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November 9, 2022 Meeting of the Governing Board...
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Good evening, and welcome to the
November 9, Wednesday, regular meeting of the Board of Governors for
Pima Community College. I'd like now to call this meeting to order.
This is a hybrid meeting being recorded and live-streamed on
PCCTV. Thank you, PCCTV and crew.
Welcome to this meeting. Welcome, Pima family, board members,
staff, faculty, administrators, Chancellor Lambert, and most
especially to our students to whom everything we do is focused.
The first item on the agenda, Mr. Silvyn, can you take a roll
call?
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: Yes, I'd be glad to.
Mr. Clinco?
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: Here.
>> DR. MEREDITH HAY: Here.
>> MR. LUIS GONZALES: Here.
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: Here.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Here.
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: All board members are present.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you, Mr. Silvyn. At this time
I'd like those who are able to rise if possible and join us in the
Pledge of Allegiance.
Chancellor, can you please lead us.
(Pledge of Allegiance.)
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you, Chancellor.
First of all, I'd like to make a few remarks to welcome us to
this meeting. As you all know, midterm elections were held
yesterday. A lot of votes are still coming in, and we are waiting
with baited breath on a few of those.
This board will soon welcome two new members. I think that it's
important for us to remember that despite the hard-fought political
campaigns that unfortunately became very personal, all of us here
tonight must not lose sight of what the taxpayers and voters of Pima
County expect of us.
Given the current economic situation, the abysmal high school
graduation rate, and decline in college enrollment across the nation,
and the need for employers to find a skilled workforce they need to
be competitive, our community needs Pima to be focused and strong
like never before.
Fortunately, despite the baseless and unfounded rhetoric, Pima is
in a good place. The data shows it. Our finances are strong. Our
enrollment is up 9%. We just opened a new $21 million expanded
aviation center and a $35 million advanced manufacturing center which
will open next year.
Enrollment in our new IT cybersecurity center has tripled with
students clamoring to get in. Our automotive center of excellence
provides state-of-the-art training. Students will not just aspire to
know how to change oil. They will have a head start to designing
their own future automobiles perhaps and running their own companies.
They deserve state-of-the-art, even if they can't afford the tens of
thousands of dollars to go to a four-year university.
Bringing back day care centers, I want to mention that again,
free, by the way, to students who qualify is a huge start in reaching
every student that desires an education.
Our new Fast Track programs are meeting the needs of students who
needs workforce credentials quickly and the manufacturers who
desperately need skilled workers. Tens of thousands of jobs remain
unfulfilled right here in Arizona.
Pima Community College has quickly pivoted from mostly in-person
classes to offering a healthy mix of in-person, online, and hybrid
formats that are meeting students where they are, when they need it,
and in the learning format that they desire. This is really
important.
Compared to other community colleges in the state and nationwide,
Pima has a strong foundation in place to continue to innovate and
make higher education more accessible and affordable to all. That's
the goal.
Over the past six years, folks like Demion Clinco, Meredith Hay,
Sylvia Lee, Chancellor Lambert and the Pima Foundation, had the
foresight long ago and fortitude to dream big. Now it's being
realized.
So let's put our political differences and personal agendas
aside, please, and do the work that our students, our community, and
our taxpayers expect us to do. The mean-spirited personal attacks
must stop, and we must move forward for the sake of our students, I
beg of you. They expect us to act professionally, to act in the
interest of the college and the community as a whole, to continue to
press for innovation and change even when that makes some of us
uncomfortable at times. And most importantly offer programs,
facilities, and initiatives that move our community forward and truly
change people's lives.
Thank you so much for indulging me in those welcoming remarks.
With that, I'd like to go to our first order of business, which
is the public comment or call to the audience.
Just as a reminder, the Pima Community College Governing Board
welcomes public comment on issues within the jurisdiction of the
college. Generally the total time for public comment will be limited
to 45 minutes, and comments will be limited to 3 minutes per
individual.
These time limits may be modified by the board chair or board.
Individuals sharing comments are expected to communicate with decorum
and respect. Individuals who engage in disorderly conduct or who use
derisive or insulting language may have their time reduced or
concluded by the board chair.
At the conclusion of public comment, individual board members may
respond to criticism made by those addressed to the board, may ask
staff to review a matter, or may ask that a matter be put on a future
agenda.
Members of the board, however, may not discuss or take legal
action on matters raised during public comment unless the matters are
properly noticed for discussion and legal action.
Finally, please be advised that internal college processes are
available to students and employees for communication that includes
complaints.
So thank you very much. And with that, our first call to the
audience is Ms. Makyla Hays.
>> MAKYLA HAYS: Good evening, board members, Chancellor,
colleagues and guests. My name is Makyla Mays. I serve as PCCEA
president, AERC co-chair, and math faculty.
Tonight I'd like to focus my comments on agenda item 5.5
regarding HLC Criterion 2. I appreciate the board taking a look at
how to improve transparency and communication as well as
accountability.
There's a suggestion for the first point regarding board members'
use of resources that would require board members to submit requests
to pull agenda items from the consent agenda, along with their
reasoning and request for further information, the Sunday night prior
to a board meeting.
While I understand the justification behind the suggestion, I'd
ask the board to consider making it a general guideline rather than a
hard-and-fast rule. At the moment, the board has the freedom to move
consent agenda items to the action items section or even table items
during the meeting. I'd request that you retain the ability to stay
reactive to information as you receive it, for example, from public
comment, at your meeting.
Under the transparency point in the same document, a suggestion
was made for senior leadership to document meetings with stakeholders
for the board. I believe such a report would be more informative for
the board if additional documentation were included, such as a note
from constituency groups regarding the progress made at those
meetings or alternative proposals where appropriate.
This structure of accountability would be a motivator for
transparency for all involved. Good policy should not be
person-dependent, and creating built-in accountability in a system
isn't just statement of trust or mistrust in any one person but about
communicating the values of the board.
One such example of the number of meetings falling short of
representing the whole story is the recent classification and
compensation study. Knowing the number of meetings that occurred
with employees does not give the board a clear picture of who was
part of the conversation, what level of input those employees had, or
the transparency of the process to the rest of the institution.
A note from the constituency groups as updates were presented
throughout the process or before new salary schedules were voted on
would have been informative for board members.
AERC is currently working with HR and finance to determine how to
move forward with the newly implemented salary schedules. This
process has involved mostly AERC questions about the current schedule
being answered so far, but for at least faculty, discussions are
starting to focus on what types of changes can be made to address
outstanding concerns.
AERC is also working with legal to review AP 1.25.01 which
outlines the Meet and Confer process for policy changes, including
our compensation-based Meet and Confer process. These conversations
are an effort to ensure that employees and administration have a
shared understanding of who should be involved in policy or
compensation changes for employees. However, this isn't the same as
addressing the fact that substantial changes to compensation did
occur last year, contrary to the intention of the AP.
The heart of the matter is this: Employees have an HLC and PCC
policy recognized voice at the table in shared governance. The board
is the body responsible for ensuring that administration respects the
shared governance roles of employees. There are many initiatives at
the college in which shared governance is respected, and we believe
that the college is a better place as a result for both students and
employees. PCCEA asked the board to implement thoughtful processes
to verify the correct stakeholders are meaningfully involved in such
conversation.
