QEP STANDING COMMITTEE
MINUTES
September 29, 2014
Members in attendance: Arturo Valdespino, Ivan Iñiguez, Tony Procell, Vangie De Luna, Gail Meagher,
David Henry, Raul Lerma, Claude Mathis, Charlie Miller, Dr. Ondrea Quiros, Gloria Estrada, Osvaldo
Rodriguez, Patricia Islas, Ysella Fulton Slavin, Xiomara Chianelli, Kathleen Bombach, Laura Molina
Members not in attendance: Jeffrey Coles, Armando Villarreal
Guest: Zaira Crisafalli.
I.
The meeting was called to order at 3:05 p.m.
II.
Results from Faculty Development sessions and a meeting with some other discipline representatives.
 Arturo Valdespino - Introduced guest Zaira Crisafalli, who has done much with the creation
of Core Curriculum assessment. QEP and Core will be working together.
 Dr. Quiros - Last meeting we talked about assessment, however before deciding on how we
will assess, we need to come to a consensus on what is and what is not an appropriate QEP
activity. Also we need to discuss and agree on terms such as: community, interaction and
connection. At the meeting with the discipline leaders, a lot of feelings were expressed on
how a large number of activities no longer seemed to “count” as QEP. The goal of the
meeting is building of consensus; what is and isn’t an activity.
III.
Discussion about definitions and the need for a written explanation for QEP activities.
 Arturo Valdespino – On the screen we want to define goals: interaction and connection.
There is emphasis on “what do those words means?” This could mean students physically
going within one day. Terms are needed to define community.
 Dr. Quiros – A good example of a QEP activity could be students finding a problem within
their community and fixing it, as well as doing research and becoming more involved with
their community.
 Gail Meagher – What about the issue with the borders?
 Dr. Quiros – Community members who come to a campus could also be a QEP activity.
 Ysella Fulton-Slavin – We should be careful about taking the activity outside of the campus.
Going out to a play at EPCC could be an example of a QEP activity. I agree outside of class,
but not outside of campus. Many student commuters don’t know other students or have a way
to go to those events.
 Vangie De Luna – Have the community learn about health issues. Students from my class
visit the Fibrosis Clinic Health Center to research. Particular students have to go out. We
need to make this more meaningful.
Z: RS/MINUTES TEMPLATE/MINUTES TEMPLATE QEPCOMMITTEE 6-12-14.
EPCC does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, gender, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
1
















Arturo Valdespino – QEP is like a blanket, we can do whatever we want, but it needs to
relate. What about not wanting to go outside of class, but bringing someone in.
Tony Procell – If it helps students engage, it’s ok.
Patricia Islas – Individuals/groups designed to identify or to address public issues. What are
we addressing? Parameters need to be defined.
Gail Meagher – How about bringing in people that live here, but have a different culture?
Arturo Valdespino– Having this be within the classroom is a good idea.
Tony Procell – What about students taking pictures of street art downtown and using them
as part of an assignment in class?
Patricia Islas– Let’s bring other performers, exemplify.
Dr. Quiros – How about bringing in a former student into the classroom?
Tony Procell – The idea would be to bring in the connection into the classroom from
outside.
Patricia Islas– A speech debate has different aspects and can be performed nationwide.
Dr. Quiros – What about other instructors from EPCC coming into the classroom?
Ysella Fulton-Slavin – To have students engage students. They could have a professor
talking outside of classroom and taking each class. Professors showing interest in the
community.
Tony Procell – Students are not learning about the community if the QEP activity is about
something else.
Charlie Miller – Mostly QEP is just about using our common sense. We’ve got to do
something about PCP students. Studies have shown students who leave right away after class
are less likely to succeed.
Osvaldo Rodriguez – On campus activities are really good. There is the Immigration forum.
Many students came and brought their family. Taking the time to bring in their relatives is
what helps the community.
Xiomara C. Chianelli – It would be good to write down what MUST be QEP and what
would NOT be QEP.
(From notes made on the board)
QEP
NOT QEP
Enhance knowledge of community
No assignment connected
Active engagement
Engage with others in dialogue Directly/Indirectly
Deeper understanding
Campus activity open to the community
Assignment required (Assessment optional)
Move beyond classroom (exception bringing community into classroom)





Ysella Fulton-Slavin – There are many teachers who don’t want QEP.
Dr. Quiros – For QEP, there must be an assignment attached to the activity.
Raul Lerma – Differentiate if the activity will be addressing a community issue or concern
Arturo Valdespino– Impacting the community, that’s what we want.
Charlie Miller – Wanted to add, I feel the instructor doesn’t have to be engaged to figure out
who to bring in. The instructor doesn’t need to be out.
Z: RS/MINUTES TEMPLATE/MINUTES TEMPLATE QEPCOMMITTEE 6-12-14.
EPCC does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, gender, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
2

