The Academic Senate met on January 21 and February 4, 2021. The following items were discussed:
Elections: President Shaw will resign her position as Academic Senate president at the end of Spring 2021 (sabbatical) in the middle of a 2-year term. The election for Fall 2021 positions will take place in April. Candidates interested in running are invited to contact members of the senate executive team for questions. The following positions are open:
- President (1 year to complete the 2nd year of Pres. Shaw’s term)
- Vice President (2 year term)
- Secretary (2 year term)
- Adjunct senators – 3 (1 year terms)
The Academic Senate will be reviewing and revising its bylaws to improve the process of elections of senators in divisions as well as to reflect adjustments to committee assignment and structure.
Institutional Effectiveness Committee: The Institutional Effectiveness Committee (IEC) is progressing with the creation of its new charge to enable its oversight of Comprehensive Program Review (CPR). The senate appointed Vincent Chandler to serve as tri-co-chair of the IEC through Spring of 2022. The senate is discussing how to ensure infrastructural senate connection to IEC via this tri-co-chair position.
Guided Pathways and Comprehensive Redesign: Director Ernesto Hernandez and President Leigh Anne Shaw seek greater faculty engagement in Guided Pathways and Comprehensive Redesign. Faculty partners are sought to complete the program mapping and to ensure robust rollout and support of the Student Success Teams for each MetaMajor. Please contact Ernesto Hernandez or Leigh Anne Shaw to share your interest in this work. The Scale of Adoption Assessment (SOAA), a requirement for participation in Guided Pathways, was approved by the senate on February 4.
Division Meeting Study Session: On Friday, January 29, a study session was held to discuss division meetings in the aim of making them more accessible, inclusive, and meaningful. Practices that came out of this session include: ensuring adequate time to discuss and act on issues of participatory governance; taking minutes and making them widely available to the division; discussing means for getting items onto a division meeting agenda, and inviting part time faculty to participate and benefit from information shared.
Plans for Fall 2021 – Spring 2022: Dr. Aaron McVean joined the Academic Senate discussion of tentative plans for returning to face-to-face instruction. Summer 2021 will remain in the same predominantly online format that we are in now. Fall 2021 may see some return to face-to-face for hard-to-convert courses, that definition possibly being augmented due to issues encountered in this last year of remote instruction. The hope is to continue to gradually return to face-to-face instruction in Spring 2022. All plans are wholly contingent upon factors beyond our control such as vaccine rollout and distribution, county and state mandates and guidelines, and physical capacity for maintaining protocols. Faculty are encouraged to complete the survey sent by District Academic Senate Jeramy Wallace on February 1, 2021.
Article by Leigh Anne Shaw
