Whereas California community colleges continue to be underfunded, and
Whereas students receive most benefit from direct contact through either instruction or student services, and
Whereas the primary goal of the California community colleges is to enhance student learning, and
Whereas local assistance dollars (Proposition 98 money) are intended to be spent only on local district educational activities,
Whereas the Partnership for Excellence will be funded on an FTES basis for the first three years for progress on system goals, but the Legislature gave the Board of Governors the responsibility to establish a district-specific funding mechanism after that time, and
Whereas the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges has opposed performance-based funding because it could create negative institutional pressures on academic rigor and lead to an inequitable distribution of state resources,
Whereas ten percent of California community colleges' FTES is provided through noncredit courses, and
Whereas there is currently a $40 million Budget Change Proposal for hiring full-time faculty in credit programs for 1999-2000, and
Whereas there is a plan for the California Community Colleges to continue to request a Budget Change Proposal of $40 million in each of the next 5 years to hire full-time credit faculty for a total of $200 million,
Whereas the Chancellor's Office has proposed a Budget Change Proposal for 1999-2000 requesting $565,000 to reimburse districts for the cost of participation in state-level community college governance for administrators and staff, and historically this cost has been borne by districts as part of the responsibility for which they are given apportionment dollars, and
Whereas the legislation establishing the Partnership for Excellence states that the funds are to be for "program enhancement that will improve student success and make progress toward the system goals," and
Whereas local boards of trustees must consult collegially with local senates on matters of student success, and
Whereas some districts are using the Partnership for Excellence money to balance the budget or increase reserves,
Whereas current community college funding does not permit alternate calendars which encourage optimum curriculum design, and
Whereas current community college funding based on the 525 hours is a hold over from the K-12 model and does not correspond with the university/college model, and
Whereas current community college funding is based on student seat time rather than a learner centered technology mediated instructional model,
Whereas AB 1725 has provided local academic senates with legal responsibilities that include a responsibility for participation in institutional planning and budget development, and
Whereas districts and colleges have large budgets, decisions about which are often decided without an established and stipulated process that includes faculty participation in the establishment of priorities, criteria, and budgetary determinations,
Add two final resolves to read:
Resolved, That the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges support a class-action lawsuit seeking equal per-student funding throughout the California community colleges; and
Resolved, That the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges advocate for seeking support for such a lawsuit from associated student organizations.
Add a new first resolve to read:
Resolved, That the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges support funding on the basis of full-time equivalent students (FTES) and urge enactment of legislation that will ensure fair and equitable funding to all community college students without reducing the funds for any district.
Replace the resolve to read:
Resolved, That the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges support efforts to more equitably address funding level disparities among districts, but do so in a manner that would take a blended approach, preserving the most essential aspects of program-based funding, such as allowances for student mix, basic skills enrollment and small-college factors.