Thank you.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you very much.
Next is Mr. Richard Hernandez. Next call to the audience, public
comment, Mr. Richard Hernandez. Are you there?
>> Good evening, Pima College family. I want to congratulate
Theresa Riel. She has knocked on thousands of doors. She's probably
been to your home. She spoke to you about her vision. She is
concerned about the No. 1 reason Pima College exists. It is its
students.
I would be remiss if I took the position that the chair just
declared. This has been not a nice event. I have been attacked by
Demion Clinco and the chair, and I need to speak to it. What I want
to tell you, Pima College family, is thank you for your votes. Thank
you for caring about our students. That is the only reason Pima
College exists.
It is time to fire the chancellor and many on his team to include
Silvyn, Davis, Bea, Burdick, and others. Why, you might ask
yourself? Because they have not served our students.
It is time to move forward. It is time to make decisions where
the only thing that matters is the student. Clearly, and I mean
absolutely clearly, that has not been the case for a number of years.
And to you, Demion Clinco, I will continue to move forward with
my complaint to the attorney general's office. I have reason to
believe, for many years, you have not lived in the residence that you
claim, and we will let the legal process work out those differences.
Quite frankly, I am thrilled to be here with you today, because I
believe we are going to refocus. I know the magic in education is
between teachers or faculty and students. Not administration. And
the last four to eight years the emphasis has been special interests,
big money, business, everything but my students.
In my community in the Sunnyside area, we have been neglected.
We have been abused. We have misused millions of dollars. I look
forward to the new changes, and I am hopeful that we will get back on
track so that the only reason this college exists is our students.
That should be our only focus. For those of you who have
(indiscernible) us in the community, I'm calling you out.
Thank you for hearing me this evening. Thank you, the Pima
College family, for voting in new leaders. Hopefully with a new
chancellor, we can get on with the business of education and help our
youth, our students in Pima County's community college. It's your
school. It does not belong to this administration. It belongs to
you and me and all of us who love this place.
Thank you for your vote. Again, Theresa, I assume you're on
somewhere. Congratulations. I know you worked endless hours,
probably put in a thousand miles, not to mention costs. You had a
typical David-and-Goliath election. You had someone with $150,000,
and you had just a kind heart, your love for the school, your good
intentions, and that will...
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you very much for your time. You
have gone 20 seconds over. Thank you very much. We need to move on.
Thank you.
Next item is board recognition. One of the things I'd like to
personally recognize is the fact that one of our board members who
served for six years is now at the end of her term.
Dr. Meredith Hay, you have served beautifully, wonderfully, and
loyally for six years. On behalf of the board, thank you for your
service, thank you for your undying loyalty to this school, and all
of your time and efforts and love for this community.
We really truly appreciate everything you have done, and we wish
you all the best in wherever life takes you next.
(Applause.)
>> DR. MEREDITH HAY: Thank you. It's been my honor. Thank you
so much.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Next I'd like to turn it over I believe
to Dr. Dor�. We have a lot of other people to congratulate and award
and recognize at this time.
>> DR. DOR�: Thank you, Board Chair Ripley, members of the
Governing Board, Chancellor, colleagues, students, guests.
So it is our honor to recognize, the board this evening is
recognizing students and employees for their contributions and to
really acknowledge their accomplishments.
So I will start with the students. We have one student to honor
this evening, and that is Mr. Webster Rose. Webster received the
2021 Excellence in eLearning, Outstanding eLearner Student Award from
the Instructional Technology Council. Congratulations to Webster.
Our next category is our employees. We have a number of
employees. We will start with Ms. Stacy Naughton, who completed the
Six Sigma Green Belt Certification from Troy University.
Next is our provost, Dr. Dolores Duran-Cerda, who was selected as
Alumna of the Year by the College of Humanities at the University of
Arizona.
Next is Mr. Kevin Startt who earned the 2022 Achievement of
Excellence in Procurement Award from the National Procurement
Institute.
Ms. Jennifer Moore also earned the 2022 Achievement of Excellence
in Procurement from the National Procurement Institute.
Ms. Carol Quintana earned the 2022 Achievement of Excellence in
Procurement Award from the National Procurement Institute.
Ms. Jennifer Barnett also earned the 2022 Achievement of
Excellence in Procurement Award.
Ms. Stephanie Weatherly also earned the 2022 Achievement of
Excellence in Procurement Award.
Mr. Charles Ebunoha received the 2022 Achievement of Excellence
in Procurement Award.
Ms. Jodie Valenzuela earned the 2022 Achievement of Excellence in
Procurement Award as well.
Ms. Gracie Dominguez earned the 2022 Achievement of Excellence in
Procurement Award as well.
Ms. Nereyda Barrales received the 2022 Achievement of Excellence
in Procurement Award.
Ms. Kim Rowe also received the Excellence in Procurement Award.
Ms. Delso Bosquez received the 2022 Achievement of Excellence in
Procurement Award.
Mr. Terry Robinson received the 2022 Achievement of Excellence in
Procurement Award.
Congratulations to all of our procurement specialists.
Next is Mr. Stephen Ebel who was recognized as a 2022 eLumeneer
of the Year. Congratulations.
Mr. James Johnson received a Certificate of Graduation from the
APPA Institute of Facilities and Management.
Mr. Robert Leon received his B1 Residential Building
Certification from International Code Council.
Ms. Vanessa Moon became a Fire Inspector 1 and Code Enforcement
Official from the Arizona Center for Fire Service Excellence. Also
became a Food Processing Authority from the Association of Food and
Drug Officials.
Ms. Donovan Bean received the Automotive Service Excellence G1
Certification.
Ms. Charlie McConnell received a Specialization Certificate in
Construction Procurement from the Institute for Public Procurement.
Kayla Shaw received the Instructional Technology Council Award
for Outstanding eLearning Course Digital Media Producer.
Mr. Francisco Reynoso received the Instructional Technology
Council Award for Outstanding eLearning Course as the Lead Web
Designer.
Ms. Kimlisa Salazar Duchicela was recognized as a Distinguished
Educator by the Instructional Technology Council.
Mr. Maria Diaz De Sandy was recognized by the Instructional
Technology Council for contributing to the Outstanding eLearning
course CUL 130.
Mr. Tom Tenney received the 2022 Educause Horizon Report for
implementing the Associate Instructional Design Academy.
Mr. T. Adam Baldry was recognized for his interactive video "Play
Posit Interactive Video Patient Simulations" being published in a
journal by the Department of Pharmacy Practice and Science.
Mr. Reed Dickson received the D2L Excellence Award for its
innovation use of D2L as a conference platform.
Ms. Olga Chumakova received the Instructional Technology Council
Award for outstanding eCourse CUL 130 Instructional Designer.
Ms. Vi Hawes published a piece on World Education's EdTech Hub
"Building on a Pilot HyFlex ESOL Class at Pima Community College."
Finally, Ms. Libby Howell received the Public Relations Society
of America Southwest Region's 2022 PR Professional of the Year.
Please join me in recognizing all of our awardees this evening.
(Applause.)
