Board Report – February 2011

Before I talk about college business, I would like to extend my deepest sympathy to the families of the two South Eugene High School students who drowned this weekend at the coast. One of the students was the son of Greg Ausland. Greg is one of our 2009 Distinguished Alumni Award recipients.

As you know, the legislature is back in session, and the governor released his recommended budget February 1. He proposed $410 million for the Community College Support Fund, about $7 million less than the current allocation. We’ll discuss the budget and session more during the governmental relations update later in the meeting. Board members had the opportunity to see projections during the work session.

Mary Jeanne Kuhar has been named director of our Florence Center. She is a physician and has held leadership positions at Central Oregon Community College for the past several years. She has a doctorate in medicine from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and a bachelor's in biology from West Virginia Wesleyan College. She’ll be a great asset to Lane and the Florence community.

Andrea Newton, Executive Dean of Academic Affairs for Career Technical, will receive the 2010-11 Dean Herman Schneider Award from the Cooperative Education and Internship Association at its spring conference. This is the highest honor bestowed by this international organization. Andrea was selected for her significant and comprehensive record of contributions to cooperative education and internships over a sustained period of time. Lane's Co-op program is one of the top five in the nation and is the largest west of the Mississippi, serving more than 2,000 students and 800 employers annually.

Rosaria Haugland, graduate of our Small Business Management program, will receive a 2011 Outstanding Alumni Award from the American Association of Community Colleges at its annual convention in April. She’s one of our own Distinguished Alumni for 2010. Rosaria has been on the Foundation board since 2004 and is on the Opening Doors campaign leadership team. She founded Molecular Probes with her husband. It became a world leader in fluorescence-based technology and a multimillion-dollar business. It was later sold to Invitrogen.

Congratulations to this year’s Martin Luther King Jr. award winners, Don Day and Richard Archambault, who were recognized for their work on the Longhouse, and to Quentin Reynolds, who was recognized for his commitment to community service and social justice. ASLCC and the Black Student Union are instrumental in organizing this annual community recognition.

Our women’s basketball team took its national home game winning streak to 83 games before the run finally ended on January 29 after eight straight years. However, the Titans are determined to start a new streak beginning with the next home game this Saturday. Lane is proud of the amazing performance of the women’s basketball team and Coach Greg Sheley.

Thanks to Stan Taylor and the Lane Peace Center for hosting a presentation by foreign correspondent and author Reese Erlich last month.

Kudos to David Van Der Haeghen for another successful Lane Preview Night last week. More than 1,000 parents and students from across Oregon attended.

Huge thanks to the student leaders, athletes, faculty and staff who supported our entry in the Celebrating Champions parade last month. It was a great opportunity. About 30,000 people turned out. I especially want to thank Steve Webb of Advanced Technologies and his wife Tammy for arranging and driving the truck, and Helen Garrett and Brett Rowlett for planning our participation on short notice. Thanks to the board members and staff who walked in the parade. It was really fun.

About 50 members of the Lane County League of Women Voters visited campus on Saturday. Brett Rowlett and I gave presentations and led a tour of the Health and Wellness Center and Longhouse. They said this was one of their best monthly events to date. Thanks to Brett, Andrea Newton, Todd Smith and James Florendo for helping make the visit a success.

Last month, Tony McCown and I attended the League for Innovation CEO and Trustee retreat in San Antonio. I also attended with a team of faculty and staff the American Association of Colleges & Universities’ annual meeting in San Francisco.

I have written a vision piece for the AACC Sustainability Project and will be at the National Legislative Summit in Washington DC next week. Tony McCown, Pat Albright, and Brett Rowlett also will attend the summit.

I recently interviewed with National Public Radio about the way we address troubling behavior on campus. I also interviewed with Jefferson Public Radio about our Downtown Campus plans. JPR is based in Ashland but broadcasts locally on KRVM. I talked with The Register-Guard about the governor’s budget and with KNND radio in Cottage Grove about the upcoming board election.

This is Black History Month, and our students are planning special events for February 26 and 27.

I will close with a reminder that our Downtown Campus groundbreaking is Friday, March 4 beginning at 10:30 a.m. in the Eugene Public Library. After comments, the event will move across the street to the construction site for the official groundbreaking, and then to the Atrium Building for a light reception. I hope you will be able to join us for what will be an exciting and historic day for Lane Community College.