YAVAPAI COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT GOVERNING BOARD TO HOLD “POLICY & ATTORNEY EDUCATION WORKSHOP” AT CTEC ON TUESDAY, JANUARY 16

Meeting is scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m. in the morning and may run four hours or more; no open call to the public on agenda. Unlike other significant governmental bodies in Yavapai County, the meeting will not be live-streamed for County residents to view

The Yavapai County Community College District Governing Board will hold what is described as a “Policy and Attorney Education Workshop” at the Career and Technical Education Center (CTEC) on Tuesday, January 16, 2024.  The Career and Technical Education Center is located on the Prescott airport at 220 Ruger Road, Prescott, AZ 86301. The agenda suggests that the event will last approximately four hours or more.

Although the agenda suggests this is a meeting only about policy, some business items have been included in the consent agenda, requiring formal approval (action and decision) from the Governing Board.  The items on the consent agenda include the following: (1) Possible approval of  Cooperative Purchase Agreement – Mohave Educational Services Cooperative, Inc. (2) Possible approval of a Shamrock Food Services agreement. (3) Possible approval of a Land Lease Agreement – Northern Arizona Council of Government. (4) Possible approval of  (NACOG) – Head Start Program.

The College has omitted the details (attachments) regarding the four items mentioned above from the published online agenda, limiting the options for County residents who seek more information. If residents want the details prior to the meeting, they must rise early on Tuesday morning and dedicate most, if not the entire day, to travel in order to attend the meeting. They potentially may be forced to use a vacation day from work. Attendance may also involve a 100 to 200-mile round trip, facing unpredictable weather and traffic conditions. Upon arrival at CTEC, residents can obtain a printed agenda with the attachments at the door. This agenda will provide the necessary details about the above listed four items. 

The District Governing Board meeting distinguishes itself from nearly all other significant governmental bodies in the county by refusing to live-stream its proceedings. This decision seems like yet another attempt to withhold immediate information about its activities, discussions, and debates from the county’s residents.

Furthermore, the Governing Board stands out for its recent decisions to no longer  provide the same agenda information online that it offers to residents attending the meetings in person. This practice limits access for those whose only practical option is to read it online. Given this odd practice, which is fairly new to the Governing Board, means the Trustees of this educational institution are no longer setting a strong example of democracy for their students.

The public may attend the meeting at CTEC but will not have any input into any part of it.  The reasons is that the Governing Board has not included in the Agenda an Open Call to the Public.

The short agenda published by the District Governing Board provides little information to the residents of the County about what the group will discuss. You may click here to read it. agenda-01-16-2024