>> DR. DOR�: Thank you, Board Chair. Back to you.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you so much, Dr. Dor�. This is
an exciting time, and it's always a pleasure and a lot of fun to
award and recognize good work. And there are so many out there.
Thanks a lot. Saving to the end, I do also want to state that we
are sadly looking at Board Member Clinco's last and final months on
the board, and I just wanted to recognize personally as well all of
the stuff he's been doing for the last six years, before well I got
on the board. A lot of what you see that's happening today with our
centers of excellence and with all of the innovative things that have
been seen to the end and are in process that Chancellor Lambert is
putting into process is all due in part to a lot of the work and
championing that Demion has done at the school and within the
community, and his outreach is amazing.
You ran an excellent race, and I want to applaud you for running
a very clean race, void of mud slinging, and it was positive. Thank
you for leading the way.
Yeah, I just wanted to say thank you and farewell.
(Applause.)
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: With that -- okay. We have the
recognition of student artwork chosen for -- this is a fun one.
Student artwork was chosen by the board for this year's holiday
greeting card. There were a lot more this year, a lot of entries for
the holiday card.
We are happy to announce that the student that won the contest
-- and it was really hard, I have to say. They were all amazing,
like really, really hard to choose, but Ireland Scott. Your card is
going to have Pima Community College on the inside, and kudos to Jeff
Lowry, the instructor. The art department is fantastic. It's
wonderful.
Do we have a picture? You'll see it. You'll get it in the mail.
It's going to be a surprise. You can't see it yet. Yeah.
Some of them were absolutely adorable. Some brought me to tears.
Some were just gorgeous, you know, beauty for the sake of beauty.
Thank you, art department. It was truly hard but a joy to look
through those.
With that, next action item is 1.5, Pima's Mission Moment. I
will turn it over to the chancellor for that.
>> DR. LEE LAMBERT: Madam Chair, I'd like to first start out by
quoting our mission, "Empower every learner every day for every
goal."
So that frames our Mission Moment. I would ask Dean Greg Wilson
to join us to introduce a video highlighting some of our students at
our recent aviation ribbon cutting.
Greg?
>> GREG WILSON: Thank you, Chancellor Lambert. Chair Ripley,
members of the board, colleagues, students, guests, Chancellor
Lambert. Thank you to everybody who was able to participate in the
ribbon cutting that took place for aviation on Thursday, October 20.
A lot of folks worked really hard to make this happen. The video
we are about to show features Suzie Roy, an aviation student who was
our featured student speaker at the event.
We will take it away from there, and I will give you detail about
what we have been doing since the ribbon cutting.
(Video.)
>> It's been a bumpy ride for Suzanne Roy. Two years ago, COVID
brought Suzanne's career as an opera singer to a screeching halt.
>> I had found that I lost my love for performing. I said I have
to do something else. I have to do it.
>> She picked up her father's tools and fixed her broken car.
That led to tires, wires, and sheet metal.
Taking a 180 from singing, Suzanne's working towards a
certificate as an aviation technician at Pima Community College.
>> Coming here, I was just hooked. Not all A&P schools have jet
aircraft. We are actually very lucky that we have the number of jet
aircraft that we do.
>> Adding to Suzanne's luck, she and her fellow students will now
be able to take advantage of a much bigger classroom to the tune of
87,000 square feet.
>> 3, 2, 1. Cut.
>> The PCC Aviation Technology Center unveiled a spectacular
addition of a second hangar.
>> The biggest thing for me is the space and the rooms. We are
not stepping on each other anymore.
>> The $21 million structure located at the Tucson International
Airport also comes with a grandiose 727 jet aircraft donated by
Federal Express for the students to practice on.
Workers with the company Ascent Aviation Services donated over a
thousand hours of labor and all the materials to give it a custom
paint job
>> This is a very special day for me. Okay, to the students, I'm
jealous. I never had anything growing up in this industry or when I
went to school that was anywhere near this.
>> This state-of-the-art facility will double the center's
enrollment. Students are offered top-notch training to become the
cream of the crop when entering the workforce.
For Suzanne Roy, clenching a certificate that might lead to a
high-demand job is music to her ears.
>> These facilities are just going to be able to train people
just to even be, you know, head and shoulders above the competition.
>> If you're interested in learning more about PCC's aviation
program, visit pima.edu/aviation.
(End of video.)
>> GREG WILSON: So this morning, we had our aviation advisory,
and so we got another chance to thank all of our partners. Just
wanted to give an update so you know what we are doing in the new
space.
As was mentioned in the video, the space allows us to double the
size of our program, and as of today, we are serving 120 students in
the day program and 50 students through JTED at night. So we are
currently serving seven cohorts. When you look to spring of '23 what
will be increasing to nine cohorts, and also adding a night cohort
which we have not done before.
Then we will also be starting an NDT, nondestructive testing
program in the fall. We are moving full speed ahead with using the
space that we have. Also an update that occurred, you know, you talk
about our programs and why they matter to our students. One of the
employers this morning shared that, you know, we are looking for
aviation technicians and paying $32 an hour. That includes a $5,000
stipend for tools, and for those that are moving, it also includes
$10,000 in relocation fees.
The programs that we prepare, you know, when students come to our
programs and we prepare them for industry, there are rewarding
careers ahead of them. We are just very thankful to have the space.
I want to thank director of aviation Jason Bowersock, faculty lead
Charlie Cook, and the entire aviation team for the fantastic work
that they have been doing.
Thanks for your time.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you so much, Greg. Thank you,
Chancellor. It was indeed an incredibly impressive display at the
ribbon cutting. It looked like you could probably eat off the floor.
It was just beautiful. But the biggest takeaway I got was
talking to some of the students that were there. A lot of the
students that were there wore their shirts proudly. So many of them
already have been reached by employers, not just locally but across
the country.
So they are in demand. I'm telling you, these students are
amazing. They are already getting recruited. So thank you so much.
If you haven't been there, please visit. It's a beautiful site.
Again, state-of-the-art. We are really proud of it.
Thanks, Greg.
Next on the agenda is item 2.1, administrative reports from our
administration. So with that, I would like to turn it over to the
chancellor to introduce our admin reports.
>> DR. LEE LAMBERT: Madam Chair, I would respectfully ask that
we table two of the items that are slated for presentation this
evening. The two items are the chancellor's goal update for
operations, and we would just move that to the January meeting, as
well as the admin report for spring enrollment planning presentation.
But we do have the accompanying executive summaries here. If the
board is okay with that, I'd just ask that we move that over to
January, but I would still like for us to receive the Criterion 2
update presentation by David Parker.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Okay. Board members, are we good with
that?
Start fresh in January. We will start with HLC update Criterion
2.
>> DR. LEE LAMBERT: David, are you there? Here he goes.
>> DAVID PARKER: Thank you. Madam Chair, Governing Board
members, Chancellor Lambert, faculty, staff, students, and our
guests. Thank you for including this update this evening.
What follows is only a very brief overview of HLC's Criterion 2,
and some of the examples of the types of objective measurable
evidence supportive of the assurance argument that we will be
providing.
