>> Go ahead and call this
meeting to order. If you would,
please stand. For those
of you that can,
for the pledges of allegiance
to the US and Texas flags.
>> I pledge allegiance
to the flag
of the United States
of America and to the republic
for which it stands, one nation
under God, indivisible,
with liberty and justice for
all.
>> Honor the Texas flag. I
pledge allegiance
to thee, Texas, one state under
God, one and indivisible.
>> Thank you. Okay, we'll have
public comments, and we will
start with Richard Gonzalez.
Good evening.
>> Good afternoon, trustees.
Thank you very much
for this opportunity to speak
to you. I am Richard Gonzalez.
I'm a taxpayer resident
of Tarrant county over 50
years. I'm an author and a
civically involved individual.
I was invited to speak at the
15th annual Abrasando Alexito,
which means embracing
excellence event scheduled for
October 11, 2024. I was told
via email on September 27,
2024, that the event was
canceled because the program
violated SB 17. That's a Senate
bill that deals with diversity,
inclusion and equity.
After inquiries with the
chancellor and attorney Antonio
Allen, I learned that TCC's
interpretation of SB 17
prohibits heritage events
planned and organized by
Tarrant county employees. If
the heritage events were
planned and organized by
students, then SB 17 would not
have applied and the events
would have taken place. It's
disappointing that the Tarrant
county administration waited
until people were invited, food
was ordered, and promotions
went out about the event, and
then they canceled the event.
The decision
to cancel the event was made by
Tarrant county administrators,
unbeknownst
to the chancellor, unbeknownst
to the chair of this body. In
my investigation, I know that
Dallas College, University
of Texas
at Arlington, University of
North Texas have had Hispanic
heritage months celebrating
events. I spoke last Friday
to a group of teachers,
in fact, at Dallas College
Compel campus, and in that
event, I had an opportunity
to talk to Doctor Mercario
Hernandez, who is a president
of Mountain View College, and I
said, how were you able to
navigate SB 17? He said they
worked at it because they
thought it was important to
continue celebrating heritage
events and still not violate
the letter of the law of SB 17.
Here are my recommendations.
Learn to navigate SB 17,
successfully communicate
with the community your methods
of honoring heritages, and
without violating SB 17, please
be careful not to violate the
First Amendment rights
in your efforts
to be so careful not to land
on the landmine
of SB 17. Partner
with the community to ensure
that all students are included
and their heritages are
celebrated. Please act quickly
to resolve this issue. Our
community is waiting to thank
you.
>> Thank you, Mister Gonzalez.
Next up is Ginny Zhang.
>> Good afternoon
everyone. Not long
ago, I spoke with our campus
general counsel, Mister Antonio
Allen. And Mister Allen, you
kept telling me the decision is
already made and there's
nothing I can do about it. But
you forgot one thing. Decisions
are made
by humans. That decision is
about removing children's
center on TCC campus. Attorneys
are human, and humans overreact
and make knee jerk decisions.
And they can be very stubborn
about admitting it. You
mentioned that children's
center cannot uphold TCC's
standard of respect, care and
professionalism. Well, does
child care associate meet that
standard? TCC signed
partnership with them
on two new campuses, but some
of its centers have
about ten violations. One of
them even got shut down. All
the while, children's center
only had one incident with two
violations. I made a handout
about this for all the members
of the board so that you can
see it. If child associate meet
the standard, why not
children's center? You
mentioned the liability to run
a lab school, which is so
special. Even if children's
center is gone, you cannot run
this place without cops. There
are way more campus assault,
bullying, murder, and rape
where students actually get
injured and even die, than a
teacher abusing a kid at an on
campus daycare, let alone there
was no injury and my child had
no recollection of it. By that
logic, would it be better
to shut down the entire campus
so that it would definitely
erase all the possibilities of
violent crimes? That will land
you in major lawsuits.
After all, you're dealing
with thousands of students that
you cannot fully control. If
removing risk is the goal, why
stop at the children's center?
You mentioned personnel issues.
The truth is, if you really
want to keep it open, you'll
find a way. This center is the
only nearby facility that
trains top quality daycare
teachers. The next one is an
hour away. With shortage of
skilled daycare staff, the
center is vital
for young people
in Tarrant county to enter the
profession. Closing it suddenly
would create a void and a
vicious cycle
for the personnel issue
with Chancellor Leblanc's habit
of making big decisions without
consulting the board. If she is
so arrogant to push her own
agenda while ignoring public
sentiment, and so incompetent
that she needs a lawyer
to talk to her, to talk
for her every time, why is she
in this role? Leadership isn't
about hiding behind a shield
and steamrolling everyone. That
is not leadership. That is
dictatorship. If you really
think that TCC children's
center as a lab school is so
special, then please, I ask
you, please keep the lapse
school open, or keep the
irrational, incompetent
chancellor out of this so that
no future tragedy like this
happens again. And I have the
handout of childcare associates
that there are violations
in the past five years posted
on the Texas Human Resources
Texas Health Human Resource
website with their past
violations that are around ten
counts. I have seven copies for
board members. I did not know
that chancellor will be here
today or I would have send you
one too.
>> You can get those to Mister
Gates.
>> Thank you, Miss Senn. Next
is Jennifer Yarber.
>> Good evening, everyone. My
name is Jennifer Yarber. I'm an
educator in a local school
district, a taxpayer in the
TCCD north Richland Hills
resident, and a mother of two
children who attended Tarrant
County Children's center from
the time they were two years
old until the time they were
five. I was told earlier that I
was lucky my kids got to
finish, and I truly am. Tarrant
County Children's center played
an integral part in creating
the confident, happy,
intelligent children I have
now, who are twelve and 14. By
the way, while attending every
day, my kids were excited
to go to school. It was their
second home. We never called it
daycare because it just wasn't.
It was their school. The
friends they made while
attending TCC are still their
friends today because of the
bonds nurtured there. And that
doesn't just happen
on its own. Goals
of the center were clear
to parents. Children learned
about civility, kindness, and
friendship. They ate lunch,
family style, to learn manners.
They were allowed
to play and just be little kids
without the pressure
of academia being shoved
at them in an inappropriate
developmental age, as many
larger daycares do. It's very
commonplace these days.
Teachers like Deborah Molina,
Michelle Lee, Miss Sharon, and
Yolanda Jones are forever
etched on my kids hearts and
mine. These teachers loved them
like they were their own and
taught the next generation
of educators how to do the
same. These women, who have
dedicated their lives to early
childhood and have worked
for TCC for decades with, let's
be honest, pay that doesn't
match their intense effort and
skill level, have forged
everlasting friendships and
parents and community members
because of the level of trust
they have earned. I'm deeply
concerned with the recent
events surrounding the center
and the motives behind the
closing that are all too clear
for an outsider who does any
research
at all. Yes, some sort of
incident occurred, which is a
horrible thing. However, in any
other situation, the person who
created the infraction would be
removed swiftly,
but the center would remain
open for every child
to be removed from a familiar,
loving environment so quickly
for parents to be left
in the lurch with no childcare
is inexcusable. But there is
more. These women were removed
from their jobs for trying to
protect children. The ones who
have dedicated their lives to
an organization that does not
value them with no severance
package is unconscionable. I
would like
to stand here and plead
for you
to keep the center open, but
it's clear that you've decided
to farm out our beloved TCC
Children's center out
to a large corporation
to manage it for you. Instead
of paying a highly qualified
director what they deserve
to be paid, instead of valuing
these women and their level
of care for the children in our
community, you're flushing an
amazing program down the
toilet. I assume you think
child care associates will come
in and clean it all up, but the
likelihood is they will be just
another large daycare
corporation that hires
uneducated, underqualified
daycare workers. This is not
what our community wants.
People don't put their children
on a list as soon as they are
born to go to a school at child
care associates. I would love
to see TCC rebuild this center
and heal its broken heart.
But the writing is on the wall.
It truly feels that TCC was
looking for an excuse to close
so this corporation could come
in and take over. So my plea
after speaking before you is
that you just do the right
thing by the women who have
done no wrong. Please show
respect for them, that you
value their many years
of service in offering a
dignified severance package.
They deserve it
for what they have done for my
kids and so many others. Thank
you.
>> Thank you, Miss Jarvis.
Jeanette Favela. Jeannette
Ivela. I think that's her.
>> Good
evening. My name is Jeanette
Favela. Some of you may
recognize me. I was here
earlier passing
out flyers letting people know
about the board of trustees
meeting today, and we wanted to
rally support as much as we
could. Now what? I would like
to come just peek, if I can say
what other parents have said.
>> Can you get just a little
bit closer to the microphone?
Thank you so much.
>> Is that better?
>> That's it. Thank you.
>> So, my name is Jeanette
Favela, and I am a former
parent of students at the
Tarrant County Children's
center. Okay. Here's one right
here. And I get really nervous.
I'm sorry. The children's
center closing is not something
that we were expecting. We are
also planning to take our soon
to be two year old to the
center. It goes deeper than
just being a daycare. They are
better little humans now.
