Taft College Academic Senate Minutes
Thursday, August 21, 2014
Cougar Conference Room
Members Present: President Tony Thompson, Vice President Vicki Jacobi, Secretary Linda West,
Jennifer Altenhofel, Nancy Artiga, Kanoe Bandy, Michelle Beasley, Wendy Berry, Eric Bérubé,
Adam Bledsoe, Kamala Carlson, Joe’ll Chaidez, Chris Chung-Wee, Bill Devine, Candace Duran,
Geoffrey Dyer, John Eigenauer, Sharyn Eveland, Bruce Ferguson, Tori Furman, Greg Golling,
Lourdes Gonzalez, Gary Graupman, Jessica Grimes, Dan Hall, Danielle Harris, Brian Jean, Michael Jiles,
Craig Johnson, Diane Jones, Kelly Kulzer Reyes, David Layne, Steve Lytle, Vince Maiocco,
Mariza Martinez, James May, Mike Mayfield, Michelle Oja, Ruby Payne, Joseph Polizzotto, Robin Polski,
Stacie Rancano, David Reynolds, Joy Reynolds, Becky Roth, Terri Smith, Sonja Swenson, Susan Vaughan,
Stefanie Walsh, Karen Ziegler
The meeting was called to order at 11:10 a.m.
Public Commentary
None.
Review of May 19, 2014 Senate Minutes
A motion was made by Jennifer Altenhofel and seconded by Robin Polski to approve the minutes as
presented. The motion carried with one abstention.
Welcome and Introduction of New Faculty
Tony Thompson
Tony introduced and welcomed Michael Jiles, James May, Stacie Rancano, and Karen Ziegler to the
Senate meeting.
The Academic Senate meets on the first Monday of the month and lunch is always served. Copies of the
agenda and minutes of the prior meeting are distributed at each meeting.
Standing Committee Updates
Strategic Planning Committee
Eric Bérubé
The committee is currently assisting consultants in the development of a new strategic plan. The
Steering Committee is seeking two faculty members to serve on the committee.
A question was raised regarding the expiration date of the current strategic plan. Eric stated the
current document was active until 2015, although 2016 is listed on the website. He said the
document was originally intended as a rolling plan.
Academic Development Committee
Kelly Kulzer Reyes
Kelly reported the committee is currently working on the Basic Skills Initiative budget and
reporting and program review.
Budget Committee
Sonja Swenson
Sonja reported no final budget numbers have been released. A budget working meeting is
scheduled for next week. We’re not anticipating big changes, but need to be prepared for the
doubling of contributions to PERS and STRS.
Curriculum & General Education Committee
Mark Williams
The committee meets tomorrow and a draft agenda has been distributed.
Stand-alone courses still need the approval of the committee and Board of Trustees, but now
must also go to the state for approval.
Library Space/Staff Development/Tutoring Update
Mark Williams
Mark commended Terri Smith for the phenomenal amount of work she accomplished in the library
reorganization over the summer.
The instructional room is now ready. General tutoring will take place in “tutor alley” and SI tutors are
now located near the general tutors. The staff development room is almost complete. Mark stated he
wants more input from divisions regarding the direction the tutorial program needs to take. He said we
need a clearer definition of the meaning of “faculty-led”.
Mark was asked to give an update on enrollment numbers for the fall semester. He stated enrollment
numbers are down across the state, but we’re looking okay. We have a good shot at meeting our target
enrollment numbers for the semester.
Mark shared his concerns regarding the number of faculty serving on various committees. He stated the
numbers are out of balance. Some committees have huge numbers of faculty and others have very few
faculty members. He said we’re currently looking for committee assignment alternatives that meet
institutional needs. For example, the institution currently has needs in the areas of accreditation, SLOs,
and data collection and analysis. The discussion was started last year. At issue is the method used to
redistribute faculty membership and make sure the work that we’re being charged with is being
completed. Diane Jones reminded the group that any drastic change to the current system constitutes a
change in working conditions and is an Association issue.
Brian Jean stated he thought we already had an alternative committee assignment process in place.
Mark stated it was more about making the alternatives viable and meaningful. Kelly Kulzer Reyes asked
if faculty was aware of the possible alternatives. Sonja Swenson thought it would be helpful if we might
see examples of alternatives. Almost all of us already serve on at least one accreditation subcommittee.
