Your account does not include highlighter on images.
Searches Highlighted on Image
National Sponsors
| November 23, 2011 Indian Valley Record |  |
|
©
Indian Valley Record. All rights reserved. Upgrade to access Premium Tools
PAGE 5 (5 of 26 available) PREVIOUS NEXT Jumbo Image Save To Scrapbook Set Notifiers PDF JPG
November 23, 2011 |
|
|
Website © 2025. All content copyrighted. Copyright Information Terms Of Use | Privacy Policy | Request Content Removal | About / FAQ | Get Acrobat Reader 
|
Indian Vailey Record
Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2011 5A
FRC trustees brace: state budget cuts likely
Mona Hill
Staff Writer
mhill@plumasnews.com
As the state of California
decides whether to "trigger"
Tier I and II cuts, Feather
River College trustees and
administration prepare to
tighten their collective finan-
cial belt.•
Chief Financial Officer Jim
Scoubes gave his analysis of
the current situation. He told
the board that while the
state's personal income tax
revenue increased, decreased
corporate and sales tax
revenues resulted in a total
decrease of $1.8 million for
the current fiscal year.
The budget deficit now
stands at $20.3 billion• State
controller John Chiang
• announced Nov. 10 that cash
receipts are $810 million
below projections.
Most educational observers
believe cuts are inevitable.
The only question yet to
answer is: How much?
Tier II cuts mean an addi-
tional $102 million reduction
statewide, on top of earlier
cuts, making Tier I's $30
million reduction seem com-
paratively insignificant•
In response to trustees'
questions, Scoubes said he
couldn't tell how that would
affect individual community
colleges.
FRC, as a small Community
college, received a deferral of
some cuts this summer, with
a proviso to "repay" them
when finances improve•
Like a good neighbor
To add insult to injury,
California and Nevada have
terminated their good neigh-
bor agreement• The agree-
ment allowed some out-of-
state students, typically from
state border areas, to enroll
at the lower state resident fee
in either state.
The state of Nevada gave
notice of the termination, set
to take effect Nov. 30.
Nevada students already
enrolled in California com-
munity colleges will continue
to pay $42 per unit. In
addition., Nevada students
who enroll before the Nov. 30
deadline will grandfather
into the lower rate.
Nonresident students con-
tinuously enrolled in Cali-
fornia are eligible for the
discounted rate.
Nonresident students
registering on or after Dec. 1
will pay $199 per unit and a
$36 per unit enrollment fee.
California residents pay $36
per unit.
In comparison, Nevada
residents pay $69.25 per unit
and eligible nonresidents pay
$103,88 per unit to attend
Truckee MeadowsCommunity
College.
After Dec. 1, nonresidents
attending TMCC will pay
$3,247•50 per semester and
$69.25 per unit in tuition fees.
FRC President and Super-
intendent Ron Taylor was
certain California's enroll-
ment fees would increase, but
did not know how much.
Taylor and Scoubes couldn't
predict the full effect of the
change but did say it wouldn't
be immediate•
Taylor told trustees he
expects to present plans to
address the situation at their
January 2012 meeting.
When it rains, it pours
Scoubes also asked trustees
to approve a resolution to de-
clare an emergency following
storm drain failure and
water damage to the student
center, gym and several
offices.
Facilities Director Nick
Boyd told trustees he'd never
seen it rain as long and as
hard as it did during the 30-
minute rainstorm in Septem-
ber. He said the sheer volume
of water from rainfall and
runoff simply overwhelmed
the drain systems•
The gym sustained approx-
imately $375,000 in water
damage, requiring replace-
ment. The lower level in the
student center was flooded as
well.
Boyd also told trustees the
storm never threatened to
overwhelm the new Learning
Resources Center•
While FRC has insurance
coverage, the resolution to
declare an emergency allows
FRC to hire direct and not
put thework out for bid,
speeding repairs•
On another note
Interim Chief Instructional
Officer Derek Lerch briefed
the board on changes to cur-
rent courses• The curriculum
committee has broadened
the scope of kinesiology to
provide a model for transfer
credit and major • in kine-
siology at four-year colleges.
Lerch also said that at the
request of the Department of
Fish and Game, FRC would
begin work to expand the
fisheries program to provide
certification: DFG has an
aging employee population
in fisheries management
and there is a limited pool
of certified employees for
replacement.
A hatchery certificate
program will give student the
knowledge and skills re-
quired for an entry-level
hatchery position.
The certification move has
added two classes, ENV266/
AGAS266 Advanced Aquacul-
ture and ENV264 Introduc:
tion to Fish, to the program.
Lerch said the course cor-
relates closely to the fisheries
program at Humboldt State
to help ensure credit t'ans-
fers to Humboldt for students
pursuing a four-year degree.
At the board's regular
'October meeting, Dr. Karen
Pierson, chief student ser-
vices officer, presented the
college's 2011-12 transfer
plan. Plan documentation
showed FRC continues to
exceed statewide rates for
students transferring to a
four-year institution•
Self-study for credit
Lerch distributed draft
copies of FRC's 2012 self-
study report and gave a
status report on document
development•
The final draft is due to
the accrediting commission
by mid-December. Trustees
must review and respond to
the draft by Dec. 1, to allow
time for final revisions and
printing•
A requirement for the March
5 site visit, the document asks
FRC administrators, faculty
and staff to evaluate four areas:
institutional mission and effec-
tiveness, student learning
programs and services, re-
sources and leadership and
governance.
