Bulletin of January 13, 2012
“Success” and funding: Keeping the community in our colleges
On January 9th, the statewide Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges approved, in total, the recommendations of the statewide Student Success Task Force. It did so over the eloquent objections of many community college faculty, and the even louder objections of students, many from CCSF, who spoke against the overly narrow vision of “success” the recommendations propose and eventually “mic checked” the meeting.
The task force is now disbanded, and we are entering a new phase of action regarding its recommendations. Legislation and proposals for implementation will move forward. AFT 2121 will help keep faculty apprised of the situation and opportunities to impact the process. At the state level, we have been involved in strategic planning regarding legislative actions, and we expect the Community College Council and the CFT to be fully engaged.
We must ensure that our community colleges continue to serve the whole of our student population and that all students, particularly our most vulnerable and underserved students, have access to the quality education that is their right. The real solution to the problems that the task force identified is sufficient funding, not rationing education for fewer students and narrowing the definition of “success.” With enough revenue to allow colleges to continue to accomplish and improve student success, the task force’s call for rationing education would have gained little traction. We can always improve, but not at the expense of serving our diverse students in all of their diverse purposes.
California’s visionary Master Plan for Higher Education recognized that quality, accessible public education was a public good. Under it, the UC system would accept the top 12.5% of students, the CSUs the top 33.3%. And the community colleges would educate the rest of California’s students who were able to benefit from education—they were truly intended to be the colleges of the people. And they still are—for the moment.
But the state has defunded public education in the last years, and the revenue crisis has led to repeated rounds of budget cuts and ever-tightening belts in our community colleges and all of higher education. The 1% has access to the world’s most elite educational institutions, but a truly democratic society must make quality public education available for the rest of us.
The cost of education has also skyrocketed, not just in the UCs and CSUs, but in the community colleges. Just 25 years ago, community colleges classes were free to all Californians. Ten years ago, they were $11 per unit, but they have now increased by 327%. Students will be forced to shoulder an additional 13% hike in 2012. And tuition fees don’t speak to the cost of living or of textbooks and other supplies; many students must work multiple jobs while trying to meet their educational goals.
Proposed “reforms” to the mission of CA’s community colleges now pose a serious threat to the education communities colleges will provide in the near future. Rather than advocating that our colleges meet the needs of the 99% by restoring the funding that’s already caused thousands of students across the state to lose access, the community college system has instead adopted a plan to “ration” the education community colleges will offer. If implemented, some of these proposals would change the face of community colleges and shut the door on many of our most vulnerable students—and not just during this time of fiscal instability, but for the long run.
We should not—cannot, in fact—acquiesce to the misplaced budget and funding priorities in California. Instead, we must reiterate that our students and our state have every right to a fully funded public education system.
2012 is the year to make that funding happen, both locally and statewide. AFT 2121 is fully committed to a San Francisco parcel tax to support -- and save -- the college and to CFT’s statewide Millionaires Tax that would bring $13 million back to CCSF and restore funding educational and other services without asking any more of the 99%.
Millionaires Tax would begin restoration
Following extensive research, the California Federation of Teachers and others have filed the “Millionaires Tax to Restore Funding for Education and Essential Services Act of 2012” with the Attorney General’s office. This ballot measure would increase tax rates on personal income in excess of one million dollars per year to provide desperately needed revenues to rebuild our schools and services.
The Millionaires Tax Act will ask people to pay additional income tax as follows:
(1) At the rate of 3% on that portion of a taxpayer’s taxable income in excess of one million dollars ($1,000,000), but not over two million dollars ($2,000,000).
(2) At the rate of 5% on that portion of a taxpayer’s taxable income in excess of two million dollars ($2,000,000).
The Millionaires Tax would raise an estimated $6 billion per year for schools (early childhood, K-12, and all three sectors of higher education), services for seniors, children, the disabled, public safety, and rebuilding roads and bridges.
The measure is extremely popular: our polling shows this initiative by far has the best chance with the electorate because the voting public wants to restore education and services, and it wants to get there without asking the 99% to sacrifice any more.
The Millionaires Tax will not solve all the state’s problems, but it’s an important start, and key to its success is that it gets the money from the people who have it and can easily afford to pay their fair share.
Ask AFT 2121 how you can support the Millionaires Tax of 2012!
Visit the website: millionairestaxca.com
Budget woes continue: State underfunding and administrative missteps
CCSF continues to struggle to balance its fiscal year 2011/12 budget after the “trigger 2” cuts in State funding were confirmed by the Governor as necessary to offset anemic State revenues. With the additional “trigger 2” cut to the CCSF budget, the total loss in State funding to CCSF for 2011/12 now tops $13 million.
AFT continues to advocate to scale back program offerings as necessary through attrition rather than layoffs. By not replacing all faculty who leave the District from year to year, unstaffed hours can be used to contract. This approach requires taking the medium and long term view in making shifts in scheduling and program changes. It avoids precipitous cuts that devastate both students and employees.
Though state trigger cuts were expected, a number of new challenges have developed. Last Fall’s program was simply rolled over and even expanded from the previous year, 2010/11, which had represented an all-time high in CCSF student enrollment. This error in planning and execution represents one of several administrative missteps over the past six months. Despite a clear budget plan, the District has so far failed to realize savings it needed to close this year’s deficit, leading to additional cuts to the Spring and Summer 2012 program. Where additional cuts were needed, these were supposed to include assignments to retired faculty, new part-time hires, and overloads, and not to cut full-time base or part-time modal loads.
Unfortunately, just before the semester break in December, administration decided to deal with the budget deficit by taking an axe to courses that were already scheduled and enrolled for the Spring. In a move that can only be described as panicky and misguided, dozens of classes, many highly enrolled, were cut despite protests from AFT 2121 and others. The Chancellor has acknowledged that last-minute precipitous cuts to the class schedule are hurtful to students and faculty and must be avoided.
AFT 2121 will continue to monitor the CCSF and State budgets closely and advocate against the meat-axe approach to reducing expenditures.
It is in this context that AFT 2121’s bargaining team resumes negotiations towards a new three-year AFT/District contract by July 1, 2012. Restoration of the lost salary step from 2009/10 remains the compensation priority, and there are many other issues on the team’s agenda, including healthcare costs. The Union will report back to faculty as these negotiations unfold.
Flex day obligations for Jan. 12, 13 and beyond
Despite AFT’s efforts at the bargaining table this last fall to clarify and update faculty flex day obligations, the District has persisted in sending out confusing language on flex forms. We offer the following clarifications:
AFT can help clarify or advise you regarding your flex day requirements.
Get involved in your faculty union, AFT 2121
Attend the statewide CFT convention from April 13-15, 2012 in San Jose. Nominations take place at the Delegate Assembly meeting on Tuesday, January 31.
Interested in guiding your union’s political involvement? Join our COPE committee. Promoting diversity within the union and at the college? Join our diversity caucus. Supporting fellow part-time faculty? Join the part-timer’s committee. We have many opportunities to get involved -- let us know about your interests, energies, and areas of expertise. We’d love to sit down with you and discuss! Let us know: aft@aft2121.org or call 585-2121.
EDD reporting requirements for faculty receiving unemployment
Part-timers who are pay-by-load must report earnings for the January 12 and 13 flex days to EDD. Part-timers who are paid hourly must report earnings if their scheduled work days fall on Thursday or Friday. For more information in determining earnings, click here.