Every year during the November regular meeting the board elects new officers and this year the board unanimously voted in Mike Waggoner as Board Chair. Brad Corkill nominated Waggoner and Zimmerman seconded, noting that he has been outstanding during the policy subcommittee and feels that he would do a good job as chair. Waggoner commented before the vote about how this is an opportunity to come together in unity, inclusivity, and collaboration, and “we need to go forward with a shared positive vision.” The rest of the trustees agreed and Waggoner was voted in 4-0.
Other officers voted into position were Todd Banducci as Vice-Chair and Greg McKenzie as Treasurer.
Enrollment
The board received an enrollment report last month that showed the fall enrollment headcount and FTE numbers and enrollment student types.
This month the board got a breakdown of the enrollment data which shows that 89% of enrollment is from Idaho residents, 85% come from Region 1, and 69% come from Kootenai County.
Local high schools have many students that are using the Dual Enrollment option through NIC. Lake City High School and Coeur d'Alene High School continue to be in the top spots but Lakeland High School is creeping up behind.
Local high school students who graduated in 2023 and chose to go to NIC after graduation. Post Falls High School leads the pack with Lake City High School coming behind.
Fall enrollment numbers for students who graduated from a local high school before 2023 and is not in the Dual Enrollment program.
Public Comment
There is an interesting *alleged* victimhood starting to rear its ugly head at conservative-run board meetings. People who have, ahem, *allegedly* disrupted board meetings and caused chaos in the past, are trying to complain that independent media who are filming the board meetings are making those chaos agents feel threatened because, *allegedly,* their disruptions are being filmed. At the NIC Board meeting, this time it was Deborah Rose who used public comment to try playing *alleged* victim and say being filmed at a public meeting is threatening.
This public comment was noted because the topic has been mentioned by *alleged* common meeting disruptors like Deborah Rose, Teresa Borrenpohl, Ed Depriest, and others. They all have an *alleged* history of disruption and chaos; Deborah Rose – who is consistently being quoted in the Press – has had police reports filed about her alleged threats against others at NIC and using veiled threats about poisoning wells, all of which is protected by free speech.
Failed Democrat Representative candidate Teresa Borrenpohl is another regular who continually shows *alleged* unhinged behavior like pulling the fire alarm in the December 2022 special NIC meeting, according to the NIC campus security report, and *allegedly* taking property in the middle of meetings that the police have to force her to return like at the CDA School District special meeting in September 2021 when mask mandates were being discussed.
Hayden City Councilman Ed Depriest *allegedly* likes to stand in the back of the room yelling at the board while they’re trying to handle school business or causing a scene afterwards like in the August 2023 meeting.
Why are these relevant to the NIC recap?
All of these instances happen in the public meeting when the livestream cameras are turned off or behind the cameras so they are not picked up on the official video. In order to get a good understanding of what happens at these meetings, it is important to see the WHOLE meeting and the attendees if/when they cause disruptions. People cannot rely on accurate reporting from the CDA Trash Press (hence the Trash part) because the narrative they like to create is that the conservative-run boards are being mismanaged when in reality it is the people behind the scenes causing the chaos. The misinformation from the CDA Trash Press was used in the NIC accreditation so it makes filming EVERYTHING even more vital to the overall ACTUAL information. This is why it is SO important for the general public to attend at least one meeting a month (for whatever government agency they prefer) so that more people become aware of what is actually happening. Until then, I will continue to use independent videographers as an avenue to get the full information out to YOU – and that is my First Amendment RIGHT.