WNCC 2010 Self-Study Report - Western Nebraska Community ...

Athletics
WNCC’s Athletic Department monitors the integrity of the athletic programs. In 2005, an employee
was named to be a Compliance Officer whose job it is to ensure that the institution follows policies
set forth in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) regulations. Along with the
Athletic Director and the Vice President of Student Services, the Officer is responsible for
monitoring athlete eligibility status, GPA’s, athletic scholarships, funds, booster club activities, and
financial aid eligibility. The information for compliance for NJCAA is located in the Athletic
Director’s office. The Athletic Director and Assistant Athletic Director present a yearly report to the
Board. Past reports indicate that WNCC athletes have a higher overall GPA than other students
(RR 35).
To hold athletes accountable, grade checks are issued every three weeks by the Athletic Director
to each faculty member who teaches student athletes. To maintain a scholarship, an athlete must
maintain a 2.0 GPA, and if an athlete’s GPA falls below that level for two consecutive semesters,
the scholarship is revoked. Also, student athletes who violate academic integrity guidelines have
their scholarships revoked (RR 36).
External Constituencies
Communication and Notification
To support its mission and uphold its integrity, WNCC makes every effort to inform its external
constituents of events, activities, policies, and procedures. The Board of Governors’ minutes are
documented and bound by the Board Secretary. The meetings are open to the public and minutes
are available through newspaper and web publications (RR 37).
The College makes available a copy of the public meeting laws at each Board meeting and hosts
open budget sessions. In addition, regional officials sometimes attend Board meetings, either for
their own knowledge or to provide information. Particularly in regards to the budget calculation and
the local tax levy rate, the College is sensitive to the need to be straightforward with information
that is rightfully available to the public. Each year, a complete budget book listing all restricted and
non-restricted budget allocations, along with a complete balance ledger detailing expenses and
revenue, is created and distributed to administrators, directors, and division chairs. A newspaper
reporter assigned to cover the College and a local radio station reporter attend Board meetings,
and, occasionally, a television reporter documents a portion of a meeting if the station manager
believes that something of interest is going to occur.
The Director of College Relations works closely with the media to inform the public of events at the
College, as well as updates about things like closures, emergencies, or other situations such as a
staged “shooter and hostage” situation carried out in 2008 at the Scottsbluff main campus building
and involving nearly all of the local law-enforcement agencies.
Oversight Agencies
WNCC follows all federal, state, accreditation, and affiliation reporting guidelines for reporting,
including agencies of the federal government associated with the TRIO programs and financial aid,
as well as Nebraska agencies like the Department of Education and the Coordinating Commission
Western Nebraska Community College Page 61