ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING

SOCCCD Facilities Corporation Holds Initial Organizational Meeting

During the Feb. 28 meeting, the Board of Trustees approved the formation of a new California nonprofit 501(c)(3) public benefit corporation to be known as Facilities Corporation 2011. The board convened its first organizational meeting to elect directors, appoint officers and adopt bylaws. Facilities Corporation 2011 will facilitate transactions such as those required for the proposed New Market Tax Credits which could provide funding for ATEP.

Construction Challenges and Protective Measures

District Director of Facilities Planning Brandye D'Lena provided a comparative analysis of concerns related to construction complexities. She discussed the recent problems at LACCD and provided reassurance that our district has measures in place to avoid those issues. She highlighted the importance of careful, diligent planning such as our shared governance master planning process which improves transparency and accountability. She underscored the importance of "plan your work, work your plan" and "pay as you go," both of which serve as guidelines in district planning. Her presentation can be viewed here.

ATEP Planning and Development

Associate Vice Chancellor Randy Peebles provided a summary of ATEP development progress, demolition and upcoming issues to consider. He underscored the importance of Career Technical Education (CTE) mandated by the State Chancellor's office citing it as one of the state's three key initiatives for community colleges. He said that the colleges have compiled a list of 46 potential programs for ATEP. He asked the board to provide direction for the next 30,000 square foot building - for example, what CTE programs will be offered, and how do we choose them? Will ATEP serve one college or two? How will we review and select land use partners? His presentation can be viewed here.

2020 Vision Report

Vice Chancellor Bob Bramucci presented an overview of the 2020 Vision: A Report of the Commission on the Future from the Community College League of California. The report calls for five million more college graduates nationwide by 2020 with more than one million needed in California, to meet educational needs for a competitive workforce. Currently the U.S. is declining in educational attainment compared to other nations. Many students start, but fail to complete, a college education and the statistics are markedly higher in Latino and African American populations. The colleges will provide a report in an upcoming board meeting on their plans for meeting this challenge. His presentation can be viewed here.

New Market Tax Credits Report

Vice Chancellor David Bugay provided an update and summary of costs related to the pursuit of New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) to assist with funding for the next phase of development at ATEP. NMTCs provide federal income tax credits to investors in order to stimulate private investment in eligible low income census tracts such as the ATEP site. One or more interested investors through the NMTC program have been identified to provide about $17M in funding to the district for ATEP. His presentation can be viewed here.

• all consent calendar items and academic and classified personnel actions, except items 5.9 and 6.3 which were pulled; 6.4 was tabled; and Board Policy 104 - Student Member of the Board of Trustees was pulled from item 6.7. For additional information, please contact the Office of the President or Vice Chancellor of Human Resources.

• renaming Saddleback College's division of Physical Education/Kinesiology and Athletics to Kinesiology and Athletics to better align and articulate with four year college departments. The Dean's title will also change to Dean of Kinesiology and Athletics.

• nomination of Coast Community College District Trustee Jim Moreno to the California Community College Trustees Board of Directors Election -2011. 

• a capital outlay fund to establish a beginning balance for the district's newly established Facilities Corporation 2011.

• nominations for the James Hines Teacher of the Year Award established by the Orange County Department of Education for: Kris Leppien-Christensen, Saddleback College 2012 Full-Time Professor of the Year; Teresa Bear, Saddleback College 2012 Part-Time Professor of the Year; Kay Ryals, Irvine Valley College 2012 Full-Time Professor of the Year; and David Lacy, Irvine Valley College 2012 Part-Time Professor of the Year.

• Trustee Marcia Milchiker reported on attending the Community College League's Trustee Workshop with Trustees Prendergast and Meldau; a legislative event hosted by the Orange County Legislative Task Force (OCLTF) at the Capitol to honor work of the State Senate and Assembly Education Committees including the successful transfer bill AB 1440, with awards presented to Assembly member Julia Brownley and Senator Bob Huff; and two upcoming OCLTF events - Intersegmental Day in Sacramento which Saddleback President Tod Burnett will attend on April 5, and a "Orange County at Work" breakfast with legislators on May 6 showcasing a CTE program from each community college in Orange County. Saddleback will showcase their nursing/paramedic human simulators and IVC will showcase their animation/gaming/CIM program. There were no other trustee reports.

• Saddleback College - President Tod Burnett's reports included mention of: congratulations to Professors of the Year Kris Leppien-Christensen and Teresa Bear; hosting Congressman Gary Miller to the VETS Center, Senior Day for thousands of high school students, free fashion workshops, medical lab tech prep session, Ability Awareness Day with actress Geri Jewell, Transfer Center College Day, Careers in Teaching event; congratulations to the men's basketball team, semifinalists for the state championship; two vehicle donations from Kia Motor America to the automotive program; Tuttle Click scholarships Andrew Hutchins and Martin Marquina; VETS participation in Region 8 summit at State Chancellors Office; Saddleback ASG and Women Veterans Unity Group sponsorship of a Comedic fundraiser for women vets.

• Irvine Valley College - President Glenn Roquemore's reports included mention of: congratulations to Professors of the Year Kay Ryals and David Lacy; congratulations to IVC's speech and debate team who took sweepstakes awards at several tournaments; Chinese/Japanese Open House; small business conference on health reform, tax issues, funding and legal issues held at the Performing Arts Center, with host Don Dressler, national leader in HR solutions; celebration of Black History Month sponsored by ASIVC; $10,000 donation from Greenberg Traurig LLP to IVC Foundation for Astounding Inventions; Principals Breakfast and Tour for 14 local high school principals; Environmental Stewardship Award from Orion Energy Systems Corp. presented in recognition of IVC's energy reduction efforts on campus.

• ATEP  - Associate Vice Chancellor Randy Peebles' reports included mention of: Phase I demolition nearing completion and Phase II beginnning in April; the architectural programming process is under way with the colleges to define and prioritize program needs and educational use for facilities; development staff is working with CB Richard Ellis to market for education partners; progress continues for pursuit of New Markets Tax Credit funding which could offset development costs by $17M.

The Board meeting will be available for viewing online later in the week at www.socccd.edu. Television broadcasts are scheduled for 7pm on Friday, April 1 and Saturday, April 2, on Saddleback College Channel 39 and Irvine Valley College Channel 33.  SC TV39 has an additional broadcast on Sunday, April 3 at 7pm.

Thomas A. Fuentes, William O. Jay, David B. Lang, Frank M. Meldau, Marcia Milchiker,
Nancy M. Padberg, T.J. Prendergast, III; Eve Sheih, Student Trustee

Gary L. Poertner, Chancellor