. YOUR OPINION MATTERS CONTACT: David Conner (866) 895-ACCT (2228) dconner@acct.org

TRUSTEE QUARTERLY (ISSN 0271-9746) is published three or four times per year as a membership service of the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT).

ACCT is a not-for-profit educational organization of governing boards of public and private community, technical, and junior colleges. Membership is also open to state coordinating boards, advisory boards, and state associations. The mission of ACCT is to foster greater understanding of and appreciation for community college boards; support boards in their efforts to develop public policies focusing on meeting community needs; help build board governance leadership and advocacy capacity through in-service education and training programs; and support boards through specialized services and programs.

Opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and values of the Association of Community College Trustees.

Non-members may subscribe to TRUSTEE QUARTERLY for $60.00 per year (plus postage for international subscriptions). Third-class postage paid at Washington, D.C.

1233 20th Street, NW, Suite 301 Washington DC 20036 (202) 775-4667 FAX: (202) 775-4455 E-mail: acctinfo@acct.org www.acct.org

OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS, I’VE HAD the opportunity and obligation to think a lot about the place of community colleges in the world and our nation’s economy. Some of these thoughts are captured on page 10 of this magazine, but they can be summed up by the title of my forthcoming book, First in the World: Community Colleges and America’s Future.

Getting back to first in the world will take all of us working together — it will take partnerships. It will take innovation. And it will require taking a serious look at data and other evidence so that we can improve student success, which will in turn improve the success of the country. It’s no coincidence that “leveraging student success through partnerships, innovation, and evidence” is the theme of the 2012 ACCT Leadership Congress. On page 12, you’ll learn more about our outstanding keynote speakers — leaders in higher education, K-12 schools, and private industry who are partnering to keep our country great.

To be successful, we also must work with lawmakers to ensure that the success of our colleges and students remains a top priority. ACCT Director of Public Policy Jee Hang Lee’s advocacy column on page 8 will brief you on what has been going on in Washington, and on page 26, we invite you to preview the 2013 Community College National Legislative Summit. You do not want to miss this meeting, which comes just as the Presidential administration is setting its priorities for the next four years.

And of course, ACCT’s valued partners lend important updates to this issue, including updates on the Voluntary Framework of Accountability (p. 20) from our friends at the American Association of Community Colleges, a lesson about the importance of credentialed skills (p. 20) from Martin Scaglione at ACCT Corporate Council member ACT, a legal update from ACCT General Counsel Ira Michael Shepard (p. 34), and updates from the Professional Board Staff Network in the Interface department on page 41.

Finally, this issue contains tried and true advice from ACCT Vice President Narcisa Polonio in a case study on page 29 and a feature on the role boards must play in ensuring that the college’s organizational structure is aligned with the commitment to student success on page 22.

ACCT depends on our partners — including you, our members — to forge a successful future for the nation’s community colleges. We welcome your feedback about this magazine and other publications, our educational events, and all other board services and resources. I invite you to reach out to us at acctinfo@acct.org or let me know what’s on your mind this October, when I hope to see you for the 2012 ACCT Leadership Congress in Boston.

J. NOAH BROWN ACCT PRESIDENT AND CEO

1-866-895-ACCT (2228) FAX: 1-866-904-ACCT (2228) 2

FALL 2012

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TRUSTEE QUARTERLY | FALL 2012

Contents

DEPARTMENTS 8

Advocacy Federal Aid Under the Microscope Jee Hang Lee

10

President’s POV Coming of Age – New Efforts to Rebuild

8

Partnerships With Our Communities

20

J. Noah Brown

34

Legal Recent Developments in Employment Law Ira Michael Shepard

12

1

From the Chair

2

From the President & CEO

4

News

and David Conner

24

Around the Regions

Congress keynote speakers share their perspectives on how partnerships, innovation, and evidence are changing community colleges.

29

Case Study

34

ACCT Lifetime Members

An update on the groundbreaking Voluntary Framework of Accountability.

36

Searches and Retreats

Right Skills, Right Jobs, Right Now! — Martin Scaglione

41

Interface

Community colleges are the linchpin of a new initiative that accelerates the skilled talent pipeline for manufacturing jobs.

44

Advisor

FEATURES 12

18 20

22

IN EVERY ISSUE

More Than a Buzzword: 2012 Congress Q&As — Mark Toner

Tailored for Perfection — Kent A. Phillippe

Creating a Data-Informed Org Chart — Narcisa Polonio

COVER ILLUSTRATION: MICHAEL AUSTIN

Trustees play a critical role in ensuring that their colleges are structured to support student success.

26

Setting the Tone: 2013 NLS Preview — Jennifer Stiddard Following the fall elections, the 2013 NLS will come at a pivotal time for community colleges and the nation.

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cover illustration by Michael Austin

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ACCT to Launch New Mobile App for Boston Congress If you have the ACCT mobile application installed on your smart phone or mobile device, take note:

NEWS 2012 ACCT Regional Awards Announced

ACCT will be launching a new-andThe ACCT Awards Committees are pleased to announce the 2012 ACCT Regional Awards recipients. Each Regional Awards recipient is automatically nominated for a national-level Association Award in the same category. The Association Awards will be announced during the 2012 ACCT Leadership Congress Awards Gala Banquet in Boston, Massachusetts, on Friday, October 12, 2012.

improved version in time for the 2012 ACCT Leadership Congress in Boston, Mass. We recommend that you delete the existing app from your device and install the new one in October to avoid confusion.

Hundreds of trustees and college presidents downloaded the ACCT mobile

Trustee Leadership Award Recipients

application when

CENTRAL REGION: NORTHEAST REGION: PACIFIC REGION: SOUTHERN REGION: WESTERN REGION:

it was launched in February during the 2012 Community

David Harby, Danville Area Community College, Ill. Kathleen Pesile, The City University of New York, N.Y. Carol Landa-McVicker, Community Colleges of Spokane, Wash.

David Miller, Northern Virginia Community College Gary Gurwitz, South Texas College Board of Trustees

College National

Equity Award Recipients

Legislative

CENTRAL REGION: NORTHEAST REGION: PACIFIC REGION: WESTERN REGION:

Summit. The app made navigating the meeting

Waubonsee Community College, Ill. Hudson County Community College, N.J. Maricopa Community College, Ariz.

Central Wyoming College

easier, with

Chief Executive Officer Award Recipients

such features

CENTRAL REGION: NORTHEAST REGION: PACIFIC REGION: SOUTHERN REGION: WESTERN REGION:

as meeting schedules and instant schedule-change notifications, hotel and city maps, a live Twitter feed, and more.

If you plan to attend the 2012 ACCT Leadership Congress, be sure to download the new app to your device to enhance your meeting experience.

To download the application to your iPhone, iPad, or Android device, go to your device’s application store and search for “ACCT.” If you have any questions or would like to give feedback on the ACCT Congress application,

Bettsey Barhorst, Madison Area Technical College, Wisc.

Karen Stout, Montgomery County Community College, Pa. Brice Harris, Los Rios Community College District, Calif.

David Cole, Itawamba Community College, Miss.

Bruce Leslie, CEO, Alamo Colleges, Texas

Faculty Member Award Recipients CENTRAL REGION: NORTHEAST REGION: PACIFIC REGION: SOUTHERN REGION: WESTERN REGION:

Holly Kerby, Madison Area Technical College, Wisc.

Kathleen Kennedy-Norris, Baltimore City Community College, Md. Teri Ann Mills, Portland Community College, Ore. Elizabeth Traxler, Greenville Technical College, S.C. Paul Benson, Mountain View College, Dallas County Community College District, Texas

Professional Board Staff Member Award Recipients CENTRAL REGION: NORTHEAST REGION: PACIFIC REGION: SOUTHERN REGION: WESTERN REGION:

Lisa Poma, Mott Community College, Mich.

Jennifer Oakley, Hudson County Community College, N.J. Gloria Smith, Maricopa Community College District, Ariz.

Tarsha Bush-Dudley, Roanoke-Chowan Community College, N.C. Carla Patee, Dodge City Community College, Kan.

e-mail ACCT Education Events Specialist Christina Sage Simons at csage@acct.org.

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ACCT congratulates the 2012 ACCT Regional Award recipients for their outstanding work. Visit www.acct.org to learn more about the ACCT Awards program.

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Taking Action on Student Success: ACCT and You ACCT is pleased to announce its Policy Action Agenda for Student Success. This agenda grew out of ACCT’s efforts to raise awareness and spark action for community college governing boards to engage with their presidents or chancellors to embrace student

More Than Half of 2012 High School Graduates at Risk of Not Succeeding in College and Career

success and increase completion while reaffirming their commitment to access and equity. The goal of the Policy Action Agenda is to encourage thoughtful discussion about student success and

According to a new report from ACT, an independent nonprofit organization with a 53-year history of generating data-driven assessments and research, at least 60 percent of “likely college-bound 2012 U.S. high-school graduates” are not academically prepared to succeed in college. The annual report, The Condition of College & Career Readiness 2012, focuses on scores earned by graduating seniors who took the ACT college and career readiness exam.

This year, a record 52 percent of the U.S. graduating class participated in ACT’s college and career readiness exam. Over a quarter (28 percent) of those tested “did not meet any of the four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks in English, mathematics, reading, and science, suggesting they are likely to struggle in first-year college courses,” stated an ACT press release. Further, a total of 60 percent met no more than two of the four benchmarks, and only 25 percent met all four.

“Far too many high school graduates are still falling short academically,” said ACT CEO Jon Whitmore. “We need to do more to ensure that our young people improve. The advanced global economy requires American students to perform at their highest level to compete in the future job market and maintain the long-term economic security of the U.S.” The test results also reveal an ongoing disparity among racial and ethnic groups, with none of the four benchmarks met by more than half of African American and Hispanic students, even as “the majority of Asian American and white students met or surpassed the benchmarks in all areas except science,” the release stated.

ACT points out the importance of early monitoring and intervention to identify at-risk students, and as a result the organization plans to launch a new assessment system covering early elementary through high school levels. “The new system will be designed to provide students, parents, and educators with information and insights on multiple measures of readiness to help ensure that students are on track for success starting early in their academic careers and continuing on through high school education,” the release states.

Should the program prove successful, it has the potential to ultimately reduce the number of students who require remediation at community colleges.

The full report, as well as state-by-state breakdowns of testing data, is available at http://act.org/newsroom/data/2012/resourcemenu.html.

completion by all community college governing boards.

In addition to the Policy Action Agenda, we want to hear from you and to share your work on student success and completion. Our goal is to create a repository of examples of programs, policies, presentations, and other relevant materials that can be easily disseminated to all community colleges.

To contribute your ideas to this important movement, go to www.governance-institute.org and click on the “submit your student success practices” link on the home page.

QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? Narcisa A. Polonio, Ed.D. narcisa_polonio@acct.org 202-276-1983 For more information, go to www.governance-institute.org

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LET THE LAW WORK FOR YOU Timing is everything when it comes to advocacy, but not everyone has time to pay attention to pending legislation day in and day out.

ACCT’s Latest Action in Washington (LAW) Alerts do the work for you.

Since 2008, nearly 1,600 new people have signed up to receive ACCT’s LAW Alert e-mails — brief summaries of legislative actions e-mailed to subscribers as legislation happens, giving community college trustees, presidents, and other leaders and advocates time to contact their representatives and exert influence before it’s too late.

NEWS ACCT Announces New Community College Governance Recognition Program ACCT is excited to announce a new initiative designed to recognize exceptional trustees who attain a high standard of educational development related to governance. The Community College Governance Recognition Program (CCGRP) is designed to share knowledge essential to the practice of exemplary community college governance.

ACCT member trustees who enroll in the CCGRP and acquire 12 credits from among the offered educational events will receive a certificate of recognition for having participated in the program.

The program provides trustees a way to link ACCT’s educational offerings in a blended program of individualized learning. Any combination of ACCT face-to-face events and online educational courses will qualify for the 12-credit requirement for recognition. For more information or to enroll, visit one of ACCT’s websites at www.trustee-education.org or www.acct.org.

SAVE THE DATE

2013 Governance Leadership Institute ACCT’s Governance Leadership Institute is a unique opportunity for

Please encourage your fellow trustees, presidents, and colleagues to stay up to date about legislation that affects their community colleges by joining the LAW E-Alert network. To join, simply e-mail publicpolicy@acct.org with “LAW Alert” in the subject of the e-mail.

community college presidents and their trustees to work together on

For more information about ACCT’s advocacy services, visit www.acct.org/advocacy.

San Antonio, Texas

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important and timely issues. The 2013 Governance Leadership Institute will focus on proven practices that strengthen the board/CEO relationship, help trustees accept responsibility for holding one another accountable, and provide tools and techniques to the officers of the board. This institute is a must-attend for presidents, trustees, and board staff. A team of three or more trustees and the president is most effective.

GOVERNANCE LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE 2013 March 21-23, 2013

To register and for more information, go to: www.acct.org/events/institute.

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JOINT STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC PROGRESSION FOR

NURSING STUDENTS AND GRADUATES Nursing is by far the largest healthcare profession in the U.S., with more than 2.6 million registered nurses (RNs) practicing in hospitals and other settings nationwide. Despite their large numbers, many more qualified nurses must be prepared in programs offered by community colleges and four-year institutions to meet the nation’s growing demand for health care and to replace a large wave of nurses nearing retirement. By 2020, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that more than 1.2 million additional RNs will be needed to work in acute care hospitals, long-term care facilities, community health centers, nursing schools, and other areas.

To fulfill our shared goal to prepare a robust nursing work force, the undersigned organizations acknowledge our full support of academic progression for nursing students and graduates.

Community college presidents, boards, and program administrators are aligned with the nation’s nursing association leaders in the belief that every nursing student and nurse deserves the opportunity to pursue academic career growth and development. It is through the collaboration and partnering of our various organizations that we can facilitate and inspire the seamless academic progression of nursing students and nurses. Our common goal is a well-educated, diverse nursing workforce to advance the nation’s health.

