By Gloria Heller
The Faculty Association is preparing a study, called the Part-timers' Office-hours Project (POP), regarding the newly-instituted part-timers office hours program here at SMC.  POP will both describe the program's successes and also demonstrate the necessity of its expansion.   Luckily, the SMC Faculty Association created  POP because it provides everybody on campus with a personal opportunity to influence the next contract.  The current contract established paid office hours, for the first time ever for faculty employed part-time at SMC (as you may know).  However, the current contract awards one office hour a week to only a sub-set of the over 900 part-time faculty on campus. 
The Faculty Association created POP to help promote an increase in the number of faculty who are paid to meet with their students in an office hour.  POP is, thus, your project.  This campaign is everybody's responsibility including: (1) those part-timers who do not teach the specified courses or enough of a load to have been granted a paid office hour; (2) those full-timers who understand the plight of under-served students; (3) those administrators who recognize the dilemma of maintaining SMC's academic and transfer standards of excellence with less-than-full-service faculty; and, of course, (4) these instructors who are in the newly selected group of part-timers with office hours: Diana Aghabegian, Jim  Apostolos, Sharon Bell, Vickie Blaho, Sylvia Bock, Lois Bostwick, David Burak, Laura Campbell, Troy Cardenas, Leah Culberg, John Curry, Becky Curtis, Lisa Dague, Carolyn Daly, Carol Dell'Amico, Catherine Edelmann, Deidra Faye,    Gilda    Feldman,   Keith   Fitzgerald,

Suzanne Floyd, John Fredrick, Carol Fuchs, Barbara Gildner, Pat Girard, Janine Goldfarb-Young,   Maureen    Gunson,   Mike   Gustin,
Lowell Habel, Paul Hansom, Uri Hertz, Rena Horowitz, Kathy Hughes, Linda Janakos, Andrea Kahn, Marc Kaplan, Teresa Kounin, Matilda Krivan, Doug Lane, Andrea Lee, Joe Longo, Matthew Manson, Meredith Marshall, Stefan Mattessich,  Chris  McCabe,  Chris Meeks, Dennis Miller, J.F. Miller, Dana Morgan, Danielle Muller, Launa Nelson, Krystyna Oakes, Roberta Orona-Cordova, Steve Overall, Lana Phillips, Gina Pilic, Hassan Pourtavasoli, Sandra Powazek, Karen Quitschau, Bob Reichle, Edy Rose-Berens, George Rubio, Sheila Salley, Lisa Saperston,  Barbara Schelbert, Rita Stafford, Juila Stein, Steve Steinberg, Mary Jo Stirling,  Michael Tracey, Carol Treadwell, Tamas Ungvari, Conlin Wagner, Andrew Walzer, William Young, Janice Yudell.
Of course, one-on-one contact with professors is a vital part of students' academic experience, and there has been a flurry of recently published research that explains why and how interaction during an office hour benefits students.  Here at SMC we are gathering information about the impact of our new paid office hours.  At the end of last semester we sent out a questionnaire for students in participating part-timers' sections, and this semester we will be analyzing the data.  Both the Faculty Association and the Administration are interested in the results of this survey.  [NOTE: a hearty thank-you to those instructors who were able to follow through with completed questionnaires; your assistance is invaluable to the success of this project.]
Although everybody knows paying part-timers for office hours is "the right thing to do," making the case for expansion of this initial group of faculty is a creative challenge.  Just stating that "holding office hours is what a professional educator does" is not enough.  Many have argued that if all full-time instructors are required to hold office hours, then so should all part-time instructors because students are students, no matter who their instructor is.  However, the moral high-ground does not a convincing argument make. 
The Faculty Association wants to include your ideas in the rationale it is presenting for an increased office hours program. The Negotiating Council is ready for your input for the upcoming round of negotiations. What information or form of persuasion would you suggest the Faculty Association Team bring to the table--besides the results of our survey?  Please email your suggestions to:  heller_gloria @smc.edu or call (310) 434-8615.
All parties are concerned with the health of SMC.  POP is one way to ensure that good health.  Now how do we ensure the good health of POP?  What would you be willing to do?  Be forthright; be specific; be forthcoming.  Help make paid office hours professional reality for all part-timers at SMC.  Here is an opportunity to contribute directly to the greater good for the students, your colleagues, your college.  Seize it.