Criterion 2 focuses upon evidence of policies, processes, and
expectations. We govern the financial, academic, and personnel
issues that ensure institutional integrity and ethics.
In this setting, the term "integrity" can also include the
concept of institutional structural soundness, as well as what we
think of as the typical meaning.
The HLC accredits institutions of all types, sizes, and
complexities, and recognizes institutional context and cultural
differences application of its core criteria. For the first time we
are clearly documenting our consistency with the HLC's assumed
practices as part of this process, as well.
Criterion 2 is identified in our 2018 reaffirmation as having
some concern, all of which were identified from the auditor general's
prior year report.
So it's not the reviewers finding something. They had adopted
some findings from another type of report or audit. That just brings
home how important each of those are.
Since then, all identified concerns have been fully resolved.
Neither the auditor general nor the HLC have identified any concerns
under this criterion until the HLC's recent focus visit. In fact,
the auditor general hasn't identified any additional concerns since
then.
Speaking of the recent visit, work is already underway to address
both board governance-related items for an interim report due in
about 10 months and providing additional clarity in the complaint or
dispute resolution process as part of our assurance argument due a
year later, as we address both areas that will be critical that we
are consistent, not just with law regulation and accreditation
standards, but also with our own policies. And it is fully
appropriate to revisit and adjust our own policies, but we must
demonstrate that we act consistent with them.
Each core criterion has subpoints that help define what they
mean, and I have included the focus of the subpoints in blue on the
right side of each slide, and the full statements and some examples
of objective evidence that support our arguments are included in the
executive summary which we will track in this discussion.
Criterion 2A focuses upon how the institution develops and the
board adopts its mission. That's something we did fairly recently.
It was very involved and transparent and included the community as
well, and that one will be very easy to document.
Criterion 2B asks the college to document how we ensure that the
accuracy of our representations and to demonstrate how we support our
claims related to the educational experience.
Criterion 2C relates almost solely to board governance. It has
more subpoints than any other and covers more territory than any
simple reading would imply. It is also the subject of the upcoming
interim report.
I won't be reading any of the other specific criterion, but I
think it helps to read 2C-1. As I read it, I think how when somebody
puts two sentences together with a semicolon, that usually adds
weight to the second sentence in light of the first sentence, so
reading it in light of that.
The Governing Board is trained and knowledgeable so that it makes
informed decisions with respect to the institution's financial and
academic policies and practices; the board meets its legal and
fiduciary responsibilities.
So the HLC places emphasis on informed decision-making and acting
consistent with college's own policies and procedures.
Adjusting our policies is appropriate, as mentioned a moment ago,
and acting consistent with them is considered part of the board's
fiduciary responsibilities.
The focus of the next three subcriteria include preservation and
enhancement of the institution, reviewing reasonable and relevant
interests of internal and external constituencies during
deliberations, and preserving board member independence from undue
influence.
The final subcriteria addresses delegation of day-to-day
management to the institution's administration and the expectation
that our provost and faculty will oversee academic matters.
So policies and training are fairly easy to document. Our
enterprise risk management and compliance efforts will provide
additional information and documentation that we may not have seen so
readily or been so apparent in the past.
Informed decision-making and preservation of independence can be
a little more challenging to document, and this is one of those cases
where perception can be just as important as reality. The discussion
Dr. Weeks had with the board at its last study session should help us
identify evidence for the report.
Moving on to 2D, our state laws, policies, codes of ethics,
freedom-of-expression report, and orientation programs provide a
foundation, and we will also provide documentation of ways that the
college supports diverse thinking and opinions.
Core Criterion 2E begins with the focus upon institutional
support for basic and applied research. And it's easy to say that we
don't do much of that and just put it aside, but we can apply the
general principles to the general learning environment.
This core criteria evaluates our compliance and ethics programs,
guidance, support, and the conduct primarily of faculty and students
in the learning environment.
Finally, I have greatly paraphrased just the most brief
statements. Core Criterion 2-related assumed practices into just
basic concept statements. The HLC begins with the assumption that we
meet the standards of each of these statements, but we are
intentionally evaluating any potential gaps, and we will identify how
each is well documented through the same standard of evidence.
As you heard from Dr. Richmond last month regarding Criterion 1,
there is also a team working through each Criterion 2 statement
identifying our level of fulfillment and identifying evidence
supporting the assurance argument that we will present. Any
identified weakness or potential issue will be addressed so that the
development of our assurance argument can begin next summer.
Jeff and I would be happy to respond to any questions that you
may have.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you so much.
Any questions from the board?
>> DAVID PARKER: I heard somebody speaking, but I couldn't hear
what was said.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: I believe there are no questions?
>> DR. MEREDITH HAY: Thank you for your work on this. We really
appreciate it. Thank you so much.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you so much. I just want to add
we do have a lot to look forward to next year, and I know everyone is
girding their loins to prep for this, so thank you for being behind
the scenes to do this for us.
Next is item 2.2. Thank you so much again. Reports by
representatives to the board.
First up is our student report from TT Martinez.
>> Hello.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Hello. We see you.
>> Yes, one second. I'm so sorry. I apologize.
Hello, Board of Governors. I have a few updates to share with
you all regarding the Student Senate to start. The date of our fall
semester Student Senate Town Hall meeting will be November 29, 2022,
6:30 to 8:00PM in the Amethyst Room downtown.
The event is currently posted on PimaEngage and there is a form
in the event for students to submit comments and questions to have
their voices heard on the student issues and things they would like
to have addressed.
During the Town Hall, senate will provide updates on what we have
been working on during this semester.
Student Senate was involved at the new student welcome event,
Downtown Campus, and got to interact with many of our fellow
students. As of today we are attending events and making ourselves
known to the students at all Pima events which can be found on the
PimaEngage website. Questions and concerns can be directed to our
e-mail, pcc-studentsenators@Pima.edu.
As of now, that is all I have to report. We are currently
working on our project and we hope to get that to you at the next
Board of Governors meeting.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you so much. That's great. Glad
to hear we are having a Student Town Hall. We have discussed this in
the past, and I hope chancellor and faculty will take me up on this.
I think it's a great idea to have a Town Hall very soon for faculty,
as well. I think it's important to have some more casual environment
focused just on you and not at a big public board meeting.
Thanks so much. Next we have adjunct faculty report, Sean
Mendoza.
>> SEAN MENDOZA: Good evening, Chairwoman Ripley, Chancellor
Lambert, members of the board, honored guests.
Adjunct faculty continue to work with college administration and
our peers with the AERC committee to improve policies at the college.
Two policies currently in development include clarifying adjunct
faculty and full-time faculty roles at the college and compensating
adjunct faculty for their prep work in the event their class is
canceled or no longer available before the first day of class.
To help inform our representatives, a survey was created and
distributed to document our unique perspective on services provided
to students before, during, and after the first day of class.
Although the data gathered thus far is still in its preliminary
stages, we hope the survey will help create a starting point for
continued discussions pertaining to a future tier of our existing
adjunct faculty tiered system.
Lastly, I would like to be the first to wish everyone a Happy
Early Thanksgiving. This ends my report.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you so much, and Happy
Thanksgiving to you, as well, and also, as always, thanks for all you
do, Sean.
Next is staff report with Erika Elias.