They've made me a better
parent. It's not just I dropped
them off. They took care of
them. We came home. They taught
us values. It's not something
that we experienced in other
child care centers. And I don't
know if we will again, and
hopefully we will. I have hope,
because the ripple that they
made with teaching other
students there, that ripple
keeps going. They planted a
seed in my brain, in my kids
hearts, and I'm confident that
it's going to keep going. But
in order for them to keep doing
good work there, it has
to stay open. They have to have
the same values that they
instilled into us. Needs
to continue. So what I would
like to say is, everything
in life and in business is
negotiable. If we could
negotiate, if you could
negotiate on our behalf
from the community, hearing
from us, how we can help keep
this center open and have the
same values that it instilled
into us. I know my sister
in law. She is a graduate from
the TCC Child development
studies, and she is now a
program coordinator for one of
the top pediatric hospitals
here in the DFW area. She
started her career
at TCC, being involved
in that same department at the
lab school. She's the one that
told me
about this program. It was like
the best hidden secret that we
had in the community, and it
still is, but we have to keep
it open. Please help us. Please
negotiate for us. Thank you.
>> Thank you, miss Favela.
Okay. Juan M. Acosta. Mister
Acosta.
>> Hello, guys. So, again,
we're at other departments. We
really value so much what TCC
gave us before, we didn't have,
like, a big idea
of what, like, taking care of
kids are like. They need so
much from us. As a parenthood,
we do what we can, but really,
the values that they gain and
experience from the teachers,
the professors, TCC, we came
less than a month ago to
celebrate 50 years. So that's
more than 1015 generations that
have been going through three
cc. And as my wife said,
they're being very successful.
So it's really making a
difference. And we really hope
that there is a way to keep it
open because it's something
that the whole community needs.
That's pretty much. Thank you.
>> Thank you. Sawat cherry.
>> Good evening. I wrote what I
wanted to say so I don't veer
off how I was a part of the
children's center. I was
fortunate enough to work at
Northeast Campus business
services and heard another
grandparent that worked on the
same campus. What a great
program the children's center
has. There is a waiting list,
so you should sign up and you
know, it's really great. I told
my daughter about the
children's center, that she
should sign up. She did. We
waited in anticipation, but
Covid happened and we missed a
full year.
Before my granddaughter started
at TCC, my granddaughter had
to start at a daycare and
missed it starting at the
Children's center Honeybees
class a year after attending
the children's center rising
star class, we realized how
much of a difference and great
the center is or was for the
children. My granddaughter had
tremendous growth through
stepping Stone's class and was
prepared for her entrance
to kindergarten. She's now
going into second grade. The
staff and the teachers at the
children's center maintain a
safe, nurturing, healthy child
development care, including
early detection development,
identifying and addressing any
behavior habits that may need
extra attention. Last academic
year, I had one
in honeybees and one
in rising star class. Busy time
for me, the nana,
but I enjoyed every moment
of it. My work schedule and
time off was always wrapped
around my grandkids. For two
and a half years, I brought my
grandkids
with me every working day. Up
until last week, I thought I
would stay within Northeast
campus however long it takes
for my grandkids to attend the
children's center. Not all
grandparents get
to do what I was able
to do, and I drive 20 miles
out of my way so that I could
give that to them. No one is
perfect, not teachers, not
staff, not parents, not even
the children.
But we all strive to encourage,
assist, address and resolve
issues that arise. I'm saddened
that I cannot be a part
of that program
since it was shut down
abruptly. I enjoyed being part
of the children's center family
and don't quite understand how
something so great running for
50 years be quickly treated as
if it didn't matter. So we shut
it down
without any considerations. To
the people that TCC worked hard
to maintain a unity for all and
its community. I know it is
out of TCC's control and it
can't be undone. But please
reconsider actions TCC has
taken
for the staff and the teachers
of the children's center,
because getting rid
of all that existed of the
children's center is not what
our motto states. We belong
here. Thank you.
>> Thank you, Miss Cherry.
Daniel J. Bennett.
>> Good evening.
Daniel Bennett, white
settlement. I wanted to speak
to six x the concurrence last
week, Antonio Allen was up here
speaking to a question from
Miss Wood. And he responded
that it was a tie vote. And as
he was responding to Miss Wood,
he paused and motioned when he
said this, a board member
requested and he pointed right
to the chair and he went back
to speaking. The interim chair,
I believe, was pointing to the
interim chair. And then it was
very telling because this item
has been put on this agenda by,
I think, a singular board
member. But more importantly,
the chair last week said this,
quote, I think that that was
the item
behind having concurrence
of another board member was
to protect Jess from spending
too much time, excuse me,
on something the majority
of the board was not interested
in pursuing and would take a
lot of staff time. Well, how
would that individual board
member know that the majority
of the board members didn't
want that item? You have
to think about that because,
you know, we do have walking
quorum rules in Texas. And if
this wasn't discussed
in public, it was discussed
behind the door. Or the
protocol, maybe, is that the
board president calls each
member to sample. I don't know
what the protocol is because
it's not in TASB, but there
should be a protocol. Nowhere
near agenda does it say that
you have future agenda items.
So it wasn't done there. I
don't know if. Miss Ila, you
reached out to each individual
board member. Was the open
meetings act violated through a
walking corner when that
happened? I don't know. Was the
board business being conducted
out of the purview of the
public? I mean, how's the
majority come up knowing we
don't want a certain item
without at least four of you
deciding that that's a vote? I
think we need to look into
that. I think the public would
like to know why that verbiage
was passed back and forth
between Antonio, Miss Wood, and
last week's chair. Now I want
to turn to IA. I don't believe
you should approve that
contract. I'm going to tell you
why. Because we have Joe Biden,
who was stopped running for
president when he plagiarized.
We now have the Harvard
president who actually
plagiarized Miss Carol Swain,
one of my favorite authors. She
authored the adversity of
diversity. Great writer. So
great that the Harvard
professor, Miss Gay,
plagiarized her and did not
give her credit. Gloria Gaye
got no credit to Miss Wayne. So
here we have our vice president
now being accused
of the very thing back in 2009.
So if we do this IA thing, it's
going
to take away the opportunity
of our children to become vice
president or potentially
president. So I think we should
cancel that contract and not do
it because you see the success
you can have if you act
in certain manners. And with
the last few seconds I have, I
want to talk about the tips.
In 22, I asked
for an accounting
of three tips that expired to
see if they met their goals. It
was never mentioned again. Now
we're fixing to add 20 years to
two different tips. We already
added nine years to tip number
nine. This corporate welfare
has to end. Thank you.
>> Thank you. Mister Bennett.
Miss Samantha Goldblatt.
>> Hi, good evening. My name is
Samantha Goldblatt. I'm a TCC
graduate. I graduated, let's
see, last spring, and I still
work here right now. I work
within the learning commons. I
didn't really know a whole lot
about the issue
with the children's center
before today. I was influenced
by the group of parents that I
saw earlier. And I think that
although I don't know too much
about what's going on exactly,
I do see a really consistent
problem with communication. I
don't think that perhaps the
notification of the closing was
timely, and I don't think it
was fair to parents. I see it
very consistently in other
factors, too. And I think that,
like with our strategic plan
that's going on currently, I
don't think that closing the
children's center is in line
with that. I know that we want
to serve our community. I know
that I work very hard to serve
my community. I know that I see
students constantly. I used to
be an SI leader that supported
spanish courses, and I was very
in line
with my community and trying
to connect students
to that. And within my spanish
classes, too, as a graduate of
TCC, I saw as a student, my
professors really strive
to connect ourselves or
to connect their students
to the community,
to the resources outside
of TCC itself. I've been
on conference trips, I've been
to like, events
in the community
to serve hispanic speaking
parts of Tarrant county. And I
think that the work that the
children's center seems
to be doing that seems
to be supported by all the
other parents that have come
today. I think that closing the
center would go
against our support of the
community. And although it
seems the decision has been
made, I do think that there
probably are things that could
be improved upon. The
propositions that have been
made by other members of the
community might be helpful, but
I think that there is a way
that we can make this right.
Thank you.
>> Thank you, Miss Goblet.
Jason Zinke.
>> Good evening, ladies and
gentlemen. My name is Jason
Juke and I am the father
of the child who is involved in
the October 4 incident. I'm
here to shed light
on some hypocrisy
before you and beg for your
help. I've been getting very
mixed messages from TCC
on just what kind of care it
values. Our children's center
is exemplary, and our 50th
anniversary celebration gala
just, what, three weeks back.
As proof of that, the HHS
website shows that in the last
five years, only two
deficiencies have been found
there
in a single report. This stands
in stark contrast to childcare
associates, whose head start
and childcare studios schools
have two, seven, even ten or
more deficiencies in a single
school. One was even closed by
licensing. You'll recognize the
name, as was mentioned earlier,
as the much hyped partner TCC
is using to launch its new
childcare centers next year on
the south and northwest
campuses. The record is
atrocious in comparison to our
own children's center. Yet now,
one incident with one teacher
who was already removed is
seemingly the reason Chancellor
Elva Leblanc has decided to
close this amazing school
lightly in favor
of our new strategic partner
with a prolific deficiency
record. As this situation with
the children's center unfolded,
we tried to talk to the
chancellor. We were refused.
Instead, we got a call back
from general counsel. There's
at least one other family this
has happened to. What kind of
coward will ignore a
constituency and immediately
call for a lawyer? That's a
clear acknowledgement of
wrongdoing, and I hope you're
ashamed to be affiliated
with someone like this, as I
am. TCC is better than that,
and was better than that. Our
community coming together
in front of you here now
to support our children's
center of proof of how good it
has become and how good it can
still be. We spent the last two
days standing on TCC campuses,
spreading awareness and talking
with as many students, staff,
and faculty as we could. It was
extremely concerning
to hear several people speak
to the chancellor's reputation
for hasty knee jerk reactions
and a tendency to make
important decisions alone
without consulting the board,
community, or other leaders.
