1 2 BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING 3 SUFFOLK COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE 4 533 College Road Selden, New York 5 6 March 18, 2010 8:30 a.m. 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 BEFORE: 14 ERNESTO MATTACE, Trustee/Chair 15 16 17 18 19 REPORTED BY: 20 THERESA PAPE, Court Reporter/Notary Public 21 22 23 24 25 1 2 2 P R E S E N T: 3 WALTER C. HAZLITT, Trustee/Vice Chair 4 PAUL V. PONTIERI, JR., Trustee 5 SAUL R. FENCHEL, Trustee 6 AVETTE D. WARE, Trustee 7 CHIGOZI ONYINANYA, Student Trustee 8 9 10 A B S E N T: 11 JERRY KANE, Trustee/Secretary 12 BELINDA ALVAREZ-GRONEMAN, Trustee 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 1 3 2 A L S O P R E S E N T: 3 GEORGE GATTA, Interim President, SCCC 4 MARY LOU ARANEO, Vice President for 5 Institutional Advancement 6 JOANNE BRAXTON, Associate Vice President for Campus Affairs 7 NANCY STIER, Vice President of Finance 8 JAMES CANNIFF, Vice President of Academic 9 and Student Affairs 10 MARVIN BRIGHT, Associate Vice President of Student Affairs 11 ILENE KREITZER, Executive Director of 12 Legal Affairs 13 JILL BAUCCIO, Secretary to President 14 15 *** All other interested parties 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 4 2 (WHEREUPON, this proceeding 3 convened at 8:30 a.m. Off-the-record 4 discussions ensued, after which the 5 following transpired:) 6 (Time noted: 8:41 a.m.) 7 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Could we all 8 stand please for the Pledge. 9 Walter. 10 (Pledge of Allegiance) 11 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Good morning, 12 everybody, and welcome. 13 I need a motion to approve the 14 minutes of the February 11th meeting -- 15 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: So moved. 16 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: -- the Board of 17 Directors meeting. 18 Second? 19 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Second. 20 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: All those in 21 favor? 22 ALL: Aye. 23 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Opposed? 24 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 25 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Abstentions? 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 5 2 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 3 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Approval of the 4 minutes for February 11th Board of 5 Directors meeting. 6 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: So moved. 7 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: All right. 8 MS. KREITZER: Wait, wait -- 9 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Second? 10 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Second. 11 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Wait a second. 12 We did that already. 13 MS. KREITZER: Yes. 14 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Why is it 15 written down twice? 16 Okay. I got it now. 17 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Good. 18 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Thank you. 19 I need a request for a motion to 20 approve the Association Resolutions, 21 Number 3010.A4. 22 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: So moved. 23 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Second? 24 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Second. 25 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: All those in 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 6 2 favor? 3 ALL: Aye. 4 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Opposed? 5 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 6 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Abstentions? 7 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 8 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. 9 The Association Financial Report. 10 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 11 Good morning. 12 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Good morning. 13 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: I 14 will be giving the College Association 15 Financial Report for the period of 16 September 1, '09 to February 28th, 2010. 17 We've roughly received about 18 75 percent of the revenues and some fees 19 for this fiscal year. We're right 20 around slightly almost 50 percent of the 21 expenditures of that budget. You know, 22 as we move into the spring semester, 23 we'll start having a lot of the award 24 ceremonies, our banquets, and so a lot 25 of more spending will occur within the 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 7 2 Association. 3 The Baker's Workshop, the Peconic 4 Cafe, the Culinary Arts accounts remain 5 in the black; and we're fortunate with 6 the Childcare Center, their enrollment 7 is very good; and the SUNY grant has not 8 been cut for this year. 9 Any questions? 10 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 11 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 12 Thank you. 13 TRUSTEE WARE: Thank you. 14 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: AVP Bright, 15 you'll be also making a presentation on 16 College-wide Athletics? 17 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 18 Yes, sir. 19 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Thank you. 20 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 21 Good morning, again. 22 I'd like to thank you for this 23 opportunity to -- to bring to you some 24 information regarding the current status 25 of our college athletics. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 8 2 I would like to engage you into a 3 dialogue about moving the current status 4 of our college athletics into a 5 one-college or a single-college 6 multi-campus athletic program. So I'll 7 discuss some of the issues that we're 8 experiencing now with the current model 9 of the program, I'll talk about some 10 advantages and what it will offer more 11 of our students. 12 Currently, as you know, we do have 13 a very vibrant athletic program. We 14 have two athletic programs at the 15 college, one at the Ammerman Campus and 16 one at the Grant Campus. Those two 17 programs currently are operating from 18 separate operating budgets funded by the 19 College Association. 20 Along with that, each campus have 21 actually separate memberships with the 22 National Junior College Association -- 23 Athletic Association. That's our 24 national membership in which we are a 25 part of with our sports teams. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 9 2 Over the years, having the two 3 programs at two separate campuses, we've 4 duplicated some of our programs. As you 5 can see, some of the programs that we 6 have duplicated on both campuses, 7 they're identical; we have a women's 8 volleyball on the Ammerman and the Grant 9 Campuses, men's baseball and men's 10 basketball. We all compete in the same 11 region, we all compete in Region 15 of 12 the NJCAA. What's interesting is that 13 we have different colors and different 14 mascots by campus. 15 Currently we are looking at some 16 intramural programs. Our intramural 17 programs right now is -- is pretty much 18 traditional, but it's -- it's right 19 around the model of an open gym type of 20 intramural program. Participation is 21 very, very minimal at this time. Later 22 on in my presentation I will talk about 23 some other opportunities that we can 24 engage more students, significantly more 25 students in intramurals at the college. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 10 2 Currently, students participating 3 in intercollegiate athletics is roughly 4 less than 1 percent. From the research 5 that I've pulled together on both 6 campuses, and even some of the 7 participation of our students at our 8 Eastern Campus, we have roughly about 9 225 students participating on a budget 10 slightly under $900,000 funded by the 11 Association. 12 Through the research we're looking 13 at, to expand more students in all three 14 of our campuses to engage in more 15 health-related, wellness activities, 16 programs, and services college-wide; I 17 want to expand the number of types of 18 health and sports opportunities, to 19 increase participation from our student 20 body, move into the one-college athletic 21 program model where they were to 22 eliminate competitive rivalry between 23 the campuses. Over the years we've 24 become very, very competitive. Instead 25 of having a rivalry against -- because 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 11 2 we have a subtle rivalry -- a slight 3 rivalry against Nassau and Westchester, 4 some of our sports, our biggest rivalry 5 is between Ammerman and the Grant 6 Campus. 7 From moving to a one-college model 8 and not having separate operating 9 budgets, we can utilize the -- the 10 resources more efficiently and 11 effectively. We can also centralize the 12 operations of intercollegiate and 13 athletic sports; help us to provide 14 equitable resource allocations, we can 15 monitor it better. 16 When we go through the budget 17 process, it would be basically a 18 one-college budget process where 19 college-wide athletics are concerned. 20 Implementation steps in doing this, 21 we have to explore the current 22 administrative structure. The current 23 structure under the two campuses, we had 24 two athletic directors; one on each 25 campus. Now we're moving to having one 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 12 2 college-wide athletic director, and also 3 having an intercollegiate intermural 4 coordinator to -- to actually operate 5 the intermural programs. 6 Other things will help us to 7 establish a one institutional membership 8 so we don't get into the confusion of 9 having to pay two separate memberships. 10 We will go through the process of 11 adopting college-wide colors and not 12 having two separate colors by campus. 13 And I'll begin to talk more about the 14 college-wide annual intermural programs 15 later on in the presentation. 16 What happens now at the college? 17 Right here is just some of the 18 additional types of intermural programs 19 that takes place (indicating). Okay. 20 Very, very, very few students are 21 participating. Here yesterday, 22 Wednesday, usually during common hour, 23 we have what is known as an open gym. I 24 walked by yesterday, we have roughly 25 about maybe 20 to 25 students 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 13 2 participating in open gym. 3 Next slide. 4 What we're looking at is to have 5 that type of open gym program with 6 intramurals. Traditionally, intramurals 7 are more effective at residential 8 institutions because students are 9 actually living on campus. Here we have 10 to be much more creative. Some of the 11 things I've discussed about, we were 12 moving to a planning phase and not only 13 having open gym, but providing 14 opportunities that we could have even 15 evening students to participate in that 16 plan. 17 Some of the things we're looking 18 at, this is for example, an Annual Fall 19 Halloween Flag Football Bowl. This can 20 be coed. It can be one gender, both 21 genders. Each campus will go through a 22 tournament series, then we will come 23 college-wide together and have an annual 24 flag football bowl. This will happen 25 during the fall. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 14 2 During the spring, the same type of 3 scenario. We will have a spring Wacky 4 Sports Olympics. This way, we engage 5 all of our students, we can engage 6 faculty members come up for an event, 7 and really have more participation of 8 our student overall in the activity. 9 I have a little clip for you for 10 some of the other institutions -- one of 11 our neighboring institutions, 12 actually -- 13 Next slide. 14 -- and their intermural program. 15 Very interesting, they have roughly 16 about 4,000 to 5,000 students 17 participating in athletics. 18 (Video shown) 19 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 20 So it pretty much actually promotes 21 Stony Brook, but, actually, it helps us 22 to -- to look at a model for intramurals 23 as something that we can actually take 24 bits and pieces of and bring here. 25 Going to the one-college athletic model, 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 15 2 we will have the advantage of taking -- 3 we'll have the opportunity to take 4 advantage of available athletic fields 5 and facilities to have a more vibrant 6 intermural program. 7 What are some of the advantages? 