>> ERIKA ELIAS: Good evening, Chairperson Ripley, members of the
board, Chancellor and guests. Staff Council asked me if I could
please read this statement.
Staff Council leadership following this important and critical
election cycle wishes to express gratitude to the entire college for
its continued excellence and dedication to provide outstanding
educational opportunities for Tucson and Pima County.
As an indication of that commitment to reform and improvement,
Pima's acknowledgement in Forbes Magazine as a top-tiered institution
to work for in Arizona is an excellent indicator.
While all institutions encounter obstacles, continuous process
improvement is needed, and listening to all voices is absolutely
necessary. We, Staff Council leadership, again wish to express our
gratitude for the opportunity to represent the staff and the
employees of this essential community institution.
That concludes my statement. Thank you so much, and have a Happy
Thanksgiving.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you so much, Erica, and we love
you. We need our staff. You are amazing, awesome. Thank you so
much for that.
I think to get on lists, lists and awards are one thing, but it
really is, it comes down to knowing we have to improve every day and
not resting on our laurels. There is just always something to
improve on or change. We just need to keep doing that. Thank you so
much.
Next, faculty report, Denise Reilly.
>> DENISE REILLY: Good evening, Chair Ripley, members of the
board, Chancellor Lambert, colleagues and guests.
I'm your Faculty Senate representative, and in this month or
season of thanks, gratitude and peace, I want to thank you all on
behalf of faculty at PCC for the work you do to ensure student
success.
As faculty, we are change agents and will continue to be.
Faculty senators still have the mission and goals to increase
transparency, shared governance, and communication with all facets of
the college. We are the heart and soul of the institution, as
teaching and learning doesn't occur without us.
Thank you again for including faculty and driving the college
mission to student success.
Thank you.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you. Next we have administrator
report by Jim Craig.
>> JIM CRAIG: Good evening, everybody. I'm Jim Craig, dean of
business and information technology. Chair Ripley, Chancellor
Lambert, distinguished board, and PCC family and friends.
You have already heard about the aviation technology expansion
ribbon cutting. It was an amazing event. The economic development
project overall is even more amazing because of the culmination of
the great statewide support and collaboration.
Like Dean Wilson said, it's going to double our student capacity
and really increase the much-needed pipeline of aviation
professionals in our community. And of all the speeches that were
great, the last speech by student Suzie Roy was just so motivational
and so inspiring.
PCC has three Bellwether submissions that made it to this year's
finalist category. The Bellwether awards are widely recognized as
one of the nation's top competitive and prestigious recognition for
any community college.
The three finalists are in the category of planning, governance,
and finance, is that Pima is leading the way in terms of persistence
and retention through mandatory student success courses.
So this is an important key part of our enrollment management
strategy to ensure first-semester students keep coming back, that
their needs are taken care of, and this course is offered of course
free of charge. The college is expected to increase student
completions as a result of offering this and making it mandatory for
all students.
The second category is instructional program focused, and this is
really focused on the decline in enrollments through COVID. To offer
better relevancy, PCC launched micropathway programs to re-engage
learners who exited without earning a degree and reach other learners
that may not have considered attending college due to structural
barriers or other impediments for them getting a traditional model of
higher education.
And a third category was instructional program focused. This is
really to address the unprecedented increase in K12 teacher shortage
that's in Arizona and frankly nationwide.
So this focus is around our postdegree teacher certification
program at Pima Community College, which innovatively addresses this,
making a huge difference in Arizona and could address this need even
outside of Arizona.
Student Life and the Student Pride Alliance Club hosted the Pride
Relay at Desert Vista Campus on November 4. This was held in honor
of LGBTQ+ History Month. Employees and students formed relay teams
for friendly competition to bring awareness and support for LGBTQ+
people. There were resource fairs, booths, carts, team relays and
just a really great, great time.
Student Affairs hosted our first-ever First Generation Day on
Tuesday, November 8. Our First Generation Proud Day included student
connections with campus leadership and fellow students during a
campus meet and greet tabling. The formal session was held of the
First Gen panel titled Tell Us Your Story with roundtable
discussions.
The TENWEST Impact Festival was held November 1 through 5 at
Tucson Community Center. The festival was billed as Helps the
Curious and the Impassioned Solve the Great Economic, Social,
Cultural, and Economic Challenges Facing Our Communities. This
year's theme was create, build, sustain.
PCC was a strong partner for this event, including a keynote
presentation by Chancellor Lambert on Sustain Day. Breakout sessions
included PCC on Literature and the Environment, Southern Arizona
Coalition for Climate Adaptation and Resilience, Why Autonomous
Vehicles, and New Models for Majority Learners.
The festival also included the first annual TENWEST street fest,
featuring 100-plus local food and retail vendors. Pima College had
over 20 tables to highlight and demonstrate all of the programs that
we offer.
The third annual PimaOnline Educators Conference Humanizing the
Distance was held virtually on November 2 through 4. Chair Ripley,
Provost Duran-Cerda offered opening remarks. The sessions that
followed featured keynotes from Dr. Jean Ann Garcia and Dr. Thomas
Tobin. A writing workshop by Tucson poet laureate TC Tolbert. A
student panel and a variety of different workshops. It was an
amazing event with over 320 participants.
Finally, you heard a lot last month about the Gospel Rescue
Mission and the work that Pima Community College is doing for and
with the residents there. The first Gospel Rescue Mission culinary
graduates provided a fine, really a five-course plated gourmet dinner
service to culminate their Capstone Project.
This included four chefs involved in the project, six restaurant
owner managers, and two PCC representatives that came to share and
eat the dinners for them. Special thanks to Chef Wang and Carrie
Middleton from workforce for organizing the capstone night.
Five students, five residents from Gospel Rescue Mission
graduated from the PCC culinary program that night, which was amazing
because this was a pilot program and very intense and very condensed.
11 weeks meeting four to five hours a night, Monday through Friday,
in order to get all the competencies in and all the learning and
training that was required.
Five students graduated from the PCC culinary program that night,
and one of the students even walked out of the Gospel Rescue Mission
with us because he was no longer a resident of Gospel. He was
actually walking out to his own home, to his own car, to his own job
with that fresh certificate of completion that, as dean, I was able
to give him and the other four graduates of our program.
Just another great example of what Pima Community College is
doing to reach out and to really serve the underserved of our
community.
Thank you, and Happy Thanksgiving, and that concludes my report.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you so much, Jim. That was a
lot. Wow, you unpacked a lot.
Our employees and our students put "community" in Pima Community
College. I mean, the TENWEST fair, the pride run, the Gospel
Mission. I mean, that's all community. It's something to be proud
of. Thank you so much for what you do.
I just wanted -- you mentioned Suzie. Our faculty, staff,
employees, administrators, students have so much talent, so I say we
try to hijack Suzie at some event to sing the National Anthem. We
need that voice.
Thank you so much, Jim.
Our next item is information items. Sorry. You know what? I
did this before. (Laughter.)
>> DR. LEE LAMBERT: That's okay.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Freudian slip.
The chancellor has 15 minutes. Ready, set, go.
