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Published on 6/2/2024.

Quarterly Meeting of the Audit and Financial Committee

The Board's Audit and Financial Committee met immediately prior to the regular meeting of the Board. Julia and I had the opportunity to talk about the 2024-25 Tentative Budget and the Measure Q Bond refunding proposal. We wanted to talk to the committee about these two topics in detail before the full Board discusses them.

Regular Board Meeting on June 4, 2024

Comments/Board Business

Land Acknowledgement:  President of the Board Dr. Robertson read the District’s land acknowledgement recognizing our area’s Indigenous Peoples as the original stewards of the land that College of the Redwoods occupies. 

We acknowledge that the land on which we are gathered today is unceded territory of the Wiyot, Hupa, Karuk, Mattole, Tolowa, Wailaki, and Yurok. We honor them and all neighboring tribes by our ongoing commitment to developing trusting, reciprocal, and long-lasting partnerships.

Comments/Board Business

Swear In Student Trustee Elect: President of the Board Dr. Robertson administered the oath of office to Trustee Elect Leslie Benitez. I want to congratulate Leslie on her election and her assumption of the role of Student Trustee. President of the Board Dr. Robertson assigned Trustee Biggin as Leslie's mentor.

Board Committee Reports: Trustee Pedrotti noted that the Board Evaluation Ad Hoc Committee met on May 21 and will discuss the survey's results later in this agenda. Trustee Dorn mentioned that the Audit Committee met immediately prior to the regular meeting of the Board and discussed the Tentative Budget and a potential bond refund. Trustee Mathews shared that the Policy Review Committee submitted several BPs and APs to the Board for consideration in this agenda.

Approve Resolution 810 Ordering an Election - Del Norte County, Resolution 811 Ordering an Election - Trinity County and Resolution 812 Ordering an Election - Humboldt County: The trustees approved three resolutions (810, 811, and 812) ordering an election in Del Norte County, Trinity County, and Humboldt County in November 2024. These resolutions address the elections for Area 4 (Eureka), Area 5 (Arcata), Area 6 (McKinleyville), and Area 7 (Klamath-Trinity). In case you are wondering, even though Trustee Mathews' seat is not up for election, we must order an election in Del Norte County because part of Trustee Biggin's trustee area includes a small portion of Del Norte County.

Discuss Board Evaluation Summary: Trustee Pedrotti led a discussion about the trustees' self-evaluation results. The trustees will use their evaluation results to build their Board goals. I attached the survey results to this blog summary in case you are interested.

Consent Calendar Action Items

Approve/Ratify Personnel Actions: With this agenda item the Board ratified my decision to accept Dr. Lisa Gaetje' s resignation and Dr. Peter Blakemore's retirement. Dr. Gaetje will resign from her position as our Vice President of Instruction effective June 30, 2024. She will assume a similar role for Fresno City College in July. I want to thank her for her leadership while at CR and wish her all the best moving forward. Dr. Peter Blakemore has elected to retire as our Executive Dean of Arts and Sciences on June 30, 2025.

Although we will say farewell to two colleagues, we have the opportunity to welcome Desirae Witzke to our college community as a new Early Childhood Education Assistant II.

I want to recognize and congratulate Jessica Howard and Giselle Cabrero for their employee change of status. Jessica Howard will move from the Director of Nursing position to the Dean of Nursing and Healthcare Pathways role. It is important to note that this move will not add an administrator to our District. Jessica's former director position will be deleted from the position inventory. Giselle Cabrero will move from the Student Services Specialist IV, range 116/step 2/ Schedule & Assessment Support Specialist, ACE, to range 120, step 2. Giselle will also receive a two percent bilingual stipend.

By Board action today, we welcome three new associate faculty members to our college community this summer. Kendall Finch and Adrianne Tomkinson will serve as DSPS Counselors and Jami Pittser will be part of our Nursing faculty.

Action/Discussion Items

Approve Resolution No. 813 Denouncing the SCOTUS Decision on Community College Admissions and Affirming Commitment to Racial Diversity and Racial Equity: I am proud that our Board of Trustees approved Resolution 813 that denounces the Supreme Courts' decision on college admissions and affirms our commitment to racial diversity and racial equity. I want to share the wording of the resolution with you.

