Johnny Key Secretary ARKANSAS HIGHER EDUCATION Dr. Jim Carr COORDINATING BOARD AHECB Chair Dr. Maria Markham REGULAR QUARTERLY MEETING Director JANUARY 29, 2021 _________________________________________________________ Arkansas Division of Higher Education 423 Main Street, Suite 400 | Little Rock, AR 72201 | (501) 371-2000 ARKANSAS HIGHER EDUCATION COORDINATING BOARD REGULAR QUARTERLY MEETING Arkansas Division of Higher Education SCHEDULE ______________________________________ Friday, January 29, 2021 Call to Order at 10:00 a.m. Committee Meetings Convene Coordinating Board Meeting Coordinating Board Meeting will convene at the end of the Academic Committee meeting. ARKANSAS HIGHER EDUCATION COORDINATING BOARD REGULAR QUARTERLY MEETING Friday, January 29, 2021 Via Zoom AGENDA I. EXECUTIVE *1. Approve Minutes of the October 30, 2020 Regular Meeting *2. Report of Nominating Committee for 2021-22 Board Officers (Chair, Dr. Jim Carr) *3. State Board of Higher Education Foundation Election of Supervisory Committee (Chair, Dr. Carr) *4. Reimbursement of Expenses for Members of the AHECB and ICAC (Dr. Maria Markham) 5. Director’s Report (Dr. Markham) 6. Review of Audit Report (Dr. Markham) 7. Annual Enrollment Report (Ms. Sonia Hazelwood) 8. Annual Report on Institutional Certification (Ms. Alana Boles) II. FINANCE 9. Annual Higher Education Financial Condition Report (Mr. Nick Fuller) 10. Maintenance Report (Mr. Fuller) *11. Economic Feasibility of Loan Issue for the University of Arkansas Community College at Hope-Texarkana (Mr. Fuller) *12. Economic Feasibility of Bond Issue for the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (Mr. Fuller) *13. Economic Feasibility of Loan for Henderson State University (Mr. Fuller) *Action item i III. ACADEMIC *14. New Program: Arkansas State University – Jonesboro Bachelor of Science in Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health (Dr. Jessie Walker) *15. New Program: Arkansas State University Mid-South Certificate of proficiency, Technical Certificate, Associate of Applied Science in Computer Programming and Certificate of Proficiency in Database (Dr. Walker) *16. New Program: Ozarka College Certificate of Proficiency and Technical Certificate in Precision Machining Technology (Dr. Walker) *17. New Program: University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff Master of Education (M.Ed.) in Computer Science (Dr. Walker) *18. New Program: Arkansas Tech University Associate of Science in Manufacturing (Dr. Walker) *19. New Program: Southeast Arkansas College Associate of Applied Science in Supply Chain Management (Dr. Walker) *20. Institutional Certification Advisory Committee: Resolutions (Dr. Walker) 21. Letters of Notification (Dr. Walker) 22. Letters of Intent (Dr. Walker) *Action item ii FINANCE COMMITTEE Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board Arkansas Division of Higher Education 423 Main Street Little Rock, AR 72201 Friday, January 29, 2021 Finance Committee Keven Anderson, Chair Chris Gilliam Al Brodell Chad Hooten Bill Clary Greg Revels Dr. Jim Carr, Ex officio AGENDA 9. Annual Higher Education Financial Condition Report (Mr. Nick Fuller) 10. Maintenance Report (Mr. Fuller) *11. Economic Feasibility of Loan Issue for the University of Arkansas Community College at Hope-Texarkana (Mr. Fuller) *12. Economic Feasibility of Bond Issue for the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (Mr. Fuller) *13. Economic Feasibility of Loan for Henderson State University (Mr. Fuller) *Numbers refer to main agenda. iii ACADEMIC COMMITTEE Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board Arkansas Division of Higher Education 423 Main Street Little Rock, AR 72201 Friday, January 29, 2021 Academic Committee Lori Griffin, Chair Dr. Michael Stanton Andy McNeill Dr. Jim Carr, Ex officio CONSENT AGENDA *14. New Program: Arkansas State University – Jonesboro Bachelor of Science in Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health (Dr. Jessie Walker) *15. New Program: Arkansas State University Mid-South Certificate of proficiency, Technical Certificate, Associate of Applied Science in Computer Programming and Certificate of Proficiency in Database (Dr. Walker) *16. New Program: Ozarka College Certificate of Proficiency and Technical Certificate in Precision Machining Technology (Dr. Walker) *17. New Program: University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff Master of Education (M.Ed.) in Computer Science (Dr. Walker) *18. New Program: Arkansas Tech University Associate of Science in Manufacturing (Dr. Walker) *19. New Program: Southeast Arkansas College Associate of Applied Science in Supply Chain Management (Dr. Walker) *20. Institutional Certification Advisory Committee: Resolutions (Dr. Walker) 21. Letters of Notification (Dr. Walker) 22. Letters of Intent (Dr. Walker) *Numbers refer to main agenda. iv Agenda Item