The Grand Rapids Community College Police Department was the main focus of GRCC’s board of trustees meeting on May 15, as the department was awarded the Law Enforcement Accreditation after a three-year investigation by the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police. GRCC Police also welcomed GRCC alumna and police officer Macayla Geerling to the department and was sworn in by Vice Chairperson Kathleen Bruinsma during the meeting.
“After committing to the process we underwent a self-analysis, comparing our procedures with the standards, updated the procedures, collected proofs, went through a mock assessment, addressed areas of non-compliance, underwent the final assessment, and commission hearings prior to the final award,” stated GRCC Police Chief Rebbeca Whitman. “This process took approximately three years for us to complete.”
A team of assessors worked with many GRCC community members, Chief Whitman and GRCC’s Police accreditation manager and officer Tony Meyers. They thoroughly investigated the department to ensure that the department’s directives were compliant with the Michigan Law Enforcement Accreditation Team’s 108 standards. Police departments are not required to go through this process and have to voluntarily reach out to be reviewed.
The department will undergo another accreditation process in 2027 to confirm they meet Michigan Law Enforcement’s more updated 128 standards, with the majority of those additional standards being around college campus safety.
Whitman also awarded Whitney Marsh, Director of the Ford Fieldhouse, a GRCC Civilian Life-Saving Award for resuscitating a man with an AED (automated external defibrillator) machine after he collapsed while playing basketball in the fieldhouse on April 15.
GRCC President Charles Lepper was out of town for Monday’s board meeting and his seat was filled by Vice President for Finance and Administration Lisa Freiburger. Freiburger read a letter written by Lepper, commemorating Marsh for her heroic actions and saving the man’s life.
“..It is with great pride that I thank and commend you for your actions,” Lepper wrote.
The finance department had the only update, with the Controller of Financial Services Todd Hurley providing the college’s financial statements and an investment summary for April.
The board approved all consent items, purchases over $100,000, as well as a one-year extension of the college’s partnership with HexAmour and their Michigan New Jobs Training Agreement (MNJTP) Agreement. They later announced some revisions to their policies, allowing more clarity to their governing style, meetings, executive limitations and emergency executive succession.
“…There were several the board grappled with,” said Chairperson Brandy Lovelady Mitchell. “Emergency executive succession which essentially means that our president will ensure that there are always at least two senior executive members who are aware of board dynamics interactions and it’s basically a guarantee for shared leadership in the case of an emergency. Financial condition was a policy that we wrestled with and that is basically ensuring that we’re good stewards and not letting anything go left as some people would like to say.”
Lovelady Mitchell continued to explain the changes to their governing style and wanting to have more transparency in their work,”…The governing style, which relates to we are a board that engages in policy governance and there’s a clear distinction between the operational side and the governance side and so we’re more visionary and we allow our brilliant team to take care of the day-to-day operations.”
Here are the purchase items approved by the board in their meeting:
- An increased purchase order of $65,000 to provide payment for an additional $50,000 for legal services.
- A payment of $25,000 for provost search fees.
- A purchase order of $65,867.95 for the maintenance of the existing PURE storage.
- A purchase order of $27,000 for an increase of $5,000 for vehicle maintenance for 2023/2024 year.
- A purchase order of $40,775 for a replacement Duplo DC-618 creaser for ePrint.
- A payment of $59,200 for consulting services for ERP/SIS system review.
- A purchase order of $31,171 was issued to provide payment for air filters throughout campus.
- A payment of $29,500 for a 2024 Ford Interceptor.
- A purchase order of $25,024.32 to provide payment for a coordinator at Muskegon Community College.
- A payment of $25,050 for data tracking, data uploads for the YR6 FPR summative report and FAFSA completion reports.
- A purchase order of $38,100 was issued to provide payment for the development of the Pharm Tech program.
- A purchase order of $156,450 to provide a three-year contract for an HR applicant tracking, Onboarding & Performance Management System.
- A purchase order of $389,400 to provide Tassell MTEC chiller replacement.
- A purchase order of $154,900 to provide replacement of the makeup air and exhaust fans at the Spectrum Theater.
The Board of Trustees will meet again on June 10 in the board conference room on the 5th floor of Raleigh J. Finkelstein Hall.
