FULL-TIME FACULTY SENATE
Meeting Minutes – August 28, 2009
HBC 411 1:00 PM
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President Devorah Feldman called the meeting to order.
Agenda
A motion was made that the agenda be approved. Motion passed.
Minutes
A motion was made that the minutes be approved. Motion passed.
Elections
The Senate elected Professor Amardeep Kahlon as Secretary.
The Senate elected Dr. Al Purcell as Parliamentarian.
Vacancy on Faculty Senate
There is a vacancy at Eastview in Faculty Senate. President Devorah Feldman will ask the Nominating Committee to solicit nominees from EVC and then a special election will be called to fill the vacancy.
Meeting Dates
President Devorah Feldman displayed the proposed meeting dates for the year. The meeting schedule was approved and is now posted on the Faculty Senate web site at http://www.austincc.edu/ftfac/meetings.php.
Standing Committees:
President Devorah Feldman invited volunteers to fill vacancies on the Academic Affairs, Nominating Committee and Audits and Elections Committees. Several senators volunteered for these committee assignments. The Senate approved the selections presented to the Senate Standing Committees.
Proposed Changes to F-10
Professor Jon Luckstead headed this agenda item by giving an update on the F-10 considerations and he related that the Board of Trustees (BOT) was not entirely satisfied with the salary comparison methodology used. He related that Professor Terry Thomas had spent an immense amount of time and effort to prepare recommended revisions to the F-10 policy. Professor Luckstead reported that although the cost of living adjustment was built in to the F-10 recommendations delivered to the board, the cost of living in Austin may be higher than other cities as Austin is a very attractive city for people moving from other parts of the country. Austin has weathered the recession better than many other cities and thus the cost of living was higher. He noted that BOT will address the F-10 issue/recommendations at the September meeting. It was suggested by some senators that the college may wish to collect data from North Harris besides just Tarrant and Dallas districts as the data collection is not a time consuming process. Professor Luckstead requested that the senate recommendations be sent back to the committee. Professor Thomas recommended that a letter be drafted from the senate to the BOT that this report was unanimously supported by the previous senate and this support has not changed with the election of the new senate. Jon Luckstead will draft this letter.
Grievance Process
Professor Domingo Alba brought up this agenda item to present to the senate the changes that he was recommending to the grievance procedure at ACC. He informed the senators that although the grievance procedure had been removed from the faculty page and the main ACC page, it could be found on the web site of the VP of Human Resources. He compared the grievance committee structure at ACC to that of University of Texas at Austin and Texas State University in San Marcos. Professor Dan Dydek moved that the report and requested amendments presented by Professor Alba be reviewed by the Senate Policies and Procedures Committee. Professor Alba offered a friendly amendment that the committee report back at the next senate meeting. A second was offered by Professor Terry Thomas. Motion passed.
Academic Freedom
This agenda item was brought up by Professor Domingo Alba. He expressed concerns about issues of academic freedom and possible violations. Terry Thomas moved that this matter of academic freedom be referred to the Senate Standing Committee on Academic Affairs. Professor Dan Dydek provided a second. Motion passed.
Workforce Issues, Ombudsman, Deans Accountability Committee
This item was brought forward by Professor Domingo Alba. He expressed concern about the manner in which chairs of workforce departments are chosen. They are appointed by the deans as opposed to elected as in academic departments. A discussion ensued on this topic and many senators felt that this process of appointing a workforce department chair should be revisited as a lengthy department chair tenure could lead to autocratic practices being put into place thus undermining department morale. It was suggested that although some workforce departments are small they could still have processes in place to elect a department chair. Professor Veronica Reyna moved that this issue be sent to the Senate Policies and Procedures Committee. Professor Thomas provided a second. Motion passed.
Professor Domingo Alba brought forward a request that the senate look at the absence of an Ombudsman in a college the size of ACC. Professor Dan Dydek moved that this issue be tabled until the next meeting. Professor Thomas provided a second. Motion passed.
Professor Alba moved that the Dean’s Accountability Committee be allowed to continue with the new Senate. A very brief discussion ensued about upward evaluations. Professor Femi Onabajo provided a second. Motion passed.
Shared Governance
President Devorah Feldman presented the report by Dr. Kinslow on Shared Governance. A lengthy discussion followed on the structure of the Shared Governance Council, the role of the co-chair and the difference between K-12 institutions and two-year colleges. A senator suggested that in some areas the administration wants to treat ACC faculty and staff like those of a K-12 institution. A senator suggested that the Senate create a formal response to the Shared Governance memo by Dr. Kinslow. There were serious concerns raised about how some committee and council meetings were conducted. There were concerns expressed about lack of communication with the BOT as well. Professor Alba made a motion to send a copy of the Faculty Senate meeting minutes to the Board as a courtesy in the spirit of Open Communication. Professor Palmer provided a second. Motion passed. President Devorah Feldman will cc the Board while providing a copy of the minutes to all Full-time Faculty.
Textbooks
Professor Palmer requested textbooks that faculty may not be using for Student Support Services to use for students who might need them. Professor Linda Clement informed the senators of the library reserve system.
Adjourn
Professor Luckstead made a move to adjourn the meeting. Motion passed.
Senators Present
Devorah Feldman, Jon Luckstead, Dan Dydek, Frank Cronin, Tasha Davis, Femi Onabajo, Terry Thomas, Linda Clement, Amardeep Kahlon, Ann Palmer, Kim Taylor, Vacant, Al Purcell, Valleri Bond, Ron Bass, Sylvia Owens, Veronica Reyna, Irie Glajar, Domingo Alba, Alicia Garza, Zoe Van Sandt
Senators Absent
Lisa McCartney, Daisy Diaz-Alemany, Julie Wauchope
Visitors
Samuel Echevarria, Mocha Jean Herrup, Tobin Quereau
Respectfully Submitted by Amardeep Kahlon, Secretary, Full-Time Faculty Senate
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