Yes, this came from her own
staff and faculty. The
figurehead
of TCC was already distrusted
by at least some
of her own employees due
to her own actions prior to
this incident. You should also
know it appears that general
counsel has been making
material misrepresentations
regarding both the
circumstances of the situation
and the investigation process.
Per DFPS investigator Cody
Minor, we've been speaking
with a number
of community leaders, and
among them, the office of
Senator Tan Parker has been
looking into this and general
counsel assured him that the
incident was egregious. Using
that word repeatedly, he said
the same thing
to us. I'm going to give you
all the actual incident report.
Sorry for the mic from, as well
as my notes and corrections
from reviewing the videos with
TCC. Detective Clark, I wish I
could play the videos for you
right now as well. This is my
son, and I can tell you right
now that to call it egregious
is a serious exaggeration. I
also want to remind you that
there is not now, and never has
been active, pending, or even
contemplated litigation
relating to that incident that
was communicated explicitly
to TCC on October 7. And the
TCC police also said they found
nothing of concern they would
act on. That is something that
was published on October 9 in
the media. General counsel has
also stressed the gravity of
the police and state
involvement
in the investigation.
But that is basic due diligence
for any report which we self
reported in good faith. Save
our school. Remove the ones who
will act as they see fit,
without regard for the truth.
These are our children, our
future, and your future.
Without them, TCC would have
and deserve no future. Save
them to save us all. Thank you.
>> Thank you. Okay. Mister
Gates. Is that it? Okay. Thank
you. All right, we are going
to move to item eight b, the
chancellor's report, and then
we will move into the rest of
the agenda.
>> Thank you. Trustee Ayala. I
want to start by stating that
the nursing program recently
received notice that they
earned reaffirmation of our
accreditation certification
from the accreditation
Commission for Education in
nursing. This solidifies our
position as a leader
in nursing education for the
next decade, ensuring that our
graduates are well prepared
to meet the challenges of the
healthcare field.
Congratulations go to Doctor
Mararos. The faculty and staff
in nursing who work
to earn accreditation also want
to point
out that the US Department of
Education has recognized the
collegiate school Grapevine,
Colleyville, that's on the
northeast campus as a national
blue ribbon school. So,
congratulations. Go doctor. To
the northeast campus. Doctor
Clayton will be representing
the college when the award is
presented on October 29. So
congratulations, Jan. I also
want to state that our
strategic focus is
for the college to prepare the
future workforce and serve as a
key player
in the economic development
of the county. This aligns with
our mission, vision and
strategic plan, trailblazing
together 2030 to boldly lead
the college as we bring greater
focus and direction to the
internal and external college
community. We need
to support people to adapt
to change. We all agree that
for Tarrant County College to
remain relevant, we must be
able
to pivot quickly and adjust to
external demands. Change
management includes policy
review and updates. You will be
reviewing policy later in the
meeting today. Structures which
set boundaries and expectations
to support adapting
to the change brought
by policy and communication
at all levels of the internal
and external communities, and I
will share a few examples. My
first example is the faculty
contracts. The faculty
contracts were changed
in order
to set clear expectations as
to the work that faculty need
to get done, the number of days
they would work, and faculty
contract fairness
across the college. Along with
the contracts, faculty received
board policies that impact
them. The new contract
structure aligns with our board
policies, ensuring we are
consistent in our approach to
faculty employment terms and
conditions. We understood
faculty would have questions,
which is why we dedicated a
great deal of effort in
preparing communication
customized by specific impact
of the change on the modality
or the program. We also took
the time to meet
with faculty members. For
example, campus leadership
invited faculty
to multiple information
meetings with both group and
individual meetings. These were
over and beyond the written
communication and the
opportunities given
by human resources to ask
questions. Another example is
Senate Bill 17. The general
counsel's office continues
to play a critical role in
guiding, monitoring, and
enforcing Senate Bill 17
statute. I am personally
meeting with external partners
who are also impacted by Senate
Bill 17. These meetings and
other connections are
especially critical as we all
continue to gain more clarity
on how to fully implement
Senate Bill 17. At the same
time we are updating
parameters, we are reviewing
purchasing contracts, updating
scholarship, administration,
providing training sessions,
overseeing events, and
addressing complaints related
to Senate Bill 17. These
comprehensive efforts ensure
that the statute's requirements
are fully integrated and upheld
within the operations of
Tarrant County College. And
finally, I want to end
with a conversation
about the children's center on
Northeast campus. The Tarrant
County College Children's
Center Laboratory School is a
teaching, learning, and
training site for future early
childhood professionals
enrolled in TCC's child
development program. To be
clear, TCC created and
developed the children's center
specifically to educate and
train early childhood
professionals. The center was
not designed to be, nor has it
been, operating as a typical
childcare center. TCC demands
that all
of our operations align
with the standards of respect,
care, and professionalism. The
information brought
to our attention on October 4
identified that some children
center operations do not align
with these standards. We were
deeply concerned and addressed
it by closing the center on
October 11. We have apologized
multiple times, communicated
with parents in person,
by telephone, and in writing
multiple times. Yes, the center
is closed. We intend
to re envision our approach to
early education, evaluate the
purpose of a laboratory school
and restructure our
preparations for early
childhood professionals. To
meet the job demand, we are
creating an advisory group who
will help inform our efforts.
Our community partners have
already reached out to us
in support of finding
solutions. I appreciate that
the board cares deeply about
these issues. As thought
partners, we will find
solutions that will allow us to
reach our vision, which is, and
I quote, Tarrant County College
aspires to be the leader for
academic excellence, student
success, and economic impact.
We all care deeply
about the community, about our
students, and all that's
involved. We go. We always take
extra steps to ensure that
everyone feels welcomed and
that everyone is safe and
secure. So thank you.
>> Thank you, Doctor Leblanc.
Okay, we will move on to item
four, which is the board
business. Items and
announcements
for a, B, and C are the
approval of September 19
special meeting minutes,
approval of September 19 work
session minutes, and approval
of September 26, monthly board
meeting minutes. Does anyone
have any questions? Otherwise,
we'll entertain a motion.
>> I move approval.
>> Okay, mister Barr.2nd
by Miss Deakyne. All in favor,
say aye? Any opposed? Okay,
that motion carries. We will
move on to item 4d. Any trustee
activities? We will start out
with Miss Wood to talk about
community health Fair, please.
And the campus police annual
picnic.
>> Good evening, everyone. So
the picture you see
on the board right now was at
Northeast campus two weeks ago.
I was there
for another reason,
but I noticed there were a lot
of cars in the parking lot, and
I saw Doctor Ford walking
across, so I grabbed her and
asked her what was going on,
and she informed me that there
was a health fair by the
Hispanic Wellness coalition
at the college. And so we
walked through the health fair
together, and we came to the
respiratory care program that
we have here at TCC. And that
is theresa Griego, instructor
of the respiratory therapist
respiratory therapy here at
this campus. And if you notice
there, there is a pink lung and
a black lung. And I asked her,
first of all, if they were
real, and she said, yes, they
were. And then they proceeded
to show me how they worked, and
they pumped them up
like they would if they were in
a body. And the black is the
smoker's lung, and the pink is
a healthy lung. And I'm telling
you that visual will always
stay in my mind. And yes. And
so I asked her a little bit
about the program because I'm
very interested in respiratory
therapy. And she told me it was
a 20 month program to graduate.
Right now they have 28 students
that will graduate in May,
but they have room
for 30. And the pay coming out
of this program starts at
$70,000, which I thought was
amazing. And it was just a
really interesting opportunity.
And I am just so excited. I got
to meet some students and
instructors and I just felt
like it was a great health fair
altogether. A big thank you
to Doctor Ford for walking me
around. And then the next event
was the annual police picnic.
And you can see I'm with
Officer Benson and Officer
Dubose. We were outside. I
didn't get very many pictures.
I don't know if I got any
pictures outside. But I wanted
to say thank you
to Officer Holland for cooking
the amazing food. And that is
Officer Fernandez and his sweet
family. And the food was
amazing. If you ever have a
chance to go, the food is
amazing, the people are great.
And it was a really fun time.
So thank you.
>> Thank you for attending
that. I know it was sorry that
I wasn't able to make it, but I
know the board was glad that
you were able to attend that
day. Mister Kyne, I think you
have something to. You've been
busy too.
>> Well, I think we've all been
busy. First, I'd like
to speak a little bit about
attending the October 3
Arlington ISD board of trustees
meeting. I was there because
the Arlington ISD Education
foundation was recognized with
the district's community
Partner award of appreciation.
And while I was there, I think
there's another picture I was
able to learn more about. No,
not that picture. Keep going.
That is not it. Anyway, there
you go. I was on hand
to learn more
about the AISD student
of the month, Liliana Boland
from Arlington College and
Career High School. And what is
so impressive
about this young woman
above and beyond a really
impressive list? Was that
on that list of her many
accomplishments was that she
earned her associate degree
from Tarrant County College
before she even started her
senior year. She is currently a
senior and now she is taking
dual credit courses. And she
was just the living embodiment
of how TCC and our ISD
partnerships are truly
transforming students lives.