>> DR. LEE LAMBERT: Well, good evening, everybody. I'd like to
start out by thanking our faculty, our staff, and administration and
board for the great work we do focused on student success. If
anybody doubts that this college is not committed to student success,
I just want to put an exclamation point on what Jim Craig said: You
don't receive Bellwether recognition if you're not at the local level
delivering on a commitment to students and your community.
So the fact that again we are being recognized in all three
categories for our Fast Track programming, our teacher preparation
programming, and our student success programming, I don't know what
other evidence anyone needs to understand that deep commitment that
we have to our students and our community.
Also, I want to thank Francisca James Hernandez and her entire
team for hosting and throwing on another fabulous Raquel Rubio
Goldsmith lecture and luncheon featuring Arturo Vargas, the CEO of
NALEO, the National Latino Elected and Appointed Officials. Great
event. Many of you were there that evening or were at the lunch.
Thank you for being there.
Also, we have the honor to be the host partner for Pony.ai at our
Automotive Technology and Innovation Center. This is a start-up
autonomous vehicle company valued at over $8 billion. They are in
our automotive center. Again, you do not have these kind of things
happening if you're not committed to students and your community.
Also, I'm so proud to be able to represent Pima Community College
as this year's honorary commander for the 355th Fighter Wing here at
Davis-Monthan.
Also, Denise, you rock. I had a chance to visit her class and
sit in, and the way she engages students, that level of interaction,
it just -- you do such a great job, Denise. We are fortunate we have
you in the classroom. Thank you.
Also, I just want to thank the Quilts of Honor Foundation. I
know, Cat, last year you received a quilt. I was honored this year
to receive one, along with 14 other individuals. I just want to
thank them. Beautiful what they do in support of our veterans and
all of our service members.
Also, because this recognition came in late, I want to just
recognize Paul Grijalva, director of our contract services, with the
Emerging Professional Award given to him by the Community College
Business Officers Organization.
Congratulations, Paul, for what you do for the college.
I want to thank one of our key partners, Marcy Euler, for being
recognized as women leading in the region by BizTUCSON. Margie,
thank you for all that you do.
For our dreamers and DACA students, we're very hopeful that Prop
301 is going to make it across the finish line. 308, sorry. 308.
Thanks. Still looking good. Let's keep our fingers crossed. As
soon as that passes, we are going to be able to, with the board's
approval again, offer in-state tuition.
I just want to say thank you, Meredith, for your service and your
support of not only me but of the college and for the great work that
we have all done together.
Demion, I also want to thank you for your service and great
support. I mean, we would not be able to do these great things that
we have done over the last few years without you and your leadership
as chair of the board. Thank you, both.
Let me just say Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Holidays as we move
into the holiday season.
Thank you.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you so much, Chancellor.
Now we go to information items. The information items were
provided to the board for general information purposes.
If any board member has clarifying questions regarding any of the
information items, please let me know and we can have the chancellor
follow up or add the topic to a future agenda.
Without any comments, we will now go to item 4, consent agenda.
The consent agenda was provided last week to our board members for
review.
May I have a motion to approve the items on the consent agenda?
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: So moved.
>> DR. MEREDITH HAY: Second.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: All in favor, please signify by saying
aye.
(Ayes.)
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Opposed?
The motion passes. The items on the consent agenda are approved.
Thank you.
Next we have action items. I will turn it over to Mr. Silvyn to
present the first recommendation.
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: Thank you, Madam Chair.
Just to clarify, did you want to move 5.1 to the end?
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Yes, please.
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: So we're going to start with 5.2, the
proposed annual calendar? Okay.
The chancellor recommends that the Governing Board approve the
proposed annual calendar of regular board and study session meetings
for 2023 and January 2024.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Do I have a motion to approve item 5.2?
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: So moved.
>> DR. MEREDITH HAY: Second.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: All those in favor?
(Ayes.)
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: We have five ayes. The ayes have it.
5.2, proposed annual calendar of regular board and study sessions for
2023 has been approved.
Thank you. Next item, Mr. Silvyn.
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: For the next item, the chancellor recommends
the Governing Board authorize the chancellor or designee to execute a
contract with Design Modular Incorporated for the removal,
construction, installation, and utility connections for new office
and classroom modules for the college's truck driving program. Total
costs are not expected to exceed $550,000.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you. I think at this point we'd
like to hear from the chancellor.
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: Motion?
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Sorry. I first need to call for a
motion.
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: So moved.
>> DR. MEREDITH HAY: Second.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: It has been moved and second. All
those in favor...
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: Hold on. I thought you were going to have
the chancellor...
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: I'm ahead of myself. I'm looking at
the clock and I want to move this on.
Chancellor, please, if you will. (Smiling.)
>> DR. LEE LAMBERT: Yes, Madam Chair. As context, the board had
already approved the work that we were doing with our transportation
and training and maintenance program, and this is the actual contract
to be awarded but not to exceed a certain amount.
So if you have specific questions about this, I have Dr. Dave Bea
and I believe Brandy, as well, is available to answer any specific
questions you may have.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Any questions?
Without further discussion or questions, all those in favor,
please signify by saying aye.
(Ayes.)
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: All those opposed? This motion passes
unanimously. Thank you very much.
Mr. Silvyn, next item.
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: The next item, 5.4, discussion and possible
approval to extend the term of the chancellor's existing contract by
one year, and then there were some other minor modifications to the
document which was attached to the board report.
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: Chair Ripley? If I could make a motion
that we table this item.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Motion has been made to table this.
>> DR. MEREDITH HAY: Second.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: It was seconded. All those in favor of
tabling item 5.4, please signify by saying aye.
(Ayes.)
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Motion passes unanimously. Thank you.
Mr. Silvyn, next item.
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: The next item is discussion and approval of
the Higher Learning Commission Criterion 2 evidence plan and
timeline, which was discussed at a prior board meeting. Attached is
the resulting recommended plan based upon those comments from the
board.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Do I hear a motion to approve this?
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: So moved.
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: Second.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: All those in favor, please signify by
saying aye. Unless there is a discussion. Is there discussion?
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: If I could just maybe make one small
modification, which is based on Makyla Hays's comment during the call
to the audience that we slightly modify the language in the consent
agenda that makes it optional.
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: I think I understand. It wasn't intended to
be preclusive of the board requesting an item be pulled from the
consent agenda. So to clarify, one of the items which I believe is
what Mr. Clinco is referring to that Makyla Hays was discussing in
her comment was one of the proposed elements of the action plan was
that by the end of business on Friday the week before a board
meeting, board members would submit notice that they wanted to remove
an item from the consent agenda with an explanation of why and what
information they wanted to clarify the issue.
The reason for including that was it satisfied two elements of
the monitoring report. One is it provides evidence that the board
has, in fact, read and considered the board packet, because obviously
if you have a question like that, it means by necessity you must have
read it.
The second is it allows the board to take better advantage of the
information resources available at the college because it would allow
staff sufficient time to have the appropriate individual or
documentation available in time for the board meeting.
So what I believe the comment from Makyla Hays and what Mr.
Clinco is saying is we can clarify that it -- it doesn't preclude the
board from after Friday at 5:00 asking for an item to be removed from
the consent agenda, but we would urge the board or request, if at all
possible if that happens, so as I mentioned, it gives staff adequate
time to get the information in time for the board meeting.
