Members of the Three Rivers College Board of Trustees reorganized during their monthly meeting Wednesday, an annual process since 1992.
Gary Featherston is the new chairman, taking over from outgoing chairman Dr. Amber Richardson.
Chris Williams becomes the vice-chairman, while Eric Schalk will be the secretary for the next year.
Darren Garrison is the new treasurer, and the board is rounded out with members Tim Hager and Richardson.
“As the first order of business, I want to thank Dr. Amber Richardson for her service this last year. She did a fantastic job as chair and we appreciate her service,” Featherston said.
After approval of the board’s March meeting minutes, Chief Financial Officer Charlotte Eubank presented the college’s financial report.
Showing a graph detailing a year-to-date comparison with 2020, Eubank said tuition and fees are right in line and essentially flat at just under $10 million..
“We’re pretty much neck and neck with tuition and fees,” she reported.
Overall, salary and benefits and scholarship expenses are down some, Eubank said, though operating expenses are above last year.
“We’ve actually had some savings there,” she said.
Eubank also said the school has “been very conservative on our spending.”
Three Rivers is “slightly ahead of where we were at this time last year” as far as its change in net position, Eubank reported, “We’re in good shape moving into the springtime.”
After approval of the financial report, TRC President Dr. Wesley Payne offered insight.
“As you can see, all the things are where we would want them to be. Everybody at the college has done a great job of making sure we got to this point,” Payne said.
“I want to commend the financial services staff. This has been an extremely complex and abnormal year, and they have done an extremely good job,” he added.
Payne also provided his monthly president’s report, detailing construction updates, the school athletics program, a revamp of the online class program and upcoming events.
Both the softball and baseball fields are undergoing renovations, Payne said.
“We are moving along on both of those projects,” Payne reported.
“The softball field is nearing completion. We’re making modifications to the net system and beginning to get to the grounds around it,” Payne reported. “It is our hope that we will be able to do whatever post-season play that we can do on our own field.”
Construction at the baseball field, Payne said, was “lagging a little bit because it is a significantly larger project.”
Still, he said, significant work has been done.
In his athletics report, Payne said the “Lady Raiders are the team that is in the spotlight now.
“They’re progressing through national tournament play. They’ve won their first two games and play again tomorrow (Thursday).”
The TRC softball team is “maintaining a very significant record as they progress through their schedule,” Payne said, and with tournament selection beginning in May, “we hope to get a high seed based on our current record.”
Payne also praised the school’s rodeo team.
“We have two bull riders who are in contention to go to the national finals, so it is more likely than not, at this moment, that we’ll have a national tournament appearance in rodeo,” he said.
The men’s basketball team “had a trying year,” Payne reported, but came out in the end “with a decent season.”
The baseball season currently is ongoing, and the team is seeing “better results than we’ve seen in quite a while.”
Overall, Payne said, the school’s athletic teams are “doing well, and in some places we’re doing exceptionally.”
In his report, Payne also updated the board on TRC’s partnership with Symbiosis, an outside company contracted to help improve the school’s online instruction.
Kick-off meetings have begun, Payne said, and “we’re beginning to lay the groundwork for what is ahead.”
Payne reported he’s heard a lot of positive feedback from the initial meetings.
“There are three phases to this,” he said. “There is one now, one will go on over the summer and one will go on at the beginning of the fall, with the goal that all of this is complete by January.
“By the spring semester, everything that we’re doing should have been through this process.”
Citing the quality and commitment of the school’s staff, Payne said, “I think this will have some extremely positive outcomes as we move forward.”
Payne finished his report with a listing of upcoming events, including:
Industrial Technology Fair, April 22-23, Bess Activity Center.
Poplar Bluff Teacher of the Year Ceremony, April 29.
Happy Days, TRC music department presentations on March 30, April 1 and April 2.
Escape Into Music, May 11, on Facebook Live.
Student Excellence Awards, May 14.
The last day of classes at Three Rivers will be May 14, and final exams will take place May 17-20.
The school’s commencement ceremony, Payne said, will be held at 6 p.m. May 21, at the Libla Family Sports Complex, with graduates from both 2020 and 2021 participating.