Board Minutes - October 13, 2025 - Western Iowa Tech Community College

Date: October 13, 2025
Time: 4:00 pm
Location: WITCC Sioux City Campus, Board Room A507
Agenda

WITCC Mission

We elevate our diverse learners and strengthen our communities through inclusive and innovative education.

Board Members

Brenda Wright, Board Secretary

Absent: Brad Griffin

Administration

Terry Murrell, College President | Troy Jasman, VP of Finance and Administrative Services | Erin Volk, Vice President of Learning | Frank Arpan, Vice President of Student Success | Darin Moeller, Executive Dean of Instruction | Jackie Plendl, Dean of Human Resources | Tawnya Beermann, Dean of Students | Christina Brandon, Dean of Outreach and Information Technology | Revathi Vongsiprasom, Dean of Opportunity and Engagement

Presenters

Carmen Wilson, Associate Dean - Corporate College

Items

Meeting was called to order at 4:00 pm by Linnea Fletcher.

Brenda Wright took a Roll Call of Directors.

Linnea Fletcher asked for any Oral Communications to be brought to the board. Dave Bernstein stepped forward and asked questions regarding an update on a decision from our insurance company for a settlement.

Linnea made mention of the Written Communication from the South Sioux City Chamber.

Linnea asked the board to review the Consent items. Jeremy Ogle made a motion to approve and it was seconded by Tricia Sutherland. All were in favor and the motion carried.

Tawnya Beermann and Christina presented the Fall Semester Enrollment Report. Tawnya shared the good news that we were only down 2.8% compared to last year. She also shared that our returning student numbers were up. CTE represents 66% of our students. Tawnya also explained how a new tool we recently implemented is helping to find fraudulent students before getting into our system.

Christina Brandon shared that the College Now numbers were down compared to last year. She also said that there seems to be a higher demand for students taking classes on campus. The College Now team implemented a new automated enrollment tool. Campus Visit Days are filling up fast for this this fall.

Tawnya and Frank Arpan presented the Student Support Report. Tawnya talked about some of the support options that we offer our students. Nearly 20,000 appointments were made to provide services to students. Food Pantry had nearly 3000 visits in the year. Health services also helped students save money by getting their physicals through the health clinic.

Frank Arpan also presented the Graduation Compilation Report. Frank talked about the focus on our credentials. We had an increase in our awards received over the previous year.

Darin Moeller presented the Future Ready Iowa Programs for the next academic year. We need approval for the regional programs that we selected. Jeremy Ogle made a motion to approve and it was seconded by Russ Wray. All were in favor and the motion carried.

Darin also presented the Quality Faculty Plan for approval. W e are required to review this every few years. There are no changes in this plan. Tricia Sutherland made a motion to approve and it was seconded by Erin Muck. All were in favor and the motion carried.

Darin Moeller introduced Carmen Wilson to present the 260G ACE Nursing Program. Erin Muck made a motion to approve this ACE program and Jeremy Ogle seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion carried.

Darin and Carmen also presented an amendment to the 260E Seaboard Triumph Foods agreement signed in April 2024. At the time, they were anticipating going to bond in 2025. They decided not to. We plan to go in 2026. We need to amend the agreement to extend the dates. Jeremy Ogle made a motion to approve and it was seconded by Hanna Reinders. All were in favor and the motion carried.

Jackie Plendl and Erin Volk presented four board policy updates for a second reading. One change was due to Federal requirements. Two other changes were due to wording/language updates. The last was a board policy that was no longer required by Iowa Code and were advised to delete the policy. Tricia Sutherland made a motion to approve and it was seconded by Hanna Reinders. All were in favor and the motion carried.

Troy Jasman presented the Foundation Compilation Report. This report is for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025. The foundation gave over $1 million in scholarships. Erin Muck made a motion to approve and it was seconded by Jeremy Ogle. All were in favor and the motion carried.

Troy Jasman also proposed a new project for a Bldg. A Generator. The current generator is over 25 years old. A new one would give us more abilities and also would give us the ability to participate in a Curtailment program with Mid American Energy. This would give us a $30,000 in roll back savings. Russ Wray made a motion to approve and it was seconded by Erin Muck. All were in favor and the motion carried.

Troy presented two change orders for the Denison Regional Academy. Both change orders (#8 and #9) resulted in a negative change. The contractor also did not use the contingency funds so this will reduce the contract by $100,000. Erin Muck made a motion to approve Change Order #8 and it was seconded by Russ Wray. All were in favor and the motion carried. Jeremy Ogle made a motion to approve Change Order #9 and it was seconded by Erin Muck. All were in favor and the motion carried.

Terry Murrell asked for a nomination to be the ACCT Voting Delegate at the upcoming ACCT Conference. Jeremy Ogle nominated Tricia Sutherland. Russ Wray seconded the nomination. All were in favor.

Terry Murrell talked about the upcoming IPIB training that will be required for all board members. More information to follow.

Tricia Sutherland gave an update from the last Community Colleges for Iowa meeting. There are three areas they are focusing on this year with legislators.

1. Asking for $12 million in funding.
2. Advocating for last Dollar Scholar criteria to be expanded.
3. Trying to find innovative ways for trustees to establish working relationships with legislatures.

Jeremy Ogle made a motion to adjourn and it was seconded by Hanna Reinders. All were in favor and the motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 4:48pm.

The next regular scheduled board meeting will be Monday, November 10, 2025, at 4:00 pm on the Sioux City campus in the Boardroom.