8 From all of the literature up, it tells 9 you. From -- from Pinto, to Green, and 10 Patchurella (phonetic), and to any 11 individual in this room who's done some 12 research on retention, it promotes 13 student leadership, sportsmanship, 14 retention, academics of students, and 15 success. It promotes the one-college 16 multi-campus concept. We are one 17 college. 18 Some of the research that I've seen 19 that's taken place when looking at some 20 of the other students who have been -- 21 would have either multi-campuses or 22 satellite sites mirrors what they're 23 doing as far as multi-campus division 24 pre-athletic programs. 25 One of the key things again, it 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 16 2 will eliminate the competition and 3 rivalry that we have between our 4 campuses. 5 It also will eliminate the 6 confusion of visiting schools. I mean, 7 who are we playing today? Are we going 8 to play Ammerman or are we going to play 9 Grant? When we get to the Eastern 10 campus, are we going to play East? 11 Now, having one-college model, 12 opposing teams will know that they are 13 playing Suffolk County Community 14 College. 15 Events of the college-wide athletic 16 program, again, enhances coordination, 17 planning, and budgeting purposes. This 18 is a very, very involved process. So 19 now we'll be able to centralize that 20 process and look at college athletics as 21 a college-wide budget. 22 The campus intramurals and 23 recreations program, we feel, will 24 enhance student participation. We're 25 going to be able to set some goals with 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 17 2 that, you know. Starting off, it will 3 be a little slow, but hopefully over 4 time we'll be able to get to 2-, 3,000 5 students; more students participating 6 college-wide in activities, not just 7 during common hour, but at different 8 times. 9 Enable students the opportunity to 10 experience those athletic, health, 11 wellness, and physical fitness 12 activities. The research tells us, the 13 more students are engaged, the more 14 likely they're able to achieve their 15 academic endeavors. 16 We'll talk about the -- the 17 organization- -- the proposal for the 18 organizational structure, and later on 19 there will be an actual time line slide 20 so you can see some things that have 21 actually taken place. 22 The first thing to do is to look at 23 it and have a college-wide athletic 24 director. Put that individual in place, 25 understanding that he will actually -- 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 18 2 or she will -- he will actually be the 3 college athletic director; participate 4 more in the planning and in development 5 of the intramurals and coordinating the 6 athletics college-wide. 7 The creation of an intercollegiate 8 intramural coordinator: This individual 9 would be responsible for very vibrant 10 intra- -- intramural programs 11 college-wide. 12 Creation of new intramural 13 recreation wellness coordinators on both 14 the Ammerman and the Grant Campuses. 15 And our Eastern Campus, we currently 16 have an intramural coordination. 17 Intramurals at the Eastern Campus is 18 pretty -- is pretty vibrant right now. 19 I actually wanted to take some of those 20 models and implement it at some of our 21 other -- our other two campuses. 22 Phase I: Implement the proposed 23 organizational structure. 24 Develop and/or adjust college 25 association budgets to support the 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 19 2 organizational structure. 3 Go through the planning phase of 4 developing and implementing the 5 comprehensive program by the fall of 6 2010. 7 Begin the planning phase, 8 beginning in the spring of 2011, of 9 consolidating -- not eliminating, we 10 want to consolidate the duplicate 11 athletic programs by campuses and 12 develop college-wide programs, similar 13 to many of our other sports; our -- the 14 college lacrosse team is college-wide, 15 bowling team is college-wide, track team 16 is college-wide, our swimming and diving 17 team is college-wide. We'll look at 18 these other three programs and go 19 through a process of consolidating them 20 and making them college-wide also. 21 Phase II of it, moving into fall 22 2011; go through the process of 23 contacting the NJCAA in Region 15 that 24 we are going to move to a college-wide 25 program with establishing a 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 20 2 one-institutional-wide membership with 3 the NJCAA. 4 We want to engage students in the 5 process of establishing colors and a 6 mascot. 7 Also, implement the plan -- plan, 8 again, for consolidating the duplicated 9 athletic programs. 10 Here it gives you a visual of a 11 time line beginning January, some things 12 that have taken place. I have already 13 posted student info forms on each 14 campus, spoken with student leaders, 15 students within student government. 16 Every forum was well received and 17 supportive of moving to the college-wide 18 athletic program. Every forum supported 19 the comprehensive intramural program. 20 During our February board meeting, 21 we designated a college-wide athletic 22 director. And, basically, here, you 23 will see the time line as we begin to 24 move forward in this process. 25 That concludes my presentation. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 21 2 I'll address any questions if I can. 3 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Thank you. 4 I have one. 5 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 6 Yes, sir. 7 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Setting up as 8 college-wide, and I understand we live 9 on Long Island and we need 10 transportation, a student has to get 11 from one to the other. Is there going 12 to be any set up or proposals to be able 13 to transport, say, a student from the 14 Eastern Campus to Grant Campus to do the 15 swimming team? 16 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 17 We actually have engaged into some 18 conversations of a new tour proposal, of 19 having intercampus transportation 20 provided by the Association. 21 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Wonderful. 22 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 23 We're looking at providing 24 transportation between the hours of 3:00 25 and 8 o'clock. And, again, we need to 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 22 2 go through looking at the feasibility of 3 funding it long term. We've engaged 4 into those conversations, and maybe 5 look -- move to that planning phasing. 6 But that is something that we're 7 definitely considering as far as 8 practice time for students to move back 9 and forth, and also, to be able to get 10 home from games. 11 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: We'll be able to 12 set up either a survey or some kind of 13 schedule where students can, you know, 14 submit their names saying that I want to 15 participate, and so we can get an 16 idea -- 17 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 18 Absolutely. 19 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: -- of how many 20 students are going to be -- 21 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 22 Sure. I believe we can do that, sure. 23 We've done some research in the 24 past, and of course there's many -- a 25 type of transportation study done. We 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 23 2 have some preliminary data, but that 3 data needs to be updated; but 4 absolutely, we can move in that 5 direction, too. 6 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Thank you. 7 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: 8 (Indicating) 9 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Walter. 10 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Will this 11 here program require additional 12 personnel? 13 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 14 The only additional personnel that we're 15 looking at would be the campus 16 intramural coordinator. 17 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Is that the 18 one we're voting on today? 19 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 20 The one we're voting on today is the 21 designated intercollegiate and 22 intermurals coordinator. Before we had 23 an assistant athletic director at the 24 Ammerman Campus. Now that we were 25 moving -- closer to moving to a 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 24 2 college-wide athletic program, there's 3 no need for that assistant athletic 4 director here at this particular campus. 5 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Okay. 6 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: And what -- have 7 you gotten feedback from the students 8 themselves about consolidating some of 9 the teams? 10 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Yes. 11 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 12 Trustee Chigozi. 13 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Yeah, 14 in, actually, kind of one of the forums, 15 Dr. Bright gave a similar presentation, 16 and there was a lot of support for this 17 program. Students were fully aware and 18 comprehended every step of it. 19 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 20 Thank you. 21 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Very good. 22 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: Is there any 23 sense that -- you can only practice in 24 one place, you can only play in one 25 place. You know, it's -- that -- 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 25 2 whether it -- it be centralized here or 3 be centralized at the Grant Campus, how 4 do we -- how do we manage to make sure 5 that the campuses themselves feel 6 engaged in the process? Because I think 7 probably one of the reasons, initially, 8 was to have the separate ones so that 9 the campuses felt some engagement with 10 it. That would be my concern -- 11 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 12 Sure. Sure. 13 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: -- that -- 14 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 15 We're really -- these are going to be -- 16 to answer your question is -- is, 17 engaging students to understand what is 18 a college-wide athletic program, but 19 also to get them to participate in that 20 mascot -- to identify what the college 21 mascot would be and the colors. 22 The coordination, in speaking very 23 much with our college-wide athletic 24 director, we see it as an advantage of 25 having both campuses and facilities and 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 26 2 athletic fields at both campuses, 3 because if we're in one situation 4 whereby it rains and the field is not 5 available that specific day at the Grant 6 Campus, now we could actually use those 7 facilities -- 8 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: Right. 9 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 10 -- at the Ammerman Campus. And, of 11 course, that would take some good, you 12 know, coordination of where teams would 13 practice. 14 There could be a time where -- if 15 I'm a coach, I would have practice at 16 the Ammerman Campus. I may find a need 17 of getting into a different -- a 18 different area in the facilities 19 between -- at the fields at the Eastern 20 Campus -- I may want to actually 21 practice at the Eastern Campus. So we 22 will have the benefits, not the 23 disadvantage, I see, of having multiple 24 areas that we could actually practice 25 and have competitions in the event 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 27 2 that -- you know, a leaky roof, anything 3 could happen. 4 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: I think it's -- 5 whether it's games, whether they're 6 alternating from campus to campus, I -- 7 you know, again, keeping -- keeping 8 those kids that are on each of those 9 campuses so there's not a campus that 10 says, "Well, you know, Ammerman's the 11 oldest or the biggest" -- 12 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 13 Absolutely. 14 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: -- just that -- 15 that engagement. 16 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 17 Absolutely. Absolutely. Coordination 18 is key. 19 I've spoken with the -- the 20 college-wide athletic director. At 21 first, we were engaging in the 22 conversations of where are we going to 23 house an actual team by campus. But -- 24 but truly, that's getting away from the 25 one-college model. We want to take 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 28 2 advantage of the facilities and fields 3 that are available to us. There could 4 be an event at the -- the Grant 5 Campus -- I'm sorry, the name of the 6 area? The facility, the large facility? 