CCCC board approves equipment purchases

Moving forward with a plan to establish a wind energy program at the Regional Rural Technical Center in LaHarpe, the Cloud County Community College board of trustees approved the use of grant funds to purchase equipment needed.
Cloud County wind energy department received a Jobs and Innovative Industry Skills Training Grant of $110,000 and a $150,000 gift from EDP Renewables.
The board approved using those funds for a sole source procurement of electronic trainers ($99,506.87), sensor package trainers ($21,863.75) and AC/DC trainers ($50,794.88) from Festo at a total amount of $172,165.50 and a sole source procurement of motor/generator trainers from Amatrol in the amount of $83,614.37.
The Regional Rural Technical Center is a collaboration of area high schools schools and community college in Allen County.
Responding to questions asked about the new program, Nancy Zenger-Beneda, vice president for academic affairs, informed the board that there is no long term commitment with the Regional Rural Technical Center in LaHarpe. She said there is an instructor identified for the program, but the details have not yet been finalized.
Zenger-Beneda said that the principals at the high schools in the LaHarpe area are helping identify students for the program.
The program will include concurrent enrollment for high school students. They will receive high school and college credit for the courses, and will be eligible for state funding with the state paying Cloud County the tuition.
Zenger-Beneda said that should Cloud County decide to discontinue the program, it would own the equipment purchased and it would be brought to the Concordia campus and utilized by the wind energy program.
In other action taken by the board during the meeting, a proposal from Applewood Interactive to redesign the college's public facing website (www.cloud.edu) at a cost of $23,220 was approved. The board authorized payment from tech fees.
“Our public facing website has been in need of some redesign for awhile now,” Amber Knoettgen, vice president for administrative services, said, “We really want a website that is more responsive, more interactive. This would be mobile friendly, easier to navigate, and most importantly, visually appealing.”
Knoettgen said the process has been done in phases. The first phase was to select and purchase Percussion CM1 as the web management contest system to create and maintain the external website.
Percussion recently decided to disband its design department.
Casey Clarke, the lead designer and trainer for Percussion, found her own company, Applewood Interactive.
With the approval of the proposal from Applewood Interactive, Clarke will work directly with Cloud County to design and develop the website and provide training from start to finish.
“She really brings us a unique set of skills, and she also provides us some continuity,” Knoettgen said.
Cloud County Community College Foundation director Heather Gennette announced to the board during the meeting that the Dane G. Hansen Foundation has awarded the Foundation a $100,000 grant for the construction of an agriculture facility on the Concordia campus.
“This will allow us to actually start building,” Gennette said.
Cloud County had previously received a grant of $100,000 from the Sunderland Foundation for the agriculture facility that will provide space for the precision ag equipment and livestock.
The Foundation has also secured an additional $30,000 for the building.
Gennette said that the Foundation will continue fundraising for the project.
Included in the consent agenda approved by the board was the renewal of contracts for head men's basketball coach Jordan Altman and assistant coach Todd Johnston.
Among the resignations announced to the board were Sarah Bernard-Stevens, director of bands and music instructor, Lacy Hargitt-Pelky, instructor of nursing and John Rutherford, assistant women's basketball coach.