š Fall Meeting › Date:  Thursday, Oct. 26, 2006 Location:  Highline Community College Hosting Rep:  Phil Droke   pdroke@highline.edu

ATTENDEES:

Diane Pelletier, Green River                                            Diana Knauf, Shoreline

George Neal, South Puget Sound                         Mark Doerr, Spokane Falls

Max Heinzmann, Big Bend                                               Tom Affholter, Spokane

Tim Keely, Tacoma                                                        Randy Nelson, South Seattle

Michelle Quinn, Seattle Central                                        John Cleary, Grays Harbor

Phil Droke, Highline                                                        Stephen Garrow, Bellevue

Bill Moore, SBCTC                                                          Jim Howe, Lake Washington

Jennifer Wu, North Seattle                                              Chuck Weedin, Yakima

INTRODUCTIONS AND WELCOMES

New members were welcomed.

Tools for Teaching IV Conference

There will be up to 70 attendees from a diverse range of disciplines. Diane, Diana and Phil have been coordinating and Mark has done the publicity. Representatives assembled packets during the meeting and people were designated to assist at registration.

COMMON COURSE NUMBERING

we were asked if FACTC had a “position” on common course numbering. Discussion addressed that some faculty at some schools were opposed, while others were unaware of such controversy and not very sure what all of the issues are. Some faculty senates and union executive boards have expressed concern. Bill Moore (SBCTC) provided some additional background – first, the State Board endorses this project, and second, the goal is to create a more transparent system for that 25% of students who take classes at more than one community college before they finish an associate’s degree. Tim Keely shared his experience of working on the project and that despite information being distributed people continue to say they do not know about it. Additionally, lots of misinformation about the project is out there. Bellevue particularly has raised some important concerns especially relating to the comparability of courses across campuses.

There are some issues, but may also be some benefits of the project in the long run. Faculty need to educate themselves about it, and then give feedback either in writing or at the scheduled meetings over the next couple of months. If faculty members are interested, they should contact their Academic Affairs office to get more information about upcoming meetings.

ACTION: It was moved, seconded and unanimously approved that we NOT take a position on the CCN issue due to the diversity of opinions.

TO DO: All representatives are charged with going back to gauge faculty views on your campus and be ready to report concerns at the February meeting. It is also important to remember that we serve a role as a conduit for information. The URL is http://www.sbctc.ctc.edu/education/commoncoursenumbering.asp

Officers’ Reports

Secretary                                                                       Diana Knauf

Minutes of 5/12 and 5/13/06 were amended and approved unanimously.

Treasurer                                                                       Diane Pelletier

Our balance on 5/13/06 was $5960.44 and is currently $5850.09. This is before dues have been collected for this year and does not include fees collected for the upcoming conference, nor associated expenses.

Vice-president                                                               George Neal

George plans to consolidate information sources so that membership information is easier to access and keep current. He will also approach the academic vice presidents about encouraging faculty to elect representatives to FACTC. George will also coordinate place cards for upcoming meetings.

President                                                                       Diane Pelletier

Diane is most concerned with determining a new treasurer.

ELECTION OF TREASURER

Randy Nelson is willing to serve as treasurer.

ACTION: Randy Nelson was approved unanimously as Treasurer.

FACTC Website AND newsletter Tom Affholter

Tom is willing to maintain the website, but wants people to acknowledge that is does involve work to maintain and keep current. In addition, he would like to make it easier to make changes to the site so it will not require expertise. He reconfirmed that we can use funds to pay a student under his supervision to assist in this work. Changes can be approved by the board, unless they decide that the entire group needs to be involved in prospective changes. Jennifer also suggests that we change from a discussion board to a blog which is easier to maintain. WE would need to participate and get other faculty to participate as well for the blog to be effective.

FACTC Focus Mark Doerr

Mark brought the current Focus but would like to add some additional information for the larger print run of the Focus. We shared additional sabbatical information and Mark will present the most updated information in the Focus. We discovered that there is a wide range of how sabbaticals are granted, how many are granted and at what remuneration each year.

