President's Update | March 2017

Advanced Placement Credit: Chancellor’s Office Policy

In the coming month, the Chancellor’s Office will be disseminating a new policy regarding the use of a passing score on the College Board Advance Placement Examination for awarding general education course credit. This policy was created in response to legislation passed last year, AB 1985 (Williams) Advance Placement Credit. The Chancellor’s Office, in collaboration with the ASCCC, was charged with creating a uniform policy regarding AP credit. The Chancellor’s Office policy is currently undergoing review through the consultation process and should be finalized in the coming weeks.

Accreditation and NACIQI

The National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI) held its meeting on February 22-24, 2017 to determine its recommendation to the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) on ACCJC’s recognition as a regional accreditor. The USDE staff provided a preliminary recommendation to NACIQI to extend recognition to ACCJC for one and a half years and to lift the limitation of scope to allow ACCJC to accredit institutions with one baccalaureate degree. NACIQI members endorsed the recommendation, which will now go to the Secretary of Education for a final decision. At the NACIQI meeting, 27 individuals provided public comments prior to the decision to endorse the recommendation. Colleagues representing City College of San Francisco and the California Federation of Teachers were in attendance to provide comment, as well as colleagues from FACCC and private citizens. ASCCC President Julie Bruno and Vice-President John Stanskas attended and provided comments aligned with the letter ASCCC submitted to the USDE. An archive of the meeting may be found on the NACIQI website.

ASCCC Accreditation Institute

The ASCCC Accreditation Institute was held on February 17 and 18 in Napa Valley. Congratulations to the chair, Craig Rutan, and the Accreditation Committee for a successful institute. Presentation materials may be found on the Accreditation Institute webpage.

Instructional Design and Innovation Institute

Registration is still open for the Instructional Design and Innovation Institute (IDII). The IDII will be held at the San Jose Marriott on March 17 and 18. The program has 14 breakouts designed around four strands: Faculty Professional Development, Campus Culture of Innovation and Leadership, Cultural Competency Across the Curriculum, and Innovations in Teaching and Learning. The general sessions will focus on Guided Pathways, Quantitative Reasoning, and Campus Culture Shift. Colleges are encouraged to send a team of faculty so that the information and strategies may be brought back to campuses and implemented to improve service to students. Registration and other information may be found on the Instructional Design and Innovation Institute webpage.

  Legislation    

The last day for legislators to introduce bills was February 17. This year, legislators have introduced 2,612 bills; 80 bills pertain to community colleges. Several bills are “spot bills” expressing legislative intent but with few details. The Legislative and Advocacy Committee is monitoring many of the bills, including but not limited to the following:

• AB 445 (Cunningham and O’Donnell) Apprenticeship Programs, Related Supplemental Instruction and Career Technical Education
• AB 504 (Medina) Student Success and Support Program Funding
• AB 637 (Medina) Student Equity Plans
• AB 705 (Irwin) Seymour-Campbell Student Success Act of 2012: Matriculation: Assessment
• AB 847 (Bocanegra) Academic Senates: Membership Rosters
• SB 25 (Portantino) Integrated K-14 System
• SB 769 (Hill) Baccalaureate Degree Pilot Program

Monthly legislative updates and additional information may be found on the Legislative Update webpage.

ASCCC Spring Plenary Session and Area Meetings

The ASCCC will hold the spring plenary session on April 20-22 at the San Mateo Marriott.  The theme for this session is “Creating Space for Collective Voice: Dialogue and Discourse.” Registration is now open, and a preliminary program is posted on the ASCCC website. Area meetings will take place on Friday, March 24 for Areas A and B and Saturday, March 25 for Areas C and D. Information including agendas, location, and travel information is posted for each area meeting. Please do not forget to RSVP to your area representatives. Resolutions for the area meeting will be posted this week. All information including hotel, program, resolutions, Area meeting information, and resources may be found on the Spring Plenary Session webpage.

 Academic Senate Foundation Spring Fling and Raffle

The Academic Senate Foundation is holding its 4th Annual Spring Fling Gala and Raffle at the Spring Plenary Session on Friday evening, April 21. Tickets may be purchased with the plenary session registration. Individual tickets are $150 and include dinner and dancing. For an elevated experience and a sneak peak to the event's festivities, VIP tables (up to 8 people) are available for purchase for $1,500. VIPs will be given early entry to a special reception with appetizers and champagne. Single tickets may be purchased with your full conference registration or separately. Tables can be reserved during the registration process. The spring fling will also include a raffle with exciting prizes such as sporting event tickets and vacation experiences. Faculty leaders are encouraged to urge their district chancellors and college presidents to purchase tables for their institutions and to join us for the event.  More information about the spring fling is available on the Spring Plenary webpage.  Information about the Academic Senate Foundation may be found at asfccc.com. 

ASCCC Spring Elections

The ASCCC will hold elections at Spring Plenary for positions on the ASCCC Executive Committee. Elections will be held for the officer positions - president, vice president, secretary and treasurer – in addition to the positions of Area A, Area D, north, south, and at-large representatives. The ASCCC Executive Committee and the entire organization function best when we have a wide variety of perspectives and voices contributing to our deliberations and our work.  We are at our best when our faculty diversity is well represented, not just in terms of ethnicity but also in terms of representing counseling and student services, noncredit, career technical education, and others.  Please consider running for one of our positions. Contested elections are a sign of a healthy organization. Any current Executive Committee representative can provide additional information on serving in a position or on the elections process. Further information on the elections is posted under the "Resources" tab on the ASCCC Spring Plenary page.

ASCCC 2017-2018 Committees

If serving on the Executive Committee is too much of a commitment, consider serving on one of our other standing or ad hoc committees. The ASCCC will form the 2017-2018 committees in the months following the election. We strive for diversity when appointing faculty to our committees, including individuals that are new to state level service as well as those with more experience. We also need volunteers to serve on the many statewide committees, work groups, and task forces that need ASCCC representation. If you are interested, please consider filling out the Application for Statewide Service form.

Upcoming ASCCC Executive Committee Meetings

• April 19, 2017, San Mateo Marriott

  Meeting information, agendas, materials, and minutes from past meetings may be found on the Executive Committee webpage.

Upcoming ASCCC Events

• Instructional Design and Innovation Institute, March 17-18, 2017, San Jose Marriott
• Area Meetings, March 24, 2017 (Areas A and B) and March 25, 2017 (Areas C and D). Information including agendas, location, and travel information is posted here for each area meeting. 
• Spring Plenary Session, April 20-22, 2017, San Mateo Marriott
• CTE Leadership Institute, May 5-6, 2017, San Jose Marriott
• Faculty Leadership Institute, June 15-17, 2017, Sacramento Sheraton Grand
• Curriculum Institute, July 12- 15, 2017, Riverside Convention Center

The ASCCC is always happy to provide assistance or guidance on any senate-related topic.  We also make visits to local colleges to connect directly with academic senates or other faculty bodies when appropriate.  Please feel free to contact us if you are interested in these services. More information may be found at www.asccc.org.