MCC to address questions about reorganization plan

After complaints from staff members and questions from board members, McHenry County College administrators decided to hold two more informational meetings and further look into the financial impact of a proposed student affairs reorganization plan.

The plan proposes eliminating 13 staff positions and replacing them with 15 new ones, at an additional cost of $49,000 in salaries. The plan, which also affects staff members of the college’s Sage Learning Center, drew criticism from instructors and members of the Staff Council union, the college’s professional union, at a board meeting in late October.

At a finance committee meeting Thursday morning, Trustee Dennis Adams questioned the extra salary expenditure, but later said he was satisfied at administrators’ explanation that $75,000 already had been budgeted this year for the reorganization.

Those are not additional monies spent, but money reallocated partly from savings stemming from last year’s reorganization plan as well as the departure of certain staff members, Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs Tony Miksa explained.

Trustee Ronald Parrish asked that administrators estimate recruiting, training and other costs associated with implementing the plan.

Opponents of the plan questioned why more administrator positions are being created. MCC President Vicky Smith said the current Staff Council union contract prevents members in coordinators positions from supervising and evaluating individuals, which administrators deem essential under the new plan.

“Other colleges have a middle management group, but we can’t have that here,” she said. “We have 46 administrators because that’s the only category of individuals who can supervise, evaluate and lead an operation. Otherwise we might have 20 administrators.”

If the board approves the plan by December, a transition phase would take place in the spring semester in order to implement the plan July 1, Miksa said.

An informational meeting on the proposed plan followed by a question-and-answer session will be held at 3 p.m. Monday, Nov. 14, in the conference center of the college at 8900 Northwest Hwy. in Crystal Lake. A second meeting is tentatively scheduled for Nov. 21.