Duties and responsibilities are many including preparing budget for Verde Campus/Sedona Center; must be willing to live in the Verde Valley; shows dramatic shift away from total control by Prescott

There has not been a decision as yet about who might become the new Verde Campus/Sedona Center Dean. The search began in late fall 2019 and there are rumors about possible finalists.  However, there have been no official announcements about the position.

For the first time, and a major change, is that the new Dean will be required to live in the Verde Valley.  Another change requires that the new Dean be responsible for preparing a budget for the Verde Campus and Sedona Center.  These changes signal the willingness of the new Administration to move away from the total control that has been exercised by Prescott over the Verde Valley for the past several decades.

The list of duties and responsibilities for a dean candidate were listed in the announcement of the position by the College.  What follows below is a portion of that job opening announcement as found on the College’s job opening web site (emphasis has been added).

The following are examples of typical duties that may be assigned to positions in this job family. It does not imply that all positions within the job family perform all the duties listed, nor does it necessarily list all possible duties that may be assigned. Other duties may be assigned. Plans, directs, evaluates, and oversees administration of academic affairs for the Verde Valley campus and Sedona center by performing duties personally. Participates on district committees on various issues related to academics, instruction, curriculum, and faculty affairs.

 Directs the planning, implementation, and evaluation of instructional programs based on the Verde Valley campus and Sedona center. Directs and coordinates activities of instructional managers, including program directors/coordinators, and other Plans and implements professional development activities in conjunction with the other academic deans for full-time and adjunct faculty in the department/division.

Supervises the preparation of catalog material for programs on the Verde Valley campus and Sedona center. Works with the Director of Scheduling & Early College Partnerships to determine scheduling of courses and recommends implementation of additional courses for the Verde Valley campus and Sedona center. Communicates and collaborates on a regular basis with Director of Student Affairs & Campus Operations of the Verde Valley campus to ensure a campus atmosphere of consistency and collaboration.

Works to maintain a college wide consistency of student-facing processes and procedures for a seamless experience for students college wide, regardless of the location. Assists in the selection, improvement, and evaluation of instructional faculty; review of credentials, screening of applications, and formulation of recommendations for final interviews with the Vice President of Instruction.

Maintains current knowledge of, and interprets and applies Federal, State, and related legislation. Revises program administration to comply with regulations. Works with the Office of Community Relations to attend community events and meetings in the Verde Valley and Sedona on behalf of the college.

Responsible for budget preparation, monitoring, verification, and reconciliation of expenditure of funds for academic programs on the Verde Valley campus and Sedona center. Minimum Expectations & Requirements Master’s degree Supervisory experience Instructional leadership skills Ability to adhere to deadlines Demonstrated ability to work as a team member. Regular attendance is an essential job function as it demonstrates dependability towards the performance of job duties.

Must live in the Verde Valley.

 Knowledge of Open Educational Resources, Online Education and Instructional Design Preferred Skills & Abilities Academic Administrative experience in class schedule building, budget management and problem-solving and conflict resolution.

Professional experience in a community college/higher education work environment. Experience working with Open Educational Resources, Online Education and Instructional Design Essential Functions. To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily.

Provides details on what is happening throughout the District; making the College much more transparent to County taxpayers than ever before

Dr. Lisa Rhine has launched a new web site that provides information about Yavapai Community College, its budget, faculty, construction, events and much more.  The web site can be accessed by clicking here.  

The web site is obviously intended to provide Yavapai County residents with much more accurate information about the College that it has ever provided in the past.  Too often important information about the College may have been buried in an almost two hundred page Governing Board monthly meeting agenda or not provided at all.  The new web site will make the College much more transparent to the residents of Yavapai County.

Kudos to Dr. Rhine for showing concern for County residents who have been asking for Community College information on a regular basis for years but getting very little! 

Source:  Yavapai Community College web site:  https://www.yc.edu/v6/office-of-the-president/index.html (last visited October 2019).

Current Phoenix based law firm charges $485 per hour but gives College discount to $385 per hour; however it charges a flat fee to attend any Board meeting of $1,925 (will go to $2,100 flat fee if new contract approved); length of meeting irrelevant

The Contract with the Phoenix Law Firm of  Osborn Maledon is up for review at the Governing Board meeting on the Verde Campus this Tuesday, October 8.  Osborn Maledon is the law firm that represents only the Governing Board.

