Mission College Academic Senate

Ext. 5413

Unapproved  Minutes

Thursday, September 9, 2004  

 

  I.     Call to Order/Roll Call

            The meeting was called to order by President Alex Braun at 2:11 p.m. 

Senators

   A

   P

Senators

   A

   P

Braun      (Ext. 5355) Pres/Tech

 

    X

Lavallo    (Ext. 5399)  Math

    X

   

Brichko    (Ext. 5222)  CATA

     

    X

Martin     (Ext. 5356)  Tech.

    X

 

Charland  (Ext. 5046)  Stud. Dev.

    

    X

McKay    (Ext. 5312)  Comm

 

    X

Cogswell (Ext. 5388)  AAS

    

    X

Musat      (Ext. 5331) Math

    

    X 

Cox        (Ext.5164)  CommSvc

 

    X

Perlas      (Ext. 5041)  Stud.Dev.

   

    X

Dooley    (Ext. 5379)   AAS

    

    X

Rath       (Ext. 5413)  AF/CIT

   

    X

Harris     (Ext. 5413)  AF/Comm

    

    X

Smebye   (Ext. 5305) CommServ

 

    X

Kashima  (Ext. 5319)  ESL

 

    X

Szabados  (Ext.5289)  CATA

 

    X

Laird      (Ext. 5186)  SocSci

 

    X

Zeisler     (Ext. 5426) Comm

 

    X

Guests:  C.Moyers, H.Ostrander

   

    X

Guests:  J.Patton, H.Robles

 

    X

 

 

 II.    Approval of the Minutes

            The minutes for the meeting of August 26, 2004 were accepted and approved as submitted   (M/S/P– Laird/Harris).

 

III.    Order of the Agenda

            It was agreed (M/S/U – McKay/Cox) that items VIII.A and IX.A will be addressed immediately following Item V. to accommodate guests.

 

 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 a one-day workshop on copyright issues will be held at West Valley College on September 24, 2004, from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Additional information will be provided at a later date.

            2.   Senator Charland announced that a day-long workshop on Learning Communities will be held at Mission College on Friday, October 8, 2004, from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.  Additional information will be provided at a later date.

            3.   President Braun welcomed and introduced the new Senators – Betti Cogswell for AAS, Dianne McKay for Communications, and Anna Szabados for CATA.  

            4.   President Braun advised that the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges is conducting its review of the Disciplines List for Minimum Qualifications and Equivalencies. This review is conducted on a three-year cycle. A timeline for submitting proposed changes is included with a copy of the current Disciplines List.  It was suggested that a copy of the list be provided to each department chair for review.

         5.   President Braun announced that the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges is seeking nominations for two faculty seats on the Board of Governors. An e-mail has been issued with all pertinent information.   Alex urged the Senators to consider applying and to urge their constituents to consider applying.

 

VI.    Welcome Back Orientation

         Alex will meet with the new Senators to provide general information regarding the role and responsibilities of the Academic Senate.

 

         Administrative Business/Actions/Appointments

           A. Curriculum Committee  - Dianne McKay, Chair of the Curriculum Review Committee (CRC) reported that the committee will hold its first meeting on September 13th.  The committee will discuss the development of an Overlap Policy, conduct an overall review of curriculum relative to hours by arrangement, consider an on-line curriculum process, and consider the role of the committee relative to student learning outcomes.  The committee will hold three full meetings to read and consider approval of all curriculum proposals.  The Tech Committee will meet twice to review the proposals before being considered for approval by the full committee.  Dianne advised that all new curriculum proposals should be e-mailed to Betty Ensminger within the next two weeks.  Any new curriculum and/or revised curriculum should be reviewed with the department’s representative on the CRC, passed on to the Division Chair and the Division Chair Council for review prior to submitting the proposal to the CRC.  Curriculum changes approved by the Board of Trustees in December will be effective Spring 2005.

         B. Staff Recognition – No resolutions were presented.

         C. Committee Appointments

            1.   Senator Charland requested that the Senate office issue a call for a faculty member to serve as Chair of the Student Success Committee.   

