Retirement & School District Partnerships Approved

Board members approved a number of personnel matters at the December 7 meeting.

Trustees accepted the retirement of Jean McCann, current vice president of instruction.

McCann will retire on June 30, 2016, after 24 years with the college.  In 1992 she was hired as a full-time instructor in the math department.  Since August of 2000, she has served as ECC’s chief academic officer.

McCann has been an educator for more than 30 years.  Prior to joining the faculty at East Central, she was a full-time math instructor at Harris-Stowe State University.  She was also an adjunct instructor at Jefferson College and Washington University.

She received a bachelor’s degree in math from Webster University and went on to Saint Louis University where she earned a Master of Arts degree in math.

“Jean has devoted immeasurable time and energy to East Central College,” stated College President Jon Bauer. “First as a faculty member, and for the past 15 years as an administrator, she has worked to make the institution the best it can be. We wish to thank  Jean for her service to the college and wish her well in retirement.”

Plans for a search process will begin immediately, with a goal of having a new chief academic officer on board by July 1.

Trustees approved the hiring of Lisa Hanneken as an accounting/business instructor for the upcoming spring semester.  Hanneken earned a  bachelor’s degree in accounting from Webster University and a  master’s degree in business with an accounting emphasis from Maryville University.

Since 2001 Hanneken has been employed as a utility regulatory auditor at the Missouri Public Service Commission.  Prior to that she worked at Bucklick Creek, Inc. and was a summer auditing intern at the Internal Revenue Service in 2000.

Board members approved requests for unpaid leave for three faculty members:  Laura Roselli for the 2016 spring semester; Jessica VanLeer from January 24 through March 17, 2016; and Russell Henderson from November 30 through December 15, 2015.

Partnership Agreements with Area School Districts Approved

East Central College trustees approved the renewal of a consortium agreement with the School District of Washington which will cover the arrangements for program delivery, cost-sharing, and other terms necessary for the delivery of coursework and cooperative joint programming.  Renewal of the agreement was approved by the Washington school board in November.

ECC and the school district have partnered for many years to offer joint programming for both secondary and post-secondary students at Four Rivers Career Center.  The partnership has given many students access to certificate and degree options in automotive technology, building construction, precision machining (machine tool), and welding.

Board members also gave approval to the development of a joint program in Early Childhood Education with the Rolla School District.  In November the Rolla school board approved the programming and the desire to move forward with the application to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

The program will provide a pathway for high school seniors to participate in dual credit coursework.   Participating students would be able to acquire both college credit and the Child Development Associate (CDA) credential while completing high school.

ECC will be able to offer coursework at Rolla Technical Center for traditional college students utilizing shared faculty.

Jean McCann, vice president of instruction at ECC, noted that college staff and officials with the Rolla School District will begin the process of developing a partnership agreement. “We will model this after the early childhood education program put in place last year with the School District of Washington,” McCann said. “That program has been very successful.”

Preliminary plans outline morning and afternoon sessions with 22 slots for students from ECC and RTC’s sending schools.

Audit 

East Central College has again received a clean opinion on the annual audit of the financial statements for the year that ended June 30, 2015.

The audit was conducted by the firm of KPM, CPAs of Springfield, Mo., which gave the college an “unqualified opinion.”  The financial statements of the ECC Foundation, which is considered a component unit of the college, were also audited for the year that ended December 31, 2014.  The foundation also received an unqualified opinion.

“We are very pleased to once again receive an unqualified “clean” opinion on the audit that showed no significant deficiencies or material weaknesses,” said college president Jon Bauer.

The college has total assets of almost $55 million, down more than $534,000 from last year.  Property and equipment constitute $40 million of the total.  Total liabilities were down $2 million for the year and now total $33.1 million.

More than $12.9 million in federal monies passed through the college throughout the year, the majority in the form of Pell and SEOG grants, work-study, and federal student loans.