Board of Trustees
February 12, 2026
The North Arkansas College Board of Trustees met in regular session on Wednesday, February 12th in the JPH Conference Center. Chair Pledger called the meeting to order at 3:00p.m. Trustees Burnside, Mouser, Patience, Henry, McNew, and was present.
North Arkansas College personnel attending included Dr. Rick Massengale, Tavonda Brown, Richard Stipe, Dr. Matt Cardin, Dr. Rodney Arnold, Randall Dias, Jo Adams, Micki Somers, Brandon Cone, Bridgette Kampfe, Lance Williams, Simon McCollough, Emily Sexton, Darren Young, Danny Ohler, and Kelsea Lowery.
Approval of Agenda
Chair Pledger asked if there were any changes to the agenda as presented. There being none a motion was made, unanimously approved.
Regular Reports
Finance Report: Richard Stipe shared the E&G and Auxiliary budget activities through January 2026.
In the E&G fund, Richard Stipe stated the total monthly revenue was $1,261,115 and the expenditures ended at $1,399,189. The year-to-date total of revenues was $14,369,930 and expenses were $11,844,754. Mr. Stipe said the revenue trend lines are slightly above pattern, however it lines up with our enrollment growth.
Auxiliary: The month's revenue totaled $203,336 and expenditures totaled $204,548. Year-to-date revenues were $2,110,390 and expenses were $1,323,723.
President Report:
Dr. Massengale opened the meeting by reporting on Spring 2026 semester enrollment. As of February 10, total headcount reached 2,095, exceeding the goal of 2,078. Student semester credit hours (SSCH) totaled 19,041, surpassing the target of 18,870. Concurrent student SSCH accounted for 6,284 credit hours, representing 33% of the total.
He highlighted that North Arkansas College Technical Center’s CTE program was selected as one of the 16 high school tech centers to participate in a showcase event at the State Capitol. He spoke about the HLC site visit on campus and the visit from University of Arkansas System President, Jay Silveria, Board of Trustee Chair Randy Lawson, other representatives.
Dr. Massengale congratulated North Arkansas College’s Lady Pioneer basketball coach and current athletic director, Bobby Howard in his retirement in coaching. He has a 40-year career in coaching. Bobby Howard will continue as North Arkansas College in his role as athletic director.
He informed the board members of the upcoming Northark Challenge Clay Shoot on April 10th. Those interested to sign up can reach out to Director of Public Relations/ Assistant Director of Foundation, Micki Somers. He ended his report announcing the birth of his granddaughter, Blakely Jo Massengale.
Consent Agenda
The consent agenda included the January regular meeting minutes.
Chair Pledger asked for a motion to approve the Consent Agenda. Trustee Henry made the motion, which was seconded by Trustee Mouser, and unanimously approved.
Monitoring Report
VP of Finance & Administration, Richard Stipe presented the February monitoring report, support financial stability. The report will be primarily objectives 4.2.2, Conduct an annual financial review in comparison with accepted benchmarks to ensure ongoing financial health for the institution, and 4.2.3, Provide communication to college leadership, community members, and external constituents regarding the necessity of adequate cash reserves to maintain economic purchasing capacity and cash flow protection. The report compares Northark with other Arkansas community colleges.
Mr. Stipe spoke about the unrestricted operation reserve with the fund balance as a percent of revenue with GASB pension and OPEB liability. He broke down a comparison chart of the fund balance as a percent of revenue without GASB pension and OPEB liability. He noted that we have been making progress the last few years.
Mr. Stipe discussed a comparison chart over the expenditures per FTE with GASB pension and OPEB liability. He said for the 2024-2025 year, Northark was at $111,983 compared to other Arkansas Two-Year colleges at $13,320. He discussed a comparison chart over the expenditures per FTE without GASB pension and OPEB liability. He broke down the expenses per FTE of Instruction, Academic Support, Student Services, Institutional Support, Physical Plant, and Scholarships.
Mr. Stipe spoke about comparing in and out-of-district tuition and fees with other Arkansas community colleges. He discussed Arkansas Two-year colleges' annualized tuition and mandatory fee comparisons for FY 2024-2025. Northark ranked fifteenth in the state with lower costs in the district. He spoke about the program grants & awards received, excluding scholarships.
Mr. Stipe listed the current performance indicators: E & G fund balance and reserve stable but growth needed, fund balance without GASB effect is well above the minimum recommended level, expenditures per FTE student and comparable to ATYC average, tuition rates are slightly above the ATYC average for in-district, and grant attainment exceeds the ATYC average. He said going forward, North Arkansas College will continue to increase the E & G fund balance as a contingency for future challenges, continue to improve student recruitment efforts, increase student retention efforts, continue program and area reviews for greater efficiencies, effectiveness, and viability, continue to offer affordable and competitive tuition and rates, and continue grant attainment effort.
Mr. Stipe discussed the revenue comparison data with total unrestricted fund revenues per FTE. From 2024 to 2025, Northark was $12.7 million compared to other two-year colleges at $14.3 million. He gave an overview of the tuition and fee revenues per FTE chart and state appropriation revenues per FTE. Richard stated that it is the historic funding everyone receives, and the productive formula funding impacts it. Mr. Stipe gave an overview of the State appropriation revenues per FTE comparisons and Northark disparity variance.
Trustee Burnside shared that while attending the State of Education K–12 Breakfast, North Arkansas College was consistently recognized for the important role it plays in K–12 education. He noted that both the college and Dr. Massengale were highlighted for their involvement and impact. As a board member, he said it was encouraging to see that the college is truly making a difference.
Chair Pledger adjourned the meeting at 3:55 p.m.
