Creston— The Southwestern Community College (SWCC) board of directors met Tuesday, October 14, 2014, at 5:30 p.m., in the Administration Center on the Creston campus.
During the meeting, Ken Rech of Red Oak was re-elected as president of the college’s board. Rech has been president of the board since 2008. Dennis Davis of Greenfield was re-elected as the board’s vice president. SWCC Assistant to the President Mary Jo Skarda was re-appointed as board secretary, SWCC Chief Financial Officer Randy Cook was appointed as board treasurer, and Jerry Smith, board member from Osceola, was re-appointed as SWCC’s Iowa Association of Community College Trustees (IACCT) representative.
The board re-appointed the following members to the Education Foundation board for the 2014-15 year: Patti Bricker of Greenfield, Amy Hook of Creston, Randy Huewe of Creston, Karl Knock of Creston, Rick Oshel of Osceola, Allen Pohren of Red Oak, Jerry Smith of Osceola, Alec Turner of West Des Moines (formerly of Corning), and Dr. Barb Crittenden, SWCC representative.
The board accepted the resignations of Education Foundation board members Larry Giles of Mt. Ayr and Connie Purdum of Creston.
In other business, the board approved the college’s depository resolution. The depository resolution, which details the financial institutions used as depositories for the college and specifies the maximum amount kept on deposit, is reviewed annually by the board in accordance with Chapter 12c.2 of the Code of Iowa. The only item that differed from last year’s resolution was the addition of Bankers Trust Company in Des Moines, where the college’s dorm revenue bond accounts are held.
The board passed a resolution to approve and adopt the Clarke County Hazard Mitigation Plan of 2014-19. Tom Lesan, SWCC vice president of economic development, told the board that with this resolution in place, it allows Clarke County to apply for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funds if a disaster were to occur, although it does not obligate the college to provide services it wouldn’t normally provide.
During the president’s report, Crittenden presented a report to the board showing fall SWCC enrollment up 2 percent, with a total of 1,606 students taking a total of 16,006 credits, up from 15,303.5 credits last year. According to Crittenden, the average age of SWCC students is at 21.1, down slightly from 21.7 last year.
Iowa community college legislative liaisons Dave Palmer, Jerry Fitzgerald, and Matt Fitzgerald reported to the board on the current legislative session.
Lesan provided board of trustees’ members with information regarding some of the classes being offered by the college’s adult and continuing education department. He noted welding is currently one of the most requested courses.
Smith ended the meeting with a report on the recent IACCT meeting.