Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
The Eastern New Mexico Board of Regents on Friday publicly approved the contract that had been awarded university Chancellor James Johnston early this year.
Regents in January said they had approved an extension and pay increase for Johnston, but no public vote had taken place, a violation of the state’s Open Meetings Act.
At Friday’s regents meeting, Regent Lance Pyle introduced a motion for a public vote on Johnston’s contract. “Although there was no vote in the (January) executive session … I move to publicly ratify the contract to clear up any public confusion,” Pyle said.
The motion was approved 4-0. Student Regent Logan O’Brien was not present. Reached after the meeting, O’Brien said he would have voted for the contract renewal if he’d been there.
The Department of Justice on April 1 issued a letter to ENMU regents, stating Johnston’s contract was “not valid” because of the Open Meetings Act violation. DOJ became involved following formal complaints from The Eastern New Mexico News and the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government.
“(T)he Board of Regents must cure this matter as soon as practical by approving these final actions in an open public meeting,” read the letter from Billy Jimenez, assistant attorney general.
A spokesperson for the AG’s office said Friday the regents’ appeared to have resolved the issue.
“That open meeting and vote took place (Friday),” said Ashley Sterling, deputy communications director for the attorney general.
“We appreciate the regents’ attention to these very important issues and obligations as public officials.”
Melanie Majors, executive director of FOG, said “We are pleased that the Board of Regents chose to act on the public’s behalf by conducting business in an open forum.”
Johnston’s contract was extended to Jan. 2, 2028. It provides him a $1,000 per month car allowance and opportunity for a $50,000 retention bonus in addition to an annual salary of $301,125.
In other business:
• Regents approved emeritus status for retiring personnel.
Professor emeritus in mathematics was approved for Regina Aragon, professor emeritus of theater to Anne Beck, instructor emeritus in bilingual education to Geni Flores and professor emeritus in education to Alan Garrett.
• Regents reviewed routine 2024-2025 budgetary matters for ENMU in Portales, ENMU-Roswell and ENMU-Ruidoso.
• Regents discussed a $1.3 million insurance settlement regarding unspecified roof damage to a building at ENMU-Roswell.
