CSSA Minutes: October 13, 2001

California State University, Chico, Bell Memorial Union, Room 210
CSSA Board of Directors Meeting
October 13, 2001, 9:00 am - Noon

1. CALL TO ORDER 9:37 am, Chair Robert Garcia.
   
   
2. ROLL CALL Present: Bakersfield, Chico, Dominguez Hills, Fresno, Fullerton, Hayward, Humboldt, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Monterey Bay, Northridge, Pomona, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, San Marcos, Sonoma, Stanislaus.
   
   
3. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA Changes: Add Alan Leibricht, new Associate
   Director, Outreach Services, Academic Affairs, Chancellor's Office, after Chancellor's Office Student Relations Liaison report; Move Cleaner Cotton presentation before CSU/CFA; add approval of CHESS Committee theme as III. 2) c), Sunday Board meeting; strike "New Business," Multi Cultural Caucus; on University Affairs Committee agenda, let V, VI and VII reflect Old Business and add Intellectual Property Rights as 1) with Approve University Affairs Policy Agenda for 2001-2002 as 2), and add to VIII, New Business, student visas. Motion to approve, Sacramento; second, San Diego. Passed.
   
   
4. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM SEPTEMBER 2001, San Diego; second, Chico. Passed.
   
   
5. PUBLIC FORUM:
   Robert Garcia, Chair. The world is very different since this body last met. Campuses can be proud of their work in the wake of September 11th. A moment of silence was observed for the victims and to reflect on CSSA goals. (Public Forum continued after Cleaner Cotton Campaign and before CSU/CFA: Marylee McGough, Fresno, asked if CSSA has a historian/photographer to record moments like her handshake of Lech Walesa; Chris Svendsen, Monterey Bay, introduced new Monterey Bay CSSA rep, John Charter; Elexis Mayer, Humboldt, introduced large Humboldt contingent; Aimée [Barnes?], San Francisco, urged CSSA to push Governor's office for announcement of 2nd Student Trustee appointment; John Lauer of the Western Association of College and University Residence Halls urged students to work in coalition with that group to change lardlord/tenant laws; Robert Garcia announced every campus but one is paying dues.
   
   
6. SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS
   Dr. Chela Mendoza Patterson, Associate Director, CSU Chico Leadership Programs. Amber Johnsen introduced Dr. Patterson, who welcomed CSSA to Chico and said that her office provides leadership opportunities for students through internships, conferences, retreats, newsletters and a website. Dr. Patterson discussed a favorite paradigm, the hero's journey, focusing on heroism with a small "h" as exemplified by all sorts of people in their responses to September 11th. 1) "Being the author?taking full responsibility for your life and choices; 2) crossing the threshold from the known to the unknown; 3) taking risks that challenge your relationships with others and your own self image; 4) challenging yourself on physical, intellectual, spiritual and emotional levels; 5) journeying with others; 6) sometimes disturbing others; 7) embodying the courage to see/speak the truth, affirm the inspired vision and persevere.
   

   Bob Lynch, Vice President, Governmental Affairs, CSU Chico Alumni Counsel. Mr. Lynch expressed the hope that the Chico Alumni Council could collaborate on legislative issues of common concern.

   Cleaner Cotton Campaign. Katherine Polan and Eddie DeAnda of the Sustainable Cotton Project presented a slide show and discussed the student movement that began at CSU Chico one year ago when the students decided to support William Allen's project and become the first college in the nation to offer organic cotton products in its bookstore. Cotton is the most intensely chemicalized crop on the planet?1/3 lb. pesticide per t-shirt?and it's also a food. Cows consume 8 lbs. of cottonseed per day. The Sustainable Cotton Project is farmer-based, with 40 San Joaquin Valley farmers participating. Ordinary cotton is not profitable today: cost to produce exceeds cost paid per lb. of cotton. However, organic cotton IS profitable at $1.14/lb., some 70¢ above the price to produce. Organics are a billion dollar industry, and companies like Patagonia, Calvin Kline and Nike are beginning to incorporate organic cotton into their products. At Chico, in addition to the sale of organic cotton in the AS bookstore, 100% of t-shirts produced for special events must be organic. Chico challenges CSSA to sponsor a like systemwide initiative.

   CFA (Susan Meisenhelder, President) and CSU management (Sam Strafaci, Assistant Vice Chancellor, CSU Human Resources) presented issues at the heart of the collective bargaining impasse.

   Dr. Meisenhelder said teach-ins go back a couple of years to hearings held on campus involving administration, faculty, staff, alums, elected officials, students; the idea was to form coalitions to achieve statewide policies to reverse trends that harm faculty. Those alliances will be critical in the current budget situation and enrollment crisis (a 26% jump by 2010). The percentage of the state budget going to CSU is in decline?CFA will not recommend student fee increases to bridge the gap. CFA is now in mediation with CSU; if there's no settlement, fact-finding will follow. Issues include: class size; faculty/student ratio; increasing tenure-track hires; increasing CSU budget dedicated to teaching; lecturer job security.

