December 15, 2017 SSE Board of Directors Minutes
Minutes
SONOMA STATE ENTERPRISES, INC.
Minutes
December 15, 2017MEMBERS PRESENT:
Mr. Yale Abrams
Ms. Grace Anderson
Ms. Madeline Cline
Dr. Kirsten Ely
Ms. Christina Gamboa
Mr. Wilson Hall
Ms. Nicole Hendry
Dr. Kyuho Lee
Ms. Joyce Lopes
Mr. Neil Markley, Ex-Officio
Dr. Judy K. Sakaki
Dr. John Urbanski
Ms. Amanda Visser, Ex-Officio
Dr. Lisa Vollendorf
MEMBERS ABSENT:
Dr. Stacy Heldman-Holguin
Dr. Patti Hiramoto
OTHERS PRESENT:
Mr. Steve Higginbotham
Mr. Tyson Hill
Ms. Nancy Keller
Ms. Megan Konieczka
17.17 Call to Order
The meeting was called to order at 9:35 a.m. Joyce Lopes announced this would be Nicole Hendry’s last meeting and thanked her for her years of service.
17.18 Approval of the September 22, 2017 Minutes
The minutes from September 22 were provided to the Board via email prior to the meeting. Dr. Ely moved to approve the September 22, 2017 minutes. Ms. Cline seconded the motion. The minutes were approved unanimously with no changes.
17.19 President’s Report
Dr. Sakaki thanked everyone for their support and care during the recent wildfires. Through our efforts Sonoma State University was able to raise over $90,000 with over 400 individual donors and community partners. Donations ranged from money to gift cards to train passes. Over 80 of our own community members were directly affected by the fires. Noma Cares and Noma Gives were put in place to address these needs.
The SSU EOC (Emergency Operating Center) enabled us to keep the campus safe and operating during the disaster. The EOC operated for 9 days with over 80 employees from across campus and other CSUs. The campus financial loss during the fires was roughly $1.5 million. Dr. Sakaki informed the Board that we are currently seeking to recover loss revenue through insurance and FEMA.
The WASC accreditation committee was here the week after campus reopened. Dr. Sakaki was happy to announce that at the exit meeting she received positive feedback and looks forward to the official report being released this spring.
Dr. Sakaki then addressed the concern of food insecurity on campus. A study has found that 21% of students within the CSU system don’t have enough funds to purchase food. Sonoma State University has opened a food pantry for students. Lobo’s pantry is run by students with the assistance from the Redwood Empire Food Bank. Currently, only dry goods are available but the students are looking into expanding what Lobo’s Pantry can offer.
Dr. Michael Young, who has been serving as the interim Vice President of Student Affairs, will be leaving. Dr. Sakaki has asked Mr. Harry Le Grand, former Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs at the University California at Berkeley, to serve as the interim starting January 2nd until a permanent Vice President is appointed. There are three finalist who will be interviewing for this position. Dr. Sakaki also announced a search committee is in the final stages of the search for the Athletics Director. She also informed the Board that Mr. Bill Kidder who formally served as Dr. Sakaki’s Chief of Staff, will now be leading the Title IX office. The new Chief of Staff is Dr. Patti Hiramoto. With Mr. Vince Sales’s recent retirement, Dr. Hiramoto will also be serving as Vice President for Advancement until a replacement is found for Mr. Sales.
17.20 Chief Academic Officer/Provost Report
Dr. Vollendorf thanked everyone for their help during the fires. She thanked the bookstore for replacing books for students who may have lost theirs. She was blown away by the extraordinary commitment from the campus and Sonoma County.
The Wine Spectator Learning Center is complete and will have a soft opening in the spring. She is excited to start hosting classes in the building.
The WASC preliminary report has been released and the University is in compliance with accreditation guidelines. Dr. Vollendorf commented on how much of an extraordinary achievement this is as the evaluation took place the week after the fires.
17.21 Sonoma State University Strategic Planning
Dr. Vollendorf introduced the team from LEAP who are assisting in our development of the University’s Strategic Plan. The Strategic Planning Committee, led by Dr. Carmen Works and Dr. Vollendorf, is focusing on developing the Strategic Plan in an inclusive manner. There have already been some common threads seen from the first survey and they are excited to expand on these.
The SSE Board was split into groups. The team from LEAP led the groups in a Strategic Planning exercise.
17.22 Vice President for Student Affairs Report
Dr. Vollendorf and Mr. Markley reported on behalf of Dr. Young and Ms. Heldman-Holguin. They reported 20 new positions are being added as a result of the GI 2025 funding.
Mr. Markley reported Student Affairs is attending a food insecurity conference hosted by the CSU. Ms. Keller will be attending as well. In addition to a food pantry, SSE plans on implementing short term meal plans and addressing how food left over after a catered event could be utilized to help feed our students in need.
17.23 Associated Students Report
Mr. Hall was happy to announce the Pizza with the Presidents event went well. Many questions were addressed and meaningful discussion were had among the presidents on campus.
