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The governing
board of the institution is responsible for the selection and the
evaluation of the chief executive officer.
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Compliance
___Partial Compliance ___Non-Compliance
Narrative
St. Petersburg
College is in compliance with this comprehensive standard because its
Board of Directors is responsible for the selection and evaluation of
the President of the College.
Authority
granted by Florida Statute
According to
Florida Statute 1001.64, each community college District Board of
Trustees is empowered to appoint, suspend, or remove the president of
the college. The Board may also appoint a presidential search
committee. The Board conducts annual evaluations of the president in
accordance with rules of the State Board of Education. The Board then
submits the evaluation to the State Board of Education for review. The
evaluation addresses the achievement of the performance goals
established by the Florida Statute accountability process and the
performance of the president’s achievement of the annual and long-term
goals and objectives established in the college’s employment
accountability plan in accordance with the Florida Educational Equity
Act.
Selection/appointment of College President
State policy.
In all matters of governance,
St. Petersburg College falls under the Florida Statutes for community
colleges, with a special provision in statute defining SPC’s role as a
four-year institution awarding selected baccalaureate degrees. Florida
statutes provide the following guidance on the appointment of Community
College Presidents:
Excerpt from 1001.64 Community
college boards of trustees; powers and duties
(19) Each board
of trustees shall appoint, suspend, or remove the president of the
community college. The board of trustees may appoint a search
committee.
Board of
Trustees policy. Board of
Trustees Rule 6Hx23-1.061, Appointment/Dismissal of President
provides general guidelines for selecting a new President:
Excerpt from Board of Trustees Rule
6Hx23-1.061, Appointment/Dismissal of President
In the event of a vacancy, or
anticipated vacancy, in the office of the president, the Board may
appoint a search committee to seek qualified candidates for the
office and to submit to the Board those deemed most qualified. The
qualifications for the president shall be determined by the Board in
compliance with State Board of Education Rules. Before making a
selection, the Board shall interview such candidates as it deems
appropriate.
If a vacancy occurs in the office
of president, an acting president may be appointed by the Board. An
acting president may be appointed for a term of no more than six (6)
months and may be reappointed for one (1) additional like term.
Previous selection process at St. Petersburg College.
When the former President of the College submitted his letter of
resignation, the Board of Trustees held a special session on November 1st,
1977, to discuss search procedures with the Director of the Division of
Community Colleges from the State Department of Education. A search and
screening committee was created with two trustees (including the
Chairman), three Faculty members (selected by the Board from a list of
six names submitted from the Faculty Forum), one administrator (selected
by the Board from two names submitted by the Administrative Council),
one career service person (selected by the Board from five nominees
offered by the President), one student (named by the Board from three
nominees provided by Student Councils), and three alumni (selected by
the Board from a list of six submitted by the Alumni Association).
Using the advice from the Department of Education representative,
extensive research from members of the Management Development Seminar in
session at the time, and a full set of documentation from a recent
search done by Palm Beach Community College, the screening committee
developed a set of general criteria for screening, independently-scored
candidate evaluation forms, and common interview questions to ask the
candidates. All meetings of the screening committee were held “in the
sunshine” and were recorded. The position was advertised in the St.
Petersburg Times, New York Times, Equal Opportunity Forum, and the
Chronicle of Higher Education; 110 applications were received and
screened, 18 candidates voted on using the Rhodes Scholarship method (a
candidate is required to receive a certain number of votes from the
committee in order to remain in the pool), and four finalists were
submitted for interviews with the Board and other groups of the St.
Petersburg Junior College community. The finalists were invited to meet
with representative segments of the college community at all college
sites. These constituent groups had the opportunity to hear each
candidate, ask questions, and later submit comments and concerns to the
Board. After interviews with the finalists the Board made its selection
for College President on April 24th, 1978, the former Dean of
Administrative Affairs, Dr. Carl M. Kuttler, Jr.
Future selection
process. Our current
President’s contract was extended recently; however, the College expects
the process for selecting the next President will be similar to models
used by peer institutions. As several Florida colleges have selected
new presidents in the last few years, SPC has contacted them and
requested a copy of the model they used in selecting a president, which
is maintained in the President’s Office. St. Petersburg College will
start by reviewing the previous process and the processes used by peers.
SPC anticipates using the information gained from its research to modify
the process used before by the College.
- Appoint a
Search and Steering Committee comprised of all constituents
- Conduct
research: Seek advice from the Department of Education, similar
institutions, and organizations such as the J. L. Zwingle Resource
Center for Academic Trusteeship and Governance, a resource for
research on trusteeship, governance, and academic presidencies.
- Option 1.
