HCC FACULTY SENATE

June 14, 2019 @ 1:00 pm; Central College LH-100

  1. Call to Order: Darin Baskin
    1. The meeting is called to order at 1:08pm
    2. There will be no guest speakers at the June or July meetings.
  1. Approval of April 2019 Minutes. No May minutes (cancelled)
    1. The minutes reviewed are from March 2019; the amendment requested is for the March 2019 minutes.
      1. Point of Personal Privilege, David Ross: request minutes be amended to reflect a change of Davis Ross to David Ross at 2, g, iv
      2. Mohamad Tlass moves for a vote on the amended March 2019 minutes; Laurel Lacroix seconds this.
  • The amended March 2019 minutes pass: the revision will be made, and these will be sent to Darin Baskin.
  1. The April 2019 minutes were not reviewed on the floor.
  1. Standing Committee Reports:
  2. Compensation, Benefits, & Workload: Tod Bisch
    1. David White reporting for Tod Bisch
    2. Mark Tengler attended last Compensation meeting to report about CE workload
      1. Tengler discussed two options: change to 27 hrs. teaching + 3 hrs. prep / change to 24 hrs. teaching + 6 hrs. prep
        1. Option one would call for new hires, but is the less-expensive of the two
      2. Charles LaMendola discussed results of the adjunct survey
      3. Alternative assignments and Teaching Releases
      4. Next meeting in July
    3. Finance & Treasurer’s Report: James Battieste– NO REPORT
    4. Professional Development: Mia Taylor– NO REPORT
    5. Educational Affairs: Nikki Boutte-Heiniluoma– NO REPORT
    6. Policies and Procedures: Laurel Lacroix– NO REPORT
    7. Student Success: Kathy Najafi – NO REPORT
    8. Graduation Co-Chairs: Danielle Bachan and Mary Louis
      1. Quick Report from Darin Baskin: 420 faculty at AM ceremony / 180 at PM ceremony; there were about 3900 graduates
    9. Instructional Technology: Stacey Higdon– NO REPORT
    10. Diversity and Inclusion: Melissa Miller-Waters– NO REPORT
  1. Special Reports, Committees and Caucuses:
  2. Past Presidents: Mohamad Tlass–
    1. Last meeting was with President-Elect Desmond Lewis to discuss election; there will be further details from Darin Baskin in his report.
  3. Chair Caucus: Nikky Boutte-Heiniluoma– NO REPORT
  4. Adjunct Caucus: Charles LaMendola
    1. Overviews adjunct survey results
      1. Dissatisfaction with HCC administration is more prevalent among those who indicate adjunct work is primary income.
        1. Adjuncts have a limited vocabulary for expressing dissatisfaction / grievances, so we want to offer alternatives in a future survey.
          1. Compensation offers adjuncts an entry point; for example, many people would comment “I don’t like HCC; I don’t get paid enough”
          2. Desmond Lewis: what is the sample size?
            1. About 425 of an approximate 1700
          3. Survey for Fall 2019 will look at quality of life: what they value, what they want, possible pathways to FT employment
            1. Segment of adjuncts looking for FT employment are also the most hard-working
              1. Nathan Smith: what is the size of this population?
                1. 6-12% at HCC / national average is 15%
              2. Bedichek-Orman Auction: Linda Graham and Sheryl Ballard
                1. Quick update from Darin Baskin: location for event has been in flux, but it will most likely be at West Loop again.
              3. Faculty Conference: Debra Schultz and Keitha Robinson
                1. Keitha Robinson: Faculty Conference will be Saturday, March 7 at the Westin-Houston, Memorial City
                2. As soon as we get Desmond Lewis’ Senate platform, we will plan details.
              4. All-Faculty Retreat: Helen Graham– NO REPORT
              5. HCC Foundation: Antrece Baggett & Mary Lawson
                1. Quick update from Darin Baskin: Foundation in planning mode for HCC’s 50th anniversary in 2021; one of the biggest pushes will be for more involvement in the All-faculty Campaign (giving through payroll deduction)
  1. President’s Report: Darin Baskin
    1. 2019-2020 Senate Elections Update
      1. 88 spots for delegates
      2. 103 nominations: after sorting duplicates, 72 nominations / after removing upcoming president from list – 71
  • Everyone nominated this time is a 2019-2020 senator
    1. Only 5 areas needed to hold a vote. If you did not receive a ballot in your division, a vote was not necessary. Example: Only 5 were nominated in a division / there are a total of 7 seats.
    2. Formal results for the election will be posted shortly to the Senate website.
  1. To arrive at full strength, as per by-laws, we will have a special election. These are for a combination of divisional and at-large seats / the election will be open to all disciplines, but the elected will be placed accordingly (e.g. divisional vs. at-large)
    1. We will open nominations during the first week of August 2019; the nominations will be open for two weeks, and we will hold a voting period during Instructional Week. Newly elected delegates will also report to the August 2019 Senate meeting.
  2. Board Meeting – Budget
    1. Darin Baskin recognizes Desmond Lewis who was at the latest Board meeting all day-plus (9:45am-8:45pm)
    2. Budget approved – 2% for FT and adjunct faculty; an additional step at the top (up to 31); the 2% adjunct increase makes HCC the highest paying community college in the region; this PT raise is a step in the right direction.
      1. Darin thanks the faculty who attended the last meeting; the Chancellor was also impressed by faculty turnout.
  • 15 positions removed with 7 of those faculty – this was different than an original figure which called for only 4 faculty positions eliminated.
    1. Those 3 positions, however, were returned by the next day.
      1. Question from the floor: was there a rationale for taking the faculty positions?
        1. No – they were targeted because they were vacant; however, these vacant positions serve a purpose and reserved in the event of sudden circumstance
      2. Three of the trustee positions will be available in upcoming elections; the current three are also not running in those spots. Another Trustee has submitted paperwork for running in a city election and would not be running for HCC Trustee.
    2. Associate Vice Chancellor, Academic Instruction
      1. Jerome Drain has been appointed interim
      2. Interim Dean of Natural Sciences has been asked, but name cannot be revealed until an appointment is final
    3. Associate Vice Chancellor, Curriculum and Learning Initiatives
      1. Sandi Fulton
    4. Office of Success and Completion
      1. Department has been broken into three parts and redistributed.
        1. David Ross: are there personnel changes? Will tutoring continue as usual, or will there be a reorganization?
          1. Since there is a new reporting line, there could be changes.
        2. Travel
          1. FT faculty can apply for a travel card to use while travelling; it cannot be used for food, and all expenses must still be approved in Concur.
          2. The card will have the faculty member’s name on it and a $5000 limit to allow for unforeseen expenses.
            1. Question form the floor: is this card optional?
              1. Yes, but it will speed up the process (re: reimbursement)
  • Corporate Travel Planners (CTP)
    1. One reason for difficulties could be likely because of our contract; CTP is the parent company, but we use a third party.
    2. When we call with problems, the third party cannot fix the problem.
  1. Question about summer travel: is there a stipend for summer travel added by my Department Chair?
    1. There could be additional money, but it is not a true stipend. The money is also conditional.
      1. If you are 10.5-month and you are travelling during your summer teaching, you do not get a stipend.
      2. If you are travelling outside of your summer teaching, you are eligible, but it is more like per diem. It has to be available in the departmental budget, so if the department does not have the funds, there can be no money paid.
      3. This could also apply to 9-month, but funds must be in the departmental budget.

