|
Santa Monica College Faculty Association Bulletin Volume 10, Issue 2 November 1999 "CCCI resolved by consensus to support the Santa Monica College Faculty Association in its efforts to enforce compliance with the 50% law. CCCI also encouraged its member unions to support SMCFA's efforts through resolution, information and funding, and would support an inquiry into 50% law practices and enforcement at the Chancellor's office level." An oft-expressed aim of colleges and universities is to achieve and maintain a high level of instructional effectiveness — or, in the vernacular of superlatives that institutions of higher education love to use, "excellence in teaching." Indeed, during the 10 years that I directed the University of Pittsburgh's Office of Faculty Development, my focus never wavered from promoting good teaching. Perhaps I should have paid more attention to bad teaching. Good teaching undeniably can have a positive effect on students' lives, not only because it imparts knowledge, but also because it instills judgment, perspective, and good habits of thinking. Many professors and administrators assume that bad teaching can have, at worst, a net educational consequence of zero, inasmuch as it fails to produce any positive effects. Most bad teaching is recognizable as such by students, who may simply chalk it up to the luck of the draw and move on with little loss beyond wasted time. But there is Just What Is Good Teaching? A rather sobering statement on teaching appeared in a recent article in the Chronicle of Higher Education (Wolke, R.B., "It Was the Most Boring Course I Ever Took, but It Led to a Valuable Lesson"). The article spoke of professors nourishing a "youthful spark instead of quenching it in a deluge of pedantry...Teachers should be sobered by the realization that they have the power to do either." Please let us know what you feel constitutes good teaching, the kind that nourishes sparks. We'll publish as many responses as possible in the next issue of the FAB. Send your responses to FAB Editor in Chief Lantz Simpson or to the Faculty Association office. A number of faculty organizations have informally and formally shown support for SMCFA's 50 Percent Lawsuit. In addition to enthusiastic encouragement from the entire Bay Area Faculty Association (a coalition of all community college union leaders in the San Francisco area) and CFT (California Federation of Teachers), the following resolutions of support from FACCC, CCCI (the California Community College Independents to which SMCFA belongs) and Foothill-DeAnza were received recently. In keeping with the lyrics of one of my favorite songs of yesteryear, your Representative Assembly has been "takin' care of business every day, takin' care of business and workin' night and day." One of the least reported on but most important decision-making bodies of the Association is the Representative Assembly. These individuals, elected by their departments and fifteen of whom do double duty as presidential appointees to the Executive Committee, authorize the signing of contracts on behalf of the Association, hire and approve compensation and benefits for Association employees, endorse political candidates, authorize issues to be sent to the membership for voting, review and recommend topics for negotiation, authorize all contracts necessary to the efficient conduct of the Association, and approve the annual budget (as well as a host of
In their October and November meetings, the Representative Assembly made a number of critical decisions that will strengthen the Faculty Association for years to come. Faced with serious financial concerns, the Representative Assembly made some of the most gutsy decisions I've ever seen, demonstrating in-your-face courage only the solidarity of a strong union can provide. Read further for illumination:
According to Grievance Committee Chair Lantz Simpson, Human Resources Vice President Bob Sammis is forcing us to go to arbitration on even the most simple contract violations by the District, a process that normally costs thousands of dollars. One example of a grievance the Administration can't possibly win in arbitration but which we are forced to expend money on to protect an important principle: Last year new faculty were told in writing they had to attend a number of technology-based workshops without compensation. The problem: Ignoring the issue would establish a past practice that would enable the college to mandate unilaterally training without pay for all faculty at any time in the future. Another issue: the contract requires each department chair to be compensated. After unilaterally removing the department chair in the library a few years ago and naming an elected "faculty leader" to that position last year, the District is now refusing to pay the individual the small stipend specified in the contract. The problem: Besides the fact that the individual doing the work deserves to be paid, if the Association ignored this issue, any department chair, coordinator, etc., specified in the contract could be unilaterally abolished or changed or could lose any reassigned time and/or stipend attached to the position.
Three unfair labor practice charges against the District have cost the Association tens of thousands of dollars. (We await the decision now.) Desperate to look good in the Board of Trustees' eyes for at least a brief period of time and in keeping with the District's apparent "spend them into the ground" philosophy, Vice President Bob Sammis filed a strange unfair charge against the Association (reported on in a previous FAB). If PERB determines there might be some basis for investigation, the Association will be back in court defending itself against bogus charges we are sure to win.
