After a tumultuous seven months, the Howard Community College board is at full strength and set to expand by two members, with new rules in place to ensure more transparency over its decision-making.

The college has gone through an uncertain period since it announced the resignations of three board members in September amid mounting criticism of the leadership style of Daria Willis, its president.

More recently, the college administration and a new union for full-time faculty have been clashing over the pace of negotiations for a new contract and the Willis administration’s crackdown on protests that it says violate newly adopted rules for such gatherings.

Responding to public concern, the county’s legislative delegation has stepped in. The General Assembly approved a delegation-backed bill that puts in place new guardrails for the HCC board and expands it by two members effective June 1.

Meanwhile, the Maryland Senate has approved Gov. Wes Moore’s nomination of four new members to replace the three former members and Del. Frank Turner, a trustee who died in February. The new board meets Wednesday, April 23.

The changes could mean greater scrutiny for Willis’ team as the spring semester wraps up in mid-May.

“I think we are hoping that these provisions in this bill will help increase stability and transparency at the community college,” state Sen. Clarence Lam said. “Folks have noticed there have been a lot of challenges and upheavals within the board and college. We think HCC is doing some really great things and we want to make sure it stays that way.”

The senators want to see both Willis and the community college succeed, he stressed.

In November, Howard County’s three state senators, Lam, Katie Fry Hester and Guy Guzzone, set out to expand the community college’s board leadership from seven to nine members. As time went on, amendments were added to the proposed legislation, many of which made it into the final bill, including the board expansion.

Other approved amendments include a required public comment period at each board meeting; online recordings of each meeting; biennial governance training for board members; and annual employee satisfaction surveys that redact personnel-related or human resources feedback before results are published.

Lawmakers dropped some amendments, including one intended to bring more transparency to the potential contract renewal process.

The Maryland General Assembly approved the new measures before the session ended earlier this month. The bill goes into effect June 1.

The Baltimore Banner reported in November that President Daria Willis, the first Black woman to lead the college, was facing rising discontent. Two dozen current and former employees and students described high staff turnover and a toxic culture that they said had negatively affected staff and student services. An anonymous online message board began raising concerns about Willis shortly after she took the helm of HCC three years ago.

The same day The Banner report was published, the county’s state senators said they would push to increase the board from seven to nine members.

While Willis originally “enthusiastically support[ed] and applaud[ed] this measure," to expand the board, after several amendments were added to the bill, she walked back her support late last month.

In written testimony dated March 26, Willis expressed her “strong opposition” to the legislation, adding “our current trustees did not seek this expansion and do not think it is essential for building student success.

“This bill raises significant concerns that could undermine the effectiveness of the Board of Trustees and the college’s operations at a time when political uncertainty around higher education and student support has never been more prevalent,” she wrote.

Willis said that conducting board meetings, public meeting access and legislative executive training “should be a last resort for any public agency.” That’s especially true for the community college, she added, because of its “proven track record of successful collaboration” with the county delegation and General Assembly support.

Ahead of the new two board members, the Board of Trustees is back to full membership after months of vacancy.

The Maryland Senate confirmed four new members to the board earlier this month: Stacey Ullrich, Baltimore Gas and Electric’s vice president of communications and marketing; H. Russell Frisby Jr., president of a local regulatory and corporate issues consulting firm; immigration attorney Alicia Altamirano; and public policy expert Michele Douglas.

Since late summer, the college’s seven-member board has been depleted by three resignations and the death of former state Del. Frank S. Turner.

“We graciously embrace our new campus leaders and their commitment to building Dragon Country,” Willis said in a statement.

“Our senior leadership team is committed to carrying out the trustees’ vision of HCC as an economic driver for Howard County and a premier resource for our neighbors and residents’ personal and professional development,” she added.

By practice, when there’s a vacancy on the college’s Board of Trustees, the county’s state senators recommend names to the Governor’s Appointments Office. Then by law, the governor makes appointments and sends them over to the Senate Executive Nominations Committee. The committee then holds individual hearings for each appointee, and if they make it through, they are confirmed by the state Senate.

Interim Board Chair Vivian Moore Lawyer said in a statement that she and fellow board members are “thrilled to welcome these exceptional individuals.”

“The board looks forward to the diversity of ideas and exchange of knowledge with these individuals in support of the president and the mission of Howard Community College,” Lawyer said.

The new members have been added to the community college’s website.

The Board of Trustees next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, April 23.