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