The Board of Regents called an emergency meeting, giving 24 hours' notice on July 27, to extend the contract of university President Carlos Vargas and to adopt a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) county-wide hazard mitigation plan.

After completing his annual performance review, the Board of Regents extended Vargas’s contract through June 30, 2024, with a vote of 5-0. The contract also included a salary increase consistent with the same percent increase approved by the board June 25, 2021.

At the start of the meeting, the Board of Regents moved to accept the final resolution of the hazard mitigation plan.

Through adopting the plan, the university can be eligible for disaster assistance and funding for mitigation activities. Vice President for Finance and Administration Brad Sheriff said the mitigation plan itself is a continuous process.

“We learn about different types of events that could happen. The last time the university adopted the plan was in 2016. It was for very much the same reason we adopted it today,” Sheriff said. “We want to make sure that we're connected with other community collaborators in the event of an emergency and to make sure that we are eligible for funds that could help us in that same event.”

While the plan may not have an effect on any current Protect the Nest guidelines, it could affect provisions for future actions.

“[Adopting the countywide FEMA plan could help] If we had another surge of the pandemic,” Sheriff said. “At that point, perhaps the plan would be implemented in such a way, depending on the severity, the federal or state emergency management agencies might choose to flow down some grants for certain activities.”

To see the meeting's session materials, visit the website.