Mission College Academic Senate

Ext. 5413

Approved  Minutes

Thursday, February 17, 2005

 

I.       Call to Order/Roll Call

            The meeting was called to order by President Alex Braun at 2:10 p.m. 

Senators

   A

   P

Senators

   A

   P

Braun      (Ext. 5355) Pres/Tech

 

    X

Martin     (Ext. 5356)  Tech.

    X

 

Brichko    (Ext. 5222)  CATA

    X  

 

McKay    (Ext. 5312)  Comm

 

    X

Cogswell (Ext. 5388)  AAS

    

    X

Musat      (Ext. 5331) Math

    

    X 

Cox        (Ext.5164)  CommSvc

 

    X

Ostrander  (Ext. 5274) Stud Dev.

 

    X

Dooley    (Ext. 5379)   AAS

    

    X

Perlas      (Ext. 5041)  Stud.Dev.

    X

 

Harris     (Ext. 5413)  AF/Comm

    

    X

Rath       (Ext. 5413)  AF/CIT

    X

 

Kashima  (Ext. 5319)  ESL

 

    X

Smebye   (Ext. 5305) CommServ

 

    X

Laird      (Ext. 5186)  SocSci

    

    X

Szabados  (Ext.5289)  CATA

 

    X

Lavallo    (Ext. 5399)  Math

    

    X

Zeisler     (Ext. 5426) Comm

 

    X

Other: T.McCracken (ASB Rep)

 

    X

Other: K.Raczkowski (ASB Rep)

 

    X

Guests:  R.Charland, M.Myint,

   

    X

Guests: J.VanTassel

 

   X

 

            Kellie Raczkowski introduced Travis McCracken who will serve as the second ASB representative to the Academic Senate.

 

II.     Approval of the Minutes

            The minutes for the February 10, 2005, meeting were accepted and approved with the following corrections (M/S/U – Harris/Raczkowski):

           

            Page 2, Item VI.A – Starting with the second sentence, all dates are changed from 2006 to 2005.

            Page 2, Item VI.C.2 – The date is changed from March 3, 2006 to March 3, 2005.

 

III.    Order of the Agenda

            The Senators agreed to postpone Item VIII.A at the request of Senator Kashima (M/S/U).

 

IV.    Oral Communication from the Public

            There was no oral communication from the public at today's meeting.

        

  V.    Information & Announcements 

         1.   Senator Szabados announced that there will be a free virtual reality workshop on Friday, February 25, 2005, in the Telecommunications Building from 9:30 a.m. to Noon.  New technology will be introduced.

            2.   Senator Szabados announced that there will be a free Digital Photography Workshop on Friday, March 4, 2005, in the Technology Building from 1:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m.

            3.   On March 18, 2005, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Dr. Peter Olson from New York will be the keynote speaker on “How to Create Successful Online Course Work.”  The event includes free lunch and will be held in the Telecommunications Building.

            4.   The ASB is hosting a Black History Month event on Monday, February 28, 2005, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at Hospitality Management.

            5.   On March 11, 2005, there will be a second Learning Community Workshop in Hospitality Management from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.  The fee of $25.00 includes breakfast and lunch.  The keynote speaker is Dr. Vincent Tinto from Syracuse University.

            6.   A workshop on Student Learning Outcomes will be held April 7th and 8th in the College of San Mateo.

            7.   The Accreditation Commission’s annual report has been received, indicating that the Mission College mid-term report has been accepted.

           

VI.    Administrative Business/Actions/Appointments

 A.     Curriculum Committee  - No report was presented at today’s meeting.

 B.     Committee Appointments 

         1. MC Academic Senate Rep. to GAP – The Senators selected Pat Hudak by written ballot to serve as the Senate’s representative to GAP.

         2.  MC Academic Senate Rep. to District Council – The Senators selected Betti Cogswell to serve as the Senate’s representative to the District Council (M/S/U – Cox/Harris).

 C.     Oral Reports

         1.  Staff Development  - No report was presented at today’s meeting.

         2.  Update Report from MCAS Subcommittees on MCAS Goals & Objectives –

              a)  Student Equity Plan – The plan was approved at last week’s meeting.

              b)  Student Learning Outcomes Committee – The committee’s work is progressing.

              c)  Academic Directions Committee – This committee’s work involves the Balance of 

                  Curriculum, which the full Senate will handle.  Alex advised that he is meeting with the VP    

                        Of Instruction next week to discuss ideas on how to manage the college’s academic 

                        Direction, particularly as it relates to faculty, how to deal with program review and

                        accreditation issues as well.