Working together will facilitate the unity of nursing education programs and advance opportunities for academic progression, which may include seamless transition into associate, baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral programs. Collectively, we agree that every nursing student and nurse should have access to additional nursing education, and we stand ready to work together to ensure that nurses have the support needed to take the next step in their education.

American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) Association of Community Colleges Trustees (ACCT) American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) National League for Nursing (NLN) National Organization for Associate Degree Nursing (N-OADN)

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ADVOCACY

Federal Aid Under the Microscope The U.S. Department of Education seeks to fight ‘Pell runners.’

by Jee Hang Lee

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looking to scam the system. Among the 2.7 percent in improper payments is a kind of fraud that has received an increase in attention over the past year. There have been a number of stories about “Pell runners” — individuals who enroll long enough to collect their financial aid, disappear, and then move on to another institution. These students are primarily distance-education students who never set foot on their local community college campus. The most highly publicized instances have involved coordinated fraud rings aimed at recruiting and enrolling “straw students” for the sole purpose of receiving and subsequently disappearing

with their financial aid funds. Community colleges have been susceptible to this type of fraud, as lower tuitions can provide students with a refund on their Pell Grant award to cover living expenses.

The U.S. Department of Education has taken notice of the issue, and has set forth a number of internal actions and institutional recommendations to combat Pell runners. Most of these actions are based on a September 2011 Office of Inspector General (OIG) report on “Distance Education Fraud Rings.”

Internally, the department has a number of actions planned to combat these fraud rings. They are primarily focused on

ROB COLVIN

S

SINCE 2008, THE SIZE OF THE PELL Grant program has grown significantly, leading to both changes in eligibility and a greater focus on potential fraud within the program.

The total number of students receiving Pell Grants has grown from 6.2 million in 2008 to an expected 9.7 million for the next academic year. The chart on the facing page illustrates the dynamic growth within the program and what it has meant in terms of the federal financial commitment to Pell Grants.

When Congress expanded the program and increased the maximum award in 2009, it also added a significant amount of mandatory funding to the program. As that mandatory funding has dwindled, Congress has struggled to keep up with the fiscal needs of the program.

For supporters of the program, this has required significant political support and advocacy to maintain funding levels. A number of Pell eligibility changes have been made to offset some of the costs of the program, including eliminating year-round (summer) Pell Grants and eligibility for Ability-to-Benefit students.

Congress and the Administration are now also looking at fraud and abuse within the broader federal financial aid system, but especially within the Pell Grant program.

As the Pell Grant program grows, so has the scrutiny over program integrity.

Incidences of fraud or abuse make the program vulnerable to those who seek to scale back funding. According to the National Association of Financial Aid Administrators, the rate of improper payments of Pell Grants in 2011 was 2.7 percent, or $1 billion. And while increasing the Pell Grant maximum award has increased access and affordability for many, it has also enticed individuals T R U S T E E Q U A RT E R LY

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identity verification and flagging potential Pell runners within the department’s computer system. Additionally, the department has announced plans for a negotiated regulatory session later this year that will include prevention of fraud rings.

This summer, the Senate Appropriations Committee included a provision in its FY 2013 Senate Labor-HHS-ED bill that changes the Pell Grant cost of attendance calculation for students attending classes 100 percent online. The Senate’s FY 2013 bill permits only tuition and fees, books, and supplies to be covered under the cost of attendance. While the report language only mentions room and board, the bill eliminates miscellaneous and personal expenses, transportation, and dependent care. The relatively small savings for making this change to cost calculations will be applied to the Pell Grant program. This will seriously impact community college students more than any other sector.

This change is one of several recommendations made in the OIG report to combat coordinated fraud rings — and the only one which would also impact Pell Grant awards for students uninvolved in fraud. Supporters of this change believe that lessening the award removes the financial incentive for Pell runners looking to scam distance education programs. However, this step may prove unnecessary based upon steps being taken by the Department of Education and institutions to combat fraud.

In fact, the OIG report notes “nearly all the individuals we identified as participants in the fraud rings failed to meet the basic eligibility requirement of enrollment for the purpose of obtaining a degree, certificate, or other recognized credential.”

Efforts to require additional verification would hence be the most logical and effective way to combat fraud.

Eliminating living expenses and housing from a student’s financial aid award may hurt their ability to access education and potentially delay completion. Whether a student attends class online or in person, most still have the same financial

COST OF PELL GRANT PROGRAM 2008 – 2013 Fiscal Year

Total Pell Max Award

Total Students

Pell Program Costs (in millions)

2008

$4,731

6,155,197

$18,291

2009

$5,350

8,089,702

$29,992

2010

$5,550

9,303,000

$35,677

2011

$5,550

9,703,000

$35,734

2012

$5,550

9,620,000

$35,697

2013

$5,635

9,748,000

$35,697

obligations for housing and living expenses. According to the College Board, the average estimated undergraduate budget for a student attending a public two-year institution is $15,286 annually, $7,408 of which represents room and board. The OIG report states that limiting the allowances for room and board for distance education students would “decrease loan debt.” ACCT believes the opposite is likely to occur. Absent assistance from Pell, individuals are more likely to take out larger loans, including private student loans to cover the cost of obtaining a degree or certificate.

Institutional controls are a better mechanism to solve this solution than a one-size-fits-all approach from the federal government. Many colleges are now incorporating a number of changes to check on their students’ status, including requesting transcripts from high schools or other colleges. In discussing this issue with a group of financial aid administrators, they noted the key role of the board and the president in making sure that financial aid compliance is a priority for the institution. Colleges should give serious attention to the area of compliance and utilize other departments to assist this effort. While Title IV aid is an area of compliance for the financial aid office, it cannot do so without the aid of the whole institution. The loss of financial aid would have a significant negative impact on the institution and its students.

The Department of Education has issued additional guidance for institutions

wishing to prevent fraud rings. Institutional recommendations include: • Implement automated protocols that monitor the student information data system to identify instances where a number of students may be using the same IP or e-mail address.

• Modify disbursement rules for students participating exclusively in distance education programs.

• Takes steps to verify the identity of individuals who are suspected of fraud.

The scrutiny on Pell and the federal student loan programs is expected to increase. Recently, the Department of Education publicly acknowledged that it is undertaking more program reviews than in the past. A number of community colleges have gone or are going through a program review. These reviews are vital for a college’s continued participation in the Title IV programs.

We need your continued advocacy and support for the Pell Grant program and financial aid programs. We encourage you to utilize ACCT’s online policy center to communicate with your members of Congress and follow federal legislative updates through the Latest Action in Washington (LAW) e-mail alerts.

ACCT Director of Public Policy Jee Hang Lee can be reached by e-mail at jhlee@ acct.org, or by phone at 202-775-4667.

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PRESIDENT’S POV

Coming of Age New Efforts To Rebuild Partnerships With Our Communities

By J. Noah Brown

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THE PAST SIX WEEKS HAVE BEEN A whirlwind of diverse venues and occasions that have allowed me to experience the wonderful tapestry that is our community colleges today. From the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment Summit in Washington, D.C., to the U.S. News and World Report STEM Leadership Summit in Dallas, Texas, to the AACC Presidents Academy Summer Institute in Jackson Hole, Wyo., to the ACCT Board of Directors Summer Retreat in Long Beach, Calif., to the Single Stop USA Advisory Committee Meeting in Boston, Mass., and finally the Michigan Community College Association Summer Conference in Traverse City, Mich., I have been immersed in the challenges and exciting opportunities trustees and presidents face each and every day.

These opportunities not only inform and shape our thinking at ACCT relative to meeting the needs of trustees nationally, but also deepen the partnerships and relevancy of our work on behalf of our membership and the nation as a whole.

As the opportunities expand for our community colleges, so too does ACCT’s commitment to equip their boards with the tools, information, and national presence required to empower the sector and deepen and broaden the national conversation about restoring America’s economic engines to full power.

Community colleges pride themselves on being both “open door” and learningcentered organizations. Both values, though, are being confronted by a growing paucity of public funds and enrollment patterns that challenge our assumptions about the student population to which we have grown accustomed. Growing numbers of first-time, full-time freshman 10

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are choosing community colleges as their first option, largely driven by the economy and public college attendance costs that continue to outpace inflation year after year. This constitutes a real opportunity to drill further into America’s middle class and accelerate changing public perceptions about community colleges being “institutions of last resort.” It may

well be that serving increasing numbers of more “traditional” students will create new and influential allies in the struggle to regain some semblance of normalcy in how community colleges are embraced by their communities and supported by governments.

These changes demand that community college advocates prioritize restoring the critical compact between the colleges and the communities that sustain and nurture them. With few exceptions, state legislatures have reneged on their historical funding commitments. Where

once community colleges relied on state governments to provide, on average, 38 percent of their revenues, colleges that I have visited recently have seen those percentages drop to as low as 10 percent. This situation is made more unacceptable because community colleges receive 28 percent of all public funds to higher education, yet they serve almost half of all undergraduate students. This profound inequity has real and devastating consequences for our students, and more importantly for a nation struggling to regain its former position as first in the world in the proportion of adults aged 25 to 34 with a college degree. Restoring public investment in community colleges is job number one. It will not be easy, and we must resist the temptation to let communities and governments off the hook.

Convincing lawmakers and the public to restore higher funding levels to community colleges will require a new game plan and the strategic use of data as never before. Community college trustees and presidents will need to think differently about the business model, partnerships, student success, the creation and delivery of content and curricula, and a host of other academic and student support services. Many community college leaders are game to take on these challenges. I have seen many examples of innovative thinking and new strategies to reinvigorate the public-college compact. But we need to bring these ideas and innovations to greater scale.

Community colleges have reached a new level of maturity as a sector. But maturity comes with its own unique set of challenges and can be fraught with dangers. These dangers include failing to move our leadership from an enrollment-

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MODEL STANDARDS OF GOOD PRACTICE FOR TRUSTEE BOARDS In support of effective community college governance, the board believes: That it derives its authority from the community and that it must always act as an advocate on behalf of the entire community; driven economic model to new models that both embrace student success and completion, as well as those economies of scale that invariably come with student persistence and measurable outcomes.

Doing so will help efforts to convince policymakers to reinvest in our community colleges — as engines of student success and inseparable workforce and economic drivers.

Community colleges must be more intentional in “minding the front door.” We must pay greater attention to why students are stopping in and “stopping out” — indefinitely pausing their studies without officially withdrawing. We know that life often gets in the way, and I have seen community college programs that take on the challenge by providing emergency funds to students when they deal with a flat tire, can’t afford public transportation, or face any number of other relatively modest financial impediments. We can and need to do far better in helping students understand and navigate the maze that is the modern community college. Students need help in understanding and making prudent decisions regarding how to pay for their studies while avoiding incurring debt as much as possible as they strive to earn a certificate or degree.

Community college boards and presidents must accelerate partnerships with our K-12 districts and schools. The goal should not be to subsume high school into the community college; rather, we should assist high school administrators and teachers in understanding what it takes to be successful at the college level, while also helping them to align teaching and content mastery to the assessments community colleges presently use to gauge college readiness in math, reading, and composition.

Community college trustees and presidents will need to think differently about the business model, partnerships, student success, the creation and delivery of content and curricula, and a host of other academic and student support services.

In all honesty, I can’t remember a time when I have felt more passionate about community colleges. In 112 years, these institutions have never been more important or more vital to the nation than they are right now. They face many challenges to be sure, but the energy and commitment that boards, presidents, administrators, and faculty are demonstrating make me confident that the next hundred years will prove that the founders of the modern community college movement were wise beyond their years.

J. Noah Brown is the president and chief executive officer of the Association of Community College Trustees. His book First in the World: Community Colleges and America’s Future will be published by Rowman & Littlefield publishers in October 2012.

That it must clearly define and articulate its role; That it is responsible for creating and maintaining a spirit of true cooperation and a mutually supportive relationship with the college president; That it always strives to differentiate between external and internal processes in the exercise of its authority; That its trustee members should engage in a regular and ongoing process of in-service training and continuous improvement; That its trustee members come to each meeting prepared and ready to debate issues fully and openly; That its trustee members vote their conscience and support the decision or policy made; That its behavior, and that of its members, exemplify ethical behavior and conduct that is above reproach; That it endeavors to remain always accountable to the community; That it honestly debates the issues affecting its community and speaks with one voice once a decision or policy is made.

Adopted by the ACCT Board of Directors, October 2000. *The term “board” refers to a community college board of trustees or appropriate governing authority.

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Student Success is more than a buzzword,

but the real meaning can get lost in translation, or just from hearing the term repeated so often. The success of students always has been prioritized in any quality education — so what are we really talking about when we talk about student success?

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Q& A

2012 ACCT LEADERSHIP CONGRESS

BY MARK TONER AND DAVID CONNER

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or one thing, we are talking about expanding the mission of community colleges broadly, from a focus on access to higher education to a new focus on access that leads to program completion or transfer to a four-year institution. But to what end?

Student success has jumped to the top of the national priority list because the United States has fallen from 12th to 16th in the global share of adults ages 25 to 34 who have degrees, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. This ranking has a direct correlation to the nation’s declining economic stability and power. And with an increasing need for practical education and workforce-training programs, community colleges have attained unprecedented national attention.

But community colleges can’t do it all alone — that is why partnership is a primary focus of the 2012 ACCT Leadership Congress. In today’s world, colleges must build partner-based communities that include K-12 school systems, other higher education institutions, philanthropy, private industry, and the media in order to position themselves where they need to be. ACCT is proud to host keynote speakers from each of these areas during the 2012 ACCT Leadership Congress to advance members’ understanding of how strategic partnerships, innovation, and evidence-based approaches can exponentially improve student success institution-wide.

On the following pages, featured Congress keynote speakers, including acclaimed 60 Minutes correspondent Byron Pitts and W.K. Kellogg Foundation President Sterling Speirn, discuss community colleges in the greater context of the national landscape.

ILLUSTRATION BY MICHAEL AUSTIN

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“ALL OF US FOCUS ON THINGS PROFESSIONALLY THAT MATTER TO US PERSONALLY. CHANGE THAT DYNAMIC, AND I THINK YOU’LL BE ABLE TO IMPACT IT.” – BYRON PITTS networks, I think NBC is the only one with a dedicated correspondent that covers education. If that’s the reality, how do you bridge that gap?