TO DO: Representatives need to email Mark with the number of quarters of sabbatical that were awarded this year. Additionally, if the information listed in the draft is incorrect for your institution, please send that information as well.

Future topics for the Focus: Jennifer just came back from Monterrey and in the near future connecting with students will probably involve pod casting, blogging, and Instant Messaging, in addition to the problems that access to such resources is not universal. This possible topic was well received and all are urged to consider it.

SBCTC Updates Bill Moore

ePortfolio platform has been chosen: Chalk and Wire has been chosen to use for ePortfolios. The platform will be available if schools choose to use it. The vendor has a product that is flexible and useful. More information will be forthcoming.

State Board for Community and Technical Colleges System Directions – The State Board has developed a new long-term strategic vision document that is being used to frame system goals, major projects, and the overall system budget request. In addition, specific task forces and advisory groups will be formed around key topics, specifically, for now, Student Achievement/Success, New Technologies, and Engaging Students in System Policy Issues.

Operating budget request was distributed but is also available on the State Board website. http://www.sbctc.ctc.edu/

SBCTC is now in new offices with wifi and K-20 access in all meeting rooms, better parking and more space in general. Bill will confirm that we can meet there in February (2/8 and 2/9).

Washington Learns has produced a draft report but it is being re-worked in preparation for being unveiled formally at the Education Summit being held in Seattle 11/13. This project is the large-scale effort sponsored by Governor Gregoire to examine the educational system in Washington, from early learning through higher education, and develop recommendations for ways to improve the system as a whole. The website is: http://washingtonlearns.wa.gov/

College Readiness – Bill is coordinating the Transition Math Project, a statewide project working with high school and college math teachers to define “college ready” standards for math and quantitative reasoning in order to help more students graduate from high school ready to do college-level work in math without needing remediation. The standards have been completed; Phase II of the project, funded by the Legislature and a 3.6 million dollar grant from the Gates Foundation, is sponsoring local high school/college partnerships around the state to develop local implementation projects related to the College Readiness Standards. Additional information is available at: http://www.transitionmathproject.org/

Additionally, the HEC Board has now built on this work and is close to completing college-readiness definitions in English and Science as well. See http://www.learningconnections.org/clc/hecb.htm for more details; the project will be producing the definitions by December 2006 and seeking funding for a Phase II project similar to that of the Transition Math Project.

High School Completion programs – Another looming issue with respect to K-12 high school graduation requirements is that colleges providing programs which offer a Washington high school diploma will have to have their students meet the new requirements (including taking and meeting standard on the WASL). This requirement represents a big challenge for these programs, but the HSC coordinators are working on ways to address the issues, including the feasibility of using the alternative assessment methods being developed by the K-12 system. For more information contact Michael Tate at the State Board— mtate@sbctc.ctc.edu

ROUND TABLE DISCUSSIONS

1. Sabbaticals – see earlier discussion on the Focus. Discussion continued in regards to accreditation and the importance of professional development – this is a good argument for those campuses that are not seeing enough funding for sabbaticals. It is helpful if the committee that recommends who is approved for sabbaticals includes faculty representation.

2. Reduction In Force (RIF) policies

RIFs are a reality when enrollments drop and FTE numbers are reduced (this process is called rebasing). At North Seattle, the faculty has been asked to consider job-sharing and early retirement. There have been 5 schools (of those schools with representatives present) that have experienced RIFs. It is suggested that all look at your contract language around RIFs. Most schools are seeing less part-time faculty, cuts in administrators, and other cost-saving measures in an effort to meet short falls.

Campus Reports

Thank you to those who sent your reports to Diana in advance. If you have not yet done so, please do so now.

TO DO: If you have not yet done so, send your campus report by 11/13/06 to dknauf@shoreline.edu

Closing Remarks and Adjournment – see you in Olympia on 2/8/2007!