         2.   Jane Patton has asked that she be replaced on the AB 1725 Equivalency Committee due to her heavy workload at the ASCCC.  It was suggested that a Senate member consider serving in her stead. The committee’s meeting schedule is related to hiring of faculty and generally meets either at the beginning or the end of a semester.  At this time, the committee meets on Tuesdays at 4:15 p.m. or every other week.  Meetings are cancelled when there is no business to conduct.

 

            The order of the agenda was suspended at this time as agreed and moved to Item VIII.A. and the Item IX.A

 

VIII.  Old Business

 

   A.   Update Report on District Policy on Technology Accessibility

            As directed by the Academic Senate last semester, Helen Ostrander provided a draft copy of a policy to ensure the college’s and district’s compliance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.  Helen advised that she and Anne Crosby-Lundin of West Valley College prepared the document, and it is now appropriate for the Senates to call for a committee to complete the necessary work.

 

            Discussion ensued, and Helen noted that DeAnza College has a policy in place.  She pointed out that our district is behind, and she stated that she and Anne are willing to be involved in the committee.  There was some discussion relative to costs that such a policy may impose in the future, but at this time, no cost is involved.  The policy is intended to ensure that appropriate measures are being taken in the classrooms.  The following motion was approved (M/S/U – Zeisler/Charland):

 

            “that the Mission College Academic Senate accept the draft report presented at today’s meeting and recommends that an Information and Electronic Technology Accessibility Committee be formed with West Valley College and move forward in the development of a policy.”

 

            Alex will advise Vivian Lock, President of the WVC Academic Senate of today’s action on this matter.

 

IX.    New Business

 

          

   A.   Consider Request to Revert to State Minimum Quals

            Chris Moyers advised the Academic Senate of serious discrepancies relative to the district’s local minimum qualifications.  These discrepancies have impeded the hiring process within her department, particularly relative to Associate Faculty.  She provided the Senators with documentation relative to her concerns, and requested that the Academic Senate consider a recommendation that the current local qualifications be reverted back to the State’s minimum qualifications.  Chris advised that she has consulted with her counterpart at West Valley College and he is in accord with her request.

 

            During discussion, it was noted that the local qualifications have not been reviewed in many years, and in addition, many of the local qualifications in place have not been implemented consistently.  Many faculty may not even be aware of the local qualifications.  It was suggested that in light of the above, the local minimum qualifications are defunct and no longer applicable.  A review of the current local qualifications is in order, to be conducted jointly with pertinent West Valley College departments. It was stated that the fault lies within the system by which faculty receive current information.  It is hoped that the administration can resolve these types of problems and attain organizational stability and get the system in place.  Harriett advised that Human Resources has recently merged local qualification documents with state qualification documents and they are located in one place.  She praised the members of the Equivalency Committee for their tremendous efforts relative to their internal processes.

 

            The following motion was passed unanimously (M/S/U – Cox/McKay):

 

            “that the Mission College Academic Senate recommend that the district qualifications revert back to state qualifications.”

 

            Alex agreed to bring the matter to Vivian Lock, President of the WVC Academic Senate for consideration by the WVCAS.  If a like motion is passed by the WVCAS, the issue can then be brought to Human Resources as a recommendation of the District Academic Senate.  Alex also agreed to agendize the issue of local qualifications for the next meeting.                

 

            The order of the agenda was resumed.

 

VII.   Welcome Back and Discussion of Senate Goals for 2004/05 and How to Achieve The Goals

            The Senators reviewed the following “To-Do List” taken from the Mid-Term Accreditation Report:

 

            1.   Student Learning Outcomes (Program Outcomes/Course Outcomes)

            2.   Program Master Planning (Student Success/SLOs)  Pilot

            3.   Faculty Hiring Policy

            4.   Systematic Review of Courses (CRC)

            5.   Balance of Curriculum/Academic Directions (Proposal)

            6.   Review of Technology Advisory Task Force Report

            7.   Internships

            8.   General Education Review

            9.   Information Competency

            10. Cultural Pluralism Policy

            11. Basic Skills Across Curriculum

            12. Student Equity Plan

 

            The Senators reviewed the list, discussed the relative importance of each item at length and designated and categorized when each item should be addressed – either this fall, next spring, and/or beyond.  The Senators were then asked to prioritize the items for this fall using a process developed by George L. Morrisey.  The results will be compiled and reported at next week’s meeting and considered for approval. 