7 SPEAKER: Health, Sports and 8 Education Center. 9 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 10 Health, Sports and Education Center, 11 there could be an actual community event 12 there; we can actually come here -- 13 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: Right. 14 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 15 -- and participate. 16 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Have we 17 replaced Coach Foley, or is that 18 position going to figure in? 19 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 20 Coach Foley was the interim athletic 21 director for the Ammerman Campus. He 22 actually resigned -- I mean, he retired 23 from that position and went back to the 24 (inaudible). 25 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Thank you. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 29 2 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Oh, okay. 3 So you feel, by looking at the 4 model at the Eastern Campus for the 5 intramurals, we'll be able to increase 6 it across the regional campuses? 7 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 8 Absolutely, yes. 9 We put a lot of emphasis on that, 10 we put a lot of research on that. We 11 put the appropriate funding toward the 12 intramural programs. We want to engage 13 students to times that are convenient 14 for them, understanding who we are. We 15 are a true commuted institution. Just 16 to have that Wednesday common hour is 17 not going to get us to where we want to 18 be. 19 Again, we may have events on 20 Saturday morning at 11 o'clock. And so 21 marketing the programs, getting students 22 to participate is the way that we can 23 actually grow and move that intramural 24 program very vibrant. 25 Also, incentives; trophies, 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 30 2 tee-shirts. Winning the -- when we 3 establish the annual events, they could 4 be awarding a trophy to their campus. 5 And then another campus the following 6 year will each try and compete to pull 7 that trophy to the other campus. So we 8 will have those things in place and make 9 it exciting, competitive yet healthy for 10 the organization. 11 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: I thank you for 12 your report. 13 Any other questions? 14 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Yes. 15 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Chigozi. 16 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: That 17 900 -- near to 900,000 figure, is that 18 usually a general number that should be 19 allocated to athletics? 20 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 21 That number was just a -- slightly under 22 the $900,000 was the structure -- the 23 current structure of having two athletic 24 programs under two separate operating 25 budgets. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 31 2 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Right. 3 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 4 So that's what the 900- was -- the 5 $880,000 funding. 6 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Okay. 7 See, my only concern is why -- why 8 it's so much, considering that there's 9 only 250 students utilizing those 10 resources? 11 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 12 Absolutely. That's partly the reason 13 why we had to go back and look at this. 14 Explore and find ways that we can engage 15 a much larger -- again, one of the goals 16 is going from 225 students to, you know, 17 220- -- you know, 2,000, 2,500, 3,000 18 students to take advantage. It's a very 19 large budget for 225 students. 20 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Thank 21 you. 22 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. Thank 23 you. 24 ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT BRIGHT: 25 Thank you very much. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 32 2 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Request a motion 3 for the Board of Directors to adjourn 4 and convene with the Board of Trustees. 5 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: Motion. 6 TRUSTEE WARE: Second. 7 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: All those in 8 favor? 9 ALL: Aye. 10 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Opposed? 11 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 12 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Abstentions? 13 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 14 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. So 15 passed. 16 Okay. I'm requesting a motion to 17 approve the minutes of the February 11th 18 Board of Trustees meeting. 19 TRUSTEE RENCHEL: So moved. 20 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Second. 21 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: In favor? 22 ALL: Aye. 23 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Opposed? 24 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 25 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Abstentions? 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 33 2 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 3 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: So passed. 4 Okay. Request a motion to enter 5 into Executive Session to discuss 6 employment of an individual. 7 TRUSTEE WARE: So moved. 8 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Second? 9 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: Second. 10 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: All those in 11 favor? 12 ALL: Aye. 13 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Opposed? 14 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 15 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Abstentions? 16 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 17 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: So passed. 18 (WHEREUPON, Executive Session 19 commenced, after which the following 20 transpired:) 21 (Time noted: 10:07 a.m.) 22 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Thank you very 23 much. 24 You can proceed. 25 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Today I'm 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 34 2 going to discuss how we're doing on this 3 year's budget, and I'm also going to 4 spend some time giving you sort of a 5 preview of next year's budget and what 6 we're thinking of, because at this -- at 7 the meeting next month, we'll be giving 8 you the budget for adoption. So I want 9 to give you a preview and let you know 10 what we're thinking about so that you 11 have that to think about over the next 12 month. 13 So let me start with the budget 14 update on this year. 15 The overall steps the budget made, 16 very similar to last month. Our 17 revenues are projected, and -- and you 18 have the -- the finance material in your 19 package. The revenues are projected to 20 be $2.9 million-plus budget, and that 21 reflects the tuition from the enrollment 22 that exceeded the budget level, minus 23 the reduction we received from state 24 aid. 25 Expenses are projected to be about 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 35 2 $250,000 below budget, after covering 3 costs for additional class sections that 4 we needed to add for enrollment growth. 5 And, as a result, after covering the 6 $1.7 million carryforward built into 7 this year's budget, we're projecting a 8 surplus of $1.5 million at yearend. 9 Since the committee last met, we 10 did remove budgets from the campuses and 11 from the vice presidents' budgets -- 12 funds from the budgets to cover the 13 reduction in state aid. And, as a 14 reminder, the amount of that reduction 15 was $1.9 million. 16 The largest reductions were 17 $300,000 each from equipment and 18 supplies, about $120,000 from 19 contractual services, and close to a 20 million dollars in salaries and 21 benefits. 22 Those salary savings reflected 23 vacancies above the amount from the 24 adopted budget, and -- and that happened 25 because knowing about the state's 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 36 2 deteriorating budget situation, we've 3 been very cautious about certain lines, 4 and that's why we were able to have 5 those savings. This set aside a fund 6 within the budget to ensure a good 7 financial result at yearend. 8 We're also, of course, equally 9 concerned about making sure that 10 student/faculty needs are met, and that 11 our facilities issues are dealt with 12 properly. So we're going to have -- be 13 discussing with the senior 14 administration what critical needs there 15 may be that we have to take care of for 16 the remainder of the year so that we can 17 make sure that everything is planned in 18 advance and taken care of. 19 So that's the report on this. Are 20 there any questions? 21 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Any questions? 22 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 23 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Okay. 24 So here's some preliminary 25 information about next year's budget. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 37 2 The planning for next year starts 3 with two basic assumptions: 4 The first is that we're assuming 5 enrollment will stay strong as people 6 continue to turn to Suffolk for cost 7 effective education and to improve their 8 skills, all of which becomes even more 9 important when we're having an economic 10 turndown as we are now; and 11 The second assumption is that state 12 and county government -- and this is 13 probably not an assumption, the state 14 and county government's are facing 15 revenue difficulties that will hamper 16 their ability to support the college and 17 to support our growing enrollments. 18 Thus, the challenge that we'll have -- 19 that we've had this year, is going to 20 continue into next year and probably 21 beyond that. And that challenge is 22 educating more students with less 23 funding from -- per student from our -- 24 the combination of -- of state and 25 county than in recent years. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 38 2 The issue for us now, between -- 3 between now and when we ask for the 4 budget next month, is to select among a 5 mix of choices that we have to deal with 6 those two assumptions; to deal with 7 growing enrollment and the difficult 8 situations in the state and the county. 9 And -- and -- and our selection among 10 our choices we have to address those 11 challenges. 12 Enrollment -- let me talk a little 13 bit about enrollment. 14 As you know, it was up 10 percent 15 in the fall, and up about 8 percent this 16 spring. These are the largest increases 17 in the history of college, making us the 18 biggest community college in New York 19 State. You all know that. 20 The preliminary assumption that 21 we're working with for the budget for 22 next year is growth of 2 percent over 23 this year. That slower growth 24 recognizes that we had an enormous 25 increase this year, and, you know, we 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 39 2 have to sustain that and then go beyond 3 that, and there aren't certainties about 4 the pace of the economic recovery and 5 its impact on our student numbers. So 6 while they're assuming, based on models 7 that we've done, that we're still going 8 to grow. We expect the pace of that 9 growth to slow. 10 Next, let me talk about, on the 11 revenue side, state aid. The budget 12 that we give you next month will include 13 the governor's proposals on state aid, 14 unless the state adopts something else. 15 We'll have to work with the governor's 16 number unless something else happens. 17 As a reminder, here's where we are 18 with state aid. During this fiscal 19 year, it was cut from 2,675 per FTE to 20 2,545, and that was the reduction that 21 we took this year. 22 The proposal for next year reduces 23 state aid -- the governor's proposal -- 24 to $2,260 per FTE. That's a reduction 25 of $415 per FTE student, which is a cut 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 40 2 of more than 18 percent from where we 3 started at the beginning of this year. 4 Significant reductions in FTEs per 5 student -- sorry, in dollars per FTE. 6 Now, the impact on our budget of 7 those reductions will be (inaudible). 8 While we'll receive less money per FTE, 9 the current proposal will at least fund 10 the growth that we had this year into 11 next year. Still, if the governor's 12 budget is adopted as it is, we'll be cut 13 about $4 million from this year to next. 14 The news from the state, of course, 15 is that the budget for the following 16 year, for 2011-'12, will be even worse. 