LAREDO COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT

Laredo, Texas

The regular meeting of the Laredo Community College Board of Trustees convened on Thursday,

January 22, 2009, beginning at 6:03 p.m. in the Samuel A. Meyer Board Room Laird Hall 124

of the Fort McIntosh Campus.

	MEMBERS PRESENT	OTHERS
ROLL CALL	Pete Saenz, Jr., President Cynthia Mares, Vice President Belinda Guerra, Secretary Hilario Cavazos, III Leonides G. Cigarroa, Jr. Rene De La Viña Mercurio Martinez, Jr. (arrived at 6:40 p.m.) James McCarry, Ex-officio MEMBERS ABSENT Carlos Carranco, Jr.	Juan L. Maldonado Eleazar Gonzalez Daniel Flores, Jr. Federico Solis, Jr. George Meurer, College Attorney Ray Cortez Phil Worley Fernando Prince Juan Garza, CPA for J. Clayton Baum
	Edward C. Sherwood
CALL TO ORDER	Mr. Saenz called the meeting to order. Ms. Guerra called the roll. A quorum of the members was present.
MINUTES	Mr. De La Viña made a motion to approve the minutes of December 18, 2008, as presented. The motion was seconded by Ms. Guerra; the motion carried.
PUBLIC TESTIMONY	Dr. Maldonado, President, indicated no one signed up for public testimony.
COMMUNICATIONS/ INTRODUCTIONS/ RECOGNITIONS	Dr. Maldonado reported on the following: Enrollment for Spring 2009, introduced the student representative and new employees, acknowledged the report from the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts - Susan Combs, thanked the Board for their support and guidance (re: Board Members’ Month) and reminded the Board about the grand opening of the Light Manufacturing Institute for Thursday, January 29, 2009, at 10:00 a.m. Mr. De La Viña wished Board members a Happy Board Members’ Month, as well as LISD and UISD board members. Mr. Cavazos thanked Mr. De La Viña and Mr. Martinez for their support during the death of his uncle. He also noted the LCC art students appeared on the front page of the Laredo Morning Times.
FACULTY ASSEMBLY REPORT	Mr. McCarry reported the Faculty Assembly met during convocation activities and discussed the policies regarding the drug testing and background check. He indicated he does not have a report at this time. He mentioned Dr. Maldonado agreed to schedule town hall meetings to discuss these issues. In regards to the tenure issue, he mentioned the Assembly passed a resolution in support of tenure for counselors and librarians. He mentioned another issue that came up was the fact that the number of full-time faculty had decreased. Although enrollment had increased by 8 or 9 percent, the College is not successfully recruiting and retaining faculty for the next generation.
CAMPUS POLICE REPORT	Dr. Maldonado mentioned this item was requested by Mr. De La Viña pertaining to concerns on safety issues and the number of staff in this area. Chief Ray Cortez distributed and reviewed the January 2008 Laredo Community College Police Department brochure – Your Safety and Security. He noted the LCC officers are vested with all the powers, privileges and immunities of peace officers under education code 51.203. The department has 40 fully marked automobiles and bicycles and a dispatch center and works closely with the local and federal law enforcement agencies. The College has a campus emergency notification system to send messages via email, telephone and cell phone numbers. The staff is sufficient with an adequate overtime budget. Each campus has 10 officers assigned to various shifts with an additional staff of six part-time police aids to assist with parking management. Chief Cortez reviewed the regular and overtime budget. He mentioned the Campus Police Office was audited in June 2008 by the Texas Department of Public Safety and was found to be in full compliance with all requirements.
REMEDIAL COURSES AND ALIGNMENT OF CURRICULUM REPORT	Mr. De La Viña mentioned he placed this item to address the fact that high school students do not pass the college entrance exams and his concern that the developmental courses use up the students’ financial aid. Mr. Saenz asked that the record reflect that Judge Martinez joined the meeting at 6: 40 p.m. Mr. Phil Worley, Dean or Arts & Humanities and Dr. Fernando Prince, Dean of Sciences, presented the following: · Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board remediation mandates, · Percentages of First Time in College Students utilization of remedial courses, and · LCC initiatives and collaborations with the Council on Educational Excellence (CEE) P-16 toward curriculum alignment. This item was presented for information only.
PROGRAM/POLICY COMMITTEE LCC DRUG AND ALCOHOL POLICY DRAFT	Ms. Guerra reported this item was a work-in-progress draft. Dr. Maldonado mentioned the College does have a policy in place, but it lacks procedures for its implementation. He indicated he’d scheduled two town hall meetings next week to seek input that would result in a consensual agreement of the final document. Discussion followed. Ms. Guerra suggested that it be presented in March to the Program and Policy Committee. This item was presented for information only.
LCC reFERENCE AND BACKGROUND CHECK POLICY DRAFT	Mr. Gonzalez reported this policy shared similarities with the previous policy discussed. The purpose of this policy is to address situations that have occurred where based on the sensitivity or type of work required by that position it may be necessary to require a reference or background check for new employees or current employees who apply for that position. Discussion followed. Mr. Gonzalez indicated this draft will be presented via the Campus Assembly for review of the draft. This item was presented for information only.
REVISIONS TO DH (EXHIBIT) EMPLOYEE STANDARDS OF CONDUCT	Dr. Maldonado mentioned the current exhibit addressed faculty only. The revision to this exhibit was to include all employees. The exhibit is part of the policy and does not require Board approval, but he wanted to keep the practice of informing the Board of the revisions. He mentioned he did share the draft with all employees and received minimal feedback that consisted of editorial and grammatical recommendations. No action needed.
Finance & Audit Committee fy 2008 annual audited Financial report	Mr. Martinez requested that Mr. Flores provide the percentage of the FY 2008 fund balance to emphasize the financial stability of the College. Mr. Flores indicated the fund balance was 25.8 % of budget. Mr. Juan Jose Garza, Accountant for J. Clayton Baum, CPA reported the audit was conducted in three areas that included the financial, internal control and compliance in accordance to OMB Circular A-133. The audit report indicated the institution is in compliance with all requirements. During the February 2009 Board meeting, they will provide the Board with the Letter to Management. Mr. Martinez moved to acknowledge receipt of the unqualified audited report as presented by the staff and firm of Mr. J. Clayton Baum. Mr. Cavazos seconded the motion; motion carried.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT	The President’s Report was provided for information purposes.
NEXT MEETING DATE	The next meeting date was tentatively set for Thursday, February 26, 2009, at LCC South.
ADJOURNMENT	At 7:55 p.m., Ms. Mares made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Martinez seconded the motion; motion carried.