The governing board is free from undue influence from political, religious, or other external bodies, and protects the institution from such influence.

   _X  Compliance                   ___Partial Compliance                       ___Non-Compliance

Narrative

St. Petersburg College is in compliance with this comprehensive standard because its Board of Trustees is free of undue influence and protects the College from such influence.

State of Florida policies addressing undue influence

Article II, Section 8(c) of the Constitution of the State of Florida, states that any public officer or employee who breaches the public trust, for private gain and any person or entity inducing such breach shall be liable to the state for all financial benefits obtained by such actions.  The Article further states that no statewide elected officer shall personally represent another person or entity for compensation before the governing body or agency of which the individual was an officer or member for a period of two years following vacation of office.  Members of the Board are held to the same standard of conduct.  A code of ethics is prescribed by law for all state employees and non-judicial officers prohibiting conflict between public duty and private.  As stated in Florida Statute 112.311:  “It is essential to the proper conduct and operation of government that public officials be independent and impartial.”  Florida’s statutory requirements for accountability of public officers limit the likelihood of undue influence.

Members of the Board of Trustees of St. Petersburg College serve a public role and thus have a clear obligation to conduct all affairs in a manner consistent with this concept.  All decisions of the Board of Trustees and St. Petersburg College administrators are to be based on promoting the best interests of the system and the public good.  There are four policies from the Florida State Legislature that add integrity to the process:

·         The Board is subject to the State’s Code of Ethics for public officers.

·         The Board is subject to Florida’s open meetings.

·         The College is subject to open records laws.

·         Board members are required to file financial disclosure statements that identify potential conflicts of interest or potential for undue influence (for more details, see 3.2.3).

St. Petersburg College Board of Trustees

The current board members are:

Current Chairman:  Evelyn Bilirakis was appointed to the St. Petersburg College Board of Trustees by Gov. Jeb Bush in May 1999. A Palm Harbor resident, she is a Realtor and a medical technologist.  She has raised funds for SPC’s Women-on-the-Way program and was instrumental in the community development and planning of the Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art on the project’s Capital Campaign Steering Committee.  Her Associate in Arts degree is from the University of Florida and her Medical Technology Certificate is from Atlanta's Grady Memorial Hospital.  Her many memberships include the Daughters of Penelope, and the Congressional Club.  Mrs. Bilirakis was elected Chairman of the current Board of Trustees on July 18, 2006.

Current Vice Chairman:  W. Richard Johnston was appointed to the St. Petersburg College Board of Trustees by Gov. Jeb Bush in February 1999.  He was reappointed by Governor Bush effective May 31, 2006 and further reappointed by Governor Crist in January 2007.  A CPA, he runs his own accounting firm in St. Petersburg. A graduate of the University of Akron, he served earlier on SPC's Board of Trustees (1969-80) and was its chairman 1975-79.  His community service includes being president of the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce, and holding memberships on the Florida Postsecondary Education Planning Commission, State Community College Coordinating Board, University of South Florida Campus Advisory Board, and the USF Presidential Selection Committee.

Kenneth P. Burke was appointed to the St. Petersburg College Board of Trustees by Gov. Jeb Bush in May 1999.  A Seminole resident, he is a Certified Public Accountant and in 2004 was elected Clerk of the Court for Pinellas County.  He is an SPJC graduate and served twice as president of the SPJC Alumni Association.  He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of South Florida.  His other public service includes the Seminole Economic Task Force (Chairman), the All Children's Hospital Development Council, Leadership St. Petersburg, the Suncoast Tiger Bay Club (Past President) and the Suncoast Legal Administrators Association.  In September 2005, he became Chair of the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) for a one-year term and he continues to serve on the Executive Committee.  

Cecil B. Keene was appointed to the St. Petersburg College Board of Trustees by Gov. Jeb Bush in April 2001.  A St. Petersburg resident, he is retired from SPC, where he was a Counselor and College Articulation Officer.  Before joining the College, he was Dean of Students and Admissions at Gibbs Junior College. Earlier, he was Principal of Gibbs High School and Clearwater’s former Pinellas High School.  He was a commissioned officer in the U.S. Army in Italy during World War II.  He holds a Bachelor’s degree from Tuskegee Institute (now University) and a Master of Arts from Atlanta University.

