By | November 25, 2020
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THE SENATE STANDARD – ISSUE 2.13

ACC Full-Time Faculty Senate Website 

ACC Coronavirus page

Dear Faculty Colleagues,

The weather is cooling, the leaves are falling, and we’re heading into the final stretch. We get back from Thanksgiving break, and then we have only a couple of weeks until we put F20 to bed.

How are you doing? Feeling you’ve hit the marathoner’s “wall” but without knowing exactly where the finish line is? A recent Inside Higher Ed article “Faculty Pandemic Stress Is Now Chronic” notes, “The early days of the pandemic took a toll on faculty members, but for many, peak stress is now, according to a new study of faculty mental health from Course Hero. … The findings suggest that faculty worries about the pandemic have morphed into chronic stress — with serious implications for professors’ mental health, their students and the profession as COVID-19 drags on.”

I’ve shared this article with our Provost, Dr. Charles Cook, with the intention of getting the issue on an upcoming FTFS meeting agenda with the Chancellor and his leadership cabinet to see if and what ACC offers to help faculty with stress and mental health. As a full-time employee, you have access to the Employees Assistance Program. Also, the college has created a website with a list of community-based mental health services. Have you tried EAP? How’d it go for you? Other resources you’re aware of to share with our colleagues? Let me know.

Hang in there. Stay safe. Take care of yourself, so you can take care of others.

Best,

Wayne

Senate Meetings / Minutes / Agendas

12/11/20 Senate Meeting, noon – 1:30 pm – This is the second call for agenda items for our next monthly Senate meeting. Please send items for consideration to me at [email protected] or to your campus senator by Friday, December 4th. Find details on how to join this meeting online on the Senate Calendar. You can also add the event (and online joining details) to your own calendar by clicking on the 12/11/20 Senate Meeting link above.

11/13/20 Senate Meeting – The minutes for this meeting are currently in development. They will be posted after approval.

10/9/20 Senate Meeting Minutes – The minutes for this meeting are now available. You can view them here.

Newsworthy

A Message from the Chancellor: Preparing and planning for spring amid COVID-19 – Click here to view Dr. Rhodes’ update on the college’s next steps for spring.

26th Annual Giving Tree Campaign supports ACC students with children – Click here for information on the 26th Annual Giving Tree Campaign.

Update your DE Resource Links – If you have any links to the old Distance Learning website (http://dl.austincc.edu) in your syllabus or course materials, they will no longer work after November 30. Please contact Amy Setter if you need assistance locating Distance Education web resources.

The Office of Compliance Job Posting [November 27] – The ACC Compliance Office is looking for an Operations Coordinator to join the team! Review the job description and apply at https://bit.ly/2JIMf9A

New Action Items [please check due dates below!]

Distance Education Faculty Training Needs Assessment [Due Nov. 30] – The Office of Distance and Alternative Education is conducting a survey to help prepare workshops and training opportunities for next year. Please complete the following survey before November 30th.

Spring 2021 embedded Learning Support Services Program [Due Dec. 4] – Please see this flyer for information. Request embedded learning support for your classes using this form.

Faculty Interest Group Applications Now Open for Spring 2021 [Due Dec. 10] – Apply by Thursday, December 10th to join the following FIGs:

All meetings will be held virtually beginning Spring 2021.

New Fellowships Pilot [Due Dec. 11] – TLED has created a comprehensive pilot faculty fellowship program focused on course redesign. These fellowships are designed to support faculty in the redesign of courses employing high-impact and best practices in specific instructional methods and strategies that support equitable outcomes in student success and build on the scholarship of the teaching profession. They are currently recruiting eligible applicants for Level 2 Fellowships and the deadline to apply is December 11th. Click here to learn more.

Current Action Items (These are reminders for things I’ve already sent out):

Administrative Rule for Review [Due Dec. 2] – The Administrative Services Council (ASC) has reviewed and approved proposed changes to the following Administrative Rule (AR) and Guideline/Procedure (G/P) and posted the drafts for comments from ACC employees:

6.01.004  Criminal History and Background Checks for Employment

The AR has been updated to reflect current regulations and practices, as well as the reference to Board policy. Some clauses have been moved from the AR to the G/P, or vice versa, as appropriate. Additional wording changes have been proposed for clarity or consistency.

The draft is available for viewing and adding comments here: https://sites.google.com/a/austincc.edu/asc-internal/admin_rules_drafts

Please read the instructions before adding comments. The deadline for comments is December 2, 2020.