President's Update - February 2021

President's Update | February 2021

February 22, 2021

Dear Colleagues,

Welcome back to the spring—or in a few cases, winter—term. All of the California community colleges are now back in session to serve the two million students pursuing their educational goals in the community college system. Hopefully, the winter break allowed you to recharge and to get some rest before returning to the new term.

The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges remains busy working with colleges, districts, and stakeholder groups across the state to provide professional development and advice in academic and professional matters. While a light does seem to be appearing at the end of the tunnel in terms of Covid-19 in the form of the increasing access to vaccines, colleges are continuing with remote learning at least through the end of the spring term and, in most cases, through the summer. As was mentioned in the previous president’s update, the ASCCC will also be holding its events virtually, including our Executive Committee meetings, through the Curriculum Institute in July. Our first major event of the new calendar year will be the sold-out Part-Time Faculty Leadership Institute on February 18 and 19.

The Executive Committee approved the theme of “Working Collectively: Transforming and Decolonizing Institutions” for the Spring 2021 Plenary Session. We are currently working to create the program, secure keynote speakers, and fine tune the resolutions process to provide all attendees with the best possible experience. More information about the plenary, resolutions, and the Executive Committee elections process will be forthcoming, so please stay tuned.

Please forward this message to all constituents at your college. All stakeholder work is interconnected, and the system is strongest when we work together and keep each other informed. As always, academic senate presidents should feel free to contact the ASCCC at info@asccc.org should they require any assistance or have questions. We are here to serve the 58,000 faculty and two million students in the community college system in all academic and professional matters.

On behalf of the Executive Committee, I thank you for the tremendous work you have been doing and continue to do. Please know that the work you are doing is seen and appreciated, even if we cannot see you in person. We are all looking forward to seeing everyone back on campuses and at our events as soon as the science supports doing so.

Sincerely,

Dolores Davison
ASCCC President

Guided Pathways Implementation and Integration to Transfer and Careers

The Guided Pathways Task Force continues through the spring 2021 term to support faculty and colleges in implementing guided pathways frameworks. Professional development opportunities are rolling out as webinars and faculty discussions, short Canvas courses, articles and mini papers, presentations at events, and especially guided pathways resource teams. More information is available here.

Other events are being planned and will be announced shortly. If you are not already on one of the ASCCC listservs, consider signing up today here.

Culturally Responsive Student Services, Student Support, and Curriculum

Ethnic Studies

At the fall 2020 Plenary Session, the ASCCC delegates passed resolutions 9.03 and 9.04, asking that the ASCCC work with the Chancellor’s Office to strengthen the ethnic studies general education requirement and establish an ethnic studies graduation requirement. The ASCCC has been working through 5C (the California Community Colleges Curriculum Committee) to create language for Title 5 as well as meeting with the Chancellor’s Office and the Ethnic Studies Faculty Council to ensure that these resolutions are completed and supported. This work will continue throughout the spring term, including the convening of discipline faculty to examine options around C-ID descriptors as explained below. The ASCCC has also been working with our CSU and UC partners in regard to the requirements of those systems around ethnic studies to be certain that all requirements are alignment wherever possible.

ASCCC Open Educational Resources Initiative

At the 2020 ASCCC Fall Plenary Session, three resolutions related to the work of ASCCC OERI were adopted by the delegates. Two are related to Senate Bill 1359, and one is more general. We hope that all three will help faculty in their local advocacy work.

Recommendations for the Implementation of a Zero Textbook Cost* (ZTC) Designation in Course Schedules (Fall 2020, 09.01)
Ensure Course Cost Transparency for Students (Fall 2020, 20.02)

In addition, the ASCCC OERI is creating a self-paced OER Basics course that will soon be made available. This course will serve as an introduction to open educational resources, providing faculty with new options for selecting textbooks and other resources so they can make the best decisions for their students. This course is a self-paced version of the ASCCC OERI Introduction to OER Course.

Those interested in attending upcoming webinars related to the work of OERI should visit the ASCCC-OERI Webinar and Events page.

