VGCC Trustees elect Danny Wright as chair; Wester, Seifert reappointed
The Vance-Granville Community College Board of Trustees selected Danny W. Wright of Henderson as its next chair, succeeding Deborah Brown, as the board met for its bi-monthly meeting on Monday, July 18, on the college’s Main Campus.
Herb Gregory of Oxford was re-elected as vice chair, while Brown, a Henderson resident, was elected secretary of the board, succeeding Dr. Doris Terry Williams.
Wright first served as a trustee in 2011-2013, having been appointed by N.C. Gov. Beverly Perdue, and then returned to the VGCC board in January 2015 as an appointee of the Vance County Board of Commissioners. He is a certified public accountant who retired as a county commissioner in 2010 after serving for 28 years.
Brown, who currently serves as a Vance commissioner and is also appointed to the Board of Trustees by that body, thanked her fellow trustees for the support they gave her as chair. She became the chair in July 2012.
“Mrs. Brown has supported this institution, challenged this institution and kept us focused on important things,” said Dr. Stelfanie Williams, Vance-Granville’s president. “Thank you for that.”
Two long-serving board members began new terms. Resident Superior Court Judge Henry W. “Chip” Hight, Jr., who serves the Ninth Judicial District, swore in Trustees Sara C. Wester and Donald C. Seifert, Sr., both of Henderson, to new four-year terms on the board. Wester was reappointed by the Vance County Board of Commissioners; Seifert, by the Vance County Board of Education. Wester was first appointed in 2004, while Seifert has been a trustee since 1996 and served as chair for nine years.
Building 10 Opening
An update on capital projects was provided, noting that the Building 10 renovation has been completed, final inspections have been performed and the building is ready for occupancy. Located across Poplar Creek Road from the rest of VGCC’s main campus, the building will house classrooms for Emergency Medical Services, Fire/Rescue Programs, Basic Law Enforcement Training, Law Enforcement In-Service training and other workforce programs. A dedication is planned for early August.
Investment Committee
Seven “very good, solid responses” were received to the Investment Committee’s request for proposals (RFP) for investment management services, said Steve Graham, VGCC’s vice president of finance and operations.
The Investment Committee, co-chaired by Trustees L. Opie Frazier, Jr., and Donald C. Seifert, Sr., reported that responses to the RFP will be reviewed and scored in July. A selection committee will hear finalist presentations in August. In September, a finalist will be presented to both the VGCC Endowment Fund Board of Directors and the Board of Trustees for approval.
Budget Amendments
Upon recommendation from the Budget Committee, chaired by Danny W. Wright, the 2015-2016 Budget Resolution was amended. The State Current Fund increased $2,126,684 to $23,633,789, the County Current Fund was unchanged at $2,390,408, and the Institutional Fund increased $218,052 to $13,119,445, for a combined Amended Operating Budget of $39,143,642. The Capital Improvement Budget increased $191,042 to $2,404,460. The total Combined Amended Budget is $41,548,102.
Fall Semester Enrollment
In her report to the board on recent activities and upcoming events, Dr. Stelfanie Williams informed the Trustees that the new Fall Semester starts Monday, Aug. 15. She said she has encouraged staff and faculty to focus on enrollment growth as the new academic year begins.
“I challenge the board to join us in our effort for ‘each one’ to ‘reach one,’” she said. “Try to find someone you think would benefit from the courses we offer, and help them get enrolled for fall.”
Dr. Williams also announced the following upcoming board events: the annual Board Retreat for the Trustees on Aug. 22, a North Carolina Association of Community College Trustees Fall Leadership Seminar in Charlotte on Sept. 7-9, and an Ethics Training session on Nov. 17.
Other Action
In other action:
- The Trustees, on recommendation from the Curriculum Committee, approved the Sustainability Technologies program for closure by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) and termination by the North Carolina Community College System. VGCC will contact students who have taken courses in the program to give them an opportunity to complete the credential before termination is effective in the summer of 2017. Low enrollment was cited as the reason for closing the program.
- On recommendation from the Executive Committee, new and amended board policies were approved by the Trustees. The policies cover areas of public information and campus safety, academic and student affairs, and finance and operations.
- An informational report on new employees, retirements, resignations and changes in positions was given by the Personnel Committee, chaired by Trustee Sara C. Wester.
The next meeting of the VGCC Board of Trustees will be held on Monday, Sept. 19, at the Main Campus.
Vance County Schools to host Bus Driver Training
Vance County Schools will host school bus driver training sessions Monday August 8 – Wednesday August 10, at L.B. Yancey Elementary School.
Interested persons must attend the training on all three days to receive certification. We will only be training individuals to drive school buses.
The training sessions will begin at 8:30 a.m. and end at approximately 3 p.m. each day.
Those interested in participating in the training sessions must register five days prior to the sessions with the school system’s Transportation Department, located at 226 Welcome Avenue off Raleigh Road south of Henderson. For additional information, call the Transportation Department at 252-438-5012.
J.F. Webb High School Campus
Last week, on Tuesday, July 12th, the Granville County Board of Education held a special called meeting to take up discussion about the future of the J.F. Webb High School campus. Superintendent Dr. Dorwin Howard presented information to the Board members regarding demographics and other information about Webb High School and the School of Health and Life Sciences which is on the Webb campus.
Following the discussion, the Board arrived at consensus to issue the following proclamation: The Granville County Board of Education and the Granville County Public Schools Administration are committed to maintaining the two distinctive schools that comprise the J.F. Webb High School campus, and to take continuous action to improve the academic achievement, student behavior, discipline and safety for all students.
Board Chair, Dr. G. Thomas Houlihan, also offered these additional comments, “Tonight the Granville County Board of Education adopted a statement that clearly supports the continuation of the School of Health and Life Sciences on the JF Webb campus. The Board is concerned that rumors in the community assumed the school would be merged with JF Webb High School next year- this is in fact not the case, and furthermore, there are no plans to merge the schools anytime soon. We look forward to the continued success of this school and support the efforts of all of our schools to serve all students to the best of their ability.”
Superintendent Dr. Dorwin L. Howard, Sr. also commented on the discussion, saying, “We are committed to providing the best possible education to all of the students at the JF Webb campus. We will continue to work closely with the leadership teams at both schools to improve the academic achievement, student behavior, discipline and safety for all students. Warrior pride is strong, and the future is bright for all students on that campus.”
(The final three paragraphs are verbatim from a Granville Co. Schools press release. The first paragraph was altered slightly for clarity.)
