[8:54] >> Go ahead and call this

[8:56] meeting to order. If you would,

[8:57] please stand. For those

[8:58] of you that can,

[8:59] for the pledges of allegiance

[9:00] to the US and Texas flags.

[9:05] >> I pledge allegiance

[9:07] to the flag

[9:08] of the United States

[9:10] of America and to the republic

[9:12] for which it stands, one nation

[9:14] under God, indivisible,

[9:16] with liberty and justice for

[9:18] all.

[9:20] >> Honor the Texas flag. I

[9:22] pledge allegiance

[9:24] to thee, Texas, one state under

[9:26] God, one and indivisible.

[9:31] >> Thank you. Okay, we'll have

[9:34] public comments, and we will

[9:38] start with Richard Gonzalez.

[9:49] Good evening.

[9:50] >> Good afternoon, trustees.

[9:53] Thank you very much

[9:54] for this opportunity to speak

[9:56] to you. I am Richard Gonzalez.

[9:58] I'm a taxpayer resident

[9:59] of Tarrant county over 50

[10:01] years. I'm an author and a

[10:05] civically involved individual.

[10:08] I was invited to speak at the

[10:09] 15th annual Abrasando Alexito,

[10:12] which means embracing

[10:13] excellence event scheduled for

[10:16] October 11, 2024. I was told

[10:21] via email on September 27,

[10:26] 2024, that the event was

[10:28] canceled because the program

[10:31] violated SB 17. That's a Senate

[10:33] bill that deals with diversity,

[10:35] inclusion and equity.

[10:38] After inquiries with the

[10:39] chancellor and attorney Antonio

[10:41] Allen, I learned that TCC's

[10:43] interpretation of SB 17

[10:46] prohibits heritage events

[10:48] planned and organized by

[10:51] Tarrant county employees. If

[10:54] the heritage events were

[10:56] planned and organized by

[10:57] students, then SB 17 would not

[10:59] have applied and the events

[11:00] would have taken place. It's

[11:02] disappointing that the Tarrant

[11:04] county administration waited

[11:05] until people were invited, food

[11:07] was ordered, and promotions

[11:08] went out about the event, and

[11:10] then they canceled the event.

[11:12] The decision

[11:13] to cancel the event was made by

[11:14] Tarrant county administrators,

[11:16] unbeknownst

[11:18] to the chancellor, unbeknownst

[11:20] to the chair of this body. In

[11:21] my investigation, I know that

[11:23] Dallas College, University

[11:25] of Texas

[11:27] at Arlington, University of

[11:30] North Texas have had Hispanic

[11:31] heritage months celebrating

[11:33] events. I spoke last Friday

[11:36] to a group of teachers,

[11:38] in fact, at Dallas College

[11:39] Compel campus, and in that

[11:41] event, I had an opportunity

[11:43] to talk to Doctor Mercario

[11:45] Hernandez, who is a president

[11:47] of Mountain View College, and I

[11:48] said, how were you able to

[11:50] navigate SB 17? He said they

[11:52] worked at it because they

[11:54] thought it was important to

[11:56] continue celebrating heritage

[11:58] events and still not violate

[12:00] the letter of the law of SB 17.

[12:03] Here are my recommendations.

[12:06] Learn to navigate SB 17,

[12:08] successfully communicate

[12:10] with the community your methods

[12:11] of honoring heritages, and

[12:13] without violating SB 17, please

[12:15] be careful not to violate the

[12:17] First Amendment rights

[12:20] in your efforts

[12:22] to be so careful not to land

[12:23] on the landmine

[12:25] of SB 17. Partner

[12:27] with the community to ensure

[12:29] that all students are included

[12:31] and their heritages are

[12:33] celebrated. Please act quickly

[12:35] to resolve this issue. Our

[12:37] community is waiting to thank

[12:40] you.

[12:42] >> Thank you, Mister Gonzalez.

[12:45] Next up is Ginny Zhang.

[12:59] >> Good afternoon

[13:02] everyone. Not long

[13:04] ago, I spoke with our campus

[13:06] general counsel, Mister Antonio

[13:08] Allen. And Mister Allen, you

[13:10] kept telling me the decision is

[13:12] already made and there's

[13:13] nothing I can do about it. But

[13:15] you forgot one thing. Decisions

[13:16] are made

[13:17] by humans. That decision is

[13:19] about removing children's

[13:21] center on TCC campus. Attorneys

[13:25] are human, and humans overreact

[13:27] and make knee jerk decisions.

[13:29] And they can be very stubborn

[13:31] about admitting it. You

[13:34] mentioned that children's

[13:35] center cannot uphold TCC's

[13:37] standard of respect, care and

[13:38] professionalism. Well, does

[13:39] child care associate meet that

[13:41] standard? TCC signed

[13:42] partnership with them

[13:44] on two new campuses, but some

[13:45] of its centers have

[13:47] about ten violations. One of

[13:49] them even got shut down. All

[13:51] the while, children's center

[13:53] only had one incident with two

[13:55] violations. I made a handout

[13:56] about this for all the members

[13:58] of the board so that you can

[13:59] see it. If child associate meet

[14:01] the standard, why not

[14:02] children's center? You

[14:03] mentioned the liability to run

[14:04] a lab school, which is so

[14:05] special. Even if children's

[14:07] center is gone, you cannot run

[14:09] this place without cops. There

[14:10] are way more campus assault,

[14:11] bullying, murder, and rape

[14:14] where students actually get

[14:16] injured and even die, than a

[14:18] teacher abusing a kid at an on

[14:20] campus daycare, let alone there

[14:22] was no injury and my child had

[14:24] no recollection of it. By that

[14:25] logic, would it be better

[14:27] to shut down the entire campus

[14:29] so that it would definitely

[14:30] erase all the possibilities of

[14:32] violent crimes? That will land

[14:34] you in major lawsuits.

[14:36] After all, you're dealing

[14:38] with thousands of students that

[14:41] you cannot fully control. If

[14:43] removing risk is the goal, why

[14:44] stop at the children's center?

[14:47] You mentioned personnel issues.

[14:49] The truth is, if you really

[14:50] want to keep it open, you'll

[14:52] find a way. This center is the

[14:54] only nearby facility that

[14:56] trains top quality daycare

[14:57] teachers. The next one is an

[14:59] hour away. With shortage of

[15:02] skilled daycare staff, the

[15:04] center is vital

[15:06] for young people

[15:08] in Tarrant county to enter the

[15:09] profession. Closing it suddenly

[15:12] would create a void and a

[15:14] vicious cycle

[15:15] for the personnel issue

[15:17] with Chancellor Leblanc's habit

[15:18] of making big decisions without

[15:20] consulting the board. If she is

[15:21] so arrogant to push her own

[15:23] agenda while ignoring public

[15:26] sentiment, and so incompetent

[15:28] that she needs a lawyer

[15:29] to talk to her, to talk

[15:31] for her every time, why is she

[15:32] in this role? Leadership isn't

[15:35] about hiding behind a shield

[15:38] and steamrolling everyone. That

[15:40] is not leadership. That is

[15:42] dictatorship. If you really

[15:44] think that TCC children's

[15:47] center as a lab school is so

[15:50] special, then please, I ask

[15:54] you, please keep the lapse

[15:56] school open, or keep the

[15:58] irrational, incompetent

[16:00] chancellor out of this so that

[16:02] no future tragedy like this

[16:03] happens again. And I have the

[16:10] handout of childcare associates

[16:15] that there are violations

[16:17] in the past five years posted

[16:19] on the Texas Human Resources

[16:21] Texas Health Human Resource

[16:25] website with their past

[16:29] violations that are around ten

[16:32] counts. I have seven copies for

[16:34] board members. I did not know

[16:35] that chancellor will be here

[16:37] today or I would have send you

[16:40] one too.

[16:41] >> You can get those to Mister

[16:42] Gates.

[16:48] >> Thank you, Miss Senn. Next

[16:54] is Jennifer Yarber.

[17:03] >> Good evening, everyone. My

[17:06] name is Jennifer Yarber. I'm an

[17:08] educator in a local school

[17:10] district, a taxpayer in the

[17:11] TCCD north Richland Hills

[17:13] resident, and a mother of two

[17:15] children who attended Tarrant

[17:16] County Children's center from

[17:18] the time they were two years

[17:19] old until the time they were

[17:22] five. I was told earlier that I

[17:23] was lucky my kids got to

[17:24] finish, and I truly am. Tarrant

[17:26] County Children's center played

[17:28] an integral part in creating

[17:30] the confident, happy,

[17:31] intelligent children I have

[17:33] now, who are twelve and 14. By

[17:35] the way, while attending every

[17:37] day, my kids were excited

[17:38] to go to school. It was their

[17:40] second home. We never called it

[17:42] daycare because it just wasn't.

[17:44] It was their school. The

[17:47] friends they made while

[17:48] attending TCC are still their

[17:50] friends today because of the

[17:52] bonds nurtured there. And that

[17:54] doesn't just happen

[17:55] on its own. Goals

[17:57] of the center were clear

[17:58] to parents. Children learned

[18:00] about civility, kindness, and

[18:01] friendship. They ate lunch,

[18:03] family style, to learn manners.

[18:05] They were allowed

[18:07] to play and just be little kids

[18:08] without the pressure

[18:09] of academia being shoved

[18:11] at them in an inappropriate

[18:12] developmental age, as many

[18:14] larger daycares do. It's very

[18:16] commonplace these days.

[18:18] Teachers like Deborah Molina,

[18:20] Michelle Lee, Miss Sharon, and

[18:22] Yolanda Jones are forever

[18:24] etched on my kids hearts and

[18:26] mine. These teachers loved them

[18:28] like they were their own and

[18:30] taught the next generation

[18:31] of educators how to do the

[18:33] same. These women, who have

[18:35] dedicated their lives to early

[18:37] childhood and have worked

[18:38] for TCC for decades with, let's

[18:40] be honest, pay that doesn't

[18:42] match their intense effort and

[18:44] skill level, have forged

[18:47] everlasting friendships and

[18:49] parents and community members

[18:51] because of the level of trust

[18:52] they have earned. I'm deeply

[18:56] concerned with the recent

[18:57] events surrounding the center

[18:59] and the motives behind the

[19:00] closing that are all too clear

[19:02] for an outsider who does any

[19:04] research

[19:05] at all. Yes, some sort of

[19:07] incident occurred, which is a

[19:09] horrible thing. However, in any

[19:11] other situation, the person who

[19:13] created the infraction would be

[19:14] removed swiftly,

[19:16] but the center would remain

[19:18] open for every child

[19:19] to be removed from a familiar,

[19:21] loving environment so quickly

[19:23] for parents to be left

[19:24] in the lurch with no childcare

[19:26] is inexcusable. But there is

[19:28] more. These women were removed

[19:30] from their jobs for trying to

[19:32] protect children. The ones who

[19:34] have dedicated their lives to

[19:35] an organization that does not

[19:37] value them with no severance

[19:39] package is unconscionable. I

[19:42] would like

[19:43] to stand here and plead

[19:45] for you

[19:46] to keep the center open, but

[19:47] it's clear that you've decided

[19:49] to farm out our beloved TCC

[19:50] Children's center out

[19:52] to a large corporation

[19:53] to manage it for you. Instead

[19:55] of paying a highly qualified

[19:56] director what they deserve

[19:58] to be paid, instead of valuing

[19:59] these women and their level

[20:01] of care for the children in our

[20:03] community, you're flushing an

[20:05] amazing program down the

[20:07] toilet. I assume you think

[20:09] child care associates will come

[20:10] in and clean it all up, but the

[20:12] likelihood is they will be just

[20:14] another large daycare

[20:16] corporation that hires

[20:17] uneducated, underqualified

[20:19] daycare workers. This is not

[20:22] what our community wants.

[20:24] People don't put their children

[20:26] on a list as soon as they are

[20:28] born to go to a school at child

[20:30] care associates. I would love

[20:33] to see TCC rebuild this center

[20:35] and heal its broken heart.

[20:37] But the writing is on the wall.

[20:39] It truly feels that TCC was

[20:41] looking for an excuse to close

[20:43] so this corporation could come

[20:45] in and take over. So my plea

[20:47] after speaking before you is

[20:49] that you just do the right

[20:50] thing by the women who have

[20:52] done no wrong. Please show

[20:54] respect for them, that you

[20:55] value their many years

[20:57] of service in offering a

[20:58] dignified severance package.

[21:00] They deserve it

[21:01] for what they have done for my

[21:03] kids and so many others. Thank

[21:05] you.

[21:07] >> Thank you, Miss Jarvis.

[21:09] Jeanette Favela. Jeannette

[21:14] Ivela. I think that's her.

[21:32] >> Good

[21:34] evening. My name is Jeanette

[21:35] Favela. Some of you may

[21:37] recognize me. I was here

[21:38] earlier passing

[21:39] out flyers letting people know

[21:41] about the board of trustees

[21:43] meeting today, and we wanted to

[21:45] rally support as much as we

[21:46] could. Now what? I would like

[21:48] to come just peek, if I can say

[21:50] what other parents have said.

[21:51] >> Can you get just a little

[21:52] bit closer to the microphone?

[21:53] Thank you so much.

[21:55] >> Is that better?

[21:56] >> That's it. Thank you.

[21:57] >> So, my name is Jeanette

[21:59] Favela, and I am a former

[22:04] parent of students at the

[22:05] Tarrant County Children's

[22:07] center. Okay. Here's one right

[22:12] here. And I get really nervous.

[22:16] I'm sorry. The children's

[22:17] center closing is not something

[22:20] that we were expecting. We are

[22:22] also planning to take our soon

[22:24] to be two year old to the

[22:30] center. It goes deeper than

[22:32] just being a daycare. They are

[22:34] better little humans now.

[22:36] They've made me a better

[22:38] parent. It's not just I dropped

[22:41] them off. They took care of

[22:44] them. We came home. They taught

[22:46] us values. It's not something

[22:49] that we experienced in other

[22:51] child care centers. And I don't

[22:54] know if we will again, and

[22:56] hopefully we will. I have hope,

[22:58] because the ripple that they

[22:59] made with teaching other

[23:01] students there, that ripple

[23:03] keeps going. They planted a

[23:05] seed in my brain, in my kids

[23:06] hearts, and I'm confident that

[23:09] it's going to keep going. But

[23:11] in order for them to keep doing

[23:13] good work there, it has

[23:14] to stay open. They have to have

[23:16] the same values that they

[23:18] instilled into us. Needs

[23:20] to continue. So what I would

[23:23] like to say is, everything

[23:28] in life and in business is

[23:30] negotiable. If we could

[23:32] negotiate, if you could

[23:34] negotiate on our behalf

[23:35] from the community, hearing

[23:38] from us, how we can help keep

[23:40] this center open and have the

[23:42] same values that it instilled

[23:44] into us. I know my sister

[23:46] in law. She is a graduate from

[23:49] the TCC Child development

[23:50] studies, and she is now a

[23:51] program coordinator for one of

[23:53] the top pediatric hospitals

[23:54] here in the DFW area. She

[23:56] started her career

[23:58] at TCC, being involved

[24:01] in that same department at the

[24:02] lab school. She's the one that

[24:04] told me

[24:05] about this program. It was like

[24:07] the best hidden secret that we

[24:08] had in the community, and it

[24:10] still is, but we have to keep

[24:12] it open. Please help us. Please

[24:16] negotiate for us. Thank you.

[24:20] >> Thank you, miss Favela.