         3.  Other – A concern was raised relative to the Senate’s role in instructional planning and

              procedures.  Alex advised that he is aware of the concern and has kept the Senators apprised of

                  the progress being made by the Budget Allocation Model Subcommittee of DBAC.  He will be                  bringing ideas to the Senate on how to increase the Senate’s profile and influence in the budget

                  process.  He will continue to provide information and progress reports to the Senators.

 

VII.   Old Business

 

 A.     Discuss Senate’s Role re: Academic Directions Relative to New Facilities

            Last week, President Braun asked the Senators to consider how to organize the Senate in order to provide input relative to the ongoing facility initiatives that involve the renovation of the main building, construction of the new education building, and the implications involved.  He stated that faculty members are driven by what is considered the college’s academic direction – form follows structure.  The Senate needs to decide the future direction of the college.  The buildings need to be designed in a suitable form and decisions need to be made within the next six months or else facilities will drive education.

 

            The Senators spoke to the issue at length. During discussion a question arose as to who will ultimately make the decisions on construction issues.  It was reported that some decisions, particularly regarding the third floor remodel, were made some time ago.  It has been promised that the architect will consult faculty to determine their needs. A project manager is to be hired and GAP will serve as the primary decision-making body for the college. It is one of the Academic Senate’s responsibilities to provide advice on academic and professional matters.  The Academic Senate can take its recommendations to GAP and integrate those recommendations with others, keeping in mind that the Board of Trustees has agreed to rely primarily on the advice of the Academic Senate.

 

            Relative to academic directions and facilities, it is important to consider the entire community college system.  Many other community colleges are considering alternative delivery methods, whether to focus on transfer, vocational education, under-represented groups, etc. It was emphasized that the position of the college’s institutional research analyst must be filled before anything can be done.  It is important to consider the data on trends that will necessarily effect the direction the college will take, and this will impact the direction for a balance of curriculum. For example, stem cell research, pharmacology, and biogenetic engineering are expected to be a major factor in the resurgence of Silicon Valley.  The college needs to keep up the science departments.

 

            It was noted that students shop around to find the college that best suits their needs and they attend various colleges to get through their programs. Statistics from the National Communication Association’s Vol. 41, No. 2 Spectra publication were quoted as follows:

 

            “Two-thirds of community college students attend only part time, some try several colleges at the same time, and nearly one in six students already has a bachelor’s degree, according to the Community College Survey of Student Engagement.  About 45% of students are first in their family to attend college, 60% work more than 20 hours a week, 84% never participate in extracurricular activities, 53% want to transfer to a four-year school, and sadly, 45% predict financial burdens will cause them to drop out. (USA Today, November 29, 2004)”

 

            This college should offer students all the classes they require for any given program.  This would help hire faculty and attract students to the college. It would be a mistake to build and not meet the needs of the students. The student representatives expressed their appreciation for the Senate’s concerns relative to students.  At a conference of student trustees, Kellie remarked that most districts do not seem to care about their students and build for money, not for the students.

 

            It was noted by the Student Representatives to the Senate that students are concerned about the following issues, which they anticipate will be addressed in the renovation of the main building:

 

                  1.   Heating and air conditioning in the main building is a major issue and needs to be  

                        addressed.

                  2.   The desks currently used in the classrooms are extremely uncomfortable, and this makes it

                       difficult for the students to focus on learning.  This does not provide an incentive to return

                        to the college.

                  3.   There is a great need for smart classrooms.

                  4.   Accessibility and student services need to be addressed from the initial design of buildings.

                  5.   Too few certificate programs are offered and do not always correlate to a time factor.  It                          would be helpful for students to know exactly what classes and units will be available at

                        what time.

 

            Other concerns mentioned during discussion dealt with the campus facilities, including furniture, as they relate to ADA.  It is imperative that the architect keeps ADA guidelines in mind. This institution is teaching adults, and the college must accommodate the students’ needs as adults.  The existing square footage must be maintained, and the faculty needs to be proactive and involved in how the square footage is to be utilized. It was noted that the college has an Education and Facilities Master Plan that should be brought into the discussions. It was emphasized that when decisions are made, we must not lose sight of the long-term consequences and the “big picture.”  The college must put more funds toward marketing.  Other community colleges in the area obviously have larger marketing budgets given the advertising that is available from those colleges.

 

            The Academic Senate must have input to discussions on the direction of the college.  It was suggested that the Academic Senate consult with campus and industry experts as to what is needed and obtain their view on future trends in industry.  Another suggestion was to hold open forums sponsored by the Academic Senate before summer and provide the opportunity for faculty and staff to have input before final decisions are made.