No. 1 Higher Education Coordinating Board January 29, 2021 ARKANSAS HIGHER EDUCATION COORDINATING BOARD Regular Quarterly Meeting October 30, 2020 Minutes of Meeting The October 30, 2020, regular meeting of the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board (AHECB) was held via Zoom video conferencing. Chair Jim Carr called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m., with all members present. Coordinating Board present: Coordinating Board absent: Dr. Jim Carr, Chair Al Brodell, Vice Chair Chris Gilliam, Secretary Keven Anderson Bill Clary Lori Griffin Chad Hooten Andy McNeill Greg Revels Dr. Michael Stanton Department staff present: Dr. Maria Markham, Director Dr. Jessie Walker, Assistant Director for Academic Affairs Nick Fuller, Assistant Director for Finance Ann Clemmer, Assistant Director for Governmental Relations Sonia Hazelwood, Assistant Director for Research and Analytics Micah Gilbert, Network Support Specialist Nichole Abernathy, Executive Assistant Presidents, chancellors, institutional representatives, members of the press, and guests also participated. Chair Carr began by thanking everyone for participating in the virtual meeting. He then said that Dr. Olin Cook has decided to resign from the Higher Education Coordinating Board. Chair Carr asked that a proclamation be sent to Dr. Cook thanking him for his years of service to higher education in Arkansas. Agenda Item No. 1 Approval of Minutes Greg Revels moved to approve Agenda Item No. 1. Keven Anderson seconded the motion and the Board unanimously approved. 1-1 Agenda Item No. 1 January 29, 2021 Agenda Item No. 2 Appointment of Nominating Committee Chair Jim Carr appointed members of the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board nominating committee. The nominating committee will recommend Board officers for 2021-22 at the January 29, 2021 meeting. The members included Dr. Michael Stanton (Chair), Chris Gilliam, Lori Griffin and Chad Hooten. Al Brodell moved to approve Agenda Item No. 2. Bill Clary seconded the motion and the Board unanimously approved. Agenda Item No. 3 Approval of 2021 Coordinating Board Meeting Schedule The Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board meets quarterly to act upon Board initiatives and to respond to campus proposals. Director Maria Markham noted that in lieu of social distancing measures, all AHECB Meetings would be held via Zoom until further notice. R RESOLVED, That the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board agrees to the following dates for regular quarterly meetings during 2021: January 29, April 23, July 30, and October 29. FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Board expresses its appreciation and accepts the invitations to meet in January, April, July and October via Zoom. Keven Anderson moved to approve Agenda Item No. 3. Andy McNeill seconded the motion and the Board unanimously approved. Agenda Item No. 4 Director’s Report Dr. Markham began by thanking presidents, chancellors and the board for their participation in the non-traditional format and also for maintaining quality on campus during a global pandemic. ADHE Staff Changes Dr. Cortez Henderson is the new program coordinator for Academic Affairs. Henderson began on October 19 and previously served as Vice President of Student Affairs at ASU Three Rivers. 1-2 Agenda Item No. 1 January 29, 2021 Institutional Changes Dr. Sandra Massey, Arkansas State University-Newport Chancellor, is retiring at the end of the year. Before becoming chancellor, Dr. Massey served as ASU-Newport’s Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. She has been at ASU-Newport for seven years. Challenge Scholarship/Lottery Funded Scholarships Update This presentation is reflective of the overall engagement of the higher education institutions this Fall, said Dr. Markham. Our preliminary enrollment numbers reflect a statewide decline of approximately 4.4%. She noted that Arkansas is performing better than the national numbers on engagement in higher education. Higher Education COVID Responses A lot of time has been devoted to coordinating COVID funding and COVID responses on campuses, said Markham. Arkansas received over 28 million in federal CARES Act funds dedicated to testing, contact tracing, and providing PPE to the institutions. Markham noted that the funds are set to expire on December 31. Without another stimulus package, we are unable to extend those funds, said Markham. The points of contact for the private and public institutions meet weekly to discuss logistical issues, to trouble shoot any process problems, and to provide the latest CDC guidelines. The hesitancy of students to submit to COVID testing and cooperation with contact tracers is the most immediate concern, said Markham. Legislative Update Higher Education budget hearings began this week and the appropriations were approved for