Ventura College Academic Senate Minutes
Thursday, 2 May 2013       MCW-312

I.	Call to Order
This meeting was called to order at 1:40 p.m. The following senate members were present:
Chen, Albert—Social Sciences, Arts, and Humanities
Coffey, Colleen—Social Sciences, Arts, and Humanities
Enfield, Amanda—English and Learning Resources
Forde, Richard—Career and Technical Education
Guillen, Guadalupe—Student Services
Haines, Robbie—Senate Secretary
Horigan, Andrea—Social Sciences, Arts, and Humanities
Kolesnik, Alex—Mathematics and Sciences
Lange, Cari—Senate Vice President
Mitchell, Nancy—Career and Technical Education
Muñoz, Paula—Student Services 
Rose, Malia—Mathematics and Sciences
Sandford, Art—PE/Athletics, Communication Studies, Foreign Languages, and ESL
Sezzi, Peter—Senate President
The following guest was present:
Bill Hart—VC Title V Velocidad Grant Director

II.	Public Comments
Sezzi wished Mithcell well in her retirement and Haines best wishes as he moves up to Santa Barbara City College; our loss is their gain. 

III.	Acknowledgement of Guest—Bill Hart, VC Title V Velocidad Grant Director
Success and lack of success of struggling students were discussed. Faculty’s and students’ comments were read. Hart noted that a qualitative researcher will be hired for the fall to evaluate this topic and provide data to the campus community. Additional topics were discussed after Hart left, including grades and communication and cell phone etiquette in classes.  

IV.	Approval of Minutes—18 April 2013
Forde motioned to approve those minutes, Lange seconded. The motion carried 12–0–1, with Mitchell abstaining.

V.	Study Sessions
a.	Ventura College Academic Senate Accomplishments
Senators broke up into pairs to individually compile a list of what our accomplishments were. Goals that were achieved were identified and discussed. Sezzi committed to write up and distribute the list.

b.	Ventura College Academic Senate Annual Survey
The results of this survey were discussed, with a focus on the Withdraw deadline matter. It was agreed that a robust debate on the topic should be held next semester. The need for secretarial help was discussed in light of the amount of time faculty spend on data entry and other tasks not related to their disciplines and areas of expertise. The difficulties of part-time faculty meeting SLO-related obligations was also discussed. 

c.	Student/Faculty Strategies Leading to Student Success
There was some additional discussion about strategies leading to student success based on data provided by Hart (see III.a., above). Student responses to questions about what did and did not promote student success were read aloud by Sezzi. 

VI.	Action Items
a.	Ventura College Academic Senate Annual Survey report
Guillen motioned to approve this report, Forde seconded. The motion carried unanimously. 

b.	Ventura College Academic Senate Self-Assessment Survey report
The results of this survey were enumerated and briefly discussed. Sanford motioned to approve this report, Guillen seconded. The motion carried 12–0–1, with Coffey abstaining. 

c.	Distance Education Handbook (Second Reading)
This item was not discussed. Sezzi noted that at this week’s Curriculum Committee, even that body could not agree on the definition of distance education. Further, with contract negotiations underway and a proposed article on DE, it seems prudent to wait on adopting a DE Handbook until at least the fall. Sezzi will communicate with the Distance Education Committee and Dean Lewis-Huddleston that we starting from scratch on this DE Handbook. Sezzi will work on a new draft over the summer that he will then present to the DE Committee for input before coming back to Senate as a new first reading. 

d.	MOU Defining “Mutually Agree” Between the MC, OC and VC Academic Senates (Second Reading)
Language suggested by the OC Academic Senate was identified and discussed. Horigan motioned to approve this document with the added language, Forde seconded. The motion carried 12–0–1, with Guillen abstaining. 

e.	BP/AP 4022 – Course Approval (Second Reading)
Horigan motioned to approve this document, Muñoz seconded. The motion carried unanimously. 

f.	AP 7120 F – Interim Managers: Recruitment and Selection (First Reading)*
This document was introduced by Sezzi, and its origins and benefits were described. Muñoz motioned to approve a first and second reading of this document, Forde seconded. The motion carried unanimously. 

g.	VCCCD Educational Master Plan, 2013-2019 (First Reading)
Sezzi introduced and described this Master Plan. Guillen distributed a separate document listing concerns about the Master Plan held by the counseling department; this document was discussed. The origin and future and significance of the Master Plan were discussed. Forde motioned to move the Master Plan to a second reading, Lange seconded. The motion carried unanimously. 

VII.	President’s Reports
a.	Statewide Academic Senate Spring Plenary Session Report
Sezzi reported that the resolutions all went the way we’d wanted them to go, and that there was little else of lasting significance to report other than a failed palace coup by a loosely-formed group called “SenateTwoPointOh.” 

b.	Administrative Council Report
This meeting was cancelled, so there was nothing to report.

c.	DCHR, DCAS, DCAP Reports
DCHR: AP7120F was discussed. Sezzi described an upcoming AP on emeritus status that we will see in the fall.
DCAS: The IT department will no longer be paid out of the college budget, but rather from District budget. This change will constitute an exact 1:1 money transfer, so there will be no net change to funding of the District Office or the campuses but the percentage that the District wide services budget receives in FY14 and beyond will look bigger due to this funding shift. 
DCAP: It met on Monday. It was sparsely attended. It was over in 20 minutes. There was nothing significant to report.

VIII.	Vice-President’s Report—DCAA
Lange reported that since most topics were tabled, there was nothing significant to report. 

IX.	Senate Subcommittee Reports
a.	Curriculum Committee report
Sezzi reported that a co-joint program was approved, in which a proficiency award can only be earned by taking some classes at MC and some classes at VC. At the Spring Plenary our Distriuct (for once!) was used as an example—in a good way—for doing this co-joint program. 

b.	Other Senate Committees reports
There was nothing to report. 

X.	Campus Committee Reports
Sandford reported that the scholarship banquet is coming up. Work is progressing on our accreditation self-study. 

XI.	Announcement—Ventura College Academic Senate Annual Award Winners
This year’s award winners were announced by Sezzi. Sezzi further noted that included in the SOPs recently adopted by this Senate was a provision for a Senate President award. This award can be bestowed upon anyone—faculty, staff, or student. This year’s award was given to Paula Muñoz, for her commitment to always communicating her ideas and for unrelenting and widely various efforts on behalf of students. The Senate faculty awards were also mentioned: Service to Students – Joy Kobayashi ; Service to Faculty – Debbie Newcomb ; Service to College – Sharon Beynon ; Service to Community – Judy Garey & Sandy Melton. 

XII.	Adjournment
Sezzi publicly thanked all current and past members of Senate Exec—Warren Lew, Cari Lange, Deborah Pollack, Mark Pauley and Robbie Haines. He dedicated adjournment of his last meeting as President to Octavio Sifuentes and Warren Lew. After a moment of silence in their honor, this meeting adjourned at 3:30 p.m.