I believe that many things are based on relationships. As one reporter, I get in the course of the week hundreds of pieces of mail.

If I don’t know the person, I tend to just glance at it.

So to bridge that gap, you need to decide who are the 50 people of influence in the news media who need to know your name and build relationships with those people. At the very least, make a phone call.

Stress what you think are the important issues and then begin to build that relationship.

Byron Pitts KNOWN FOR HIS THOUGHT-PROVOKING COVERAGE AND his commitment to exceptional storytelling, Byron Pitts is a multiple Emmy award-winning journalist. As Chief National Correspondent for the CBS Evening News, Pitts was an embedded reporter covering the Iraq War and was recognized for his work under fire. Pitts was also CBS’s lead correspondent at Ground Zero immediately following the September 11th attacks and won an Emmy for his coverage. A news veteran with over 20 years of experience, other major stories he has covered include the war in Afghanistan, the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the military buildup in Kuwait, and the refugee crisis in Kosovo. Pitts realized a lifelong goal when he was named a contributing correspondent to CBS’ 60 Minutes in 2009.

Raised by a single mother in a working-class neighborhood in Baltimore, Pitts was illiterate until the age of 12 and had a persistent stutter. Capitalizing on his desire to play football, his mother mandated he receive Bs or above in school in order to play. With that focus, Pitts learned to read and went on to attend Ohio Wesleyan University. By staying focused, setting simple and achievable goals, and finding strength in faith, Pitts overcame his powerful odds and his disability. He graduated in 1982 with a BA in journalism and speech communication. Pitts tells the story of how his faith and a few key people helped him change his life in his memoir, Step Out On Nothing: How Family and Faith Helped Me Conquer Life’s Challenges (2009).

He spoke with Trustee Quarterly about media coverage of education, how colleges can adapt to a changing world, and the rewards of becoming a trustee at his alma mater.

Q: How is education covered by the national networks, and what advice would you give college leaders about improving coverage?

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Q: You’ve talked openly about the challenges you’ve faced. What motivated you to get past the hurdles that presented themselves throughout your life?

A: First and foremost, my mother, who emphasized the value of education. She clearly understood the value of education in making a personal difference in my life. Education is so important — if you look at almost any person in our country who’s managed to have any measure of success, almost without a doubt it goes back, among other things, to their education. That doesn’t necessarily mean they graduated from an Ivy League school, it doesn’t necessarily mean they have a post-graduate degree, but they have some measure of education that was vital to their success. My mother believed that education could be the equalizer in life, that it could overcome class, race, biases.

Q: There’s a lot of talk about the “missing minority male” in higher education. What is the sector doing right in terms of attracting people who have been underrepresented and helping them through all the way to completion?

A: I think institutions do phenomenal work. Most spend time and resources to support minorities, and they deserve credit for doing that.

What can they do to do better? Some of the same things that corporate America could do to do better. For instance, if institutions could connect part of measuring someone’s effectiveness as an administrator or a faculty member to diversity, I think people would take it more seriously.

Anything that’s a priority people will fix.

I always tell people to look at yourself and your surroundings. Walk in the senior manager’s office and look at the pictures on the desk. The pictures in your office are reflective of what’s in your world and what’s important to you. If in your office are just people who look like you, that’s your comfort zone. As long as it remains that way, when you talk about the missing minority male, it becomes just a problem, something outside of your own life.

All of us focus on things professionally that matter to us personally.

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Change that dynamic, and I think you’ll be able to impact it. Tie it to people’s salaries, look at the people on your own shelves, and I think things will improve.

Q: How should colleges handle changes in society?

A: America isn’t just diversifying, it’s becoming… majority minority.

There’s a wonderful book called Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies about how society has evolved. There’s this notion that only the strong survive. The truth of the matter is that only those who can adapt survive. It seems to me that institutions that adapt will survive. Those that don’t will die. You see it all the time in the corporate environment.

I’m on the board of trustees on my alma mater of Ohio Wesleyan University. We have those conversations all the time.

Before joining the Kellogg Foundation in 2006, Speirn was president of the Peninsula Community Foundation, which serves donors and charitable organizations on the San Francisco Peninsula and in the Silicon Valley. He is also founder and chairman of the Center for Venture Philanthropy, which has launched three social venture funds engaging in the issues of poverty, literacy, and the environment. He is past chair of the board of directors of Northern California Grantmakers and serves on the advisory council of the Global Philanthropy Forum.

Sperin talked to Trustee Quarterly about the role of the Kellogg Foundation, the impact of changing demographics on its work, and the vital link between its mission to improve the lives of young children and community colleges.

Q: Tell us about the Kellogg Foundation’s work and point of view.

Q: What motivated you to become a college trustee?

A: We have a whole child, whole family, whole community approach.

A: I’m a new board member — they asked me to join. I’ve reached a point in my life where I’ve raised my own family, so I have more time to devote to someone else’s children. I’m clear about the importance of education and wanting to have some role in that. I know what my alma mater meant in my life, so if I can help maintain that for future generations, that’s a worthwhile way to spend my time.

In private foundations, you have a founding family or donor, and it’s important to know what their North Star was. When we focus on vulnerable children, which was Mr. Kellogg’s mandate, we start with poverty — living in poverty, growing up in poverty. Out of that came the commitment to education, that commitment to health and food, and the new dimension of family economic security.

[Kellogg’s] grandchild fell out of a window and sustained a terrible injury. He said that regardless of all his money, he found it very difficult to find the right kind of help for his grandson, and it caused him to wonder what the children of needy parents face when they undergo a catastrophe. The vulnerability that comes out of poverty led us to say that if we’re going to try to improve education and outcomes for kids, we’re probably going to have to take into account the economic conditions that the kids and their families find themselves in.

Q: How does education fit into the Foundation’s work?

A: Mr. Kellogg was a real believer in what he called the education gospel — he said that in the long run, education holds the best prospects for improving one generation over another. So education’s always been at the core, and we take very seriously the evidence that the first five years of a child’s life — and the first four years in formal schooling — have a powerful influence on their life course and their life trajectory, and that most of the achievement gap we’re trying to eliminate is created before a child enters kindergarten.

So we have a powerful focus on 0-8 years of age, looking at all the things that we can help go right for a child — to be born healthy, to hit

Sterling Speirn STERLING SPEIRN IS PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE W.K. Kellogg Foundation in Battle Creek, Michigan. Established in 1930 by breakfast cereal pioneer W.K. Kellogg, the foundation supports children, families, and communities as they work together to create conditions that “propel vulnerable children to achieve success as individuals and as contributors to the larger community and society.” It ranks among the largest private foundations in the world, awarding grants in the U.S., Latin America and the Caribbean, and southern Africa.

“THE MORE A COMMUNITY COLLEGE CAN BE INTEGRATED INTO THE OTHER THINGS GOING ON IN THEIR COMMUNITY, THE BETTER.” – STERLING SPEIRN T R U S T E E Q U A RT E R LY

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the milestones in the first three years, and so on. And we’re looking at the economic security of families with children in that age range.

We’re focused on the dual-generation strategy of the parents doing well and succeeding, and because of that, their relationship and support for their child is also thriving. That’s the link to community colleges.

We need to support community colleges that are supporting the whole family if the parent or student in the family is going to be successful.

We’ve found some great partners in the community college world that have the same whole child, whole family approach to supporting the parents of that child.

Q: If you were a trustee at a community college, what would you focus on?

A: I would really want to know what’s happening in my community.

Community colleges aren’t academic islands, but a human development force linked to what is happening with the industries and the other kinds of supports and innovations for families and children in the community.

The more a community college can be integrated into the other things going on in their community, the better. In addition to their academic supports and their job training, [they should partner with] the other allies in the community that are supporting these families.

We see students succeeding so much more if they have support on campus in the community college and in the community around the community college.

are doing to raise the issue of racial equity in a proactive way. We’ve gotten a tremendous response across every domain of endeavor — and across all racial lines. People are hungry not to respond to tragedies and racial incidents, but to be working on them in a proactive way that prompts people to sit down and ask what’s going on in our lives that we could be helping and healing.

But it’s not just about race. It’s much better if it’s contextualized around [issues], like why a whole generation of black men and black youth are incarcerated. It goes back to our conversation about family, and to being deprived of a whole generation of men who could be forming families and learning skills and trades — and going to community colleges. It’s not about a thing we have done ourselves, it’s about a system we want to dismantle and move forward.

Q: What role can community colleges play in those conversations?

A: I used to work at a community foundation, and I always thought that community colleges and community foundations were the two entities that have the most flexibility to adapt and innovate around local opportunities. There’s the notion of agility and creativity when it comes to programming.

I think community colleges are not just embedded in their communities, but are also tied into the local economy — the employer base, the civic sector, the non-profit sector. I don’t think there are limits.

The limits are only in the creativity of the leaders of the community colleges in looking at the opportunities in the community and all the sectors they’re interacting with.

A: There’s the incredible diversity and multicultural context that community colleges enjoy, since they are often the gateway into higher education for so many of our kids of color, as well as low-income and first-generation students. Community colleges can provide leadership on fostering these conversations and thinking about the incredible mix of students they have on their campuses — as well as the second chance and reentry aspect.

[Consider] a young teenage mother of color who dropped out of high school and had a kid and might be working in one of our programs. She understands what she has to be doing for her two-year-old to get her ready for kindergarten in a couple of years and is being encouraged to think about going back to school [herself]. There are some great community colleges that understand that you have to do more than offer academic opportunities. You’ve got to support that student across all of their dimensions. None of our community colleges is funded adequately, but their students could be supported in partnership with other community agencies.

Those kinds of supports in a community college setting would be a tremendous investment in undoing some of these disparities and setting young students on a successful life course.

We are working with community colleges that are doing great work. We all worry about retention and completion, and they understand it’s often the other factors in a student’s life beyond the academic ones that make the difference in them being able to stay in school and be successful.

Q: How are changing demographics impacting the work of the Foundation?

Q: Why does the Kellogg Foundation consider community colleges important partners?

A: It’s fascinating to think that in a few more decades, a majority of our children will be children of color. Unfortunately, the impact of racial disparity cuts across all dimensions, whether it’s health, or local environments, or educational outcomes, or economic opportunity. I think race and racism are the pollution that corrupts our democracy — they keep us from realizing the dream of equal opportunity, until it’s the case that it doesn’t matter what ZIP code a child is born in.

The foundation has launched a new program in which we’ve reached out to communities around the country and asked what they

A: As a foundation, we are sort of a triple threat — we can think about health, we can think about education, we can think about economic security. We can work across those dimensions, and the more partners we can find that also aren’t single element partners, the better.

I would never consider community colleges as just an educational institution — they’re a multifaceted human development institution that’s embedded and rooted in a real community. That’s a strength.

When we find partners who want to work across these domains in an integrated way, they become some of our best investments.

Q: What opportunities exist for partnerships between community colleges and these other organizations in their communities?

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GENERAL SESSION LUNCHEON On Thursday, October 11, an esteemed panel of leaders from higher education, K-12 schools, and private industry will share the stage to discuss achieving success, commitment to excellence, and strategic approaches to student success.

BILL GREEN Executive Chairman Accenture

In addition to chairing the Board of Directors, Mr. Green works closely with the leadership team on Accenture’s longterm business strategy. He represents Accenture with clients around the world, with key alliance partners, with business and government leaders, and with other key external groups.

Mr. Green is also focused on Accenture’s Skills to Succeed corporate citizenship efforts.

Mr. Green is an outspoken advocate for the role of education as a key enabler of competitiveness, urging business and government leaders to work together to make education more accessible, affordable, and accountable.

He has testified on this issue before the U.S. Senate Finance Committee and has advocated on the topic at local, national, and global levels. Mr. Green has led the Business Roundtable’s Education, Innovation, and Workforce Initiative and served as chairman of its Springboard Project, an independent commission on workforce issues. He is co-chair of the Business Coalition for Student Achievement and is a member of the Business Higher Education Forum. He is also a board member of Change the Equation and serves as an advisory board member of Skills for America’s Future.

PAUL E. LINGENFELTER President State Higher Education Executive Officers

Paul Lingenfelter became CEO of State Higher Education Executive Officers (SHEEO) in 2000, where his work has focused on increasing successful participation in higher education and the public policies required for educational excellence. Under his leadership, the SHEEO staff organized the National Commission on Accountability in Higher Education in 2005, created the annual State Higher Education Finance study, and published More Student Success: A Systemic Solution. In 2008 Change Magazine published an open letter to the U.S. presidential candidates from the SHEEO outlining ambitious national goals for postsecondary education

and a strategy for meeting them through federal, state, and institutional collaboration.

From 1985 to 2000, he served the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, where in 1996 he was appointed vice president to establish and lead the MacArthur Foundation Program on Human and Community Development. Earlier, he was involved in the full range of the Foundation’s international and domestic programs as associate vice president for planning and evaluation and director of program related investments.

Dr. Lingenfelter was Deputy Director for Fiscal Affairs for the Illinois Board of Higher Education from 1980 to 1985 and held other administrative positions with the Illinois Board of Higher Education and the University of Michigan from 1968 to 1980.

He is the author of numerous studies and articles related to his work in higher education and philanthropy, and he currently serves on the boards of the National Student Clearinghouse and the New Leadership Alliance for Student Learning and Accountability.

GENE WILHOIT Executive Director Council of Chief State School Officers

Gene Wilhoit assumed his role as executive director of the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) in November of 2006 after having spent his entire professional career serving education at the local, state, and national levels. Wilhoit began his career as a social studies teacher in Ohio and Indiana. He served as a program director in the Indiana Department of Education, an administrator in Kanawha County, West Virginia, and a special assistant in the U.S. Department of Education before assuming the position of executive director of the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE), which he held from 1986 to 1993.

From 1994 to 2006, Wilhoit led two state education agencies, as director of the Arkansas Department of Education and as deputy commissioner and commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Education. In those positions, he shepherded finance reform, led equity initiatives, designed and implemented assessment and accountability systems, advanced nationally recognized preschool and technology programs, and reorganized state agencies to focus on service and support.