She is a beacon
of what is really great about
our public school students. And
it really just emphasizes all
of the opportunities that are
being created through dual
credit. So she's a walking
billboard. I think I will
employ her in all
of my good news stories about
TCC. See if she will let me. So
that was a great event. Then on
October 8, and I don't think
there's a picture
of this, I was also able
to participate in the AISD
stakeholder meeting where
community members and elected
officials collaborated
on enhancing student outcomes
in our schools again, which is
to highlight that there are
great partnerships
across our district between TCC
and the ISDs that are really
leveraging change and outcomes,
not just for students, but for
their families, and really
involved in work that's
transforming families for an
entire lifetime. The other
thing I wanted to report on, I
don't have a picture
on this one, but just today I
attended the Community College
association of Texas Trustees
board meeting where the key
topics of our conversation
included shared policy
priorities for the upcoming
legislative session. We also
reviewed the focus forward
strategic plan update, which
outlines goals for the
organization's future growth
and impact. And additionally,
we had an
in depth conversation
about roles and
responsibilities of the CAHPS
board members. Really
with a focus
on making sure that under the
new organization, that we are
doing our due diligence in
making sure that the new
geographic region structure is
used
to engage community colleges
across those districts. So look
for a summary of those
priorities and strategic plan
forthcoming
in a communication shared by
the CaP board soon. Thank you.
>> And thank you for
representing Interrack County
College
in this particular region on
the CCATT board. So, thank you.
Mister Barr.
>> Yes, I had the privilege
earlier this week of attending
a panel discussion put on by
the Metro report, which is a
part
of the business press here
in Fort Worth. And the focus
of that panel was on the state
of higher education. And some
of our partner organizations
were there, including
representatives from Texas
Wesleyan University, Tarleton
State University, the
University of Texas at
Arlington, and the Fort Worth
Metropolitan Black Chamber of
Commerce. And doctor Elva
Leblanc was there. It was
interesting discussion. It was
really focused
on the pipeline. It's
about getting students
through TCC and getting them
through the colleges and the
other partner organizations,
the other colleges. What came
out to me very strong was the
collaboration that goes on
between TCC and UTA, Tarleton,
Texas Wesleyan, and the
pathways to help students stay
focused and get
through TCC and easily move
into being involved in these
other institutions. I sort of
think Doctor Leblanc's
presentation there was very
good. It came across pretty
clearly that TCC is a
foundation
for so many students that go
on to the other colleges and
universities, and they really
like to get our students. It's
pretty clear. Thank you.
>> Thank you. Thank you, mister
Barr. And thank you
for dressing and talking about
the college. Wonderful. Miss.
Doctor Morrison?No, Miss
Hornsby? Okay, Miss Pritchett?
Okay. All right, we'll go ahead
and move on to the rest
of the agenda. And for those
of you that are new to our
meetings or you're live
streaming, we may go through
these a little bit more quickly
because we had a work session
previously, and we were able
to ask questions at that work
session. So we'll start out
with item five, which is
consideration and approval of
the consent agenda. There are
no questions. We'll entertain a
motion, and I apologize.
>> Yes. Believe it or not, that
this is day three, and this is
the best it's been. Two days
ago, I had zero voice. Some
people were happy about that,
that I couldn't speak
to them, including my daughter.
But apart
from that, if I would like
to move five a out
of consent, please.
>> For discussion. Five a
to be moved out.
Okay. Which is
consideration, approved of the
annual membership dues. Okay.
We need a motion for that.
Antonio, can we go ahead and
move that? Okay. All right.
>> I don't believe that moving
something out of consent
requires a vote. A motion and a
vote. It's a request.
>> I think
Miss Pritchett is right. You
don't need a. Yeah, she's
right. You just need to. She's
made the request for it
to be removed out
of the consent agenda.
>> Just want to make sure. Okay,
thank you very much. So item
five a will be moved out of the
agenda. So we will have
consideration, approval
of the consent agendas five b
through five l, Yes?
>> I'd also like
to move five b out
of consent, please.
>> Five b as in boy?
>> Yes, please.
>> Okay, so we are asking
for the consideration, approval
of the consent agenda
from five c to five l.
>> I move Approval.
>> Move Approval
by Mister Barr, second
by Mister Hornsby. All in favor
say aye? Any opposed? Okay,
that motion carries. So we'll
look at five a, which is
consideration and approval
of the annual membership dues
for the Texas association
of Community Colleges of
$103,100. Doctor Elva Leblanc.
>> Yes. Thank you. So, Texas
association of Community
Colleges is a non governmental
organization that serves the
public community college
districts
in Texas. Their primary focus
is to be advocates for the
community colleges, and an
example of how they function is
the passing
of House bill eight. All of the
colleges supported House bill
eight because TACC and the
leadership they provided
ensured that we were well
educated. On House bill. I said
five. House bill eight and all
the changes that were made to
our funding. This is the first
time that all
of the legislators,
with the exception
of maybe one, voted in favor of
House bill eight. We attribute
TACC to making that a success.
They also have the Texas
Success center, which. This is
a group that raise quite a bit
of money. So the fees that they
charge the colleges are a
fraction of what they need
to operate. They bring
in quite a few grants through
Bill Melinda Gates and other
foundations that support the
Texas success center. All the
colleges benefit from it. We
have programs such as pathways,
that all
of the colleges have been able
to participate in
at almost no cost because
of their entrepreneurial
efforts in bringing in outside
dollars. So it has served
Tarrant County College well. It
serves all the other colleges
in Texas well, and it helps us
speak with one voice. It also
supports the ccatt. So it's big
picture being able
to have a voice in Austin all
of the time. Thank you.
>> Okay, so that's item five a.
Do you have a. Sorry. Oh, did
you have a question? Okay. Miss
Pritchett, do you have a
question?
>> If the chancellor is
finished? Yes. Thank you. The
reason why I wanted
to take this out
of consent and
to have some discussion
about it is there are two
things about this that concern
me. One is, although they may
be doing some excellent work,
what I have objection to is
that it is using public money
for lobbying. In other words,
that the public is now paying
for lobbyists to go in front
of legislators to speak on the
behalf, whether it is something
that is beneficial for the
community. Community or not. I
don't have any concern about
lobbyists when it is. When
they're paid for by private
funds. I do have some concerns
when it is paid for with public
funds.
>> So can I speak to that,
please? There is an arm of TACC
that supports the lobbying
effort that is paid for
by individuals, like
by private dollars. All of the
CEO's and anyone that wants
to contribute contributes to
that endeavor, so that no state
dollars go to that. What
they're doing is educating us,
helping us stay connected to
the Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board and other
entities that support our
community colleges. More
importantly, when you look
at the work of the Texas
Success center, that was work
that's been invaluable
to our students in pathways and
other information that helps
the faculty, the instructional
leaders, the counselors,
etcetera, to better support our
students. So I'm glad you
brought up the lobbying part.
The actual lobbying is paid
for with private dollars and
not state dollars.
>> Okay. Thank you very much
for clarifying that. The other
item that I wanted to mention
that is also very concerning is
that when taking a look
at the website for TACC and the
various partners that the
organization works with, that
many of those organizations
have practices and philosophies
that are counter to SB 17. And
my concern is that we're
putting the chancellor in a
position, she's our employee
and we're putting her
in a position where she's
forced to receive training
based on, again, items that are
counter to SP 17, which is
diversity, equity and
inclusion. And just a few items
that I pulled and this is just
a very, very small sampling.
One of the partners is called
World Education that states
equity and inclusion drive our
work. Annie E. Casey foundation
states Equity and Inclusion
Action Guide embracing equity
seven steps to advance and
embed equity and inclusion
within your organization. The
Trellis foundation has their
equity statement along
with the vice president of
diversity, equity and student
success and the Texas Success
center partners with an
organization called Achieving
the Dream. And it states from
their website, our expert
coaches partner with community
colleges throughout the country
to prioritize student success
by centering equity on their
campuses and also advancing
equity in pursuit of better
student outcomes. And my
concern, chancellor, with this
is again, the environment and
putting you in a situation
where the training and the
camaraderie that you would
receive really puts you
in a position that's counter
and at odds with state law.
Senate Bill 17 those are my
concerns.
>> Any other questions? Do you
have a question as well? Okay.
All right. Is there anything
that, do you have to go to
those trainings or are those
just ones that you select to go
to? I'm just curious.
>> That's a great question.
First of all, those are all the
entities that were mentioned
earlier are funding but don't
direct what the training should
be. They simply provide the
funding and TACC is happy
to help them out
with that. All of the training
is voluntary. I don't have
to go
to the meetings. You don't have
to go to ccatt meetings.
But it is important for us
to stay informed. The
complexity of Senate Bill 17,
whether you are in agreement
with it or not, is that
everyone is still trying
to figure
out what it means and how
to apply it. And in any law or
anything you look at, you're
going to have different
interpretations. A good example
is the us constitution where
you have different
interpretations
of what that means and how to
apply it. So again, TACC is
very aware
of Senate Bill 17 and is going
through the same process that
we are in trying to figure out
what does it mean and how does
it apply and is it in
violation. And they are taking
a very conservative stance on
applying Senate Bill 17.