[24:26] Okay. Juan M. Acosta. Mister

[24:34] Acosta.

[24:49] >> Hello, guys. So, again,

[24:51] we're at other departments. We

[24:54] really value so much what TCC

[24:57] gave us before, we didn't have,

[25:01] like, a big idea

[25:04] of what, like, taking care of

[25:06] kids are like. They need so

[25:08] much from us. As a parenthood,

[25:10] we do what we can, but really,

[25:12] the values that they gain and

[25:15] experience from the teachers,

[25:16] the professors, TCC, we came

[25:20] less than a month ago to

[25:22] celebrate 50 years. So that's

[25:26] more than 1015 generations that

[25:28] have been going through three

[25:29] cc. And as my wife said,

[25:31] they're being very successful.

[25:32] So it's really making a

[25:34] difference. And we really hope

[25:36] that there is a way to keep it

[25:37] open because it's something

[25:43] that the whole community needs.

[25:44] That's pretty much. Thank you.

[25:49] >> Thank you. Sawat cherry.

[26:03] >> Good evening. I wrote what I

[26:06] wanted to say so I don't veer

[26:08] off how I was a part of the

[26:11] children's center. I was

[26:13] fortunate enough to work at

[26:16] Northeast Campus business

[26:18] services and heard another

[26:19] grandparent that worked on the

[26:21] same campus. What a great

[26:24] program the children's center

[26:26] has. There is a waiting list,

[26:29] so you should sign up and you

[26:31] know, it's really great. I told

[26:33] my daughter about the

[26:35] children's center, that she

[26:37] should sign up. She did. We

[26:39] waited in anticipation, but

[26:42] Covid happened and we missed a

[26:44] full year.

[26:46] Before my granddaughter started

[26:48] at TCC, my granddaughter had

[26:50] to start at a daycare and

[26:52] missed it starting at the

[26:54] Children's center Honeybees

[26:56] class a year after attending

[26:59] the children's center rising

[27:01] star class, we realized how

[27:03] much of a difference and great

[27:05] the center is or was for the

[27:08] children. My granddaughter had

[27:11] tremendous growth through

[27:14] stepping Stone's class and was

[27:16] prepared for her entrance

[27:17] to kindergarten. She's now

[27:19] going into second grade. The

[27:21] staff and the teachers at the

[27:24] children's center maintain a

[27:26] safe, nurturing, healthy child

[27:28] development care, including

[27:30] early detection development,

[27:33] identifying and addressing any

[27:35] behavior habits that may need

[27:38] extra attention. Last academic

[27:42] year, I had one

[27:44] in honeybees and one

[27:46] in rising star class. Busy time

[27:49] for me, the nana,

[27:51] but I enjoyed every moment

[27:53] of it. My work schedule and

[27:55] time off was always wrapped

[27:57] around my grandkids. For two

[28:01] and a half years, I brought my

[28:04] grandkids

[28:05] with me every working day. Up

[28:08] until last week, I thought I

[28:11] would stay within Northeast

[28:14] campus however long it takes

[28:16] for my grandkids to attend the

[28:18] children's center. Not all

[28:20] grandparents get

[28:22] to do what I was able

[28:26] to do, and I drive 20 miles

[28:28] out of my way so that I could

[28:31] give that to them. No one is

[28:35] perfect, not teachers, not

[28:37] staff, not parents, not even

[28:40] the children.

[28:41] But we all strive to encourage,

[28:43] assist, address and resolve

[28:46] issues that arise. I'm saddened

[28:50] that I cannot be a part

[28:52] of that program

[28:54] since it was shut down

[28:56] abruptly. I enjoyed being part

[28:59] of the children's center family

[29:01] and don't quite understand how

[29:03] something so great running for

[29:05] 50 years be quickly treated as

[29:07] if it didn't matter. So we shut

[29:09] it down

[29:10] without any considerations. To

[29:13] the people that TCC worked hard

[29:17] to maintain a unity for all and

[29:20] its community. I know it is

[29:23] out of TCC's control and it

[29:26] can't be undone. But please

[29:29] reconsider actions TCC has

[29:31] taken

[29:33] for the staff and the teachers

[29:34] of the children's center,

[29:36] because getting rid

[29:38] of all that existed of the

[29:39] children's center is not what

[29:42] our motto states. We belong

[29:44] here. Thank you.

[29:47] >> Thank you, Miss Cherry.

[29:49] Daniel J. Bennett.

[30:09] >> Good evening.

[30:11] Daniel Bennett, white

[30:12] settlement. I wanted to speak

[30:15] to six x the concurrence last

[30:21] week, Antonio Allen was up here

[30:22] speaking to a question from

[30:24] Miss Wood. And he responded

[30:27] that it was a tie vote. And as

[30:31] he was responding to Miss Wood,

[30:32] he paused and motioned when he

[30:35] said this, a board member

[30:37] requested and he pointed right

[30:39] to the chair and he went back

[30:41] to speaking. The interim chair,

[30:44] I believe, was pointing to the

[30:47] interim chair. And then it was

[30:52] very telling because this item

[30:55] has been put on this agenda by,

[30:57] I think, a singular board

[30:59] member. But more importantly,

[31:02] the chair last week said this,

[31:06] quote, I think that that was

[31:08] the item

[31:10] behind having concurrence

[31:12] of another board member was

[31:15] to protect Jess from spending

[31:17] too much time, excuse me,

[31:18] on something the majority

[31:19] of the board was not interested

[31:21] in pursuing and would take a

[31:23] lot of staff time. Well, how

[31:24] would that individual board

[31:26] member know that the majority

[31:29] of the board members didn't

[31:31] want that item? You have

[31:33] to think about that because,

[31:36] you know, we do have walking

[31:38] quorum rules in Texas. And if

[31:40] this wasn't discussed

[31:43] in public, it was discussed

[31:45] behind the door. Or the

[31:46] protocol, maybe, is that the

[31:48] board president calls each

[31:50] member to sample. I don't know

[31:52] what the protocol is because

[31:54] it's not in TASB, but there

[31:55] should be a protocol. Nowhere

[31:57] near agenda does it say that

[31:59] you have future agenda items.

[32:00] So it wasn't done there. I

[32:02] don't know if. Miss Ila, you

[32:05] reached out to each individual

[32:07] board member. Was the open

[32:09] meetings act violated through a

[32:12] walking corner when that

[32:14] happened? I don't know. Was the

[32:15] board business being conducted

[32:17] out of the purview of the

[32:19] public? I mean, how's the

[32:21] majority come up knowing we

[32:23] don't want a certain item

[32:24] without at least four of you

[32:25] deciding that that's a vote? I

[32:29] think we need to look into

[32:31] that. I think the public would

[32:33] like to know why that verbiage

[32:35] was passed back and forth

[32:36] between Antonio, Miss Wood, and

[32:39] last week's chair. Now I want

[32:41] to turn to IA. I don't believe

[32:45] you should approve that

[32:47] contract. I'm going to tell you

[32:49] why. Because we have Joe Biden,

[32:50] who was stopped running for

[32:52] president when he plagiarized.

[32:53] We now have the Harvard

[32:55] president who actually

[33:00] plagiarized Miss Carol Swain,

[33:02] one of my favorite authors. She

[33:04] authored the adversity of

[33:06] diversity. Great writer. So

[33:08] great that the Harvard

[33:11] professor, Miss Gay,

[33:12] plagiarized her and did not

[33:15] give her credit. Gloria Gaye

[33:17] got no credit to Miss Wayne. So

[33:18] here we have our vice president

[33:21] now being accused

[33:23] of the very thing back in 2009.

[33:27] So if we do this IA thing, it's

[33:28] going

[33:30] to take away the opportunity

[33:31] of our children to become vice

[33:32] president or potentially

[33:34] president. So I think we should

[33:36] cancel that contract and not do

[33:38] it because you see the success

[33:39] you can have if you act

[33:42] in certain manners. And with

[33:45] the last few seconds I have, I

[33:47] want to talk about the tips.

[33:49] In 22, I asked

[33:51] for an accounting

[33:53] of three tips that expired to

[33:55] see if they met their goals. It

[33:57] was never mentioned again. Now

[33:58] we're fixing to add 20 years to

[34:01] two different tips. We already

[34:03] added nine years to tip number

[34:05] nine. This corporate welfare

[34:07] has to end. Thank you.

[34:08] >> Thank you. Mister Bennett.

[34:10] Miss Samantha Goldblatt.

[34:23] >> Hi, good evening. My name is

[34:25] Samantha Goldblatt. I'm a TCC

[34:27] graduate. I graduated, let's

[34:29] see, last spring, and I still

[34:31] work here right now. I work

[34:33] within the learning commons. I

[34:35] didn't really know a whole lot

[34:37] about the issue

[34:38] with the children's center

[34:39] before today. I was influenced

[34:42] by the group of parents that I

[34:44] saw earlier. And I think that

[34:46] although I don't know too much

[34:47] about what's going on exactly,

[34:49] I do see a really consistent

[34:51] problem with communication. I

[34:53] don't think that perhaps the

[34:55] notification of the closing was

[34:58] timely, and I don't think it

[35:00] was fair to parents. I see it

[35:02] very consistently in other

[35:04] factors, too. And I think that,

[35:06] like with our strategic plan

[35:08] that's going on currently, I

[35:10] don't think that closing the

[35:11] children's center is in line

[35:13] with that. I know that we want

[35:14] to serve our community. I know

[35:16] that I work very hard to serve

[35:18] my community. I know that I see

[35:20] students constantly. I used to

[35:21] be an SI leader that supported

[35:22] spanish courses, and I was very

[35:23] in line

[35:24] with my community and trying

[35:26] to connect students

[35:27] to that. And within my spanish

[35:29] classes, too, as a graduate of

[35:30] TCC, I saw as a student, my

[35:33] professors really strive

[35:34] to connect ourselves or

[35:35] to connect their students

[35:36] to the community,

[35:38] to the resources outside

[35:39] of TCC itself. I've been

[35:46] on conference trips, I've been

[35:47] to like, events

[35:48] in the community

[35:50] to serve hispanic speaking

[35:51] parts of Tarrant county. And I

[35:52] think that the work that the

[35:53] children's center seems

[35:55] to be doing that seems

[35:57] to be supported by all the

[35:58] other parents that have come

[36:00] today. I think that closing the

[36:02] center would go

[36:03] against our support of the

[36:05] community. And although it

[36:08] seems the decision has been

[36:11] made, I do think that there

[36:12] probably are things that could

[36:15] be improved upon. The

[36:17] propositions that have been

[36:18] made by other members of the

[36:20] community might be helpful, but

[36:22] I think that there is a way

[36:24] that we can make this right.

[36:25] Thank you.

[36:26] >> Thank you, Miss Goblet.

[36:28] Jason Zinke.

[36:40] >> Good evening, ladies and

[36:42] gentlemen. My name is Jason

[36:43] Juke and I am the father

[36:44] of the child who is involved in

[36:46] the October 4 incident. I'm

[36:48] here to shed light

[36:49] on some hypocrisy

[36:51] before you and beg for your

[36:52] help. I've been getting very

[36:54] mixed messages from TCC

[36:55] on just what kind of care it

[36:57] values. Our children's center

[36:59] is exemplary, and our 50th

[37:01] anniversary celebration gala

[37:02] just, what, three weeks back.

[37:04] As proof of that, the HHS

[37:05] website shows that in the last

[37:06] five years, only two

[37:07] deficiencies have been found

[37:08] there

[37:09] in a single report. This stands

[37:11] in stark contrast to childcare

[37:13] associates, whose head start

[37:14] and childcare studios schools

[37:16] have two, seven, even ten or

[37:18] more deficiencies in a single

[37:20] school. One was even closed by

[37:21] licensing. You'll recognize the

[37:23] name, as was mentioned earlier,

[37:25] as the much hyped partner TCC

[37:27] is using to launch its new

[37:31] childcare centers next year on

[37:33] the south and northwest

[37:35] campuses. The record is

[37:37] atrocious in comparison to our

[37:39] own children's center. Yet now,

[37:41] one incident with one teacher

[37:42] who was already removed is

[37:43] seemingly the reason Chancellor

[37:45] Elva Leblanc has decided to

[37:47] close this amazing school

[37:48] lightly in favor

[37:49] of our new strategic partner

[37:50] with a prolific deficiency

[37:51] record. As this situation with

[37:53] the children's center unfolded,

[37:54] we tried to talk to the

[37:55] chancellor. We were refused.

[37:56] Instead, we got a call back

[37:58] from general counsel. There's

[37:59] at least one other family this

[38:01] has happened to. What kind of

[38:03] coward will ignore a

[38:05] constituency and immediately

[38:07] call for a lawyer? That's a

[38:08] clear acknowledgement of

[38:09] wrongdoing, and I hope you're

[38:11] ashamed to be affiliated

[38:12] with someone like this, as I

[38:14] am. TCC is better than that,

[38:16] and was better than that. Our

[38:18] community coming together

[38:19] in front of you here now

[38:21] to support our children's

[38:22] center of proof of how good it

[38:24] has become and how good it can

[38:26] still be. We spent the last two

[38:27] days standing on TCC campuses,

[38:29] spreading awareness and talking

[38:30] with as many students, staff,

[38:32] and faculty as we could. It was

[38:33] extremely concerning

[38:34] to hear several people speak

[38:36] to the chancellor's reputation

[38:38] for hasty knee jerk reactions

[38:39] and a tendency to make

[38:41] important decisions alone

[38:42] without consulting the board,

[38:43] community, or other leaders.

[38:45] Yes, this came from her own

[38:47] staff and faculty. The

[38:48] figurehead

[38:49] of TCC was already distrusted

[38:50] by at least some

[38:52] of her own employees due

[38:54] to her own actions prior to

[38:55] this incident. You should also

[38:57] know it appears that general

[38:58] counsel has been making

[39:00] material misrepresentations

[39:01] regarding both the

[39:02] circumstances of the situation

[39:04] and the investigation process.

[39:06] Per DFPS investigator Cody

[39:07] Minor, we've been speaking

[39:08] with a number

[39:09] of community leaders, and

[39:11] among them, the office of

[39:12] Senator Tan Parker has been

[39:13] looking into this and general

[39:14] counsel assured him that the

[39:16] incident was egregious. Using

[39:17] that word repeatedly, he said

[39:19] the same thing

[39:20] to us. I'm going to give you

[39:22] all the actual incident report.

[39:24] Sorry for the mic from, as well

[39:28] as my notes and corrections

[39:30] from reviewing the videos with

[39:32] TCC. Detective Clark, I wish I

[39:35] could play the videos for you

[39:37] right now as well. This is my

[39:38] son, and I can tell you right

[39:40] now that to call it egregious

[39:42] is a serious exaggeration. I

[39:46] also want to remind you that

[39:47] there is not now, and never has

[39:49] been active, pending, or even

[39:50] contemplated litigation

[39:52] relating to that incident that

[39:53] was communicated explicitly

[39:55] to TCC on October 7. And the

[39:58] TCC police also said they found

[40:00] nothing of concern they would

[40:02] act on. That is something that

[40:06] was published on October 9 in

[40:08] the media. General counsel has

[40:11] also stressed the gravity of

[40:12] the police and state

[40:13] involvement

[40:14] in the investigation.

[40:15] But that is basic due diligence

[40:16] for any report which we self

[40:18] reported in good faith. Save

[40:21] our school. Remove the ones who

[40:24] will act as they see fit,

[40:26] without regard for the truth.

[40:28] These are our children, our

[40:30] future, and your future.

