State and Legislative Issues

Whereas, Under Title 5 Regulations the local academic senates are authorized to name faculty representation on all task forces, committees, and other governance groups;

Whereas, SB 235 (Vasconcellos) as currently worded would transfer this vital academic senate responsibility to the local bargaining representative; and

Whereas, Some district AFT Guilds (San Diego Community College District) have already worded district agreements so that the local academic senates are now required to "recommend" faculty representation on key governance committees "to the AFT Guild";

Whereas, California Education Code 87360(b) specifies that policies for faculty hiring shall be developed and agreed upon jointly by the governing board and the academic senate;

Whereas, Twelve years have elapsed since California Education Code 87360(b) was written pursuant to AB 1725 and new district faculty hiring policies were developed through joint agreement; and

Whereas, Districts may seek to revise their existing hiring policies;

Whereas, Colleges have been encouraged to use and are using Partnership for Excellence (PFE) funds to hire for salaried positions;

Whereas, Salaried positions are eligible for annual Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) increases; and

Whereas, PFE funds currently do not receive COLA and therefore COLA adjustments on salaries for positions funded by PFE must then come from other general fund sources;

Resolved, That the Academic Senate work with the Chancellor to seek a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for PFE funds.

Whereas, SB 235 (Vasconcellos) requires that, when a faculty or classified staff representative is to serve on a college or district task force, committee, or other governance group, the selection of that faculty or classified staff representative be made by the exclusive representative (exclusive bargaining agent) of the faculty or classified employees of that college or district; and

Whereas, Under Title 5 Regulations the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges is authorized to name faculty representation on all task forces, committees, and other governance groups;

Whereas, The Chancellor's Office for California Community College supports Section 504 of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and has assured the Office for Civil Rights that the California community colleges will provide access for students with disabilities;

Whereas, The legal counsel for the California Community Colleges has rendered an opinion that the provisions of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act require electronic access compliance for students with disabilities; and

Whereas, Educational policy recommendations for the California Community College System are the result of considered Academic Senate deliberations, Consultation Council review and Board of Governors action;

Whereas, The Board of Governors is empowered by the California Education Code to set educational policy for the California Community College System;

Whereas, The California Department of Finance increasingly uses its finding of unfunded mandates to establish, to block or to make fundamental changes to educational policy actions; and

Whereas AB 3 (Campbell) established matriculation in the Education Code as a set of services that were contingent on specific funding by the Legislature, and

Whereas enforcement of law has been necessary to assure that districts provide adequate services and use funds appropriately, and

Whereas the Legislature has indicated the need for increased support of services to students,

Resolved that the Academic Senate urge the Chancellor to keep the Education Code provisions related to matriculation in the Education Code rather than move them to Title 5 Regulations.

Whereas the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges is on record in Resolution 6.01 F99 as supporting the Governor's call to community service, with the reservation that the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges opposes a mandatory service graduation requirement, and

Whereas the terms "credit by examination" and "articulation" are ambiguous in the "Proposed Revisions to the Standards of Scholarship Regulations" of the Board of Governors,

Resolved that the Academic Senate urge the Board of Governors to revise the language in the "Proposed Revisions to the Standards of Scholarship Regulations" of the Board of Governors in order to clarify the relationship of "credit by examination" and "articulation," and

Whereas the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges supports the full spectrum of student services to be funded by college appropriations, and has historically opposed imposition of any new fees on our students, and

Whereas there is recurrent discussion of new student fees either voluntary or mandatory to pay for such things as textbooks, technology, and instructional materials,