But certainly if after that a board member realized there was a
question about the item, they could certainly pull it at a later
time. We can make that clarification.
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: Thank you very much.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Any other discussion? So with that,
are we altering the motion?
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: Well, I made the motion with the
amendment, and I believe it was seconded. Was it seconded?
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: One way to do this, sorry, one way to do
this is I believe Ms. Garcia made the motion, Mr. Clinco had a
requested amendment. If Ms. Garcia accepts that as a friendly
amendment, then we can just vote on the motion. If she doesn't, then
we would vote on the proposed amendment.
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: I accept it.
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: Then the motion as amended is the motion on
the floor for vote by the board.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: So at this time, if there are no
further discussion, all those in favor, please signify by saying aye.
(Ayes.)
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: This motion passes unanimously. Thank
you.
Mr. Silvyn, next item.
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: The next item was to allow for discussion
and if the board believed it was appropriate to take an action
related to board compliance with state law and college policies, and
in particular this relates to the follow-up requirements noted in the
HLC October 6, 2022 decision letter.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: At this time, I'm not anticipating a
motion to take action, but I will open this up for any discussion
should board members desire.
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: Chair Ripley?
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Yes.
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: I submitted the attached letter to the
board item, because I am deeply concerned about ongoing violations of
our bylaws and Arizona State law by members of this board.
I am particularly concerned that given the clarity with which the
Higher Learning Commission provided guidance to this board as part of
their monitoring plan, that not continuing to follow bylaws and
Arizona law is going to result in the college being put on academic
probation by the accreditors. It is deeply, deeply concerning,
especially in this last meeting, that this continues to go on.
I asked that it be put on so that we could have a discussion in
hopes to not have this continue.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you.
Yeah, and I think in the spirit of moving forward, especially in
light of all that's happened with the HLC and with our next year
being reaccredited through the HLC, which is a whole different topic,
I just would like to make a plea to this board and to the board with
the future board members that we do move forward and agree to really
understand and look at board policy and bylaws and, you know, vow to
not break them, and to move forward and to treat each other
respectfully and professionally, do the homework, and, you know, just
move forward.
Because again, and I think we all agree that this college is
bigger, much bigger than us in this small board. It's about the
students, about our community, it's about our employees, faculty,
staff, administrators.
So I don't think we need to, unless someone does want to make a
motion, I don't think we need to, but I do want to -- I just wanted
to make that statement.
Thank you for your statement, too, Board Member Clinco.
Board Member Garcia?
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: I'm not sure how to do this, but I'd like
to make a motion that with the new board coming on that we have a
study session on these particular issues.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: I don't know if you need a motion. I
think that's just something you make happen. All the study sessions
are scheduled, and I don't think that the topics have been assigned.
But this is the board's decision to assign which topics, and that
could be any month, but there needs to be --
>> DR. MEREDITH HAY: So that would be appropriate for a future
agenda item?
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: Yes.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: For a future agenda item, absolutely.
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: Okay. I think in order for us to move
forward that it would be really good for us to just state what's
going on or our feelings or whatever, and, you know, what the laws or
what the policies and procedures are.
I think that we can do this. I'm looking forward to that. So I
really want to include the entire new board. And, yes, future
agenda, sorry.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: So duly noted for future agenda item
and for a study session. We have a lot of study sessions we need.
With that, Mr. Silvyn, there another action item?
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: So one other discussion item, and that has
to do with the format for future board meetings. From time to time,
the board has visited the issue of in what format board meetings
should be conducted in person, virtual or hybrid, so this was added
to the agenda because of requests at a prior board meeting that the
topic be revisited.
So we agendized this so it's an opportunity for the board to
discuss what it would like to do with respect to that topic at this
time.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: So at this time, just to be clear, is
there a motion, or this is just for discussion?
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: So it's just for discussion to give staff
direction essentially on what we should be planning for the upcoming
board meetings
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Great. You're talking about being
hybrid or virtual or in-person? Is this what we are talking about,
just to be clear?
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: Yeah. So at different times over the last
couple of years for different reasons at different times we have had
regular in-person board members, we've had hybrid, and virtual only.
The last few board meetings we have done in this hybrid format,
and different board members at different times have requested to
revisit the issue. That was the reason for adding this item to the
discussion if the board would like to, you don't have to, but if the
board would like to do so at this time, we put it on the agenda
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you so much. Yeah, just to kick
it off, I think we all agree that having in-person anything is always
preferable.
We have had two years, almost three years of pandemic and Zoom,
and the necessity drove that decision. The decision to go full on,
open to the public, I think is one that should be made soon.
The decision not to do that today was made, not made lightly, but
it was made in light of several articles, several warnings by
Department of Homeland Security, as well as other security forces
that the day after the election and this one particularly nationally
as well as locally could have violent results.
So we did make the decision for the safety of this board to have
this last board meeting of 2022 in this virtual/hybrid format.
So with that, yes, I think we are all ready to -- I think it's
time to open up the suggestions.
Any discussion? Anybody?
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: (Off mic.)
>> MR. LUIS GONZALES: (Off mic.)
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: I think between now and January,
precluding anything else, who knows, there could be a resurgence of
God knows what disease, I think it's something that the board should
be nimble enough and resilient enough to also make last-minute
decisions to err on the side of safety and health.
Any other discussion?
Okay. Thank you. Did we have one more, Mr. Silvyn?
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: Last item for this section of the agenda has
to do with board officer positions.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Yes, thank you. And I would like to
open up with a very short remark.
At this time I would like to, if you haven't read the board
documents, I would like to officially announce that sadly, and with a
heavy heart, I must step down as chair of the board at this time. I
am now in charge of full care for my mother who is 89 years old and
on oxygen, among other issues. It happened about 11 months ago, and
I have been feeling the strain of doing too much, et cetera. So I do
need to step down at this time.
It takes truly a lot of work, which I enjoy, but to be an
effective and responsible board chair, it does consume a lot of your
time and effort and at times emotions.
So in the end, both will soon suffer, my mother as well as the
school, if I don't make this decision. So again, I make this
decision with a heavy heart.
Thank you to those who have supported me in this position. So at
this time, in accordance with our bylaws and policies for the interim
period, when the board chair steps down, the vice-chair will step in,
and we will go from there.
So any discussion?
All right. Thank you for that. Thank you for hearing me out.
With that, I think that concludes the action items, correct?
>> MR. JEFF SILVYN: It does. The only item left would be if the
board members have additional requests for future -- sorry, you're
right. It does conclude action items. Pardon me. The next item on
the agenda would be board remarks.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Precisely.
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: Excuse me. I'm not finished yet.
So what you're saying is that since you're stepping down, now
Clinco will take your place; is that correct?
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: For now.
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: For now until the end?
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Yeah, he's...
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: Okay.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Yeah. So with that, we come to item
No. 6, remarks by Governing Board members.
So let's just go around the horn. Board Member Garcia.
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: Well, first of all, I'd like to say thank
you, Demion and Meredith, for your service. I wish you the best.