Other law firms are employed by the College to handle daily legal issues for it; they do not represent the  Board.  The College also employs special defense lawyers, such as those defending the College in the six-year old Hamilton v. Yavapai College lawsuit.

The bulk of the work provided by the firm representing the Board  involves attending Governing Board meetings on a regular basis mostly in Prescott (occasionally in Sedona, Verde Valley, Chino Valley, Prescott Valley). The remainder is office work done at the Phoenix location of the law firm.

It is not clear that the Governing Board has put out bids asking local Yavapai County based  law firms to bid on this contract. 

According to College documents, Osborn Maledon charges a regular hourly rate of $485.  However, the College documents indicate it charges a reduced rate of $385 an hour to the College for office work.   The firm currently charges the College a flat fee for attending a Board meeting of $1,925.  If the current contract is extended, it will increase that fee to $2,100 regardless of the length of the Board meeting.  

The Board lawyer has typically attended all Governing Board regular monthly meetings, retreats, and special meetings. Meetings vary in time from two to over four hours.

Goal is to achieve educational excellence

Yavapai Community College president Dr. Lisa Rhine has told her staff and faculty that there may be some organizational structure changes coming in the future.  She says that she believes that “reorganizing” will help “achieve service and learning excellence.”

No decisions have been made and there is a great deal of discussion expected before any formal re-organizational announcements are made.  Below is a note Dr. Rhine sent earlier this month to the faculty about the effort.  

Strong supporters and Founders of the Yavapai Community College Southwest Wine Center

In an email to students and faculty, Dr. Lisa Rhine lamented the deaths of Patricia Beitzinger and Neal Baltz, who died in a California boating accident September 2. They were on the boat “Conception,” which burned killing 34 people in California’s worst maritime fire in recent history.

Dr. Rhine wrote:

 “The Community College family and the Southwest Wine Center community lost two very important supporters, Patricia Beitzinger and Neal Baltz. Early Monday morning the couple was a part of a dive team on a boat that caught on fire killing at least 20 people. The U.S. Coast Guard has suspended the search for the remaining 14 passengers who have not been found.

“Patricia and Neal, were strong supporters and Founders of the Southwest Wine Center. Although they lived in the Valley, they were both frequent visitors to Yavapai College and the Southwest Wine Center. Neal was a 2017 YC Viticulture and Enology program Alumnus and also had endowed a Viticulture scholarship in his name

“Our thoughts and prayers are with both of their families during this tragic time. As soon as we learn of any funeral arraignments we will communicate that information to the college community.”

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Approximately 20,000 west side County residents will experience a variety of 37 cultural programs between August and December 31; approximately 500 east side County residents will experience seven cultural programs (six free) on that side of the County during same time period

If you want a real headache, consider the problem faced by the new Community College President, Lisa Rhine, to try and find ways to balance College cultural activities, programs and events between the west side of the County (Prescott/Prescott Valley and more) and the east side of the County (Clarkdale, Cottonwood, Camp Verde, Sedona and more). Historically, the imbalance has drawn only minimal concern from the College. Dr. Rhine is facing the issue head-on.

The current programing by the College from August thru December of 2019 lists 37 major culture driven programs the College will in some form be a participate.  (13 of these programs involve the College music and arts department.) On the east side of the County, it will sponsor seven programs, most of which are free.

With a Community College Performing Arts Center that seats around 1,100 persons, the west side of the County appears to have a huge advantage over the east side.  With more than 37 cultural programs scheduled in the next five months, many of which are sellouts, the Prescott Campus will be visited by at least 20,000 residents.  Meanwhile, about 500 persons will experience some cultural programming on the east side of the County.  (West side County population about 145,000; east side County population about 74,000.)

Cultural concert experiments on the east side of the County have failed to yield wide-spread audience appeal, with an exception here and there.

The new president is facing tough questions or assertions like the following:   (1) The Performing Arts Center should be sold and the College limit involvement and lease back time for its academic music and arts department programs only. (2) Any nonacademic program should pay for all of its costs including its portion of maintenance on building, equipment, and any use of faculty/staff time. It is currently believed that the costs of building and equipment maintenance and depreciation are not included in the costs associated with running non-academic programs (those such as Clint Black, Leann Rimes, Louie Anderson, Satellite series, and 20 more). (3) Taxpayers must not subsidize any portion of the non-academic programs, which some argue, has been the case since the Performing Arts Center was opened.

Solutions will not come easy.