They're not
out there taking risks to see
if they get caught or anything
of that nature. So it's
unfortunate because we've not
been able to get. None
of us has been able
to get clarity from the
legislators. We've not been
able to get clarity from the
Texas higher Education
coordinating board. And the
only clarity we've received is
from TASB. And it's their
interpretation. Without TASB,
doesn't actually stay
in Austin talking to
legislators. They just review
the law based on what they
think it says. So that's kind
of where we are. But I assure
you that the main focus
of TACC is to bring the
community colleges together
for us to speak with one voice,
which is very difficult because
Texas is huge, and we have. The
majority of the community
colleges are tiny. They could
never afford
to stay informed or any
of that. And
through TACC, they're able
to do that.
>> Thank you for some
of that clarification
in your role as a board member
at TACC. What does that entail?
And as it relates to some
of the policies at TACC?
>> So I currently am not. I'm
on a committee. I'm
on a subcategory role.
But yes, our primary focus is
to select the CEO and to review
policy as it addresses the
organization.
>> Okay, just a point
of clarification. On their
website, it states that you are
on the board
of directors as a member
at large.
>> Member at large. And I'm
also on the committee
for the fee structure.
But most of what we talk about,
really and truly, is how are we
going to implement House bill
eight? How are we going to
ensure student success and meet
the metrics that are now
expected of us from the state?
>> Okay, just one other point
for clarification. So this rose
to our level because it now
exceeds the $100,000?
>> That's correct.
>> Do you know when years
passed, what the fees were, the
annual fees?
>> The fees were well
below 100,000. Some
of the fee increases are due
to some
of the colleges stepping down
and not supporting. And so that
means that others have to step
up and support the
organization.
>> Thank you very much. Thank
you. Okay, we've had
discussion. I'm ready
to entertain a motion on five.
A consideration. Approval
of the annual membership dues
for the Texas association
of Community Colleges
of $103,100.
>> Move to approve.
>> Okay, that's Mister Hornsby.
>> 2nd.
>> 2nd by Mister Barr. All in
favor say aye. Any opposed?
Okay.
>> President Ayala, for the
record, I'd like
to recuse myself
from the vote. I am not a
member
of the Texas association of
Community Colleges Board. I am
a member of the board of the
Community College association
of Texas Trustees, which is not
the same organization,
but it was mentioned in the
discussion as being supported.
So I will recuse myself.
>> You recuse
yourself. And then we
had a no vote as well.
Thank you. From Miss
Pritchett. Okay, motion
carries. Thank you very much
for the discussion. Let's move
on to item five B, which is
consideration and approval of
professional consulting
services from Barry Dunn,
McNeil, and Parker, LLC. Barry
Dunn in the amount of $202,500.
Mister Krueger.
>> Good evening. I
am Todd Kruger, Chief
Information officer. It is
recommended that the board
authorize the chancellor or the
chancellor's designee
to approve the engagement of
Barry Dunn, McNeil, and Parker,
LLC
to provide professional
services to establish a data
governance program
in the amount of $202,500.
Texas State Bill 475 requires
the college to designate a data
management officer and to
establish a data governance
program to identify the
college's data assets, exercise
authority and management over
the college's data assets, and
establish related processes and
procedures to oversee the
college's data assets.
Institutions of higher
education must conduct data
assessments and submit their
findings
to the Texas Department of
Information resources every two
years. Data governance is the
management of data
through policies and standards
to ensure the quality,
integrity, security, and
usability of the institution's
data. Data governance leads to
improved data quality, better
data analytics and decision
making, and increased access
to and use of the institution's
data. Barry Dunn will provide
subject matter expertise to
help establish a robust data
governance program.
Deliverables include developing
a comprehensive data governance
master plan with long term and
short term roadmaps, conducting
a current state analysis of
data governance and data
management, defining roles,
responsibilities, and
accountability structures
establishing data quality
standards and metrics ensuring
compliance with state Bill 475,
including completing the
college's first aid assessment
for DIR and delivering a
training package and developing
a communication plan. And Barry
Dunn was the lowest bidder and
the highest ranked bidder.
>> Okay, thank you very much,
Mister Krueger. Any questions
on that?
>> I do have a couple of
questions. Thank you. So this
bill was initially passed in
2021, correct?
>> I believe that's correct.
>> So what I'm wondering
about is why this is coming
to us now. Has this been done
in the past, or is this our
first time that we've engaged
in this?
>> This is for the first time,
correct.
>> Okay. If it passed in June
of 2021, why is it coming to us
now?
>> That is a great question. I
do not have the answer to that.
I was not here then, so I
really cannot answer that
question.
>> Okay, fair enough. All
right. Now, I read through the
bill, and if you'll correct me
on this, what I read is that
the bill provides a framework
for multiple entities to
participate. I did not see
anything in the bill that said
that it requires TCC
to be a part of the framework.
>> So my understanding is that
we need to develop a data
governance structure, and we
felt that it best
to get a consultant
to help us do that
in the most effective way.
With us embarking on the ERP
initiative, data governance is
a critical component of that.
As you know, data definitions,
access to data is critical. So
getting expertise to ensure we
do that whole process
correctly, we felt was very,
very important.
>> This is a
decision that's being made not
as a requirement of the bill.
Correct?
>> My understanding is,
based on how I've read it, that
it's a requirement that we do
a. That we do these things. Is
it requirement that we have a
consultant help us? That's not
a requirement, but it's a
requirement that we establish
these things and we want to
make sure we do them the best
we can, which is why we're
coming to you with this
recommendation.
>> Sure. And I can
understand the validity
of having a consultant as a
part of this. So request is for
202,000 and the $202,500.
Correct. What is the expected
cost if after the $200 to $500,
what is the expected cost
to the taxpayer were this
to be implemented based
on those findings
from the consultant?
>> At present, I'm not aware
of any additional costs beyond
our current operating costs
that we have. So there will be
no additional, to my knowledge,
consulting costs or other
costs. We do have to implement
the tools, et cetera. So there
may be things we have
to implement, but we need to
implement data governance.
There are some best practices
with an ERP and every other
piece of data that we do which
are just associated with that.
So as far as extra expenses
with this, I don't know that I
could equate any two,
but will there be expenses to
make sure we handle data
properly? Possibly, as we go
through this,
but handling data is, in my
opinion, a critical component
of campus operations, and
making sure we get that right
is often overlooked. And so I'm
very pleased to bring this to
the board because I do believe
that the ERP alone, without
handling data. Right. We're
really missing an opportunity.
>>Was this budgeted for in this
year's budget?
>> We are covering
it with this year's budget,
correct.
>> Okay. So it was a line item
in the budget.
>> We had funding for it.
Correct. We had funding for
it. We had to reallocate a
little bit of funding, but it's
been covered with that funding.
>> Okay. I think that it
would be important for us
to know the reallocation of
funds if this wasn't
specifically budgeted.
>> So we did have funding for
this, but I think, if I recall
correctly, that we did have
to relocate a little bit
of funds from something else.
But again, my understanding.
And again, I'm trying
to recall, but I do believe we
did have this budgeted for, but
I think it cost a little bit
more than we had planned.
>> Is this part of the overall
five year strategic it plan?
>> Yeah, this is part of the
technology plan. It's not
technically a five year
technology plan, it's a two
year technology plan.
But it is part of the
technology plan. Correct.
>>Is this time sensitive?
>> It's time sensitive in that,
we have an ERP initiative
which we all understand is
critical. And using data is
critical. And complying
with these requirements through
these assessments every two
years is critical. So from that
standpoint, I would say it is
time sensitive. Thank you.
>> Thank you for your questions.
Any other questions? If not,
we'll entertain a motion for
five b. Consideration. Approval
of professional consulting
services from Barry Dunn
in the amount of $202,500.
Okay, Doctor Morrison. 2nd
for Mister Hornsby. All in
favor, say aye? Any opposed?
>> I opposed simply
because I don't feel
like we have enough information
to make the accurate decision.
>>Thank you. No vote from Miss
Pritchett. Did you get that,
Mister Gates? Okay, thank you.
All right, we'll move on to six
a, which is consideration and
approval of individual action
items. Consideration. Approval
of the purchase
of Cisco desk phones
from General Data Tech LP
in the amount of $698,280.
Mister Krueger.
>> It is
recommended that the board
authorize the chancellor or the
chancellor's designee
to approve the purchase
of Cisco desk phones
from General Data Tech LPDD
in the amount
of $698,280. It plans
to replace 4000 phones
across the district by December
2026, which is contingent on
hardware availability. The
total requested cost includes
10% contingency funding
to cover any increases in
hardware costs. General data,
take LP was the lowest bidder.
>>Okay, thank you for that. Any
questions? Otherwise, we'll
entertain a motion.
>> I move approval.
>>Doctor Morrison moved approval
and Miss Wood second. All in
favor, say aye. Aye. Any
opposed? Okay, that motion
carries.
>> President Ayala?
I'm abstaining because I have a
professional relationship with
this organization.
>> We have one
abstention, Mister Gates. Did
you get that? Okay. Thank you,
Miss Pritchett. Okay. All
right. Item six b is
consideration and approval.
Sorry. Consideration and
approval of master agreement
with facility programming and
consulting for space
utilization consulting services
through August 31, 2026. And
that's Doctor Pamela Anglin.