Develop criteria for screening applicants and conduct a national
search: Advertise the position in local and national publications,
including those related to higher education and equity. Screen
applicants using the criteria and select finalists using a
widely-accepted approach (e.g., Rhodes, Delphi, …)
- Option 2.
As an alternative, the Board could use an outside consultant to
advise the Board on selection criteria, screen applicants, and
recommend finalists, a process that has been used at several Florida
colleges.
- Invite
finalists for an interview with the Board and meetings with
constituent groups
- Consider
comments and concerns from constituent groups
- Select the new
President
The process will be
deliberate and collaborative. After considering the feedback from the
constituent groups, the Board of Trustees makes the final decision on
the selection of the President.
President’s
Evaluation.
Florida Statute
1001.64 establishes the state requirement for the Board of Trustees to
conduct an annual evaluation of the president:
Excerpt from Florida Statute 1001.64
Community college boards of trustees; powers and duties
The board of trustees shall
conduct annual evaluations of the president in accordance with rules
of the State Board of Education and submit such evaluations to the
State Board of Education for review. The evaluation must address the
achievement of the performance goals established by the
accountability process implemented [that provides for the
systematic, ongoing improvement and assessment of the improvement of
the quality and efficiency of the Florida community colleges] and
the performance of the president in achieving the annual and
long-term goals and objectives established in the community
college's employment accountability program [a
plan for increasing the representation of women and minorities in
senior-level administrative positions and in full-time Faculty
positions, and for increasing the representation of women and
minorities who have attained continuing-contract status].
Board criteria
for evaluating the president.
The Board of Trustees has established its policy on evaluating the
President in the Board of Trustees Rule 6Hx23-1.061,
Appointment/Dismissal of President:
Excerpt from
Board of Trustees Rule 6Hx23-1.061, Appointment/Dismissal of
President
The Board shall evaluate the
president annually in a form approved by the Board. Such evaluation
shall be forwarded to the State Board of Community Colleges.
Over the last
several years, the process of preparing the President’s Evaluation has
been formalized to incorporate the objectives set in the College’s
strategic planning process. The President’s Evaluation is based, in
part, on a Year-End Report that identifies the specific actions taken by
the President and his staff on each of the Strategic Directions and
Institutional Objectives. For example, in the Strategic Direction to
“Deliver excellent educational programs & improve learning outcomes
using a variety of learner-centered approaches,” one of the
objectives was to:
Excerpt from Strategic Directions and Institutional Objectives
1.
Develop and implement two (2) new A.S. Certificate programs
and noncredit programs in high-tech areas and in response to
workplace and student demands.
The President’s
answer to the Board in the Year-End Report was:
Excerpt from 2006 Year-End Report
Implemented Lean Six Sigma in
both credit and no credit versions. Both are currently being
offered to students and also on a contractual basis to businesses.
Also began implementing the Game Development curriculum and the
Parks and Leisure Services curriculum. The Parks and Leisure
Services program has been approved and the first course will be
offered in the fall of 2006. It is the College’s first true
multimodal program, being offered simultaneously via interactive
technology, a live stream, and archived video for online students.
The first in the series of game development courses were offered in
2005-06, and development of all courses in the sequence will be
completed by the fall of 2006.
Another
Institutional Objective under that same Strategic Objective supported
the distance learning mission:
Excerpt from Strategic Directions and Institutional Objectives
6. Extend student access and
success through continued growth of the Electronic Campus and
related e-learning initiatives, including the addition of at least
three (3) new A.S. and certificate programs, which will be marketed
nationally.
The President’s
Year-End Report gave the following status:
Excerpt from 2006 Year-End Report
The Electronic Campus continues
to grow significantly each semester. According to the most recent
numbers released by the State of Florida, SPC’s eCampus is the
largest among community colleges in the state (for 2004-05) in
unduplicated annual headcount (16,656), number of courses
(duplicated annual – 2309) and total number enrolled (duplicated
annual – 45,041). For the spring of 2006, SPC’s eCampus grew by 10%
over a year ago (17,662 vs. 16,022), and the numbers for this summer
are equally impressive – another double digit percentage increase
over last summer, and nearly as many student semester hours
generated as the SP/G and CL Campuses combined! Cybersecurity is a
new fully-online degree. In addition, Technology Management is fully
online and the new International Business and Banking programs will
be online. The new Parks and Leisure Services will stretch the model
further by having full streaming video of all classes, therefore
creating a national market.
Another strategic
direction, “Provide excellent service to students to enhance their
learning experiences and help them achieve,” had an objective to:
Excerpt from Strategic Directions and Institutional Objectives
7. Continue the development of
an Honors College, and articulation agreements with selective
nationally renowned institutions including historical Black colleges
and universities resulting in approximately double the number of
students enrolled in the Honors College.
