M I N U T E S. Board of Trustees Special Meeting CALL 208, Training Room 411 Central Avenue Salinas, California. February 15, 2012

Transcription

1 Adopted Revised HARTNELL COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT M I N U T E S Board of Trustees Special Meeting CALL 208, Training Room 411 Central Avenue Salinas, California February 15, 2012 OPEN SESSION PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE ROLL CALL Meeting called to order at 4:35 p.m. by Trustee Padilla-Chavez. The Board and assembly cited the Pledge of Allegiance. Erica Padilla Chavez, President Candi DePauw, Vice President Patricia Donohue Bill Freeman Elia Gonzalez-Castro Ray Montemayor Demetrio Pruneda Juan Gutierrez, Student Trustee (advisory vote per Board Policy 1030) Joining the Board via Skype were Dr. Narcisa Polonio, Vice President for Education, Research and Board Leadership Services, Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) and Dr. Pamila Fisher, Consultant, ACCT and legal counsel, Laura Schulkind, Liebert, Cassidy, Whitmore. Trustee Padilla Chavez stated that the Board became aware of concerns from stakeholders last week regarding the San Joaquin Delta Community College District presidential search conducted by the ACCT and consultant, Dr. Pamila Fisher. The ACCT is the selected firm to conduct the Hartnell College Presidential Search and Dr. Pamila Fisher is the ACCT Consultant assigned to facilitate the search for Hartnell College. In response to the concerns raised last week, Dr. Fisher issued a response and that response was shared with the individual who brought the concerns forward, Dr. Ann Wright, Faculty Association. Trustee Padilla-Chavez stated that the Board, consistent with their interest in collaboration and transparency, scheduled tonight's special meeting to listen to those concerns and to ask questions of Dr. Polonio and Dr. Fisher. Trustee Padilla-Chavez clarified that tonight's meeting was informational and that the Board would not take any action. Trustee Montemayor asked if the Board would be discussing this matter in closed session and Trustee Padilla-Chavez referred the question to legal counsel, Laura Schulkind, who stated that the contract with ACCT does not fall under the items that are permissible to be discussed in closed session. HCCD SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FEBRUARY 15, 2012 Page 1 of 8

2 PUBLIC COMMENTS Community member, Ken Dursa urged the Board to consider the allegations brought forward regarding the presidential search firm. Faculty Chris Moss asked the Board to consider starting the process over, to wait one year, because he worried that a new president coming in with controversy could hinder their success. Faculty Ann Wright thanked the Board for calling the special meeting and for giving people the opportunity to voice their concerns. Also, she thanked the leadership of Delta College and the College of the Redwoods who have made themselves available to the Board to help answer their questions. Cesar Lara, Labor Council, stated that Hartnell is a good college, that working families depend on this college, that a transparent process is important, and urged the Board to not make the mistakes Delta made. Nancy Schur-Beymer thanked the Board for calling the special meeting and for addressing the concerns raised about the search firm - these concerns were brought forward by Delta College and she said that she trusts the Board's decision. Margie Wiebusch, representing CSEA, L-39, and the Classified Senate, thanked the Board for the process and said the groups are working together, that they take this process seriously, and that the staff trust the Board s decision whichever way they decide. PRESIDENTIAL SEARCH PROCESS Dr. Narcisa Polonio stated that ACCT was founded in 1972 and is the nation's voice for trustees, that ACCT has been assisting Boards with presidential searches for many years, that their purpose is to be a service, and assist the institution. In addition, she stated that the process that ACCT follows was designed in partnership with the Board and the college. Dr. Polonio stated that she appreciates all concerns and the opportunity to listen. ACCT takes these concerns seriously and their goal is to provide the college with the best choice in a potential president. ACCT does their very best in background checks - that they do not dictate the process that they are advisory, that it is a partnership and she and Dr. Fisher are available to answer any questions and to assure the Board that ACCT is committed to do the very best job. Dr. Fisher reported that she has been visiting the campus since December and has met with faculty, staff, students, community members, and the Board to help identify presidential characteristics and challenges that Hartnell is and will be facing. At the December 13th Special Meeting, Dr. Fisher shared what she learned and stated she would develop a draft position profile. Further, she stated that a search committee is under development and an orientation and training is later this month. Dr. Fisher then provided an overview of the process and timeline (Appendix A) and said the process is on target. Dr. Polonio and Dr. Fisher thanked the Board for the opportunity to address concerns this evening. HCCD SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FEBRUARY 15, 2012 Page 2 of 8

