CCCC trustees approve hiring of new VP

The hiring of a new vice president for student services and bid package #2 for the construction of the new Technical Education and Innovation Center were approved by the Cloud County board of trustees during its regular meeting on Tuesday night.
Included in the consent agenda approved by the board was the appointment of Brandt Hutchinson to the position of vice president for student services on a 12-month KPERS-covered administrative contract, effective May 23..
A graduate of Concordia High School, Hutchinson earned his associates of arts and sciences degree from Cloud County Community College and his bachelor of science degree in elementary education and his master's in school counseling from Kansas State University. He received his licensure degree in school administration from Emporia State University in 2022.
Hutchinson was a fifth-grade teacher at the Concordia Middle School from 2003-2017 and has been a counselor and community coordinator for Unified School District 333 since 2017.
“I graduated from Cloud County. My mom taught at Cloud County for many years and my grandpa was on the founding board of trustees for the college. So personally, that is attractive for me,” Hutchinson said of accepting the position of vice president for student services. “Professionally, it is exciting to work under President (Amber) Knoettgen and the team that she has built. There is a great deal of momentum and progress going on with the college, so it is an extremely appealing opportunity for me to become part of that team.”
As the vice president of student services, Hutchinson will provide overall leadership in designing, organizing, implementing and evaluating all aspects of enrollment management, student services, Title IX and student life beyond the curriculum for the entire institution.
Following a presentation from Mike Hattrup, McCownGordon Construction, the general contractor of the project, the board approved bid package #2, in the amount of $6,460,029, to complete the purchase of necessary building and construction items for the 33,725-square-foot Technical Education and Innovation Center.
The college broke ground on the new facility on Wednesday afternoon.
To be constructed on College Drive between the college and Walmart, the Technical Education and Innovation Center will house the college's renewable energy programs, nursing and allied health programs and agriculture and industrial technology programs.
“We plan on starting to move dirt next week, so we will start to see that site change real quick. The anticipated date for substantial completion is next July,” Hattrup said.
In July 2022, the college board approved a professional services agreement with McCownGordon Construction to serve as the construction manager at-risk, at a cost of $764,500, for the construction of the technical education facility.
The board of trustees approved bid package #1 for the project, with a cost of $9,976,076, on December 20, 2022.
Approval of bid package #2 brings guaranteed max price for construction of the Technical Education and Innovation Center to $16,588,387 and the total project cost to $17,757,387, which includes a contingency of two percent and other associated fees.
Also included in the consent agenda approved by the board was a request from Brenda Hanson, director of the career center, to participate in the early retirement plan, effective June 1, 2023; the renewal of contracts for head men's basketball coach Devin Kastrup, assistant men's basketball coach Kyle Pugh and assistant women's basketball coach Tiffany Dorris; and appointment of Jaime Ayala as assistant softball coach on a 12-month professional services employee contract, effective March 29.
Ayala had been the head coach of the Briggs Softball Club in Rossville, Calif.