>> Thank you. President Ayala,
Pam Anglin, chief financial
officer. President Ayala,
Chancellor LeBlanc and board
members. We're asking
for your approval tonight
on a master agreement with
facility programming and
consulting. And this is for
space utilization services.
We're asking that they be put
in our IDIQ pool for us
to be able to call when we need
space utilization services. As
we look at renovation of space
at relocating programs, this
firm would help us in making
sure we have adequate space to
meet the equipment needs and
the personnel needs in an area.
The IDIQ master agreement for
on call services provides us
the best value
for the district by pre
qualifying a single firm where
project assignments are
assigned based on a need and
schedule basis. So they have
provided us hourly rates that
they would charge us when we
call them and need their
services. We're asking
for a maximum spend authority
of $300,000. That's in
aggregate. And any one service
would that exceeded $100,000
would come back to the board
for approval.
>> Thank you, Doctor
Anglin, any questions on that?
We will entertain a motion.
Doctor Morrison, is that Mister
Hornsby? Okay. Second
by Mister Hornsby. All in favor
say aye. Any opposed? Okay.
That motion carries item six c,
which is consideration and
approval of a ratification of a
contract. Amendment number
three
with Weaver and Tidwell Lop to
provide construction auditing
services
for the 2019 bond program
for the FY 24 2nd renewal
option in the amount
of $50,031.
>> Thank you. In 2021,
the board authorized an annual
contract
for the construction auditing
by Weaver Tidwell and the
agreement that you approved of
for fiscal year 2024 totaled
$129,525. And that was for 785
hours as Weaver Tidwell got
into the audit. For last year,
we had so many projects going
on simultaneously that there
were more payment applications
coming in than had been planned
on. And so they had
to exceed that 785 hours
in order to be able
to audit all of the payment
applications. And they look at
every payment application that
comes in and they tie back,
ever charge in that to the
actual invoice. So it is
something that is labor
intensive. And so tonight we're
asking for your approval
of those additional hours of
work that total $50,031. And
you're being asked to ratify
the contract amendment number
three with Weaver and Tidwell
to provide construction
auditing services
for the 2019 bond program for
the fiscal year 24 2nd renewal
option in the amount of $50,031.
>> Thank you, Doctor
Anglin. There are no questions.
We'll entertain a motion, Miss
Pritchett. Second
by Mister Hornsby. All in favor
say aye. Aye. Any opposed?
Okay. That motion carries. 6d
is consideration. Approval
of the purchase agreements
for furniture and installation
for Northwest Campus buildings
Northwest Zero two and
Northwest Zero three
in support of the Northwest
Campus redevelopment project
with Blue Box 46,480 913 GL
Semen and Company, $655,587.12.
Intelligent Interiors, Inc.
$875,183.49 WRG Texas,
$1,080,336.81 and Wilson Bajas
for $693,600.75. And we have
some details here that you
provided to us to give us 6d
through c.
>> Yes, 6d through six.
Eight h is the material in your
board packet there. As you will
recall, during the work
session, we had broken these
out into five individual
approval recommendations, and
we've consolidated them
into one
for the Northwest campus and
one
for the southeast campus. And
to just go back a little bit,
these are projects that you
approved the budgets on right
after the initiation of the
bond project, Northwest
Construction. And tonight we're
talking about buildings
northwest zero two and
northwest zero three. And you
also approved
at that same time a budget for
the construction and renovation
at the southeast campus. So
these two next items were
included in those budget. And
tonight we're bringing back the
recommendations
for the furnishings for all of
these construction projects. So
first, on Northwest campus,
we're talking about phase two,
which is nwo two and nwo three.
And we're looking
at the furnishings for both
of those buildings. And
included
in the bid package that we put
out included 72 workstations,
26 classroom furnishings, art
and music studios, furnishing
those, which were five of those
two different learning commons
areas. And the total cost that
came in, and this is the low
bidders in each case, is
3,351,197 30. That's total bid
items of 145
in individual quantity items of
3360 items. We had seven
bidders that came in
for eleven in eleven different
categories. And we are asking
your approval to award bids to
five different vendors tonight.
This is a copy of the
spreadsheet that shows you the
magnitude
of the bids that came in. And
in each case, we've highlighted
the low bidder for that type of
furniture. And that comes back
to the recommendation that
we're making tonight that we
award to blue box bids for
tables and lounge chairs. And
that totals $46,489.13
to Gl semen company for marker
boards and classroom chairs.
655,580 712 two intelligent
interiors for sofas, poofs and
miscellaneous tables and
chairs, 875,183 49. And does
anyone need to know what a poof
is? It's a little ottoman. It's
an ottoman type. And they're
small and round. And here's a
picture of some. And you can
prop your feet on them. But
what we see most, and there's
some
in our suite area, people sit
on them. They make nice little
seats, but that's the poofs.
And then WRG Texas for
workstations, classroom tables
and storage items, 1,080,336
81. And
to Wilson Bauhaus interiors for
task chairs, library shelves
and tables and miscellaneous
tables, $693,600.75.
>> Thank you
for that, doctor Anglin. There
are no further questions. We'll
entertain a motion for item 6d.
Doctor Morrison, do you
want a second? Okay. Second
by Miss Deakyne. All in favor
say aye. Any opposed? Okay.
That motion carries. Well, item
six e, which is consideration,
approval
of purchase agreements
for furniture and installation
of Southeast campus buildings.
Se zero three, se zero four and
se zero five in support of the
Southeast Campus redevelopment
project with blue box of
$615,681.12 Intelligent
Interiors, Inc. For
$1,091,885.22 Metroplex
facility Services Loc
for $29,779.88 and Wilson
Baja's
for $2,274,849.26 and WRG Texas
for $2,508,497.29. And you have
additional item there in front
of you? Additional detail
from six I to six m.
>> Yes. Okay. On the
southeast campus, we have the
renovation of three buildings.
And so these will be the new
furnishings for all of these
three buildings. Workstations.
There were 257
in the bid, covering
furnishings for 55 classrooms
and two different learning
commons. The total cost
of the low bidders that came in
is 6,520,692. 77. That's 293
bid items and total quantity
of items of 5171 individual
items. And I didn't mention
earlier,
but the funds are available
in fund 90 for the furnishings.
And then we had ten bidders in
twelve different categories.
And we did select five vendors
again for this one. And you'll
see the bidders and the
different categories there, a
copy of the spreadsheet that
tallies all of the bids
from all of the different
vendors. And you'll see again
the highlighted vendors or the
low vendors in the categories
there. And then
in summary, five vendors
to blue box for computer
classroom tables and
miscellaneous tables. 615,680.
112 intelligent interiors
sofas, poofs and miscellaneous
tables and chairs, 1,091,885.
To metroplex facility services
for collaborative tables,
29,779 88. To Wilson Bauhaus
Interiors task chairs, marker
boards, exterior furniture and
miscellaneous tables and
chairs, 2,000,274 849 26. And
to WRG Texas for workstations,
classroom tables and library
furniture, 2,508,497 29.
>> Thank you. Any questions on
that?
>> Yes, I do have a comment.
Thank you for this
presentation. This is now the
third time that I have seen it,
and I am very impressed
with the attention to detail
and the line item descriptions
on every piece of furniture. I
will also comment that back in
July or August, I had a chance
to walk
through SEO one and seven down
at the southeast campus with
Doctor Bowen, and I think you
had been
on the ground just a couple
of weeks. So I spoke a lot with
the faculty and staff who were
occupying the space, and there
wasn't a single member of the
staff or faculty who, when I
asked questions
about how are you going to use
that? Or why is that there? Or
how would you use this in this
circumstance where they didn't
have an answer? It was all very
tightly connected
between purpose and piece
of furniture. To include the
poofs. We saw the poofs
in the. All of the student
collaboration spaces. And so.
So having had the opportunity
to walk through the space and
see how it has been executed
in some of our earlier projects
and then being able to see it
in this amount of detail
for the next phase of the
projects, I had a much greater
appreciation for the alignment
between purpose and how this
money is being spent. I would
love for somebody to inventory
my house this way and explain.
No, you need a, B and c because
they are directly aligned
to x, Y and z. So thank you
for all of that. Thank you.
>> Thank you for mentioning
that, trustee Deakyne. It's a
lot of effort that went
into that, so thank you
for that as well. To that
planning. Okay, six e. Do I
have a motion or questions?
So moved Miss Deakyne.
Second by Miss Wood. All in
favor, say aye. Any opposed?
Okay, that motion carries.
We'll move on to item six f,
which is consideration,
approval of ad local and ad
exhibit. Educational role,
mission, purpose and
responsibility, student success
policy. Doctor Pearson?
>>Good evening. Shelley Pearson,
Vice Chancellor and provost,
President Ayala, Chancellor
Leblanca and trustees. We are
recommending adoption of policy
Ad local, which is educational
role, purpose and
responsibility, and our student
success policy. Following in
the initial reviews, the
revisions that we've included
address the request
for clarity on measurable
outcomes. Also, it addresses
the sections. We've adjusted
the sections to be more
specific. Connect the
definition of student success
to college goals, mission value
and metrics. The first
sections, under student
success, we are outlining the
general commitment along
with a definition
of achievement and expectation
of evidence based decision
making and strategic resource
decisions. You can see that
with completion of degrees,
certificates and other
credentials of values. The
principals and measures section
provides the framework,
including the use of policies
and procedures, strategic
planning, organizational
structure and assessment
of targets and metrics. In the
last paragraph, we established
that we will measure student
success using specific key
performance indicators found in
our new strategic plan. And
finally, the policy sets
expectations
of regular reporting
to the board of trustees. So
with that, I'll entertain any
questions.
