The Kaskaskia College Board of Trustees met Monday for the regular monthly meeting.  A special presentation was held announcing that a grant was received from the Monsanto Fund’s 2015 site grant initiative for $10,000.  The grant will help fund the KC Agriculture Program Outreach and Recruitment Initiative.  Specifically, the grant funds will be used towards the purchase of a utility vehicle to transport the portable agriculture lab.  Through the funds received from the grant, Kaskaskia College agriculture faculty members will visit ten area high school agriculture programs to promote awareness of agriculture careers and to encourage students to pursue a postsecondary education in agriculture.  They will also conduct two events on the KC campus to introduce agriculture education options to high school students.  All events will utilize a portable agriculture lab to demonstrate technology applications.  This will involve GPS mapping, grid soil sampling and variable rate applications.  Another presentation was held with Murray State University, where an articulation agreement was signed with the Hutson School of Agriculture.  This agreement ensures the smooth transfer of students from KC’s several agriculture degree programs to Murray’s School of Agriculture.  The agreement adjusts the 42 hours of upper-level course that must be taken at MSU to 31 hours of upper-level courses taken.  Kaskaskia College and Murray State have had a long relationship and are excited with this new transfer agreement.  In personnel action, the board approved the retirement of Assistant Professor of Philosophy Dr. Steven Weber and also approved the resignation of Academic Advisor Yvette Glasgow, and Technology Support Specialist Brittany Garrett.  The Board also approved the prevailing wages for Bond, Clinton, Fayette, Marion and Washington Counties.  The Board was presented the preliminary budget for the fiscal year 2015 – 16 and approved a resolution that a notice of availability of the tentative budget for public inspection and the date of the public hearing shall be published at least 30 days prior to July 27, 2015 in the Centralia Sentinel.  The preliminary budget for Fiscal Year 2015 – 16 is now available for public review in the Office of the Vice President of Administrative Services.  The Board approved a resolution for the FY2017 Resource Allocation Management Program capital request to the Illinois Community College Board to seek funding to construct the following projects:  Agricultural Arena with Greenhouse as priority project #1; Mechanical Technology Facility as priority project #2; Fine and Performing Arts Addition as priority project #3; and Crisp Technology Center Expansion for Industrial Maintenance as priority project #4.  The Board approved the FY 2015 – 16 through FY 2019 – 20 Five-Year Institutional Plan.  KC’s Institutional Plan serves as a driving force for budgeting and prioritizing all College activities, and is created through a collaborative process that includes staff, faculty, Board members as well as members of the community.  Each year the plan is reviewed, the progress of existing items is evaluated and their status is updated, and the plan is adjusted as needed.  The Board authorized WRF Engineers, LLC to proceed with professional services in preparing an Energy Management Plan that will be funded by Protection, Health and Safety tax levy funds.  The Board also approved a resolution for the purchase of Cosmetology program kits and Nursing Program Training Manikins and Simulators as well as refurbished nursing beds for the new Nursing Education Center and the purchase of classroom and student commons area furniture for the Nursing Education Center and Nashville Education Center.