By | April 9, 2024

Senate Standard 5.17

In the Standard this week:
– Senate Meeting April 12 – Call for Agenda Items
– Administrative Services Council: 
—Out for Comments: AR 4.0300.10 Dual Employment
– IT Re-Authentication Information
– Survey on ACC Values
– Faculty Needed: New Proposed Student Evaluations Pilot
– The Office of the Vice Chancellor of Instruction
—Data Engagement For Student Success
– Senate Nominations

Juan
[email protected] 
Senate Meeting April 12 – Call for Agenda Items
We are holding a Faculty Senate meeting on Friday, April 12, from 12 pm to 1:30 pm. If you have any items you want to be considered, please send them my way at [email protected]
Administrative Services Council: Out for Faculty Comments
The Administrative Services Council (ASC) has reviewed and approved proposed changes to the following Administrative Rule (AR) and posted the draft for comments from ACC employees:

4.0300.10  Dual Employment

The draft is available for viewing and adding comments here:
https://sites.google.com/austincc.edu/asc/draft-changes-to-administrative-rules-and-guidelinesprocedures

Please read the instructions before adding comments.

The deadline for comments is April 26, 2024.
IT Re-Authentication Information
At our next meeting we will be discussing computer logoff issues experienced by some instructors.  I thought it would be a good idea to include in this standard the actual IT policies on re-authentication after a computer has been left sitting idle for a length of time. Here is page 45 from the IT Master Control Standards Catalog with the pertinent information.
Survey on ACC’s New College Values
At the Data Summit the Chancellor unveiled his plan for ACC.  The values of Compassion, Courage, Joy, and Yes will be part of every process in the college.  We need you to let us know how faculty can codify these values into behaviors inside and outside the classroom. We need all faculty to contribute.  Thanks to the ones who have already filled out our survey.  If you have not done so, please fill out the survey by Friday, April 12 by 5pm.
Faculty Needed: New Student Evaluations Pilot
We are looking for faculty members to pilot the new proposed course evaluation questions in their 16-week lecture course(s). Instructors in the pilot would not be using the current ACC course student evaluations. We need as many faculty members as possible, so please spread the word to encourage others to participate. 

If you are willing to pilot the new student evaluations, please confirm here by noon on April 15th. This will give the Faculty Evaluations Office enough time to set up your course. You can look over the proposed course evaluation questions here.

Spring 2024 course evaluations will not be considered for those instructors in the pilot (unless specifically required by the department in individual cases).  

For those in the pilot, we can provide a short email or Blackboard post for their students explaining how important their input will be in shaping our future evaluative process.

If you have any questions, please contact Marcus McGuff  ([email protected]) or Gale Spear ([email protected]).
Data Engagement for Student Success
As you know, student success is our number one priority, and one way to improve course completion is by making data-informed decisions. The DESS (Data Engagement for Student Success) workgroup is examining faculty’s ability to acquire and read data and implement process improvements based on the data. 

Dr.Gaye Lynn Scott initiated this Data Engagement work last summer, to promote data engagement in instruction and asks you for your views on your comfort with and use of data in your work.

The DESS workgroup would like to better understand how comfortable instructional faculty and staff are with using data to inform decision-making – in the classroom, in the department, and in support of student success.  We are gathering this information through a short (5-10 minutes), anonymous, Data Literacy Assessment.  Please complete this short assessment by Friday, April 12

The workgroup plans to use the assessment results to provide targeted training that can improve the data-informed decision-making process. 

For more detailed information regarding this initiative, see Dr. Gaye Lynn’s Scott message to the faculty.

Many thanks for participating.
Interactive Webinar Series: Supporting Mental Health of Diverse Parenting Students at Community Colleges
Students of color who are also parents make up a sizable portion of the student body of community colleges. They also face a unique set of challenges and stressors that often go unaddressed, creating significant barriers to graduation.

This interactive webinar series aims to improve the understanding of the complexities facing parenting students of color so that faculty, staff, and providers of student services can better address their mental health needs and support their path to graduation. Participants will walk away with strategies and best practices to establish a more inclusive classroom environment and campus community.

Sessions:
Apr 12, 2024 11:00 AM: Mental Health Matters 
Apr 26, 2024 11:00 AM: Strategies for Success

Register here.

Here is the informational flyer
Senate Nominations
Below you will find the final slate for Senate nominations for Fall 2024 through Summer 2025. Thanks to all faculty that have been nominated (and have accepted).

Senate Nominations Slate (Final)

For those nominated, please check to make sure there are no mistakes in the slate.

Again, thanks for your interest in being part of the Senate.