Conference Center
experienced power
outage earlier this month
By Brittany Williams
Staff Writer
EL DORADO — Calion Lumber Company manager Jose Covas was announced as the South Arkansas Community College Board of Trustees’ newly inducted member at a meeting last week.
Covas replaces longtime trustee and Calion Lumber owner Charlie Thomas, who recently retired over a year before his term was scheduled to end. Like several members of the board, Covas was appointed by Governor Asa Hutchinson, he said.
“Some people that say I have some really big shoes to fill, but like I tell everybody, I’m not Charlie Thomas,” he said. “I’m glad to be here and I hope I can do a service to the college.”
There was a network and electrical service outage Sunday, April 2 at the El Dorado Conference Center. Power wasn’t restored until 9:30 p.m. and there was no equipment or data loss, Associate Administration Vice President Dr. Tim Kirk said.
“It was determined that we lost a phase, which meant that things were very odd in the building for a while … Though it was Sunday, we had Student Services up and running between the library and the technology building by nine o’clock,” Kirk said. “I worry about those things all the time. To have something more than a tabletop exercise, I think was an excellent thing to happen.”
The SouthArk Foundation has awarded 37 of its 39 scholarships, or about 95 percent of its scholarships for next year, director Cynthia Reyna said.
“The scholarship committee headed by Veronda Tatum, which is under Dr. (Jim) Bullock’s offices, does a really good job awarding the scholarships. It’s been made clear that the foundation raises the money and the financial aid committee, their crew awards and they do a very great job,” she said. “Thank you Dr. Bullock for you staff. They’re so diligent.”
SouthArk’s excess year-to-date unrestricted revenues over expenditures are over $1 million as of March 31 and the
conference center closed out a successful first quarter, finance and administration vice president Carey Tucker said.
“Last year was a very, very good year and we’re running about $60,000 ahead of last year’s pace after the first quarter,” he said.
Tucker said that QualChoice presented new health care plans to employees and the college will cap its contribution to each employee’s monthly premium at $500.
“That’s a $900,000 investment in employees … I’ve had at least one employee stand up to me and said, ‘The reason I wanted to come and for you is because you’re paying my health insurance,” Tucker said. “So we know that’s a great retention item that we need to keep … We’re still paying an extra $165 for anyone who takes the family plan.”
Academic affairs president Dr. Mickey Best will assume the president position at New Mexico State University-Grants, but will work through SouthArk’s commencement ceremony, president Dr. Barbara Jones said.
During what may be his last board report, Best boasts about the college’s second annual Weld-a-Thon competition, where high school students from six regional technical centers participated, as well as developments in career/technical education, distance learning, health/natural sciences, liberal arts and the SouthArk Library.
“We had hoped for a repeat. We came in second place this year,” Best said. “About 50 high school students from Crossett toured the East campus. I don’t think that has happened before … The toured the west as well.”
With the help of internship coordinator Nickie Wright, students have applied for internships with the Medical Center of South Arkansas, Entergy, Jenzabar and NASA. One student has secured an internship with Jenzabar, student services vice president Dr. Jim Bullock said.
“We’ve had a rash of businesses and industries that have come to us asking us to advertise their internship opportunities,” Bullock said. “(Jenzabar) had 270 some odd applicants and we got one of those to work right here on our campus … That’s a $6,000 internship. As you can see, that’s a wonderful thing for him and for us.”
Three certified production technician program completers were placed with local employers, chief effectiveness officer Dr. Stephanie Tully-Dartez said.
“(The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Work Experience program), WIOA, is paying them between $15 to 18 an hour as well as providing them with basic materials,” she said. “I was talking with Don Lee early and they got a young man a set of steel-toed boots and his tools to start work. This is a great opportunity for the companies.”
Milbank, El Dorado Packaging and Confix have signed up to be WIOA Work Experience partners, she said.
The SouthArk Board of Trustees is scheduled to meet at 3:45 p.m. Tuesday, May 16 in the administration building board room, located on the west campus.
Brittany Williams may be contacted by email at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter and like her on Facebook @BWilliamsEDNT for updates on Union County school news.