Minutes of January 20, 2015

Bristol Community College

Faculty & Professional Staff Senate Meeting

Minutes of Monday, January 20, 2015

Ryckenbush Faculty/Staff Lounge 3:00 p.m.

Senators in attendance: J. Pelletier, M. Geary, J. Mbugua, S. McCourt, J. Boulay, D. St. George, R. Amarasingham, S. Ferreira, R. Worthington, J. Constantine, H. Tinberg, S. Pero, G. Leeman

Excused Absences: R. Benya-Soderbom, E. Kemper-French, C. Poore-Pariseau, T. Grady, J. Corven, K. Hiller

Absences:  R. Santos, D. Warr, J. Duponte, G. Heaney, M. Williams, L Delano-Botelho, C. Leonard, S. Gabb

Guests: 4

Meeting called to order 3:06 pm.

Welcome, Introductions, Thanks:

Senator Tinberg thanked Senator McCourt for her outstanding service as president and he announced that she would be stepping down as president for the Senate, now that she has assumed a new role as director to the Honors Program. Senator Tinberg will serve the remainder of his term as president and Senator McCourt will continue to represent Division V.

Minutes: Minutes from November 17, 2014 were reviewed, but not voted on because quorum was not met.

Reviewing Senate’s Mission & Strategic Goals for AY 2014-2015

·       Shared governance: The joint shared governance initiative with administration will be implemented this semester; need to identify project to pilot and assessment plan.

·       Communication and representation: The Senate is exploring ways for enhancing communication with constituents (including other campuses); Vice President Jo-Ann Pelletier to communicate regarding using Office 365 to enhance asynchronous and synchronous communication (other factors include time constraints, etc.)

·       Excellence, equity & inclusion: The college has embarked on a campus-wide diversity initiative; an ad-hoc committee was formed to identify how the Senate can promote awareness of diversity

o   Some considerations include: unity of campuses (e.g., new student orientation at other campuses), areas largely funded by outside sources (e.g., tutoring)

NEASC Report

·       Sent to college community by President Sbrega in December.

·       A status report will be due in Spring 2017, with 4 items to be addressed (shared governance, systemic approach to assessment, advising, dual enrollment alignment with Commonwealth policy).

·       A discussion followed regarding whether the NEASC group included the Gateway to College Program in its assessment. President Tinberg will invite Dean Sarah Morrell to a subsequent Senate meeting for a clarification on these findings.

Reviewing, Implementing, and Assessing Shared Governance Process

·       While there is no official start date, a decision will need to be made regarding what initiative to pilot.

·       The Senate will convene on a task force with administration.

·       A timeline will need to be agreed upon (who does what, central repository, start date, evaluation).

·       The document will be publicly published and the process will be transparent.

·       A discussion followed regarding how grant proposals would fit in this shared governance process and what possible initiatives could be piloted (e.g., changes to Supplemental Instruction program, metamajors, the maximum number of transfer credits accepted by the college, 3-week course withdrawals) and the importance of involving student stakeholders.

·       President Tinberg will invite deans to Senate meetings as appropriate.

By-Laws Update

·       Updates are aimed to address:

o   Representation of other campuses (e.g., faculty teaching at New Bedford)

o   Representation of other divisions (e.g., Division 6, Enrollment Services, Student Services, Lash Division) with 5% representation constituency of each area

·       When organizational structure is in state of flux, an opportunity for a broad mechanism to resolve is needed.

Other Items and Reminders:

Meeting adjourned 4:01 p.m.

Respectfully submitted, Jennifer Boulay, BCC Faculty & Professional Staff Secretary

Minutes of November 17, 2014

Bristol Community College

Faculty & Professional Staff Senate Meeting

Minutes of Monday November 17, 2014

H210 3:15 p.m.

Senators in attendance: J. Pelletier M. Geary, J. Corven, J. Mbugua, S. McCourt, J. Boulay, D. St. George, K. Hiller, R. Amarasingham, C. Poore-Pariseau, S. Gabb, R. Benya-Soderbom, E. Kemper-French, S. Ferreira, R. Worthington

Excused Absences: H. Tinberg, G. Leeman, S. Pero

Absences:  R. Santos, D. Warr, J. Duponte,  G. Heaney, M. Williams, L Delano-Botelho, C. Leonard, J. Constantine, T. Grady

Special Guests: Steve Viveiros and Jana Clark

Meeting called to order 3:17 pm.