                                              

IX.    New Business Continued

 

   B.   Discuss and Consider Kuwait Project

            Alex advised that the Executive Management Team is entertaining a proposal to establish a community college in Kuwait for the express purpose of transferring students to four-year universities in the United States.  This proposal originated from a private educational firm in Kuwait.  The Chancellor and the two college presidents have signed an administrative memo of understanding with the firm. The memo lists a number of provisions, one of which is that all shared governance processes will be followed relative to curriculum and academic matters. Alex has been provided with a copy of the memo and he will provide the Senators with a copy, as well as all available information to ensure that the Academic Senate can make an informed decision as to whether or not to agree to this proposal. As stated in Title 5 and District Policy, the Board of Trustees must rely primarily on the advice of the Senate on academic and professional matters.

 

            Discussion ensued, and strong opposition to the proposal was expressed.  During discussion it was noted that the Academic Senate Presidents were not notified of this proposal until the visit of the Kuwait representatives. This action is not in keeping with shared governance and is viewed as a “summer surprise” by many who first learned of the proposal through an article in the San Jose Mercury News.  The Academic Senates should have been involved from the very inception of this proposal because of the academic, curricular and faculty hiring issues inherent in such a proposal.

 

            In addition to questions relative to the process used to initiate this proposal, it was suggested that the Senate must consider the following questions and concerns prior to any approval of this proposal:

 

            •     How will this proposal impact the colleges’ accreditation?  Serious questions arose during the Thailand project relative to accreditation.

            •     Who will be responsible for hiring faculty?  How can district faculty observe teaching methods, etc., as required in policy and assure that Kuwait instructors meet the teaching and hiring standards at each college?

            •     Does the faculty want this arrangement?  Does the District need this arrangement?

            •     Aside from additional income to the district, how will our students benefit from this arrangement?

            •     How will department and division chairs be compensated for the additional time that will necessarily be required of them?

            •     The Senate needs to investigate other colleges that have implemented such a program.

            •     Will women be permitted to teach in this Moslem country?

            •     Will Jewish faculty and students be welcomed?

            •     Consider safety issues, particularly relative to faculty and administrators traveling back and forth. 

            •     Consider if faculty would be willing to travel to Kuwait under the current world situation.

            •     Are there contractual issues that should be reviewed by ACE?

            •     Mission College Academic Senate has an Academic Policy and Procedures for Establishing New Programs and Departments in place that is required for any new program proposal.  If this college is to participate in this endeavor, the policy and the procedures must be followed.

 

            Jane Patton expressed her personal view that California’s community colleges exist to educate the citizens of California.  Our community colleges are public institutions, not private institutions, and they do not function to make a profit, as the Kuwait project.  One argument posed in favor of this proposal is that it will help diversify our student body.  Jane pointed out that the student population at Mission College is very diversified.  In addition, it is her view that universities will opt to take foreign students, who pay substantially higher fees, over California residents for the additional income.  Many student citizens will then be turned away from those universities and from California community colleges.  She urged the Senate to consider this matter very seriously.

 

            President Braun asked for direction on how to approach the Board on this matter, and he was directed to advise the Board of the above concerns and that the Mission College Academic Senate has an Academic Policy and Procedures for Establishing New Programs and Departments in place for any new program proposal.  Therefore, this proposal would necessarily have to fulfill the requirements of the policy.

             

  IX.  Correspondence, Publications, & Announcements

         Correspondence – None received.

         Publication/Minutes

          1.  The minutes for the August 4, 2004, and the agenda for September 1, 2004, meetings of DBAC.

            2.   The approved summary of the July 28, 2004, meeting of the District Council.

            3.   The agenda for the September 2, 2004, meeting of the WVMCCD Board of Trustees.

         Announcements/Conferences - None

          

X.     Future Agenda Items

Get item from Kashima and Rath

 

XII.   Adjournment

            The meeting was adjourned at 4: 10 p.m. (M/S/U – Cox/Harris).  These minutes are respectfully submitted by Grace Hazán, Academic Senate Secretary.