Recently reappointed trustee Robby Collins was named as chairman, and Lanny Wilson was named vice-chair.
Outgoing chair Bill Cherry will stay on the board — he was recently reappointed by county commissioners for another four-year term. President Jim Morton presented Cherry with a ceremonial gavel for his service to the board and the college.
The meeting was also former executive director Michelle Lee’s first appearance in the newly created role of Chief of Staff. The position change, made official in early June, helped boost her salary to $155,000 annually, up 30% since last year, 50% over the last three years (she also got a bump from the state-funded recruitment and retention labor market program).
During the meeting, trustee Zander Guy recounted a recent extensive tour of the college campuses taken by trustees last month — and called on the media to provide more positive coverage.
“If there's anybody from the media here today, and I say this in a very positive way, and I hope it comes across that way — you need to look into more of what we do here. We do a lot of positive things for people. We need to look for more good because God knows we have enough bad in this world," Guy said.
President Morton also presented the college’s plans for the next several years, which include reviewing programs for relevancy, rigor, and quality, developing growth and sustainability goals, and ensuring state budget compliance.
The board also heard from the new SGA president, Cara Allen, who said the SGA will be ramping up activity when the semester starts. She noted that one issue the SGA will be working on will be students' access to mental health services, an issue identified by a recent student poll.