WHEREAS, the United States Supreme Court’s recent decisions in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and Students and Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina undermined more than four decades of precedent that had legally recognized as compelling interest the educational benefits of racially diverse student populations in higher education.

WHEREAS, we remain committed to supporting historically underrepresented students in transferring to universities that have been under the legal restrictions of Proposition 209 and now the SCOTUS decisions.

WHEREAS, we believe that higher education has proven to be the best strategy for the social and economic mobility, including as a promising equalizer for many people of color who have historically faced institutional racism and overt and covert denial of equal opportunity and equitable access to education itself.

WHEREAS, higher education’s interest in promoting a racially diverse student population is exceedingly compelling, as the Supreme Court of the United States had previously outlined the educational benefits that arise from racial diversity: “the destruction of stereotypes, the promotion of cross-racial understanding, the preparation of a student body for an increasingly diverse workforce and society, and the cultivation of a set of leaders with legitimacy in the eyes of the citizenry.”

WHEREAS, in response to the SCOTUS decision, the leadership of the University of California,

California State University, and California Community Colleges have maintained that their respective institutions are still committed to racial diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging as core values, despite operating under the legal restrictions of Proposition 209 for over twenty-five years.

WHEREAS, the State of California witnessed a decline in the racial diversity of student bodies at

universities across the state following the passage of Prop. 209 in 1996 that prohibited the use of race as a factor for admission into institutions of higher education, similar to the Supreme Court’s recent rulings striking down race conscious admissions for UNC and Harvard’s admission policies.

WHEREAS, California community colleges with our open access and already richly diverse and talented student population serve as pathways to diversifying the University of California and California State Universities, which was even more so needed after the passage of Prop 209, and California community colleges will need to continue advancing racial diversity and closing racial student success gaps in transfers to diversify the UCs and CSUs in addition to private universities in California.

WHEREAS, California community colleges should and can still promote racial equity and equitable protection through anti-racism work at the structural, cultural, and individual levels in areas such as curriculum, teaching pedagogy and andragogy, student services, remedial education reform, focused outreach, racial data analysis and reporting accountability, equitable financial aid, student basic needs, equity programs such as AB 288 dual enrollment, budgeting, and faculty diversity while still complying with Prop 209 and the SCOTUS decisions.

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of Trustees of the Redwoods Community College District, that the Redwoods Community College District will continue to advance racial equity for students at the structural, cultural, and individual level, while complying with legal restrictions of Proposition 209 and the SCOTUS decisions, and commits to increasing the college’s racial equity efforts for the benefit of students while recognizing that community colleges serve as pathways to racially diversifying the universities.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Redwoods Community College District will push back against repressive legalism and not overreact and overinterpret the SCOTUS decision to the detriment of students of color and their equitable access and success and will inform our campus community about this possible chilling effect caused by Prop 209 and more recently, the SCOTUS decisions.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Redwoods Community College District commits to learning more about how the universities are making changes to their admissions process so that historically underrepresented students can still have an equitable opportunity to be admitted and the ways they can express their racial and ethnic identity in their transfer application as allowed under the recent SCOTUS decisions.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Redwoods Community College District affirms its unyielding commitment to racial diversity and racial equity at College of the Redwoods.

Approve Resolution No. 814 Resolution Authorizing the Issuance of Redwoods Community College District 2024 General Obligation Refunding Bonds: At a past Board meeting, the trustees approved a recommendation several months that allowed us to refund some refinanced Measure Q funds back to the taxpayers. We found that market conditions are favorable for us to provide a refund of all the outstanding refinanced bonds to our district's property taxpayers again. The Board eventually approved a resolution that would allow our financial consultants to execute the refund process when a 4.04% savings of the refunded bonds threshold is reached.

Approve Monthly Financial Status Report: This month's report covered 83.33% of the fiscal year. Last month we reported that the Chancellor's Office indicated that our P-1Apportionment Report was going to include a 3.5521% deficit factor—a $1.414 million reduction in our projected revenue given the state's budget challenges. Last week, the Chancellor's Office signaled that the deficit factor may be reduced. However, since the state's budget is still a little murky, we assumed that our allocation would include a deficit factor but not as high as 3.5521%. Therefore, we reflected the potential change in the deficit factor of 1.776%, or $707,063, in our revenue in this month's report.

