December 5, 2024

Bakersfield College Foundation
Board of Directors Meeting

Thursday, December 5, 2024 @ 3:00 PM
Bakersfield College Campus Center, West Wing, 2nd Floor, Rm. 218
1801 Panorama Drive Bakersfield, CA 93305

Present: Ariana Joven, Chris Hamilton, Deanna Blaise, Derek Yurosek, Dolores Salgado, Erica Giblin, Frank Wooldridge, Jeff Bell, Jerry Fliger, John Pitre, Ken Byrum, Marko Zaninovich, Patrick Wade, Romeo Agbalog, Vinny Oddo, Queen King, LaNina Andrews, Jessica Wojtysiak, Sarabjeet Singh

Absent: Billie Jo Rice, Connie Perez-Andreesen, Derek Jeffery, Karen Zuber, Lauren Skidmore, Octavio Escobedo, Paul Pavletich, Robin McNabb, Ryan Hansen, Tom Ming

Staff: Kylee Gregory-Gutierrez, Susan Hubbell, Alyssa Cross, Courtney Carter, Tye McCovery

Guests: Abel Moreno, Breanna Hernandez, Ira Cohen, Harlan Spinner

Meeting Minutes

*Board members opted to tour the current Allied Health Building before meeting was called to order. *

  1. Call to Order – Derek Yurosek called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m.

  2. Roll Call – Kylee Gregory-Gutierrez took roll call and confirmed a quorum.

  3. Public Comments Statement – Derek Yurosek read the public comments statement. No public comments were received.

  4. Approval of Agenda – Motion – No changes were made to the agenda. Jeff Bell motioned to approve the agenda as is. Chris Hamilton seconded. All were in favor, none opposed. The agenda for December 5, 2024, is APPROVED.

  5. Approval of Meeting Minutes from August 22, 2024 – Motion – There were no amendments to the meeting minutes. Marko Zaninovich motioned to approve the minutes. Sarabjeet Singh seconded. All were in favor, none opposed. The meeting minutes for August 22, 2024, are APPROVED.

  6. Investment Report – Ira Cohen gave a market report, addressing the election, inflation, and Federal Reserve decisions. Harlan Spinner presented the investment report, focusing on asset allocation, returns, and asset class performance. As of July 31, 2024, the total portfolio is $62,619,333.79. The breakdown is: 3.94% in cash, 25.43% in fixed income, 59.67% in equities, and 10.96% in non-traditional investments.

  7. Accept Final Audit for Fiscal Year 2024 – Auditor Abel Moreno delivered the final audit for the fiscal year 2024-2025, stating that no issues or discrepancies were found.

  8. Quarterly Financial Review – Dr. Queen King presented the quarterly financial review, going over the balance sheet and the statement of revenue and expenses. As of September 30, 2024, total revenue was $4,684,364, total expenses were $1,564,085, and net income stood at $3,120,279. As of November 18, 2024, the UBS portfolio amounted to $66,137,746.

  9. Update on Renegade Innovation Fund Applications – Alyssa updated the board on the Renegade Innovation Fund Applications submitted to the finance committee. The following applications were reviewed and approved:
    • BC Delano Agriculture – The grant aims to introduce Bakersfield College Delano Campus students to the agriculture industry by purchasing a hoop house kit. The objective is to provide students with hands-on learning experiences in a controlled agricultural environment. The requested amount was $3,200.
    • Industrial Technology Makerspace – The Industrial Technology program requested $9,612 to fund equipment for the BC Makerspace, including a plotter printer, 3D printer, and laser cutter supplies.

  10. Scholarship Update – Alyssa Cross and Tye McCovery provided a scholarship update, covering the total number of internal scholarships offered and the overall scholarship commitments for the academic year. They outlined the award disbursement timeline and gave an overview of the cost of attendance, including typical student expenses. They also highlighted promotional efforts to encourage scholarship applications through campus engagement and community outreach and presented an overview of external scholarship funding.

  11. President’s Update – Dr. Fliger provided an update, beginning by thanking Romeo Agbalog for his service to the KCCD trustee board as he prepares for retirement from the board.

    Dr. Fliger then outlined his priorities with the board, which include expanding the associate degree in Nursing program, achieving ACEN accreditation for the nursing program, establishing a public-private partnership to fund a new allied health building, and funding a new culinary teaching kitchen and facility for the BC Rodeo team.

    Dr. Fliger also highlighted several upcoming developments, including the opening of the new athletic complex and the new Arvin campus in January. Additionally, he mentioned that the soccer fields will be converted to astroturf with funding from Measure J. The passage of Proposition 2 will provide funding for a new CSS building, with half of the funding coming from Measure J funds.

    Dr. Fliger noted that athletics is exploring NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) agreements for student-athletes and that BC is in discussions about contracting with the track confederations for pre-Olympic training leading up to the 2028 Olympics.

    Finally, Dr. Fliger touched on legislative priorities, including the goal of increasing the maximum Pell Grant and creating a Center of Excellence for Artificial Intelligence (AI).

  12. Other Business / Adjournment of Meeting – With no other business brought forward, the meeting was adjourned at 4:45 p.m.