3 BOARD QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS Trustee Gonzalez-Castro thanked everyone for attending this evening and stated that this process involves everyone and all are interested in getting the best president. Trustee Gonzalez-Castro referred to Delta College and asked Dr. Fisher what happened at Delta. Dr. Fisher responded that the process used at Delta College was the same for more than two dozen searches and that she assumes the Delta Board chose the person, who they thought, at that time, was what their college needed. The only difference between Delta and Hartnell is that Delta included board members on its search committee. Trustee Gonzalez-Castro asked about the elements used in background checks. Dr. Polonio responded that background checks are independent of the consultant to avoid the championing of any one candidate. Further, she stated that a team does a series of telephone calls to current and previous institutions, that there is a search of the internet and other sources (newspapers). The background checks are thorough and include conversations with campus leaders. She stated that checks are only one piece of the process and that ACCT provides the Board with all of the information and the Board decides what they want to take from that information. Dr. Polonio stated that she went back to review the background checks for Delta and stands by the checks conducted. Further, she stated that she is willing to make herself available to the Board. Trustee Pruneda stated that the truth is important and stated that he appreciates the individuals who came forward with this information. He stated that there is an obvious discontent at Delta toward ACCT and asked why Delta faculty feel they way they do. Dr. Polonio stated that she cannot explain the discontent and stated that she has a lot of respect for the Delta faculty. Trustee Pruneda asked about the rankings of the three finalist to which Dr. Polonio stated that she is not comfortable addressing certain aspects of the process and truly regrets what is happening at Delta College. Trustee Freeman said that he had asked Dr. Fisher, back in December, about her relationship with Dr. Helm, and that he has since learned that Dr. Fisher was at a conference with Dr. Helm sometime last year. Dr. Fisher said that her answer in December was that she met Dr. Helm many years ago when Dr. Helm was at the Chancellor s Office and that she next spoke to her when Hartnell contacted her to do a retreat for the Board in September She does not recall being at a conference that Dr. Helm attended, though she was at a conference with 2,500 participants, and it is possible that they were both there. Trustee Freeman asked Dr. Fisher if she worked for Dr. Jeff Marsee at the College of Redwoods. Dr. Fisher responded that she did not. Rather, the College of the Redwoods Board contacted ACCT and asked that a consultant be sent to work with the board, and she was the assigned consultant. Trustee Freeman said he does not want the bottom of the barrel to come to Hartnell; that he believes Dr. Wright is on target with allegations because she represents over 300 people at Hartnell. He believes the Board should seriously consider the concerns at Hartnell and at Delta. Further, Trustee Freeman has concerns about the committee makeup because the two community members he forwarded were not selected and he deserves one. He believes the make-up does not represent the community; that Hartnell has more than 55% Hispanics and he is upset that he could not address the issue yet Dr. Helm and Trustee Padilla-Chavez spoke to the media. Trustee Freeman proposed that the college cut HCCD SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FEBRUARY 15, 2012 Page 3 of 8

