COEUR D’ALENE, IDAHO — The North Idaho College (NIC) Board of Trustees gathered Monday, November 20, 2023, for its monthly business meeting in which all five trustees were present, and was well attended by members of the public.
The first item on the agenda under new business was a re-formation of the board officers. Per Idaho §33-2106, all Junior Colleges are required to hold the election of board officers at their first meeting following the general election of new trustees. The NIC board chooses to hold an annual election of officers, regardless of whether it is an election year.
Trustee Mike Waggoner was unanimously elected to fill the board chair position which Trustee Greg McKenzie held since December 5, 2022. Trustee Todd Banducci was elected as the board vice chair, and McKenzie will serve as the board secretary and treasurer, as well as continue to serve as liaison to the NIC Foundation, and was also elected to fill the role of liaison to the Kootenai Technical Education Campus (KTEC), the college’s career and technical education center located in Rathdrum, Idaho.
Trustee Greg McKenzie and Trustee Mike Waggoner switch seats after board officer elections on November 20, 2023. 
Trustee Mike Waggoner requests a five minute recess to get information to transfer roles into his new chair position on November 20, 2023. 
Trustee McKenzie addresses the new chair with a joke about needing a new nametag after Trustee Waggoner assumes the Board Chair position on November 20, 2023 
Trustee Todd Banducci raises his hand looking for a second for discussion pertaining to liaison to the NIC Foundation on November 20, 2023.
Recently, McKenzie, Trustee Brad Corkill, President Nick Swayne, and Vice President for Finance and Business, Sarah Garcia, all participated in a presentation of the college’s external financial audit. The audit was conducted by Eide Bailly, LLP, a firm out of Boise, Idaho. Corkill was impressed by the presentation from Barry Webber, a Senior Audit Manager with Eide Bailly, LLP. “Our financials are extremely strong,” stated Corkill. This is the eighth straight year the external audit has confirmed NIC financial statements without amendments.
Tami Haft, Dean of Enrollment Services, presented a thorough update on NIC’s current enrollment statistics. Haft began by giving the board and community members a brief understanding of the areas of NIC operations which fall under her department, which is under the Office of the Provost. In her capacity as Dean of Enrollment Services, Haft oversees admissions, recruitment, financial aid, registration, and regional outreach.
Haft continued with a detailed review of enrollment, highlighting several data points of interest to the community. The total 2023 fall enrollment sits at 3,981 students, with the oldest being 91-years-old, and the youngest only 13-years-old. Nearly one-third of the total student body are dual-enrolled students, which means they have not yet obtained their high school or general education diploma. The breakdown shows 62 percent are female, which is in line with national averages, and 54 percent of the total student body are first-generation, meaning neither of the student’s parents decided to obtain a bachelor’s degree. Part-time students make up 65 percent of enrollment, excluding dual-enrolled students.
Haft’s analysis showed Post Falls High School is the top feeder to NIC, and over 100 homeschool students who did not participate in the dual-enrollment program, and graduated before June 2023, are currently enrolled. The vast majority of enrolled students are from Idaho, with 69 percent being Kootenai County residents. These figures include the 32 percent dual-enrolled students.
The board authorized the sub-committee on board policy to create resolutions to address issues that are outside the scope of policy review and amendment. Waggoner and Trustee Tarie Zimmerman sit on the policy sub-committee. They have been reviewing and suggesting revisions to board policy for months, and are set to propose a new policy that will allow for a regular review of board policy on a specified timetable. Previous boards had not reviewed or updated the majority of board policies for decades, and the Northwest Commission of Colleges and Universities (NWCCU), which provides NIC with accreditation, marked this failure by previous boards as an item of concern, and one they would like the current board to remedy.
McKenzie spoke with the Kootenai Journal at the conclusion of the meeting and stated, “It’s difficult being the chair, and it was an honor serving my community when I had the opportunity to be chair.” McKenzie also shared that NIC’s relationship with the NIC Foundation is integral to the college. “The foundation does a lot of good. I think they handed out $1.6 million in scholarships.” He emphasized the relationship is so close that the foundation’s finances are included in the college’s financial audits.