Minutes: Minutes from October 20, 2014 were reviewed and passed with no abstention.

Division Updates:

·       Division 1: No updates.

·       Division 2: A new search for division dean is under way; VP Sethares solicited input for job description at the division meeting and the search may be broadened as a result.

·       Division 3: No updates.

·       Division 4: Tech Prep Day is scheduled for November 21^st.

·       Division 5: No update.

·       Division 6: Changes to tutoring; Learning Commons new job description. Clarity Quest tutoring support. Quest tutoring labs.

·       Division 7:

o   Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) has a page on the BCC website; the college is offering College Level Examination Program (CLEP) testing ($80 goes to CLEP; $20 to BCC);

o   Faculty instructing courses with eligible students (having earned at least 45 credits) have been contacted to participate in the statewide Outcomes Assessment Pilot; student artifacts will be collected for assignments using the critical thinking, written communication, and quantitative literacy rubrics; some Senators indicated they had eligible students but were not contacted.

Senate Updates

§  Bylaws and Reorganization Update: Senators Boulay, Leeman, and Worthington are exploring how to better represent constituents outside of Divisions 1-5—including finding a better way for engaging workforce development (e.g., identifying a liaison if there is not enough MCCC membership within area).

§  Governance Update: President McCourt met with AVP Anthony Ucci to finalize document; VP Greg Sethares will send out an announcement and he will draft the final version.

§  Communication with Constituents Update: President McCourt is meeting with Jo-Ann Pelletier, Vice President of Institutional Technology, on Friday.

§  Diversity Update: An ad hoc group was formed to create a 3-year strategic plan on diversity, with the goal of increasing the number of ways in which Senators are involved in diversity initiatives. Senators were encouraged to notify either the president or secretary of their participation in diversity activities until then.

Academic Advisement Update:

Dean Steve Viveiros and Jana Clark (lead advisor for 1^st year advising and tech needs; online scheduling; social media; web content) updated the Senate on academic advising.

§  Appointment Plus update:

o   Advising received a Foundation grant for online scheduling program called (tool cost $800 per year; $1,500 per year for institutional access).

o   Software usage led to a 67% increase in advising appointments completed via online scheduling and an increase in the number of appointments (530 appointments scheduled in fall 2014); Fall River & Taunton expansion.

o   Includes apps/reminders for smart phones.

o   Targeted students assigned to advisement centers.

§  Other advising updates:

o   Students looking for pins are directed back to advisors by advising.

o   1/3- 1/2 new students complete 1^st year advisement program; students who don’t attend, generally have a harder time with advising (2.5 hours total)

o   First Year Advising is a tool for supplementing CSS courses; there is an opportunity to collaborate with Lash Center for Teaching and Learning on CSS training in the summer.

§  MapWorks update:

o   Surveyed 1^st time students during 3^rd or 4^th week of semester

o   Top 5 issues: study time expectations, test anxiety, financial concerns, low peer connections, low analytical skills

§  Pathways update:

o   Proactive advising allowed college to learn more about personal challenges impacting retention of students; faculty who were involved supported experience—using it as a tool for additional student support.

o   Academic coaches combined with a cohort model allow students to participate in a community.

o   A part-time model in Business (including developmental education) will start Spring 2015.

o   A discussion followed regarding whether students should be required to do service-learning during the first semester; concerns over program intensity were raised—students who work do not have enough time and faculty have difficulty in covering all course material.

o   The Health Science Program is working to help navigate students into health science concentrations outside of nursing, providing misguided students an alternate path.

o   Some prerequisites were changed for future Guided Pathways to Success cohorts.

Joint Senate/Administration Closed-Loop Governance Initiative:

In Spring 2015, the Senate will look at how the process is being implemented.

Other Items and Reminders:

Meeting adjourned 4:10 p.m.

