Published: June 20, 2009 12:05 am      

NMC president to receive annual evaluation

TRAVERSE CITY -- Trustees at Traverse City's community college will soon issue grades for its president.

Tim Nelson, president of Northwestern Michigan College, will receive his annual performance evaluation on Monday. Additionally, trustees may make a change to his employment contract to freeze his salary for the year, at his request.

Nelson will be graded on core competencies, such as communication, teamwork, productivity, dependability, quality, problem-solving, ethical behavior and shared governance. He also will be evaluated on key responsibilities, including community relations, effective strategic planning, fiscal health of the college, development of the employee base, acceptable physical assets to the college, effective relationships with trustees and the development and maintenance of excellence in educational offerings.

Trustee Bill Myers is chairman of the president's evaluation committee and said he received the other trustees' evaluations of Nelson to tabulate. Overall, it's a very positive review, he said.

"It's pretty clear everybody is reasonably satisfied with Tim's performance," Myers said.

This last year has been a challenge because of the state's fiscal problems and lackluster property tax revenues. That means strategic planning will become more important and evolve into a "moving target" under the current economic situation and changing workforce needs, Myers said.

Nelson could not be reached for comment on Friday.

Trustees will discuss Nelson's evaluation with him in a closed session, but afterword will reconvene to consider adopting the report.

Trustees also will consider an amendment to Nelson's employment contract to halt his scheduled pay increase set to take effect on July 1. Nelson said during the college's recent budget sessions that he didn't want a pay increase this year.

Nelson's salary will remain unchanged from the July 1, 2008, rate of $164,035, if trustees approve the proposed contract amendment. He was hired in 2001 for $102,000 annually.

Trustees also will consider a bond refunding proposal to refinance $3.795 million of debt for a projected savings of $386,163. The current debt obligation millage is 0.7 mills and is expected to drop to 0.68 mills during 2010, if the refinancing plan is approved.

The NMC trustees meeting will begin Monday at 6:30 p.m. in Room 112 at the Great Lakes Campus, 715 E. Front St., in Traverse City. Visit www.nmc.edu/trustees for more information.