   Mr. Strafaci said the parties are far apart on economics. Everyone, even presidents, will get a 2% raise. The only flexibility is how that 2% will be allocated. The fact that CFA's offer is $47M over in the category of pay raises is one of the major reasons for the deadlock. Money earmarked for student enrollment won't be used for faculty pay raises. Mr. Strafaci said American Association of University Professors figures published in the Chronicle of Higher Education show that CSU pays 13-14% higher than the mean and is competitive. CSU is proposing parking fee raises for faculty, another deadlock: CSU thinks money raised to fund parking lot construction should come at equal rates from faculty as from students. CSU shares CFA's concern re temporary faculty, who represent a bit more than half the teaching force, but consider the reasons: temporary faculty increase the system's ability to directly service students?since they don't have to do research, be on probation, they have more time to spend in the classroom. The system's funding doesn't really pay for probating employees, who run about $12,000 over marginal funding. The question is how to guarantee access while including more tenure-track faculty. CSU is looking forward to receiving CFA's alternative budget, which so far isn't on the table.

   Robert Garcia asked each side its main points of contention. Dr. Meisenhelder responded workload, student/faculty ratio, job stability for lecturers, year-round operations (YRO). Students and legislators are being told YRO is a seamless web but faculty pay would not be the same, especially since funding is not being adjusted. CFA can suggest funding sources, as not all legislatively granted funding is going to faculty when it's so earmarked. Dr. Meisenhelder said parking is a wedge issue; more dollars are going into it than are coming out. Another point of contention is contract enforcement: grievances are very slow to be resolved.

   Mr. Strafaci said the principal contention is the size of compensation increases demanded. CSU and CFA are so far apart on this that it's hard to see how the gap can be bridged. $47M would have to come out of several categories. As regards lecturers, CSU wants to see the trend reversed and would also like to give lecturers health benefits (it proposes taking them from the 2%). In fact, CSU funds benefits for lecturers after 6 months at half-time teaching loads; the benefits being discussed here are for a group of lecturers who lost their benefits and are newly eligible to receive them again. YRO is a way to maximize enrollment growth. Mr. Strafaci added he'd like to see the CSU and CFA get out of the business of negotiating a contract every year and creating continuous wrangle, which isn't good for the institution and doesn't serve students well.

   Dr. Meisenhelder held summer salaries should be the same. CSU and CFA [have agreed?] go together to the Governor and Legislature to argue that the marginal cost of funding is inadequate.

   Miles Nevin, Long Beach, asked about the impact of a strike on the quality of education. Dr. Meisenhelder said most faculty aren't eager to strike; if they did, it would be because the principles were important enough. If that decision were made care would be taken to protect students, and strikes have been carried out recently with minimal impact on students (she cited the University of Hawaii).

   Humboldt asked about early retirement (FERP), which takes the lion's share of instructional faculty support. About 10% of tenure track are in FERP. CSU is concerned that FERP reduces its ability to hire new faculty and encourages the hiring of lecturers. CSU wants to reduce FERP from 5 (where it is presently) to 4 to 3 years. CFA disputed that FERP costs the system money.

   LUNCH RECESS.

   Dr. Meisenhelder and Mr. Strafaci came back for 10 minutes following lunch. Mathew from Monterey Bay said with one of every five dollars going to instruction, maybe it's time to evaluate where old monies are being spent. How about part-time administrators? Mr. Strafaci said one shouldn't assume part-time lecturers are a compromise on quality and that 90% of old monies goes to pay salaries and benefits to faculty and staff. Dan Cartwright asked about new dollars from students. Dr. Meisenhelder said CFA wants to avoid divide and conquer and wouldn't look for payraises at student expense. CSU should spend all dollars already dedicated to faculty salaries on faculty salaries.

   Dr. Meisenhelder agreed it would be great to get out of continuous bargaining, but faculty are not willing to accept poor terms over long-term contracts. A CFA FERP counterproposal is to provide incentives that entice faculty to reduce years in the program. Mr. Strafaci said that proposal would be costly, if it's legal.

7. REPORTS
   Christy Zamani, Office of the Chancellor Student Relations Liaison. Christy commended students for their many responses to September 11th and introduced Mr. Alan Leibricht, "the new Ross."
   
   
8. REPORT OF STUDENT TRUSTEE
   Dan Cartwright. Lots of things are flying around legislatively speaking post-September 11th. Senator Feinstein has addressed the lack of accountability in the present system of granting student visas with proposed legislation. Congress passed a tracking system for INS in 1996; at that time a person could apply for 3 visas at 3 different institutions and the government wouldn't know which the student was using or where. Initially Feinstein proposed a 6-month moratorium but has since stepped back, but the tracking system she proposes includes questions about what courses students are taking. Dan suggests monitoring this; he believes the Chancellor and administration value their relationship with Feinstein more than they care about these issues. Dan said the appointment naming the 2nd Student Trustee has been on the Governor's desk since May and CSSA has vocalized strong interest in a decision. Advising remains a priority with Dan, if now eclipsed by the issue of student fees. Dan advised putting CSSA's name behind bond measures and guarding against students having to pay new costs for infrastructure. He has the sense people are looking at him and seeing $$.
   
   
9. SYSTEMWIDE COMMITTEES
   Motion to approve student appointments to systemwide committees as reflected on the sheet Christine Svendsen distributed, Sacramento; seconded, Humboldt. Passed 13-0-0.

Adjournment, Stanislaus; seconded, Sacramento.