 

            In summary, in order for the Academic Senate to maintain an appropriate vigil, the following documents and issues need to be considered:

 

                  •  The Balance of Curriculum Document    

          •  The Educational & Facility Master Plan document.  This is a central document that drives the programs and facilities for the college

             •   Student Equity Plan – This plan will have an impact on educational programs.

             •   Establish a permanent link between the group choosing the project manager and the Academic Senate via Jim Burrell.   

          •   Discuss how to implement forums sponsored by the Academic Senate.

       Alex asked the Senators to poll their constituents on what future trends they see in their discipline areas as far as education is concerned and be prepared to discuss the matter further at the next meeting.

 

VIII.  New Business

 

   A.   Consider Purchase of Anti-plagiarism Software or Service

            This item was postponed to a future Senate meeting.

 

  B.    Consider Tenure Credit for Temporary Faculty Hired to Permanent Faculty Position

            Senator Kashima addressed the Senate on an issue that affects three faculty members at Mission College and two faculty members at West Valley College, with specific reference to language instructor Anna Brichko.  These faculty members were hired as temporary full-time faculty.  Due to the hiring freeze, they were not given the opportunity to hire on as permanent faculty.  They were then hired as permanent full-time faculty when the freeze was lifted and placed on tenure track.  In nearly every case, when a temporary hire becomes permanent, the first year of temporary work is credited towards tenure.   In these cases, Human Resources, citing the Ed Code as the rationale for this decision, has denied tenure credit because of a break in employment service.  It was opined that the language in the Ed Code does not prevent the district from granting tenure credit under such conditions.

 

            Since these faculty were denied work due to the hiring freeze, causing a gap in their service, the Academic Senate is being asked to bring this matter to the Board of Trustees and request that a written policy be developed with regard to tenure credit that protects those not hired for a second year because of an action taken by the district. In addition, the Board should be asked to grant the tenure credit to the referenced faculty members.  

 

            Discussion ensued and several Senators indicated strong support to grant tenure credit to all those involved, particularly for Anna Brichko, who was voted Teacher of the Year by the students during her first year.  It was pointed out that the March 2003 Board meeting overflowed into the gym because the college community and the public turned out to applaud new faculty receiving tenure, who were pink-slipped, and Anna received the most commendations from the public.  Tenure is a faculty prerogative, and although the Ed Code governs tenure regulations, Human Resources cannot dictate those regulations.  The tenure process is a collegial process determined by faculty and faculty has the right to endorse this action. Alex explained that tenure is an overlapping responsibility of the Academic Senate and ACE.  He indicated that he would like to develop a statement to read to the Board at the March 17th Board meeting.   

 

            It was stated that these upstanding and outstanding faculty members deserve the support of the Academic Senate, and since their tenure review teams support them as well and there is no cost to the district, the following motion was passed unanimously (M/S – McKay/Smebye):

 

            “that the Mission College Academic Senate directs President Braun to place an item on the agenda for the March 17, 2005, meeting of the Board of Trustees in support of granting tenure credit to the three Mission College faculty members mentioned.”

 

At this time, President Braun announced that next week’s Senate meeting will be cancelled.

 

X.     Correspondence, Publications, & Announcements

         Correspondence

            1.   Letter dated January 31, 2005, from the Accrediting Commission including a report on the January 12-14, 2005, Commission meeting.

            2.   Letter dated February 14, 2005, from the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges Counseling & Library Faculty Issues Committee regarding information on web-based counseling standards and/or guidelines.

         Publication/Minutes

         1.   The approved minutes for the February 2, 2005, meeting of DBAC and the agenda for the February 16,. 2005, meeting of DBAC.

            2.   The agenda for the February 17, 2005, meeting of the ACE Executive Council.

            3.   The February 10, 2005, issue of the DVC FORUM from the Diablo Valley College Faculty Senate.

            4.   The agenda for the February 17, 2005, meeting of the Board of Trustees.

            5.   The agenda for the February 17, 2005, meeting of the M-WV Land Corporation.

            6.   The approved summary notes for the November 24th, and  December 8, 2004, meetings of GAP.

         Announcements/Conferences

         1.  Staff Development is accepting applications for mini-grants up to $200.  The application deadline is March 7th.  Contact Heather Rothenberg, Staff Development Coordinator for additional information.

 

XI.    Future Agenda Items

No new items were presented at today’s meeting.

 

XII.   Adjournment

            The meeting was adjourned at 4:00 p.m. (M/S/U – McKay/Cox).  These minutes are respectfully submitted by Grace Hazán, Academic Senate Secretary.