SCCC/ATS Board Of Trustees Meet

The Seward County Community College/Area Technical School Board of Trustees met for their regular board meeting Thursday, September 8, following a tour of the Area Technical School.
During the tour, the board previewed the new ventilation system for Welding and the beginning construction of a new classroom and lab addition to house Corrosion Technology. The board viewed the simulated well sight that consist of the well bore, a gas production unit, a 300-barrel stock tank, and a meter run that will be used as a field lab for Corrosion Technology.
The Board formally convened after the tour for their regular meeting, and Tammy Doll, director of development, gave an overview of the SCCC/ATS Foundation Auction scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 17. Doll passed around and described a number of items that will be available during the auction. Tickets are $20 and are only available in advance by Wednesday, Sept. 14. Auction items are now listed on Facebook at SCCC/ATS Foundation.
New this year to the auction is day care provided by the Saints Cheer and Dance Squad for $20 per child.
Galen McSpadden, athletic director, gave an overview the Saints athletic programs and the rules from the National Junior College Athletic Association and the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference.
The women’s Tennis team has been recognized as the ITA Academic Team of the Year and the Men’s Tennis Team was the ITA Academic Team of the Year for the third straight year. The Lady Saints Basketball team was the top academic team in the Jayhawk Conference. Overall, the 102 SCCC/ATS student-athletes last year had a 3.27 grade point average during the fall 2010 semester and 3.14 during the spring 2011 semester.
The Athletic Department is experimenting with streamlining of video during its athletic games, beginning with the Sept. 7 volleyball game in Pratt. The video broadcasts will be used for instruction for the sports management program as well as provide parents, fans, and college recruiters with the opportunity to watch Saints athletic events through web based video.
McSpadden also reported that the National Collegiate Athletic Association wants to change the transfer requirements of community college student-athletes from a 2.0 grade point average to a 2.5. This would mean that community college student-athletes would be required to graduate with a higher GPA than any other student-athlete in the NCAA. They would also be required to take 16 core classes in high school with at least a 2.5 in their 16 core classes. The National Junior College Athletic Association has countered with a 2.25 grade point average.
In addition, the NCAA would also require a year of readiness for student-athletes who enter community college athletics programs because they do not meet the NCAA university academic admissions requirement. Those students would also be required to spend their additional two years of eligibility at the same community college. “Once they start at a community college, they would not be able to transfer to another after one or two years,” McSpadden said.
A new international rule goes into affect in 2012 changing the number of foreign students a team is allowed to have each year. The new rule would allow for only 25 percent of the team to include international students compared to the current rule of allowing 25 percent of those who attend on scholarship. McSpadden said this would especially affect the tennis, volleyball and basketball teams at SCCC/ATS.
The concept of host family may also change, McSpadden said. Student-athletes would only be allowed to visit or eat at a host family’s home on a random basis. They wouldn’t be allowed, for example, to go to dinner every Sunday night at their host family.
President Dunn and McSpadden explained that the new rules seem prohibitive to students who want to obtain an education, and especially to those who may not have had a successful academic experience in high school. The result may be fewer individuals entering college at all community colleges.
SCCC/ATS has submitted an application to participate in a new Accelerating Opportunities for Kansas Grant (AO-K). The first two areas of focus will be advanced manufacturing and health care, said Bud Smithson, director of the Area Technical School. Supported by a strategic partnership of five of the nation’s leading philanthropies, Accelerating Opportunity for Kansans (AO-K) will help Kansas transform adult education into successful career pathways leading to postsecondary credentials and economic security for underprepared workers in today’s demanding job market.
The initiative would pair instructors who teach basic skills through the college’s Colvin Adult Learning Center with an instructor who teaches a technical program. The key concept would be to develop skills in a non-traditional individual to make them employable and to help them meet the specific needs of area businesses and industry.
The Measurement and Pipeline Institute is Sept. 13-14, with more vendors than a year ago, said Dale Reed, dean of outreach. “We hope walk-ins get us back up to last year’s numbers.”
The fall semester is officially underway and enrollment appears be up for the third straight year. Following certification date, enrollment should be up about 15 percent.
In other action, the board

1. Approved the hiring of David Hormig as a Diesel Technology instructor, and Star Chacon Triscornia as a counselor.
2. Approved a bid from Advanced Exercise Equipment for Wellness Center equipment in the amount of $20,889 for a seated leg press, chest press, seated row and cross-trainer; and
3. Approved a revised bid from Cox Construction of Liberal to construct a greenhouse on the west side of the agriculture building in the amount $263,488 using state PEI bonds, tax credit contributions, and institutional building and equipment funds.

The next regularly scheduled Board meeting will be held Monday, October 3, 2011 at 7:30 p.m.