Finance and Facilities Committee Meeting June 8, 2022

The Finance and Facilities Committee met on Wednesday, June 8, 2022 at 9:00 a.m. in the Jefferson Room of the David Student Union with Chair William R. Ermatinger presiding.

Present from the Committee

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

Absent from the Committee

Ms. Christy T. Morton

Present from the University

Ms. Ashleigh Andrews, Assistant Vice President for Finance and Planning
Mr. Bruce Bronstein, Executive Director for the Ferguson Center for the Arts
Ms. Stephanie Hautz, Director of Human Resources
Ms. Sarah Herzog, Director of Planning and Budget
Ms. Rachel Holland, Associate Professor/Faculty Senate Representative
Ms. Jennifer Latour, Vice President for Finance and Planning and Chief Financial Officer
Ms. Christine Ledford, Vice President for Administration and Auxiliary Services
Ms. Adelia Thompson, Chief of Staff
The Honorable Paul S. Trible, Jr., President
Ms. Rhonda Wissinger, Executive Administrative Assistant

Public in Attendance

None

At 9:00 a.m. Chair Ermatinger called the meeting to order and welcomed everyone in attendance.

Approval of Minutes

Chair Ermatinger asked if everyone had a chance to review the minutes from the April 14, 2022 Finance and Facilities Committee meeting. There being no comments, edits or suggestions, Chair Ermatinger called for a motion to approve the minutes as presented. Mr. C. Bradford Hunter provided the motion, which was seconded by Ms. Herbert and the minutes were approved by unanimous vote of the committee.

2022 General Assembly Update

Ms. Latour provided a General Assembly update stating that if there are no amendments to the budget we will receive just under $6 million to be added to our Operating Budget. At our June 29th meeting, we can hold our tuition at a 3% increase if there are no amendments that negatively impact the operating budget. The Maintenance Reserve allocation will increase by $1 million. There will also be a 5% salary increase for state employees which the state will cover 60% of the E&G employees – Christopher Newport will have to cover the other 40% for E&G and 100% for our Auxiliary employees.

Rector Hatten lobbied in Richmond for our Community Captains and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs and the University received $500,000 for the first year, up to $600,000 the second year and beyond.

Ms. Latour explained that the Budget Bill needs to be enrolled; once the Governor receives it he will have 7 days to approve it. We will meet on June 29th to set our Tuition and Fees.

Statement of Revenues and Expenditures for the Ten Months Ended April 2022 and 2021

Mrs. Latour reported that last year, under COVID restrictions, students had the option to opt out of their meal plan so expenses were down from April 30, 2021 compared to April 30, 2022. There is an increase in other Operating Revenues from $2.9 million to $4.8 million due to Study Abroad Activities being able to take place again now that students are able to travel. We also received $400,000 from FEMA for COVID items that were not reimbursable from stimulus dollars.

Our Athletics department continues to do well and will be able to deposit into their reserves this year.

Mr. Bruce Bronstein, Executive Director of the Ferguson Center for the Arts, applied for a shuttered venues grant in the amount of half a million dollars to help offset costs while the venue was closed due to COVID. Thanks to his efforts we will be receiving this grant which will be helpful in reimbursing operational costs for the venue.

Our reserve funds are at $25.2 million and we will be able to make deposits into our reserves again this year.

Capital Projects Update

Ms. Ledford provided an update on Capital Projects to include the Integrated Science Center III/Luter Hall Expansion, a new Administration Building/CNU North Replacement and infrastructure and repair projects.

Ms. Ledford explained we received $2 million dollars from the State for The Integrated Science Center III/Luter Hall Expansion. These funds are on a reimbursement basis and are provided once the project is funded by the General Assembly. We just completed the Construction Manager at Risk process. Whiting-Turner received the Notice of Award as our general contractor for the project. Whiting-Turner will be working with Glavé and Holmes, Ms. Ledford, President Trible and Rosemary Trible on the design. The preliminary design will be sent to the Commonwealth of Virginia on July 1, 2022, the working drawings will be sent in July 2023 and construction will begin August/September 2023. The anticipated completion date is July 2025.

The new Administration Building/CNU North Replacement project will have W.M. Jordan as the contractor. The new structure will be built, where the post office previously stood, by the CNU Foundation and leased back to the University. The existing building will remain until construction is complete. Construction is planned to commence in July of 2022 with completion in the summer of 2023.

Lastly, the infrastructure and repair projects that are taking place are:

Chiller plant - design is complete and the project is awarded. The chiller will be here around October. Demo will start this summer and finish in the winter.
Ratcliffe Boiler and water heaters - will be replaced in the Spring of 2023.
DSU Roof - design is complete, contract is awarded and the start date is June 1, 2022
Athletic Branding and Graphics - contract awarded and anticipated completion is June 2022

SWaM Report for the Ten Months ended April 2022

Ms. Ledford presented the SWaM Report as of April 30, 2022. We were at 35% and our goal is 42%. The University is still ahead of the State and the Secretary of Education with our numbers. The annual SWAM Fair will be held in November.

Ms. Ledford noted a new program for our procurement system, eVA, will launch on November 1st.

Rector Hatten thanked Chair William R. Ermatinger for his service on the Board of Visitors and for his leadership and loyalty to the University. President Trible also thanked Chair Ermatinger for his wise counsel and generosity.

There being no further business the meeting adjourned at 9:40 a.m.