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ANC Board of Trustee Members with Dr. Shemwell (Pictured L to R): Mr. Randy Scott, Mr. Curtis Walker, Dr. Anes Abraham, Dr. James Shemwell, Mr. Dan Ritchey, and Mr. Gordon Miller. Not pictured: Mr. Clif Chitwood and Mr. Lowery Robinson |
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Members of the Arkansas Northeastern College Board of Trustees met Wednesday, June 21, 2023, for their regularly scheduled meeting, marking the last board meeting for retiring President Dr. James Shemwell who officially ends his service on June 30, 2023.
ANC Vice President for Student Affairs Dr. Christopher Heigle, who will become the College’s fifth president on July 1, presented the Board with a report of summer enrollment. The enrollment remained somewhat steady with a slight decrease in headcount of 411 compared to 434 in 2022, and with 2,050 credit hours being taken this summer compared to 2,050 in the summer of 1825. Students still have time to enroll for the fall term.
Dr. Heigle provided information pertaining to requests for several new positions. On March 1, Arkansas Department of Commerce Secretary Hugh McDonald, along with the department directors for the Office of Skills Development and the Arkansas Economic Development Commission met at the ANC campus with local leaders representing the major steel-related employers in Mississippi County, including Nucor-Yamato Steel, Nucor Steel Arkansas, U.S. Steel/Big River Steel, HiBar Steel, Tenaris, Majestic Steel, and Lexicon Steel, as well as ANC personnel. The meeting was arranged and hosted by the Great River Economic Development Foundation.
During this discussion, local employers expressed a desire for basic steel-related training for over 1,000 anticipated new hires in the foreseeable future. Secretary McDonald invited ANC to submit a proposal for training dollars to fund the needed training expressed by the local employers. ANC brought forth the Arkansas Steelmaking Bootcamp which is a job skills initiative designed to prepare people for the urgent labor demand in the steel manufacturing industry in Mississippi County. The Bootcamp is comprised of 80 hours of workforce education and training that provides participants with entry level knowledge for entering a career in steelmaking. The Bootcamp proposal intends to train 1,050 participants during the first year. The 80-hour Bootcamp will be offered over a two-week period (M-F) with open entry, meaning that participants will not have to wait until the next cycle begins to start training. Participants may enter in the midst of a two-week cycle and finish the training during the following cycle. The Bootcamp will accommodate up to 25 participants per cycle. During the first year, the Arkansas Northeastern College (ANC) will offer 20 cohorts for a total of 40 training weeks during the year in Mississippi County.
ANC’s partner colleges (Black River Technical College, East Arkansas Community College, Arkansas State University Newport, & Arkansas State University-MidSouth) will offer another 22 cohorts (collectively) across Northeast Arkansas. Participants will enter the Bootcamp via two methods; 1) direct company placement and 2) Bootcamp application pool. Company partners may enter new hires directly into the Bootcamp without going through the Bootcamp application process. Other participants from the general public will be recruited by ANC and its partner colleges via local and regional job fairs by way of direct mail, outdoor advertising, newspaper, cable advertising, and social media as initiated by the Bootcamp Coordinator. General public participants will complete a Bootcamp application which will allow for the administration of basic blind screens, such as minimum work experience, high school diploma, etc. as established by company partners’ minimum standards. Final selections will be made by mutual agreement of company partners and participants. The Board approved the Bootcamp proposal which includes funding for a full-time Bootcamp Coordinator as well as training dollars to add three full-time trainers. These additional positions will afford the College more flexibility, timeliness, and nimbleness in meeting training/staffing needs of local steel industry employers as part of the Arkansas Steelmaking Bootcamp project. Currently, the Office of Skills Development/Arkansas Department of Commerce has indicated that an MOU for full funding of the project is forthcoming. The total amount requested is $1,213,800 with ANC’s portion being $602,000. The anticipated cost of salaries and fringe for the proposed personnel would be approximately $350,000. The Board’s approval is subject to OSD fulfilling the commitment to fund the initiative.
In other news, Dr. Heigle reported that in June 2012, ANC leased from the ANC Foundation the former Mo-Ark Communications property located immediately south of and adjacent to the College for the purpose of leasing the property to the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services. The ADWS office has been a part of the ANC campus since that time. ADWS announced on May 30, 2023, the closure of nine local offices including the office in Blytheville. The termination of the lease by ADWS effective June 30, 2023, allows the facility to be leased back to the College from the foundation for anticipated growth related to the Solutions Group and the Arkansas Steelmaking Bootcamp project that could put pressure on the College in terms of needed office space. Executive staff plan to pursue an independent appraisal of a fair market rental that could be paid by ANC to the ANC Foundation for use of the existing building and parking lot. The Board approved, subject to the establishment of a fair market rental value and approval of the ANC Foundation, a new Memorandum of Understanding between ANC and the ANC Foundation whereby ANC rents the soon-to-be-former ADWS property from the ANC Foundation for use as office and/or teaching space.
ANC Interim Vice President for Instruction June Walters presented the Board with the College’s annual Minority Report, stating Arkansas Northeastern College’s commitment to the recruitment and retention of minorities represented in its faculty, staff, and students. Ms. Walters reported various programs and activities that have been instituted to accomplish this goal.
A personnel report was given and the Board welcomed new employee Chelsey Ellis as an Early College Specialist. Additionally, they approved three employees for new positions as Dr. Heigle will become President on July 1. At that same time, Ms. Mindy Walker will become the Associate Vice President for Student Affairs and Ms. KeTierra Jones will take over as the Director for Financial Aid.
In other business, the Board approved acceptance of a Student Support Services Grant. Student Support Services (SSS) is a long-standing program at ANC as part of the TRIO initiative designed to assist first-generation college students with basic college requirements and academic development, and to motivate students toward the successful completion of their postsecondary education. The program requires 175 participants to be served during each grant year. The College was notified that its Student Support Services program received a 4% increase, bringing the award total from $335,111 to $348,515 for the 2023-2024 fiscal year.
Before conclusion of the meeting, the ANC Board of Trustees approved Resolution 79, to be spread upon the permanent minutes, expressing the appreciation of the Board of Trustees of Arkansas Northeastern College and its College community to Dr. James R. Shemwell, for his 29 years of service to the College.
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