Key takeaways from our report this month are:

• Salary expenditures are still trending higher than last year and are outpacing what we budgeted.
• Payroll for the month of June should be lower than the preceding months since faculty are off contract, but the salary budget to actuals amount is being closely monitored in case an increase is necessary. 
• Overall, actual expenditures are tracking higher than now compared to last year.
• Our transfers out are comprised of $90,000 to the Child Development Center, $74,720 to the Shively Farm, $750,000 to the OPEB fund (May be diverted to Capital Outlay), and $500,000 to our Debt Service fund for a total of $1,414,720. 
• As a result of the adjusted State Revenue, the monthly financial status report now shows a projected 2023-24 Unrestricted General Fund ending fund balance of $7,675,609, or 17.7% of Unrestricted General Fund expenditures.

Approve 2024-25 Tentative Budget: As the background of the agenda item noted, the Board must approve a Tentative Budget before June 30, 2024 to allow us start spending effective July 1, 2024., We will present a 2024-25 Final Budget to the Board after the Legislature and the Governor approve a final State budget.  I want to point to a few things that formed the basis for our Tentative Budget:

• 2023-24 was another year where actual revenues received by the State are coming in much lower than projected, and, as of the 2024-25 May Revise, there is an estimated $44.9 billion deficit that the State must overcome for the 2024-25 year. Despite the economic outlook, the budget proposal includes no major reductions for Community Colleges and a 1.07% COLA for the SCFF and for select Categorical Programs, .5% for SCFF Growth, and a few one-time categorical dollars. To help balance out the impact of the underperforming revenues, the May Revise depends upon the drawing down of reserves and operational savings.

• Due to the pandemic influenced decline in enrollment, we opted into the Chancellor's Office Emergency Conditions Allowance for FTES program for 2020-21 through 2022-23.
• We implemented several strategies to restore FTES, including outreach and recruitment efforts, the return of Football and the addition of Wrestling to the Athletics program. As a result of these efforts, the current 2023-24 FTES is 3,501, which surpasses the target of 3,403 by 98 FTES.
• When the SCFF was implemented in 2018-19, legislation included the Hold Harmless provision for Districts for the first three years, as well as a Prior-Year SCFF plus COLA (Stability) provision. The 2021 Budget Act extended the Hold Harmless through 2024-25. 
• The Hold Harmless Revenue Provision ends in 2024-25. A modified “hold harmless” revenue protection will start in 2025-26, which will use 2024-25 Total Computational Revenue (TCR) as the new floor. Going forward, we will earn the higher of the “floor” or the SCFF, however the revised revenue protection will not include future COLA adjustments.
• Districts can earn the greater of either the SCFF, Hold Harmless, or Prior-Year plus COLA revenue amounts, however, districts may not know if the State will be able to fully fund revenue earned for all districts until well after the fiscal year is over. 
• We are estimating that enrollment will continue to grow and surpass 2019-20 levels by 3% in 2025-26, and another 3% in 2026-27. This estimate is based on continued outreach, recruitment efforts, and retention efforts as well as the launching of new academic programs. As a result, SCFF revenue is assumed for both years in the Multi-Year Forecast.

Tracking Survey for Potential General Obligation Bond for November Election: Curt Below from FM3Research, Barry Barnes from TeamCIVX, Danielle Arruda from KNN Public Finance, and David Casnocha from Stradling Law discussed the bond tracking survey results and potential bond language with the Board of Trustees.

The survey was administered to likely November 2024 district voters between May 7-15. All told, eight hundred and seventy-one (871) people were interviewed.

The goals of the tracking survey were to: 1) assess whether there have been any material changes in the electorate’s mood and perceptions of the College; 2) assess reactions to a potential November 2024 bond measure, refined based upon results of the baseline survey and subsequent community engagement; 3) determine whether highlighting potential Community Stadium improvements funded by a bond has an impact on viability; and 4) provide the Board with additional point to take into consideration when deliberating on whether to place a bond measure on the upcoming ballot. I want to share a few key takeaways from the survey.