I'm looking forward to the new year and working with the entire board
and compromising and hopefully listening and doing the best we can to
move this institution forward.
Thank you for all the people that got the awards. Outstanding
job. Have a Happy Thanksgiving. Thank you.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you. Board Member Gonzales.
>> MR. LUIS GONZALES: I also just want to acknowledge, thank you
for providing the time and energy here with Pima Community College.
I know that it's a lot of work. I do understand now in reference to
not only the commitment but all the work that needs to be done. The
work that needs to be done, as we all know, we are here for a purpose
and that's providing the best possible education for all of our
students, as well, too.
I know that next year we're going to have two new members. I
don't think we know who the new members are yet, but I think we will
work together and find a common ground reference to what we want to
do and can do better, as well, too.
As I mentioned before, it's nothing new, there is always room for
improvement for all of us but also for the students in reference to
the courses but also in reference to whatever new initiatives that
the new board, other ideas that will be coming in, energy and ideas
that will be coming in, as well, too.
I just want to say to the PCC family out there, the students and
faculty, have a great Thanksgiving event. Blessings to all,
reference to having what we have today but also what we are going to
have tomorrow.
Thank you.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Board Member Hay?
>> DR. MEREDITH HAY: Thank you, Chair. I want to first thank
Chancellor Lambert for his leadership for the college, and it's been
an honor and privilege to work with you the last six years and
advance your agenda and the agenda of the board.
It's been a real kick in the pants to work with Mr. Clinco here.
It's been a lot of fun. I think we made a lot of progress.
I want to thank Andrea. Where is she? Hello, dear. Andrea and
all the staff who have just done a tremendous job keeping this board
on track and keeping us informed, rolling in the right direction.
I wish the new board members all the best of luck and work hard
to make PCC the best college ever in the world.
Anyway, thanks, everybody. Appreciate it.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you, Dr. Hay. You rock.
Board Member Clinco.
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: Thank you. Again, I want to echo
Dr. Hay's remarks. First, Chancellor Lambert, thank you so much for
the opportunity to work with you. You know, I joined this board
because I believed really this college could become a national model
and really be one of the best community colleges in the country. I
think we did that.
I'm so proud of that.
>> DR. MEREDITH HAY: You should be.
>> MR. DEMION CLINCO: Really everybody in this room. Sorry for
being a little emotional. I think it takes the community coming
together through arguments and discussion to come out with a better
outcome. I think this college is a shining example of what can be in
America. Because it creates opportunity. It created opportunity for
me. Creates opportunity for people I know.
I just want to thank everybody from the bottom of my heart.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Thank you so much, Demion and Meredith.
We are, I know you are both tall, but we are standing on the
shoulders of two giants here in academia and in our community.
I mean, seriously, it is an emotional time, and it's just a
testament to the fact that you care so much about this school, about
the people here. It's the people that make this college amazing.
The fact that you worked so hard for these buildings and centers
is because the people deserve those centers. They deserve these
buildings. They deserve the state-of-the-art equipment and talent
that you both have fought so hard for and championed with Chancellor
Lambert.
A lot of behind-the-scenes things happen that people don't see,
and I have had a tiny glimpse it, and I'm just amazed and I'm
grateful, because most all of what you see today happened way before
I joined the board. Thank you so much for your leadership and being
a role model to other board members. Thanks so much. I want to say
more. I'm going to miss you guys.
With that, I don't have any written remarks, but I do want to
give some shoutouts. I feel like board remarks should be about this,
should be about us telling the world out there, the Zoom world and
the people in the audience, Andrea, what we have been doing as a
board. A lot of people don't know what we do. What do we do? Do we
stay home for a month and then show up once a month?
I, for one, I try to attend everything I can to include the
Aztecs. The women Aztecs the other night who played their first
basketball game. It wasn't about winning, because it was a smaller
college that they played, but it was Indigenous People's Night, and
it was an honor and a privilege. I went last year too. I went again
this year. The coaches are incredible. The women are amazing. I
stat with some of the moms and their siblings.
It's just what we are all about. It's community sitting there
eating popcorn and watching these women, these strong, powerful women
do what they do. I'm so proud that Pima's able to still do that. I
still am, going to give my plug for girls sports, it's really
important.
With that said, the women and the men, we were hosting the NJCAA
Division II tournament this weekend. I believe it kicks off starting
Sunday. That's an honor and a privilege we, Pima Community College,
we are hosting that with Casino Del Sol, and that's a big deal and
our players are phenomenal.
So they are both I think ranked, I will lie and say they are
ranked No. 1. I think they are ranked No. 1. In the top 10. At one
time they were ranked No. 1. I think it was last month. They are up
there. Those guys are amazing.
Veterans Day is this week. I'm going to be speaking at the
veterans center, and I want to give a shout out to Hector Acosta who
has led the veterans center for many years. He's retiring, and it's
sad, but, you know, he deserves a break. His love for our students,
our veteran students, is unmatched.
Blood, sweat, and tears went into all those centers at all of our
campuses. Thank you, Hector. I look forward to seeing you all
tomorrow in honoring our veterans. It means so much, I can tell you
personally, from especially the combat veterans coming back from
Afghanistan and Iraq and God knows where to be able to come here and
feel safe and comfortable, not just at this school but in the
environment that you created at the vets center. It's truly amazing.
Thank you for that.
Again, I always thank the music department. I did not see your
last musical, but I intend to go to Cabaret, because it's one of my
favorite plays. If you haven't gotten tickets, go to Cabaret. It's
a fun, beautiful musical.
One last shoutout, I probably have a whole bunch, I'm missing
somebody, but to the political science department. You know who you
are. For keeping us informed objectively and accurately and with an
academic lens over what's happening in the world.
We get really caught up in what's going on right here in little
teeny Pima County, but there is a lot going on in the world.
Political science department, you are amazing for giving us very keen
insights on China, Ukraine, NATO, Eastern Europe, and Russia,
et cetera, et cetera. There is so much going on. Africa, I could go
on.
Thank you, political science department. I love you guys. I
will always love you.
With that, I think we might have a request for any -- any request
for announcements or future agenda items?
>> MS. MARIA GARCIA: (Off mic.)
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: Just the one. We got that down.
>> MR. LUIS GONZALES: I just also want to do a shoutout
reference to the Indigenous Month for November. I know it's a lot of
events and activities. I did attend the Indigenous basketball game.
I was there. Met a couple of the people there.
It's very good that the community comes together. I'm very proud
of the two Indigenous flags behind us, Pascua Yaqui, Tohono O'odham
Nation flag.
I want to reiterate, follow up Chair Ripley in reference to the
acknowledgement of the veterans out there. Our tribe is also having
some events beginning on Friday, as well, too. But I think we need
to acknowledge those people, those soldiers. I do have family
members that served not only Vietnam but also served in various, in
the Army, as well, too.
But I do want to acknowledge that. That's one area that I think
is a very, without them, their sacrifice, but now a majority of them
are gone already, but thanks for your service to all the service
people out there.
Thank you. And the sailors.
>> MS. CATHERINE RIPLEY: I'm a sailor, and I love those Marines.
Thank you. With that, if there are no further items, I declare
this meeting adjourned.
(Adjournment.)
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