Members Present: Jim Tuite (president), Ernie Wade (secretary), Jessica Hogan, Evora Baker, David Lightfoot, Natalie Dyess, Jacob Johnston, Vic Sizemore, Kathy Thomas, Nelson Ayala, Brent Lester, Cynthia Deutsch (vice president), Shannon McDermott, Marci Gale (treasurer), Tim Rhoads, David McGee, Ashley Pearson, Joy Quarmout, Juville Dario-Becker, Michael Babcock, John McCullough, Carolyn Gross, Michele Fletcher, Alison Moore, John Lofaso, Susan Fitzsimons, Karen Alexander, Charles Poff, Julie Piercy, Matthew Poteat, Larry Snell, and Karen Alexander.
 

Members Absent:N/A

If you were present at this meeting and your name does not appear above, please let Ernie Wade know by email (wadee@centralvirginia.edu) as soon as possible.
 

Old Business:

1. Approve Minutes from the January 4, 2021, Faculty Association Meeting. Available at: https://communique.centralvirginia.edu/Meetings/Faculty-Association/2020-2021-Faculty-Association-Minutes/2021-01-04.  David McGee motioned to approve the minutes from the 01/04/2020 meeting, and Nelson Ayala seconded the motion. The motion was unanimously approved.
2. Guidelines for withdrawing students from online courses – developing appropriate wording.  Guidelines for withdrawing students from online courses had been proposed in the past, and several alternative proposals were vetted.  After discussion, it was decided that the current policy for withdrawing students from courses could also be interpreted as applying to online courses. John McCullough motioned to table the proposed student withdrawal policy, and the motion was approved.

  

New Business:

1. 14-week semester. In January 2021, a survey was distributed to all faculty to elicit feedback regarding reducing the semester timetable by one week. At the time of the meeting, 55%  of those who responded favored shorter semesters. Karen Alexander informed the faculty that the summer and fall semester start dates would not be impacted. However, under this proposal, eight-week courses offered each semester would be reduced to seven weeks, allowing for a mid-semester break. Jim Tuite said he could not find evidence that reducing the term by one-week would either benefit or disadvantage students. However, 14-week semesters would enable CVCC to align class schedules with other local colleges, such as Liberty University's timetable.  It might also provide enrollment management and the financial aid office more time to onboard students between semesters. Several VCCS schools have currently adopted the 14-week fall and spring schedule. The VCCS currently requires 75 instructional days, and the Chancellor must approve any departure from that protocol. Early college programs would be, if possible, aligned with class schedule changes. After some spirited discussion, the motion to shorten the semester to 14 weeks was tabled, pending a full review of faculty queries. The motion was apporved.
2. Supplemental Canvas training and information. Supplemental Canvas training information is now available on the Faculty Association website providing links to additional Canvas features and updates to the LMS. An introductory Canvas course is currently available to CVCC faculty.
3. Chancellors Faculty Advisory Committee update (Cynthia Deutsch). No additional information to report.
4. Professional Development Update (Allison Moore).   Allison Moore reported that updates regarding new faculty development opportunities are published in our daily bulletin, including VCCS conferences, the book club, etc.

Announcements

1.  Jim Tuite asked for volunteers to serve as our CFAC representative for the next three years. The deadline for submitting faculty nominations is Friday, February 19,  2021.
2.  Juville Dario-Becker announced that an open educational resource workshop is scheduled for March 5^, 2021.  It is sponsored by SCHEV and hosted by Virginia Tech; a registration link is contained in a recent email message sent to faculty.
3. Jim Tuite requested volunteers to serve as Faculty Association officers. Jim requested that all nominations be emailed to him. In the event of multiple nominations for the same office, successful candidates will be elected during the next Faculty Association meeting.
4. Students need to be informed about the LEA Awards. Faculty nominations for Faculty Recognition Award are also open.  Faculty may nominate themselves for this award.

Presentations Prior to Business Meeting

Chris Bryant, Vice President of Institutional Advancement. Chris acknowledged the 40^th anniversary of our CVCC Foundation and event and activity ideas for the summer and fall. The CVCC Foundation has been active in raising funds for our students'. Chris encouraged the faculty and staff to donate to the Foundation this year. 100% of money designated for a specific cause will support the initiative directly and not pay for overhead expenses and staff salaries. Twenty-five thousand dollars were donated by 115 faculty and staff members last year. This year, the goal is to attract 121 donors and provide visors, and beanie caps as thank you gifts.

1. ​Evora Baker, Trio SSS Director. CVCC recently received a TRIO Student Support Services grant from the US Department of Education, designed to help disadvantaged students graduate from CVCC and increase retention. Student eligibility for support through this grant is based on one of these three criteria: 1) being a first-generation student, 2) being income-eligible according to US Department of Education guidelines, or 3) having a documented disability. Two-thirds of the applicants must be first-generation and income-eligible, while the remaining third can be first-generation, income-eligible, or disabled. This grant will serve up to 140 students initially, and applications should be completed online through the CVCC website.
2. David Lightfoot, Vice President of Information Technology. In response to structural changes in academic computing due to the COVID pandemic, faculty members are being asked to assist in identifying student computing needs in the foreseeable future. Our shared computer model has been in place for over 20 years. However, due to recent technological changes, and changes occurring over the last 20 years in higher education, our current model needs to be revisited and proposed a new model requiring students to purchase a computer for their coursework at CVCC. David Lightfoot requested Faculty Association input on a proposed Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) plan.  The BYOD plan should eliminate some computer classrooms and reduce the CVCC technology budget by $200,000. These funds could be repurposed to support and strengthen several other programs. The new model will not eliminate all computer lab needs since some courses require students to use specialized software, such as the Adobe Suite.  Since students enrolled in secondary schools use laptop PCs (or Chromebooks) to access academic materials and online applications, he proposes that CVCC require students to purchase laptop pcs or comparable devices to access electronic textbooks and other educational resources.Our current loaner laptop program will be an essential component of the proposed plan to address student needs, but it cannot be supported through state appropriations. This past fall, the loaner program relied on donated computers and CARES funding to make computer purchases.  In the future, we may need to look for other sources of funding to support this program. The VCCS Financial Aid Bookstore Policy (drafted in 2016)  permits student use of financial aid, and students might be able to purchase personal computers from vendors unaffiliated with the campus bookstore.  
3. David Lightfoot, Vice President of Information Technology. The HyFlex (hybrid flexible) classroom will be piloted at CVCC this fall. The HyFlex classroom is an instructional approach that combines face-to-face (F2F) and online learning. Per VCCS mandate, 10% of our classrooms must be configured for this technology. That means ten classrooms will be renovated to accommodate additional cameras, monitors, microphones, speakers, and a Zoom room license to provide interaction between in-class and remote student learners. There will be a need for volunteers to develop and implement our HYFlex plan. The HyFlex instructional format may not be suitable for all disciplines. 

John Lafaso made the motion to adjourn the meeting, and Shannon McDermott seconded the motion. The motion was unanimously approved.

MEETING ADJOURNED AT 2:26 PM

THE NEXT SCHEDULED FACULTY ASSOCIATION MEETING IS ON MARCH 30, 2021 at 1:00 PM.  

Recommendations to the College Governance Committee: None at this time

Suggestions/Items to be shared with other groups: None at this time

Submitted By:Ernie Wade