Course Identification Numbering (C-ID) System

C-ID is hosting a Discipline Input Group (DIG) meeting on February 26 and March 25 to convene faculty in disciplines related to ethnic studies. Faculty who teach in the following or related disciplines are invited to attend: Chicano/a studies, Asian-American studies, African/Africana studies, and Native American studies. The goal of the DIG is to determine whether the creation of C-ID descriptors to address the legislative mandate of AB 1460 (Weber, 2020) is possible. Registration is available here: https://cccconfer.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwuceGuqjgtGtw5uUWEfD0v5zSY87PCWbqV
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ethnic-studies-discipline-input-group-dig-meeting-tickets-141062735439

Equity Driven Systems

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI) and Anti-Racism Survey

In an effort to understand local DEI and anti-racism efforts as well as to provide support and highlight effective practices, the ASCCC distributed a survey to local academic senate presidents. The survey asks for narrative responses, so senate leaders are encouraged to collaborate with faculty colleagues to prepare responses.

Hiring Modules

The ASCCC continues to collaborate with system partners to improve hiring modules and create guidance and regulatory changes to improve the faculty hiring process. Faculty leaders are encouraged to review the modules and incorporate their content into local hiring policy, processes, and procedure reviews. The modules include resources for engaging in difficult conversations, which may be of use beyond the intended review of hiring processes.

Committee Appointments

Many faculty have been appointed to ASCCC standing committees, Chancellor’s Office advisory committees, and other state-level bodies, but the need for faculty participation is ongoing. The ASCCC is therefore continuing to recruit faculty for statewide service for the 2020-2021 academic year. Every faculty voice is important, and we encourage all interested individuals to consider filling out an application here. Each year we appoint nearly 900 faculty from around the state to a variety of committees on a wide range of subjects to ensure the faculty voice, and we have made a concerted effort to diversify those voices across the categories of race or ethnicity, gender, life experiences shaped by military service, full-time or part-time status, and rural, suburban, or urban colleges. Some appointments are for no more than two meetings per year, while others are to committees that meet twice per month. Whatever availability one may have, we are happy to utilize the expertise brought into these appointments by the many talented faculty around the state.

List of Upcoming Events

February 2021

February 18-19, 2021
2021 Part-Time Faculty Institute - Virtual Event

March 2021

March 5-6, 2021
Executive Committee Meeting - Virtual Meeting
March 26-27 Area Meetings
Area A, March 26, 2021, 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Area B, March 26, 2021
Area C, March 27, 2021, 9:00 AM – 3:30 PM
Area D, March 27, 2021, 10:00 AM – 3:30 PM

April 2021

April 14, 2021
Executive Committee Meeting - Virtual Meeting
April 15-17, 2021
2021 Spring Plenary Session - Virtual Event
April 30-May 1, 2021
2021 Career Noncredit Education Institute - Virtual Event

Upcoming Webinars

February 24, 2021
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Coffee, Tea, and GP: Meta Majors - Where Are We Now?
February 24, 2021
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM
DEI Survey Support Webinar
February 26, 2021
10:30 AM – 11:30 AM
Open Forum
February 26, 2021
11:00AM – 12:00 PM
Free Online Tools for Resources and Teaching
March 10, 2021
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM
The Role of the Academic Senate in Faculty Evaluations and Implementing Advocacy, Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity (AIDE)
March 10, 2021
3:00 PM – 4:00 PM
DEI Survey Support Webinar
March 17, 2021
10:00 AM – 11: 00 AM
Long-term Planning for GP Integration
March 18, 2021
10:00 AM – 11:00 AM
Fine Arts, Performance and Technology
March 18, 2021
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
CTE Liaison Coffee Hour - Credit for Prior Learning
March 24, 2021
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Data 101: Using Data to Ensure Learning
March 25, 2021
3:00 PM – 4:00 PM
CTE Faculty Diversification
March 31, 2021
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Coffee, Tea, and GP: Culturally Responsive Curriculum
April 6, 2021
2:00 PM - 3:00 PM
CTE Liaison Coffee Hour - Minimum Qualifications
April 7, 2021
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Coffee, Tea, and GP: Sustaining Our Work and Ourselves
April 21, 2021
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Staying on the Path: Guided Pathways and Scheduling for Student Completion