This synopsis is intended as a brief overview of some actions taken by the Weatherford College Board of Trustees at its regular monthly meeting in February and is for general informational purposes only. This abbreviated summary is not intended to represent or reflect all discussion and action taken by the board at this meeting. Specific details outlining all action taken by the board are recorded in the official Board Meeting Minutes, prepared and maintained by the College President's Office.

In a lengthy monthly meeting of the Weatherford College Board of Trustees, Thursday, several major decisions were made and approved.

The board approved the selection of construction firm Steele & Freeman, Inc. as Construction-Manager-At-Risk for the preconstruction phase of the proposed new Health Sciences building at no charge. Upon completion of this phase, negotiations may be entered into with Steele & Freeman for the construction phase and general conditions costs as well as the guaranteed maximum price.

 A memorandum of understanding between WC and Hill College was presented, discussed and approved. The agreement, authored by Dr. Kevin Eaton, WC president,  and Dr. Sheryl Kappus, president of Hill College, outlines the roles of each college in Hood County. As approved, the document will be sent to Rep. Phil King to attach to House Bill 407, a proposed bill now up for consideration in the Texas Legislature, designating Hood County as part of WC’s service area.

Additionally, the trustees approved the Order of Election for Places 1 and 2 on the WC Board. The election will be held May 11, 2013, with early voting beginning April 29. Filing deadline for available Places is March

1. The Board will meet in a special called session on Thursday, Feb. 21 to discuss a candidate’s request to conduct the election using paper ballots rather than electronic voting.

 Also, the board revisited a plan brought forth last month by the WC Faculty Senate regarding a new faculty title system. Under the new peer-recognition system, faculty titles would reflect their level of education, years of service and professional and community involvement. Points would be assigned to each category, and faculty would progress through the titles of instructor to assistant professor, associate professor and professor. The system would not impact faculty compensation. Board chair Frank Martin asked that a meeting be scheduled among key WC faculty, personnel and board members to finalize details of the system before it can be approved.

In his President’s Report, Eaton:

1.  Recognized:

• Shirley Brown and the Math Department for the outstanding job they did with the 11th Annual Weatherford College Coyote Area Black and Gold Math Championship.

• Tom Wells and Dr. Scott Tarnowiecky for their participation in the Granbury ISD History Fair.

• Kathy Bassham for being selected as a recipient of the Phi Theta Kappa “Distinguished College Administrator Award.”

2.  Presented an enrollment report for the spring 2013 semester: Overall, 5,276, up 1.97 percent from this time last year; on Weatherford campus, 3,095, down 3.3 percent; Wise County, 540, up 13.2 percent; Granbury Education Center, 324, up 28.1 percent; Mineral Wells Education Center, 192, up 21.7 percent; Internet, 1,776, up 2.1 percent and dual credit, 839, down .5 percent.

3.  Presented a Legislative report, regarding state funding for Fiscal Year 2013-14: A new state formula funding system is being proposed that could fund the 50 community college districts in Texas in three categories – Core College Operations, which would allocate $1 million to each district up front; contact hours and Student Success Points.

In other business, the board:

1.  Heard the financial statements ending December 31, 2012;

2.  Discussed ways that the College can do more to enable veterans to attend WC;

3.  Approved minor updates to local policies, including those addressing bullying and dating violence and notifications of “substantive changes” to accrediting agencies;

4.  Approved two Deeds Without Warranty correcting a legal description of two small parcels of land at the Mineral Wells Education Center located on the Fort Wolters facility. The deeds officially transfer the parcels back to the federal government;

5.  Heard a detailed report on tuition and fees for the upcoming year;

6.  Heard a list of upcoming College events and activities and

7.  Met in closed session to discuss personnel and real estate.

The next regularly scheduled meeting of the WC Board of Trustees is March 7, 2013.