Deveron Gibbons was appointed to the St. Petersburg College Board of Trustees by Gov. Jeb Bush effective May 31, 2006.  He was reappointed by Governor Crist in January 2007.  Gibbons, 33, is vice president of Public Affairs with Amscot Financial Corp.  He was born in St. Petersburg and remains a resident.  He is a graduate of Northeast High School and the University of Florida. Gibbons is a 1995 graduate of UF with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science.  He is enrolled at the University of South Florida working toward a master’s degree in Public Administration.  He has extensive experience in public and governmental affairs as a consultant, political advisor and registered lobbyist for a wide spectrum of clients.

Documentation of Board Member selection

The State of Florida Governor’s office sends out a press release announcing the appointment of new Board members throughout the State system of higher education.  The following St. Petersburg College press release identified the new members for the SPC Board of Trustees:

Press release from Governor Bush’s office

Deveron Gibbons, the vice president of Public Affairs with Amscot Financial Corp., has been appointed to the St. Petersburg College 

Board of Trustees by Gov. Jeb Bush.  He replaces Susan Jones, a Bank of America senior vice president.

W. Richard Johnston has been reappointed to another four-year term.

Both appointments are effective May 31.

Safeguards in place to protect the institution

As provided under the code of ethics for public officers, the term “public officer” includes any person elected or appointed to hold office in any agency, including any person serving on an advisory body.  The code also prohibits members of the Board from employment or contractual relationship with any business entity that is subject to the regulation of doing business with the College.  Members of the Board also are prohibited from soliciting any gift or from knowingly accepting, directly or indirectly, a gift or honorarium from a political committee or lobbyist.

The State of Florida requires all its public officers to file a full and public disclosure of his or her financial interests. To ensure that Board members clearly identify potential conflicting contractual, employment, or personal or familial financial interests, each Board member files a “Statement of Financial Interest” form that discloses primary sources of income, business interests, and other asset holdings. 

As specified in Florida Statute 1006.53 and 1001.64, each institution must adopt a policy in accordance with rules of the State Board of Education which reasonably accommodates the religious observance, practice, and belief of individual students in regard to admissions, class attendance, and the scheduling of examinations and work assignments.  These policies are made available to Faculty and students in the College Catalog and on the College Web site.

The College’s affirmation of the principles of equal opportunity regardless of race, creed, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, and marital status is included in College policy and procedure.  The equal opportunity principle applies to otherwise qualified, disabled persons with regard to employment, the delivery of educational programs and services, and all other appropriate areas in which the College is involved.  Equal access and equal opportunity for all students and College employees is further supported by Florida Statutes and mission statement measured and monitored by officers, EA/EO Director, President’s Cabinet and President’s Board of Trustees.  The College also protects its employees from undue influence by having strict controls on access to personnel records, in accordance with Chapter 1012.81 of the Florida Statutes.

Board members’ education regarding the right to operate free of undue influence

New Board members receive an orientation from the President of the College regarding Board members duties and responsibilities, including policies regarding undue influence.  The most recent Board member received his orientation on June 14^th, 2006.

All Board members also receive a comprehensive manual from time to time covering their roles, responsibilities, and ethical obligations.  First on the 2006-2007 tables of contents are the ethical obligations imposed by the State, including Board member responsibilities regarding undue influence.  In addition, the College provides links to additional articles from the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) regarding ethics in higher education.

Excerpt from Board of Trustees Resource Manual table of contents

Finally, Board members also participate in trustee workshops and training provided by the Florida Association of Community Colleges (FACC) and use the extensive resources available for Trustees on the FACC Web site.

Excerpt from FACC Web site

Among these resources is a Code of Ethics recommended by the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT), of which one of SPC’s Board members is the immediate past Chair.

FACC Code of Ethics

Board actions

The St. Petersburg College Board of Trustees has been a leader in the field of Ethics, having established a General Education requirement in the 1980s for an Applied Ethics course for all students seeking an Associate of Arts or Associate of Science degree.  The College’s Applied Ethics Institute (AEI) was established by the Board in 1999.  The Institute’s mission is to provide Applied Ethics education and resources to SPC students, to local businesses and professional organizations, and to our community at large.

There have been no issues involving pressures from external agencies.

References