Notes - October 10, 2005
De Anza Academic Senate
Approved Notes for the meeting of
October 10, 2005
Senators and Officers present: Annen, Argyriou, Bryant, Capitolo, Cordero, Dunn, Fritz, Goodwin, Hearn, Jensen
Sullivan, Joplin, Kline, Logvinenko, Mjelde, Moreno, Mosh, Olsen, Osborne, Rafaelli,
Setziol, Winters, Zarecky, and Zill
Senators and Officers absent: Chenoweth, Dolen, and Sheirich
DASB:
Classified Senate: Olivia Patlan
Administrative Liaison: Christina Espinosa-Pieb
Guests: Beth Bresnan and Karl Schaffer
[NOTE: Item numbers are reflective of agenda numbers in the order they are actually taken up at the meeting.]
The meeting was called to order at 2:32, a quorum being present.
I. Approval of Agenda and Notes: The agenda was approved as distributed with the renumbering of Item III as IIIa and the addition of a IIIb, Instant Survey: Copier Usage. The notes of the meeting of October 3rd were approved as distributed with the last sentence of Item IV to read: “It was also noted that the tour of the Foothill wellness center was completely unprepared and that responses to Brian Murphy’s requests for discussion of retention and equity issues ranged widely due primarily to the way they were engaged and the amount of time allotted for discussion from division to division."
II. Needs and Confirmations: The following Faculty were confirmed for service on the following committees - Terri Ellis and Cynthia Kaufman for the Tesha Poe Tenure Review Committee and Winters and Chris Kwak for the district Pedagogical Excellence Committee. [NOTE: Subsequent to the meeting, an additional faculty slot became available and the position was given to Jefferson Shirley, third place vote getter in the balloting among five candidates.]
IIIA. Campus Dialogue Subcommittee: Kline explained the idea of this new Senate subcommittee. He asked Executive Committee members to consider joining. He and Hearn said that Professional Growth Award (PGA) credit and flex day status would be awarded to those participating in an all day conference envisioned.
IIIb. Instant Collegewide Survey - Copier Usage:: Setziol polled those present (representatives of all divisions) and found that 1) all divisions have copiers, 2) All faculty and classified staff have access to the copier in all divisions, 3) Three divisions reported that the copier was coded to various budget codes, 4) Eight divisions reported that the usage was limited by guidelines, and 5) One division reported that there were no guidelines and faculty were expected to use their own judgement. Hearn used the item to announce that there will be a third copier available for use by all faculty and staff. Suggestions for a location towards the North end of campus are welcome.
IV. Joint Katrina Fundraising Update: Hearn told the group that, contrary to what some thought possible during the discussion October 3rd, receipts for contributions to an entity outside the college district were not allowed. However, people could still contribute on campus in the form of personal checks which would then allow tax deduction. The previously mentioned day when faculty will be asked to bring their own lunch as a way to save money which could then be donated is still in the works. Winters added that the Multicultural Staff Association is hosting "a conversation across the diaspora" October 27th from 12:00 to 2:00 p.m. encouraging, especially, people with African ancestry to discuss the immediate aftermath of the hurricane.
V. Harassment and Discrimination Policy: Hearn distributed some proposed language changes created by her and reviewed by the other officers. There was a general consensus that the new language was a step in the right direction and that much more work remained. More specifically, a variety of suggestions, comments, questions, and concerns arose in a significant discussion. Questions were raised about the relationship between the policy under discussion and the District's Violence in the Workplace Policy. It was suggested and favorably received to add the term and concept of "mobbing" in the section titled "Environment". The inclusion of "Political Ideology" as a basis of harassment was suggested. A concern was raised about the likelihood that references to political ideology in this document might be in conflict with academic freedom. Several people raised the lack of a clear definition of harassment in the document and the lack of any notion of who would address violations and by what process as the biggest dilemmas for the policy to overcome. Hearn will work on the problem of list inconsistency. Speaking of list inconsistency, it was suggested that, if the Board was really only interested in those groups with legal protections, all the lists should be simply replaced with the term "legally protected groups". Hearn will find the answer to this question. A question unanswered by either the policy or the group was "What if I am offended by something that offends no one else? Is that still harassment or discrimination?" Finally, it was suggested that the officers should look for and distribute for discussion and potential inclusion pertinent AAUP statements.
VI. Instructional Testing Center: Hearn began the item by presenting information coming from one of regular meetings with Judy Miner. To replace the center staffed by a full time classified employee, top level administrators have made it possible for faculty to bring their students to the new Assessment Center and administer tests there themselves from 8:30 to 12:30 Tuesdays and Frisdays. In other words, a physical space has been identified. Without hesitation, multiple expressions of displeasure arose. Distance education, ESL, and others students were mentioned as being particularly at risk if a solution to the problem is not found and found quickly. It was mentioned that neither the Senate Executive Committee nor any of the Planning and Budgeting teams had a say in the decision to close the Instructional testing Center. Hearn returned to presenting possibilities and mentioned that it had been suggested that faculty could staff a space or spaces to test the students of other faculty on a volunteer basis. This was quickly met with statements to the effect that "that would be wrong, just wrong". This is because a full time classified position staffing the center was eliminated and, at the very least, staffing it with faculty volunteers would likely offend the classified staff a great deal. The discussion included and gradually focus more on the problems of representation and reporting back to the Executive Committee and then, the Executive Committee taking strong action or sending clear messages of position to faculty representatives on other groups. It was suggested that, in the case of position elimination, Senate input was not possible due to considerations of confidentiality and the protocols of notification. This was quickly countered by a reminder that the prioritization of functions and positions in no way violated these principles and should be applied in all such cases.
VII. Academic Senate Orientation: The orientation was limited to Hearn giving a brief introduction to the Constitution and By-Laws, focusing on sections VI and VII part 3. She also facilitated a short discussion about whether or not the Executive Committee should require or request a written version of each division's process for selecting Senate representatives.
VIII. Social Sciences/ Child Development Division Senate Representation:
XI. Part Time Faculty Representation: Hearn introduced the idea that, given no mention of a selection process for the at large part time faculty Executive Committee member in the Senate Constitution, the group should devise one. She suggested that one possibility would be to add that slot to the annual election. It was suggested that the group explore the idea of having two slots.
X: Good of the Order:
- The group was, once again, reminded of the grand opening ceremonies for the Kirsch Center for Environmental Studies on October 14th from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
- Hearn was asked to provide information about budget for substitutes
- Kline reminded the Senators to see him about the Campus Dialogue Subcommittee
- Hearn clarified that, while it is the goal for the group to finish work on the harassment policy document October 17th, she will advise Jane Enright to pull it from the Board of Trustees' agenda for the time being.
- October 22nd is the deadline for recommending programs for the state "Exemplary Programs" award administered by the Academic Senate. Adjunct Skills, LINC Puente, and Math Performance Success were immediately mentioned as possibilities. This will be on the October 17th agenda.
- There will be a Joint Senates meeting October 31st.
- The scantron machine will be in Forum 6a during the administration building remodel.
- CAOS 132, a 1/2 unit website training course is open and ready to replace previous staff development website training activities. It was also announced that there will be a new round of "Etudes" training this quarter.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:33.