Respectfully submitted, Jennifer Boulay, BCC Faculty & Professional Staff Secretary

Minutes of October 20, 2014

Bristol Community College

Faculty & Professional Staff Senate Meeting

Minutes of Monday October 20, 2014

B101 3:15 p.m.

Senators in attendance: S. Gabb, R. Benya-Soderbom, J. Pelletier S. Ferreira, M. Geary, J. Corven, C. Leonard, J. Mbugua, S. McCourt, J. Boulay, J. Constantine, T. Grady, E. Kemper-French, S. Pero, D. St. George, K. Hiller, R. Amarasingham, L Delano-Botelho, J. Duponte

Excused Absences: H. Tinberg, G. Heaney, G. Leeman, R. Worthington, M. Williams

Absences:  R. Santos, D. Warr, C. Poore-Pariseau

Six guests attended this meeting.

Special Guests: Don Kilguss, Rodney Clark, Wes Lundberg, Gloria Saddler, Jo-Ann Pelletier, Greg Sethares

Meeting called to order 3:17 pm.

Minutes: Minutes from October 6, 2014 were reviewed and passed with one abstention due to an absence.

Division Updates:

·         Division 1: No updates.

·         Division 2: No updates.

·         Division 3: Senator Heaney is developing course on basic personal finance, driven by student limited understanding and high student debt.

·         Division 4: Senator Hiller announced two bone marrow drives—one in Attleboro on October 27^th and another in New Bedford on November 19^th.

·         Division 5: No updates.

·         Division 6: Senator Gabb explained Division 6 is designing a new Quest grant due in spring; Division 6 is now the Division of Transition & Access.

·         Division 7: No updates.

Division/Area Grant Wish List:

The division/area grant wish list was voted on and approved with no abstentions.

Annual Goals and Calendar:

The annual goals and calendar were voted on and approved without abstention.

Bylaws and Reorganization:

An ad hoc committee was formed to investigate the composition of unit members outside of Divisions 1-5 at the college (including adjuncts and staff from other locations). The committee will create a proposal for how to better organize Senate constituencies and they will provide recommendations for revisions to the bylaws. Senators Boulay, Leeman and Worthington agreed to serve on this committee.

                                                                                               

Community Service-Learning and the Vision Project:

Don Kilguss represented Mary Zahm of Civic Engagement, who could not attend; he discussed the Board of Higher Education’s policy on civic learning. He discussed this initiative at the September History Department meeting and he met with the Registrar, Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs, Lash Center for Teaching and Learning, Financial Aid, and Civic Engagement over the summer regarding a $220,000 state-wide grant for civic learning. He explained how BCC programs requiring general education competencies are aligned with civic learning competencies.

·         Intended goal: To increase the number of courses addressing knowledge and applied competencies related to civic learning.

·         Timeline for project:

o    Establish Civic Learning general education competency by Fall 2015.

o    Create 4 sections infused with Service-Learning requirement for a Spring 2015 pilot (3 infused sections of HIST 113; 1 of GVT 111); 2 in Fall River, 1 in Attleboro, 1 in New Bedford.

o    Provide faculty support including Service-Learning Faculty Fellows seminars (Fall 2014); reflective practice groups (Spring 2015); faculty stipends (ongoing, with the use of Noble Hour data management software).

o    Establish Service-Learning graduation requirement by Fall 2016.

o    Replace existing general education competency (e.g., social phenomenon or ethical values) with civic learning.

o    Offer course replacements for programs that do not meet knowledge requirement through history.

o    Assess using American Association of Colleges and University’s Civic Engagement Value LEAP Rubric and Board of Higher Education Study Group’s rubric to evaluate Service-Learning reflection portfolios

·         Senators were encouraged to send questions directly to President McCourt.

Communication with Campuses and Centers:

With a goal of increasing representation from all campuses, the Senate invited Vice Presidents of Technology and Academic Affairs and campus deans to share ideas.