[40:33] Without them, TCC would have

[40:35] and deserve no future. Save

[40:37] them to save us all. Thank you.

[40:41] >> Thank you. Okay. Mister

[40:50] Gates. Is that it? Okay. Thank

[40:53] you. All right, we are going

[40:54] to move to item eight b, the

[40:58] chancellor's report, and then

[40:59] we will move into the rest of

[41:01] the agenda.

[41:04] >> Thank you. Trustee Ayala. I

[41:07] want to start by stating that

[41:11] the nursing program recently

[41:15] received notice that they

[41:18] earned reaffirmation of our

[41:20] accreditation certification

[41:23] from the accreditation

[41:25] Commission for Education in

[41:27] nursing. This solidifies our

[41:30] position as a leader

[41:31] in nursing education for the

[41:34] next decade, ensuring that our

[41:36] graduates are well prepared

[41:38] to meet the challenges of the

[41:40] healthcare field.

[41:42] Congratulations go to Doctor

[41:44] Mararos. The faculty and staff

[41:46] in nursing who work

[41:48] to earn accreditation also want

[41:51] to point

[41:52] out that the US Department of

[41:54] Education has recognized the

[41:57] collegiate school Grapevine,

[41:59] Colleyville, that's on the

[42:01] northeast campus as a national

[42:04] blue ribbon school. So,

[42:06] congratulations. Go doctor. To

[42:09] the northeast campus. Doctor

[42:11] Clayton will be representing

[42:13] the college when the award is

[42:15] presented on October 29. So

[42:19] congratulations, Jan. I also

[42:22] want to state that our

[42:24] strategic focus is

[42:26] for the college to prepare the

[42:28] future workforce and serve as a

[42:30] key player

[42:33] in the economic development

[42:35] of the county. This aligns with

[42:38] our mission, vision and

[42:41] strategic plan, trailblazing

[42:44] together 2030 to boldly lead

[42:47] the college as we bring greater

[42:49] focus and direction to the

[42:54] internal and external college

[42:57] community. We need

[43:00] to support people to adapt

[43:02] to change. We all agree that

[43:05] for Tarrant County College to

[43:07] remain relevant, we must be

[43:11] able

[43:12] to pivot quickly and adjust to

[43:13] external demands. Change

[43:19] management includes policy

[43:21] review and updates. You will be

[43:23] reviewing policy later in the

[43:25] meeting today. Structures which

[43:29] set boundaries and expectations

[43:32] to support adapting

[43:34] to the change brought

[43:36] by policy and communication

[43:38] at all levels of the internal

[43:41] and external communities, and I

[43:44] will share a few examples. My

[43:47] first example is the faculty

[43:50] contracts. The faculty

[43:53] contracts were changed

[43:55] in order

[43:57] to set clear expectations as

[43:59] to the work that faculty need

[44:02] to get done, the number of days

[44:04] they would work, and faculty

[44:07] contract fairness

[44:10] across the college. Along with

[44:14] the contracts, faculty received

[44:17] board policies that impact

[44:18] them. The new contract

[44:21] structure aligns with our board

[44:23] policies, ensuring we are

[44:25] consistent in our approach to

[44:27] faculty employment terms and

[44:30] conditions. We understood

[44:32] faculty would have questions,

[44:36] which is why we dedicated a

[44:38] great deal of effort in

[44:41] preparing communication

[44:44] customized by specific impact

[44:46] of the change on the modality

[44:48] or the program. We also took

[44:50] the time to meet

[44:51] with faculty members. For

[44:54] example, campus leadership

[44:57] invited faculty

[44:59] to multiple information

[45:01] meetings with both group and

[45:04] individual meetings. These were

[45:06] over and beyond the written

[45:08] communication and the

[45:12] opportunities given

[45:14] by human resources to ask

[45:17] questions. Another example is

[45:18] Senate Bill 17. The general

[45:20] counsel's office continues

[45:28] to play a critical role in

[45:31] guiding, monitoring, and

[45:34] enforcing Senate Bill 17

[45:35] statute. I am personally

[45:37] meeting with external partners

[45:38] who are also impacted by Senate

[45:39] Bill 17. These meetings and

[45:41] other connections are

[45:42] especially critical as we all

[45:46] continue to gain more clarity

[45:48] on how to fully implement

[45:50] Senate Bill 17. At the same

[45:52] time we are updating

[45:56] parameters, we are reviewing

[45:58] purchasing contracts, updating

[46:01] scholarship, administration,

[46:03] providing training sessions,

[46:05] overseeing events, and

[46:07] addressing complaints related

[46:09] to Senate Bill 17. These

[46:12] comprehensive efforts ensure

[46:15] that the statute's requirements

[46:18] are fully integrated and upheld

[46:20] within the operations of

[46:23] Tarrant County College. And

[46:25] finally, I want to end

[46:27] with a conversation

[46:30] about the children's center on

[46:32] Northeast campus. The Tarrant

[46:35] County College Children's

[46:37] Center Laboratory School is a

[46:40] teaching, learning, and

[46:43] training site for future early

[46:47] childhood professionals

[46:51] enrolled in TCC's child

[46:54] development program. To be

[46:55] clear, TCC created and

[46:57] developed the children's center

[47:00] specifically to educate and

[47:02] train early childhood

[47:05] professionals. The center was

[47:08] not designed to be, nor has it

[47:11] been, operating as a typical

[47:14] childcare center. TCC demands

[47:19] that all

[47:21] of our operations align

[47:24] with the standards of respect,

[47:27] care, and professionalism. The

[47:30] information brought

[47:33] to our attention on October 4

[47:35] identified that some children

[47:38] center operations do not align

[47:41] with these standards. We were

[47:44] deeply concerned and addressed

[47:47] it by closing the center on

[47:50] October 11. We have apologized

[47:54] multiple times, communicated

[47:57] with parents in person,

[48:01] by telephone, and in writing

[48:04] multiple times. Yes, the center

[48:08] is closed. We intend

[48:14] to re envision our approach to

[48:16] early education, evaluate the

[48:19] purpose of a laboratory school

[48:21] and restructure our

[48:24] preparations for early

[48:26] childhood professionals. To

[48:28] meet the job demand, we are

[48:30] creating an advisory group who

[48:33] will help inform our efforts.

[48:36] Our community partners have

[48:38] already reached out to us

[48:41] in support of finding

[48:44] solutions. I appreciate that

[48:47] the board cares deeply about

[48:49] these issues. As thought

[48:52] partners, we will find

[48:55] solutions that will allow us to

[48:57] reach our vision, which is, and

[49:01] I quote, Tarrant County College

[49:03] aspires to be the leader for

[49:07] academic excellence, student

[49:10] success, and economic impact.

[49:14] We all care deeply

[49:17] about the community, about our

[49:23] students, and all that's

[49:26] involved. We go. We always take

[49:30] extra steps to ensure that

[49:33] everyone feels welcomed and

[49:36] that everyone is safe and

[49:39] secure. So thank you.

[49:44] >> Thank you, Doctor Leblanc.

[49:46] Okay, we will move on to item

[49:48] four, which is the board

[49:50] business. Items and

[49:52] announcements

[49:54] for a, B, and C are the

[49:55] approval of September 19

[49:57] special meeting minutes,

[49:59] approval of September 19 work

[50:01] session minutes, and approval

[50:03] of September 26, monthly board

[50:05] meeting minutes. Does anyone

[50:07] have any questions? Otherwise,

[50:08] we'll entertain a motion.

[50:12] >> I move approval.

[50:14] >> Okay, mister Barr.2nd

[50:16] by Miss Deakyne. All in favor,

[50:21] say aye? Any opposed? Okay,

[50:22] that motion carries. We will

[50:24] move on to item 4d. Any trustee

[50:25] activities? We will start out

[50:28] with Miss Wood to talk about

[50:34] community health Fair, please.

[50:35] And the campus police annual

[50:37] picnic.

[50:39] >> Good evening, everyone. So

[50:44] the picture you see

[50:47] on the board right now was at

[50:50] Northeast campus two weeks ago.

[50:51] I was there

[50:52] for another reason,

[50:53] but I noticed there were a lot

[50:54] of cars in the parking lot, and

[50:56] I saw Doctor Ford walking

[50:57] across, so I grabbed her and

[50:59] asked her what was going on,

[51:01] and she informed me that there

[51:02] was a health fair by the

[51:04] Hispanic Wellness coalition

[51:06] at the college. And so we

[51:09] walked through the health fair

[51:12] together, and we came to the

[51:14] respiratory care program that

[51:16] we have here at TCC. And that

[51:18] is theresa Griego, instructor

[51:20] of the respiratory therapist

[51:23] respiratory therapy here at

[51:26] this campus. And if you notice

[51:28] there, there is a pink lung and

[51:30] a black lung. And I asked her,

[51:33] first of all, if they were

[51:35] real, and she said, yes, they

[51:37] were. And then they proceeded

[51:39] to show me how they worked, and

[51:40] they pumped them up

[51:42] like they would if they were in

[51:43] a body. And the black is the

[51:45] smoker's lung, and the pink is

[51:47] a healthy lung. And I'm telling

[51:50] you that visual will always

[51:51] stay in my mind. And yes. And

[51:55] so I asked her a little bit

[51:57] about the program because I'm

[52:00] very interested in respiratory

[52:04] therapy. And she told me it was

[52:07] a 20 month program to graduate.

[52:08] Right now they have 28 students

[52:10] that will graduate in May,

[52:12] but they have room

[52:13] for 30. And the pay coming out

[52:15] of this program starts at

[52:16] $70,000, which I thought was

[52:18] amazing. And it was just a

[52:21] really interesting opportunity.

[52:24] And I am just so excited. I got

[52:26] to meet some students and

[52:28] instructors and I just felt

[52:30] like it was a great health fair

[52:32] altogether. A big thank you

[52:34] to Doctor Ford for walking me

[52:36] around. And then the next event

[52:39] was the annual police picnic.

[52:42] And you can see I'm with

[52:43] Officer Benson and Officer

[52:46] Dubose. We were outside. I

[52:49] didn't get very many pictures.

[52:51] I don't know if I got any

[52:54] pictures outside. But I wanted

[52:57] to say thank you

[52:58] to Officer Holland for cooking

[52:59] the amazing food. And that is

[53:01] Officer Fernandez and his sweet

[53:02] family. And the food was

[53:04] amazing. If you ever have a

[53:06] chance to go, the food is

[53:08] amazing, the people are great.

[53:10] And it was a really fun time.

[53:11] So thank you.

[53:14] >> Thank you for attending

[53:16] that. I know it was sorry that

[53:17] I wasn't able to make it, but I

[53:19] know the board was glad that

[53:20] you were able to attend that

[53:22] day. Mister Kyne, I think you

[53:24] have something to. You've been

[53:25] busy too.

[53:28] >> Well, I think we've all been

[53:29] busy. First, I'd like

[53:31] to speak a little bit about

[53:33] attending the October 3

[53:36] Arlington ISD board of trustees

[53:39] meeting. I was there because

[53:42] the Arlington ISD Education

[53:46] foundation was recognized with

[53:48] the district's community

[53:50] Partner award of appreciation.

[53:52] And while I was there, I think

[53:53] there's another picture I was

[53:59] able to learn more about. No,

[54:01] not that picture. Keep going.

[54:03] That is not it. Anyway, there

[54:05] you go. I was on hand

[54:08] to learn more

[54:10] about the AISD student

[54:11] of the month, Liliana Boland

[54:13] from Arlington College and

[54:15] Career High School. And what is

[54:17] so impressive

[54:18] about this young woman

[54:20] above and beyond a really

[54:22] impressive list? Was that

[54:24] on that list of her many

[54:26] accomplishments was that she

[54:27] earned her associate degree

[54:29] from Tarrant County College

[54:31] before she even started her

[54:32] senior year. She is currently a

[54:38] senior and now she is taking

[54:40] dual credit courses. And she

[54:43] was just the living embodiment

[54:47] of how TCC and our ISD

[54:50] partnerships are truly

[54:52] transforming students lives.

[54:55] She is a beacon

[54:57] of what is really great about

[54:59] our public school students. And

[55:01] it really just emphasizes all

[55:03] of the opportunities that are

[55:04] being created through dual

[55:06] credit. So she's a walking

[55:08] billboard. I think I will

[55:10] employ her in all

[55:11] of my good news stories about

[55:14] TCC. See if she will let me. So

[55:16] that was a great event. Then on

[55:18] October 8, and I don't think

[55:21] there's a picture

[55:23] of this, I was also able

[55:24] to participate in the AISD

[55:26] stakeholder meeting where

[55:28] community members and elected

[55:29] officials collaborated

[55:31] on enhancing student outcomes

[55:32] in our schools again, which is

[55:34] to highlight that there are

[55:37] great partnerships

[55:38] across our district between TCC

[55:39] and the ISDs that are really

[55:41] leveraging change and outcomes,

[55:45] not just for students, but for

[55:46] their families, and really

[55:48] involved in work that's

[55:50] transforming families for an

[55:51] entire lifetime. The other

[55:54] thing I wanted to report on, I

[55:56] don't have a picture

[55:59] on this one, but just today I

[56:01] attended the Community College

[56:03] association of Texas Trustees

[56:06] board meeting where the key

[56:08] topics of our conversation

[56:09] included shared policy

[56:11] priorities for the upcoming

[56:14] legislative session. We also

[56:15] reviewed the focus forward

[56:17] strategic plan update, which

[56:21] outlines goals for the

[56:23] organization's future growth

[56:26] and impact. And additionally,

[56:28] we had an

[56:30] in depth conversation

[56:32] about roles and

[56:37] responsibilities of the CAHPS

[56:38] board members. Really

[56:39] with a focus

[56:41] on making sure that under the

[56:42] new organization, that we are

[56:43] doing our due diligence in

[56:45] making sure that the new

[56:46] geographic region structure is

[56:47] used

[56:48] to engage community colleges

[56:49] across those districts. So look

[56:51] for a summary of those

[56:52] priorities and strategic plan

[56:54] forthcoming

[56:55] in a communication shared by

[56:57] the CaP board soon. Thank you.

[57:00] >> And thank you for

[57:01] representing Interrack County

[57:02] College

[57:04] in this particular region on

[57:06] the CCATT board. So, thank you.

[57:07] Mister Barr.

[57:09] >> Yes, I had the privilege

[57:11] earlier this week of attending

[57:13] a panel discussion put on by

[57:15] the Metro report, which is a

[57:16] part

[57:18] of the business press here

[57:19] in Fort Worth. And the focus

[57:22] of that panel was on the state

[57:23] of higher education. And some

[57:26] of our partner organizations

[57:29] were there, including

[57:31] representatives from Texas

[57:32] Wesleyan University, Tarleton

[57:34] State University, the

[57:36] University of Texas at

[57:37] Arlington, and the Fort Worth

[57:39] Metropolitan Black Chamber of

[57:42] Commerce. And doctor Elva

[57:44] Leblanc was there. It was

[57:47] interesting discussion. It was

[57:49] really focused

[57:51] on the pipeline. It's

[57:53] about getting students

[57:55] through TCC and getting them

[57:57] through the colleges and the

[57:59] other partner organizations,

[58:00] the other colleges. What came

[58:03] out to me very strong was the

[58:06] collaboration that goes on

[58:08] between TCC and UTA, Tarleton,

[58:11] Texas Wesleyan, and the

[58:14] pathways to help students stay

[58:17] focused and get

[58:19] through TCC and easily move

[58:21] into being involved in these

[58:23] other institutions. I sort of

[58:25] think Doctor Leblanc's

[58:29] presentation there was very

[58:30] good. It came across pretty

[58:33] clearly that TCC is a

[58:35] foundation

[58:37] for so many students that go

[58:39] on to the other colleges and

[58:40] universities, and they really

[58:42] like to get our students. It's

[58:44] pretty clear. Thank you.

