Finance and Facilities Committee Meeting September 24, 2021

The Finance and Facilities Committee met on Friday, September 24, 2021 at 8:30 a.m. in the Freeman Center, Room 101, with Acting Chair Lindsey Carney Smith presiding.

Present from the Committee

Mrs. Lindsey Carney Smith, Esq., Acting Chair
Mr. Robert R. Hatten, Esq.
Ms. Maria Herbert
Mr. C. Bradford Hunter
Mrs. Terri M. McKnight, CPA
Ms. Christy Morton

Present from the University

Mrs. Ashleigh Andrews, Assistant Vice President for Finance and Planning
Mr. Andrew Crawford, Chief Information Officer
Mrs. Sarah Herzog, Director of Planning and Budget
Mr. Tom Kramer, Executive Director of the Wason Center for Public Policy
Mrs. Jennifer Latour, Vice President for Finance and Planning/CFO
Ms. Christine Ledford, Vice President for Administration and Auxiliary Services
Mrs. Adelia Thompson, Chief of Staff
Ms. Tatiana Rizova, Associate Professor/Department Chair
Mrs. Rhonda Wissinger, Executive Assistant

Public in Attendance

None

Acting Chair Lindsey Carney Smith called the meeting to order and welcomed everyone in attendance.

Approval of Minutes from the June 11, 2021 Finance and Facilities meeting.

Acting Chair Lindsey Carney Smith asked if everyone had a chance to review the minutes from the June 11, 2021 Finance and Facilities meeting and asked if there were any edits to be made to the minutes. No edits were needed, minutes were approved as presented.

Review of 2021 Six Year Plan

Mrs. Latour reported that the submission of Six Year Plans occurs bi-annually and that we are reviewing the 2021 Six Year Plan for 2022-2028 as required by the 2011 Higher Education Opportunities Act. The preliminary plan was submitted on July 1 with the final plan to be submitted to the State on October 1 once it is adopted by the Board at the September meeting. Mrs. Latour explained the select components of the Plan to include strategies that support the Virginia Plan, possible tuition and fees, room and board rates, future general fund and capital outlay budget requests, and new academic programs and collaborative partnerships.

Resolution 1: 2021 Six Year Plan for 2022-2028

At the conclusion of the 2021 Six Year Plan for 2022-2028 presentation, Mrs. Latour presented Resolution 1: 2021 Six Year Plan for 2022-2028.

Mrs. Terri McKnight made the motion to adopt the resolution and Mr. C. Bradford Hunter seconded, with all in favor. This resolution moved to the full board for approval.

Annual Debt Service Report

Mrs. Latour presented the annual debt service report which includes the summary of all debt bond series. This is 100% of all debt including principal and interest. The total debt is $11.2 million dollars which is down from $18 million dollars last year, this is due to the debt restructuring we did with the State and also to debt retirement (York River residence hall and the Santoro residence hall) which resulted in a savings of $7 million. In upcoming years, we will have a parking debt series that will be retired, as well as Potomac River Hall and the Alumni house which will result in significant savings. Mrs. Latour continued to explain the debt series and the year the debts were incurred, as well as, the year the debts will be paid off.

Statement of Revenues and Expenditures for the Twelve Months Ending June 30, 2021

Mrs. Latour reported that the revenues from student tuition and fees dropped in FY 21 due to loss of enrollments. Auxiliary Enterprises incurred a $5.5 million dollar loss, primarily because students were given the option to live off campus in fall 2020 semester and they were not required to purchase a dining plan. The State also provided Christopher Newport with $2.3 million in one time funds that we were able to roll over into FY 22 due to hiring and non-essential spending freezes during the pandemic. Deposits into reserves were made also as a result of the spending freezes.

Resolution 2: Level II Authority in Procurement

Ms. Ledford reviewed the background information regarding the application process and State rules governing Level II Authority in Procurement, and a motion was made by Mr. C. Bradford Hunter to adopt the resolution. Mrs. Terri McKnight seconded, with all in favor. This resolution moved to the full board for approval.

Resolution 3: FY22 Annual SWAM Procurement Plan

Ms. Ledford reviewed the FY22 Annual Small, Women & Minority Owned (SWaM) Procurement plan with the committee and Ms. Maria Herbert made the motion to adopt the resolution and Mr. C. Bradford Hunter seconded, with all in favor. This resolution moved to the full board for approval.

SWaM Report for the Twelve Months Ending June 30, 2021

Ms. Ledford reported that the June 2021 SWaM report was just short of our 42% goal, coming in at 39.85% which is on level with the Secretary of Education. Moving to Level II procurement will provide more flexibility and will help us to meet our goal of 42%.

Capital Projects Update

Ms. Ledford reported on projects that had been completed which include the Mary M. Torggler Fine Arts Center, the Plaza Fountain and the Piers at the entrance to the visitor lot. Ms. Ledford reported that $11 million dollars was released from the state to help support infrastructure repairs and improvements. We are planning to do the following projects: install a new chiller in the central chiller plant, replace the plant operations roof and chiller, replace the Ferguson Center roof (reroofing of the old Ferguson High school sections of the building), replace Ratcliffe hall boilers (2) and water heaters (2), perform renovations to the Ratcliffe hall bathroom/locker room, install a TFAC Donor Wall in front of the Torggler Center, replace the DSU (David Student Union) roof, and the commons roof and air handler.

There is a $1 million recurring annual allotment of maintenance reserve funds that are provided by the State. Funds may only be used for academic and administrative buildings that support E&G functions.

Projects that are in planning are the Luter Hall Expansion (Tech Talent Program) and future projects include CNU North Replacement/Administrative Building ($30 million) and Plant Operations and Warehouse ($15 million).

There being no further discussion the meeting was adjourned at 9:34 a.m.