IV.
Gail Meagher– Instructors must be out when health fairs are going on.
Plan to review possible explanations and hear from consultant for the next meeting
 Arturo Valdespino – The next meeting will be around mid-October, so we want to come to
a consensus.
 Gail Meagher– If we use texting people, as an example, there is a delayed response. If you
want to communicate, get out there.
 Dr. Quiros – Also consider that not every event to be attended will count.
 Tony Procell – I sent my students to take pictures of street art.
 Gloria Estrada – As long as the students go back to class and talk about it.
 Dr. Quiros – What about at the Hispanic Heritage students who attend, but do not talk at the
event?
 Xiomara C. Chianelli – This activity must have an assessment.
 Arturo Valdespino – What about being indirectly engaged?
 Dr. Quiros – Must take online and early college into consideration as well.
 Charlie Miller – High school students are bound to spend more time going out.
 Arturo Valdespino – Interact with a place, go and tell the instructor what happens.
 Ysella Fulton-Slavin – It should be noticed we’re wanting to do some kind of good. For
example, students can go to Providence Nursing Home to visit kids with cancer. Once
students do this, they are engaged and enthusiastic and look forward to the next time.
 Xiomara C. Chianelli – Some people might not want service learning.
 Arturo Valdespino – On my personal experience when I was in high school, I loved going
to games even when I didn’t play.
 Kathleen Bombach – Home games or away games?
 Arturo Valdespino – “What happens?” and “How is the atmosphere?” are some of the
questions to ask.
 Ysella Fulton-Slavin – It cannot be a home game then?
 Dr. Quiros – Learning about the community can also include newness being a part of it.
 Arturo Valdespino – Going on the visitor’s side at the home game could be the new
experience.
 Gloria Estrada – If we take an example, like in baseball, there are whole families who come
out to watch the games. Students don’t realize this until they start talking amongst
themselves about baseball. There are generations in many families who have played baseball.
 Gail Meagher – What about a food drive at church and doing activities to the community?
 David Henry – We chose this QEP because of the tendency of many EPCC students to want
to only stay close to home and do what is familiar. Students need to engage in and appreciate
the community. New community experiences could include Las Cruces, but not Phoenix.
 Patricia Islas – What about a new experience?
 Gail Meagher – What about caring about the community, feelings to connect to the activity?
 David Henry – So a deeper understanding?
 Dr. Quiros – Connection is connecting activity to something in classroom. Showing what
was learned through an assignment.
 Ysella Fulton-Slavin – Exposing our students to something.
 Ivan Iñiguez – I feel some students stay in the same part of the community because they
have a sense of belonging. Let’s work with that, and have them engage in something.
 Raul Lerma – An example I have of not trying something out would be the time when my
family realized my daughter’s boyfriend had never had Church’s Chicken, and we had never
had Kentucky Fried Chicken, because we lived in different parts of town. It comes down to
simple things.
Z: RS/MINUTES TEMPLATE/MINUTES TEMPLATE QEPCOMMITTEE 6-12-14.
EPCC does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, gender, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
3














V.
Ysella Fulton-Slavin – I think to be part means exposure to many things you want and don’t
want.
Tony Procell – I agree that it all goes back to a deeper understanding.
Ysella Fulton-Slavin – In Shakespeare on the Rocks, my students were exposed and it left a
seed. Some or maybe most didn’t like the play, but as time passed by, students came back
saying they went to see it again. So, it doesn’t matter if they hate it at first.
David Henry – We want to broaden their horizons.
Xiomara C. Chianelli – Involve student interaction.
Dr. Quiros – In the spectrum it’s mostly about what counts vs. thinking what is going to
count. How far in the spectrum will this be?
David Henry – I think some instructors feel the essay interferes with academic decisions.
Dr. Quiros – Does not have to be graded for other disciplines; assessment is optional in
disciplines other than English.
David Henry – I say speakers might work.
Patricia Islas– Would this be open to the community?
Ysella Fulton-Slavin – Later on will one student do more than one assignment?
Dr. Quiros – We hope students do a QEP assignment more than once throughout their time
at EPCC.
Arturo Valdespino – The next meeting will be in about four to six weeks. Speak to people
within your discipline, within your own department, that we’re doing something different.
Talk with them about how they see these definitions and the chart we made.
Dr. Quiros - Assessment measures are getting out of control, so to make it easier, we want to
find ways to assess at the same time, and to use the same assessment tools.
Adjournment: Arturo Valdespino moved to adjourn the meeting. It was seconded by Charlie Miller.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:15 p.m.
Z: RS/MINUTES TEMPLATE/MINUTES TEMPLATE QEPCOMMITTEE 6-12-14.
EPCC does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, gender, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
4