202 | Board Meetings

202 | Meetings

202.01 Official Meeting

There shall be an official meeting of the Board of Trustees once each month. The monthly date can be changed by a vote of the majority of the Board at any official meeting of the Board of Trustees.  In the event that inclement weather or other unforeseen situations arise that impact the safety of meeting participants, the Board Chair and President may make a short-notice decision to delay, cancel or reschedule a board meeting. In this case, the change will be posted on the college's website.  For board members and those presenting agenda topics, they will be notified by email, phone and/or text. The schedule of official meetings must be publicly posted in accordance with the Michigan Open Meetings Act. The schedule of other meetings/workshops of the Board of Trustees shall be governed by the Michigan Open Meetings Act.

[LAST APPROVED April 2024]

202.02 Quorum

A majority of the Board of Trustees (4) shall represent a quorum thereby making it possible for the transaction of all official business. When there is no quorum for a regularly scheduled meeting of the Board of Trustees, the Board shall meet at the same time and place one week later.

[LAST APPROVED June 2018]

202.03 Notice and Agenda

A written notice announcing each regular meeting date shall be forwarded to each Trustee at least five business days prior to the meeting. Accompanying the notice shall be the minutes of the previous meeting and the agenda for the scheduled meeting, prepared by an Agenda Committee consisting of the College President, Board Chair and/or one other trustee.

Any Trustee, interested citizen or employee of the College may request, in writing, agenda items to be recognized by the Board of Trustees at the next official Board meeting. The request must be made through the Office of the President seven business days prior to the scheduled meeting time.

Items submitted to the Agenda Committee will be approved or disapproved by the committee in any way they deem appropriate. Failure for an item’s agenda approval shall not prevent it from being resubmitted for subsequent meetings. Submissions may be formal motions, informational topics or proposals for consideration. Items submitted as informational or proposals for consideration may, at the discretion of the Board Chair, be modified and treated as motions. The order of business at each official meeting of the Board of Trustees shall be determined by the approval of agenda.

[LAST APPROVED August 2022]

202.04 Special Meetings

Special meetings of the Board of Trustees may be called by the Chairperson or any two members of the Board. Notice of such meeting must be presented in writing to each Board member two days in advance of the meeting day.

Emergency meetings may be scheduled through the same procedure with the exception of the two-day notice. However, emergency meetings may not be held without the verbal consent of a quorum of the Board membership.

No business shall be transacted at special meetings other than that for which the meeting was purposely called. Notice of a special meeting shall be posted at least 18 hours prior to the time of that meeting.

[LAST APPROVED June 2018]

202.05 Attendees

Those persons in official attendance at all regularly scheduled official meetings of the Board of Trustees shall be the duly elected Board members, the College President, senior administrators, and a recording secretary. Other official representation shall be determined by the majority vote of the Board of Trustees.

[LAST APPROVED June 2018]

202.06 Rules of Order

Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised, shall determine parliamentary procedure of all official business transpired by the Board of Trustees.

[LAST APPROVED June 2018]

202.07 Voting

Only those members of the Board who are elected by the voters of the College district or duly appointed by the Board to fill a Trustee vacancy are permitted to vote on all official College business.

[LAST APPROVED June 2018]

202.08 Public Meeting

All official meetings of the Board of Trustees shall be public meetings.

Public Participation Rules

Any member of the public may address the Board at a Board meeting, subject to the following rules:

1. Except during a public participation portion of a Board meeting, no member of the public or other person may address the Board during a public meeting without the express permission of the Board Chair or other presiding officer.
2. College employees are encouraged to raise concerns regarding their employment, personnel matters, or the functioning of the College to their direct supervisor, not during public comment.
3. The Board will follow public participation rules that balance the College’s interest in an orderly public meeting with the public’s First Amendment rights. A copy of these rules and any additional public participation rules adopted by the Board will be made available at Board meetings. The Board’s public participation rules include, but are not limited to, the following:
   • before addressing the Board, a member of the public will state his or her name and address;
   • each person’s public comments are limited to 3 minutes per public participation period. This time limit may be adjusted by the Board Chair or other presiding officer to facilitate public participation at Board meetings;
   • persons who are part of a group or organization or who share similar viewpoints are encouraged to designate a spokesperson to address the Board;
   • public comments of a personal nature are prohibited when: (a) the comments are unrelated to the manner in which a Board member or College employee performs that person’s duties, and (b) the comments cause a substantial disruption to the meeting;
   • any public comment not protected by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution is prohibited;
   • Board members are not required to answer questions or make statements in response to a public comment;
   • written statements and documents presented to the Board by a public participant or group are public records and must be given to the Secretary or designee; and
   • any audio recording, video recording, broadcasting, or telecasting must be performed from the seating area designated for the public or in the area otherwise designated by the President, Superintendent, or designee, and must not disrupt the meeting.

[LAST APPROVED June 2018]