Finance and Facilities Committee Meeting February 4, 2022

The Finance and Facilities Committee met on Friday, February 4, 2022 at 8:30 a.m. in the Jefferson Room of the David Student Union, with Chair William Ermatinger presiding.

Present from the Committee

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

Present from the University

President Paul Trible
Mrs. Ashleigh Andrews, Assistant Vice President for Finance and Planning
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
Mr. Leon Cole, Faculty Senate Representative
Mrs. Rhonda Wissinger, Executive Assistant

Public in Attendance

None

Chair William Ermatinger called the meeting to order and welcomed everyone in attendance.

Approval of Minutes from the September 24, 2021 Finance and Facilities meeting.

Chair William Ermatinger asked if everyone had a chance to review the minutes from the September 24, 2021 Finance and Facilities meeting and asked if there were any edits to be made to the minutes. No edits were needed, and a motion to approve the minutes was put forth by Mrs. Terri McKnight, seconded by Mr. C. Bradford Hunter with all in favor.

2022 General Assembly Update

President Trible reported on the General Assembly and the meetings he had with Senate and House Members. He reported that our capital outlay program did very well and that Governor Northam placed the Luter II/Integrated Science Center III in the budget. This is a $60 million project that will expand and build a new Science Center to support STEM initiatives such as electrical engineering, computer engineering as outlined in the Tech Talent program. We are also working on securing funding for a new Administration Building in the amount of $25 million.

Statement of Revenues and Expenditures for the Six Months Ending December 31, 2021

Mrs. Latour reported total revenues are $2 million ahead of last fiscal year. Last year, due to the pandemic, students were allowed to opt out of meal plans so this accounts for the increase in auxiliary revenues in this year over last. Expenses are up; but again because of the pandemic we were only operating at a 70-80% level last year and we were not procuring as many items and were not travelling as much. Tuition and fees revenues are on target for where we expect to be for this time of year. The Ferguson Center is doing well, shows have begun again and they have a positive cash balance of $300,000. Athletics and Dining are doing well and Housing operations is performing as expected.

Resolution 1: Cancellation of Accounts Receivable Considered Uncollectable

Mrs. Latour explained that a certain number of University Accounts Receivable are past due and internal attempts to collect the funds have been unsuccessful. These accounts have been assigned for collection which have also been unsuccessful. The Office of the Attorney General will only litigate claims in excess of $3,000 that the University believes are collectible. Resolution 1: Cancellation of Accounts Receivable Considered Uncollectable authorizes that certain past due Accounts Receivable be written off the University’s accounting records in the amount of $164,321.25. Mrs. Latour also noted that in the year 2020 we didn’t write off debts due to the pandemic so this resolution is for both years. A motion was put forth by Mr. C. Bradford Hunter, seconded by Ms. Maria Herbert with all in favor. This resolution moved to the full board for approval.

Level II Authority in Procurement Update

Ms. Ledford reported that the MOU for Level II Authority was approved in September but was fully executed on January 12th for Christopher Newport to have Level II Authority in Procurement. This level provides more flexibility for the University and removes obstacles that can slow down the process of getting things procured. We still have to offer competitive procurements but this level gives greater freedom moving forward. Ms. Ledford reported we will be able to get rebates back from certain companies we work with such as Dell and for office supplies ordered which we were not able to get before. She also thanked Liz Waldrop, previous Director of Procurement for starting this process and stated that the new Procurement Director, Danielle Henley is doing great. Ms. Henley will start training on the new authority level and hopes to have training completed by March.

President Trible said that the State is showing they have confidence in how we do things and in Ms. Ledford and the Procurement team. He also wanted to mention that Mr. William Brauer, previous Executive Vice President helped to get this process started and that Mrs. Latour and her team helped with getting this process moved along.

Capital Projects Update

Ms. Ledford reported the Integrated Science Center Phase III is slated to open in the fall of 2025. This building will cost approximately $60 million which the Governor has put into his budget and will have 71,500 sf of new construction and 8,300 sf renovation. This addition will expand and enhance opportunities for our students in STEM disciplines. Through the Request for Proposal procurement process Glavé and Homes Architecture, P.C. has been selected as the project’s Architect. They are working on the preliminary design and will present it in Richmond on July 1st.

Maintenance projects are ongoing and future projects include the CNU North replacement/Administrative Building, ($25 million; the budget amendment was submitted to the General Assembly for 2022) and Plant Operations and Warehouse Renovation and Expansion ($15 million).

SWaM Report for the Twelve Months Ending November 30, 2021

Ms. Ledford reported that as of November 30, 2021, SWAM numbers were just short of our 42% goal, coming in at 33%, the Secretary of Education was under at 28%. Our 33% number is without construction so we have done well. The Procurement team is working on the November SWAM fair.

There being no further discussion the meeting was adjourned at 9:35 a.m.