College board reviews presidential compensation range and profile

Director of Total Rewards Lance Heister, who was present to discuss the compensation analysis, stated that there is no comparable place to Northland Pioneer College’s (NPC) unique set up and is more pertaining to competitors.

Laughter stated her concern that some portions of the northern district are not being appropriately represented. “Probably something that we should consider is, if we are looking at bringing in somebody at a low salary scale for the work that they’re going to do, and all of the ground they’re going to have to cover, maybe we need to look at the possibility of adding a couple more vice presidents who could cover parts of the county that the president cannot actively be in,” she stated, adding that this option or providing a higher wage would be desirable for hiring a new president.

Board Member Leslie followed by addressing the concerns being risen by Laughter, and his belief that they have gone continuously unanswered. “Every time she’s bringing up these same concerns, and it’s never being addressed. We just sweep it under the rug, and we never do anything about it and it’s affecting everything else that we’re trying to accomplish as a board.”

Lucero commented that NPC was the highest paying large employer in Navajo County, to which Laughter disagreed. She also stated that the minimum education for the position should be raised from a Master’s to a PhD along raising salary range. “I mean, we are going through so many presidents because we are not compensating them fairly for the work and the number of miles that they cover.” It was later decided to not change the requirement due to the verbiage which stated PhD was preferred.

Laughter made a motion to table setting the compensation range pending information on the previous salary range that was provided when hiring Hazelbaker and hold a special teleconference meeting June 27 to discuss and approve the topic. The motion passed.

The board discussed other aspects of the presidential profile as well, reviewing several amendments which included pushing the posting date by at least one week due to the compensation range special meeting. The board approved the presidential profile with the amended changes.

NPC’s now retired Technical Director of Performing Arts Center Manager Patrick Day was presented Emeritus status for his nine year career with NPC and commended for his efforts within the college.

NPC’s Friends & Family (NPC F&F) Director Betsy Wilson introduced the organization’s new development coordinator Karen Zimmerman, who will be starting in her new position July 1. Zimmerman has worked with NPC over eight years in various positions related to student services, according to Wilson, who added that she’s very proactive and student centric in her work. Wilson also provided an update on the progress made in the 2025-2030 strategic plan.

The board received a report on the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) financial ratios by Director Russel Kupfer. The HLC uses specific financial ratios to track institutional health as part of an overall strategic financial analysis. The model adopted by the HLC uses the concept of a Composite Financial Index (CFI), which is intended to give a quick snapshot of overall financial health, according to the report by Kupfer. The CFI measures the overall financial health of the institution based on the sufficiency and flexibility of resources, the management of debt, the performance of assets, and the results of operations. It was concluded that NPC’s score is well above the threshold as it has been for years.

The board accepted the FY2024 Economic Transition Resources grant award in the amount of $8.9 million for the construction of new college facilities in Kayenta. The planned facility is to be constructed within three years of the award of the grant as specified in the grant request. Laughter shared her gratitude for those who worked on the grant application and the collaborative efforts with Kayenta Township, stating “I know it was a very competitive grant.”

In other business, the board:

* Approved a resolution for Business Manager Maderia Ellison to be designated as the college’s 2025 Chief Fiscal Officer (CFO) for officially submitting the fiscal year (FY) 2025 annual budgeted expenditure limitation report to the Arizona Auditor General.

* Approved a 2024-27 TALON Intergovernmental Agreements (IGA) between the College District and Blue Ridge Unified School District No. 32, Joseph City Unified School District No. 2, Edkey, Inc., Sequoia Village School, Ganado Unified School District No. 20 and Chinle Unified School District No. 24.

* Approved a 2024-27 dual enrollment IGA between the College District and Blue Ridge Unified School District No. 32, Joseph City Unified School District No. 2 and Ganado Unified School District No. 20.

* Approved the purchase of annual support and maintenance from Jenzabar Inc. for $383,629 for 2024-25. Funds are budgeted as it is an integral application to overall college functions. Jenzabar Inc. has been identified as a sole source vendor as vetted by the Technology Advancement and Support division and Procurement department.

* Approved the purchase of Microsoft 365 A3 subscription licenses and renew Microsoft server related licenses from CDWG for $79,579 for 2024-25. Funds budgeted in FY 2024 by the Technology Advancement and Support (TAS) division and CDWG AZ State Procurement Contracts E&I CNR01439 and NVP Software ADSPO17-149774 are utilized to ensure the better value at a cost savings for the college.

* Authorized replacement of the college’s current Huawei microwave tower equipment and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) licensing with upgraded equipment and licensing through JTS in the amount of $1,225,044. The Technology Advancement and Support (TAS) division has budgeted funds in FY 2025 for microwave tower equipment and upgrade activities.

* Approved the purchase of NEOED talent management platform in the amount of $255,325 over the next three years.

* Canceled the July 16 regular meeting.