17 Part of that is because the stimulus 18 money and -- is actually a problem 19 nationally. And so we also have to 20 consider that the budget could get even 21 worse the following year as we structure 22 it next year. So we have to think about 23 it in advance and figure out what we're 24 going to be able to do. 25 Now, while we're looking at that 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 41 2 enrollment increase and -- and the -- 3 the reduction in -- in funds per FTE 4 from the state, we have to also do the 5 cost increases -- mandatory cost 6 increases that are at the college every 7 year. First and foremost, we have to 8 track the salary increase obligations 9 that we have to fulfill. 10 There are benefit increases, and 11 we -- this was mentioned in the meeting 12 a couple of months ago that the pension 13 increase next year is extremely large, 14 and -- and that will increase our costs. 15 We always worry about health insurance 16 and -- and other costs in the benefit 17 area. 18 And then in nonpersonal services, 19 energy costs go up, rental costs go up, 20 and, you know, there are non -- there 21 are inflationary cost factors that have 22 to be considered on the nonpersonal side 23 as well. 24 Now, as we're working on the 25 preliminary numbers, we're working on 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 42 2 the budget, all of those expense 3 increases that I just described will 4 exceed the additional funds that we'll 5 get in -- in from the state. No doubt 6 about it. The state budget's getting 7 cut, so we're going to have a gap in the 8 budget that we're working on closing for 9 next year. We would hope to get some 10 additional support from the county, but 11 as was discussed at a legislative 12 committee meeting on Tuesday, the county 13 is having revenue problems and is 14 expecting a budget deficit. 15 So we'll have a budget gap, and 16 we'll have to close that gap as we work 17 on preparing the budget. And the 18 choices that we have available to do 19 that are not necessarily what we wanted 20 to do, but, you know, our challenge is 21 concerning the mix ,things that we're 22 going to need to do to keep the budget 23 in balance and to guarantee the costs or 24 functions to support students' 25 educations are funded, because that's 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 43 2 what we're here for, to make sure that 3 they get the education -- the students 4 get the education. 5 So what are the choice options that 6 we'll have to deal with gap? 7 Well, we can leave positions 8 vacant. 9 We can cut back on -- 10 And in that I'm referring to 11 full-time positions. 12 We could also cut back on part-time 13 staffing, temporary staffing, including 14 possibly adjuncts. 15 We can look at non-personal budget 16 reductions, which is how we made much of 17 our reductions in this year. 18 Of course, another option is 19 tuition rate increases. And as you look 20 at the number, it's -- it's difficult to 21 figure out a way that we'll be able to 22 balance next year's budget and fund the 23 things we need without some increase in 24 tuition, although the amount is -- has 25 to be discussed and has to be 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 44 2 determined. 3 And another option is that we could 4 spend down reserves in -- that we've 5 built up over the years, even more than 6 the amount that's already in the budget. 7 And I just want to remind you that that 8 $1.7 million carryover I talk about 9 every year is really used for reserves. 10 We could build more into the budget, but 11 there's always problems with doing that 12 because it -- it has to be eventually 13 absorbed into the budget. So you spend 14 down reserves and eventually have to 15 cover it. So you could do it, but it's 16 a fix that comes with problems that have 17 to be discussed. 18 So that's where we are and that's 19 what we're looking at for next year. 20 It's a look at the choices -- the 21 numbers and the choices that we have. 22 When I review what -- where we are right 23 now, it's -- it's pretty likely that 24 some cert- -- some things are probably 25 not going to happen next year. We're 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 45 2 probably not going to be able to start 3 any new programs unless we get financial 4 support for them. 5 I'll give you an example: We're 6 considering an EMT program that would be 7 wonderful for the county but is very 8 expensive, and it's -- it's hard to 9 figure out a way that we'd be able to 10 fund starting it in this environment 11 without support. It's unlikely, given 12 the financial situation, that we'll be 13 able to make any progress in increasing 14 proportion of full-time faculty to reach 15 the goal of 70 percent that's in our 16 strategic planning document. It's still 17 a goal, but finance realities are what 18 they are. 19 And it's probably unlikely that 20 we'll be able to advance many of our 21 strategic goals, in fact, that require 22 significant investments, because it's 23 going to be hard to find money for new 24 investments when what we really need to 25 do is make sure the core program is -- 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 46 2 is strong and possible in an er- -- time 3 of declining revenues per student. 4 But there's good news to be found 5 in all this, so I want to leave you on 6 a -- on a better note. And -- and -- 7 and here's the good news that can be 8 found in our planning for next year and 9 beyond: 10 The first is that the college has 11 made significant progress in strategic 12 planning goals over the last few years, 13 and we can develop the budget for next 14 year knowing that our services to 15 students are better than in the past, 16 and we just want to make sure that we 17 continue to do -- continue where we -- 18 at least where we are now. 19 The college has also done a very 20 good job managing its finances in the 21 past few years -- I'm particularly 22 thankful for that because I'm still 23 new -- and has done a great job 24 controlling spending and increasing 25 reserves; so we have that also. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 47 2 And the third good piece of news is 3 the college can continue to implement 4 initiatives that its already started, 5 that are cost-neutral, and some of which 6 are even cost-effective. So that you 7 can do new things, you can do better 8 things even without -- and improve 9 services even if it doesn't cost more 10 money. 11 For example, you've heard about the 12 student services model at the East 13 Campus. We can expand that model and -- 14 and improve services by doing something 15 like that, which is actually quite 16 efficient and effective. 17 And another example, which I know 18 you've heard about in the past, in the 19 facilities area. We're using our own 20 staff more and more often for painting 21 and minor construction projects. And 22 you've heard about the repairs that need 23 to be done all over campus, that's 24 something we can do something about by 25 using our own staff. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 48 2 So there are initiatives that you 3 can put in place that don't necessarily 4 require money, and we'll need to focus 5 our efforts on coming up and being 6 creative about those during this time. 7 So that's the preview. I -- I -- I 8 do wish I had better news, but we all 9 know what the economy is. So I think a 10 lot of what I've discussed here is -- is 11 pretty much known and has been in the 12 newspapers. But I wanted to discuss 13 that with you, it will effect our 14 thinking about the budget between now 15 and next month. 16 Thank you. 17 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Even though 18 you don't anticipate an EMT program, 19 what do you estimate the cost of 20 establishing that program? 21 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: The first 22 year -- the EMT program you said? 23 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Yes. 24 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: The first 25 years cost of that is, I believe, about 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 49 2 $300,000. 3 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: How much? 4 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: $300,000. 5 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: $300,000? 6 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Yeah, in the 7 first year. 8 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: What are 9 our total reserves now? 10 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: At the end 11 of this year -- remember, we still have 12 not completed our -- our audit for this 13 year, the financials are still being 14 done, but the preliminary number is at 15 the end of this year -- and I want to 16 think a minute -- minute and get it 17 right -- it will be about -- somewhere 18 between 11 and $12 million dollars. 19 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: You know, I 20 read in the paper, some of the criticism 21 of the local school district is that 22 they've accumulated tremendous reserves 23 and there is a thought that some of that 24 funding should be used to offset the 25 increases of that budget. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 50 2 Is there any thought that we -- is 3 that one of your choices? 4 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: I men- -- 5 yeah. I mentioned that as one of -- 6 of -- one of the possible options. And, 7 remember, we're already using, 8 basically, 1.7 million this year. So we 9 could increase the amount. But if you 10 increase the amount and you spend it 11 year after year after year, the reserves 12 that you worked very hard to build up 13 disappear very, very quickly. And since 14 we're looking at a situation where we 15 don't expect the economy to get much 16 better -- we don't expect the -- the 17 funding situation from our -- from our 18 county or our state to get much better 19 in the next couple of years, anything we 20 build into it, you have to anticipate 21 we'd be spending for a couple of years. 22 So it's something -- we're talking -- I 23 mentioned on my list, it's something we 24 can think about. 25 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: Aren't your -- 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 51 2 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: But, again, 3 it comes with issues. 4 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: Also, isn't your 5 bond rating determined somewhat on the 6 reserves that you haven't used? 7 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Yes. 8 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: The general -- 9 THE REPORTER: Stop. I can't get 10 you both, I'm sorry. 11 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: The question 12 was, I think that your bond rating is -- 13 is also determined by about -- by the 14 amount of money that you do have in your 15 reserves. 16 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Uh-huh. 17 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: So what you 18 don't -- what you can't do is get 19 yourself -- there's probably -- I know 20 within the village, we run about 21 18 percent. 22 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Right. 23 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: That keeps us -- 24 our bond rating where it is at. 25 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Right. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 52 2 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: So if you go 3 below percentage -- 4 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Right. 5 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: -- then you 6 effect your bond rating which effects 7 your ability to borrow, and there's a 8 cost that goes -- 9 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: That's -- 10 that's all very true. And equally 11 important, and I'm going to look to 12 President Gatta to help me here, because 13 this is a historic piece of information 14 that I'm not completely on top of yet, 15 but the Middle States, I believe, cited 16 us -- 17 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: Yes. 18 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: -- for 19 having low reserves, and that's one of 20 the reasons that the college has been 21 working so hard to increase them. And 22 while they have increased somewhat, I'm 23 still -- I still don't think we're at 24 the levels that they would like us to 25 be. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 53 2 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: We've 3 done much better over the past year, 4 year and a half. Vice President Stier 5 is correct, the Middle States has, 6 several times, advised us that our 7 reserves are too low. 8 Up until last year, our reserves 9 were hovering in the 5 to $6 million 10 range, which is about -- well below the 11 benchmark which ranges between 5 and 12 10 percent of -- of your operating -- of 13 your annual operating budget. So as we 14 approach the $12 million mark, we're 15 getting into a range that's, you know, 16 within the suggested and the recommended 17 range, but, in the past, we've been 18 very, very, very low. 19 You know, reserves are there for a 20 number of reasons. We -- we are in a 21 financial situation where we don't know 22 what will happen going forward. So we 23 need to be prepared should revenues drop 24 off; whether it's state revenues, 25 whether it's enrollment in the 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 54 2 institution, or other unforeseen 3 situations; whether it's a settlement of 4 a collective bargaining agreement that 5 has been outstanding for a period of 6 time, which we would -- we may need to 7 cover retroactive pay. So it's a 8 situation where you have -- nonrecurring 9 expenses are the best use of reserves, 10 and the point -- you know, we want a 11 budget going forward that's sustainable, 12 where we have continuing revenues to 13 fund continuing expenses. 14 So when Vice President Stier 15 mentions that we -- we need to be very 16 careful about adding to the use of 17 reserves in an annual operating budget, 18 especially in light of what the governor 19 has proposed the second year in the 20 '11-'12 budget, which increases the 21 reductions to community colleges from 22 $57 million to $76 million, you know, 23 we're -- we're in a very uncertain time 24 and, you know, it's always better to be 25 prudent and to build a -- a budget that 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 55 2 is something we can count on as opposed 3 to using long shots. So that's -- 4 that's really the challenge. 5 TRUSTEE RENCHEL: When we're -- 6 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: The -- 7 Go ahead. 8 TRUSTEE RENCHEL: When we're 9 talking about reserves, we're not really 10 talking like a surplus at the end of the 11 year, we're talking about a float above 12 expenses at any one time? 13 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: It's -- 14 TRUSTEE RENCHEL: Is that really 15 what the reserve is? 16 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: The 17 reserve's been built up from a 18 combination of under spending in any 19 given year and revenues that exceed the 20 budget in every year, and really the 21 combination of the two. So when I say 22 in doing the report on this year that 23 right now it looks like we'll end the 24 year with about $1.5 million surplus, 25 should that happen, those monies 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 56 2 would -- those funds would, at the end 3 of the year, be added to our reserves. 4 But, of course, that surplus at this 5 time of the year is really quite small, 6 because if a boiler breaks, a third of 7 it can be gone in no time. 8 TRUSTEE RENCHEL: So there's not a 9 cumulative reserve of $11 million or 10 anything like -- we're essentially -- 11 we're -- this is a float above our 12 ongoing expenses at any one time, and 13 then it closes up at some point during 14 the year, so we end up with a surplus. 15 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: No. 16 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: No, it 17 isn't -- 18 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: We carry it. 19 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: 20 -- floating. 21 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: It's 22 floating. 23 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: No, 24 excuse me, it is a cumulative collection 25 of -- 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 57 2 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Yes. 3 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: 4 -- reserves over the years. 5 TRUSTEE RENCHEL: Okay. 6 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: I suggest 7 we start charging for breakfast. 8 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Yeah. 9 First, I want to thank the Faculty 10 Association for their chart, because it 11 makes it a littler easier to 12 understand -- 13 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Yes. 14 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: -- okay -- 15 what's happened to us, you know, over 16 the last ten years. And I look at it 17 and become concerned -- okay -- because 18 based on this and our past ten years, 19 within the next ten years, our students 20 could be paying 50 percent of the cost 21 for them to attend Suffolk. 22 Now, as far as the EMT program is 23 concerned, you're saying the initial 24 cost would be $300,000. 25 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: That's the 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 58 2 estimate, yes. 3 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. 4 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: For the 5 first year. 6 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: For the first 7 year. 8 All right. So for argument sake -- 9 all right -- and if we made a 10 presentation, you know, within our 11 budget to the legislature to explain 12 what's going on -- so we'd have do get a 13 minimum of $300,000 just to start it 14 off. 15 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Uh-huh. 16 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: All right. Now, 17 that $300,000, is that for equipment? 18 Is that -- 19 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: I -- I 20 didn't come prepared to talk about -- 21 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. 22 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: -- the 23 program. 24 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: It's a 25 combination of everything. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 59 2 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Yeah, it's a 3 combination -- 4 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: The 5 start-up -- 6 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: -- of 7 everything. 8 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: The 9 start-up equipment, additional 10 equipment, additional faculty, the 11 re- -- we would need to retain a -- a 12 medical director to oversee the program, 13 and some additional staff. That is 14 the -- that's the entire cost. 15 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Now, and maybe 16 Walter can help me because we're talking 17 about surpluses within school districts. 18 Is it possible to reach out to all 19 the -- the fire departments on -- you 20 know, in Suffolk County and say we'd 21 like to put this program together, is 22 there any way you could help us and 23 support us? Like the hospitals have in 24 our nursing program. 25 We went out to the hospitals, they 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 60 2 supported us. All right. We went from, 3 you know, going to literally a break 4 even point to doing a very successful 5 program, because the hospitals don't 6 have to spend 10- or $20,000 and 7 literally go overseas and try to get a 8 nurse to come back here. 9 So is that possible? Is that 10 possible, Walter? 11 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: It's 12 possible, absolutely. 13 You know, this program, the 14 perspective EMT program was the -- the 15 impetus of it was from the legislature. 16 They are -- are concerned about the -- 17 the problems that local fire 18 districts -- at my fire district, we've 19 got 30 EMTs on the staff, but during the 20 day, we're stuck. So it certainly 21 serves a purpose. 22 Do you have paid EMTs in your 23 district? 24 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: They have -- I 25 think they have four paid EMT in -- 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 61 2 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: See, we 3 don't. 4 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: They're on 5 during the day and -- 6 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: That's a 7 problem. There are a lot of -- I'm 8 sorry. 9 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: That's okay. 10 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: 11 Trustee Hazlitt's point is -- you know, 12 he's right on point with -- with that. 13 About a year -- a little more than 14 a year ago, a year and a half ago, 15 Presiding Officer Bill Lindsay came to 16 the college. We met with he and a 17 number of the chiefs of the emergency 18 services districts in his area, and he 19 brought this need to our attention. 20 We had the person that coordinates 21 our current program -- we don't have the 22 full EMT program, we have a paramedic -- 23 about 15 or 18 credits, but we don't 24 have the full Associates Degree. So we 25 met with the faculty coordinator for 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 62 2 this and with central administration, 3 and with -- he brought a number of these 4 chiefs with him to the meeting and 5 talked about -- they talked about the 6 need, and we talked about what would be 7 required to set up this program. 8 So the presiding officer has been 9 supportive. He understands that there 10 are costs associated with this, but he 11 also understands that, you know, this is 12 something that's important for the 13 broader community. 14 And so we plan to continue those 15 conversations with the presiding officer 16 and his staff and other legislators to 17 let them know, you know, this curriculum 18 is now at SUNY and State Education for 19 approval; and that should come fairly 20 rapidly. So this is a good time for us 21 to have a follow-up meeting to let them 22 know that this will be -- this could be 23 a component in next year's budget, but 24 there are costs associated with it -- 25 with it. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 63 2 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: One of the 3 restrictions is you can't respond with 4 an ambulance unless you have an EMT 5 aboard. I drive, that's all I do. I 6 can't lift the stretchers anymore and 7 things like that, but EMTs are hard to 8 come by during the day. 9 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: So what would 10 be, again, the procedure, Walter, just 11 to enlighten us, to go to the different 12 fire companies and -- like we went to 13 the hospitals, and see if we can go into 14 something like this? 15 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: You have 16 associations of different towns, Islip 17 Fire District's Association, Brookhaven, 18 and attending them -- they have a 19 county-wide organization, too, and 20 probably sending representatives to the 21 county organizations, representing the 22 fire districts, that probably would be 23 your best approach for the greatest 24 coverage. 25 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Like I said, it 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 64 2 worked before, there's nothing saying -- 3 and it's their needs -- 4 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Oh, 5 absolutely. 6 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: -- that we're 7 fulfilling. So maybe we can tie in a 8 partnership there, as well. But this is 9 one of the presentations that were made 10 at the strategic planning meetings that 11 we've attended over the last two months 12 with the chancellor, the importance of 13 partnerships at every level. And we -- 14 you know, I was able to make a 15 presentation on how our nursing program 16 became the -- the largest in the state 17 by this partnership program. 18 Now, there's -- in the past, we've 19 had, basically, looking at a 3 percent 20 growth in the student -- 21 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: That's what 22 the budget was this year. 23 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Yeah. All 24 right. And we will go down to 25 2 percent, you know, reflecting the past 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 65 2 two years with almost a 17 percent 3 increase -- 4 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Right. 