[58:46] >> Thank you. Thank you, mister

[58:47] Barr. And thank you

[58:49] for dressing and talking about

[58:51] the college. Wonderful. Miss.

[58:54] Doctor Morrison?No, Miss

[58:56] Hornsby? Okay, Miss Pritchett?

[58:57] Okay. All right, we'll go ahead

[58:59] and move on to the rest

[59:02] of the agenda. And for those

[59:03] of you that are new to our

[59:05] meetings or you're live

[59:06] streaming, we may go through

[59:08] these a little bit more quickly

[59:09] because we had a work session

[59:10] previously, and we were able

[59:11] to ask questions at that work

[59:12] session. So we'll start out

[59:13] with item five, which is

[59:15] consideration and approval of

[59:16] the consent agenda. There are

[59:20] no questions. We'll entertain a

[59:21] motion, and I apologize.

[59:25] >> Yes. Believe it or not, that

[59:27] this is day three, and this is

[59:29] the best it's been. Two days

[59:31] ago, I had zero voice. Some

[59:32] people were happy about that,

[59:33] that I couldn't speak

[59:35] to them, including my daughter.

[59:36] But apart

[59:38] from that, if I would like

[59:41] to move five a out

[59:43] of consent, please.

[59:44] >> For discussion. Five a

[59:46] to be moved out.

[59:50] Okay. Which is

[59:51] consideration, approved of the

[59:52] annual membership dues. Okay.

[59:54] We need a motion for that.

[59:55] Antonio, can we go ahead and

[59:58] move that? Okay. All right.

[1:00:03] >> I don't believe that moving

[1:00:04] something out of consent

[1:00:06] requires a vote. A motion and a

[1:00:08] vote. It's a request.

[1:00:12] >> I think

[1:00:13] Miss Pritchett is right. You

[1:00:15] don't need a. Yeah, she's

[1:00:16] right. You just need to. She's

[1:00:17] made the request for it

[1:00:18] to be removed out

[1:00:19] of the consent agenda.

[1:00:22] >> Just want to make sure. Okay,

[1:00:23] thank you very much. So item

[1:00:24] five a will be moved out of the

[1:00:25] agenda. So we will have

[1:00:26] consideration, approval

[1:00:28] of the consent agendas five b

[1:00:31] through five l, Yes?

[1:00:36] >> I'd also like

[1:00:37] to move five b out

[1:00:39] of consent, please.

[1:00:40] >> Five b as in boy?

[1:00:41] >> Yes, please.

[1:00:48] >> Okay, so we are asking

[1:00:49] for the consideration, approval

[1:00:51] of the consent agenda

[1:00:52] from five c to five l.

[1:00:56] >> I move Approval.

[1:00:58] >> Move Approval

[1:00:59] by Mister Barr, second

[1:01:01] by Mister Hornsby. All in favor

[1:01:02] say aye? Any opposed? Okay,

[1:01:05] that motion carries. So we'll

[1:01:09] look at five a, which is

[1:01:10] consideration and approval

[1:01:12] of the annual membership dues

[1:01:13] for the Texas association

[1:01:15] of Community Colleges of

[1:01:17] $103,100. Doctor Elva Leblanc.

[1:01:20] >> Yes. Thank you. So, Texas

[1:01:23] association of Community

[1:01:25] Colleges is a non governmental

[1:01:27] organization that serves the

[1:01:30] public community college

[1:01:32] districts

[1:01:34] in Texas. Their primary focus

[1:01:35] is to be advocates for the

[1:01:37] community colleges, and an

[1:01:40] example of how they function is

[1:01:46] the passing

[1:01:47] of House bill eight. All of the

[1:01:49] colleges supported House bill

[1:01:51] eight because TACC and the

[1:01:55] leadership they provided

[1:01:56] ensured that we were well

[1:01:59] educated. On House bill. I said

[1:02:03] five. House bill eight and all

[1:02:08] the changes that were made to

[1:02:11] our funding. This is the first

[1:02:13] time that all

[1:02:14] of the legislators,

[1:02:16] with the exception

[1:02:18] of maybe one, voted in favor of

[1:02:20] House bill eight. We attribute

[1:02:25] TACC to making that a success.

[1:02:28] They also have the Texas

[1:02:32] Success center, which. This is

[1:02:34] a group that raise quite a bit

[1:02:39] of money. So the fees that they

[1:02:41] charge the colleges are a

[1:02:44] fraction of what they need

[1:02:47] to operate. They bring

[1:02:50] in quite a few grants through

[1:02:53] Bill Melinda Gates and other

[1:02:55] foundations that support the

[1:02:59] Texas success center. All the

[1:03:01] colleges benefit from it. We

[1:03:03] have programs such as pathways,

[1:03:06] that all

[1:03:07] of the colleges have been able

[1:03:09] to participate in

[1:03:12] at almost no cost because

[1:03:15] of their entrepreneurial

[1:03:17] efforts in bringing in outside

[1:03:20] dollars. So it has served

[1:03:24] Tarrant County College well. It

[1:03:26] serves all the other colleges

[1:03:29] in Texas well, and it helps us

[1:03:31] speak with one voice. It also

[1:03:36] supports the ccatt. So it's big

[1:03:38] picture being able

[1:03:43] to have a voice in Austin all

[1:03:44] of the time. Thank you.

[1:03:47] >> Okay, so that's item five a.

[1:03:51] Do you have a. Sorry. Oh, did

[1:03:54] you have a question? Okay. Miss

[1:03:56] Pritchett, do you have a

[1:03:57] question?

[1:03:59] >> If the chancellor is

[1:04:01] finished? Yes. Thank you. The

[1:04:03] reason why I wanted

[1:04:04] to take this out

[1:04:05] of consent and

[1:04:07] to have some discussion

[1:04:08] about it is there are two

[1:04:09] things about this that concern

[1:04:11] me. One is, although they may

[1:04:13] be doing some excellent work,

[1:04:15] what I have objection to is

[1:04:17] that it is using public money

[1:04:20] for lobbying. In other words,

[1:04:23] that the public is now paying

[1:04:25] for lobbyists to go in front

[1:04:27] of legislators to speak on the

[1:04:29] behalf, whether it is something

[1:04:32] that is beneficial for the

[1:04:35] community. Community or not. I

[1:04:38] don't have any concern about

[1:04:40] lobbyists when it is. When

[1:04:42] they're paid for by private

[1:04:44] funds. I do have some concerns

[1:04:46] when it is paid for with public

[1:04:47] funds.

[1:04:49] >> So can I speak to that,

[1:04:51] please? There is an arm of TACC

[1:04:57] that supports the lobbying

[1:05:01] effort that is paid for

[1:05:03] by individuals, like

[1:05:05] by private dollars. All of the

[1:05:08] CEO's and anyone that wants

[1:05:11] to contribute contributes to

[1:05:13] that endeavor, so that no state

[1:05:17] dollars go to that. What

[1:05:20] they're doing is educating us,

[1:05:24] helping us stay connected to

[1:05:28] the Texas Higher Education

[1:05:31] Coordinating Board and other

[1:05:34] entities that support our

[1:05:37] community colleges. More

[1:05:39] importantly, when you look

[1:05:41] at the work of the Texas

[1:05:43] Success center, that was work

[1:05:46] that's been invaluable

[1:05:48] to our students in pathways and

[1:05:52] other information that helps

[1:05:58] the faculty, the instructional

[1:06:02] leaders, the counselors,

[1:06:05] etcetera, to better support our

[1:06:09] students. So I'm glad you

[1:06:11] brought up the lobbying part.

[1:06:14] The actual lobbying is paid

[1:06:18] for with private dollars and

[1:06:20] not state dollars.

[1:06:22] >> Okay. Thank you very much

[1:06:23] for clarifying that. The other

[1:06:24] item that I wanted to mention

[1:06:26] that is also very concerning is

[1:06:27] that when taking a look

[1:06:30] at the website for TACC and the

[1:06:31] various partners that the

[1:06:36] organization works with, that

[1:06:39] many of those organizations

[1:06:41] have practices and philosophies

[1:06:44] that are counter to SB 17. And

[1:06:47] my concern is that we're

[1:06:50] putting the chancellor in a

[1:06:52] position, she's our employee

[1:06:54] and we're putting her

[1:06:55] in a position where she's

[1:06:57] forced to receive training

[1:07:01] based on, again, items that are

[1:07:03] counter to SP 17, which is

[1:07:05] diversity, equity and

[1:07:06] inclusion. And just a few items

[1:07:08] that I pulled and this is just

[1:07:10] a very, very small sampling.

[1:07:12] One of the partners is called

[1:07:14] World Education that states

[1:07:16] equity and inclusion drive our

[1:07:18] work. Annie E. Casey foundation

[1:07:21] states Equity and Inclusion

[1:07:23] Action Guide embracing equity

[1:07:25] seven steps to advance and

[1:07:27] embed equity and inclusion

[1:07:28] within your organization. The

[1:07:30] Trellis foundation has their

[1:07:32] equity statement along

[1:07:34] with the vice president of

[1:07:35] diversity, equity and student

[1:07:38] success and the Texas Success

[1:07:39] center partners with an

[1:07:41] organization called Achieving

[1:07:43] the Dream. And it states from

[1:07:45] their website, our expert

[1:07:47] coaches partner with community

[1:07:48] colleges throughout the country

[1:07:50] to prioritize student success

[1:07:51] by centering equity on their

[1:07:53] campuses and also advancing

[1:07:55] equity in pursuit of better

[1:07:56] student outcomes. And my

[1:07:58] concern, chancellor, with this

[1:08:01] is again, the environment and

[1:08:03] putting you in a situation

[1:08:05] where the training and the

[1:08:07] camaraderie that you would

[1:08:09] receive really puts you

[1:08:10] in a position that's counter

[1:08:12] and at odds with state law.

[1:08:13] Senate Bill 17 those are my

[1:08:15] concerns.

[1:08:24] >> Any other questions? Do you

[1:08:28] have a question as well? Okay.

[1:08:30] All right. Is there anything

[1:08:35] that, do you have to go to

[1:08:37] those trainings or are those

[1:08:39] just ones that you select to go

[1:08:40] to? I'm just curious.

[1:08:42] >> That's a great question.

[1:08:44] First of all, those are all the

[1:08:49] entities that were mentioned

[1:08:52] earlier are funding but don't

[1:08:55] direct what the training should

[1:08:58] be. They simply provide the

[1:09:04] funding and TACC is happy

[1:09:06] to help them out

[1:09:08] with that. All of the training

[1:09:11] is voluntary. I don't have

[1:09:13] to go

[1:09:15] to the meetings. You don't have

[1:09:16] to go to ccatt meetings.

[1:09:20] But it is important for us

[1:09:22] to stay informed. The

[1:09:25] complexity of Senate Bill 17,

[1:09:29] whether you are in agreement

[1:09:32] with it or not, is that

[1:09:35] everyone is still trying

[1:09:37] to figure

[1:09:39] out what it means and how

[1:09:41] to apply it. And in any law or

[1:09:45] anything you look at, you're

[1:09:48] going to have different

[1:09:51] interpretations. A good example

[1:09:53] is the us constitution where

[1:09:55] you have different

[1:09:57] interpretations

[1:09:59] of what that means and how to

[1:10:02] apply it. So again, TACC is

[1:10:07] very aware

[1:10:10] of Senate Bill 17 and is going

[1:10:14] through the same process that

[1:10:16] we are in trying to figure out

[1:10:18] what does it mean and how does

[1:10:20] it apply and is it in

[1:10:23] violation. And they are taking

[1:10:27] a very conservative stance on

[1:10:30] applying Senate Bill 17.

[1:10:34] They're not

[1:10:36] out there taking risks to see

[1:10:39] if they get caught or anything

[1:10:41] of that nature. So it's

[1:10:44] unfortunate because we've not

[1:10:47] been able to get. None

[1:10:48] of us has been able

[1:10:51] to get clarity from the

[1:10:53] legislators. We've not been

[1:10:55] able to get clarity from the

[1:10:57] Texas higher Education

[1:10:59] coordinating board. And the

[1:11:01] only clarity we've received is

[1:11:03] from TASB. And it's their

[1:11:05] interpretation. Without TASB,

[1:11:09] doesn't actually stay

[1:11:11] in Austin talking to

[1:11:13] legislators. They just review

[1:11:15] the law based on what they

[1:11:18] think it says. So that's kind

[1:11:21] of where we are. But I assure

[1:11:24] you that the main focus

[1:11:27] of TACC is to bring the

[1:11:30] community colleges together

[1:11:33] for us to speak with one voice,

[1:11:35] which is very difficult because

[1:11:38] Texas is huge, and we have. The

[1:11:42] majority of the community

[1:11:44] colleges are tiny. They could

[1:11:47] never afford

[1:11:50] to stay informed or any

[1:11:52] of that. And

[1:11:55] through TACC, they're able

[1:11:57] to do that.

[1:11:59] >> Thank you for some

[1:12:00] of that clarification

[1:12:02] in your role as a board member

[1:12:04] at TACC. What does that entail?

[1:12:07] And as it relates to some

[1:12:08] of the policies at TACC?

[1:12:11] >> So I currently am not. I'm

[1:12:15] on a committee. I'm

[1:12:17] on a subcategory role.

[1:12:21] But yes, our primary focus is

[1:12:25] to select the CEO and to review

[1:12:30] policy as it addresses the

[1:12:33] organization.

[1:12:36] >> Okay, just a point

[1:12:38] of clarification. On their

[1:12:41] website, it states that you are

[1:12:42] on the board

[1:12:43] of directors as a member

[1:12:44] at large.

[1:12:46] >> Member at large. And I'm

[1:12:47] also on the committee

[1:12:53] for the fee structure.

[1:12:57] But most of what we talk about,

[1:12:59] really and truly, is how are we

[1:13:02] going to implement House bill

[1:13:05] eight? How are we going to

[1:13:08] ensure student success and meet

[1:13:11] the metrics that are now

[1:13:13] expected of us from the state?

[1:13:17] >> Okay, just one other point

[1:13:18] for clarification. So this rose

[1:13:20] to our level because it now

[1:13:22] exceeds the $100,000?

[1:13:24] >> That's correct.

[1:13:25] >> Do you know when years

[1:13:27] passed, what the fees were, the

[1:13:28] annual fees?

[1:13:30] >> The fees were well

[1:13:32] below 100,000. Some

[1:13:38] of the fee increases are due

[1:13:40] to some

[1:13:43] of the colleges stepping down

[1:13:45] and not supporting. And so that

[1:13:47] means that others have to step

[1:13:49] up and support the

[1:13:51] organization.

[1:13:53] >> Thank you very much. Thank

[1:13:54] you. Okay, we've had

[1:13:56] discussion. I'm ready

[1:13:58] to entertain a motion on five.

[1:13:59] A consideration. Approval

[1:14:01] of the annual membership dues

[1:14:02] for the Texas association

[1:14:03] of Community Colleges

[1:14:05] of $103,100.

[1:14:07] >> Move to approve.

[1:14:08] >> Okay, that's Mister Hornsby.