>> Questions?
>>Not pertaining to that. I
find the section. Oh, because
there's. There has been some
shuffling. Six f. Is it in the
original?
>> Okay, give me just a second.
second. Six half. Yes. It's
[CROSSTALK]
>> Any questions or
clarifications
for Doctor Pearson? Are we
ready to make a motion?
Okay, that's from
Mister Hornsby. We have a
second from Doctor
Morrison. All in?
>> Yes, we just need
to clarify that we're voting
on approval of the ad. Local
educational role, mission.
>> Right and responsibility.
Student success policy. Yes.
Okay, so we have a motion
for Mister Hornsby and a second
from Doctor Morrison. All in
favor say aye. Aye. Any
opposed? Okay, that motion
carries. Thank you for that.
Item six g, which is
consideration and approval of
the BAA local board, legal
status, power, duties and
responsibilities. Give us a
second here. I think it's 60
in your. In your updates. Six o
is in Oscar. Give us a second.
Go ahead. I'm
sorry, Antonio. President
Aiella. Chancellor Leblanc.
Board of trustees. As you know,
we are subscribers
of the Texas association of
School Boards policy manual
service. TASB provides model
local policies, which this
board adopts to a certain
extent. The board has the
ability to customize, make
additions, and in some cases,
craft whole new policy
to reflect the needs of our
institutions, so long as the
modifications or additions are
consistent
with laws and TASB guidance.
In September, we engaged TASB
to perform a review of all
of our policies in order to
determine what policies, if
any, deviate from the TASB
model. The TASB model policies,
and determine whether any
of those policies need to be
revised, modified, or
eliminated.
All right, perfect.
Thank you. So, prior to the on
site policy review, our TASB
consultant performed a
comprehensive review of each
of our local policies with the
TASB model policies and
provided us with comments and
historical modification and
update information to help
guide the review. The policy
review session occurred on
September 5 and 6th, and
involved members of the policy
review committee and the TASB
policy consultant reviewing and
discussing each policy. Doctor
Morrison took the time
to participate in a portion
of the policy review session in
which we discussed the BeE
policies, which cover local
governance, and we appreciate
her input. As a result of the
policy review session, we are
here today, or this evening
to provide recommendations for
b, policy modifications or
removal. Now, you received an
informational memo
from me which is listed
on the agenda under the
chancellor's report. Eight a
informational memo policy
review. I provided you the memo
to hopefully make your review
of the policies that we're not
asking you to act upon tonight
easier. However, the memo also
includes a summary of the
policies that you're being
asked to modify or remove
tonight. And it may be easier
to follow along using the
informational memo packet
because it includes the redline
version of the policies you
will be considering tonight.
>> Mister Allen, where is that?
You said it's eight a.
>> Eight a And that's
in the informational memo
in here? Yes, I think it's
in that. In the packet of
information. Yeah, it's got the
blue. Yeah, I'm sorry, I
should. Showing you. Yes. So
you should have a packet, and
it should have a blue page
on the front. And it starts
with six g. Six
through m. Six g through M.
>> Madam President?
Yes. Without knowing the.
What's the detriment if we
defer this to a future time for
more complete consideration and
understanding?
>> Okay. Is that Doctor
Morrison was asking if we could
have a little bit more time. Is
there something that's urgent
related to this, that we need
to get this particular item
approved tonight?
>> So they're all individual
action items. So six g through
six m. So you're being asked
to look at each individual item
and determine whether or not
you want to approve. So
obviously, if you want
to defer any particular item on
the list, you certainly have
that option.
>> So my request or
my motion is that we defer
consideration of this to a
future time that the board has
a proper forum for reviewing
and discussing them, not
answering all these questions
that are proposed about them,
their relevancy, etcetera.
>> So, if I can, Doctor
Morrison, so the packet that
you received includes, there
are only seven policies that
you're being asked to consider
tonight, and they are specific
policies with regard to
policies that are either we're
asking you
to remove a policy or
to adopt revisions
to policies, but there are only
seven. What you're referring
to in that packet that I
provided you, I provided you
with a summary of all of the
other policies that we're not
making any recommendations that
you. That you vote on those
policies. We're only asking you
to review those policies. And
so what that packet includes is
a copy of each one of those
policies. And they're broken
down into two groups
of policies. One group of
policies are policies that were
adopted by the board that are
not TASB policies, but they are
policies that were adopted by
this board. And we're just
asking you to review those
policies. And some of those
policies are policies that were
adopted years ago. There are
some, like might be 1998 right
there, some of those kind
of policies, but that doesn't
necessarily mean that those
policies are outdated. Just as
part of our process, we want
the board to review those
policies. And then there's a
second group of policies that
are actual TASB model policies
that this board has adopted.
And again, we're simply asking
the board to review those
policies, and that's why it's
in the informational memo. But
there are seven policies that
we're going to ask you
to consider tonight.
>> To Doctor
Morrison's point, there is not
any sort
of a time sensitive requirement
around doing this tonight. Is
that correct?
>> There's nothing
time sensitive, only to the
extent that we have some
policies that are outdated.
There are some processes that
our policies don't align with,
and those are the types of
policies that we're asking you
to consider tonight.
>> This memo
was provided to us tonight
where we have not had a chance
to thoroughly.
>> At the work
session, we actually reviewed
each of the policies that we
are going to ask you to
consider. So I understand those
were considered, those were
discussed at the work session.
>> So we're being asked
to just review right now
to provide feedback
on items six g through six m. I
believe there is a motion, I'm
just trying to get clear. Is
that what we're trying to do.
>> So, okay, if you look at
this informational memo, what
you have is first it goes
through and it summarizes seven
policies. Those seven policies
are listed
on your agenda as six g through
six m. Then it also lists some
additional policies which are
not on the agenda on the under
action items. Those are simply
policies that we discussed
last, during last week's
meeting that we talked about
the board reviewing. And so
what I provided
to you were copies of all
of those policies for you
to be able to review and then
some questions for you
to consider as you look
at those policies. So in terms
of the relevancy of the
policies, those policies, are
they still relevant, given that
some
of those policies have been
around for some time and have
not been changed
for some time?
But we're not asking you to
consider those policies
tonight. Only six, six g
through six m.So seven policies.
>> Okay. So to further
clarify, and those are good
questions that you provided the
key questions for us
to consider, and that was
handed to us tonight. So we've
not been able to review this in
a timely fashion, these
questions. That's what I'm
trying to clarify.
>> So the question
during the work session. Yes.
Okay. And the questions are
about the policies that we're
asking you to review,
not the policies for tonight.
>> Correct. I understand
that. I just was trying to
clarify, and even though I
wasn't here last week, I did
review the meeting, and I'm
still a little bit uncertain
with being handed this and the
shuffling of the papers. And so
I don't, I think the question
was asked and answered about
the time sensitivity, and it
doesn't sound like there is
time sensitivity. It's board
policies that we are reviewing,
but there is no particular need
that it has to be done tonight.
>>That is correct. And let me
a year ago, the board agreed
to create a cadence for review
of policy to get it up to date,
and we've been working
diligently to support that
effort. Is it urgent? No. All
right. So, yes, somebody else
had. Did you have a question?
No. Okay. You have a question.
>> I think we ought
to put this discussion. We
ought to discuss this further
and not act on this tonight. I
think we have. I have a four
inch thick notebook and a
memorandum. I received an email
this afternoon, plus another
packet of stuff. It's very
confusing and I think we need
to delay this to probably
to our workshop and discuss it
in a workshop environment. And
if it's appropriate, I'd like
to make a motion to do that.
>> Did you make the motion? Dr.
Morrison made the motion. Would
you be so generous as to say
yes?
Okay, so
we have a motion and we have a
second. And do you have a
question as well?
>> I have a point of
clarification.
The information
that we've received here
tonight is in this format
at our request at last week's
work session. So that's
to add additional context to
the additional information
outside of the motions that
were being requested this
evening. We wanted a fuller
context of what we were voting
on, what we were reviewing, and
what we were considering acting
on removing, versus just the
ones that we were being asked
to vote
on this evening. So thank you
for that information. That
added greater information, a
larger context. But it was at
the board's request.
>> It was certainly intended
to make it easier for the
review. So I apologize if it
made it more confusingapologize.
>> No, that's fine. So
Doctor Morrison, your motion is
to remove which item
specifically so that I can. All
of them. Six f
through six m or six g
through six g through six m. Is
that correct? Doctor Morrison?
>> Where there's an opportunity
for the board
to discuss and get clarity on
what's being considered. We
have no other forum where we
can share our concerns or
discuss, and I feel that's
needed. I think it's
to the benefit of the future of
the board.
>> Okay, so we have a
motion and we have a second
and. Oh, you have a comment?
>> I would just say I want
to emphasize your memorandum is
what we asked for. But
in trying to deal
with it, I think we're trying
to address two separate sets of
information. So it might be
helpful to redo this
in the process related
to what's included in six g
through. You did what we asked
you to. I want the record
to show that. But I agree with
Doctor Morrison's motion.
>> Okay, so we have a motion
in a second. So all in favor
of moving six g through six m
to another meeting, all in
favor say aye. Any opposed?
