Thursday December 3, 2015
President's Update - December
Hello senate presidents and other interested readers,
The end of 2015 is quickly approaching. We hope that all of you have had a great fall term at your colleges. As we all prepare for the holiday season, the ASCCC has a few updates to help you keep your local senates informed and to prepare for the spring semester.
David Morse,
President
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2015 Fall Plenary Session
The 2015 ASCCC Fall Plenary Session was an outstanding event. The level of energy and enthusiasm was impressive, and we enjoyed spending time not only with faculty colleagues but also with guests from Governor Brown’s Office, the Legislative Analyst’s Office, the Chancellor’s Office, the Community College League, and others. Thank you to all of our presenters and attendees for sharing this excellent experience with us.
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Special Executive Committee Elections
At the 2015 Fall Plenary Session, three new members were selected by the body to serve on the ASCCC Executive Committee
in special elections to fill vacant positions. Three of our members resigned over the summer to take administrative positions. Grant Goold was elected to serve as Area A Representative, Cleavon Smith as North Representative, and Adrienne Foster as South Representative. All three newly elected members had been serving as interim appointees to the same positions, and all three were elected by acclamation. Congratulations to Grant, Cleavon, and Adrienne for now formally becoming full members of the Executive Committee.
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Instructional Design and Innovation Institute
On January 21-23, the ASCCC will present its first Instructional Design and Innovation Institute at the
Riverside Convention Center. This new event is intended to promote and share ideas regarding innovation in a variety of areas: basic skills, online instruction, student services, career technical education, classroom technology, college processes and climate, and others. With the many challenges we face in all areas of our on-campus work, innovation and creativity are a necessity to meet the needs of our students and communities. We hope that this new institute will encourage interaction among colleagues and creative discussion that can help to improve all of our institutions. If you are looking for creative solutions to entrenched problems or have found a solution that works at your college that you can share, this institute is the place to do so. Please encourage as many individuals from your college to attend as possible, whether they be faculty, administration, or staff as a
team to kick off your spring term with fresh ideas for meeting our mission more effectively. The preliminary program and more information can be found here. Because of the themes, local funding from Student Equity, SSSP, and Basic Skills may be used to send members of your college.
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New Chancellor Search
With Chancellor Harris having announced his retirement effective in April, the Board of Governors has approved a process for choosing a new chancellor. The majority of the search committee will be composed of Board of Governors members. Additional representatives will include an appointee from the Community College League CEO Board, the President of the CCC Foundation, and the President of the ASCCC, with the ASCCC Vice-President serving as an alternate. The search committee expects to begin its work in January 2016.
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Accreditation Task Force Report
The 2015 Chancellor’s Office Task Force on Accreditation was approved by the Board of Governors in November. The Board based its decision in part on an overwhelming number of endorsement letters for the report received from organizations throughout the California Community College System. The task force will be expanded and will begin work immediately to develop a recommendation on a specific course of action regarding the future of accreditation for California’s community colleges. This recommendation is expected to be presented to the Board for action in March 2016.
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Task Force on Workforce, Job Creation, and a Strong Economy
The Board of Governors approved the final recommendations of the
Task Force on Workforce, Job Creation, and a Strong Economy, or the Workforce Task Force, at its November meeting. Work has already begun regarding the implementation of many of the recommendations. The ASCCC will be directly involved in these implementation discussions and will keep faculty updated on developments as the implementation moves forward. The final report and recommendations can be found here.
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The Passing of an ASCCC Stalwart
On November 19, 2015, ASCCC Senator Emeritus Doug Sabiston passed away. Doug was a faculty member, the very first academic senate president at Contra Costa College, and a regular attendee at ASCCC events for more than 20 years and as recently as Spring 2015. No one demonstrated greater dedication to the ASCCC and to faculty voice than Doug. We will miss his presence and his wisdom at ASCCC plenary sessions.
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Executive Committee Meeting
The ASCCC Executive Committee will hold its next meeting on January 8, 2016 at Cerritos College
and on January 9 at the Sheraton Cerritos. All local faculty leaders and others are welcome to join us to hear our deliberations and engage with us. More information on Executive Committee Meetings can be found here.
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Upcoming ASCCC Events
We hope to see many of you at our Executive Committee Meetings and other events throughout the spring. Please feel free to contact us whenever we can offer assistance or guidance to you on any senate-related topic. We are also available to visit local colleges to connect directly with your senates or other faculty bodies when appropriate. We wish all of you a safe and happy holiday season.
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