[1:14:10] >> 2nd.

[1:14:11] >> 2nd by Mister Barr. All in

[1:14:12] favor say aye. Any opposed?

[1:14:14] Okay.

[1:14:16] >> President Ayala, for the

[1:14:18] record, I'd like

[1:14:19] to recuse myself

[1:14:20] from the vote. I am not a

[1:14:21] member

[1:14:23] of the Texas association of

[1:14:24] Community Colleges Board. I am

[1:14:26] a member of the board of the

[1:14:28] Community College association

[1:14:30] of Texas Trustees, which is not

[1:14:33] the same organization,

[1:14:34] but it was mentioned in the

[1:14:36] discussion as being supported.

[1:14:39] So I will recuse myself.

[1:14:41] >> You recuse

[1:14:42] yourself. And then we

[1:14:43] had a no vote as well.

[1:14:46] Thank you. From Miss

[1:14:48] Pritchett. Okay, motion

[1:14:52] carries. Thank you very much

[1:14:55] for the discussion. Let's move

[1:14:56] on to item five B, which is

[1:14:58] consideration and approval of

[1:14:59] professional consulting

[1:15:01] services from Barry Dunn,

[1:15:02] McNeil, and Parker, LLC. Barry

[1:15:04] Dunn in the amount of $202,500.

[1:15:08] Mister Krueger.

[1:15:21] >> Good evening. I

[1:15:22] am Todd Kruger, Chief

[1:15:23] Information officer. It is

[1:15:28] recommended that the board

[1:15:29] authorize the chancellor or the

[1:15:30] chancellor's designee

[1:15:31] to approve the engagement of

[1:15:33] Barry Dunn, McNeil, and Parker,

[1:15:34] LLC

[1:15:35] to provide professional

[1:15:36] services to establish a data

[1:15:37] governance program

[1:15:39] in the amount of $202,500.

[1:15:43] Texas State Bill 475 requires

[1:15:46] the college to designate a data

[1:15:47] management officer and to

[1:15:49] establish a data governance

[1:15:50] program to identify the

[1:15:52] college's data assets, exercise

[1:15:53] authority and management over

[1:15:55] the college's data assets, and

[1:15:57] establish related processes and

[1:15:58] procedures to oversee the

[1:16:00] college's data assets.

[1:16:01] Institutions of higher

[1:16:03] education must conduct data

[1:16:04] assessments and submit their

[1:16:05] findings

[1:16:06] to the Texas Department of

[1:16:07] Information resources every two

[1:16:10] years. Data governance is the

[1:16:11] management of data

[1:16:12] through policies and standards

[1:16:13] to ensure the quality,

[1:16:15] integrity, security, and

[1:16:16] usability of the institution's

[1:16:17] data. Data governance leads to

[1:16:19] improved data quality, better

[1:16:20] data analytics and decision

[1:16:22] making, and increased access

[1:16:24] to and use of the institution's

[1:16:25] data. Barry Dunn will provide

[1:16:27] subject matter expertise to

[1:16:29] help establish a robust data

[1:16:30] governance program.

[1:16:34] Deliverables include developing

[1:16:36] a comprehensive data governance

[1:16:37] master plan with long term and

[1:16:40] short term roadmaps, conducting

[1:16:41] a current state analysis of

[1:16:43] data governance and data

[1:16:45] management, defining roles,

[1:16:47] responsibilities, and

[1:16:48] accountability structures

[1:16:49] establishing data quality

[1:16:50] standards and metrics ensuring

[1:16:51] compliance with state Bill 475,

[1:16:53] including completing the

[1:16:54] college's first aid assessment

[1:16:55] for DIR and delivering a

[1:16:57] training package and developing

[1:16:59] a communication plan. And Barry

[1:17:01] Dunn was the lowest bidder and

[1:17:02] the highest ranked bidder.

[1:17:05] >> Okay, thank you very much,

[1:17:06] Mister Krueger. Any questions

[1:17:07] on that?

[1:17:08] >> I do have a couple of

[1:17:10] questions. Thank you. So this

[1:17:12] bill was initially passed in

[1:17:13] 2021, correct?

[1:17:16] >> I believe that's correct.

[1:17:19] >> So what I'm wondering

[1:17:20] about is why this is coming

[1:17:22] to us now. Has this been done

[1:17:24] in the past, or is this our

[1:17:26] first time that we've engaged

[1:17:27] in this?

[1:17:28] >> This is for the first time,

[1:17:29] correct.

[1:17:31] >> Okay. If it passed in June

[1:17:32] of 2021, why is it coming to us

[1:17:34] now?

[1:17:36] >> That is a great question. I

[1:17:38] do not have the answer to that.

[1:17:41] I was not here then, so I

[1:17:45] really cannot answer that

[1:17:46] question.

[1:17:47] >> Okay, fair enough. All

[1:17:52] right. Now, I read through the

[1:17:56] bill, and if you'll correct me

[1:17:58] on this, what I read is that

[1:18:00] the bill provides a framework

[1:18:02] for multiple entities to

[1:18:04] participate. I did not see

[1:18:07] anything in the bill that said

[1:18:09] that it requires TCC

[1:18:10] to be a part of the framework.

[1:18:14] >> So my understanding is that

[1:18:15] we need to develop a data

[1:18:16] governance structure, and we

[1:18:19] felt that it best

[1:18:21] to get a consultant

[1:18:22] to help us do that

[1:18:23] in the most effective way.

[1:18:24] With us embarking on the ERP

[1:18:26] initiative, data governance is

[1:18:27] a critical component of that.

[1:18:29] As you know, data definitions,

[1:18:31] access to data is critical. So

[1:18:33] getting expertise to ensure we

[1:18:35] do that whole process

[1:18:36] correctly, we felt was very,

[1:18:39] very important.

[1:18:42] >> This is a

[1:18:43] decision that's being made not

[1:18:44] as a requirement of the bill.

[1:18:46] Correct?

[1:18:47] >> My understanding is,

[1:18:49] based on how I've read it, that

[1:18:51] it's a requirement that we do

[1:18:53] a. That we do these things. Is

[1:18:54] it requirement that we have a

[1:18:56] consultant help us? That's not

[1:18:57] a requirement, but it's a

[1:18:58] requirement that we establish

[1:19:00] these things and we want to

[1:19:01] make sure we do them the best

[1:19:02] we can, which is why we're

[1:19:03] coming to you with this

[1:19:04] recommendation.

[1:19:05] >> Sure. And I can

[1:19:06] understand the validity

[1:19:07] of having a consultant as a

[1:19:10] part of this. So request is for

[1:19:12] 202,000 and the $202,500.

[1:19:17] Correct. What is the expected

[1:19:23] cost if after the $200 to $500,

[1:19:26] what is the expected cost

[1:19:28] to the taxpayer were this

[1:19:33] to be implemented based

[1:19:34] on those findings

[1:19:35] from the consultant?

[1:19:40] >> At present, I'm not aware

[1:19:41] of any additional costs beyond

[1:19:43] our current operating costs

[1:19:44] that we have. So there will be

[1:19:46] no additional, to my knowledge,

[1:19:47] consulting costs or other

[1:19:48] costs. We do have to implement

[1:19:50] the tools, et cetera. So there

[1:19:51] may be things we have

[1:19:53] to implement, but we need to

[1:19:54] implement data governance.

[1:19:55] There are some best practices

[1:19:57] with an ERP and every other

[1:19:58] piece of data that we do which

[1:20:01] are just associated with that.

[1:20:02] So as far as extra expenses

[1:20:04] with this, I don't know that I

[1:20:06] could equate any two,

[1:20:08] but will there be expenses to

[1:20:09] make sure we handle data

[1:20:11] properly? Possibly, as we go

[1:20:12] through this,

[1:20:13] but handling data is, in my

[1:20:14] opinion, a critical component

[1:20:16] of campus operations, and

[1:20:17] making sure we get that right

[1:20:19] is often overlooked. And so I'm

[1:20:21] very pleased to bring this to

[1:20:23] the board because I do believe

[1:20:25] that the ERP alone, without

[1:20:27] handling data. Right. We're

[1:20:29] really missing an opportunity.

[1:20:34] >>Was this budgeted for in this

[1:20:35] year's budget?

[1:20:36] >> We are covering

[1:20:37] it with this year's budget,

[1:20:38] correct.

[1:20:39] >> Okay. So it was a line item

[1:20:40] in the budget.

[1:20:43] >> We had funding for it.

[1:20:45] Correct. We had funding for

[1:20:47] it. We had to reallocate a

[1:20:48] little bit of funding, but it's

[1:20:50] been covered with that funding.

[1:20:51] >> Okay. I think that it

[1:20:53] would be important for us

[1:20:54] to know the reallocation of

[1:20:55] funds if this wasn't

[1:20:58] specifically budgeted.

[1:20:59] >> So we did have funding for

[1:21:00] this, but I think, if I recall

[1:21:02] correctly, that we did have

[1:21:03] to relocate a little bit

[1:21:05] of funds from something else.

[1:21:06] But again, my understanding.

[1:21:10] And again, I'm trying

[1:21:12] to recall, but I do believe we

[1:21:13] did have this budgeted for, but

[1:21:15] I think it cost a little bit

[1:21:16] more than we had planned.

[1:21:18] >> Is this part of the overall

[1:21:19] five year strategic it plan?

[1:21:22] >> Yeah, this is part of the

[1:21:23] technology plan. It's not

[1:21:25] technically a five year

[1:21:26] technology plan, it's a two

[1:21:27] year technology plan.

[1:21:28] But it is part of the

[1:21:29] technology plan. Correct.

[1:21:36] >>Is this time sensitive?

[1:21:37] >> It's time sensitive in that,

[1:21:39] we have an ERP initiative

[1:21:41] which we all understand is

[1:21:43] critical. And using data is

[1:21:45] critical. And complying

[1:21:46] with these requirements through

[1:21:47] these assessments every two

[1:21:48] years is critical. So from that

[1:21:49] standpoint, I would say it is

[1:21:51] time sensitive. Thank you.

[1:21:53] >> Thank you for your questions.

[1:21:55] Any other questions? If not,

[1:21:57] we'll entertain a motion for

[1:21:59] five b. Consideration. Approval

[1:22:00] of professional consulting

[1:22:01] services from Barry Dunn

[1:22:03] in the amount of $202,500.

[1:22:08] Okay, Doctor Morrison. 2nd

[1:22:10] for Mister Hornsby. All in

[1:22:11] favor, say aye? Any opposed?

[1:22:13] >> I opposed simply

[1:22:16] because I don't feel

[1:22:17] like we have enough information

[1:22:18] to make the accurate decision.

[1:22:21] >>Thank you. No vote from Miss

[1:22:24] Pritchett. Did you get that,

[1:22:25] Mister Gates? Okay, thank you.

[1:22:28] All right, we'll move on to six

[1:22:31] a, which is consideration and

[1:22:32] approval of individual action

[1:22:34] items. Consideration. Approval

[1:22:35] of the purchase

[1:22:37] of Cisco desk phones

[1:22:38] from General Data Tech LP

[1:22:39] in the amount of $698,280.

[1:22:43] Mister Krueger.

[1:22:45] >> It is

[1:22:46] recommended that the board

[1:22:47] authorize the chancellor or the

[1:22:48] chancellor's designee

[1:22:49] to approve the purchase

[1:22:50] of Cisco desk phones

[1:22:51] from General Data Tech LPDD

[1:22:52] in the amount

[1:22:54] of $698,280. It plans

[1:22:58] to replace 4000 phones

[1:23:00] across the district by December

[1:23:01] 2026, which is contingent on

[1:23:03] hardware availability. The

[1:23:05] total requested cost includes

[1:23:07] 10% contingency funding

[1:23:08] to cover any increases in

[1:23:10] hardware costs. General data,

[1:23:12] take LP was the lowest bidder.

[1:23:16] >>Okay, thank you for that. Any

[1:23:18] questions? Otherwise, we'll

[1:23:19] entertain a motion.

[1:23:24] >> I move approval.

[1:23:26] >>Doctor Morrison moved approval

[1:23:28] and Miss Wood second. All in

[1:23:29] favor, say aye. Aye. Any

[1:23:31] opposed? Okay, that motion

[1:23:32] carries.

[1:23:34] >> President Ayala?

[1:23:35] I'm abstaining because I have a

[1:23:37] professional relationship with

[1:23:38] this organization.

[1:23:41] >> We have one

[1:23:42] abstention, Mister Gates. Did

[1:23:43] you get that? Okay. Thank you,

[1:23:46] Miss Pritchett. Okay. All

[1:23:49] right. Item six b is

[1:23:50] consideration and approval.

[1:23:51] Sorry. Consideration and

[1:23:52] approval of master agreement

[1:23:53] with facility programming and

[1:23:54] consulting for space

[1:23:55] utilization consulting services

[1:23:57] through August 31, 2026. And

[1:23:58] that's Doctor Pamela Anglin.

[1:24:05] >> Thank you. President Ayala,

[1:24:06] Pam Anglin, chief financial

[1:24:08] officer. President Ayala,

[1:24:10] Chancellor LeBlanc and board

[1:24:12] members. We're asking

[1:24:14] for your approval tonight

[1:24:17] on a master agreement with

[1:24:18] facility programming and

[1:24:20] consulting. And this is for

[1:24:22] space utilization services.

[1:24:25] We're asking that they be put

[1:24:27] in our IDIQ pool for us

[1:24:30] to be able to call when we need

[1:24:33] space utilization services. As

[1:24:35] we look at renovation of space

[1:24:38] at relocating programs, this

[1:24:40] firm would help us in making

[1:24:43] sure we have adequate space to

[1:24:45] meet the equipment needs and

[1:24:46] the personnel needs in an area.

[1:24:52] The IDIQ master agreement for

[1:24:54] on call services provides us

[1:24:56] the best value

[1:24:58] for the district by pre

[1:25:00] qualifying a single firm where

[1:25:02] project assignments are

[1:25:04] assigned based on a need and

[1:25:07] schedule basis. So they have

[1:25:09] provided us hourly rates that

[1:25:11] they would charge us when we

[1:25:13] call them and need their

[1:25:14] services. We're asking

[1:25:17] for a maximum spend authority

[1:25:20] of $300,000. That's in

[1:25:22] aggregate. And any one service

[1:25:26] would that exceeded $100,000

[1:25:29] would come back to the board

[1:25:32] for approval.

[1:25:35] >> Thank you, Doctor

[1:25:36] Anglin, any questions on that?

[1:25:38] We will entertain a motion.

[1:25:40] Doctor Morrison, is that Mister

[1:25:43] Hornsby? Okay. Second

[1:25:46] by Mister Hornsby. All in favor

[1:25:48] say aye. Any opposed? Okay.

[1:25:50] That motion carries item six c,

[1:25:53] which is consideration and

[1:25:55] approval of a ratification of a

[1:25:56] contract. Amendment number

[1:25:57] three

[1:25:58] with Weaver and Tidwell Lop to

[1:26:00] provide construction auditing

[1:26:01] services

[1:26:02] for the 2019 bond program

[1:26:04] for the FY 24 2nd renewal

[1:26:07] option in the amount

[1:26:09] of $50,031.