·         Vice President of Institutional Technology, Jo-Ann Pelletier, offered the following updates and suggestions regarding technology:

o    Bandwidth has been expanded at all locations except Taunton.

o    The College has purchased new licensing for programs such as Microsoft Office 365 and Microsoft Link.

o    The newest version of SharePoint could be used for asynchronous communication, including tracking revisions to documents and using discussion boards.

o    The Senate should also consider accessibility issues including the transcription of audio.

·         Dean of Attleboro, Rodney Clark, indicated there are technology limitations in Attleboro and that the simulcasting of Fall River lectures has been erratic. Furthering the problem, he indicated that most Attleboro faculty and staff are part-time, making commuting to Fall River difficult. He supported the idea of exploring a remote connection with the Senate for Attleboro faculty and staff.

·         Vice President of Academic Affairs, Greg Sethares, reinforced that communication concerns between campuses will become more pressing over time, in light of the dramatic growth in New Bedford, Taunton, and Attleboro.

·         Senator Kemper-French offered suggestions including forming committees that are centric to location (e.g., auxiliary services, traffic and safety); rotating committee meetings at alternating campuses, modeling the presidential video chat, and proving funding for a captionist.

·         President McCourt will have a follow-up conversations with Vice President Pelletier.

Joint Senate/Administration Closed-Loop Governance Initiative:

After reviewing Senate approved document from the May 5, 2014 meeting and the updated version sent from Associate Vice President Ucci on September 25, 2014, the Senate voted unanimously to send approval to the Administration to move forward with the most recent document.

Other Items and Reminders:

·         Senators McCourt and Boulay discussed the importance of participating in the Employee Giving Campaign for securing outside funding. Senators were encouraged to participate by October 31^st.

·         Ron Weisberger invited Senators to attend a free conference hosted by the Holocaust Center and Luso Centro on October 31^st.

Meeting adjourned 4:34 p.m.

Respectfully submitted, Jennifer Boulay, BCC Faculty & Professional Staff Secretary

Bristol Community College

Faculty and Professional Staff Senate

Division/Area Grant Wish List

Objective: The Senate and the Administration are working together on a process to include stakeholders in Academic Decision Making. One avenue we are exploring is considering constituent priorities in grants.

The Senate asks all constituents to discuss grant and project ideas with others in their area (department/division/program/committee/etc.) and inform the Senate of these ideas so that the Senate President and others can be aware of them when opportunities become available that may support their goals.

We ask that one or more constituents agree to be the contact person in case there are questions.

The Senate recommends that these ideas be discussed with all stakeholders in an area before submission including all staff and faculty members, department chairs, program directors and deans.

Please email the completed form to the Senate President.

Please note that further participation will be required for the idea/project to happen, which may include (but not be limited to) collaborating on grant submission and reporting on project outcomes.

Project Title:

Area:

Contact:

Stakeholders involved in discussion:

Please briefly describe the project idea:

Approved by the Senate October 20, 2014.

Senate 2014-2015 Meeting Schedule

Date	Topics
September	Division Reports Strategic Planning and Calendar
October 6 D108	Division Reports Area Grant Wish Lists Writing Center/Academic Support Strategic Goals and Calendar (Vote) Senate Goal: Shared Governance
October 20 D108	Division Reports Follow up: Area Grant Wish Lists Community Service-Learning and the Vision Project Communication with other Campuses and Centers Senate Goal: Shared Governance
November 17 H210	Division Reports Advisement Project Update NEASC Report Senate Goal: Shared Governance Senate Goal: Excellence, Equity and Inclusion
January 20 (Professional Planning) TBA	Division Reports Transition: QUEST Grant, Vision Project and PARCC Senate Goal: Communication and Representation Senate Goal: Shared Governance
February 2 H210	Division Reports Follow up: Area Grant Wish Lists Senate Goal: Excellence, Equity and Inclusion Senate Goal: Shared Governance
February 23 D108	Division Reports Senate Goal: Communication and Representation Senate Goal: Shared Governance
March 9 D108	Division Reports Senate Goal: Excellence, Equity and Inclusion Senate Goal: Shared Governance
April 13 D108	Division Reports Follow up: Area Grant Wish Lists Senate Goal: Communication and Representation Senate Goal: Shared Governance

Approved by the Senate October 20, 2014.