Constantly delaying the production of public documents despite the threat of condemnation by the Continued from page 2. court, demanding the presence of lawyers and court-approved copying services before allowing the Association to peruse the public records of the District, conducting needless and needlessly-lengthy depositions, and delaying the 50 percent trial by claiming there was a process by which the Association could have forced the Chancellor's Office to rule on the District's failure to comply with the 50 Percent law, etc., have characterized the District's SIG tactics. By Teri Bernstein The Fall meeting of the California Community College Independents—the oxymoronic affiliation of unaffiliated unions—was held October 14 - 15 in San Diego. SMCFA was represented by Fran Chander, Lantz Simpson and Teri Bernstein. For negotiators, this is the best meeting of the year. Key issues discussed included Partnership for Excellence funds, successes (salary increases) and difficulties (legal and Board problems) statewide, part-time issues and the problems with the 50% law. Partnership for Excellence is a hot discussion topic at the state level in Consultation where the various CCC constituencies (faculty, administrators, trustees, students) get together under the auspice of the Chancellor's office to arrive at a consensus opinion. The statewide Academic Senate wants local Senates to have signoff authority on the form filed with the state on use of the Partnership money. Some faculty groups want the money reduced because it takes away from funds available for collective bargaining; this is because some districts seem to think this money is not available for collective bargaining. Some faculty want part of these funds earmarked for new full-time hires, or for part-time office hours. Needless to say, trustee and administrator groups want more money ($155 million ADDED for 00-01) and no strings attached. Zoe Close, the CCCI president and our representative in Consultation, wanted our input. Input was varied, depending on whether we were in a District that had gone through a shared governance process to distribute the money or not. To be continued… Several unions expressed a year of successes and difficulties. Foothill-DeAnza had success in getting a de facto 7% raise for its faculty at the top of the salary scale (partly in an across-the-board raise, and partly by adjusting the top step)…but is involved in a $100,000 arbitration involving a unilateral change in contract interpretation (wherein the administration felt it could write its own rules about how to interpret longevity-type steps at the top of the salary scale). Many other Districts expressed the same split—moderate-to-large successes in terms of salary increases, but severe and costly problems involving drawn out arbitrations. Contra Costa recently came to the end of one such arbitration—that ended in sanctions against the District above and beyond what were delineated in the contract. Other unions told tales of costly battles to bounce anti-education Board members and elect their own. "Smart" unions (Foothill DeAnza, Contra Costa) saw the legal bills or election costs looming and instituted a dues increase in anticipation of problems; others have addressed the issue in arrears as they rebuild. The consensus was: (1) legal problems are getting worse; they must be planned for; (2) independent union dues are much less (about ½) of dues at CFT or CTA campuses. (SMC's dues, net of FACCC membership, of $200 per year are about ¼ of the dues at a CTA campus and less than most CCCI campuses should be raised); (3) agency shop and combined full- and part-time representation is the best combination for dealing with issues (SMC has both); and (4) a plan for dealing with the election of Board members must be well financed up front, well thought out and researched, and carried out knowledgeably and within the boundaries of the law. It was very helpful to hear about the issues other unions are dealing with statewide. Of course, a considerable interest was expressed in our 50% lawsuit. The general feeling was that there are problems with the 50% law on a statewide basis—some caused by the Chancellor's office "looking the other way" and not enforcing the Ed Code (we know that the Chancellor's office has also rewritten guidelines to cause less dollars to be spent on instruction by creating exclusions in the Budget and Accounting manual that do not exist in the law). Continued on page 4. President's Column
Takin' Care Recognizing the superior quality of the work done by the Association's sole employee, Office Manager Janet Kretschmer, the Representative Assembly awarded a 6 percent cost of living increase retroactive to August 1, 1998 (the same COLA proposed by the Faculty Association for faculty for 98-99). In addition, once the faculty contract has been settled, the issue of a suitable COLA for 99-00 will be reopened. The contract of the office manager will also be extended another year to August 1, 2002. See what I mean? This is one gutsy Representative Assembly. In the four years I have served the Association as its president, I have never been more proud of the work we do. Find out who the representatives are for your department (ask your department chair or call Ext. 4394). Tell them how much you appreciate what they are doing to look out for your interests. Better yet, come watch them in action. All meetings are listed on the calendar distributed by the Association at the beginning of the year. The next Representative Assembly meeting is Thursday, December 4, in Art 214 at 11 a.m. Takin' Care of the Future Realizing the serious nature of the District's SIG strategy and determined not to allow it to jeopardize the ability of the Association to represent the faculty effectively, the Representative Assembly authorized the membership a vote to change the dues structure that will replenish the Association's treasury. The change in dues, as presented by Treasurer Mitra Moassessi, will be presented to Association members for their vote by December 8 so it can be implemented by the first of February. If the measure passes, dues for each full-time and part-time faculty member will be .6 percent of earnings; Emeritus faculty will pay .3 percent