5 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: -- you know, 6 total. All right. So I understand 7 that. 8 Now, again -- and everybody's 9 concerned with what's happening with the 10 state budget, and some issues came up, 11 and I -- maybe you can reflect upon, you 12 know, them to us. It looks like 13 Lieutenant Governor Ravage was talking 14 about possibly, you know, borrowing 15 $2 billion a year to help reduce the 16 deficit, and Senator Schumer's looking 17 at a $2 billion -- supposedly, money 18 from the -- the federal government to 19 help with Medicare. 20 Have you heard anything about that 21 in reference to the budget? 22 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Yeah, there 23 are all sorts of discussions in Albany 24 this time of year about ways to try to 25 make the overall budget situation 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 66 2 better. The issue will be, when they 3 put all the pieces of the budget 4 together, whether or not the 5 legislature's able to restore any of the 6 funding that the governor's proposal 7 cuts in state aid. In the past, that 8 has happened. 9 In the past, the legislature has 10 restored the budget cuts that the 11 governor has made to community colleges. 12 It's hard to know right now how this 13 will all unfold over the next month. 14 Certainly, any -- any places where the 15 state budget can improve, makes that 16 chance slightly better, but the state 17 has a huge budget deficit and many 18 issues and problems. So it's hard for 19 me to speculate on if they can get more 20 money, where we might be in the 21 hierarchy of -- of restorations. It's 22 happened in the past, but, you know, I 23 think it's hard to speculate. 24 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Well, I thank 25 you. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 67 2 Any other questions? 3 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 4 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Thank you for 5 your report. 6 VICE PRESIDENT STIER: Thank you. 7 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: George, would 8 you please -- 9 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: Okay. 10 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: -- make your 11 presentation. 12 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: First, 13 I'd like Vice President Canniff to 14 update the board on a very successful 15 partnership, and speaking of 16 partnerships that we had with Verizon 17 over a number of years, it's our 18 telecommunications technology program. 19 Recently Verizon was here, on campus, to 20 meet with -- with the faculty and staff, 21 and Jim has some good news to report. 22 VICE PRESIDENT CANNIFF: Good 23 morning. 24 As George has said, this is another 25 one of our many partnerships we have 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 68 2 with business and industry. This one is 3 with Verizon. We've had this program 4 for about 15 years. 5 Last Wednesday, on March the 11th, 6 Verizon sent a team in to look at our 7 curriculum. This is something that they 8 do probably every three or four years. 9 And I walked into the room early in the 10 morning for their first session, and one 11 of the persons who was visiting a 12 visiting team member was Dr. Lane 13 Sackett (phonetic) who was the retired 14 vice president for academic affairs at 15 Hudson Valley Community College; 16 somebody that I knew previously. And 17 after we caught up with each over, she 18 said to me, Jim, I'm -- I'm really 19 impressed with the materials and what 20 I've been reading about this program. 21 And she said, I do these programs, there 22 are about 26 of them in New York and in 23 New England, and I'm very impressed with 24 what I'm looking at. So we talked more. 25 Let me just tell you what the 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 69 2 mission of this program is. It's called 3 "Next Step." The Next Step program 4 provides an innovative, educational, 5 skill-based program that enables 6 employees to stay apace with advancing 7 technology to understand the changing 8 market-place reality, and to enhance 9 customer service skills through the 10 educate- -- acquisition of an AAS degree 11 with a focus in telecommunications 12 technology. 13 What the team was so impressed with 14 was this: For every course -- every 15 course of the college, we have program 16 goals and we have objectives. Pete 17 Maritato (phonetic), who is the academic 18 chair and the head of this program, has 19 outlined all of those program 20 objectives. 21 What the team was extremely excited 22 about was one level beyond that, in 23 something called "Curriculum Mapping," 24 and I talked about this last week at our 25 Executive Council. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 70 2 So for every goal and for every 3 objective in this program, Peter has 4 outlined the following: Where the 5 objective is introduced, where it is 6 reinforced by course, where it is 7 practiced by students, and where the 8 actual concept or objective is assessed. 9 So it ends up with a map that shows 10 for every course in the telecommuni- -- 11 for every objective in the 12 telecommunications course where that 13 scheme is, and -- and I realize you 14 can't see this, but where it is outlined 15 in each course. 16 And she said to me, she said, You 17 know, this is a remarkable model. 18 You're going to be able to assess this 19 as it goes along and make changes 20 accordingly. 21 Now, then what she proceeded to 22 tell me was that, I'm going to send this 23 out to the 26 other colleges in SUNY and 24 CUNY and throughout New England, and I 25 want this to be used as a model. She 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 71 2 said, You created something 3 extraordinary here. 4 Now, there's almost nothing better 5 that you can say to a vice president for 6 academic affairs -- student affairs, 7 when you're talking about curriculum, 8 talking about program, than that kind of 9 comment. And I thought that the board 10 should know about it. 11 You know, we have all these 12 partnerships -- today, for example, our 13 automotive technology program which has 14 partnerships with Honda, Toyota, and GM. 15 Dr. Sherwood will be meeting with the 16 teams coming in to look at that program. 17 So we have all these -- we have 18 Middle States, we have all these other 19 external accreditations where people -- 20 where people come in to look at our 21 various programs that have those 22 accreditations. 23 So I just wanted to give you that 24 information. If you have any questions, 25 I'll be happy to answer them. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 72 2 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: How are we 3 doing with Toyota? 4 (Laughter) 5 VICE PRESIDENT CANNIFF: It's 6 accelerated. 7 (Laughter) 8 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Oh, real nice. 9 TRUSTEE WARE: They're going to be 10 the best car company, watch. They'll 11 redeem themselves. 12 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: If I 13 could just comment. 14 We've held a regional session to 15 train Toyota mechanics in the 16 installation of the safety devices to 17 correct the acceleration problem. That 18 was recently held here at our program 19 here at the Ammerman Campus. 20 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: That includes 21 replacements of floor mats. 22 (Laughter) 23 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. 24 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: How about 25 the ten battleships at Pearl Harbor, are 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 73 2 they going to replace those? 3 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: I have 4 some other items to report on. 5 Probably the most important item 6 for the institution over the past month 7 is the action taken by the Middle States 8 Commission on Higher Education at their 9 meeting on March 4th. At -- at that 10 time, they removed the accreditation 11 warning to the institution. I believe 12 you have a copy of the correspondence in 13 the your packet, and we're very pleased 14 that we've been able to meet their 15 concerns. We've demonstrated that the 16 board has the autonomy to establish 17 policies and have the oversight -- 18 financial problematic oversight of the 19 institution. 20 They are requiring a monitoring 21 report this November 1st. They want to 22 be assured that the relationship between 23 the college and its sponsor continues to 24 be one that provides the trustees with 25 the autonomy that they need. And so 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 74 2 they are requiring that, subsequent to 3 that monitoring report, there may be a 4 small team visit. So we'll keep the 5 board informed. 6 There are several other items 7 within that warning that I'd like to 8 report on. 9 The first is, they would like to 10 see documentation that the 11 implementation of an organized and 12 sustained process for the periodic 13 assessment of both the sponsor-service 14 agreement and the memorandum of 15 under- -- memorandum of procedures with 16 the county is being implemented in a way 17 that's sustainable. 18 2. They want evidence that the 19 Board of Trustees and the executive 20 management institution can sustain 21 sufficient independence and ultimate 22 accountability for the academic quality, 23 fiscal and academic integrity, academic 24 planning, assets, and financial health 25 through the institution; and 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 75 2 Finally, implementation of an 3 organized process for orienting new 4 board members, the governing body, and 5 providing continuing updates for current 6 members of the governing board 7 concerning relationship between the 8 college and its sponsoring county. 9 So that's indeed very good new for 10 the institution, and I want to thank the 11 board for its strong support during this 12 process. 13 We also need to thank the county 14 legislature, county executive, county 15 comptroller, and the county personnel 16 officer; all of whom spent time working 17 with the visiting team when they were 18 here in January. And, also, the county 19 treasurer who continues to serve as the 20 college treasurer. 21 So thank you for your support in 22 this matter. 23 This past week the county 24 legislature approved a number of 25 appropriating resolutions related to the 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 76 2 capital program which were significant 3 for the institution. Three projects. 4 First, $13.5 million for the 5 construction funding for the science 6 building at this campus. Last month we 7 had a presentation -- or the month 8 before we had a presentation from the 9 architects. That money had already been 10 appropriated and approved. We selected 11 the architects, they're moving forward. 12 But now with the appropriation of 13 construction funding, that project will 14 move forward without any delays. 15 The second was the appropriation of 16 $800,000 for the planning funds -- 17 design funds for the Learning Resource 18 Center at the Grant Campus. So 19 that's -- we're very appreciative of the 20 support of the legislature for that 21 project. 22 And, lastly, as we move forward 23 with construction of the Learning 24 Resource Center at the Eastern Campus, 25 the legislature saw fit to provide the 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 77 2 planning funds to renovate the space in 3 which the current library is situated. 4 So that when the library opens, we'll 5 have the design in place to begin the 6 modifications in the Peconic Building to 7 retrofit that space. You heard earlier 8 about the efficiencies and the improved 9 student services related to their new 10 student affairs and student services 11 system, their one- -- their one-stop, 12 their call center. That will be 13 relocated to that space, and be a very 14 good use of that space. 15 In terms of federal funds, we've 16 also been successful -- and there's some 17 information in your packet on two 18 additional grants we've been notified of 19 in the past couple of weeks. These are 20 stimulus funds totaling about $430,000. 21 It doesn't sound like a lot of money, 22 but it has a tremendous impact on us 23 from an energy efficiency standpoint. 24 We do a couple things within that 25 funding. First, we replaced five very 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 78 2 old boilers on this campus in five 3 different buildings. And we also 4 installed a new energy monitoring 5 system, an HVAC heating system for 6 22 buildings college-wide. 7 Multiple benefits associated with 8 that. 9 First, we avoid the cost of 10 replacing those units with college, 11 county, or state funds. 