Okay, that motion carries.
Thank you for the information.
So we will
move on to item seven, which is
the monthly financial report.
Unless. Does anybody need a
break? Okay. Okay, go ahead.
>> Thank you. Pam Anglin,
chief financial officer,
president, Ayala Chancellor
LeBlanc, board
of trustees. We're going
to look
at the financial statement
for the end of September
of 2024. You'll notice on this
first slide that our revenues
for the month of September were
27,000,266, 374. And our
expenses for the month of
September were 60,000,897. So
we'll go a little bit deeper
and look at our revenues. I'll
remind you that state
appropriations payments. 50%
in October, 25%
in February, 25%
in June. So nothing in
September. And also just
February, we will get any
settle up because they provide
this year's appropriations
based on some estimates for the
spring term and summer. So
there will be a settle up,
either up or down in February,
but no state appropriations
for the month.
But you'll see there tax
revenue, the tuition, the non
credit funded tuition,
community service tuition,
every one of those. We were
above where we were last year.
We don't show any interest
income booked in the month of
September. Our interest income
comes in at the end
of the month and we book it
at the first of the next month,
same way last year. So the
comparison
of income this September to
last September is the same
items. And our revenue
at the end of this September
was 27.2 million. And that's
compared to 25.9 million one
year ago. So our revenue was up
$1.3 million. But a good start
to the. To the year. And then
on our expenses, you'll notice
there that total
of 60,896,567. And I will point
out that last line there for
total other operational and
capital. That includes the
transfers that we make each
year to our pay as you go
capital improvement plan budget
fund 40, and
to our technology budget
for refreshes of our
technology. So that complete
transfer was made
in September.
But our expenses last year at
this time, our expenses were
62.6 million and expenses are
60.9 million this September. So
we're 1.7 million less in
expenses. So a really good
start to the year. Up
in revenues, down a slight bit
in expenses. And I'll be glad
to answer any questions you
have in your board packets. The
detail on all of our expense
categories throughout the
entire.
>> Thank you, Doctor Anglin.
Any questions, clarifications?
Okay, we'll continue on. Thank
you very much.
>> And we have our quarterly
investment report tonight in
your package. You have our
monthly report, and you also
have the quarterly report. And
we have Mallory Sampson
from PFM Asset Management here
to provide you the quarterly
investment report.
>> Thank you, doctor England.
Good evening. President Ayala,
Chancellor Leblanc, board
of trustees. Mallory Sampson
with PFM. Thanks for having me
today.
>> Good evening.
>> Mallory Sampson?
>> Thank you for joining us.
>> Yeah, thank you for having
us.
>> Thank you. Could you raise
the mic a little bit, please?
>> Very tall. Let's see. How's
that for everybody?
That's much better.
Okay,
so I'm going to go over a brief
market update, and then we'll
touch
on overall performance. Happy
to address any questions that
the group may have. So we've
entered
into a soft landing, largely in
the us economy. If you take a
look in the top right hand
corner, you'll see that
inflation is looking more
positive. It is moderating. Our
labor market is also softening,
which is what the Federal
Reserve is looking for
to trigger their cut of 50
basis points that they began
last month. You'll see consumer
spending is coming
down slightly. We're seeing
that
in the lower income cohort. But
overall, slightly positive
economic growth in the US. In
the US and globally, political
risks continue to stay
negative. The overall economic
figures which are coming in are
largely positive. However, with
geopolitical events that could
cause a shock to the system
with potential volatility. If
we dig a little bit deeper,
we'll take a look
at inflation. On the left hand
side, you'll see that steep
curve that we've come down.
August CPI was two and a half.
The September number was 2.4.
So we're continuing
to get closer
to that 2% target of the Fed.
On the right, you'll see where
that inflation is coming from.
Shelter is still pushing up
inflation. It's a lagging
indicator. The energy has been
pushing down overall inflation.
If we talk a little bit
about the labor market, on the
left, you'll see the
unemployment rate. It's
actually ticked up
above 4%. 1st time in a couple
years. The September number is
4.1. The August number was 4.3.
The Federal Reserve is looking
for 4.4 for next year. At the
same time that unemployment is
ticking up, you'll see the
labor force participation rate
is also back to pre pandemic
levels. Normally that's
about 63%. So we are in a pre
Covid environment specifically
for the participation rate. On
the left hand side, you'll see
the difference between job
openings and unemployed
workers. During the pandemic,
I'm sure you read about how
there were two unemployed,
there were two job openings.
For every one person looking,
you can see that gap there
on the left. That gap has come
down to about a one to one
ratio. That's what we want
to see on the right hand side,
it's very busy. But what
they're telling you is the
monthly change in payroll. So
the jobs created each month,
this time last year, those
numbers were in the mid
to high 200,000. And in the
last several months, those
numbers have come down
slightly. That's a great way to
see how that labor market is
starting to soften. And really,
that's what the Federal Reserve
has been looking for. This next
page is, again, also a little
busy. But what they're telling
us here is each member of the
Fed is predicting their future
cuts. So while this is a point
in time and this will change,
it's showing you that long term
trend of reducing
Interest rates moving forward.
Like I said, we saw a 50 basis
point cut in September. Right
now, the market's pricing
in a 90% chance
of a 25 basis point cut in
November, and then a 75% chance
of another 25 basis point
in December. And we'll talk
about how that pertains to your
overall portfolios. Last page
before we talk about
performance. This is the yield
curve. You guys have seen this
before. The big takeaway here
is if you take a look at those,
that light blue range, you can
see how volatile the fixed
income market has been
over the last year with the
Federal Reserve increasing
interest rates and now starting
to bring them down. The
takeaway here for you is on the
far left. Those short term
fixed income securities are
still paying a very high
interest rate despite that 50
basis point cut. And then you
can see the longer term
securities are pricing
in that future state of
interest rates coming in. Just
as a reminder, your portfolio's
a large part is on the very,
very short end, and then the
remaining is within that one to
five year range. And so we'll
see this translated in some
of the yields coming up on the
next page. So, just as a
reminder, all
of your portfolios are managed
in compliance with the Public
Funds Investment act and your
investment policy statement.
In general, when you're looking
at your assets, you can break
them into three buckets. That
top bucket are pools
for immediate need. So think
of them like a money market.
They're local government
investment pools. They're very
short term securities.
Overnight, you have access to
them immediately. And because
they're such short term
securities, they're paying a
very high yield. If you take a
look at the top, it's 5.38,
very high. For those short term
securities, the next third of
your portfolio is your core
portfolio. And every year we
run
through a cash flow analysis
with your team. And those are
assets that you don't need
today, but they're still liquid
because you don't need them
today. They're invested
slightly out
in longer term securities
within that one
to five year range. If you look
at the yield, you'll see that
yield is slightly lower than
the pools for cash. And if you
remember, we saw that yield
curve, those super short term
securities were paying the
most. So that's kind
of that 2nd third of your
portfolio, and then the last
third is your 2022 bond
proceeds. And those are
invested based off of your
construction spend timeline. So
as interest rates start to come
down, what does that mean for
your portfolios? How do we
think these numbers are going
to change let's focus
on the pools for cash and then
your core portfolios. So, as a
reminder, those pools for cash,
as interest rates start to come
down, because they're such
short term products, that yield
is going
to come down. So we'll start
to see that 5.38 number come
down and your core portfolio,
the core portfolio liquidity
buffer, and that core
portfolio, because they're
slightly longer term
securities, we've locked
in rates for slightly longer
than overnight. Right? One
year, two years, maybe five
years. And so they'll hold on
to those fixed income products
a little bit longer, and that
higher coupon payment will
benefit. Now, as interest rates
come down, your yield on your
pools will come down. The new
bonds will be issued, which
will be paying lower coupon
payments. So the older bonds
that you guys have in your core
portfolio, they will be worth
more because they're paying
that old higher rate. The
impact and what you will see is
that your market value, the
value of those longer term
securities is going
to go up because they're going
to be worth more. So to kind of
wrap it up, if I have hopefully
not confused you all and put
you all to sleep, as those
interest rates continue
to come down, the yield
on the short term is going
to come down a little bit. That
longer term is going
to stay elevated, but will
gradually come down, and then
the overall value of those
underlying securities will go
up. Let me pause, and I'm happy
to take any questions that the
group has.
>> Any questions?
>> That's the completion of
our prepared remarks. Thank you
very much.
>> Thank you so much.
Appreciate it.
>> Mallory, I'm going
to drop this down for the next.
Okay. Thank you.
>> Okay. Thank you. Okay, we
have the chancellor's report,
information memo, policy
review, which we've already
discussed, eight b, which is
the campus accolades, and then
chancellor's activities. Yeah,
we already discussed that
earlier. Okay. Closed session.
Okay. So the board will conduct
a closed meeting in order
to discuss matters permitted
by the following sections
of chapter 551 of the Texas
Government Code, consultation
with attorney, deliberations
regarding real property,
deliberations on personnel
matters, deliberations on
security devices or security
audits, and the board may
reconvene
in an open session and act
on any of the items listed in
the executive agenda. Executive
session agenda in accordance
with chapter 551 of the Texas
government Code. Thank you.
[CLOSED SESSION]
>> The board will now reconvene
in open session. And the board
is taking no action as a result
of the closed session. We are
now adjourned. Thank you