of their earnings. An ad hoc dues committee established by the Executive Committee has also discussed the possibility of an assessment; however, this would also have to go to the membership for vote. Takin' Care of Business The need to get the faculty's message to the general public prompted approval of a public relations firm to work with SMCFA officers. Via the consultant's contacts in the community and the media, Association leaders will be publicizing issues surrounding the College's failure to comply with the 50 Percent Law as well as collective bargaining issues. Meetings with community leaders and influential politicians have already been arranged. The Representative Assembly also approved the Faculty Association's 99-00 academic year budget, a budget noted for its 350 percent increase in legal fees over the previous year's budget. The District is taking a hard line on all legal matters in what appears to be an attempt to defeat the Faculty Association by spending it into the ground. Known as SIG (spending them into the ground), this tactic has the potential to be lethal for a small independent union such as ours. Statewide Support for 50 Percent Lawsuit Citing the importance of the precedents that will be established by the Association's lawsuit, offers of monetary support as well as legal support have come a number of these sources, including CCC (the Community College Council of the California Teachers Association) and the Los Angeles California Federation of Teachers. FACCC (the Faculty Association of California Community Colleges), the legislative organization to which the Association pays dues as a benefit to each faculty member, has also assisted in many ways, including the resolution below. On behalf of the Faculty Association of California Community Colleges, I would like to reiterate our commitment to strict adherence to the 50% law. The mission of the community college system can only be fulfilled when attention and resources are devoted to faculty interaction with students in an instructional setting. We have consistently advocated strong adherence to the 50% law and have opposed legislative attempts to dilute it. FACCC is very concerned about the outcome of the litigation in Santa Monica because it has the potential to send a very strong signal that the administration of the 50% law must be calculated accurately and appropriately. FACCC President Carolyn Russell and I were pleased to have the opportunity to discuss this matter on our trip to Santa Monica and we offer our resources, services and expertise to help advance the cause. -Jonathan Lightman FACCC Executive Director "Be it resolved that the Faculty Association of the Foothill-De Anza Community College District supports the legal effort undertaken by the Santa Monica College Faculty Association to enforce the 50% Law in their district. Further, the Foothill-De Anza Faculty Association affirms the philosophy of community college funding inherent in the 50% Law whereby the majority of local funds are to be spent directly on instruction." Full-time Sick Leave Balance Monthly Notification: All full-timers will receive notices of their sick leave balances from their department chairs. Asserting it is impossible for the County that prepares our paychecks or for the District to provide this information individually, Vice President Bob Sammis will send a letter to department chairs directing them to notify each full-time faculty member monthly. Department chairs receive from the district reports showing the sick leave bank for each full-time faculty. Full-time faculty receive 10 days of sick leave per year, credited at the beginning of each academic year. This sick leave bank should be used for absences from classes in your regular load, not from any overload, winter, or summer sessions you might teach. Overload Sick Leave Notification in Overload Paychecks: Full-time faculty teaching overloads and winter and summer sessions also earn hourly sick leave at a rate of 6 hours for every 100 hours taught, credited as earned. Through a lengthy grievance process, the District agreed to inform each faculty member at the beginning of each semester of the amount of hourly sick leave he/she has accumulated. Such hourly sick leave is used when you must be absent from any overload or extra session classes you teach. Your overload paycheck this month should have included an accurate statement of your overload sick leave bank. Part-Time Faculty Sick Leave Notification: Part-time faculty also receive sick leave at a rate of 6 hours for every 100 hours taught, credited as earned. Settlement of this grievance means that adjunct faculty will now be notified of their sick leave bank via a notice in their paychecks at the beginning of each semester/session. One thing I have learned from this particular grievance: To protect yourself at a time when you might be too sick to reconcile District errors, it is critical that you keep up-to-date records of the amount of sick leave you have earned and used. In addition, full-timers who teach overloads and/or in the winter or summer sessions must reconcile monthly two sick leave banks: one for their full-time employment and another for their overload and/or special session teaching. The District is taking a hard line on all legal matters in what appears to be an attempt to defeat the Faculty Association by spending it into the ground. By Fran Chandler SMC FACULTY ASSOCIATION BULLETIN Editorial Board Lantz Simpson, Managing Editor, Vice President Fran Chandler, President Teri Bernstein, Chief Negotiator Santa Monca College Faculty Association 1900 Pico Blvd. Santa Monica, CA 90405 Phone 310-434-4394 FAX 310-434-3601 Website: http://www.pacificnet.net/~smcfa/ Continued from page 1. At any rate, support was expressed for our cause (see above). Other problems are caused at our District level. All expressed a difficulty in examining this problem, as it can be deftly hidden in detailed accounting records. If unions find something one year, it is likely to be hidden someplace else the next year. For more details of what's happening around the state, read your fall 1999 CCCI newsletter. other tasks). Continued on page 3. Sick Leave Notification Agreement Reached 2 3 4 State Leaders Meet at CCCI
|