12 Secondly, and most importantly, 13 they result in over $400,000 a year in 14 energy savings going forward. So that's 15 an annual saving to the college budget. 16 And these -- this equipment will also 17 make us eligible for about $275,000 in 18 rebates from LIPA. So that's a -- very 19 positive news on the energy conservation 20 and capital improvement standpoint for 21 the college. 22 I mentioned the Eastern Campus 23 Learning Resource Center. We are 24 planning a groundbreaking after next 25 month's Board of Trustees meeting on 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 79 2 April 15th. I know that VP Araneo and 3 her team are working on some of the 4 details and will be getting invitations 5 out to everyone, including our elected 6 officials, to participate in that 7 groundbreaking. 8 On the student front, we have some 9 very positive news. I'm happy to report 10 that last week we were notified that 12 11 of our highest achieving students have 12 been designated and will be receiving 13 the SUNY Student -- the SUNY Student 14 Chancellor's Award for Excellence, and 15 I'd like to congratulate our student 16 trustee, Chigozi Onyinanya, for his 17 selection as one of the 12 SUNY 18 Chancellor Award -- 19 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: 20 Congratulations. 21 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: 22 -- winners. 23 (Applause) 24 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Thank 25 you. Thank you. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 80 2 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: Of the 3 12, there are also four members that 4 have been selected as part of the All 5 New York Academic Team, so 6 congratulations to all the winners, all 7 the -- all the honorees, all the 8 recipients of those -- that prestigious 9 award or awards. I understand there 10 will be a luncheon in Albany next month 11 to recognize their achievements. 12 So, again, congratulations on -- 13 Chigozi, and to all your fellow students 14 for -- 15 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Thank 16 you. 17 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: -- that 18 distinction. 19 A number of us attended the 20 50th Anniversary Gala on the 6th, a week 21 ago Saturday, and it was a great 22 success. So congratulations to 23 VP Araneo and her team on a job very 24 well done. 25 We had a number of elected 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 81 2 officials that joined us, including the 3 presiding officer and several 4 legislators; Legislator Browning, 5 Legislator Horsley, we had State 6 Senator LaValle. And the occasion was 7 prob- -- probably one of the highlights 8 of the evening was the chancellor's 9 presence with us and her presentation 10 during -- during the program that 11 evening. So, again, thank you Mary Lou 12 and your team for a job really well done 13 on the gala. 14 I don't want to touch too much -- 15 VP Stier has talked quite a bit about 16 the 2011 operating budget, I just wanted 17 to give you a brief update on some of 18 the activities we've been undertaking to 19 advance the college's position among 20 community colleges at the state level. 21 On March 9th, a team of us 22 participated in the SUNY Community 23 College Day -- Lobbying Day at Albany, 24 and several trustees were with us; thank 25 you, Avette for attending. We were also 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 82 2 joined by Trustee Alvarez-Groneman. 3 Dr. Tina Good from our faculty and from 4 the statewide faculty governance group 5 was with us that day. 6 The good news is that our message 7 was very well received. They understand 8 our mission, they're very supportive of 9 our mission. And as VP Stier and -- and 10 the media on a daily basis report, the 11 state's fiscal condition is not 12 terrific. So we're working -- we're 13 staying in constant communication with 14 the state to get as up-to-date 15 information as we can as we develop the 16 budget. 17 Unfortunately, if the state 18 budget is not adopted on time, meaning 19 April 1st or shortly thereafter, then 20 the budget that we will present to the 21 board must include the full extent of 22 the governor's proposed cuts. 23 I think the last item I -- I want 24 to report on is really a -- a -- just a 25 personal note and a personal thank you 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 83 2 to the board and to everyone here for 3 their support during the past year as I 4 had the opportunity and great honor of 5 serving as the college's interim 6 president. We faced some significant 7 challenges over the past year, and I 8 think it's because of the way we 9 confronted the challenges and handled 10 the challenges that, I believe, we're a 11 stronger institution today than we were 12 even a year ago. 13 So, again, thank -- thank you to 14 the board, to the faculty, to the Guild, 15 administrators within the institution, 16 to the classified staff, to our elected 17 officials for their support during this 18 very, very trying time. 19 Next week, as Dr. McKay becomes the 20 new president, I feel that we're headed 21 in a very good direction. Shaun has 22 been an innovative leader during his 23 time here at the college. He's been a 24 dynamic leader, and, you know, I will do 25 everything I can to assist him to move 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 84 2 the college forward and to achieve the 3 goal, which we've had for a number of 4 years, and that is to continue to be a 5 college of excellence. 6 So it's been my pleasure, my honor, 7 and I thank you for the opportunity. 8 TRUSTEE WARE: Thank you. 9 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: That 10 concludes my report. 11 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Can I 12 express my appreciation to you 13 personally for the job that you've done 14 over the past several years? And as I 15 told you before, I was not one of your 16 strongest supporters when you first came 17 aboard, but you certainly have proved 18 me, hard as it is to believe, to be 19 wrong. 20 (Laughter) 21 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: But you did 22 a hell of a job. And I -- I can't speak 23 for the rest of them, but I'm sure they 24 feel the same way as I do. 25 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: Thank 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 85 2 you, Walter. 3 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: How we 4 doing on the banner conversion? 5 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: Actually, 6 it's -- I mean, that was one of the 7 challenges, and we had multiple 8 challenges, but, you know, we -- we 9 converted to our own financial system on 10 September 1st without -- you know, 11 without any major disruption. The 12 systems are working, they're working 13 well. We converted to the payroll 14 system on January 1st. Again, without 15 any major problems, everyone got paid. 16 There may have been one or two minor 17 glitches which were dealt with 18 immediately. But the systems are 19 working as planned, so that was -- 20 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Good. 21 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: And 22 that's really -- and -- and we've had 23 updates on that. That's really 24 attributed to the staff that have worked 25 very, very hard to make those happen. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 86 2 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Before I ask 3 some questions, I want to echo Walter. 4 Looking at this college over the 5 years and seeing individuals who come 6 here, we didn't know each other when you 7 got here, George. I mean, we had 8 passed -- crossed paths in the past, but 9 not on a working relationship. And 10 every day I watch what you do for these 11 students and this college, and I'm 12 proud, you know, to be able to work with 13 you and to thank you for what you've 14 done. You were put in a position 15 that -- Dr. Pippins had made a decision 16 to leave, and it was done basically 17 overnight, and you stepped up and, 18 without missing a beat -- all right -- 19 and brought us, I believe, to the next 20 level, and I thank you. 21 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: Thank 22 you. 23 TRUSTEE WARE: Likewise, I'd just 24 like to chime in and thank you so much. 25 You've always been out there speaking 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 87 2 well in behalf of the college. And the 3 first time we actually had a great 4 opportunity to be in each others company 5 was up in Albany this past week, and 6 that was impressive and exciting, and I 7 thank you for your service and 8 dedication. 9 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: Thank 10 you, Avette. 11 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: You know, if 12 leadership can be defined as having the 13 ability to move with the organizations 14 of people to a better place, I think at 15 this point in time, I think very much 16 well defined by your report, we are a 17 better place than we were at this time 18 last year. Even through the difficult 19 times, even through some of the issues 20 that we've gone through, there's always 21 been a -- a comfort on my side that I 22 could call and ask a question and get a 23 direct answer. And that's what you 24 really ever ask for when you sit on a 25 board like this, just give me an 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 88 2 answer -- give me an answer that -- that 3 I can take and that I can live with. 4 It's very much appreciated, and there's 5 very much a comfort level in knowing 6 that. And we've known each other for a 7 while, and this has been a good year 8 working with you, George. Thank you. 9 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: Thank 10 you, Paul. 11 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. Now a 12 question on your report, because some 13 issues have been brought up and I'm -- 14 I'm concerned myself. 15 When the architects came here and 16 made their presentation, they were 17 talking about $28 million in total. 18 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: (Head 19 gesture) 20 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Now, is that 21 from site plan to completely finished 22 building? 23 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: Yes. 24 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: With everything 25 included. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 89 2 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: 3 Everything included. 4 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Totally 5 outfitted with everything that's 6 available to every lab -- for 7 everything. 8 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: It 9 includes everything but instructional 10 supplies. 11 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. 12 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: In other 13 words, supplies are supplies, but -- and 14 you can't capitalize supplies. But the 15 budget contains funding for the design, 16 for the construction, and for the 17 equipping of the facility. 18 Now, what always happens with 19 capital projects, because of the 20 tremendous amount of lag -- lead time 21 and -- and lag time between when they're 22 approved and when they're constructed, 23 the budgets that are -- that are 24 originally established, do contain some 25 escalators or inflation. But, you know, 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 90 2 those are projections at the time the 3 project is proposed. 4 If inflation within the 5 construction trades is higher, if 6 inflation for materials is higher, if 7 inflation -- you know, cost increases 8 for equipment is higher, then you need 9 to -- you adjust the project to the 10 budget that's available. And that's 11 nothing different than we do with every 12 other facility. But this facility is -- 13 is funded in the same fashion, and, you 14 know, we -- we'll work very hard with 15 the architects and engineers, and with 16 the program staff to make sure that the 17 building is delivered in -- in the 18 fashion that's equipped and ready to be 19 used. 20 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. Thank 21 you. That cleared up, I think, a couple 22 of my old concerns when you're talking 23 about that kind of money and that size 24 building. But, again, thank you. 25 Any other questions? 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 91 2 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 3 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. 4 All right. I'm going to proceed 5 to -- I'd like to just give my report, 6 and then we'll do a roundtable. 