4 their ties with ACCT and ask the Chancellor s Office for a great interim President with no ties with the College beginning June 30 th. He stated that he is disappointed with Human Resources because they are responsible for selecting ACCT. He cannot, in good conscience go forward with the process. Trustee Freeman stated Trustee Padilla- Chavez was wrong to tell the media that Dr. Wright was untruthful in her allegations and Trustee Padilla-Chavez clarified that she did not make that statement about Dr. Wright. Trustee Donohue asked Dr. Polonio to address reference checks. Dr. Polonio stated that references listed on the application are checked, but 60 to70% of references are off the list and that ACCT looks for patterns of behavior and they continue to look to verify their findings. Trustee Donohue stated that one of the reasons the Board selected ACCT is because they are not head hunters and do not represent candidatesthat in fact, ACCT represents the process. Dr. Polonio stated that most firms in California are privately owned and for profit where ACCT is not. All of their resources go to support board training for community colleges and she is proud of their reputation. Student Trustee Gutierrez asked why only two students are on the search committee. Dr. Polonio stated that the search committee is a representative group and it is a board decision. The recommendation is to keep the size of the search committee manageable and typically includes managers, faculty, staff, community members, and students. Trustee Padilla-Chavez reminded the Board that discussed the composition of the committee at the January retreat and agreed to go with best practices and that there was 100% participation at that retreat. Student Trustee Gutierrez said he had heard concerns from Delta students and said that faculty and staff are ready to strike and he fears a war will break out on campus and that he is working to stall faculty and staff from going to war. He then asked what would the Board say to staff and students if the Board moved forward with ACCT and later found it was the wrong decision. Dr. Polonio stated that she respects students and encouraged the Board to work together, to do their due diligence, and to take the time needed to get to know the candidates, conduct site visits, do not cut corners, and ask questions. Trustee Montemayor asked Dr. Fisher if all candidates names become public. Dr. Fisher responded that only the finalists are announced. Trustee Montemayor stated that he does not believe the search committee truly represents all stakeholders and asked if an existing president is involved in the process. Dr. Fisher stated that it is ACCT s standard policy to recommend the sitting president not be involved that the search belongs to the Board. However, some boards have asked their sitting president to be involved. Trustee Montemayor stated that he appreciates the faculty and employees coming forward, that he gives their concerns a lot of weight and believes it is the job of the union and senate leaders to bring all concerns forward. Trustee DePauw thanked everyone for attending this evening. She asked about the ranking of candidates. Dr. Fisher stated that candidates are not ranked, names are brought forth in alphabetical order, and that the same process was used at Delta. HCCD SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FEBRUARY 15, 2012 Page 4 of 8

5 The Board moved their discussion to the structure of the search committee. Trustee Pruneda clarified a statement he made at the January 11 retreat where he stated that the committee needed more input from the community and that he understood each trustee would have at least one representative on the committee and neither of his choices was selected. Trustee DePauw reminded her peers that the search committee first started with three community members, and increased to four at the December 13 th meeting, and at the January 11 Retreat the Board agreed that the Ad hoc Committee could choose up to seven community members. Members were asked to submit two names each and an Ad hoc Committee (Montemayor, DePauw and Padilla-Chavez) would review the submissions and bring forward the selections. The Ad hoc Committee forwarded five community representatives consistent with the criteria selected by the Board. Trustee Freeman stated that he believes the Board did not have full agreement at the January 11 meeting and stated that he believes the committee should not include managers, or high paying people and the committee should include more classified and L-39 employees, and students. He stated that he will not allow this Board to silence his voice and that he represents over 15,000 voters and that we live in a democracy and he does not want the committee stacked with managers. Trustee Padilla-Chavez clarified that the Board only identified the community members and that employee groups, through their own processes, selected their representatives to the search committee. She stated that the Ad hoc Committee met twice and worked to ensure each sector of the community was represented. Trustee Pruneda asked about the criteria used by the Ad hoc Committee to determine the community representative selections. Trustee Padilla-Chavez responded that the committee discussed that the representatives embody our diverse community and that the original three designations were to include a member from the Foundation, from education or business, and from a non-profit organization. Terri Pyer, district liaison to the search process, explained that her office was charged, by the Board, to get nominations from employee groups and comprise a committee that truly was representative of what the Board wanted. Considerations included representation from all employee groups, new and experienced employees, academic disciplines from all three campuses; equality of gender, and ethnicity. Further, she explained that she approached the Senate and union leaders and asked them to work with her to ensure all areas were covered. Ms. Pyer announced those who have been identified and confirmed: Community representatives: Margaret D Arrigo-Martin, Michelle O Neal, Fabien Barrera, Enrique Flores-Mendez, and John Phillips. Classified Union: Margie Wiebusch Classified Senate: Eric Price L-39: Ismael Ramirez HCCD SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FEBRUARY 15, 2012 Page 5 of 8