The overall electoral context does not appear to have changed materially since December 2023, which bodes well given the solid level of support a measure received in that survey, views of where the community is headed—in general and not specific to the College—are holding steady, and the overwhelmingly positive impressions of the College are also the same as last December. The only cautionary finding is that fewer voters hold the view that the College has an appreciable need for more funding and more now appear unsure about the College’s funding needs.

From a bond viability standpoint, support for a potential $120MM November 2024 bond appears to be holding steady above the 55% vote threshold from last year. Though a measure has a high floor of aggregate support, there are still notes of caution:

• Total support ranges from around 70% to around 60%, depending on the version and exposure to supportive and critical statements.
• Initial and final levels of support relied upon material numbers of voters only “leaning” toward a “yes” vote to reach/exceed the 55% voter threshold.
• The College’s perceived need for funding has declined.

Nonetheless, given the consistency of support from December 2023 to May 2024 and the College’s strong community reputation, a measure does appear viable this November, assuming the emergence of community-led efforts to highlight the College’s facility funding needs and strengthen the resolve of tentative supporters.

Additionally, a version of the bond without the Community Stadium appears to be modestly less supported by voters, with slightly lower initial support and less final intensity of support; furthermore, few found rationales for supporting a bond focused on Stadium improvements compelling.

The Board directed me to work with our consultants and the bond attorney to draft a resolution that revolves around affordable housing, the community stadium, and science/healthcare classrooms/labs on the Del Norte Campus.

Informational Reports

Recognitions: In this agenda item, I recognized Sean Patton for graduating with an associate degree from CR and Arlene Wynn for attaining a master's in public administration, Leadership Concentration from CSU San Bernardino. I also shared a card that Alison Herson, Deputy District Attorney for Humboldt County, sent to me acknowledging the leadership of Chief Michael Perkins. The card read:

Dr. Flamer

I had the opportunity to assist your police academy with a training exercise. I was very impressed with the instructors and leadership of Chief Perkins. Humboldt County is fortunate to have quality post certified training in its backyard. Hats off to your academy cadre! I look forward to engaging with our county's latest batch of first responders. Keep up the great work CR.

Sincerely Alison Herson

Caring Campus: Classified Staff members Gussie Solem and Matthew Gilliland did a wonderful job discussing our Caring Campus initiative with the trustees. I attached their PowerPoint to the summary. I encourage you to go over their presentation.

Organizational Reports

Academic Senate: I would like to share Dr. Herrera's final report as the Academic Senate President in its entirety with you.

The Senate has completed important activities to end the semester hence, this hefty report. The Senate President invited the ASCCC President Cheryl Aschenbach and Treasurer Robert Stewart to meet with the Senate, constituents, and Student Services specialists, who are working towards meeting Title V changes. They provided us with an overview of the Title V regulations that have been ratified, and those pending approval. It was clarified that Ethnic Studies Course Outlines of Record approval problems are statewide, and communications between President Aschenbach and CSU representatives to address prevailing setbacks are going well. The meeting revealed that the Senate and Student Service specialists with their hard work, have kept the district in line with goals set forth by Title V, while retaining quality instruction that is specific to the needs of our students. Faculty have been working very hard to update their ADT’s and courses to assure that we are in line with all Title V GE changes. The Senate also appreciates all the faculty who have supported shared governance on district committees and will continue to do so in many areas including curriculum, dual enrollment, and program initiation. ASCCC is hosting convenings in conjunction with the Chancellor’s Office for faculty to collaborate on the creation of Common Course Numbering and Descriptors to meet AB 1111 requirements. The most popular courses have been identified to begin the process. The Senate has appointed faculty representatives from the following disciplines/courses to attend; Communication Studies/Public Speaking-Chris Lancaster, Math. /Intro to Statistics-Tami Matsumoto, Poli. Sci/Intro. to American Gov. and Politics-Ryan Emenaker, Eng./College Comp.-Kendra Guimaraes, Eng./Argumentative Writing and Analytical Thinking- Karyn-Lynn Frisette, and Psych./General Psychology-Deanna Herrera. The Curriculum Committee Chair, George Potamianos and Curriculum Specialist Tatiana Robinson will be attending the Curriculum Institute and will return with more updates. Leigh Dooley and Senator Trevor Hartman have attended the Learning Lab AI Grant informational meetings on AI grant proposals (EMP Initiatives #3 & #5). The AI Ad hoc is considering ways to grow to address the imminent changes that AI will bring to academics. So many thanks to give!