 

  1. Old (unfinished) Business:
    1. Assigned Office Spaces
      1. Report had been completed and submitted to Dr. Perez
    2. 2019-2020 Senate Elections Update
      1. See President’s Report, a
    3. New Business
      1. FT Faculty Laptop Rollout
        1. The list of all FT fac went to Dr. Carter and notes when a laptop is five years old from time of issue; after that time, it will be replaced, and you will get a docking station for your desk.
          1. When Darin gets the list back, he will share the results with faculty.
          2. David Ross: do the Surface Pros from a few years ago count? Will I get a new laptop based on when I received my other laptop?
            1. Darin will check on that.
          3. if you never got a laptop, you can go to IT at your campus to get one
        2. Trustee Meet and Greet, David White
          1. Past Presidents have suggested we set up another one of these for September 2019.
        3. Ad Astra
          1. If you are teaching a class that has specific needs (software, etc.), be sure to tag it appropriately. Otherwise, the system will put you wherever basic needs are met.
            1. The new Master Scheduling specialist is meeting with Program Coordinators to develop the correct tagging language for Ad Astra.
            2. There is also a new Master Scheduling committee that will continue to address these issues.

 

  1. Announcements
  2. Adjournment (no “second” required)
    1. The meeting ends at 2:30pm

 

NEXT MEETING: July 12, 2019

1PM at Central’s Learning Hub, Room 100