Associated Students held a DACA social media event in which students were able to send notice tweets, emails, and posts to our representatives to advocate for a clean Dream Act and Immigration Reform. Associated Students is also forming a committee to search for a Student Government Coordinator. They also have been participating in the Green Music Center’s strategic planning where they were able to give feedback and express the desire for programming that students would like to see.
Ms. Cline discussed the Travel Ban Open Forum that was recently held along with the Student Athlete Advisory Committee. Many student athletes were concerned with the ban affecting their competition schedule.
17.24 Report from SSU Vice President for Administration and Finance/Chief Financial Officer and Chair of SSE Board of Directors
Ms. Lopes shared her gratitude for everyone’s help during the fires. She personally thanked the bookstore for clothing the president immediately after the fires and for organizing the purchase and sales of the NomaCares t-shits. She also personally thanked the culinary services team for keeping the EOC and the students fed.
Ms. Lopes discussed how the EOC operated during the fires. Sonoma set a high standard for all other EOCs to follow. She was also proud of how NomaCares operated, and continues to operate, after the fires. FEMA is currently looking for short term housing options and have inquired about land that SSE owns. If anything develops the Executive Committee will be called to discuss the options. There is an After Action Report being conducted regarding the EOC and how Sonoma State University addressed the emergency. Ms. Lopes encouraged everyone to fill out the surveys related to the After Action Report.
As we continue to work on the Strategic Plan more information will be distributed. Ms. Lopes expressed that the budget needs to be in line to support the strategic plan. In order to ensure that our budget is aligned, she suggested SSE might want to schedule a retreat during the spring to further discuss this.
17.25 Chief Operating Officer’s Report
Mr. Markley discussed the numerous ways SSE responded to the fires:
- Set up the ability to donate to NomaGives at the point of sales systems at all venues
- Gave 100% of drink revenue and 50% of food revenue sold at the fire benefit concert at the Green Music Center to NomaGives
- Helped distribute NomaCares t-shirts though the University Store
- Provided books through Barnes and Noble to replace textbooks that were lost during the fires
- Replaced the president’s cap and gown that was lost during the fires
Mr. Markley was happy to announce our Director of Culinary Services, Ms. Nancy Keller, has applied to speak at two national conferences regarding our experience during the fires.
Mr. Markley was also happy to announce that our Director of Marketing, Mr. Ryan Ernst, is also being recognized nationally for the Seawolf Living videos featuring the University Store have gained the attention of Barnes and Noble corporate. They loved the concept and have shared the video throughout their company.
Historically SSE has had two staff members sit on the board. SSE will be putting out a call for two suitable staff members to join the Board and fill the two vacancies that will exist. After we have received the applications, a committee will review the applications and give a recommendation for Ms. Lopes.
The Charlie Brown Café remodel is launching. Mr. Markley has been speaking with facilities to secure a timeline. He has also been working with the library to ensure the flow of the new layouts will be beneficial to both the library and to the café.SSE’s donation has be processed for the completion of the Wine Spectator Learning Center. Once the Wine Spectator Learning Center has officially opened we will open our new café as well.
Mr. Markley announced the development of a campus contribution focus group that will be led by Dr. Ely. This group will be tasked with created a report to distribute to campus highlighting the various contributions SSE give to campus. Dr. Ely feels this will help with transparency and lend a better understanding to those outside of the auxiliary.
Composting has been extended to Charlie Brown’s Café. All but two venues (Toast and Prelude) now have composting programs. It has been beneficial both environmentally and educationally to extend our composting efforts. Neil thanked Nancy and Facilities for their efforts.
The beverage agreement SSE has with Pepsi will be expiring in July. Mr. Markley is in discussion with staff and Procurement to evaluate how to proceed. As the University continues to move forward with its sustainability efforts, this will be reflected in any new agreement.
17.26 Chief Financial Officer’s Report
Ms. Visser reported the Finance Committee met at the end of November and reviewed the financial statements, reserves, and investments. There are some areas that need to be updated on our investment policy. She will update the policy and present it at the next Finance Committee for their approval before sending it for the Board’s approval. Ms. Visser is happy to report that SSE is in compliance with its reserve policy.
Ms. Visser discussed the impact the fires had on the budget. Overall there was a revenue impact of approximately $300,000. SSE refunded the student meal plans for roughly $200,000 and closed venues lost about $100,000.
Ms. Visser also announced the gift of $1.1 million for the completion of the Wine Spectator Learning Center has been spent from our reserves as previously approved. The Salazar leasehold improvements have been transferred to the University as a non-cash item. She also let the Board know the $60,000 allocated to the President for advancement has been paid.
17.27 Other Non-Action Items
None
Meeting was adjourned at 11:26 a.m.
Mr. Neil Markley Chief Operating Officer/ Secretary Ms. Megan Konieczka Recording Secretary