He is a member of numerous education organizations, has served on national and state commissions, and has written and spoken on a variety of education issues.

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Tailored forPerfection

BY KENT A. PHILLIPPE

FOLLOWING THE SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF A broadly accepted accountability framework for community colleges, work on the Voluntary Framework of Accountability (VFA) has entered a new phase, with the release of the VFA Data Tool scheduled for the first half of 2013.

Developed by the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) with its partner organizations ACCT and The College Board, the VFA is the first national framework to measure institutional effectiveness in a way that is specific to the mission of community colleges and the student populations that they serve.

The core VFA measures are in the areas of Student Progress & Outcomes and Workforce, Career, & Technical Education. The VFA also includes an initial approach for reporting measures of student learning outcomes. With the development of the VFA’s core metrics and measures completed1, the VFA Data Tool is now being designed to provide colleges with a Web-based system for collecting, displaying, and benchmarking community college data on student progress and outcomes. In a very tangible way, the VFA Data Tool will give college practitioners a user-friendly system to collect and process information, as well as providing leadership with actionable data upon which to make changes.

The Benefit Through widespread use of the VFA infrastructure, the community college sector can realize the desired benefits of the Framework, including the ability to: • Benchmark institutions against peer colleges and share improvement strategies • Unburden overtaxed IR departments that require guidelines for what and how to best capture useable data, and • Have appropriate metrics that show how well our colleges are performing their missions, which will help to diagnose

issues, inform college decision-making, and educate external stakeholders.

Given the close working relationships and interdependencies of trustees and college leadership, ACCT has been a critical player in the successful implementation of Phase I and Phase II of the VFA, and the two associations continue with cross-organizational promotion and development of the Framework.

The input from the trustee community as the VFA is rolled out and enhanced is critical. As in previous phases of work, AACC relies on practitioners in the sector not only to inform the VFA but also to leverage the Framework for ongoing quality improvement; and to respond to federal, state, and local leaders seeking assurance that community colleges are spending public dollars wisely.

The project aligns with the national demand for increased accountability from governing bodies and accrediting agencies, as well as the growing national realization that our nation’s well-being is tied closely to the ability of our educational institutions to prepare diverse groups of people to succeed in much larger numbers than have been demonstrated to date.

Careful attention by trustees and other stakeholders is needed to remove obstacles that stand in the way of many students earning meaningful credentials.

The Need Access to the VFA, its metrics, and the upcoming Data Tool is essential to our colleges’ ability to meet aggressive degree and completion goals and enhance student success. Community colleges need to provide evidence to their stakeholders that they are fulfilling their mission and meeting their goals, and to have tools to know how well they are doing at meeting those goals.

Community colleges also need actionable data allowing them to focus limited resources on interventions in areas of critical need.

1 To date, the VFA has been guided by research on state data collection efforts and policies; recommendations for a common set of measures and data definitions for community colleges; consensus building and market research about those measures; pilot testing with selected colleges; and development of a communications strategy for local and national outreach.

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Community colleges do a great amount of data collection and reporting. However, prior to the VFA, a national framework or common metrics that appropriately gauged institutional performance at meeting missions and serving community colleges’ students did not exist. While portions of the systems developed by the four-year sectors of higher education may be applicable to community colleges, the systems are not entirely appropriate for community colleges. For example: • Federal completion data omits part-time students (more than half of all community college students); • Timeframes for measuring outcomes are too short to account for the enrollment patterns of a great percentage of community college students; • States define the students that they track and metrics in such different ways as to make outcomes non-comparable; and • Very few colleges are able to get useful data to look consistently at the outcomes of credit and non-credit students in career and technical education programs, which is offered by all community colleges and is the central mission of many of our institutions.

Like the collaborating partners whose work resulted in accountability systems for the four-year sectors, community college leaders also recognize the need for an accountability process — one that has data to depict the most accurate portrait of their institutions’ effectiveness and outcomes; is clear and transparent; contributes to institutional improvement of community colleges; and satisfies the expectations of external constituencies.

Developing a System Partner institutions and state systems bore a heavy burden, with limited resources, in testing the initial VFA metrics, but their feedback confirmed that the VFA has the right metrics for our colleges. Survey results from evaluators and market researchers show a strong desire for the VFA to become the main accountability framework for community colleges. Now, in addition to the conversation by the sector recognizing the need for such a system, formal inquiry indicates that colleges are eager to participate in an accountability framework that will best serve community colleges and ultimately improve student success.

Several states have already adopted the VFA in part or in whole for their state accountability systems, and many more are having conversations about doing so. There is a keen interest in benchmarking against peer colleges and using outcomes data for accountability reporting at the state level. The Pennsylvania Community College Commission has adopted the VFA as its accountability framework, and Arizona has incorporated VFA metrics into its state accountability model.

In addition to the 58 pilot colleges that tested the VFA metrics during the development phase, colleges/systems in New York (SUNY, CUNY), Arizona, Illinois, Nebraska, Ohio, Michigan, and many others have shown interest in participating in VFA. In addition to the intense work on the building of the technical

The national implementation of the VFA and its data system will serve our nation’s community colleges and the nearly 13 million community college students by: • Enabling colleges to submit, view, and analyze student outcome data • Making that data useable, accessible, and actionable for internal and external stakeholders that have an interest in the effectiveness of community colleges; • Providing a mechanism for benchmarking data against peer colleges to illuminate effectiveness and promote promising practices; • Enabling self-assessment by colleges to measure performance and identify areas for improvement; and • Informing and influencing accountability conversations at local, state, regional (accreditation), and national levels so that community colleges are measured on appropriate metrics and the VFA becomes the principal community college measurement framework. platforms and infrastructure for the data tool, AACC is finalizing the VFA participation process.

At AACC, the VFA is a cornerstone of our strategy to meet the national completion agenda. Our board members and membership, peer associations, and community college practitioners are eager to move VFA forward and significantly increase the number of colleges that integrate the Framework.

The consensus is that the VFA most appropriately provides sectoraligned measures of institutional performance and, ultimately, the data required to improve student success. As such, the VFA is foundational to all efforts aimed at understanding the performance of our colleges and identifying practices and policies that are effective at improving outcomes. VFA is a key component of AACC’s long-term strategic goals of refining and continuously improving the research and information resources that serve our colleges.

With the VFA and its data tools, college leaders and stakeholders can explore the barriers to student progression and completion in a context that makes sense to the community college sector.

For trustees, the VFA will provide better and more accurate data to help direct resources to move the completion needle. AACC, along with partners across higher education, is firmly committed to providing the best institutional measures of effectiveness to our colleges through the VFA.

Kent A. Phillippe is associate vice president of research and student success at the American Association of Community Colleges. For more information, please visit www.aacc.nche.edu/VFA.

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RIGHT Skills RIGHT Jobs RIGHT NOW! Community colleges are the linchpin of a new initiative that accelerates the skilled talent pipeline for manufacturing jobs. By Martin Scaglione This is an unprecedented time in the state of the American workforce. While the economy is on the road to recovery, our nation is still struggling with record unemployment. And yet a recently released study from The Manufacturing Institute reports that more than 80 percent of manufacturers cannot find the skilled talent they need — particularly in high-demand production jobs. This adds up to more than 500,000 unfilled manufacturing jobs.

This mismatch between the skills of our workforce and the skills required for these positions is unacceptable. In a race to create jobs, revitalize American manufacturing, and accelerate the state of our economy, shouldn’t we focus on building a skilled talent pipeline to these high-paying jobs?

Through all of this, one point becomes crystal clear — we need to skill-up America’s workforce now.

A Common Story Darlene Miller struggles with many of the same issues other manufacturers across the country do. As CEO of Permac Industries in Burnsville, Minn., Darlene cannot find the CNC (computer numerical control) operators she needs to run a productive and growing business. “We can buy all of the equipment we need,” said Miller, “but we cannot find the skilled labor we need to advance our companies.”

It’s a common story. In the Minneapolis area alone, as many as 2,500 manufacturing jobs, paying as much as $75,000 or more, are open with no one to fill them.

However, there’s one critical piece of Miller’s story that is different. She sits on President Obama’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness. Shortly after committing to certifying 500,000 Americans with manufacturing skills credentials, the President charged the Jobs Council with finding ways to assist small- and medium-sized businesses, specifically in the manufacturing sector.

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Through her own challenges and hearing the struggles of other peers, Miller knew firsthand the need the council had to address.

Like many things, it would require help from partners.

Community College Driven As a not-for-profit public trust, ACT has long positioned itself on the forefront of our nation’s growing skills gap. Our National Career Readiness Certificate (NCRC) serves as the foundational credential for the NAM-Endorsed Manufacturing Skills Certification System. This stackable program is made up of nationally portable, industry-recognized certifications. A key centerpiece of the President’s call to credential workers, the Manufacturing Skills Certification System is a gold standard for creating a demand-driven talent pipeline.

The challenge? Employers like Miller need people with these skills right now. This critical need often is expressed in weeks rather than months. And life generally does not happen in semesters. So we need a fast-track innovation for getting this work-ready talent to the shop floor even faster.

ACT, the Manufacturing Institute, and the Jobs Council recognized that the foremost experts in delivering a steady supply of skilled workers are our nation’s network of community and technical colleges. As this working group came together for a pilot program in the Minneapolis area, two critical partners emerged — Dunwoody College of Technology and South Central

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Community College. Both organizations have rich histories in working with small and large employers and in preparing job seekers for ever-evolving workplace needs.

With the players assembled, it was time to think differently about how we prepare individuals for jobs in manufacturing.

Reimagining the Talent Pipeline Re-engineering coursework to create a more effective and efficient talent pipeline is very much like applying lean processes to increase productivity in a manufacturing business. The resulting program, the Right Skills Now initiative, is a concise and comprehensive for-credit educational pathway to credentials that have immediate value in the workplace and lead to a career pathway. The NCRC forms the base of this stackable system, while the NIMS credentials certify critical in-demand machining and metalworking skills.

Through the program, manufacturers gain accelerated access to skilled talent as well as an efficient and sustainable system for evaluating which candidates have the right skills. Students (or job-seekers) earn industry-recognized credentials and credit toward a degree — all while working. Those who are unemployed or under-employed can prove they have the right skills in a competitive job market.

The best part? All of this happens in just 16 weeks — as compared to the nearly two years required by the previous approach. The Right Skills Now initiative has accelerated the path to skilled talent and shortened the time it takes to get that talent to the shop floor where it’s needed most.

A Scalable Model

Administrator Karen Mills, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.).

This spring, students from the first Right Skills Now program graduated and are on a path to careers in manufacturing.

Employers like Darlene Miller are finding relief through a reinvigorated talent pipeline.

This progress sparked something remarkable — word got out about what was going on in Minnesota, and other states wanted to adopt the program. Currently there are official Right Skills Now partnerships underway through community colleges in Michigan, Nevada, and Washington, as well as the original in Minnesota.

The Linchpin In evaluating the success of the Right Skills Now initiative, it’s important to note that none of this would have been possible without all partners collaborating in search of a talent innovation to address this challenging issue.

While ACT, the NAM, and the President’s Jobs Council all bring unique expertise to the table, our nation’s network of community colleges provides the unparalleled reach necessary to tackle an issue of this scope at the local level throughout the country.

As Margaret Mead said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” With community colleges as our partners, we can bring change to a workforce that needs it. I hope you’ll be among those who join us in this endeavor.

Martin Scaglione is president of the workforce development division of ACT Inc.

The Right Skills Now pilot was launched in Fall 2011 at an event in Minneapolis featuring representatives from all partners — including both colleges, U.S. Small Business Administration T R U S T E E Q U A RT E R LY

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Creating a DATA-INFORMED

ORG CHART

BY NARCISA A. POLONIO, ED.D.

Trustees play a critical role in ensuring that their colleges are structured to support student success.

seeking evidence of institution-wide strategic planning, and

The administrative organizational chart is the responsibility of the president or chancellor. But the governing board plays an important oversight role and shares the responsibility of ensuring that the college has the administrative capacity to implement board policies and address emerging issues and priorities. This is not about micromanaging, but the realization that institutions change, priorities shift, and growth requires adjustments to the new reality.

the development of student outcomes data to inform the

SHIFTING PRIORITIES

MOST COMMUNITY COLLEGES HAVE HAD TO NAVIGATE significant reductions in funding, rapid growth in student enrollment, challenges posed by regional accreditation bodies

educational enterprise. These challenges, along with keeping up with the commitment to improve student success and completion, have strained college leadership. But growing numbers of community colleges are using newly emerging data on completion and retention rates to evaluate their administrative capacities and organizational structures.

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An example of shifting priorities was demonstrated in the last decade, during which many colleges created a new position — vice president for enrollment management — in response to concerns about the need to increase enrollment and improve persistence. Now we have homed in on conditions that lead to student success and other challenges that impede the pathway to completion. We have learned that institutional conditions that help or hinder student completion often include matriculation processes, pedagogy, curricula, schedules, academic and student-support services, organizational culture, and the physical, according to the Pathways to Postsecondary Success report issued by the Institute

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SUPPORTING THE CORE VALUES AND BEING PURPOSEFUL IN THE GOVERNING BOARD’S COMMITMENT TO STUDENT SUCCESS REQUIRES EXAMINATION AND ACTION. for Higher Education Leadership & Policy. In other words, student success requires institution-wide commitment and examination, not just tinkering with small innovations. On the other hand, requiring institutional readiness by formulating policy to support students’ progress is only one step. To bring innovation to scale requires an administrative structure that reflects these priorities and encourages ongoing planning, collaboration, cooperation, and a passion for student success throughout the college.

SHIFTING STRUCTURES Across the country, community colleges are transforming modes of operation, altering practices, and developing synergies across programs and services that historically operated in silos. With all these changes underway, the board should be asking questions to gauge the college’s efficacy, such as: What is the student experience at your college? What can you learn from your students? What can you learn from students who are disappointed or who have failed to achieve their initial goals?

