Budget Advisory Committee

Tuesday, October 24, 2000

Senate Chambers, 2:30 p.m.

The meeting was called to order by Ron Root, Chair; Barbara Croteau (Co-Chair).

Members present: Andrew Glass, Micca Gray, Xuan Ho, Maryanne Michaels, Larry Stimach, Deborah Sweitzer, Sandi Tassano, Mabruka Yazidi.

Members absent: M. Bennett (Ex-Officio), Craig Butcher, M. Lee, Caroline Tice.

Also present: Robert Agrella.

Staff to the Committee: K. Bradbury, E. Cichocki, R. Kyle, L. Royer.

New Academic Senate representative Xuan Ho was introduced.

September 26, 2000 Minutes were adopted without comment or objection.

For purposes of discussion Ron Root asked the committee to review and consider the Full-Time Faculty Five-Year Plan which was distributed with the current agenda. Today's objective is to come up with a final draft. Questions and comments were solicited.

There was a discussion of what "reasonable" means in regard to the Title V mandate for making progress toward the 75 percent standard of total faculty workload hours. A concern was expressed that full-time faculty targets projected in the paper reflected little progress. Ron Root explained that reasonable progress is contingent upon fully funded COLA and growth funding to its cap. A basic premise to the paper is that if those conditions do not exist at the College (that is, if the College is not growing), then there is no requirement to make "reasonable progress". The college has not grown for the past four successive years. If the college had been growing to its fully funded cap, the full-time faculty numbers would be larger.

From a budgeting perspective, any increase in the full-time faculty ratio would have to come from the fund balance, since there have been insufficient general apportionment revenues to cover normal cost increases and add faculty also. Partnership for Excellence (P4E), while considered base revenue, is not funded for COLA. Some faculty positions have been budgeted from this source. If COLA were to be attached to P4E revenue, it would present further options for the District.

The cost to the district of advancing from its current full-time ratio to the 75% standard seemed high to some representatives, and Ron Root agreed to look at the methodology used for the calculation.

An opinion was expressed that there would be more comfort in approving the plan if the full-time faculty targets were expressed as targeted minimums that would be re-examined on an annual basis as the budget picture changes. As it is, the targets become a ceiling and not a floor. In addition, it was suggested that, since the integrated Master Plan serves to truly support increasing faculty, the connection to the Master Plan be reiterated in the Conclusion section on page 8 of the draft.

Other draft revisions were noted. Add (+) positive indicators to the figures in the "Difference" columns on pages 2 and 7. For future annual reviews the calendar timelines will be extended. Under "Fiscal Requirements" section, pg. 4, Ron will look at the supporting documentation for ranking California's community colleges by full-time percentages and SRJC's placement at "25th best". Deborah Sweitzer will provide part-time faculty salary schedules and fringe benefits for a further look at the disparity in compensation between full-time and part-time faculty throughout the state. Add to pg. 6 list of factors affecting lack of growth: welfare reform and housing costs. Pg. 6, expand parking statement (2) to include broader situation of limitations of being an urban campus. Revise pg. 1, new section 51025 consistent with Attachment A amendment. Add to pg. 1, first sentence: ..."credit faculty workload hours, not including overload." Pg. 7, add: "Initial Minimum" to section title "Full-Time Faculty Targets." Add to Attachment B Year 2003-04 and beyond: *this data has not been modified to reflect changes in testing.

There were no objections expressed to advancing the draft incorporating the clarifying language. The final draft will be distributed to the committee, and if at any point there are concerns, members are requested to call Ron Root.

There are two calendar tracts on this issue for fall. One objective is defining key fiscal measures useful to this institution as part of a template of measures that define the status of the institution, an information piece to inform the college community of where we are vs. where we might want to be. In addition, the Board has asked for a report from the President by March 1, 2001 on the long term fiscal solvency of the college.

Discussion ensued on the draft of potential fiscal measures. Enrollment is currently a bellwether measure. Ron Root asked members to think about what information the college community would be interested in receiving at periodic intervals and be prepared for further discussions at the next BAC meeting. Ron will distribute copies of the 311 report prior to the next meeting. The challenge is to come up with things that are useful to the college community and will help them understand the issues. Deborah Sweitzer, Maryanne Michaels, and Micca Gray will meet further with Ron Root on the topic of Fiscal Measures prior to the next BAC meeting.

Meeting adjourned: 4:30 p.m.

Next Meeting: Tuesday, November 28, 2:30 p.m. - Senate Chambers