At Senate, Executive Vice President Mayer was unanimously approved for Emeriti status. We thank EVP Mayer for her dedication and service to the district, and for many years of outstanding leadership! Moreover, students and faculty presented effective arguments to the Senate requesting the Senate to ratify a Resolution for a Cease Fire in Gaza. The Senate heard arguments and voted to convene a special meeting to discuss this Resolution. The Special Meeting convened and through discussion determined to construct and move to Action a Resolution which was carried unanimously. The Senate has discussed retreat planning ideas for Fall 2024, and Erin Wall the incoming Senate President will be leading the retreat. Additionally, she has been planning for Convocation activities to bring more information to the faculty about the Senate. Deanna Herrera provided information to guide Senate planning that incorporates DEIA&A training, with developing a Senate Diversity Statement. Since the ethos of diversity work begins with looking at our own processes and patterns of behaving and thinking these activities will create a foundation for the Senate to create its own Diversity Statement, which will be shared with the district as it creates its own version. Additionally, future trainings will support faculty to include DEIA&A elements into their Course Outlines of Record.

 President Flamer has graciously offered to support the very important student multicultural art project initiative. This activity is spearheaded by Carolyn Perkins the MDC Chair and it culminates in a juried exhibition. This collaborative effort between the Art Department, the MDC, and the administration supports the EMP initiatives #6 & #4 and demonstrates the power of working together.

CSEA: In her written report to the Board, CSEA President Engman included the following:

• Classified School Employee Week was celebrated last month. From their interactions with the children at the Child Development Center, high school students at Academy of the Redwoods taking college courses, to multiple generations of CR students, classified staff work to empower all for the future!
• The CSEW celebration this year included appreciation BBQs in Eureka and Del Norte courtesy of the manager’s group.
• CSEA completed a survey of bargaining unit members regarding our 2024-2026 collective bargaining agreement.
• CSEA’s 98th Annual Conference will be held July 28th – August 1st at the San Jose Convention Center. CSEA intends to send two delegates to the conference.

In her verbal comments, Tami thanked Academy of the Redwoods principal Arnie King for recognizing our maintenance and IT staff for supporting the Academy of the Redwoods graduation. She also thanked Gussie Solem and Matthew Gilliland for their Caring Campus presentation.

Management Council: President Barber's final written report as President of the Management Council included:

• At the May Management Council meeting, Montel Vander Horck, Career Center Manager, presented to the group on Handshake at the May Management Council meeting.
• The management Council and Administrators worked together to ensure that the Eureka and Del Norte BBQs honoring our classified staff were successful.

President Barber also introduced Morgan Solem as the next president of the council.

Administrative Reports

President/Superintendent Report: In my written report, I noted that:

• Red Sky Roofing started the Del Norte Campus roofing project a few weeks ago and completed most of the work over the Light Center. The project should be 100% complete by early June. I attached pictures of the new roof to this summary blog article.

• Nordic Aquafarms announced that all three Coastal Development Permits needed to move forward with the Nordic aquaculture project have been approved by the California Coastal Commission

I also included an appreciation for the contribution that Associate Faculty of English and Adult Education Laura Kirkpatrick made to the continuing dialogue about the conflict in Palestine. Attached to this administrative report is a statement authored but her and read to the Academic Senate during the Senate's special meeting on May 8, 2024. I also attached a brief history of the conflict, written by Kirkpatrick, which was made available to students, staff, and faculty.

In my verbal comment, I thanked Kerry Mayer for her service to the District and presented her with a gift for her retirement.

Vice President of Administrative Services Report: Julia's written report spoke to the two budget open forums have been scheduled to allow for district-wide discussion of the 2024-25 Tentative Budget and Multi-year Forecast. All staff, faculty, administrators, and students have been encouraged to attend.

