TC board swears in trustees, approves training
TEXARKANA, Texas — Texarkana College Board of Trustees swore in new member Brad Carlow for Place 6 and approved a request for proposal for maintenance reliability training in a regular meeting Monday afternoon.
The board swore in trustees for Places 5, 6 and 7, but Carlow was the only new member, taking the place of Kyle Davis, who resigned last month.
In the November 2020 general election, trustees Kaye Ellison (Place 5), Davis (Place 6) and George Moore (Place 7), ran unopposed and were declared reelected to the Board through the end of 2026. In December 2020, Davis resigned his position (Place 6) leaving a vacancy to be filled by appointment.
Carlow was appointed to fill the vacant position until the next election scheduled for November 2022. Ellison and Moore were sworn-in to fulfill terms ending in 2026.
Carlow, a native of Maud, Texas, will serve as an at-large trustee for all of Bowie County.
He is a graduate of Texarkana College (1987) and Texas A & M University College Station (1989- BBA Accounting) and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant.
He is also the owner and manager of Texarkana Tractor, and is the son of longtime Bowie County Judge James Carlow.
The board also approved a proposal provided by training provider, Strategic Maintenance Reliability, LLC, to facilitate specialized, engineering-level training for local industrial partners through TC’s Community and Business Education Division. This opportunity will allow local manufacturers to have access to customized training in the development of a tailored maintenance and reliability plan for their specific industry and equipment needs.
This action will be aided by funds from the $250,000 grant TC received from the Texas Workforce Commission’s Skills Development Fund last month.
In a December interview, Mendy Sharp, executive director of TC’s Community and Business Education Center, said she was hopeful that these funds will aid businesses or industries in the Texarkana area to provide meaningful training and professional development to enhance their business operations or production.
VP of Operations, Brandon Washington, said at Monday’s meeting the training provided will be for preventative maintenance, and will be a service provided from TC to local businesses who don’t already have that training. He added that interest has already been garnered from a few local businesses.
In other news from the meeting trustees took action to move forward on the purchase and installation of a new 100,000-watt radio transmitter for KTXK Radio Station.
“The current 100,000-watt radio transmitter for KTXK is 17 years old and is no longer reliable,” President Dr. Jason Smith said. “The manufacturer of the transmitter no longer supports the transmitter with parts or service, making it increasingly difficult and expensive to have repairs done and keep KTXK on the air. The costs associated for the purchase of the transmitter will be covered by a grant received by KTXK and will greatly reduce our energy consumption for the radio tower.”
The cost of the transmitter including remote control operation is estimated at $96,000.
VP of Instruction, Dr. Donna McDaniel, said student enrollment is down 8% overall in the new semester, but dual credit enrollment has maintained at a steady pace.
“If you look at the national research, as well as the state research, it’s those non-traditional students who are struggling through COVID,” McDaniel said. “That’s probably what the decrease in enrollment is related to.”