THE SENATE STANDARD – ISSUE 12
Dear Faculty Colleagues,
Senate standard 12 on November 12! Is that lucky, or what? This is a long one, and it is COLD outside, so curl up by a heater and enjoy!
Senate Meetings / Minutes / Agendas
FIRST CALL FOR AGENDA ITEMS – 12/13/19 Senate Meeting – noon to 2pm HBC 301 – The agenda for our next Senate meeting is now in development. If you have items you wish to be included, please submit them to [email protected] or your campus senator now.
Senate Meeting – 11/8/19 – Minutes are now in development and will be posted soon.
New Action Items [please check due dates below!]
Senator Nominations for Elgin and San Gabriel Campuses. [due 5pm November 22, 2019] – We currently have two senator positions that are open. According to our bylaws, we must hold a special election in December to fill these. If you are FT faculty housed on the EGN or SGC campuses, you should have already received a nomination form in your email. Look for a subject line of “Faculty Senate Special Election- Nominations Close November 22, 2019”, or just complete THIS FORM. Please nominate yourself or someone else to serve so these campuses can be represented in the Senate.
Share your thoughts with students at Graduation! [due December 1, 2019] – Every semester, the Faculty Senate President gives a short address sharing a faculty perspective at the ACC Graduation Ceremony. This year, I’d like to bring many faculty voices to our students on their special day. Do you have some wishes or words of wisdom you would like to share with graduating students? If so, please take a moment to craft a sentence or two that could be a part of this year’s graduation address. I’ll review all submissions and select as many as possible to include. Submit your statement on the “Graduation Speech Suggestions” form.
Comment on new Proposed Senate Bylaws [due December 6, 2019] – The Senate Bylaws Committee, chaired by Jon Luckstead, is in the process of making changes to our bylaws. This effort has been in the works for several years, and we are pleased to be in the home stretch. The proposed drafts are now available online. You can see the red line version to recognize changes, but the most up-to-date version is the clean copy. You can also review a summary of the major changes. Take some time to review the proposed drafts, and then send any comments to Jon Luckstead ([email protected]). Once we’ve heard from faculty and improved the draft, the Senate will be voting on whether or not we should call for a vote of all faculty to adopt these changes.
Pay as you go details – Help spread the word to students [through January 6, 2020] – A new registration process is in effect for students. Known as “Pay as you go,” this process outlines new deadlines for paying tuition. To ensure that students keep the classes they register for, they all need to know about these deadlines. Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with this information. Then, consider announcing it in class, or sending an email to your students with a link to this information.
Newsworthy
Holiday Party! – This year’s party is Friday, December 6, 2019 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel. Learn more and purchase tickets at the ACC Marketplace.
TCCTA – Guide to Political Participation – Ann Palmer, senator from EVC, encouraged the senators at the Nov. 8 Senate meeting to get a copy of the “Guide to Political Participation” published by the Texas Community College Teachers Association (TCCTA). This organization advocates for community colleges with the State Legislature. The booklet explains when, how and why to communicate with our state representatives about issues important to Community College Faculty and Students. Contact the Texas Community College Association (www.tccta.org ) if you would like more information about this organization, and Ann Palmer ([email protected] ) if you would like a copy of the “Guide to Political Participation.”
Tech Tools you can use! – In a recent email newsletter sent to her organization, Dr. Susan Thomason, AVP of TLED (Teaching and Learning Excellence Division) shared a list of tech tools that ACC maintains which can be used by faculty and staff. Review the list to learn more about resources that may help you in your work at ACC.
Thanks for your careful attention to all of this information. Have a wonderful week!
Best,
++missi patterson