Monday, June 10, 2024 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm

            https://redwoods-edu.zoom.us/j/86198291112

Dial: (669) 900 6833

Meeting ID: 861 9829 1112

 Tuesday, June 11, 2024 9:00 am – 10:00 am

            https://redwoods-edu.zoom.us/j/81962775359

Dial: (669) 900 6833

Meeting ID: 819 6277 5359

Vice President of Student Services Report: In her written report, Crystal noted that staff performed an on-site training and assessment of CR’s accessibility maturity using the framework of the Accessibility Capability Maturity Model (ACMM) and that we have a strong partnership with North Coast Rape Crisis Center (NCRCT) to provide next level support services, intervention, and prevention education for our CR community.

Interim Senior Vice President of Strategic Initiatives Report: Kerry provided a status update on her goals.

                          Actions                                                                 Status Update  

Goal 1: Support Accreditation Efforts Work with the Accreditation Oversight Committee to engage in robust self-evaluation and to accurately document the District’s progress in meeting all ACCJC accreditation standards and eligibility requirements in the Institutional Self-Evaluation Report. Support District efforts to prepare for the ACCJC visit scheduled for Fall 2024.	The Sr. VP served on the Accreditation Oversight during the spring term to help respond to any additional evidence requests or core inquiries related to the District’s ISER submission.
Goal 2: Represent the College’s Strategic Interests with Business, Industry, Tribal, Educational and Governmental Partners Engage with regional planning efforts related to offshore wind and other emerging “blue economy” opportunities. Collaborate with tribal partners to support program development that benefits tribal communities. Support CR collaborations with Cal Poly Humboldt, Humboldt County Office of Education, and Del Norte County Office of Education that benefit the College and our students.	Attended Aquaculture Symposium in February 2024 which included representatives from the aquaculture and offshore wind industries, academia, Tribal communities, as well as state, federal, local government partners, and community groups. Traveled to Cal Poly SLO with partners from Cal Poly Humboldt, Lost Coast Ventures, and the Northern California Small Business Development Center to explore the creation of a local entrepreneurial center to support student start-up business ventures and to increase opportunities for internship and mentorship. Attended California Ports Roundtable Discussion in March 2024 which included representatives from business, industry, education, labor unions, and state local, state, federal, and tribal governments. Supported the work of the President’s Advisory Council and the Joint Native American Advisory Committee, including assisting in meeting planning, agenda-setting, and new member recruitment. Engaged in regular meetings with community leaders to collaborate with regional businesses, educational partners, and Tribal leadership to support workforce development opportunities. Worked collaboratively with faculty and administrators representing Cal Poly Humboldt’s School of Engineering to create a partnership MOU related to engineering education at both institutions. Attended regular meetings with superintendents of Eureka City Schools and Northern Humboldt Union High School District as well as the deputy superintendent of the Humboldt County Office of Education to develop a partnership MOU codifying our shared commitment to creating robust educational K-16 pathways.
Goal 3: Engage in New Program Development to meet Workforce Needs Research and develop new certificate and degree programs to support Education Master Plan initiatives relative to meeting local workforce needs. Represent College of the Redwoods as the voting member of the North Far North Regional Consortium and to shepherd new Career and Technical Education program proposals through the regional approval processes.	Secured regional approval through the North Far North Regional Consortium for new program in Engineering Technology. Forwarded this program approval on to the Program Viability Committee for consideration/action. Represented CR as a voting member of the North Far North Regional Consortium at regional program recommendation meetings and at regional planning meetings. Attended spring meeting of California Community College Associate for Occupational Education; targeted attendance at sessions focused on blue/green economy, Vision 2030, and the Chancellor’s Climate Action and Sustainability Goals.
Goal 4:  Support Fiscal Stability of the District Pursue external funding to support initiatives that benefit students and to support Education Master Plan and Facilities Master Plan initiatives. Provide oversight and monitoring of grant, categorical, and partnership funds to ensure continued funding and to increase potential new partnerships.	Continued monitoring of grant, categorical, and partnership funds to ensure compliance with funding sources and to support new funding partnerships. Worked with Indigenous Habitat Institute to explore opportunity for CR to act as fiscal agent for the IHI sub-award related to Department of Agriculture Grant through Oregon State University.
Goal 5: Communication and Relationship-Building Communicate regularly with college community to assess strategic needs, gather relevant information necessary to support strategic initiatives, and provide regular reports on grant and other relevant programming. Connect college faculty and staff to community resources and/or partners to advance college goals and initiatives.	Connected regularly with appropriate faculty, staff, and administrators regarding community engagement opportunities, new program development, business and industry partnerships, and grant opportunities.