[1:26:11] >> Thank you. In 2021,

[1:26:13] the board authorized an annual

[1:26:15] contract

[1:26:17] for the construction auditing

[1:26:20] by Weaver Tidwell and the

[1:26:22] agreement that you approved of

[1:26:25] for fiscal year 2024 totaled

[1:26:28] $129,525. And that was for 785

[1:26:39] hours as Weaver Tidwell got

[1:26:42] into the audit. For last year,

[1:26:45] we had so many projects going

[1:26:47] on simultaneously that there

[1:26:49] were more payment applications

[1:26:51] coming in than had been planned

[1:26:52] on. And so they had

[1:26:54] to exceed that 785 hours

[1:26:57] in order to be able

[1:26:58] to audit all of the payment

[1:27:00] applications. And they look at

[1:27:02] every payment application that

[1:27:03] comes in and they tie back,

[1:27:06] ever charge in that to the

[1:27:08] actual invoice. So it is

[1:27:10] something that is labor

[1:27:12] intensive. And so tonight we're

[1:27:16] asking for your approval

[1:27:18] of those additional hours of

[1:27:20] work that total $50,031. And

[1:27:25] you're being asked to ratify

[1:27:27] the contract amendment number

[1:27:29] three with Weaver and Tidwell

[1:27:31] to provide construction

[1:27:32] auditing services

[1:27:34] for the 2019 bond program for

[1:27:36] the fiscal year 24 2nd renewal

[1:27:40] option in the amount of $50,031.

[1:27:46] >> Thank you, Doctor

[1:27:48] Anglin. There are no questions.

[1:27:49] We'll entertain a motion, Miss

[1:27:52] Pritchett. Second

[1:27:55] by Mister Hornsby. All in favor

[1:27:57] say aye. Aye. Any opposed?

[1:27:59] Okay. That motion carries. 6d

[1:28:03] is consideration. Approval

[1:28:04] of the purchase agreements

[1:28:06] for furniture and installation

[1:28:07] for Northwest Campus buildings

[1:28:08] Northwest Zero two and

[1:28:10] Northwest Zero three

[1:28:12] in support of the Northwest

[1:28:13] Campus redevelopment project

[1:28:15] with Blue Box 46,480 913 GL

[1:28:20] Semen and Company, $655,587.12.

[1:28:23] Intelligent Interiors, Inc.

[1:28:27] $875,183.49 WRG Texas,

[1:28:32] $1,080,336.81 and Wilson Bajas

[1:28:37] for $693,600.75. And we have

[1:28:44] some details here that you

[1:28:47] provided to us to give us 6d

[1:28:50] through c.

[1:28:52] >> Yes, 6d through six.

[1:28:54] Eight h is the material in your

[1:28:57] board packet there. As you will

[1:28:59] recall, during the work

[1:29:02] session, we had broken these

[1:29:03] out into five individual

[1:29:06] approval recommendations, and

[1:29:08] we've consolidated them

[1:29:10] into one

[1:29:12] for the Northwest campus and

[1:29:13] one

[1:29:15] for the southeast campus. And

[1:29:17] to just go back a little bit,

[1:29:20] these are projects that you

[1:29:22] approved the budgets on right

[1:29:25] after the initiation of the

[1:29:27] bond project, Northwest

[1:29:30] Construction. And tonight we're

[1:29:33] talking about buildings

[1:29:34] northwest zero two and

[1:29:36] northwest zero three. And you

[1:29:38] also approved

[1:29:40] at that same time a budget for

[1:29:42] the construction and renovation

[1:29:44] at the southeast campus. So

[1:29:47] these two next items were

[1:29:50] included in those budget. And

[1:29:54] tonight we're bringing back the

[1:29:56] recommendations

[1:29:57] for the furnishings for all of

[1:29:59] these construction projects. So

[1:30:02] first, on Northwest campus,

[1:30:04] we're talking about phase two,

[1:30:07] which is nwo two and nwo three.

[1:30:08] And we're looking

[1:30:11] at the furnishings for both

[1:30:13] of those buildings. And

[1:30:14] included

[1:30:18] in the bid package that we put

[1:30:20] out included 72 workstations,

[1:30:21] 26 classroom furnishings, art

[1:30:27] and music studios, furnishing

[1:30:29] those, which were five of those

[1:30:32] two different learning commons

[1:30:33] areas. And the total cost that

[1:30:36] came in, and this is the low

[1:30:38] bidders in each case, is

[1:30:40] 3,351,197 30. That's total bid

[1:30:45] items of 145

[1:30:48] in individual quantity items of

[1:30:51] 3360 items. We had seven

[1:30:59] bidders that came in

[1:31:01] for eleven in eleven different

[1:31:03] categories. And we are asking

[1:31:05] your approval to award bids to

[1:31:08] five different vendors tonight.

[1:31:11] This is a copy of the

[1:31:13] spreadsheet that shows you the

[1:31:15] magnitude

[1:31:16] of the bids that came in. And

[1:31:18] in each case, we've highlighted

[1:31:20] the low bidder for that type of

[1:31:24] furniture. And that comes back

[1:31:27] to the recommendation that

[1:31:29] we're making tonight that we

[1:31:31] award to blue box bids for

[1:31:33] tables and lounge chairs. And

[1:31:35] that totals $46,489.13

[1:31:40] to Gl semen company for marker

[1:31:43] boards and classroom chairs.

[1:31:45] 655,580 712 two intelligent

[1:31:50] interiors for sofas, poofs and

[1:31:53] miscellaneous tables and

[1:31:55] chairs, 875,183 49. And does

[1:32:00] anyone need to know what a poof

[1:32:05] is? It's a little ottoman. It's

[1:32:08] an ottoman type. And they're

[1:32:11] small and round. And here's a

[1:32:12] picture of some. And you can

[1:32:14] prop your feet on them. But

[1:32:16] what we see most, and there's

[1:32:18] some

[1:32:19] in our suite area, people sit

[1:32:21] on them. They make nice little

[1:32:24] seats, but that's the poofs.

[1:32:32] And then WRG Texas for

[1:32:34] workstations, classroom tables

[1:32:36] and storage items, 1,080,336

[1:32:39] 81. And

[1:32:42] to Wilson Bauhaus interiors for

[1:32:46] task chairs, library shelves

[1:32:48] and tables and miscellaneous

[1:32:51] tables, $693,600.75.

[1:32:58] >> Thank you

[1:33:00] for that, doctor Anglin. There

[1:33:01] are no further questions. We'll

[1:33:03] entertain a motion for item 6d.

[1:33:06] Doctor Morrison, do you

[1:33:09] want a second? Okay. Second

[1:33:10] by Miss Deakyne. All in favor

[1:33:12] say aye. Any opposed? Okay.

[1:33:15] That motion carries. Well, item

[1:33:18] six e, which is consideration,

[1:33:19] approval

[1:33:20] of purchase agreements

[1:33:22] for furniture and installation

[1:33:23] of Southeast campus buildings.

[1:33:25] Se zero three, se zero four and

[1:33:26] se zero five in support of the

[1:33:28] Southeast Campus redevelopment

[1:33:30] project with blue box of

[1:33:31] $615,681.12 Intelligent

[1:33:35] Interiors, Inc. For

[1:33:37] $1,091,885.22 Metroplex

[1:33:42] facility Services Loc

[1:33:47] for $29,779.88 and Wilson

[1:33:49] Baja's

[1:33:50] for $2,274,849.26 and WRG Texas

[1:33:55] for $2,508,497.29. And you have

[1:34:00] additional item there in front

[1:34:03] of you? Additional detail

[1:34:04] from six I to six m.

[1:34:09] >> Yes. Okay. On the

[1:34:10] southeast campus, we have the

[1:34:12] renovation of three buildings.

[1:34:13] And so these will be the new

[1:34:15] furnishings for all of these

[1:34:17] three buildings. Workstations.

[1:34:19] There were 257

[1:34:21] in the bid, covering

[1:34:24] furnishings for 55 classrooms

[1:34:26] and two different learning

[1:34:28] commons. The total cost

[1:34:30] of the low bidders that came in

[1:34:32] is 6,520,692. 77. That's 293

[1:34:38] bid items and total quantity

[1:34:41] of items of 5171 individual

[1:34:46] items. And I didn't mention

[1:34:48] earlier,

[1:34:49] but the funds are available

[1:34:51] in fund 90 for the furnishings.

[1:34:57] And then we had ten bidders in

[1:35:00] twelve different categories.

[1:35:02] And we did select five vendors

[1:35:04] again for this one. And you'll

[1:35:07] see the bidders and the

[1:35:09] different categories there, a

[1:35:12] copy of the spreadsheet that

[1:35:14] tallies all of the bids

[1:35:16] from all of the different

[1:35:19] vendors. And you'll see again

[1:35:21] the highlighted vendors or the

[1:35:23] low vendors in the categories

[1:35:26] there. And then

[1:35:29] in summary, five vendors

[1:35:30] to blue box for computer

[1:35:32] classroom tables and

[1:35:33] miscellaneous tables. 615,680.

[1:35:38] 112 intelligent interiors

[1:35:41] sofas, poofs and miscellaneous

[1:35:44] tables and chairs, 1,091,885.

[1:35:48] To metroplex facility services

[1:35:52] for collaborative tables,

[1:35:55] 29,779 88. To Wilson Bauhaus

[1:35:58] Interiors task chairs, marker

[1:36:01] boards, exterior furniture and

[1:36:04] miscellaneous tables and

[1:36:06] chairs, 2,000,274 849 26. And

[1:36:12] to WRG Texas for workstations,

[1:36:15] classroom tables and library

[1:36:17] furniture, 2,508,497 29.

[1:36:25] >> Thank you. Any questions on

[1:36:27] that?

[1:36:30] >> Yes, I do have a comment.

[1:36:31] Thank you for this

[1:36:33] presentation. This is now the

[1:36:35] third time that I have seen it,

[1:36:37] and I am very impressed

[1:36:40] with the attention to detail

[1:36:43] and the line item descriptions

[1:36:44] on every piece of furniture. I

[1:36:47] will also comment that back in

[1:36:49] July or August, I had a chance

[1:36:50] to walk

[1:36:52] through SEO one and seven down

[1:36:54] at the southeast campus with

[1:36:56] Doctor Bowen, and I think you

[1:36:59] had been

[1:37:00] on the ground just a couple

[1:37:03] of weeks. So I spoke a lot with

[1:37:04] the faculty and staff who were

[1:37:06] occupying the space, and there

[1:37:08] wasn't a single member of the

[1:37:10] staff or faculty who, when I

[1:37:12] asked questions

[1:37:15] about how are you going to use

[1:37:17] that? Or why is that there? Or

[1:37:19] how would you use this in this

[1:37:20] circumstance where they didn't

[1:37:22] have an answer? It was all very

[1:37:25] tightly connected

[1:37:27] between purpose and piece

[1:37:28] of furniture. To include the

[1:37:31] poofs. We saw the poofs

[1:37:33] in the. All of the student

[1:37:35] collaboration spaces. And so.

[1:37:37] So having had the opportunity

[1:37:39] to walk through the space and

[1:37:40] see how it has been executed

[1:37:42] in some of our earlier projects

[1:37:44] and then being able to see it

[1:37:46] in this amount of detail

[1:37:48] for the next phase of the

[1:37:50] projects, I had a much greater

[1:37:52] appreciation for the alignment

[1:37:55] between purpose and how this

[1:37:58] money is being spent. I would

[1:37:59] love for somebody to inventory

[1:38:01] my house this way and explain.

[1:38:03] No, you need a, B and c because

[1:38:05] they are directly aligned

[1:38:07] to x, Y and z. So thank you

[1:38:09] for all of that. Thank you.

[1:38:11] >> Thank you for mentioning

[1:38:13] that, trustee Deakyne. It's a

[1:38:15] lot of effort that went

[1:38:16] into that, so thank you

[1:38:17] for that as well. To that

[1:38:19] planning. Okay, six e. Do I

[1:38:21] have a motion or questions?

[1:38:26] So moved Miss Deakyne.

[1:38:29] Second by Miss Wood. All in

[1:38:30] favor, say aye. Any opposed?

[1:38:34] Okay, that motion carries.

[1:38:36] We'll move on to item six f,

[1:38:38] which is consideration,

[1:38:39] approval of ad local and ad

[1:38:41] exhibit. Educational role,

[1:38:43] mission, purpose and

[1:38:45] responsibility, student success

[1:38:46] policy. Doctor Pearson?

[1:38:47] >>Good evening. Shelley Pearson,

[1:38:49] Vice Chancellor and provost,

[1:38:52] President Ayala, Chancellor

[1:38:53] Leblanca and trustees. We are

[1:38:55] recommending adoption of policy

[1:38:57] Ad local, which is educational

[1:38:59] role, purpose and

[1:39:00] responsibility, and our student

[1:39:02] success policy. Following in

[1:39:06] the initial reviews, the

[1:39:07] revisions that we've included

[1:39:09] address the request

[1:39:11] for clarity on measurable

[1:39:12] outcomes. Also, it addresses

[1:39:16] the sections. We've adjusted

[1:39:19] the sections to be more

[1:39:21] specific. Connect the

[1:39:22] definition of student success

[1:39:24] to college goals, mission value

[1:39:26] and metrics. The first

[1:39:28] sections, under student

[1:39:30] success, we are outlining the

[1:39:32] general commitment along

[1:39:33] with a definition

[1:39:35] of achievement and expectation

[1:39:36] of evidence based decision

[1:39:37] making and strategic resource

[1:39:39] decisions. You can see that

[1:39:41] with completion of degrees,

[1:39:44] certificates and other

[1:39:45] credentials of values. The

[1:39:48] principals and measures section

[1:39:49] provides the framework,

[1:39:51] including the use of policies

[1:39:53] and procedures, strategic

[1:39:55] planning, organizational

[1:39:57] structure and assessment

[1:39:58] of targets and metrics. In the

[1:40:01] last paragraph, we established

[1:40:03] that we will measure student

[1:40:05] success using specific key

[1:40:07] performance indicators found in

[1:40:08] our new strategic plan. And

[1:40:10] finally, the policy sets

[1:40:11] expectations

[1:40:12] of regular reporting

[1:40:13] to the board of trustees. So

[1:40:15] with that, I'll entertain any

[1:40:16] questions.

[1:40:18] >> Questions?

[1:40:20] >>Not pertaining to that. I

[1:40:22] find the section. Oh, because

[1:40:24] there's. There has been some

[1:40:26] shuffling. Six f. Is it in the

[1:40:29] original?

[1:40:32] >> Okay, give me just a second.

[1:40:33] second. Six half. Yes. It's

[1:40:36] [CROSSTALK]

[1:43:05] >> Any questions or

[1:43:07] clarifications

[1:43:09] for Doctor Pearson? Are we

[1:43:12] ready to make a motion?

[1:43:18] Okay, that's from

[1:43:19] Mister Hornsby. We have a

[1:43:25] second from Doctor

[1:43:28] Morrison. All in?

[1:43:34] >> Yes, we just need

[1:43:35] to clarify that we're voting

[1:43:36] on approval of the ad. Local

[1:43:38] educational role, mission.

[1:43:43] >> Right and responsibility.

[1:43:44] Student success policy. Yes.

[1:43:45] Okay, so we have a motion

[1:43:47] for Mister Hornsby and a second

[1:43:49] from Doctor Morrison. All in

[1:43:53] favor say aye. Aye. Any

[1:43:55] opposed? Okay, that motion

[1:43:58] carries. Thank you for that.

[1:44:00] Item six g, which is

[1:44:01] consideration and approval of

[1:44:03] the BAA local board, legal

[1:44:05] status, power, duties and

[1:44:07] responsibilities. Give us a

[1:44:10] second here. I think it's 60

[1:44:12] in your. In your updates. Six o

[1:44:18] is in Oscar. Give us a second.

