Pizza, Posters and Picketing--All This and a Fond Goodbye to a FOF

By Fran Chandler, President

Faculty Association leaders can always be seen and heard at the monthly meetings of the SMC Board of Trustees; however, the faculty presence at the Monday, May 3, meeting will be different. The Association’s message to the Board will come in two parts that might initially seem at odds with one another but are actually in concert. First, VP of Planning and Development, former Faculty Association member and FOF (Friend of Faculty) Rocky Young, who has accepted the presidency of Pierce College, will be honored for his leadership and his positive relationships with faculty. Secondly, faculty will quietly and respectfully demonstrate to the Board the importance of the Trustees exercising leadership by moving quickly to settle the faculty contract negotiations, which have been marked by eighteen months of acrimonious and frustrating debate.

The evening will begin at 5:30 p.m. with pizza outside the Business Building. Faculty members (and their guests) will receive an update on the state of negotiations, the unfair labor practice charges, and the 50 percent lawsuit filed against the District. Signs advocating issues of importance to faculty will be distributed, and members will be shown how to get on the list to address the Board of Trustees at their 7 p.m. meeting. The group will then move to the Board Room to support those speaking on their behalf and to show Rocky Young how much faculty appreciate all he has done for SMC.