The President’s
action described in the Year-End Report was:
Excerpt from 2006 Year-End Report
The Seminole Campus set aside
space inside its Collaborative Commons for an “Honors Corner” – a
place honors students can meet and work together on assignments. The
number of Honors College students has almost doubled this year.
Articulation agreements are on track for signing with our partners.
One final example,
taken from the strategic direction, “Strengthen the College’s
identity as a vital community resource, including an emphasis on
economic development,” had an objective to:
Excerpt from Strategic Directions and Institutional Objectives
4. Develop strategic public
and private partnerships in economic development through full
implementation of the EpiCenter and participation with Pinellas
County Economic Development and business recruitment teams.
The Year-End Report
described the highly successful partnership with Pinellas County at the
new EpiCenter:
Excerpt from 2006 Year-End Report
The EpiCenter, (a joint partnership
between St. Petersburg College and Pinellas County government) is a
full-service, comprehensive economic, workforce, and community
development resource facility for Pinellas County, the region and
the state. The EpiCenter offers leadership in program development;
access to state-of-the-art educational facilities, programs, and
laboratories; and the delivery of advanced technology and economic
development programs and services. The EpiCenter offers a
comprehensive array of programs and services including:
St. Petersburg College
·
Administrative
offices of St. Petersburg College.
·
High technology
certificates such as Cisco Certified Network Associate, Microsoft
Certified Systems Engineer, Oracle Certified Database Administrator,
etc.
·
Bachelor’s in
Technology Management and related degrees.
·
High demand
bachelor’s and master’s degrees offered through the University
Partnership Center, including a Master’s in Business Administration
and a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering from the University of
South Florida.
·
Customized
corporate and public courses in computer technology and management.
·
Collaborative
planning and decision-making facilitation services.
·
Business retention
and support services.
·
Counseling and
technical support for new and expanding businesses.
·
Limited rental of
classroom, laboratory, meeting, and conference space on a
space-available basis.
·
Facilities for
conferences, meetings, and receptions sponsored by the College or
Pinellas County Economic Development.
Pinellas County
§
Pinellas County
Economic Development – enterprise development, feasibility studies,
business planning, business retention and expansion, import/export
development.
§
Pinellas Workforce
Development Board – workforce administration.
§
St.
Petersburg/Clearwater Convention and Visitors Bureau – recreation
and tourism planning, convention planning.
§
Pinellas Arts
Council – displays of art by Pinellas County artists.
In an effort to build awareness
regarding the programs and services available at the EpiCenter, 25
Grand Opening events were conducted with over 2,000 business,
community, and civic leaders attending.
Board minutes
addressing President’s Evaluation.
The President’s evaluation is recorded
in minutes of the Board’s meeting:
Excerpt from Board of Trustees
minutes, 06-06
06-167.
The chairman opened the meeting for other business, including items
of interest from the Board members.
Chairman Keene
addressed the results of the President’s 2005-2006 Evaluation,
commenting on the outstanding ratings. Mr. Johnston moved approval
of the President’s Evaluation. Mr. Burke seconded the motion.
President’s
evaluation form. The annual
President’s Evaluation is a composite report including ratings in the
areas of Leadership, Personnel, Fiscal Management, Resource Management,
Academic/Student Issues, Board Relationship, External Relationships,
Statutory Factors, and comments from each Board member. A
representative excerpt from the most recent evaluation of the President
is exhibited below:
Excerpt from President’s Evaluation
In addition to the
numeric evaluation section of the form, Board members are invited to add
written comments to the President’s Evaluation. Comments from Board
members have been highly complimentary over the years.
Sample comments
from Board members from the 2005-2006 evaluation
Bilirakis:
Dr. Kuttler continues to be an
outstanding leader. He, in my mind, is the best president that a
college is fortunate to have. He is surrounded by good staff and is
able to delegate to them. He also works well with the Board of
Trustees. He is highly respected in the community and by the
Governor and state legislators. The college is highly respected
throughout the County because of his leadership.
Johnston:
Dr. Kuttler is constantly planning and taking the College into new
and higher endeavors to better serve the citizens of our area. Dr.
Kuttler has positioned the College in a leadership role among other
educational institutions, not only in our area, but throughout this
Country and internationally. His leadership has accelerated the
four-year program. He is continually introducing new ideas that
keep the College on the cutting edge of delivering education. …
Dr. Kuttler’s performance has been exceptional. Under his
leadership, St. Petersburg College is meeting its goal of providing
quality educational opportunities to a diverse student body. The
implementation of technology, commitment to equal educational
opportunity, and the responsiveness to community needs (i.e., the
need for four-year degree opportunities in Pinellas) are shining
examples of his skilled implementation of the Board of Trustees’
vision.
In my opinion, Dr. Kuttler has made SPC one of the best community
colleges in the country.
References
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