Scott Britten

The regular Board of Trustees meeting agenda included extensive discussion and planning for Fiscal Years 2026 and 2027 budgets, covering performance, cash control, key initiatives, capital plans, tuition philosophy, and proposed budget targets. Further agenda items involved communications, public comments, a review of Ownership Linkage, policy reviews for Executive Limitations, Governance Process, and Board-CEO Delegation policies, assessment of interpretations related to financial conditions and communication to the Board, monitoring of CEO performance evidence, and self-evaluation of governance process.

The special meeting addressed the consideration of Trustee nomination applications as outlined in the BOARD BY-LAWS. The Board reviewed four applications and, through a roll call vote, unanimously selected the top three nominees to invite for on-site interviews. The discussion also included a disclosure of a potential conflict of interest, which was determined not to be a conflict. Furthermore, the members discussed the adherence to Policy Governance principles regarding monitoring institutional performance, executive limitations, and governance processes during the meeting.

The meeting addressed several critical administrative and governance items. Key discussions included the attestation and swearing-in of the newly appointed trustee, George Page. The Board then reorganized by electing new officers, resulting in the proclamation of Interim Chairwoman Lake as the Board Chairperson and Trustee Heins as the Vice Chairperson. Communications featured appreciation for recent college events and updates from the CEO regarding external legislative impacts and proposed adjustments to the annual budget timeline, moving the approval date to April. The Board reviewed and approved several policies, including an amendment to Financial Conditions & Activities (EL-04) and various Governance Process and Executive Limitation policies. Action items included unanimously approving trustee representation for the Michigan Community College Association (MCCA), ratifying amendments to the JC Foundation Board Bylaws, and approving the nomination of Angela Corts to the JPEC Board of Governors. The Board also recognized former Trustee Sheila Patterson with the Distinguished Service Award and nominated Amy (Mierzwa) Rogers for the Dr. Ethelene Jones-Crockett Distinguished Alumni Award. Following a closed session for faculty union contract negotiations, the Board unanimously approved the Faculty Union Contract. Finally, the CEO presented the monitoring report for Policy EL-10 Access to Education, which was assessed as demonstrating compliance.

The agenda for this Board of Trustees meeting included several key items. Discussions and potential actions covered the election for Board Officers, attestation by newly-appointed Trustees, and public/board comments. Major agenda sections involved policy review for Executive Limitations (Financial Conditions & Activities, Communication & Support to the Board) and Governance Process (Board Linkage with Ownership, Handling Operational Complaints, Handling Alleged Policy Violations), as well as Interpretations Assessments for ENDS and Treatment of Learners/Employees. Action items included decisions regarding the MCCA Board Representative, approval of the JC Foundation Board of Directors Bylaws Amendment, nominations for the JPEC Board of Governors and Distinguished Alumni Award, consideration for Trustee Commencement presenters, approval of the Faculty Union Contract, and a closed session for Collective Bargaining Negotiations. Performance monitoring for the CEO concerning Access to Education was also scheduled.

The Special Meeting focused on the interviews for a Trustee unexpired term, where candidates were questioned regarding their relevant experiences, board service background, interest in serving, anticipated time commitment, community involvement, vision for board support, definition of board effectiveness, and approach to relationship building. Specific follow-up questions were posed to individual candidates concerning disagreement handling, familiarity with Policy Governance, and intention to run for a subsequent full term. The meeting concluded with the unanimous appointment of George Page to the Trustee unexpired term. The Board also briefly discussed that the Policy Governance principles of monitoring institutional performance, executive limitations, and governance process were followed during the meeting.