To address these questions, many colleges are examining their administrative organizational charts and adopting new structures that better reflect today’s priorities. Some examples include: Coordinating student affairs and academic affairs departments. Recognizing that student learning occurs inside and outside the classroom, many colleges are intentionally reorganizing these departments to create environments where students can succeed. In some cases, merging the leadership role for these two areas into one position encourages greater collaboration. In others, student affairs and academic affairs departments are clustering services together and cross-training faculty and professional staff to better facilitate student success.

Creating student success departments. Some colleges have created a Student Success area in lieu of former studentaffairs departments or related support areas to provide students with an overarching structure on campus that is home for a broad scope of student-effectiveness services. In this model, services and programs that promote academic achievement and personal development are offered for both prospective and continuing students. For example, some colleges are working to ensure that the entry experience for new students is a rich as possible by mandating orientation, instituting early-alert systems to identify at-risk students before it is too late, and providing opportunities to obtain additional support or accelerate out of developmental courses.

Refocusing research departments. In some cases, research offices that have traditionally focused on compliance have been transformed to support student effectiveness by paying greater attention to the compilation and examination of data that is useful to faculty, administration, and staff. This research is often

used by college leadership to make data-informed programmatic decisions that can improve student success.

THE ROLE OF THE BOARD Ultimately, the goal is to be able to provide students the necessary support from admission through degree or certificate completion.

Important questions for boards to ask include: • Does the institution have the capacity to meet current educational demands while providing a safe and secure educational environment?

• Is the current organizational structure of the institution in alignment with key priorities?

• Does it reflect readiness to respond to emerging and future needs?

• How long has the college had the same organizational structure?

• With the addition of new campuses and institutional efforts to serve additional communities, has the institution outgrown its current organizational structure?

• Does the current organizational structure encourage the level of college-wide coordination needed to better align institutional resources to accomplish the strategic goals of the college and focus on student access, equity, and completion?

There is a delicate balance between maintaining the status quo and being perceived as being critical and punitive. The board’s responsibility is to encourage the college’s leadership to ask key questions and gather the data and intelligence needed to align the structure and systems of the institution to support the desired outcome of enhanced student success. Using data to determine what is working and what needs to be enhanced through a coherent, transparent, and open process can help give birth to innovative solutions across the institution. The goal is to support the need to investigate, reflect, and encourage change and courageous dialogue within the college.

Supporting the core values and being purposeful in the governing board’s commitment to student success requires examination and action. Otherwise, boards are just presenting another “flavor-of-the-day” administrative trend, and faculty and staff may become disillusioned. Boards must start by asking the key questions to encourage examination, reflection, planning, and action to make sure our colleges are perfectly structured to support student success.

ACCT Vice President Narcisa Polonio can be reached at 202-775-4670, by cell phone at 202-276-1983, or by e-mail at npolonio@acct.org.

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Around Regions the

year since it was introduced in 2007, college officials say.

NORTHEAST REGION Dutchess Community College in New York opened its first dormitory in August. The $33 million, 465-bed residence will serve full-time students.

New York City’s first new community college in more four decades opened in August. CUNY’s The New Community College is focusing on student success by requiring all students to attend freshman year fulltime, attend orientation and preparation classes, work with study groups, and meet with advisors. It is also offering remedial courses alongside credit-bearing classes. “I think this school has the potential to be a game-changing model for community colleges across the country,” Mayor Michael Bloomberg said at the college’s opening ceremony.

North Country Community College in New York offers free tuition for two years to high school graduates from its sponsoring counties who graduate in the top 20 percent of their classes. The number of local students who take advantage of the program has increased by 50 percent each

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Raritan Valley Community College in New Jersey received a sustainability award for improving surface water quality and water conversation. In 2009, RVCC became the first community college in the nation to sign an environmental stewardship agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which has guided construction and maintenance projects on campus.

The Community College of Baltimore County in Maryland is one of 40 institutions in the U.S. which has implemented a “Fab Lab,” an interactive workshop developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that allows users to work with digital fabrication technologies.

SOUTHERN REGION More than 30 community colleges in the Tennessee Valley Corridor of Alabama, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia have formed an alliance to collaborate on grants and economic development

programs. The TVC Community College Consortium will focus on workforce and economic development trends to better serve the region’s employers.

Technical Institute Community to develop curriculum, train faculty and staff, and make recommendations about facilities and equipment.

The North Carolina Community College System announced plans to consolidate more than 80 curriculums to focus on five areas identified as critical to the state’s economy, including energy, building, environment, transportation, and engineering technology.

Dubbed the Code Green Super Curriculum Improvement Project, the changes will allow students to build a foundation of general skills as they earn or stack industry certifications.

“It also integrates, across the curriculum, important energy sustainability knowledge and skills that will increasingly be in demand for technical careers,” President Scott Ralls told the Triangle Business Journal.

The Alabama state board of education approved Calhoun Community College’s proposed $34 million expansion to its Huntsville campus. The expansion would increase capacity from 4,800 to 7,500 students, school officials said.

Rowan-Cabarrus Community College in North Carolina introduced a fully online degree program in criminal justice. It is the seventh degree program the RCCC offers as an online-only option, along with classroom and hybrid models.

Daytona State College in Florida served as a model for the first community college of its kind in the Dominican Republic. Through a contract with the government of the Dominican Republic, Daytona State consulted with officials of the Higher

The Baton Rouge Area Chamber in Louisiana has entered a workforce solutions partnership with the area’s community colleges. The partnership will allow business leaders to provide more input on the colleges’ curriculum and job training offerings.

CENTRAL REGION Ten Ohio community colleges are participating in the AmeriCorps College Completion Coaches Initiative, a partnership involving the Ohio Association of Community Colleges, the Ohio College Access Network, and ServeOhio. As part of the initiative, community college graduates will serve as

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mentors for existing students at participating institutions in return for a living allowance and an education award intended to help pay their own college debt.

Sinclair Community College in Ohio has acquired two unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for its training program for law enforcement and first responders.

A coalition of automakers launched a new community college curriculum for skilled auto workers at Henry Ford Community College in Michigan.

Developed by the Automotive Manufacturing Technical Education Collaborative (AMTEC), of which the Kentucky Community & Technical College System is a founding member, the new maintenance mechatronics curriculum emphasizes flexible skills that allow auto workers to take on a variety of highskill tasks, officials say.

The Wayne County Community College District in Michigan is asking voters to approve an $18 million property tax increase in November to offset a decline in property tax revenues.

Jackson Community College in Michigan shifted security responsibilities from its own campus security department to a private company in August, a move anticipated to save nearly $300,000,

school officials said. JCC also signed an agreement with a private company that will allow the college to continue offering aviation degrees and flight training in the face of increasing costs and declining student enrollment in the program.

Lewis and Clark Community College in Illinois received a donation of a 170-acre island from a local attorney.

The college’s foundation received the deed to Coon Island, which will be used by the National Great Rivers Research and Education Center, which LCCC operates in partnership with the University of Illinois and the Illinois Natural History Survey.

WESTERN REGION The Lone Star College System in Texas has begun the implementation phase of the Texas Completes program, which is intended to improve student success rates at the state’s community colleges. Changes include adjusting the curriculum to facilitate completion and

transfer, the creation of a student advising system, and revisions to developmental education. Texas Completes was developed as a result of collaboration among groups including the Texas Association of Community Colleges, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, and philanthropic organizations such as The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Dr. Richard Rhodes, president of Austin Community College, was named chair of a related statewide policy board that will address funding and policy challenges, including ones related to transfer and articulation, developmental education, and performance-based funding.

Maricopa Community Colleges in Arizona is administering the Arizona Precision Manufacturing Apprenticeship Program, a collaboration between community colleges and small manufacturers that screens high school graduates and matches them with employers for a three-year apprenticeship program that includes college coursework.

The Maricopa County Community College District also implemented a nosmoking policy on its 10 Arizona campuses that went into effect on July 1.

The smoking ban is in effect on all college property, including parking lots and cars on school grounds.

Barton Community College in Kansas is entering a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Army that will allow soldiers at Fort Leavenworth to earn an associate degree or take leadership skills enhancement courses on the military base.

.

PACIFIC REGION Budget cuts and increased academic expectations have led to accreditation sanctions at more than 25 community colleges across California, including the City College of San Francisco, which accreditors said has run budget deficits for three years running. All schools remain fully accredited while they undertake corrective actions.

To compensate for cuts in state support, Las Positas College in California is offering benefactors the opportunity to sponsor individual class sections for $5,500. The two-year college’s Foundation 55 initiative hopes to restore between 10 and 15 of the class sections lost due to budget cuts over the last four years, officials say.

Around the Regions provides an opportunity to share what’s happening in the states and around the regions. This section focuses on state legislative and budgetary issues, economic development, and finance. Please e-mail items from press releases or newsletters to ACCT at dconner@acct.org. Fax submissions to 202-223-1297.

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Setting theTone

Following the fall elections, the 2013 National Legislative Summit will come at a pivotal time for both community colleges and the nation as a whole.

BY JENNIFER STIDDARD

T

he first session of the 113th Congress is anticipated to be one of the most impactful in decades for higher education. Once the dust

settles from this fall’s election cycle, our newly elected and re-elected representatives will face significant challenges related to the economy, taxes, and the federal deficit. The ripple effects from their policy decisions — or non-decisions — will be felt by all Americans.

From tax cuts to deficit reduction, and even student aid and Pell Grants, it is clear that our elected officials will need to act swiftly on a number of fiscal issues.

The administration and incoming Congress will also be looking to take a number of proactive steps to improve our nation’s educational and workforce systems. The tone in Washington will be set in the early part of 2013, as policymakers seek to advance initiatives related to funding, regulations, and reform.

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To be held February 11-14, the 2013 Community College National Legislative Summit (NLS) will offer community college leaders the opportunity to learn about relevant legislative and regulatory issues, hear from outstanding speakers, and meet face-to-face with policymakers. Held each year, NLS is the premier community college advocacy event in Washington, D.C., bringing together more than 1,000 community college leaders. The event shines a spotlight on the importance of our nation’s community colleges for Congress and the Administration. This year’s NLS is not to be missed, as 2013 will be a pivotal year for higher education policy in Washington.

Budget, Pell, and Reauthorizations Top 2013 Agenda The NLS coincides with the release of the President’s annual budget request, which in turn signifies the beginning of debate on the annual federal budgetary and appropriations process.

The 2013 NLS offers community college leaders the opportunity to help craft and deliver the community college response to the Administration’s FY 2014 budget proposal by meeting with members of Congress and their staffs on Capitol Hill.

Along with the annual budget deliberations, 2013 will also likely be a very active year for Congressional action on higher education, workforce, and the economy. In particular, the Pell Grant program is expected to be the focus of legislative action as it faces a multi-billion dollar shortfall going into FY 2014. As was seen last year, Congress will readily consider changes to Pell Grant eligibility in order to generate savings for the program.

Discussions over eligibility changes for 2014 have already begun. A number of proposals are on the table, including elimination of less-than-half-time students, changes to the income protection allowance and expected family

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contribution, and an income cap. Most of these proposals would disproportionately impact nontraditional and working students.

Maintaining Pell Grant eligibility standards for community college students is a priority for ACCT; however the real impact comes when members of Congress hear from their local leaders.

NLS provides an outstanding platform to learn about the latest proposals impacting Pell Grants, and then convey a targeted message directly to elected officials.

Reauthorizations and regulations will also be in play during 2013. There is a strong possibility that the House of Representatives will consider reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act early next year. Congressional leaders have also stated their intent to consider reauthorizations of the Higher Education Act and the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act. These reauthorizations will have a significant impact on future funding, access, and reporting requirements. In fact, no matter who is in the White House come NLS, a number of regulatory changes or repeals impacting higher education will be forthcoming next year. This will be a critical time to lend our voices to the legislative process.

Insiders’ Perspective The 2013 NLS is shaping up to be one of our most exciting events ever. The lineup of speakers will provide an entertaining and informative look at what transpired politically in 2012, and where we are headed next. Chris Cillizza, journalist and political pundit for MSNBC and the Washington Post will be serving as one of the NLS keynote speakers. Well-known for his Washington Post political blog The Fix, Cillizza will offer expert insight and analysis of the 2012 elections. Also serving as a keynote speaker is political analyst, author, and columnist Norman Ornstein. A Resident Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, Ornstein also serves as an election analyst for CBS News, writes for USA Today as a member of its board of contributors, and contributes a weekly column called “Congress Inside Out” for Roll Call. Cillizza, Ornstein, and our other outstanding speakers will help contextualize the political climate in Washington, D.C., and beyond.

ACCT is once again planning to hold a Community College Congressional Forum in conjunction with NLS. To be held at the United States Capitol, the Congressional Forum offers NLS participants the chance to hear directly from elected representatives. The 2012 forum was a resounding success and featured some outstanding speakers, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.); House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.); Senator Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), ranking member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), chairwoman of the House Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training; Rep. Chaka Fattah (D-Pa.); and Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Employment and

Workplace Safety. The 2013 Community College Congressional Forum lineup will once again have some of the most influential leaders in Washington, D.C.

Honing Advocacy Skills ACCT will also once again offer its Advocacy Academy and New Trustee Academy on the Monday preceding NLS. The Advocacy Academy offers tips and tools to help college leaders become outstanding advocates for their institutions. The workshop provides participants with a snapshot of relevant policy issues, details on federal grants and financial aid, and insights on lobbying from current Congressional staff. ACCT will also be adding several new interactive elements to this already exciting program.

The New Trustee Academy is an all-day academy designed to accelerate the contribution of new trustees by focusing on the fundamentals of governance, pertinent community college issues, and understanding the leadership and fiduciary responsibility of the board. Both the New Trustee Academy and the Advocacy Academy are great opportunities for new and more experienced trustees, presidents, and professional board staff to further their knowledge and expand networks. Both events require pre-registration; see the ACCT website for more details.