7 I had the opportunity in the last, 8 actually, three weeks to meet our two 9 new trustees. One has basically been 10 confirmed; the second, Dafny -- 11 INTERIM PRESIDENT GATTA: Irizarry. 12 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: -- Irizarry was 13 approved yesterday by committee. It 14 will be going before the full ledge -- 15 legislature next week. 16 I had spoken with Patricia McMahon 17 who had been approved last month, who 18 was supposed to be attending at this 19 meeting today and due to personal issues 20 could not, but will be -- be coming back 21 and be available for the next month 22 meeting. 23 So we'll be looking at two new 24 trustees onboard at the next month's 25 meeting. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 92 2 Again, we're looking at some more 3 possible changes down the road with some 4 new -- some state appointments possibly 5 at the end of June. And at that point 6 I've decided to hold off until school 7 starts after September to continue and 8 work on a retreat. By that time we 9 should have our new student trustee, and 10 basically, you know, 50 percent a new 11 board so we can move and -- move 12 forward. So to be aware of that, as 13 soon as we get everybody on board, I 14 will notify the date that we're going to 15 be setting it up. 16 Also, there's a possibility of us 17 changing the October meeting because our 18 meeting falls the same couple of days as 19 the state meeting for Association of 20 Community College Trustees. So I want 21 to take a look at that to make sure, but 22 I will let you know by next month if 23 we're going to move it, you know, a week 24 up either way. 25 I was hoping this morning that 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 93 2 Dr. McKay would be here. He's not, but 3 I cannot -- I cannot wait any longer. 4 With some of the issues that were 5 developed over the last year and moving 6 forward, I was hoping to have a smooth 7 and steady transition. 8 As chairman, I have to apologize to 9 Dr. McKay, and the people that attended 10 the last meeting, and the people in this 11 room for not doing what I should have 12 done that day, was congratulating him, 13 recognizing him for all his hard work, 14 and letting him know our full support is 15 behind him. 16 I will apologize to him, hopefully, 17 at the next meeting when he takes the 18 office of president, after it's approved 19 next year, but I -- I just couldn't wait 20 any longer. I was told as a young boy 21 from my dad, in his Italian way, If you 22 make a mistake, you open up your mouth 23 and you tell people what you did. No 24 matter how much it hurts or no matter 25 how foolish you might feel, when it's 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 94 2 all over with, you can go to sleep easy 3 at night. And it's been a rough month 4 for me not being able to apologize to 5 Shaun. So I will do it, hopefully, at 6 our next meeting. I know he was up in 7 Albany yesterday working on a panel -- 8 so was I. It's -- it's -- when you walk 9 out the door and you still see a foot of 10 snow, you know, in the hills, you get a 11 little concerned. But hopefully he'll 12 be back and everybody will be well, but 13 I wanted to make that statement. 14 Now, our next step is roundtable. 15 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: I just 16 want to -- I appreciate all the 17 congratulations on receiving the 18 Chancellor's Award. 19 That's all I have to say. 20 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Well, you've got 21 to let me know, because if I can, I'd 22 like to be up there. 23 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Oh, 24 absolutely. Thank you. 25 TRUSTEE WARE: Well, we had the 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 95 2 Board of Directors for the Center on the 3 Holocaust Diversity and Human 4 Understanding, and it's that time again 5 for the preparation for the Embracing 6 Our Differences, so there's always that 7 call for artists. And what I did do is 8 pick up enough packets to handout to the 9 board, and I'm sure others will be 10 available for everyone else, where if 11 you do have any artists or anyone who 12 wants to be an artist or thinks they're 13 an artist or would like to contribute to 14 the displays that are being -- will be 15 placed around, this is a good time to 16 get involved with that because we know 17 that that's always very exciting. 18 We hosted some of the banners over 19 in Patchogue Village, and it was 20 received very well. 21 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: Right. 22 TRUSTEE WARE: The students -- and 23 we're looking forward to doing something 24 again. 25 And I hope you got my e-mail. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 96 2 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: Yes. 3 TRUSTEE WARE: Good. 4 Okay. In addition, there are a lot 5 of other programs that are coming down 6 the pike. For instance, the Nazi 7 Occupation of Poland and the 8 Extermination of Polish Jews really, 9 really details presentations that are 10 being held. This one will be -- it's 11 actually expanding from March 8th 12 through the 26th, and it's right at our 13 own Eastern Campus. So, again, this is 14 another way of us staying engaged and in 15 touch with what's going on, because a 16 lot of these presentations are at our 17 various campuses. So it's a good idea 18 to pretty much get aware. 19 Maybe I could submit a copy of the 20 schedule to -- over to the office so you 21 can have it sent out and circulated, 22 because these are really exciting events 23 that they're planning in the upcoming 24 year. 25 Second note, of course, was not 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 97 2 only did George Gatta, Belinda, Tina 3 Good, Dr. Shaun McKay, and myself attend 4 in Albany, but we also went to Saratoga 5 Springs, which Chigozi joined us, and we 6 went to the NYCCT conferences. And 7 their focus also is on collaboration and 8 involvement and partnership. We've been 9 doing a great job, of course, with our 10 nursing program. And they also had a 11 great publication, and I brought a copy 12 to your, Ernie, on the Guide to 13 Successful Outreach for High Schools. 14 We're doing that, but, you know, we 15 could always learn from others, things 16 that have worked for them well. 17 And I also brought another brochure 18 catalog for you, Ernie; like you need 19 more reading, right? 20 (Laughter) 21 TRUSTEE WARE: History and 22 Experience. And this is kind of like 23 the -- the history and the informational 24 submission statement of exactly what the 25 NYCCT, or New York Community College 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 98 2 Trustees, exactly what their function 3 is, why they were formulated, and what 4 it is that we actually do. The advocacy 5 role that they play is enormous, and 6 that is actually how the entire college 7 day was -- was formulated. It started 8 with the discussion we had at one of our 9 Board of Directors meetings. So I have 10 that for you as well. 11 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Thank you. 12 Saul? 13 TRUSTEE RENCHEL: No. 14 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Paul? 15 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: (Head gesture) 16 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Walter? 17 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Yeah. I'd 18 like to take this opportunity to hit the 19 highlights of my 13 years -- 20 (Laughter) 21 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: -- as a 22 member of this board. I mean, we had -- 23 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: That's the back 24 of the room, Walter. 25 (Laughter) 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 99 2 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Okay. 3 Thank you. 4 Nothing. 5 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. 6 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: I haven't 7 got any highlights. 8 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: You got up this 9 morning. 10 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: I did that. 11 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. 12 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Thank 13 goodness. 14 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. 15 All right. We'll conclude by going 16 to the resolutions for a vote. We're 17 going to start off with Item 1, 18 Resolution 2010.17. 19 I need a motion. 20 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: So moved. 21 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Second? 22 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: Second. 23 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: All those in 24 favor? 25 ALL: Aye. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 100 2 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Opposed? 3 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 4 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Abstentions? 5 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 6 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: So passed. 7 The next one, Resolution 2010.18. 8 I need a motion. 9 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: Motion. 10 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Second? 11 TRUSTEE WARE: Second. 12 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: All those in 13 favor? 14 ALL: Aye. 15 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Opposed? 16 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 17 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: So moved. 18 Next, Resolution 2010.19. 19 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: 20 Mr. Chairman, in -- in view of the fact 21 that we have a minimal number of 22 representatives at the board here today, 23 while I strongly support this 24 Resolution, I would ask that we 25 entertain a motion to table in order to 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 101 2 give the full board the opportunity to 3 review and vote on -- on something that 4 is -- is quite serious. 5 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. 6 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: So I'll 7 make that motion. 8 TRUSTEE PONTIERI: I'll second it. 9 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: All those in 10 favor to table? 11 ALL: Aye. 12 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Opposed? 13 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 14 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Abstentions? 15 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 16 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: So passed; it's 17 tabled. 18 Is there anything else that needs 19 to be addressed? 20 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 21 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Well, I thank 22 you all for your participation. 23 I need a motion to adjourn. 24 MS. KREITZER: Ernie -- 25 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Yes. 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 102 2 MS. KREITZER: We have one more 3 executive session for -- 4 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Oh, okay. 5 All right. So I need a motion for 6 Exec Session. 7 TRUSTEE WARE: I make a motion to 8 go into executive session. 9 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Second? 10 VICE CHAIRMAN HAZLITT: Second. 11 STUDENT TRUSTEE ONYINANYA: Second. 12 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: All those in 13 favor? 14 ALL: Aye. 15 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Opposed? 16 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 17 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Abstentions? 18 (WHEREUPON, there was no response.) 19 CHAIRMAN MATTACE: Okay. We're 20 back in executive session. 21 (WHEREUPON, Executive Session 22 commenced, and the meeting of the 23 Suffolk County Community College Board 24 of Trustees was adjourned at 11:05 a.m.) 25 1 SCCC Board of Trustees 3/18/10 103 2 3 4 C E R T I F I C A T E 5 6 I, THERESA PAPE, a Shorthand Reporter and 7 Notary Public of the State of New York, do hereby 8 certify: 9 That the foregoing is a true and accurate 10 transcription of the stenographic notes taken 11 herein. 12 I further certify that I am not related to 13 any of the parties to this action by blood or 14 marriage; and that I am in no way interested in the 15 outcome of this matter. 16 IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my 17 hand this 18th day of March 2010. 18 19 20 21 ___________________________________ THERESA PAPE 22 23 24 25