VGCC Trustees adopt budget for 2016-2017
Vance-Granville Community College’s Board of Trustees adopted its budget for the current fiscal year, selected a financial advisor to handle college investments and honored its past chair, as the trustees met for their bi-monthly meeting on Monday, Sept. 19, on the college’s Main Campus.
Trustee Danny W. Wright presided over his first meeting as chair, taking the seat previously held by Deborah F. Brown. Both are Henderson residents. Wright and the trustees presented a plaque of special recognition to Brown for her four years as leader of the board. Serving as secretary of the trustees this year, Brown is a Vance County commissioner who was first appointed to the Board of Trustees by the county board in 2009.
The trustees also welcomed Colton Hayes of Franklin County as the new Student Trustee. A “super senior” at the Franklin County Early College High School, Hayes is the first early college high school student to be elected as the president of the VGCC Student Government Association. He is scheduled to graduate from VGCC in May 2017 with his Associate in Arts degree in addition to his high school diploma.
Budget Resolution
The trustees adopted VGCC’s budget resolution for Fiscal Year 2016-2017. The Current Expense and Capital Outlay budgets total $34,573,345.
The adoption came on a recommendation from the Budget Committee of the board, chaired by Trustee Abdul Sm Rasheed.
In the Current Expense portion of the budget, $20,545,300 comes from the State of North Carolina, $2,515,573 from the four counties served by the college, and $10,766,404 from institutional funds. On the Capital Outlay side, $78,793 comes from the State, $664,481 from the counties, and $2,794 from institutional funds.
The budget is allocated as follows: institutional support: $5,467,912; curriculum instruction: $10,734,772; continuing education : $2,949,507; academic support: $1,483,298; student support: $1,922,149; plant operations and maintenance: $2,022,352; proprietary/other: $2,619,281; student aid: $5,784,470; capital outlay, excluding capital improvements: $843,536; and capital improvement projects: $746,068.
In his highlights of the state portion of the budget, Steve Graham, VGCC’s vice president of finance and operations, said the college was allocated $206,556 in recurring funds to support adjustments to salaries and benefits for eligible employees, with another $206,556 in non-recurring funds for one-time, lump sum bonus payments to eligible employees.
Among institutional budget highlights, Graham said VGCC’s new VanGuarantee scholarship awards have been budgeted at $40,500 for the Fall Semester. Funded by a contribution from the estate of Wilbert A. Edwards, the VanGuarantee helps eligible students in the college’s four-county service area pay for their education when their needs are unmet by financial aid and other support.
Graham added that the institutional budget includes $160,000 to fund additional student activity offerings as well as the addition of the “Vanguard Spirit” cheerleading program. The athletics budget includes $37,178 for men’s basketball, $24,345 for women’s volleyball and $2,615 for cheerleading.
Investment Advisor
Upon recommendation of the board’s Investment Committee, chaired by Trustee L. Opie Frazier, Jr., the board approved First Citizens Wealth Management as the financial advisor for College investments, thus ratifying the designation of the firm by the VGCC Endowment Fund Board. The trustees and endowment board both have investments from various contributions. The trustees traditionally align with the endowment board in the selection of a financial advisor.
Requests for proposals for investment management services were recently reviewed and scored, Frazier said. From those reviews, four finalists were selected for presentations to the endowment board’s Investment Committee. After an analysis of the presentation, the First Citizens division was chosen by the endowment board, Frazier said.
Grant Presentation
Jeff Camden, program officer for the , presented a symbolic check for $25,000 to the Board of Trustees. The grant, for a project entitled “Cultivating and Growing Agricultural Communities,” helped cover the cost of tuition and other fees for eligible students in the “NC REAL Agricultural Entrepreneurship” and “Heavy Equipment Operator” courses offered by VGCC. Grant funding also supported instructional staff, marketing and supplies related to the programs.
VGCC has offered the Agricultural Entrepreneurship program at various locations, including the Vance County Regional Farmers Market and the Granville County Expo & Convention Center. Heavy Equipment Operator training is held at VGCC’s Warren County Campus.
A similar grant of the same amount was awarded through the Rural Community College Agricultural Cooperative Initiative, with funding provided by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Other Action
In other action:
• Trustee Donald C. Seifert, Sr., chair of the board’s Building Committee, reported that a roof renovation project for Building 6 on Main Campus is in the design phase. The project will be bid out in February and completed during the Summer Term in 2017. A total of $520,539 is available for the roof project, exterior masonry repairs and boiler replacements on the campus.
• Trustee Sara Wester, chair of the board’s Personnel Committee, provided an informational report on new employees, retirements, resignations and changes in positions.
• The Curriculum Committee, chaired by Trustee Barbara Cates Harris, approved new appointments to the Advisory Committees for college programs for the 2016-2017 academic year.
• Dr. Stelfanie Williams, VGCC’s president, announced that the Board of Trustees will participate in Ethics Training on Nov. 17 on the Main Campus.
The next meeting of the VGCC Board of Trustees will be held on Nov. 21 at the Main Campus.
Above: Danny W. Wright, chair of the VGCC Board of Trustees, left, presents a plaque on Sept. 19 to Deborah F. Brown for her service and dedication to the board as its chair. Brown, a Vance County commissioner, served as chair of the trustees from 2012 to 2016. (VGCC photo)
Above: Jeff Camden, program officer for the North Carolina Tobacco Trust Fund Commission, center, presents a symbolic check for $25,000 to Vance-Granville Community College at the board meeting on Sept. 19 to support tuition and fees for students in the “Cultivating and Growing Agricultural Communities” project. Shown from left are Dr. Stelfanie Williams, VGCC’s president; Danny W. Wright, chair of the board of trustees; Camden; Kyle Burwell, VGCC’s coordinator of Human Resources Development; and Tanya Weary, VGCC’s director of the Small Business Center. Burwell and Weary coordinated the project on VGCC’s campuses. (VGCC photo)