Networking to Build Advocacy Power While NLS provides many learning opportunities, it is also a chance to network and meet with fellow trustees, presidents, and professional board staff members. Kicking off the first night of NLS, the National Capital Reception offers excellent cuisine and even better company. The following day, participants may attend the Community College Caucus Reception on Capitol Hill, which honors the Representatives and Senators who serve on the Congressional Community College Caucuses and allows attendees to socialize with Congressional members and staff while taking a break from advocacy visits. That evening will be punctuated by the Community College Capital Awards Banquet. Those in attendance will hear from the 2013 National Education Service Award recipient and many other distinguished community college leaders. This year, the always entertaining political satire group Capitol Steps will be preforming at the Community College Capital Awards Banquet. These events are not only enjoyable, but also lead to new networks of colleagues and friends.

Watch the ACCT website for more details in the coming months.

We look forward to seeing you in Washington, D.C.!

ACCT Senior Public Policy Associate Jennifer Stiddard can be reached by e-mail at jstiddard@acct.org or by phone at 202-775-6486.

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ANNOUNCING THE LAUNCH OF

ACCT’s Capital Connection is an advocacy e-newsletter designed to provide monthly updates on legislative and regulatory issues impacting community colleges.

Capitol Connection will complement ACCT’s hugely successful Latest Action in Washington (LAW) E-Alerts by providing in-depth coverage of the most pertinent policy matters facing higher education.

TO SUBSCRIBE TO CAPITOL CONNECTION AND THE LAW E-ALERT, E-MAIL PUBLICPOLICY@ACCT.ORG WITH THE PHRASE “LAW ALERT” IN THE SUBJECT LINE.

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ADVANCING GOVERNANCE

Case Study Are You Ready to Respond?

This case is provided as a tool to foster discussion on governance issues related to board transition.

By Narcisa A. Polonio, Ed.D.

A

fter every board meeting, Trustee Cautious always compiled a “to do” list of things that needed some level of follow up, further consideration, or discussion. During the public comment section of that evening’s board meeting, a student had addressed the board about campus safety and the need to have better lighting in the secondary parking lot. This particular student told the board that on a couple of occasions, she had found herself walking through dark and isolated areas to get to her vehicle.

Referencing violent incidents on campuses around the state, she asked whether anyone was paying attention to campus safety. The board typically does not respond during the public comment period, but in this case the president asked for permission to address the student and reassured her that she should call the security office and someone would be assigned to escort her to her vehicle.

During the future items section of the agenda, at least two trustees reiterated the student’s concerns and asked further questions about campus security. Soon the discussion expanded from campus security to include natural catastrophes, such as hurricanes or tornados; oversight responsibilities for children in the daycare center or the summer tennis camp; and unplanned changes in leadership, among other concerns. Board members questioned whether the board and the administration were ready to handle a worst-case scenario.

Trustee Cautious’s own “to do” list included the following questions: What questions should we as a board be asking about college readiness? How does the board help establish confidence that the college is prepared as best it can be for the unexpected and unpredictable? Do we have an effective and comprehensive communications strategy for the college, given its commuter population of over 15,000 students who take classes from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. during the week and 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturdays, with numerous activities going on every Sunday? If not, what do we need to do?

Framing the Discussion for the Board The college’s credibility and reputation are at stake during crises, and all constituencies must be reassured that the leadership team and college are eminently capable of coping during an emergency and handling an unforeseen crisis. Some important questions for the board include: • What is the crisis communication plan, and who is responsible for what?

• What is the process for trustees to get timely information from the president during a crisis?

• Who speaks on behalf of the board during a time of crisis?

• Are we asking the right questions and providing the right support to our leadership team?

• What relevant policies on safety and security does the college have in place?

• Who provides legal advice, both in general and during an emergency?

• Does the college have adequate insurance?

• How often does the college review and update its policies?

Most crises cannot be predicted. The role of the board is to create policies and plans that address unexpected crises before they occur. Smart boards provide themselves with enough time to ask the administration “what if?” questions. In the case of planning for the unpredictable, policies help frame and guide the work by institutional leaders to ensure the college campus is prepared to respond.

The board, the president, and the leadership team need to work closely together and understand their respective roles in responding to a campus crisis. The questions and the possible scenarios are limitless. What scenarios are most likely to occur at your college — hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, or other natural disasters? And what unpredictable tragedies — such as an on-campus shooting — could befall your college that, while difficult to think about, absolutely must be planned for? How will your college communicate with the police, hospital, fire department, and other first responders?

How well do these emergency professionals know the college?

How quickly can your institution inform students and staff of an emergency — seconds, minutes, hours? Is the college aware of the pros and cons of social media — text messaging, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook — as a means of communicating information about disasters to your campus and the broader community? What information will be disseminated through these channels by the college, and how will the college control rumors, false reports, or confidential information that may be spread via these outlets? Your board should dedicate time and energy to asking these questions and finding the best and most appropriate answers for your college, its students, and the community.

ACCT Vice President Narcisa Polonio can be reached at 202-775-4670, by cell phone at 202-276-1983, or by e-mail at npolonio@acct.org.

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ACCT’S Public Policy Resources FOR COMMUNITY COLLEGE TRUSTEES

COMMUNITY COLLEGE

NATIONAL LEGISLATIVE SUMMIT

Held each February in Washington, D.C., the Community College National Legislative Summit (NLS) is an important opportunity for community college leaders to become informed on cutting-edge policy issues and advocate to key Members of Congress and the Administration on behalf of community and technical colleges. www.acct.org/events/legislativesummit

LAW

LATEST ACTION IN WASHINGTON

ACCT’s highly successful Latest Action in Washington (LAW) e-mail alerts offer immediate, concise updates on legislative activity important to community colleges. Sign up to receive LAW E-Alerts by sending an e-mail with “LAW E-Alerts” in the subject line to: publicpolicy@acct.org

ACCT has launched a blog forum to highlight activity in Washington focused around legislative activity. Readers can choose to receive daily post summaries automatically by e-mail, share posts with others, and comment on all posts. www.communitycollegebeltwaynews.blogspot.com

VISIT ACCT ADVOCACY ONLINE www.acct.org/advocacy

ACCT’s website contains resources for trustees on advocacy and public policy. Information includes: legislative priorities and federal funding; ACCT letters to Congress; tips on becoming a federal advocate for your college; and an action center to write your representatives.

www.twitter.com/cctrustees

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2012 NEW TRUSTEES GOVERNANCE LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE HELD IN WASHINGTON, D.C.

New trustees and their presidents come together in Washington, D.C., for a unique experience to accelerate the learning process and orient new trustees with the basics of boardsmanship.

AUGUST 1-3, 2012

Trustees and Their Presidents

New

Gather in Washington, D.C., for the 2012 New Trustees Governance Leadership Institute

THIS AUGUST 1-3, NEW COMMUNITY COLLEGE TRUSTEES AND PRESIDENTS FROM 13 STATES AND BRITISH COLUMBIA MET AT the National Center for Higher Education in Washington, D.C., to learn what makes an outstanding board member, how to strengthen the board/president relationship, and to network with others from around the country and beyond. Participants came from Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Texas, Wyoming, Wisconsin, and Vancouver.

“Very comprehensive.”

“Excellent plan and curriculum!”

Participants from institutions in 13 states and British Columbia exchange T-shirts from their colleges.

AGENDA • Boardmanship 101

• What Trustees Need to Know About the Media

• What Trustees Need to Know about Student Success, Accountability, and Outcomes

• What Trustees Need to Know About Advocacy

• What New Trustees Need to Know About Accreditation

• Robert’s Rules of Order and Operational Procedures

• The Board-CEO Relationship

• Guidance and Tips for Working with Board Support Staff

• Image Building and Risk/Crisis Management

• Understanding the Budget, Financial Documents, and Capital Projects

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ACCT LIFETIME MEMBERS

Edward “Sandy” Sanders, AR Dick Trammel, AR Donald Campbell, AZ Jan Guy, AZ Gloria Guzman, AZ Fred Harcleroad, AZ Debra Pearson, AZ Linda B. Rosenthal, AZ Esther D. Tang, AZ Jane Gregory, BC Chuck Ayala, CA Lewis S. Braxton, CA Lois Carson, CA Brian E. Conley, CA Carole Currey, CA Denise Ducheny, CA Isobel Dvorsky, CA Dorothy Ehrhart-Morrison, CA Paul Fong, CA Rebecca Garcia, CA Paul J. Gomez, CA Walter Howald, CA Worth Keene, CA Bruce Ketron, CA Brenda Knight, CA Marie Y. Martin, CA William H. Meardy, CA Carl Robinson, CA Herbert Roney, CA Armando Ruiz, CA Evonne Seron Schulze, CA Pete Tafoya, CA Leslie Thonesen, CA Roberto Uranga, CA David Viar, CA John Dent, CO John Giardino, CO George Boggs, DC Ken Burke, FL Jody T. Hendry, FL Nancy Watkins, FL Kenneth R. Allbaugh, IA

Harold Brock, IA* Robert Davidson, IA* Joyce Hanes, IA B. A. Jensen, IA* Kirby Kleffmann, IA Moudy Nabulsi, IA Wayne Newton, IA Wanda Rosenbaugh, IA Linda Upmeyer, IA James L. Ayers, IL Steven J. Ballard, IL Mark Fazzini, IL Phyllis Folarin, IL Raymond Hartstein, IL Patricia Jones, IL James Lumber, IL Judith Madonia, IL Robert McCray, IL Michael Monteleone, IL David Murphy, IL Rich Nay, IL Therese G. Pauly, IL Franklin Walker, IL Jerry Wright, IL Robert Burch, KS James D. Hittle, KS Jo Ann Huerter, KS Dick Klassen, KS Ed Nicklaus, KS Jo Ann Sharp, KS Darrell Shumway, KS Lauren A. Welch, KS Mary Beth Williams, KS M. W. “Bill” Wyckoff, KS Joan Athen, MD Daniel Hall, MD Nancy M. Hubers, MD Robert Lawrence, MD Brad W. Young, MD William C. Warren, ME Frank S. Gallagher, MI Robert E. Garrison, MI*

David W. Hackett, MI Fred Mathews, MI Shirley Okerstrom, MI George Potter, MI David Rutledge, MI Anne V. Scott, MI Celia M. Turner, MI* Denise Wellons-Glover, MI James B. Tatum, MO Joann L. Ordinachev, MO Troy Holliday, MS James Stribling, MS John Forte, NC Hugh Lee, NC George Little, NC Helen Newsome, NC* Kathleen Orringer, NC Raymond Reddrick, NC C. Louis Shields, NC Lillie J. Solomon, NC Lynda Stanley, NC Alwin Arce, NJ Angelo Cortinas, NJ Clara Dasher, NJ Nino Falcone, NJ William T. Hiering, NJ Donald Loff, NJ William McDaniel, NJ* James R. Perry, NJ Virginia Scott, NJ Charles Tice, NJ Barbara Wallace, NJ Ronald Winthers, NJ Beatrice Doser, NM Gloria Lopez, NM Robert Matteucci, NM Nancy R. Rosasco, NV Arthur C. Anthonisen, NY David Mathis, NY Donald M. Mawhinney, NY Jean M. McPheeters, NY Richard N. Adams, OH

Maureen Grady, OH Rebecca L. Redman, OH Victor F. Stewart, Jr., OH Ken Bartlett, OK Norma Jean Germond, OR Doreen Margolin, OR* Jim Voss, OR Gene P. Ciafre, PA Morrison Lewis, PA Gene E. McDonald, PA Betty K. Steege, PA John Wright, PA E. Stewart Blume, SC Sheila Korhammer, SC Montez C. Martin, Jr., SC William O. Rowell, SC* Peter E. Sercer, Sr., SC James Smith, SC Elmer Beckendorf, TX Manuel Benavidez, Jr., TX* Kitty Boyle, TX Don Coffey, TX Diane Olmos Guzman, TX Bennie Matthews, TX Carla McGee, TX Della-May Moore, TX Pattie Powell, TX Steve Salazar, TX Lydia Santibanez, TX W. L. “Levi” Smallwood, TX J. Pete Zepeda, TX M. Dale Ensign, UT Frank Mensel, UT Marilyn Blocker, VA Robert W. Harrell, Jr., VA Melanie L. Jackson, VA Elizabeth Rocklin, VA Ruthann Kurose, WA Naomi Pursel, WA Vaughn A. Sherman, WA Joan Jenstead, WI* Dennis Christensen, WY * Deceased

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They deserve more than just a gold watch.

ACCT LIFETIME MEMBERSHIP Do you have board members getting ready to retire?

Are you looking for ways to recognize them for their hard work and dedication?

Don’t let them go without an ACCT Lifetime Membership!

7 REASONS TO BESTOW A LIFETIME MEMBERSHIP

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Giving outstanding and retiring board members a Lifetime Membership to ACCT is a way to thank them for their service, recognize them among their peers, and ensure their ongoing interest in your college.

Lifetime Members receive complimentary registration to all ACCT meetings, including the Annual Leadership Congress and the National Legislative Summit, after retiring from their local boards.

Lifetime Members receive all of ACCT’s award-winning publications, including Trustee Quarterly magazine, and the Advisor and From the Desk of ACCT newsletters.

Lifetime Members are recognized publicly in Trustee Quarterly, on the ACCT Web site, and elsewhere.

The Lifetime Membership program supports and promotes ACCT’s continuing trustee education and professional development.

Colleges that purchase Lifetime Memberships can deduct the expense from taxes to the fullest extent allowed by law.

It’s just a nice thing to do — and haven’t your most exceptional trustees earned it?

For applications or assistance, go to www.acct.org/membership/lifetime/honor-trustee.php, contact the ACCT Membership Department by phone at (202) 775-4667, or e-mail acctinfo@acct.org.

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LEGAL

Recent Developments in Employment Law

R

RECENT CASES AND DEVELOPMENTS involving terminations, criminal background checks, transgender employees, alleged discrimination based on a spouse’s citizenship, and the requirement of a physical exam as a condition of returning to work could potentially impact the day-to-day functioning of higher education institutions.

Termination of HIV-positive university employee. A federal district court jury in New York handed down a $1.35 million verdict in favor of a university employee who presented evidence that he was fired after reporting he tested positive for HIV. Claims against the university’s CFO, who was the plaintiff’s supervisor, were dismissed by the judge, as the jury found no liability against the CFO. In Baffo v. NY Inst. of Technology, the complaint alleged that the plaintiff was terminated from his job as a conference

center general manager just three weeks after he notified his supervisor of his HIV status (EDNY Case No. 10-CV-01245, Jury Verdict, 6/12/12). The university expressed disappointment with the verdict, stating that the case has no merit, and is considering its legal options.

