The Neosho County Community College Board of Trustees approved personnel changes, technology upgrades, and academic updates during its February meeting.
All trustees were present. The board approved the consent agenda, which included minutes from the Jan. 14, 2026, meeting and January claims for disbursement.
As part of the consent agenda, trustees approved a new combined position of director of communications and marketing/ assistant athletic director, merging two full-time roles to create operational efficiencies and cost savings. Kristin Chase was appointed to the position, effective Feb. 12. Chase previously served as head spirit coach and stepped down from that role Feb. 11 to assume her new duties.
The board also approved an updated job description for the Diagnostic Medical Sonography Director and course inventory changes, including a new Associate of Applied Science in Applied Technologies degree, totaling 61 credit hours. Trustees approved reactivation of Introduction to Mass Communication and a title change from Electrical Externship to Electrical Internship, along with a corresponding update to the electrical technology program path.
Personnel actions included the retirements of Kerrie Coomes, effective June 30, and Ruth Zollars, effective July 31. Additional hires included Joshua Spivey as assistant volleyball coach, Kylie Preisinger as admissions specialist at Ottawa, and Mika Keenan as administrative assistant to the vice president of student learning. Hailey Spring-Clark was named head spirit coach effective Feb. 12.
In his report, President Brian Inbody said the college is “busy in the best way,” citing preparations for a spring fundraiser and continued community outreach efforts, including the collection of more than 7,000 diapers for the WIC program from the nursing department.
In legislative updates, Inbody discussed proposed measures addressing undocumented students’ eligibility for in-state tuition, potential federal compliance concerns, and the administrative burden of verifying citizenship documentation. Other topics included proposed changes moving trustee elections to even-numbered years, workforce Pell grants, a free speech bill and legislation concerning diversity, equity and inclusion programs. The Kansas legislative session is expected to conclude in mid-March.
Chief Information Officer Phil Chaney updated the board on major information technology projects, including a large-scale conversion to Windows 11, replacement of the college firewall and transition to multi-factor authentication software that saved approximately $15,000 after switching providers. Nearly 300 computers were upgraded as part of the Windows 11 conversion, and the college reported 99% system uptime per Chaney.
Chaney said servers are being moved to the cloud and stored through Iron Mountain as part of broader infrastructure improvements. Additional projects include a website replacement and phone system updates. He emphasized the workload placed on IT staff during the transitions and expressed appreciation for employees managing the changes.
The board received a financial update showing approximately $4.8 million in the general fund and $3.5 million from county tax distribution, compared with $2.5 million at the same time last year. Treasurer Sandi Solander explained that the discrepancy between this year and last is more a matter of timing of disbursement rather than additional funds. She said the college typically receives less than $200,000 in March distributions. Total cash on hand was reported at about $9.1 million, with $8.9 million invested.
In new business, trustees heard the first reading of proposed revisions to the nursing section of the instructor qualifications board policy, following guidance from the ACEN nursing accreditation team. The proposed changes would require full-time and adjunct nursing faculty teaching lecture courses to hold a master’s degree in nursing and be registered nurses in Kansas, with limited case-by-case exceptions for those progressing toward a master’s degree. Clinical adjunct faculty would be required to hold at least a bachelor’s degree in nursing and Kansas RN licensure, with similar case-by-case considerations. No vote was taken; the board will consider the policy for approval at its next meeting, which will be held in the board room on March 11, 2026 at 9 a.m.