[1:44:30] Go ahead. I'm

[1:44:35] sorry, Antonio. President

[1:44:37] Aiella. Chancellor Leblanc.

[1:44:41] Board of trustees. As you know,

[1:44:42] we are subscribers

[1:44:43] of the Texas association of

[1:44:44] School Boards policy manual

[1:44:46] service. TASB provides model

[1:44:49] local policies, which this

[1:44:51] board adopts to a certain

[1:44:53] extent. The board has the

[1:44:54] ability to customize, make

[1:44:56] additions, and in some cases,

[1:44:58] craft whole new policy

[1:44:59] to reflect the needs of our

[1:45:01] institutions, so long as the

[1:45:03] modifications or additions are

[1:45:05] consistent

[1:45:07] with laws and TASB guidance.

[1:45:09] In September, we engaged TASB

[1:45:11] to perform a review of all

[1:45:13] of our policies in order to

[1:45:15] determine what policies, if

[1:45:17] any, deviate from the TASB

[1:45:20] model. The TASB model policies,

[1:45:23] and determine whether any

[1:45:25] of those policies need to be

[1:45:27] revised, modified, or

[1:45:33] eliminated.

[1:46:09] All right, perfect.

[1:46:11] Thank you. So, prior to the on

[1:46:14] site policy review, our TASB

[1:46:16] consultant performed a

[1:46:18] comprehensive review of each

[1:46:20] of our local policies with the

[1:46:22] TASB model policies and

[1:46:24] provided us with comments and

[1:46:26] historical modification and

[1:46:29] update information to help

[1:46:32] guide the review. The policy

[1:46:34] review session occurred on

[1:46:35] September 5 and 6th, and

[1:46:36] involved members of the policy

[1:46:39] review committee and the TASB

[1:46:41] policy consultant reviewing and

[1:46:43] discussing each policy. Doctor

[1:46:46] Morrison took the time

[1:46:47] to participate in a portion

[1:46:49] of the policy review session in

[1:46:51] which we discussed the BeE

[1:46:53] policies, which cover local

[1:46:55] governance, and we appreciate

[1:46:57] her input. As a result of the

[1:46:59] policy review session, we are

[1:47:01] here today, or this evening

[1:47:03] to provide recommendations for

[1:47:05] b, policy modifications or

[1:47:09] removal. Now, you received an

[1:47:12] informational memo

[1:47:14] from me which is listed

[1:47:16] on the agenda under the

[1:47:18] chancellor's report. Eight a

[1:47:21] informational memo policy

[1:47:23] review. I provided you the memo

[1:47:25] to hopefully make your review

[1:47:27] of the policies that we're not

[1:47:29] asking you to act upon tonight

[1:47:31] easier. However, the memo also

[1:47:33] includes a summary of the

[1:47:36] policies that you're being

[1:47:38] asked to modify or remove

[1:47:40] tonight. And it may be easier

[1:47:42] to follow along using the

[1:47:44] informational memo packet

[1:47:46] because it includes the redline

[1:47:49] version of the policies you

[1:47:51] will be considering tonight.

[1:47:56] >> Mister Allen, where is that?

[1:47:59] You said it's eight a.

[1:48:02] >> Eight a And that's

[1:48:03] in the informational memo

[1:48:05] in here? Yes, I think it's

[1:48:07] in that. In the packet of

[1:48:09] information. Yeah, it's got the

[1:48:11] blue. Yeah, I'm sorry, I

[1:48:13] should. Showing you. Yes. So

[1:48:15] you should have a packet, and

[1:48:17] it should have a blue page

[1:48:20] on the front. And it starts

[1:48:23] with six g. Six

[1:48:25] through m. Six g through M.

[1:48:28] >> Madam President?

[1:48:32] Yes. Without knowing the.

[1:48:34] What's the detriment if we

[1:48:37] defer this to a future time for

[1:48:40] more complete consideration and

[1:48:42] understanding?

[1:48:47] >> Okay. Is that Doctor

[1:48:49] Morrison was asking if we could

[1:48:52] have a little bit more time. Is

[1:48:53] there something that's urgent

[1:48:55] related to this, that we need

[1:48:56] to get this particular item

[1:48:58] approved tonight?

[1:49:03] >> So they're all individual

[1:49:04] action items. So six g through

[1:49:07] six m. So you're being asked

[1:49:10] to look at each individual item

[1:49:12] and determine whether or not

[1:49:14] you want to approve. So

[1:49:16] obviously, if you want

[1:49:17] to defer any particular item on

[1:49:19] the list, you certainly have

[1:49:21] that option.

[1:49:22] >> So my request or

[1:49:24] my motion is that we defer

[1:49:27] consideration of this to a

[1:49:30] future time that the board has

[1:49:32] a proper forum for reviewing

[1:49:35] and discussing them, not

[1:49:39] answering all these questions

[1:49:41] that are proposed about them,

[1:49:44] their relevancy, etcetera.

[1:49:47] >> So, if I can, Doctor

[1:49:49] Morrison, so the packet that

[1:49:51] you received includes, there

[1:49:54] are only seven policies that

[1:49:56] you're being asked to consider

[1:49:58] tonight, and they are specific

[1:50:01] policies with regard to

[1:50:03] policies that are either we're

[1:50:06] asking you

[1:50:08] to remove a policy or

[1:50:10] to adopt revisions

[1:50:12] to policies, but there are only

[1:50:14] seven. What you're referring

[1:50:16] to in that packet that I

[1:50:18] provided you, I provided you

[1:50:19] with a summary of all of the

[1:50:22] other policies that we're not

[1:50:25] making any recommendations that

[1:50:28] you. That you vote on those

[1:50:33] policies. We're only asking you

[1:50:36] to review those policies. And

[1:50:37] so what that packet includes is

[1:50:40] a copy of each one of those

[1:50:42] policies. And they're broken

[1:50:44] down into two groups

[1:50:45] of policies. One group of

[1:50:48] policies are policies that were

[1:50:50] adopted by the board that are

[1:50:52] not TASB policies, but they are

[1:50:54] policies that were adopted by

[1:50:56] this board. And we're just

[1:50:59] asking you to review those

[1:51:00] policies. And some of those

[1:51:02] policies are policies that were

[1:51:04] adopted years ago. There are

[1:51:06] some, like might be 1998 right

[1:51:07] there, some of those kind

[1:51:09] of policies, but that doesn't

[1:51:11] necessarily mean that those

[1:51:13] policies are outdated. Just as

[1:51:15] part of our process, we want

[1:51:18] the board to review those

[1:51:20] policies. And then there's a

[1:51:22] second group of policies that

[1:51:24] are actual TASB model policies

[1:51:26] that this board has adopted.

[1:51:28] And again, we're simply asking

[1:51:30] the board to review those

[1:51:32] policies, and that's why it's

[1:51:34] in the informational memo. But

[1:51:36] there are seven policies that

[1:51:38] we're going to ask you

[1:51:41] to consider tonight.

[1:51:46] >> To Doctor

[1:51:48] Morrison's point, there is not

[1:51:50] any sort

[1:51:51] of a time sensitive requirement

[1:51:53] around doing this tonight. Is

[1:51:55] that correct?

[1:51:58] >> There's nothing

[1:51:59] time sensitive, only to the

[1:52:00] extent that we have some

[1:52:02] policies that are outdated.

[1:52:05] There are some processes that

[1:52:07] our policies don't align with,

[1:52:08] and those are the types of

[1:52:10] policies that we're asking you

[1:52:12] to consider tonight.

[1:52:14] >> This memo

[1:52:15] was provided to us tonight

[1:52:16] where we have not had a chance

[1:52:18] to thoroughly.

[1:52:19] >> At the work

[1:52:21] session, we actually reviewed

[1:52:22] each of the policies that we

[1:52:23] are going to ask you to

[1:52:25] consider. So I understand those

[1:52:28] were considered, those were

[1:52:30] discussed at the work session.

[1:52:32] >> So we're being asked

[1:52:33] to just review right now

[1:52:35] to provide feedback

[1:52:37] on items six g through six m. I

[1:52:39] believe there is a motion, I'm

[1:52:41] just trying to get clear. Is

[1:52:43] that what we're trying to do.

[1:52:46] >> So, okay, if you look at

[1:52:50] this informational memo, what

[1:52:52] you have is first it goes

[1:52:54] through and it summarizes seven

[1:52:56] policies. Those seven policies

[1:52:58] are listed

[1:52:59] on your agenda as six g through

[1:53:02] six m. Then it also lists some

[1:53:06] additional policies which are

[1:53:08] not on the agenda on the under

[1:53:10] action items. Those are simply

[1:53:13] policies that we discussed

[1:53:14] last, during last week's

[1:53:16] meeting that we talked about

[1:53:18] the board reviewing. And so

[1:53:20] what I provided

[1:53:22] to you were copies of all

[1:53:24] of those policies for you

[1:53:26] to be able to review and then

[1:53:28] some questions for you

[1:53:30] to consider as you look

[1:53:32] at those policies. So in terms

[1:53:34] of the relevancy of the

[1:53:36] policies, those policies, are

[1:53:38] they still relevant, given that

[1:53:40] some

[1:53:42] of those policies have been

[1:53:44] around for some time and have

[1:53:45] not been changed

[1:53:46] for some time?

[1:53:47] But we're not asking you to

[1:53:49] consider those policies

[1:53:51] tonight. Only six, six g

[1:53:53] through six m.So seven policies.

[1:53:57] >> Okay. So to further

[1:53:59] clarify, and those are good

[1:54:01] questions that you provided the

[1:54:03] key questions for us

[1:54:04] to consider, and that was

[1:54:07] handed to us tonight. So we've

[1:54:08] not been able to review this in

[1:54:10] a timely fashion, these

[1:54:14] questions. That's what I'm

[1:54:15] trying to clarify.

[1:54:17] >> So the question

[1:54:21] during the work session. Yes.

[1:54:23] Okay. And the questions are

[1:54:24] about the policies that we're

[1:54:26] asking you to review,

[1:54:27] not the policies for tonight.

[1:54:31] >> Correct. I understand

[1:54:32] that. I just was trying to

[1:54:33] clarify, and even though I

[1:54:34] wasn't here last week, I did

[1:54:35] review the meeting, and I'm

[1:54:37] still a little bit uncertain

[1:54:38] with being handed this and the

[1:54:41] shuffling of the papers. And so

[1:54:42] I don't, I think the question

[1:54:44] was asked and answered about

[1:54:47] the time sensitivity, and it

[1:54:48] doesn't sound like there is

[1:54:50] time sensitivity. It's board

[1:54:52] policies that we are reviewing,

[1:54:55] but there is no particular need

[1:54:58] that it has to be done tonight.

[1:55:01] >>That is correct. And let me

[1:55:08] a year ago, the board agreed

[1:55:11] to create a cadence for review

[1:55:16] of policy to get it up to date,

[1:55:19] and we've been working

[1:55:23] diligently to support that

[1:55:25] effort. Is it urgent? No. All

[1:55:33] right. So, yes, somebody else

[1:55:36] had. Did you have a question?

[1:55:39] No. Okay. You have a question.

[1:55:40] >> I think we ought

[1:55:43] to put this discussion. We

[1:55:45] ought to discuss this further

[1:55:49] and not act on this tonight. I

[1:55:52] think we have. I have a four

[1:55:54] inch thick notebook and a

[1:55:56] memorandum. I received an email

[1:55:57] this afternoon, plus another

[1:55:59] packet of stuff. It's very

[1:56:01] confusing and I think we need

[1:56:03] to delay this to probably

[1:56:05] to our workshop and discuss it

[1:56:06] in a workshop environment. And

[1:56:08] if it's appropriate, I'd like

[1:56:10] to make a motion to do that.

[1:56:12] >> Did you make the motion? Dr.

[1:56:14] Morrison made the motion. Would

[1:56:16] you be so generous as to say

[1:56:21] yes?

[1:56:26] Okay, so

[1:56:28] we have a motion and we have a

[1:56:30] second. And do you have a

[1:56:31] question as well?

[1:56:33] >> I have a point of

[1:56:34] clarification.

[1:56:35] The information

[1:56:38] that we've received here

[1:56:41] tonight is in this format

[1:56:43] at our request at last week's

[1:56:46] work session. So that's

[1:56:50] to add additional context to

[1:56:52] the additional information

[1:56:53] outside of the motions that

[1:56:55] were being requested this

[1:56:57] evening. We wanted a fuller

[1:56:59] context of what we were voting

[1:57:01] on, what we were reviewing, and

[1:57:03] what we were considering acting

[1:57:06] on removing, versus just the

[1:57:09] ones that we were being asked

[1:57:13] to vote

[1:57:14] on this evening. So thank you

[1:57:16] for that information. That

[1:57:20] added greater information, a

[1:57:22] larger context. But it was at

[1:57:24] the board's request.

[1:57:27] >> It was certainly intended

[1:57:28] to make it easier for the

[1:57:29] review. So I apologize if it

[1:57:30] made it more confusingapologize.

[1:57:32] >> No, that's fine. So

[1:57:34] Doctor Morrison, your motion is

[1:57:36] to remove which item

[1:57:37] specifically so that I can. All

[1:57:38] of them. Six f

[1:57:39] through six m or six g

[1:57:41] through six g through six m. Is

[1:57:44] that correct? Doctor Morrison?

[1:57:46] >> Where there's an opportunity

[1:57:47] for the board

[1:57:49] to discuss and get clarity on

[1:57:51] what's being considered. We

[1:57:53] have no other forum where we

[1:57:58] can share our concerns or

[1:58:01] discuss, and I feel that's

[1:58:06] needed. I think it's

[1:58:08] to the benefit of the future of

[1:58:10] the board.

[1:58:13] >> Okay, so we have a

[1:58:14] motion and we have a second

[1:58:17] and. Oh, you have a comment?

[1:58:19] >> I would just say I want

[1:58:21] to emphasize your memorandum is

[1:58:23] what we asked for. But

[1:58:27] in trying to deal

[1:58:29] with it, I think we're trying

[1:58:31] to address two separate sets of

[1:58:33] information. So it might be

[1:58:35] helpful to redo this

[1:58:38] in the process related

[1:58:41] to what's included in six g

[1:58:43] through. You did what we asked

[1:58:44] you to. I want the record

[1:58:46] to show that. But I agree with

[1:58:47] Doctor Morrison's motion.

[1:58:49] >> Okay, so we have a motion

[1:58:51] in a second. So all in favor

[1:58:54] of moving six g through six m

[1:58:56] to another meeting, all in

[1:58:59] favor say aye. Any opposed?

[1:59:01] Okay, that motion carries.

[1:59:04] Thank you for the information.

[1:59:08] So we will

[1:59:09] move on to item seven, which is

[1:59:11] the monthly financial report.

[1:59:12] Unless. Does anybody need a

[1:59:24] break? Okay. Okay, go ahead.