ADHD as a covered disability.

Rejecting prior federal court precedent, a federal district court recently ruled that an emergency medical technician’s ADHD substantially limited the employee’s major life activities of thinking, concentrating, and interacting with others in allowing his ADA discrimination claim to proceed to trial.

In McCarthy v. Marple Twp Ambulance Corp., Judge Anita Brody concluded that “based on the evidence, a reasonable jury could conclude that McCarthy is significantly restricted as to the condition, manner, or duration under which he

“Brodkin, now that the economy is creating jobs at a faster than expected clip, why don’t you go out and find yourself one?”

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can concentrate, think, and interact with others as compared to the condition, manner, or duration of the average person in the general population performs these major life activities” (ED PA Case No. 02 10-CV-05747, 6/5/12). In ruling that the plaintiff should be allowed to present his case to a jury, the judge also concluded that the evidence could support a reasonable jury finding that the plaintiff’s employer’s stated reason for terminating him, namely unexcused tardiness, was a pretext for disability bias.

EEOC guidance on criminal background checks and conviction records. In late April 2012, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued formal “guidance” on an employer’s use of criminal background checks and criminal conviction records in screening prospective and current employees. While the EEOC emphasized that its guidance is not a change in current law and is not binding upon employers, it remains a good description of how the commission intends to enforce Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. While not specifically stating so in its guidance, the EEOC strongly suggests that an employer should conduct an individual assessment before disqualifying someone for employment based on past criminal conduct.

The EEOC guidance rejects any blanket exclusion on the hiring of individuals with criminal records and recommends that employers not ask about criminal convictions on job applications. With regard to criminal record information on convictions obtained during background checks conducted as part of the application process, the EEOC recommends that such information should not be used to eliminate potential or current employees from job consideration without further

©1996 THE NEW YORKER COLLECTION. ROBERT MANKOFF FROM CARTOONBANK.COM. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

by Ira Michael Shepard ACCT General Counsel

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analysis unless the conviction is related to the field of work in which the candidate is seeking employment.

The guidance does give some direction on what factors the EEOC deems relevant when employers conduct an individual assessment to determine whether a past criminal conviction is relevant to a decision to reject an applicant. The factors referenced by the EEOC include: (1) the circumstances of the offense/conviction; (2) the individual’s age at the time of the conviction or release from prison compared to his or her present age; (3) the length and consistency of employment history before and after the conviction; (4) rehabilitation efforts of the individual; and (5) other factors unique to the employer and particular job in question.

EEOC ruling on transgender employees. In a case hailed by transgender rights organizations as a first, the EEOC recently ruled that transgender workers will now be accorded the same protections against unlawful discrimination based on gender stereotyping as all other Americans. In late April, the EEOC concluded that discrimination against a transgender individual because that person is transgender is, by definition, discrimination based on sex, and that such conduct therefore runs afoul of Title VII. The EEOC cited the 1989 decision of the Supreme Court in Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins, in which the high court established that Title VII’s prohibition on sex discrimination related not only to biological sex but also to gender, and concluded that discrimination against transgender employees amounts to gender discrimination. The EEOC ruled broadly that a claim of discrimination based on (1) gender, (2) gender identity, (3) change of sex, or (4) transgender status is covered by Title VII’s anti-discrimination prohibitions as unlawful sex discrimination.

In Macy v. Holder (EEOC Case No. 0210210821), a former police detective alleged that after disclosing her gender transition, she was told that funding for a job she had applied for as a ballistics technician at the federal Bureau of Alcohol,

Tobacco, and Firearms’ laboratory in Walnut Creek, California, had suddenly been cut, only to discover later that someone else was hired for the position.

In this case, the EEOC agreed that she was discriminated against under Title VII’s prohibition of sex discrimination.

Regular attendance as an essential element of a job. The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reiterated that when regular attendance is an essential element of a job, it is not an ADA violation to discharge an otherwise disabled person for excessive absenteeism.

In such a case, an employer is also not obligated to accommodate a disabled employee’s request for a work schedule which she could vary at any time at her own discretion.

In affirming a trial court’s dismissal of the ADA complaint in Samper v. Providence St. Vincent Medical Center, the court of appeals concluded that regular attendance was an essential element of a neonatal intensive care nurse’s job, and that while the nurse was disabled with fibromyalgia, her discharge for excessive absenteeism was not an ADA violation (9th Cir. No. 10-35811, 4/11/12). The court concluded that despite the “Herculean efforts” of the hospital to provide a flexible work schedule for the nurse, her attendance did not improve and the hospital was not required to set up a work schedule that the plaintiff could cancel solely at her discretion.

Employment discrimination based on citizenship or immigration status of an employee’s spouse. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently held that Title VII protection does not extend to protection against discrimination based on the citizenship or immigration status of one’s spouse. In Cortezano v.

Salin Bank & Trust, the court held that it was beyond dispute that the termination of a bank employee was unrelated to her husband’s Mexican ancestry and national origin and based solely on his lack of citizenship and illegal immigration status, which is not prohibited by Title VII (Case No. 11-1631, 7th Cir., 5/21/12).

The court concluded that the bank reacted solely based on the illegal immigrant status of the employee’s spouse, which it focused on after it discovered that she had opened a bank account in his name and a joint account in both of their names, using false documents to cover up his illegal immigrant status — actions that could constitute bank fraud.

Physical examination as a condition of return to work. The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of an ADA claim filed by a campus police officer who had worked for the university for more than a decade before suffering a stroke off the job. In Pamon v. Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois (Case No. 11-3016, 7th Cir., 5/24/12), the plaintiff had asked the university to return to his former job after four years of rehabilitation. While the plaintiff’s neurologists reported that he was “completely healed” and “may return to work,” the university required him to undergo a functional capacity examination (FCE) prior to reinstatement. Because the plaintiff refused the exam, the university never called him back to work or offered him alternative employment.

Both the trial court and the court of appeals concluded that the ADA permits an employer to inquire into the nature and severity of an employee’s disability if the inquiry is job-related and consistent with business necessity. Both also ruled that the university’s decision to require an FCE prior to reinstatement was reasonable as it would also help the employer make an individual assessment of the plaintiff’s condition and his ability to do the job.

Ira Michael Shepard is a partner with the law firm of Saul Ewing, LLP, in Washington, D.C., and ACCT’s general counsel.

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Presidential Searches The Board Leadership Services staff and consultants of the Association of Community College Trustees are pleased to have assisted in the search for the following community college chief executive officers.

Sowela Technical Community College, Louisiana Community and Technical College System

Delgado Community College, Louisiana Community and Technical College System

Dr. Stacy Neil Aspinwall Chancellor

Dr. Monty Sullivan Chancellor

Former Vice President

Former Executive Vice President

Enrollment & Student Services Waycross College, Ga.

Louisiana Community and Technical College System

“We are fortunate to have Dr. Aspinwall serve as Chancellor to Sowela. He has the right combination of leadership, integrity, and energy to lead Sowela into the future. I look forward to working with Dr. Aspinwall. I feel that the board selected the best person for the position, and we welcome him to the LCTCS family.”

— Dr. Joe May, President, LCTCS

“We are very pleased at the board’s announcement naming Monty Sullivan as Delgado Community College Chancellor.

Monty has been an invaluable leader as Executive Vice President of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System for the past two years. He has always remained faithful to the community college mission, and we are excited to have him serving as Chancellor at our largest college in the system.”

— Dr. Joe May, President, LCTCS

Hartnell College, Calif.

Dr. Willard Lewallen President Former President West Hills College, Calif.

North Country Community College, State University of New York Dr. Steve Tyrell President Former Vice President for Student Affairs Alfred State College, N.Y.

“The Board is pleased to have a person of Dr. Lewallen’s significant accomplishments as the district’s next superintendent/president. Dr. Lewallen’s vast experience in budget matters, accreditation issues, and shared governance processes will be a huge benefit to Hartnell. His sincere, demonstrated commitment to working with the community makes him a natural fit here in the Salinas Valley.”

“The Board of Trustees is very pleased with the process of the search and its final outcome. Dr. Tyrell is an excellent choice for NCCC — and the administration, faculty, and students.”

— Gerald Blair, Board Chair

— Erica Padilla-Chavez, Board Chair

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Great Falls College Montana State University

NEW ACCT EXECUTIVE SEARCHES WEBSITE

Dr. Susan Wolff CEO/Dean Former Chief Academic Officer Columbia Gorge Community College, Ore.

Selecting a president or chancellor is one of the most momentous decisions made by a board of trustees.

The decision has far-reaching implications for the board, the college, and the community. ACCT is

“Dr. Wolff has a long and distinguished career in two-year education. She has a great depth of experience and a great enthusiasm for helping students become the best they can be.

She will be a wonderful addition to Montana State.”

— Waded Cruzado, President, Montana State University

committed to providing membership services that meet the highest professional standards, and are reliable and of the highest quality available.

Our commitment goes well beyond providing

North Idaho College Dr. Joseph Dunlap President Former President Spokane Community College, Wash.

CEO search assistance. We are your membership organization, and as such, accountable to every member board. Our mission, values, and goals focus entirely on service to our membership.

ACCT’s fundamental purpose is to enhance the capacity of boards through education, advocacy, and “The entire community and college engaged in an impressive procedure whereby everyone was able to contribute to our selection of a top-notch candidate. We had an outstanding array of applicants, many of whom had very impressive credentials. Our challenge in this search was to select the candidate who was going to be the best fit for our community and our college, and we have accomplished that.”

by helping boards identify and select the best CEOs to

— Ken Howard, Presidential Search Committee Co-Chair and Board Trustee

proposal customized to the needs of your institution.

lead their colleges on behalf of their communities.

If your college is considering using ACCT's Search Services, we would be happy to submit a formal

Visit ACCT Executive Searches online at www.acctsearches.org

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Vice Presidential Searches ACCT’s Board Leadership Services is now providing assistance to chancellors and presidents looking to identify a new member of the executive leadership team for the college or district. We are pleased to announce the completion of the following searches for provosts and vice presidents.

Lorain County Community College, Ohio Marcia J. Ballinger Provost/Vice President for Academic and Learner Services Interim Provost/Vice President for Academic and Learner Services Lorain County Community College, Ohio

“We are fortunate to have someone with Marcia’s experience in community colleges. Even more important is the fact that she knows this community and can continue to develop our academic programs to meet the specific needs of our residents.”

— Dr. Roy A. Church, President

BOARD SELF-ASSESSMENTS AND PRESIDENTIAL EVALUATIONS ACCT would like to thank the following colleges that have taken advantage of our Board and/or President Evaluation Services.

Anne Arundel Community College, Md. Austin Community College, Texas Baltimore City Community College, Md. City College of San Francisco, Calif.

Coconino Community College, Ariz.

Hocking College, Ohio Metropolitan Community College, Neb. Ohlone College, Calif.

College of Southern Idaho Solano Community College, Calif.

BOARD RETREATS ACCT would like to thank the following colleges that have taken advantage of our Retreat Services.

Anne Arundel Community College, Md. Austin Community College, Texas Baltimore City Community College, Md. Belmont Technical College, Ohio Brookdale Community College, N.J. City College of San Francisco, Calif.

Community College of Beaver County, Pa. Diné College, Ariz.

Eastern Gateway Community College, Ohio Florence-Darlington Technical College, S.C. Glen Oaks Community College, Mich.

Gulf Coast State College, Fla.

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Howard Community College, Md. Lorain County Community College, Ohio Metropolitan Community College, Neb. Morton College, Ill. New Mexico Junior College North Arkansas College Ohlone College, Calif.

Ozarka College, Ariz.

Rhodes State College, Ohio Rockland Community College, N.Y. Solano Community College, Calif.

State Center Community College District, Calif.

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LOOKING FOR A

NEW PRESIDENT, VICE PRESIDENT, PROVOST, OR VICE CHANCELLOR? OUR SUCCESS ACCT Board Leadership Services brings over 30 years of experience to every executive search. We have assisted more than 300 colleges and governing boards in successfully identifying the best candidates for new presidents and chancellors. ACCT’s services have been expanded to work with chancellors and presidents to identify the most outstanding candidates for vice presidential positions at your college. ACCT Board Leadership Services will guide you through every step of the process.

OUR STRENGTHS • We understand the needs of community colleges.

• We find and cultivate high-caliber talent.

• We build a unique pool of candidates for each search to “fit” the college.

• We have extensive contacts with women and minorities poised to advance.

• We have the advantage of the ACCT membership as a source of contacts.

ACCT Board Leadership Services will hold your hand during every step of the selection process.

For more information on ACCT’s expanded services to assist with the placement of vice presidents, provosts, and vice chancellors, please contact Narcisa Polonio at npolonio@acct.org or 202-276-1983.

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RECRUIT ACCT INTERIM SERVICES

AIS

INTERVIEW

TRANSITION. SIMPLIFIED.

NEGOTIATE

www.acctsearches.org

APPOINT

Oftentimes, colleges undergoing a presidential transition can be best served by the appointment of an interim president. ACCT Interim Services assists governing boards with the process of selecting transitional leadership. AIS is your gateway to transition, simplified.

Four Reasons Interim Presidents are Valuable 1. Interims can provide stability while keeping the institution's priorities on track during transition.

2. They can help the college transition smoothly during the process of identifying a new permanent president.

3. Interim presidents can lend specialized expertise and skills needed during the transition.

4. They can lend a fresh perspective and address issues that may have been either ignored or handled poorly in the past.

ACCT has an extensive registry of retired presidents.

Narcisa A. Polonio, Ed.D. VP of Research, Education & Board Leadership Services 202.276.1983 narcisa_polonio@acct.org Keyshia Crawford Jimerson, M.Ed. Program Specialist 202.775.6484 kjimerson@acct.org

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NET WORK NEWS FALL 2012

INTERFACE

A PUBLICATION OF THE COMMUNITY COLLEGE PROFESSIONAL BOARD STAFF NETWORK IN COOPERATION WITH THE ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY COLLEGE TRUSTEES

PROFESSIONAL BOARD STAFF MEMBER 2011-2012 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Boston Bound!