Kerry also penned a note of thanks as she retires. It is my honor to share the language of her note of thanks with you.

This will be my last board meeting as a College of the Redwoods employee, and I want to take a moment to offer you my most sincere thanks and to express my profound gratitude for the career that CR has allowed me to pursue.

My time at College of the Redwoods has allowed me to work in a variety of capacities with an amazing array of professional colleagues. I’ve been blessed to be an associate faculty member, a clerk-typist, a classified manager, a temporary worker, a tenured faculty member, a mentor, an associate dean, a dean, a vice-president, and now, after all these years, a senior vice president. I’ve been lucky to serve in leadership roles on the Academic Senate and in the CRFO and, as an administrator, on President Flamer’s cabinet. I’ve been involved in the highs and lows of institutional accreditation. I’ve witnessed lean budget years and flush budget years. I’ve worked for every president the college has had, save the first two, and I’ve seen great leadership, horrible leadership, and everything in between. Through it all, though, I’ve been blessed to have been able to engage in the most meaningful and impactful work that truly changes lives and makes our community a better place. For this, I am eternally grateful.

To serve students has been a great privilege. I’ve been blessed to have been able to connect with so many amazing students over the years – including multiple generations of the same families -- and I hope that I’ve made a positive difference in their lives.

I’m also incredibly blessed to have had the support, friendship, and camaraderie of my colleagues over these past three decades. My CR family has been witness to the joys and sorrows of my life. They’ve celebrated the birth of my two children and have watched them grow up, and they have carried me through some of the most difficult personal challenges of my life. Through it all, my colleagues have stepped in to help carry my burden, provide comfort, celebrate the wonderful times, and hold space for my grief. This, too, has been a gift.

I want to thank you, and all the past members of the Board of Trustees with whom I’ve worked, for the opportunities you have provided to me. I appreciate your steady leadership, and I will miss working with you and with my colleagues very much.

After July 31, 2024, I will no longer be an employee of the District, but please know that College of the Redwoods will always be a part of who I am, and I will continue to support the important work of the District in fulfilling our mission in whatever way I can.

Executive Director of College Advancement and the Foundation Report: Marty's written report included the following:

• Don Olsen – President of the CR Foundation Board and Monica Sperling – Past President of the CR Foundation Board joined him in meeting with the Del Norte Healthcare District Board requesting $10,000 of scholarship funds on an annual basis to support the Del Norte Healthcare District’s Nursing (LVN/RN) Scholarship. Additional scholarship funds would potentially be available if new healthcare programs were offered on the Crescent City campus.
• The Foundation awarded a Presidential Academic Innovation Grant to Coach Reed Elmore to fund a week-long Native American Running Camp. The camp, which will take place June 24-28 and open to 7-12 graders, is a collaboration between Two Feathers Native American Family Services, Untied Indian Health Services and CR. The camp will focus not only on running but on presenting Native American traditional ecological knowledge and western ecological science.
• The Foundation is also funding Coach Elmore’s summer trails building course being offered through CR’s Workforce and Community Education. This course is another collaboration between Two Feathers and CR. The course will provide trail building experience to Native American youth. The course will be an introduction to the principles of sustainable trails exploring aspects of trail maintenance to assess trail needs, prescribe maintenance solutions, and execute basic trail maintenance. This course will also provide a broad overview of the diverse types of trails, surfaces, locations, user types, difficulty levels, and experiences. Students will understand the general goals of trail design principles.
• The Foundation Board approved a Presidential Academic Innovation Grant for Professor Valerie Elder to support the peer reviewed carbon offset project of CR’s forest, utilizing CR Forestry students, and partnering with Cal Poly Humboldt.

Professor Karen Reiss presented to the Foundation Board on the Academic Innovation Grant award for cataloging CR's Natural History Collection, utilizing CR students. The cataloging process into ARCTOS allows for researchers and K-12 teachers to access the CR collection and request pieces for research or for classroom instruction.