[1:59:26] >> Thank you. Pam Anglin,

[1:59:29] chief financial officer,

[1:59:31] president, Ayala Chancellor

[1:59:32] LeBlanc, board

[1:59:34] of trustees. We're going

[1:59:37] to look

[1:59:38] at the financial statement

[1:59:39] for the end of September

[1:59:43] of 2024. You'll notice on this

[1:59:44] first slide that our revenues

[1:59:46] for the month of September were

[1:59:48] 27,000,266, 374. And our

[1:59:53] expenses for the month of

[1:59:55] September were 60,000,897. So

[2:00:01] we'll go a little bit deeper

[2:00:03] and look at our revenues. I'll

[2:00:05] remind you that state

[2:00:07] appropriations payments. 50%

[2:00:09] in October, 25%

[2:00:12] in February, 25%

[2:00:15] in June. So nothing in

[2:00:17] September. And also just

[2:00:21] February, we will get any

[2:00:24] settle up because they provide

[2:00:26] this year's appropriations

[2:00:28] based on some estimates for the

[2:00:30] spring term and summer. So

[2:00:32] there will be a settle up,

[2:00:35] either up or down in February,

[2:00:36] but no state appropriations

[2:00:37] for the month.

[2:00:39] But you'll see there tax

[2:00:40] revenue, the tuition, the non

[2:00:44] credit funded tuition,

[2:00:46] community service tuition,

[2:00:48] every one of those. We were

[2:00:49] above where we were last year.

[2:00:52] We don't show any interest

[2:00:54] income booked in the month of

[2:00:56] September. Our interest income

[2:00:59] comes in at the end

[2:01:01] of the month and we book it

[2:01:03] at the first of the next month,

[2:01:05] same way last year. So the

[2:01:07] comparison

[2:01:09] of income this September to

[2:01:11] last September is the same

[2:01:13] items. And our revenue

[2:01:18] at the end of this September

[2:01:20] was 27.2 million. And that's

[2:01:23] compared to 25.9 million one

[2:01:26] year ago. So our revenue was up

[2:01:30] $1.3 million. But a good start

[2:01:36] to the. To the year. And then

[2:01:41] on our expenses, you'll notice

[2:01:43] there that total

[2:01:45] of 60,896,567. And I will point

[2:01:48] out that last line there for

[2:01:51] total other operational and

[2:01:54] capital. That includes the

[2:01:56] transfers that we make each

[2:01:58] year to our pay as you go

[2:02:01] capital improvement plan budget

[2:02:03] fund 40, and

[2:02:06] to our technology budget

[2:02:09] for refreshes of our

[2:02:11] technology. So that complete

[2:02:13] transfer was made

[2:02:14] in September.

[2:02:16] But our expenses last year at

[2:02:18] this time, our expenses were

[2:02:20] 62.6 million and expenses are

[2:02:22] 60.9 million this September. So

[2:02:28] we're 1.7 million less in

[2:02:32] expenses. So a really good

[2:02:34] start to the year. Up

[2:02:35] in revenues, down a slight bit

[2:02:38] in expenses. And I'll be glad

[2:02:42] to answer any questions you

[2:02:44] have in your board packets. The

[2:02:47] detail on all of our expense

[2:02:50] categories throughout the

[2:02:52] entire.

[2:02:55] >> Thank you, Doctor Anglin.

[2:02:56] Any questions, clarifications?

[2:02:58] Okay, we'll continue on. Thank

[2:03:00] you very much.

[2:03:01] >> And we have our quarterly

[2:03:06] investment report tonight in

[2:03:08] your package. You have our

[2:03:09] monthly report, and you also

[2:03:12] have the quarterly report. And

[2:03:14] we have Mallory Sampson

[2:03:17] from PFM Asset Management here

[2:03:19] to provide you the quarterly

[2:03:22] investment report.

[2:03:26] >> Thank you, doctor England.

[2:03:28] Good evening. President Ayala,

[2:03:30] Chancellor Leblanc, board

[2:03:32] of trustees. Mallory Sampson

[2:03:33] with PFM. Thanks for having me

[2:03:35] today.

[2:03:36] >> Good evening.

[2:03:38] >> Mallory Sampson?

[2:03:40] >> Thank you for joining us.

[2:03:41] >> Yeah, thank you for having

[2:03:42] us.

[2:03:44] >> Thank you. Could you raise

[2:03:45] the mic a little bit, please?

[2:03:46] >> Very tall. Let's see. How's

[2:03:49] that for everybody?

[2:03:50] That's much better.

[2:03:52] Okay,

[2:03:54] so I'm going to go over a brief

[2:03:55] market update, and then we'll

[2:03:57] touch

[2:03:58] on overall performance. Happy

[2:03:59] to address any questions that

[2:04:01] the group may have. So we've

[2:04:02] entered

[2:04:04] into a soft landing, largely in

[2:04:07] the us economy. If you take a

[2:04:08] look in the top right hand

[2:04:10] corner, you'll see that

[2:04:12] inflation is looking more

[2:04:13] positive. It is moderating. Our

[2:04:14] labor market is also softening,

[2:04:15] which is what the Federal

[2:04:16] Reserve is looking for

[2:04:18] to trigger their cut of 50

[2:04:19] basis points that they began

[2:04:22] last month. You'll see consumer

[2:04:23] spending is coming

[2:04:25] down slightly. We're seeing

[2:04:27] that

[2:04:29] in the lower income cohort. But

[2:04:31] overall, slightly positive

[2:04:33] economic growth in the US. In

[2:04:35] the US and globally, political

[2:04:38] risks continue to stay

[2:04:40] negative. The overall economic

[2:04:42] figures which are coming in are

[2:04:44] largely positive. However, with

[2:04:47] geopolitical events that could

[2:04:49] cause a shock to the system

[2:04:51] with potential volatility. If

[2:04:53] we dig a little bit deeper,

[2:04:55] we'll take a look

[2:04:57] at inflation. On the left hand

[2:04:59] side, you'll see that steep

[2:05:01] curve that we've come down.

[2:05:03] August CPI was two and a half.

[2:05:05] The September number was 2.4.

[2:05:07] So we're continuing

[2:05:08] to get closer

[2:05:09] to that 2% target of the Fed.

[2:05:11] On the right, you'll see where

[2:05:12] that inflation is coming from.

[2:05:14] Shelter is still pushing up

[2:05:16] inflation. It's a lagging

[2:05:18] indicator. The energy has been

[2:05:19] pushing down overall inflation.

[2:05:21] If we talk a little bit

[2:05:23] about the labor market, on the

[2:05:26] left, you'll see the

[2:05:28] unemployment rate. It's

[2:05:29] actually ticked up

[2:05:31] above 4%. 1st time in a couple

[2:05:33] years. The September number is

[2:05:35] 4.1. The August number was 4.3.

[2:05:38] The Federal Reserve is looking

[2:05:40] for 4.4 for next year. At the

[2:05:44] same time that unemployment is

[2:05:46] ticking up, you'll see the

[2:05:48] labor force participation rate

[2:05:51] is also back to pre pandemic

[2:05:53] levels. Normally that's

[2:05:55] about 63%. So we are in a pre

[2:05:58] Covid environment specifically

[2:06:00] for the participation rate. On

[2:06:02] the left hand side, you'll see

[2:06:04] the difference between job

[2:06:06] openings and unemployed

[2:06:08] workers. During the pandemic,

[2:06:10] I'm sure you read about how

[2:06:11] there were two unemployed,

[2:06:13] there were two job openings.

[2:06:15] For every one person looking,

[2:06:17] you can see that gap there

[2:06:18] on the left. That gap has come

[2:06:20] down to about a one to one

[2:06:21] ratio. That's what we want

[2:06:23] to see on the right hand side,

[2:06:25] it's very busy. But what

[2:06:28] they're telling you is the

[2:06:30] monthly change in payroll. So

[2:06:31] the jobs created each month,

[2:06:33] this time last year, those

[2:06:37] numbers were in the mid

[2:06:39] to high 200,000. And in the

[2:06:42] last several months, those

[2:06:44] numbers have come down

[2:06:45] slightly. That's a great way to

[2:06:47] see how that labor market is

[2:06:49] starting to soften. And really,

[2:06:50] that's what the Federal Reserve

[2:06:53] has been looking for. This next

[2:06:56] page is, again, also a little

[2:06:58] busy. But what they're telling

[2:07:00] us here is each member of the

[2:07:02] Fed is predicting their future

[2:07:04] cuts. So while this is a point

[2:07:06] in time and this will change,

[2:07:08] it's showing you that long term

[2:07:10] trend of reducing

[2:07:11] Interest rates moving forward.

[2:07:13] Like I said, we saw a 50 basis

[2:07:15] point cut in September. Right

[2:07:17] now, the market's pricing

[2:07:19] in a 90% chance

[2:07:21] of a 25 basis point cut in

[2:07:23] November, and then a 75% chance

[2:07:25] of another 25 basis point

[2:07:27] in December. And we'll talk

[2:07:29] about how that pertains to your

[2:07:31] overall portfolios. Last page

[2:07:34] before we talk about

[2:07:35] performance. This is the yield

[2:07:37] curve. You guys have seen this

[2:07:39] before. The big takeaway here

[2:07:41] is if you take a look at those,

[2:07:42] that light blue range, you can

[2:07:44] see how volatile the fixed

[2:07:46] income market has been

[2:07:48] over the last year with the

[2:07:50] Federal Reserve increasing

[2:07:52] interest rates and now starting

[2:07:55] to bring them down. The

[2:07:56] takeaway here for you is on the

[2:07:58] far left. Those short term

[2:08:00] fixed income securities are

[2:08:02] still paying a very high

[2:08:03] interest rate despite that 50

[2:08:05] basis point cut. And then you

[2:08:06] can see the longer term

[2:08:08] securities are pricing

[2:08:10] in that future state of

[2:08:12] interest rates coming in. Just

[2:08:14] as a reminder, your portfolio's

[2:08:16] a large part is on the very,

[2:08:18] very short end, and then the

[2:08:20] remaining is within that one to

[2:08:22] five year range. And so we'll

[2:08:25] see this translated in some

[2:08:27] of the yields coming up on the

[2:08:29] next page. So, just as a

[2:08:31] reminder, all

[2:08:33] of your portfolios are managed

[2:08:35] in compliance with the Public

[2:08:36] Funds Investment act and your

[2:08:38] investment policy statement.

[2:08:40] In general, when you're looking

[2:08:42] at your assets, you can break

[2:08:44] them into three buckets. That

[2:08:46] top bucket are pools

[2:08:48] for immediate need. So think

[2:08:50] of them like a money market.

[2:08:51] They're local government

[2:08:53] investment pools. They're very

[2:08:54] short term securities.

[2:08:56] Overnight, you have access to

[2:08:57] them immediately. And because

[2:09:00] they're such short term

[2:09:01] securities, they're paying a

[2:09:03] very high yield. If you take a

[2:09:04] look at the top, it's 5.38,

[2:09:06] very high. For those short term

[2:09:08] securities, the next third of

[2:09:10] your portfolio is your core

[2:09:13] portfolio. And every year we

[2:09:14] run

[2:09:15] through a cash flow analysis

[2:09:17] with your team. And those are

[2:09:18] assets that you don't need

[2:09:20] today, but they're still liquid

[2:09:22] because you don't need them

[2:09:24] today. They're invested

[2:09:25] slightly out

[2:09:26] in longer term securities

[2:09:28] within that one

[2:09:29] to five year range. If you look

[2:09:31] at the yield, you'll see that

[2:09:32] yield is slightly lower than

[2:09:34] the pools for cash. And if you

[2:09:36] remember, we saw that yield

[2:09:37] curve, those super short term

[2:09:39] securities were paying the

[2:09:41] most. So that's kind

[2:09:42] of that 2nd third of your

[2:09:43] portfolio, and then the last

[2:09:45] third is your 2022 bond

[2:09:47] proceeds. And those are

[2:09:49] invested based off of your

[2:09:50] construction spend timeline. So

[2:09:54] as interest rates start to come

[2:09:56] down, what does that mean for

[2:09:57] your portfolios? How do we

[2:09:58] think these numbers are going

[2:10:00] to change let's focus

[2:10:01] on the pools for cash and then

[2:10:02] your core portfolios. So, as a

[2:10:05] reminder, those pools for cash,

[2:10:08] as interest rates start to come

[2:10:09] down, because they're such

[2:10:11] short term products, that yield

[2:10:14] is going

[2:10:15] to come down. So we'll start

[2:10:16] to see that 5.38 number come

[2:10:18] down and your core portfolio,

[2:10:21] the core portfolio liquidity

[2:10:22] buffer, and that core

[2:10:24] portfolio, because they're

[2:10:26] slightly longer term

[2:10:28] securities, we've locked

[2:10:29] in rates for slightly longer

[2:10:31] than overnight. Right? One

[2:10:33] year, two years, maybe five

[2:10:34] years. And so they'll hold on

[2:10:36] to those fixed income products

[2:10:38] a little bit longer, and that

[2:10:39] higher coupon payment will

[2:10:41] benefit. Now, as interest rates

[2:10:44] come down, your yield on your

[2:10:45] pools will come down. The new

[2:10:48] bonds will be issued, which

[2:10:50] will be paying lower coupon

[2:10:52] payments. So the older bonds

[2:10:54] that you guys have in your core

[2:10:55] portfolio, they will be worth

[2:10:57] more because they're paying

[2:10:59] that old higher rate. The

[2:11:01] impact and what you will see is

[2:11:03] that your market value, the

[2:11:05] value of those longer term

[2:11:07] securities is going

[2:11:09] to go up because they're going

[2:11:11] to be worth more. So to kind of

[2:11:13] wrap it up, if I have hopefully

[2:11:14] not confused you all and put

[2:11:16] you all to sleep, as those

[2:11:17] interest rates continue

[2:11:19] to come down, the yield

[2:11:21] on the short term is going

[2:11:22] to come down a little bit. That

[2:11:23] longer term is going

[2:11:25] to stay elevated, but will

[2:11:27] gradually come down, and then

[2:11:29] the overall value of those

[2:11:31] underlying securities will go

[2:11:34] up. Let me pause, and I'm happy

[2:11:35] to take any questions that the

[2:11:36] group has.

[2:11:38] >> Any questions?

[2:11:42] >> That's the completion of

[2:11:45] our prepared remarks. Thank you

[2:11:46] very much.

[2:11:47] >> Thank you so much.

[2:11:49] Appreciate it.

[2:11:50] >> Mallory, I'm going

[2:11:52] to drop this down for the next.

[2:11:54] Okay. Thank you.

[2:11:55] >> Okay. Thank you. Okay, we

[2:11:57] have the chancellor's report,

[2:11:59] information memo, policy

[2:12:01] review, which we've already

[2:12:03] discussed, eight b, which is

[2:12:04] the campus accolades, and then

[2:12:06] chancellor's activities. Yeah,

[2:12:11] we already discussed that

[2:12:12] earlier. Okay. Closed session.

[2:12:13] Okay. So the board will conduct

[2:12:14] a closed meeting in order

[2:12:16] to discuss matters permitted

[2:12:17] by the following sections

[2:12:18] of chapter 551 of the Texas

[2:12:20] Government Code, consultation

[2:12:21] with attorney, deliberations

[2:12:24] regarding real property,

[2:12:25] deliberations on personnel

[2:12:26] matters, deliberations on

[2:12:27] security devices or security

[2:12:29] audits, and the board may

[2:12:30] reconvene

[2:12:31] in an open session and act

[2:12:33] on any of the items listed in

[2:12:35] the executive agenda. Executive

[2:12:36] session agenda in accordance

[2:12:38] with chapter 551 of the Texas

[2:12:39] government Code. Thank you.

[2:12:44] [CLOSED SESSION]

[3:31:14] >> The board will now reconvene

[3:31:17] in open session. And the board

[3:31:18] is taking no action as a result

[3:31:20] of the closed session. We are

[3:31:23] now adjourned. Thank you

Monthly Meeting of the Board of Trustees

Agenda

Transcript