OFFICERS Sherri Weddle Bowen, President Executive Assistant to the President Forsyth Technical Community College, N.C. sbowen@forsythtech.edu Wendy Dodson, Vice President Executive Assistant to the President Sandhills Community College, N.C. dodsonw@sandhills.edu Debbie Novak, Secretary Assistant to the College President Colorado Mountain College, Colo. dnovak@coloradomtn.edu Terri Grimes, Immediate Past-President Executive Assistant to the President/Board Highland Community College, Ill. terri.grimes@highland.edu

MEMBERS-AT-LARGE CENTRAL REGION Joan Tierney Administrative Assistant Joliet Junior College, Ill. jtierney@jjc.edu NORTHEAST REGION Sean Fischer Executive Assistant to the President and Director of Board of Trustee Services Atlantic Cape Community College, N.J. sfischer@atlantic.edu PACIFIC REGION Tria Bullard Executive Assistant to the President Columbia Gorge Community College, Ore. tbullard@cgcc.cc.or.us SOUTHERN REGION Wanda Brown Executive Assistant Randolph Community College, N.C. wcbrown@randolph.edu WESTERN REGION Mechell Downey Administrative Assistant to the President Seminole State College, Okla. m.downey@sscok.edu

WHAT AN AMAZING YEAR I HAVE HAD AS PRESIDENT OF THE ACCT Professional Board Staff Network. It seems that the year has flown by since I took office in Dallas in 2011. I cannot believe that this is my last official Interface article.

The PBSN Executive Committee worked together to come up with interesting topics for the ACCT Leadership Congress in Boston, and we hope you can join us for these three events. Our activities will kick off with our fourth annual PBSN Meet & Greet on Wednesday, October 10, from 7 to 8 p.m. at Cheers Boston, 84 Beacon Street. We are trying something different this year by going to an off-site venue, and we hope that many of you will be able to join us. Reservations are requested; please RSVP to sbowen@forsythtech.edu.

The three-hour workshop session will be held on Thursday, October 11, from 1:45 to 4:45 p.m. and will include an interactive session with a panel on best practices for president and trustee relations, a presentation on board self-evaluation, and a roundtable discussion on solving issues faced by PBSN members. Friday morning’s annual PBSN business meeting will be held from 9:15 to 10:45 a.m. We will recognize the Professional Board Staff Member Award recipients from each region and have the ascension of officers for 2013. Active members will also hold elections for Secretary and Members-at-Large from each region.

An active member is defined as one who has attended or participated in a PBSN business meeting within the last two years. We encourage all members to get involved and participate in this meeting — you make the decisions on who your leaders will be!

Our membership continues to grow each year. If you have not done so already, please look us up on Facebook at “ACCT Professional Board Staff Network” and “friend” our group.

I want to thank my executive committee members and past presidents. Without support from this well-deserving group, I would not have been able to complete my duties as president. Thank you to Wendy, Debbie, Joan, Wanda, Sean, Mechell, and Tria. A special thank you to Terri for her wisdom in knowing what to do and how to do it well! I also want to thank Dereama Coffin, Wanda Brown, Rose Avant, Pam Perkins, and Linda Peltier for the support and encouragement that I received at my first ACCT Congress / PBSN meeting in Seattle in 2005. These ladies mentored me and took me under their wings.

A special thank you to my college president, Dr. Gary M. Green, for his guidance and leadership, and to my board chair, Jeff McFadden, vice chair Ed Welch, and the rest of my board of trustees for their support and kudos throughout my term. To my husband, Marty, and my two boys, Cody (8) and Dakota (6), thank you for the loving support during this journey and for the support from home to attend these conferences out of town. I know my boys understood when I missed Halloween in 2008.

Last, but not least, thank you to the ACCT staff for their guidance and help throughout this year! A special thank you to David Conner for keeping Wendy and me on track for our Interface articles.

With that said, thank you all for your support and I look forward to seeing and meeting with each of you in Boston.

SHERRI WEDDLE BOWEN FORSYTH TECHNICAL COMMUNITY COLLEGE, N.C.

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NET WORK NEWS FALL 2012

INTERFACE

A PUBLICATION OF THE COMMUNITY COLLEGE PROFESSIONAL BOARD STAFF NETWORK IN COOPERATION WITH THE ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY COLLEGE TRUSTEES

Looking Ahead

By Wendy Dodson, Sandhills Community College, N.C. AS INCOMING PRESIDENT OF PBSN, I AM VERY EXCITED about the prospect of working closely with all of our members.

Following in the footsteps of Sherri and all that she has accomplished in this past year for PBSN will be challenging, but very exciting.

I began my career with Sandhills Community College as the Executive Assistant to the President and Assistant Secretary to the Board in November of 2007. I had just moved to North Carolina with my husband from Maine, where I taught special education for five years in the public school system. I received a bachelor’s degree in marketing and am currently working on my master’s degree in public administration with a concentration in human resources at East Carolina University. I live in Southern Pines, N.C., with my husband Jim, who is a noted golf writer and editor of Pinestraw and O’Henry magazines.

In 2011, I added the responsibilities of director of human resources to my position at Sandhills. It has been a busy but

“I look forward to seeing you all at the annual conference in Boston and the exciting year ahead.” very rewarding year in my dual roles at the college, and I hope to be able to use some of the aspects of this new position in my upcoming role as president of PBSN. Sherri Bowen has made many new strides in her year as president. She has created a new brochure for the organization, and we look forward to presenting that at the fall conference. We have new members that we are looking forward to working with in the upcoming year, as well as continuing to improve communications through e-mail and our Facebook presence. I look forward to seeing you all at the annual conference in Boston and the exciting year ahead.

Professional Board Staff Network Executive Committee: Seated (l to r): Wendy Dodson, Sherri Bowen, Debbie Novak; Standing (l to r): Tria Bullard, Mechell Downey, Terri Grimes, Joan Tierney, Wanda Brown (not pictured: Sean Fischer).

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NET WORK NEWS FALL 2012

INTERFACE

A PUBLICATION OF THE COMMUNITY COLLEGE PROFESSIONAL BOARD STAFF NETWORK IN COOPERATION WITH THE ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY COLLEGE TRUSTEES

The Professional Board Staff Network (PBSN) Executive Committee invites you to attend

LEVERAGING STUDENT SUCCESS

THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS, INNOVATION, & EVIDENCE

PBSN Meet & Greet

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What better way to start your Boston experience than by joining your PBSN Executive Committee for an opportunity to mingle and get better acquainted in a relaxed atmosphere? We’ll give you a brief overview of our session on Thursday and the business meeting on Friday. Casual attire welcome.

Reservations are requested. Please RSVP to sbowen@forsythtech.edu.

Annual Three-Hour Workshop for PBSN 5IVSTEBZ 0DUPCFS t Q N Location TBA

This interactive session will include a panel on best practices for president and trustee relations, a presentation on board self-evaluation, and a roundtable discussion on solving similar issues among Professional Board Staff Network members.

PBSN Business Meeting 'SJEBZ 0DUPCFS t B N Location TBA

Join us for the annual business meeting where recipients of ACCT’s 2012 Professional Board Staff Member regional awards will be recognized.

Elections will be held for Secretary and a memberat-large from each of our five regions, and the ascension of officers for 2012 will be held. PBSN members are encouraged to consider running for Secretary or the member-at-large position for their respective region.

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advisor ELECTION OF BOARD AND DIVERSITY COMMITTEE MEMBERS Announcement of Board Candidates Elections for ACCT Regional Directors and Diversity Committee members will be held at the Regional Caucuses and Meetings on Thursday, October 11, from 1:45 – 3:15 p.m. during the 2012 ACCT Leadership Congress at the Sheraton Boston Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts. Elections for Directors-at-Large will be held on Friday, October 12, from 8:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. during the ACCT Senate Meeting.

2012 CANDIDATES FOR THE ACCT BOARD OF DIRECTORS REGIONAL DIRECTOR

DIRECTOR-AT-LARGE

(1) Three-Year Term in Each Region.

The following is the slate of nominees received as of July 1, 2012:

(3) Three-Year Terms.

The following is the slate of nominees received as of July 1, 2012:

Central Region — John W. Sanders* John A. Logan College, IL

Stanley Edwards* Halifax Community College, NC

Northeast Region — William E. Coleman, Jr.* Mercer County Community College, NJ

Donna Horgan* Cecil College, MD

Pacific Region — Frederick “Fred” Whang* Tacoma Community College, WA Southern Region — Randall “Mack” Jackson* Midlands Technical College, SC Western Region — Robert “Bob” Feit* Southeast Community College, NE

Jeffrey A. May* Joliet Junior College, IL Rafael C. Turner Mott Community College, MI *Received support of their respective Nominating Committees.

Note: Nominations will be accepted from the floor on all elections.

2012 CANDIDATES FOR THE ACCT DIVERSITY COMMITTEE (1) Two-Year Term in Each Region and (1) One-Year Partial Term in the Western Region.

Southern Region Helen Rosemond-Saunders* Tri-County Technical College, SC

The following is the slate of nominees:

Western Region John Davies* Northeast Community College, NE

Central Region Robert Proctor* Lansing Community College, MI Northeast Region Jeff Holmes* Westmoreland County Community College, PA Pacific Region Isabel Barreras* State Center Community College District, CA

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FALL 2012

Western Region One-Year Partial Term No candidate has declared for the Western Region One-Year Partial Term.

Candidates with an asterisk received the support of their respective Regional Nominating Committees.

Note: Nominations will be accepted from the floor on all elections.

ELECTION OF REGIONAL NOMINATING COMMITTEE MEMBERS Regional Nominating Committee elections will take place during the 2012 ACCT Leadership Congress at the Regional Caucuses and Meetings on Thursday, October 11. Based on the ACCT Regional Nominating Committee structure, each committee consists of five members elected for two-year staggered terms. No more than one member shall be from the same state. Below are the seats that need to be filled for 2013-2014 term: CENTRAL REGION Three (3) seats will be available to members from the following states/province: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, and Ontario.

NORTHEAST REGION Two (2) seats will be available to members from the following states: Delaware, Maryland, and New York.

PACIFIC REGION Two (2) seats will be available to members from the following states/territories: Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, America Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Republic of Palau, British Columbia, and the Marshall Islands.

SOUTHERN REGION Two (2) seats will be available to members from the following states/territories: Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Bermuda, and Virgin Islands.

WESTERN REGION Three (3) seats (one one-year partial term) will be available to members from the following states: Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Texas.

ACCT VOTING DELEGATES FOR ELECTIONS ACCT’s President and Chief Executive Officer will send detailed information to the board chairs of each ACCT voting member district outlining how many voting delegates the college district governing boards are entitled to under the ACCT Bylaws. The number of delegates will be based on the fall headcount enrollment of those students taking courses for credit.

Each member board should decide who will serve as the voting delegate(s) to represent your college at the ACCT Leadership Congress. Voting Members may designate for each voting delegate an alternate who may serve as the voting delegate in the absence of any voting delegate from the same Voting Member. ACCT does not need to be notified of your voting delegate choice(s).

Upon arrival at the Congress, the voting delegate(s) will need to sign in at the voting delegate desk to receive voting credentials.

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ACCT PUBLICATIONS To order any ACCT publication, please fill out the form below and give it to any ACCT staff member or (preferred) fax, e-mail, or mail your order to ACCT Publications (contact information below). Please include both a billing and shipping address and a purchase order, if necessary.

As a membership benefit, book orders from ACCT members are fulfilled immediately in good faith of payment. An invoice will be sent within 2-3 weeks of your order. ACCT requires pre-payment from non-member colleges.

TITLE First in the World: Community Colleges and America’s Future (2012) NEW

PRICE $35 $45

QUANTITY

TOTAL

member non-member

Please check whether you are a member or non-member

Making Good on the Promise of the Open Door: Effective Governance and Leadership to Improve Student Equity, Success, and Completion (2011)

$30 $42

Essentials of Good Board/CEO Relations (2009)

$16 $20

member non-member

Please check whether you are a member or non-member

member non-member

Please check whether you are a member or non-member

The Trustee’s Role in Effective Advocacy: Engaging in Citizen Action to Advance Educational Opportunities in Your Community — What Trustees Need to Know About Exercising Their Voices and Influence on Behalf of Community Colleges (2009)

$24 $28

The Trustee’s Role in Fundraising: From Arm’s Length to Knee Deep — What Trustees Need to Know About Institutional Advancement (2008)

$16 $20

The Board Chair: A Guide for Leading Community College Boards

$15 $20

member non-member

Please check whether you are a member or non-member

member non-member

Please check whether you are a member or non-member

member non-member

Please check whether you are a member or non-member

Trusteeship in Community Colleges: A Guide to Effective Governance

$30 $40

member non-member

Please check whether you are a member or non-member

Community College Trustees: Leading on Behalf of Their Communities

$30 $40

member non-member

Please check whether you are a member or non-member

Please include $3 postage and handling fee for each publication (maximum $15)

$ TOTAL $ ACCT MEMBERS Use any of these methods to order: E-mail: acctinfo@acct.org Call: 202.775.4454 Fax: 202.775.4455 Or mail order form to the address below.

(Note: ACCT members are not required to send payment at the time of order.)

Total enclosed $

ACCT NON-MEMBERS Send order form and check or money order to: Attn: Publications, Association of Community College Trustees, Dept. 6061, Washington, DC 20042-6061

Mail to (if different):

ACCT6266 (TQ Fall 2012)Finalrev.indd 45

or bill:

9/13/12 11:22 PM

www.acct.org 1233 20th Street, NW Suite 301 Washington, D.C. 20036 202.775.4667 866.895.2228

R E G I S T R AT I O N O P E N S S O O N AT W W W.A C C T.O R G | Q U E S T IO N S : 8 6 6 - 895- 2228

2013

FEBRUARY 11-14 MARRIOTT WARDMAN PARK HOTEL WASHINGTON, D.C.

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