Ventura College Academic Senate
Minutes
Thursday, 15 November 2012     MCW-312  

I.	Call to Order
This meeting was called to order 1:34. The following senate members were present:
Chen, Albert—Social Sciences, Arts, and Humanities
Enfield, Amanda—English and Learning Resources
Guillen, Guadalupe—Student Services
Haines, Robbie—Senate Secretary
Hendricks, Bill—Social Sciences, Arts, and Humanities
Horigan, Andrea—Social Sciences, Arts, and Humanities
Kim, Henny—English and Learning Resources
Lange, Cari—Senate Vice President
Mitchell, Nancy—Career and Technical Education
Morris, Terry—PE/Athletics, Communication Studies, Foreign Languages, and ESL
Muñoz, Paula—Student Services 
Parker, Jennifer—Career and Technical Education
Pauley, Mark—Senate Treasurer
Rose, Malia—Mathematics and Sciences
Sezzi, Peter—Senate President
The following guests were present:
Cobos, Terry—District Office
Sloan-Graham, Stacy—PE/Athletics, Communication Studies, Foreign Languages, and ESL

II.	Public Comments
No public comments were made.

III.	Acknowledgement of Guests
a.	Terry Cobos, Field Trip Forms 
Cobos distributed handouts related to new field trip administrative protocols. A new “workflow” process on the portal went online a few weeks ago, replacing older forms. Cobos described the new process and senators expressed gratitude that the process has been so greatly improved and that so many faculty suggestions were incorporated. Sezzi pointed out that this process was a great example of newly improved collaboration between faculty and District. Cobos requested that faculty contact her to initiate this new field trip process. The link to the form will go up on the Portal once Cobos is sure all the wrinkles have been ironed out.

b.	Alma Rodriguez, Financial Aid & Distance Education 
Ms. Rodriquez did not attend this meeting due to a time conflict but she will be rescheduled.

c.	Stacy Sloan-Graham, Sabbaticals
Twelve (12) sabbaticals will be awarded across the district this semester, so a minimum of four (4) will be approved for VC. Eight (8) applications for sabbatical were made at VC this semester. Specific dates and times for Sabbatical Committee meetings will be posted to make recruiting members for this committee easier. The Committee composition was briefly discussed. 

IV. Approval of Minutes, 1 November 2012
Pauley motioned to approve the minutes from 1 November 2012, Lange seconded. The motion carried 12–0–2 with Chen and Morris abstaining.

V. Study Sessions, Program Discontinuance
a.	International Students program (Student service operation)
The reasoning for this phase-out is not known but there was no contesting of the discontinuance proposal from the relevant faculty and staff in this area. VC only gets 38% of international students fees, because those fees go to the District and move through our District’s allocation model. Since it’s an economic disadvantage for us to have these students, the discontinuance of the program is likely a financial decision. 

b. Commercial Art program (Degree/Certificate)
The new commercial art certificate/degree that focuses more appropriately on digital aspects of commercial art is being created by the Dept and will replace our current degree/certificate. The faculty and Dean from the Art program consider this a modernization and did not contest it. 

c. Drafting: Electronic Design Program (Degree/Certificate)
Senators confirmed that only this program, not other Drafting programs, will be discontinued. 

The move of The Reserves Academy to a contract education modality was additionally discussed. Contract education itself was discussed, and a future study session on contract ed was requested. 

VI. Action Items
a.	Distance Education Handbook (Second Reading)
Sezzi requested we table this discussion until we talk to Alma Rodriguez from Financial Aid. Text will be added to this document relating to last date of attendance (LDA) and to reference contract language pertinent to Distance Ed. Significant financial aid issues may exist because of instructors’ inability to document the last time a student actually participated in an online course—according to the U.S. Dept of Ed, a log-in to an online class does not constitute participation.  Sezzi related a story he learned at Fall Plenary where financial aid audit by the Dept of Ed at a private school back East found this to be unacceptable could damage a students’ and the entire school’s financial aid, since financial aid is not given for correspondance courses. 

b.	VC Tiering of Courses Rubric & Process (Second Reading)
The tiering list will be distributed at Department Chairs meeting in January 2013, and they’ll have one month to work out a two year rotation plan for Tier 2 courses. The list will then be finalized in February 2013. Muñoz requested wording in the general narrative allowing categorical programs to offer courses using categorical funds. Pauley motioned to approve with the requested change, Hendricks seconded. The motion carried unanimously. 

c. Discontinuance of International Students, Commercial Art, Drafting: Electronic Design Programs
See Item V.a.–c. above for discussion. Lange motioned to move to second reading, Parker seconded. The motion carried unanimously.

VII. President’s Report
a.	Accreditation Site Visit Report
Sezzi described the various activities of the previous day’s Accreditation Team site visit and the recent Board Meeting attended (briefly) by the Accreditation Team. The official findings of the Accreditation Team will come in later January, with a formal letter from the Commission by early February. 

b.	Board of Trustees meeting Report
Sezzi described the short meeting and its cupcakes.

c.	Administrative Council Report
This meeting was cancelled because of the Accreditation Team site visit.

d.	Statewide Academic Senate Fall Plenary Session Report
Two issues came up at meeting that had not been announced in advance: One was a resolution in support of City College of San Francisco and the pros and cons of officially supporting that school but not others that are on “show cause” accreditation status were discussed. The second was a resolution requesting the State Legislature “to support or revise the 1960 Master Plan for Education CCs in California.” Sezzi voted against both of these resolutions but both passed at Fall plenary.  All other resolutions ended up going the way we had discussed at a prior Senate meeting.

e.	DCAA, DCAS Reports
DCAA: This committee did not meet since the last Senate meeting. 
DCAS: Sezzi reported on a meeting that morning. Sue Johnson will visit this Senate at a future meeting to discuss the District’s request for an additional $600,000 through the District allocation model for District use. The number of employees at the District Office compared to other districts was discussed, as was the District’s overall budget allocation. 

VIII. Senate Subcommittee reports
a.	Elections Committee report
Hendricks announced the election results: Art Sandford was elected President, Peter Sezzi was elected Vice-President (and he will also act as Treasurer) and Colleen Coffey was elected Secretary.

b.	Sabbatical Leaves Committee report
See item III.c., above.

c.	Staffing Priorities Committee report
No objections were raised to using the previous year’s rubrics during the upcoming SPC meeting. 

d.	Curriculum Committee report
Sezzi described a difficult meeting, at which the topic of how many hours should constitute a Carnegie unit was discussed, as were the difficulties of converting lec/lab courses into lecture-and-lab courses. 

e.	Other Senate Committees
No report was made.

IX. Campus Committee reports
a.	CPC report
Three programs for discontinuance were identified. Sezzi noted that almost half of the initiatives identified in Program Review were those that required no funds, which indicates the integrity with which the faculty completed the Program Review process. A special meeting with the Accreditation Team was described by Sezzi. Lange reported that Norbert Tan might ask for unfunded Program Review initiatives to be funded through the Foundation. Tan’s upcoming Senate visit will be postponed until January.

b.	Other Campus Committees
Nothing else was reported. 

X. Adjournment
This meeting adjourned at 3:23 p.m.