The Navajo County Community College Governing Board held a regular meeting last Tuesday, at the end of which the board accepted President Chato Hazelbaker’s letter of resignation after reconvening from executive session. “Resigning from the college was a difficult decision,” stated Hazelbaker, “and the one thing that I wanted the college, as a whole, and the board to know is how much I appreciate working with you.” Hazelbaker expressed his thanks and added that the next board meeting, which will be in May, will be his final meeting. Dr. Hazelbaker has accepted a position as president of Pueblo Community College, in Pueblo, Colo.

The board then reentered into executive session to discuss the interim process and qualifications of college personnel. The board reconvened and voted to move forward with an internal search for an interim president. Requests for letters of interest from internal candidates will be sent out on April 22 and due by April 26. The board will then hold a special meeting at 2 p.m. on April 30 to discuss the process for the filling of the permanent position and possibly an executive session to interview applicants.

The board removed two items from the agenda, which was a third executive session to discuss the presidential search process and timeline then take action on it.

The board also awarded retired Lynn Oldham, Maintenance II facilities personnel, with Administrator Emeritus status. “It’s been a blessing and honor to be able to work with the college during the past 20 years,” Oldham stated, “You’re all family.”

An update was provided by NPC’s Friends & Family Director Betsy Wilson on the program’s recent activity. Wilson discussed the donations received during Arizona Gives Day, which she stated it was the best one the organization had as of yet. “We blew our old total out of the water by about $5,000. We fell just a couple $100 short of our goal of $50,000.”

Wilson noted that there were a lot of anonymous donors and thanked them, stating “If you’re listening, I appreciate what you did.”

Friends & Family earned first place for most dollars raised by a midsize nonprofit, which earned them an additional $3,500 bonus for NPC student scholarships through the organization.

NPC Friends & Family accepts donations at all times. To donate or learn more information, visit their site at www.npcfriendsfamily.org.

Wilson also announced some new scholarships, with one being a $1,000 scholarship available for Native American students for the upcoming Fall semester. Summit Healthcare will also be proving 10- $1,000 scholarships for students in the nursing program.

Wilson then provided an update on progress on the 2025-30 strategic plan. “We’ve devised a series of community surveys that we’re sending out,” she said, adding that the less than five-minute survey to get some data to help shape goals for the strategic plan.

Director of Facilities and Transportation Justin White provided an update on the college district’s construction projects.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Project Manager Colleen Marsh provided an update on the ERP implantation.

Lead Campus Manager Jessica Kitchens invited the governing board to the 2024 commencement ceremony being held at 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 11, with seating to begin at 9 a.m. (at the Holbrook High School’s Roadrunner stadium.

In response to Robb Floco’s statements in the previous meeting’s call to the public pertaining to NPC creating an athletics program, President Hazelbaker provided a whitepaper to the board. “Based on my analysis, there are challenges to re-establishing an athletics program at NPC. In considering this move for the college, it would be important to work with all stakeholder groups, set aside appropriate time and funding, and engage the entire community in gathering feedback on an athletics program in order for this to be a positive step for the college and its students,” wrote Hazelbaker in the report, adding that it would cost much more than the $200,000 Floco predicted. “My recommendation would be to continue gathering community input on the 2025-2030 Strategic Plan and consider an exploratory group or committee depending on where this fits in the final 2025-2030 Strategic Plan.”

The college saw an increase in enrollment for the Spring 2024 semester in comparison to Spring 2023, according to a report provided by Director of Student Services Josh Rogers. Full Time Student Equivalency (FTSE) increased 11%, with 1,286.20 for Spring 2024 and 1,158.53 for Spring 2023. Unduplicated headcount increased 10.90%, going from 2,465 in Spring 2023 to 2,734 in Spring 2024.

The board also reviewed the 2024-25 introductory budget analysis, with Board member Kristine Laughter absent from the meeting.

In other business, the board:

* Approved modifications to the Behavioral Health (CP), Behavioral Health Technician (CAS), and Behavioral Health Studies (AAS).

* Approved modifications to the Medical Assistant Certificate of Proficiency, Certificate of Applied Science, and Associate of Applied Science.

* Approved modifications to the Surgical Technology Certificate of Proficiency, Certificate of Applied Science, and Associate of Applied Science.

* Approved new Industrial Technology Trades certificates and degree: Electrical and Instrumentation (CP), HVAC (CP), Industrial Technology Trades – General (CP), Mechanical Maintenance (CP), Power and Alternative Energy (CP), and Industrial Technology Trades (CAS and AAS).

* Approved a 2024-27 TALON intergovernmental agreement (IGA) between Navajo County Community College District and Dishchii’bikoh Community School.

* Approved a 2024-27 concurrent enrollment IGA between Navajo County Community College District and Winslow Unified School District.

* Approved a 2024-27 dual enrollment IGA between Navajo County Community College District and Winslow Unified School District.

* Approved a 2024-27 dual enrollment IGA between Navajo County Community College District and Round Valley Unified School District.

* Approved a 2024-27 TALON IGA between Navajo County Community College District and Round Valley Unified School District.

* Approved the purchase of a SimMan 3G PLUS trainer at a total cost of $118,305. Funds are budgeted from the 2024 Perkins Grant.

* Accepted the Single Audit Report for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023. There were no federal findings during Fiscal Year 2023, with one finding in the report on internal control and compliance over financial reporting. The district’s control procedures over Information Technology (IT) systems and data were not sufficient, which increases the risk that the district may not adequately protect those systems and data, according to the audit. It was recommended the district enhances authentication requirements of IT systems.

* Approved the amended course fees for the nursing division. The course fees approved in March 2024, incorrectly omitted the Nursing Assistant NAT101 fee for $160. This action will allow the course fee to remain in force.

* Awarded a contract to Colliers Roofing for a total of $106,299 to replace the roof of the multipurpose building at the Little Colorado Campus (LCC) in Winslow. The total cost is included in the budget for Fiscal Year 2024.

* Awarded a contract to Colliers Roofing for a total of $136,437 to replace the roof at the Hopi Center. The total cost is included in the budget for Fiscal Year 2024.

* Awarded a contract to Rush Mechanical for a total of $58,783 to replace the HVAC system for the Multipurpose Building at the LCC in Winslow. The total cost is included in the budget for Fiscal Year 2024.

* Approved replacing the 20-year-old network technology at the Painted Desert and White Mountain campuses with updated and higher performance Cisco equipment to be purchased from HyeTech Network & Security LLC for $199,025. This is a budgeted expense utilizing Government Procurement Alliance Contract 22-02PV-08 to ensure competitive pricing for the college.

* Approved the 2025-2027 Preliminary Capital Budget as presented.

* Approved the 2024-2025 Preliminary Budget.