BRTC Board of Trustees Holds Quarterly May Meeting

The Black River Technical College (BRTC) Board of Trustees recently met for their quarterly meeting on the Pocahontas campus.

BRTC President Martin Eggensperger opened the meeting by giving the President’s report. He reported that the college is closing its five-year plan and will soon start its next: “We have made significant progress on our last five-year plan and finished many of our goals at a faster pace than we originally expected,” Eggensperger stated. He reported that renovations were complete within the library, and a remodel of the Pocahontas welding facilities had begun.

BRTC Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Brad Baine reported that 340 students completed their degrees and certifications during the Spring 2024 semester and 530 credentials were awarded at commencement.

Rhonda Stone, Vice President of Finance and Administration, presented the board with the FY 24 budget to actual report. She informed the board that the bookstore and coffee shop on the Paragould campus have been combined and full-time employee Autumn Guillot is managing the new area.

The biggest project happening right now is the Law Enforcement Training Academy barracks. “Hopefully a schematic design and construction documents will be ready to go to bid in August and hopefully construction can start in September,” Stone said. She also reported that the college has received $9.2 million in federal grants since September.

Vice President of Student Affairs Jason Smith reported that admissions mobile registration accrued 75 pre-registered seniors for the upcoming Fall 2024 semester. He said the fitness studio had over 200 visitors this semester, and the Veterans Affairs Department recently underwent an audit that went impeccably well.

Smith added that the team involved with the Title III grant have made considerable headway on the project including career services, durable skills, and a re-engagement campaign. He reported that recently hired Director of Student Career Readiness Shane Copeland has already begun making strides having served approximately 189 students by finding experts to help students with resumes and mock interviews to get the students ready for the job market.

Another crucial part of the grant is about to begin. BRTC staff will go back five years and match students who did not graduate with the national clearinghouse to discern which students did not continue or finish their education at all after leaving BRTC. Staff will then reach out to those students and try to reengage them into programs at BRTC.

“I’m very excited about the results,” Smith said, “it’s certainly a worthwhile endeavor.”

He also reported the college in cooperation with NEA Intermodal recently held a successful career fair with approximately 150 attendees. “We also worked with career coaches at the local high schools to get graduating seniors to the fair and gave them an hour alone with employers,” Smith said.

Dr. Karen Liebhaber, Vice President of the Office of Institutional Advancement, thanked the board for attending the recent grand opening of the Mary Helen Jackson Children’s Reading Room. She reported that the BRTC Foundation’s Spring Soirée was the second largest in BRTC history. She reported the 31^st Golfing Fore Scholarships tournament will be held on September 27 with a rain date of the following Monday.

Executive Director of Human Resources Julie Edington reported the hiring of Walter Holland as a police officer, Laura Tribble as the administrative assistant for the office of the president and institutional advancement, and Jerri Blue as a community education program specialist.

Sissy Gray, Executive Director of Institutional Effectiveness, reported that the annual assessment cycle is closing and she is looking ahead to the next planning cycle. She also reported grant that the Title III grant is moving along well. She said the workforce effectiveness skills have been narrowed down and curricula have begun to be formed. BRTC has also hosted meetings with businesses, industry, and stakeholders asking them what they want BRTC to teach. “We want to make sure that what we are teaching is meeting the needs of the businesses and industries in our area,” Gray said.

Executive Director of Workforce Training Priscilla Stillwell reported new customized training classes are continuously being added to workforce training and her office is working on bringing more industry training to Lawrence and Randolph counties. She also reported that the office received a Perkins grant for $107,000.

The board then approved:

• A resolution to approve the 2024-2025 course catalog
• A new concurrent instructional site
• The proposed FY 2024-2025 budget
• The 2024-2025 student handbook
• Changes to policies and procedures
• Renewal of employee contracts
• Employment of 44 provisional positions for FY 24-25
• A two-year employment contract for the position of president