Each of those areas has
multiple substandards total-
ing 128 separate sections. All
require evidence to support
report findings.
In his remarks, Lerch said
.the college had taken "big
steps over the past four years
to establish a proactive plan-
ning process:"
He acknowledged t, he
effects of budgeting shortfalls
on plannin and implementa-
tion efforts, but said those
effects also aided develop-
ment of an effective process.
Other news
Jamie Cannon, director of
Human Resources, announced
that contract negotiations
with the associate faculty
union have begun. Cannon
presented trustees with a
list of contract articles for"
negotiation.
Mick Presnell, president of
the union chapter, also had a
similar list for trugtees.
The contract, online at
frc.edu/humanresources/
contracts.cfm, expires June'
30, 20]2.
EPHC in holding pattern, awaiting lawsuit outcome
Delaine Fragnoli
Managing Editor
dfragnoli@plumasnews.com
Dii-ectors of Eastern
Plumas Health Care had little
new information to report on
their response to MediCal
cuts when they met Wednes-
day, Nov. 16, in Greenville.
Chief Executive Officer
Tom Hayes said employees
were getting no overtime
and that the skilled nursing
facilities (SNF), the object
of the most recent cuts,
had stopped admitting new
patients. Despite having filed
a closure plan with the state,
EPHC currently has no plans
to transfer SNF patients.
Chief Financial Office Jeri
Nelson continued to figure
and refigure how a reduction
in patients might allow
each skilled nursing facility,
one in Portola and one in
Loyalton, to break even.
Hayes said he wanted to
see how a pending lawsuit
by the California Hospital As-
sociation (CHA) progressed
before downsizing. "I don't
want to overact, • but to be
able to react quickly," he
said.
If CHA is successful with
its request for an injunction
to temporarily halt the
cuts, Hayes said he would re-
visit recently implemented
austerity measures. A hear-
ing on the injunction is set
for Dec. 19. He acknowledged
that the 5 percent across-the-
board pay cut for all EPHC
employees', which will go into
effect Nov. 27, was "a real hit
for some."
The state has indicated it
will take at least a month for
it to implement the cuts,
which amount to 23 percent
or $1.1 million annually at
EPHC. Of particular concern
to EPHC are the retroactive
cuts, about $500,000, because
the district has no cash on
hand.
Nelson said the state
"hasn't let us know how
they'll do it, but I don't think
they'll give us a payment
plan."
Board chairwoman Gail
McGrath said the state was
"playing hardball• There will
be no coddling•"
Meanwhile, MediCal owes
EPHC $850,000 in eimburse-
merits for its electronic
medical records system,
funds that would help the
cash-strapped district.
Nelson said MediCal
usually pays within two days
of approval, but the EMR
money had been approved
at the end of August and
the district still hadn't seen
the payment• "Where's the
money?" she asked. "I'm not
talking t6 a real person•"
MediCal/Medicare "changes
the rules, we adapt; they
change the rules again, usually
for the worse. We can't ride out
the changes because we have
no cash," said Hayes•
Nelson said the district was
trying to be more proactive
this yea r . Last year, it saw
patient volume in its clinics
drop off, but responded
after the fact. This year,
EPHC is anticipating a drop
in use over the winter
months, and is going to three
days a week at its Graeagle
clinic•
Community member Guy
McNett asked the board
how the residents of the
skilled nursing facilities
were faring, given all o'f the
uncertainty.
"Some are doing OK," said
Hayes• "Others are scared•"
"We've been through it,"
noted a woman in the
audience, referring to the
closure of Indian Valley's
hospital. "It was horrible.
Three patients died within
months."
"There's clinical data on
that," said Hayes. "Three
months."
He noted that responses to
EPHC's plight from legisla-
tors, other than Assembly-
man Dan Logue, had been
"very disappointing."
"These cuts have nothing
to do with Obamacare," he
said. "It's about cutting the
state budget and the feds
letting them do it --'- on the
backs of senior citizens."
On
STATE OF CALIFORNIA CIVIL CODE SZCTZON846
846. An owner of any etate Qr any other interest in real property, whether possessory or non-
possessory, owes no duty of care to keep the premises safe for entry or use by others for any
recreational purpose or to give any warning of hazardous conditions, uses of. Structures, or ac-
tivities on such premises to persons entering for such purpose, except as provided inthis sec-
tion.
A "recreational purpose," as used in this section, includes such activities as fishing, hunting,
camping, water sports, hiking, spelunking, sport parachuting, riding, including animal riding,
snowmobiling, and all other types of vehicular riding, reck collecting, sightseeing, picnicking,
nature study, nature contacting, recreational gardening, gleaning, h&mg glldlmg, winter sports,
and viewing or enjoying historical, archaeological, scenic, natural, or scientific sites.
• J
Complete Civil Code lmm: hRpflww.egi.ca.gvgibispaycd?sc=civ&grup=l&e=84848
GOOD THROUGH flOVEMOER 30, 2'1)12
I 2385 Main St. 116 East Main St.
257-8883 28-3-1450