Mark stated he would like to see us move to a more structured process, but doesn’t want us to get
locked into narrow possibilities. This topic will be continued at the September Senate meeting.
John Eigenauer asked Mark to give the group his definition of “status quo”. Mark stated we were at
1105 FTES at last fall’s census date. An FTES of 1105 for this fall would be status quo. Mark said he
doesn’t know what the trend is, but last year we lost 6% after census. According to Mark, we want to
maintain approximately 2500 FTES annually. That number will keep us at cap. The college intentionally
went over cap in the past because we received growth money. That is no longer the case. We’d like to
be slightly over cap to replenish our buffer, but we don’t want to be too much over cap.
Taft College Hall of Fame Task Force
Kanoe Bandy
Kanoe asked for two faculty members to serve on a Taft College Hall of Fame task force. The task force is
co-chaired by Kanoe and Darcy Bogle. The concept of a Hall of Fame started in the Athletics Department,
but the idea was broadened to include other members of the campus community. Honorees could
include alumni, and retired faculty, classified, and Board of Trustees members. The task force will be
charged with setting up guidelines for a selection process, using other colleges as a model. Kanoe stated
we would like the Hall of Fame to be sustainable. Some ideas for the honorees include tiles in the quad,
“Wall of Fame”, and trophy cases in the new student center. The concept is wide open right now.
TutorTrac Demonstration/Grants Updates
Agnes J.Eguaras
TutorTrac Demonstration
Agnes reported on the need for a centralized tracking system to be used in the tutorial program to track
tutoring, supplemental instruction, workshops, math lab usage, and writing and language lab usage. The
learning center front desk will be staffed and be the centralized point for day-to-day tutoring operations.
Students will check in and out for tutoring appointments at the desk. Debi Wooley will be staffing the
desk from 8-noon daily. Student workers will staff the desk at other times. Debi will be maintaining a
schedule of services and activities and college usage data.
Agnes stated that a more centralized system is needed. TutorTrac is software that is designed for this
purpose and includes the following features:
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Centralized scheduling system
User can view different services and schedule of activities
Record and track student visits for each area of service
Connects with student registration system
Student progress reports
Usage reports
The Windows-based software is self-hosted and runs on a local server. The cost of the software is $2995
and applies only to the current version. Support is $799 the first year and includes training and technical
support. Agnes stated that part of the cost can be paid for by grant funds. Brian Jean asked if we had
considered developing our own home-grown software
Darcy Bogle reported on GradesFirst, a robust student support system used by many California
Community Colleges. The system includes several components, including a tutor management
component. The system provides early intervention and extensive reporting capabilities. According to
Darcy, GradesFirst is very user-friendly. The system would replace SARS, which has proven difficult for
students to use. The annual cost of the system is $27,500. Candace Duran reported that all of Region VI
is adopting GradesFirst as their student support system.
Sharyn Eveland asked if the choice to adopt TutorTrac or GradesFirst was an either/or decision. Sharyn
stated that if GradesFirst doesn’t meet the tracking needs of the tutorial program, we would still need to
consider TutorTrac.
Grant Highlights
Agnes reported on activities funded by the QFS, STEM Pathways, and CEED grants.
QFS Activities:
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Faculty Development Center
FIGs (Faculty Inquiry Groups)
English/ESL Adjunct Faculty Workshops
English Access Workshop
Math Jumpstart Workshop
Counseling and Ed Advisory Workshops
STEM Pathways
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Young Innovators Club – TUHS
STEMvitational Event
Mad Science Summer Camps
Math Jam Workshops
TC and University of La Verne Research Project
CEED
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Engineering Program
Outreach with schools and industry
Advisory Committee
New STEM Counselor
President’s Report
Tony Thompson
Tony would like to see more faculty from Taft College attend the State Senate’s plenary session. Mark
Williams attended the Curriculum Institute this year and indicated it was so beneficial he would like to
send a team next year. Tony stated he would support the awarding of salary schedule credit for
attendance and Mark is in agreement.
Brian Jean stated he would like to see salary schedule credit awarded for attendance at other
conferences, as well.
Mark stated the request for salary schedule needs to be structured and explicit regarding the value of
the activity to the institution.
The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 2nd.
Meeting was adjourned at 12:56 p.m.
Respectfully submitted by
Linda West, Academic Senate Secretary