Minutes of October 11, 2016

Bristol Community College

Faculty & Professional Staff Senate Meeting

Minutes of Tuesday, October 11, 2016

Room B102 3:15 pm

Senators in attendance: J. Pelletier, D. St. George, R. Worthington, J. Boulay, L. Neubert, L. Delano-Botelho, J. Corven, B. French, J. Constantine, J. Jodoin-Krauzyk, J. Bjornson, M. Geary, G. Hamel, D. Quenga, K.  Plante, C. Almeida, M. Hyde, D. Avedikian, S. Ferreira, K. Fassbender, J. Emond, J. Barry

Absences: R. Rebelo, M. Roberts, K. Woldegiorgis, J. Dekkers-Mitchel, A. Marden, M. Roberts

Excused Absences: H. Tinberg, K. Hiller, D. Behuniak

Special Guest: Anthony Ucci

One guest attended this meeting.

Meeting called to order:  3:15 pm

Minutes:  Minutes from September were reviewed and approved without abstention.
Note: Jenn Boulay facilitated the meeting and Debra St. George took minutes.

Welcome and Introductions

Secretary Boulay announced that all 29 Senate slots have been filled. She also welcomed Debra St. George as Vice President.  

Division Reports

·         Division 1: Representatives from the Writing Center have been offering workshops to provide students with a general overview of what the Writing Center is, where it can be found and why students should  seek their assistance. It is presented either as a 15 minute talk or a 50 minute simulated tutoring session that is conducted in the classroom. Thus far 40 presentations have taken place over 4 campuses.

The BCC Holocaust Center and LusoCentro have partnered to present The Consul of Bordeaux - a new film about Aristides de Sousa Mendes, Portuguese consul in Bordeaux who saved over 30,000 lives from Nazi persecution. Additional collaborative endeavors are scheduled will be presented over the fall semester.

·         Division 2: Newly acquired space in E Building will be converted to house the Psychology Club, a Pathway for Psychology Program and a criminalist lab.

·         Division 5: Most laboratories have moved to J Building. Two Chemistry labs remain in E205.

Whole Student Initiative

Subcommittees addressing barriers for students at BCC in addition to academics were discussed:

·         The Retention council which includes the Hunger Committee is looking into expanding the Food Pantry to campuses other than Fall River. Transportation among campuses is another topic to be explored. Parking in New Bedford was also identified as a hardship for students. Suggestions were made to offer reduced fee or free parking for students as parking is free in specific garages for faculty.

·         The Expanding Student Engagement is co-chaired by Kathy Burns and Cheryl Sclar; no report available

·         The “No Name Committee” is looking into academic support and student retention but quantitative data is not yet available.

It is difficult to identify the at risk student unless they self identify. Map-Works can be as a means of gathering data on students in need if utilized more extensively. Faculty and Staff were encouraged to promote students’ taking the Map-Works survey by October 31, 2016.

NEASC Working Groups

Four subgroups are working to complete a draft report due in November. The groups include:

·         Advising

·         Dual Enrollment

·         Shared Governance

·         Outcomes assessment

Feedback from Shared Governance indicated that illustrating communication and transparency were goals. Monthly reports will be posted to the all share drive as monthly report feedback varies among divisions.  

Invited Speaker

 Associate Vic President for Academic Affairs Anthony Ucci presented two Academic Initiatives:

·         Coordinated Guided Pathway to Success

Many BCC students encounter problems with progression through their course of study due to a lack of college readiness. For example, 45% of students need developmental Math before they can move on and graduate. This scenario leads to students becoming discouraged and leaving school. AVP Ucci recommended that the College schedule classes, realign resources more successfully and build teams to work together to better meet student needs. Extended discussion ensued, but more work is needed.

·         Curriculum Development

AVP Ucci asked for volunteers to participate in a task force to review the curriculum development process. There is a need for correlation between the Board of higher Education and the College Wide Curriculum Committee.

Title III

Constituents provided feedback on why so few proposals were submitted from faculty and professional staff. Comments included:

·         The need for a longer window of time

·         Clarification on difference between a Title III proposal and Strategic Plan proposals

·         Recovery from work to rule required

·         A team initiative rather than individual input was needed to address the scope of Title III

Meeting Adjourned:  4:20 pm

Respectfully submitted, Debra St. George, BCC Faculty & Professional Staff Vice President