6 Faculty Association: Leticia Contreras Academic Senate: Pending Student Senate: Pending Student Clubs: Pending Administrators: Pending Ms. Pyer stated that each individual have said they are honored, pleased, and excited to help Hartnell with such an important task. Trustee Padilla-Chavez stated the purpose of this evening is to have an open discussion and perhaps some accommodations will be needed that it is at the will of this Board and she hopes the Board can come to consensus because this is the one hire this Board gets to make it is the leader of this institution. She stated that the Board may need to agree to disagree, but need to be willing to move on. Trustee Montemayor asked how does the Board move forward and he believes the Board needs to take action on whether or not to retain ACCT. Ms. Schulkind, legal counsel, stated that no action could be taken this evening because the published agenda did not allow action this evening. She stated an option would be to adjourn the meeting and get a general consensus from Board to agendize the matter to make a decision on whether or not retain ACCT and the composition of the search committee. The Board could schedule this action at the next regular meeting or at a special meeting. Trustee Freeman requested that the two action items (contract with ACCT and committee composition) be placed on a special meeting or placed on the March 6 th regular meeting. Trustee Pruneda stated that he wanted stated for the record that at the December 13 meeting that he was concerned with the makeup of the committee and thought there were too many administrators. He gave kudos to those who selected their representatives, and believes the community members (with the exception of one) are not representative of the community and wants more community members. He believes those selected are status quo and are not the reality of the makeup of Hartnell College. Trustee Montemayor recommended that the Board take action on these two matters at the next scheduled meeting. Trustee Donohue suggested that the Board use the scheduled February 21 st Study Session as a special meeting so that the process could move forward, especially since orientation/training is scheduled on February 27 th. Student Trustee Gutierrez said he would like a third or fourth student added to the search committee because he wants a role in the process, that he wants that action added to the agenda and Trustee Pruneda said he wanted to do the same for community representation. Trustee Padilla-Chavez recalled that the Board established an Ad hoc Committee to decide community members and if the Board wanted to bring back that discussion, it could. HCCD SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FEBRUARY 15, 2012 Page 6 of 8

7 Trustee Padilla-Chavez commended Dr. Wright for bringing the concerns forward, she, Ms. Pyer, and Trustee DePauw have addressed the matter seriously, and that the concerns she had heard are not surrounding the process itself, but rather, the relationship between ACCT and San Joaquin Delta College. It s important to acknowledge this and she stated that she participated in a meeting last Thursday with classified and academic employee groups and it was made clear to her that the employees were appreciative of the process; that it has been clearly articulated and she is surprised to hear comments, this evening, that surround the process. She thanked the leadership of employee groups for expressing their interest in establishing a systemic process to address concerns within the college. She thanked Ms. Pyer for the hours she has spent on this process and, does not see an issue with the process and asked the Board to consider if a couple of members should sit on the search committee. Student Trustee Gutierrez thanked the Board for their willingness to discuss the issue. Trustee Padilla-Chavez thanked the members of the college who came together and said they want to work collaboratively. Dr. Fisher said she understood the Board would be revisiting the ACCT contract and asked if she should continue the recruitment and Trustee Padilla-Chavez responded, yes until the Board has made its decision. Trustee DePauw stated that she appreciates the concerns and believes the process has been well defined and stated that it s the Board s responsibility to do their work and believes that ACCT has a wonderful reputation and the decision comes down to the Board. Trustee Padilla-Chavez asked that the Board pull together and move forward whatever the outcome is on February 21 st. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 6:45 p.m. Erica Padilla-Chavez Board of Trustees President Phoebe K. Helm Board Secretary HCCD SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FEBRUARY 15, 2012 Page 7 of 8

8 HARTNELL COLLEGE PRESIDENT SEARCH TIMELINE Appendix A December 12-13: December: Early January: Dec. - Feb.: February 27 March 5: March 12: March 19-20: March 29: March 30: Early April: Early -Mid April: ACCT Consultant on Campus to Facilitate Focus Sessions and Meet with Board of Trustees (5:00 p.m. Dec. 13) Print ads placed and preparation of website begun Position Profile finalized by Board of Trustees and website functional Active Recruiting (will continue until filled) Search Committee Meeting #1 (Orientation and Training) (9:00 a.m.-noon) Target Date for Receipt of Applications (accepted until filled) Search Committee Meeting #2 (8:00a.m.-8:00 p.m.) Agenda: Review of Applications; Discussion of Applications and Selection of 6-8 Semi-Finalists to be invited for first interview (All day both days if needed) Final Search Committee Meeting Agenda: Interview Semi-Finalists and Selection of 3-4 Finalists to be forwarded to Board of Trustees Finalists Meet with Constituent Groups and Take Campus Tours Finalists Interview with Board of Trustees Board representatives make site visits (optional) Board of Trustees announces new President Note: ACCT will conduct preliminary reference checks of semi-finalists invited to interview and comprehensive summary reference checks of finalists. HCCD SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FEBRUARY 15, 2012 Page 8 of 8