September 23, 2015 Meeting

Agenda

Taft College Faculty Association Agenda

Wednesday, September 23, 2015

 

  1. Welcome and Lunch

 

  1. Approval of Minutes from August meeting

 

  1. Treasurer’s Report

 

  1. Faculty Evaluations

 

  1. TCFCBC Update
    1. 02% COLA and retro pay
    2. Club Advisor Stipends
    3. Sabbatical
    4. Retiree Health Benefits for New Hires
    5. Independent Study

 

  1. 403b Compare: https://www.403bcompare.com and ctainvest.org

 

  1. Other

 

  1. Next Meeting: Wednesday, October 28, 2015, 12:10pm, Location: Cougar Room (Lunch will be provided) (Every 4th Wednesday)

Minutes

Call to Order

President Diane Jones called the meeting to order at 12:03 p.m., welcomed new CTE Director Diane Baeza, and distributed a thank you letter from one of the scholarship recipients.

 

Approval of Minutes

Mike Mayfield made a motion to approve the minutes. Geoffrey Dyer asked for an emendation under “Division Chair Compensation.” Stacie Rancano seconded Mayfield’s motion, and the motion was carried.

 

Treasurer’s Report

Cash Balance: Treasurer Ruby Payne reported an increased balance (receipt of dues check) of $7,333.05 before lunch.

 

Faculty Evaluations

President Jones reminded everyone that non-tenured full-time faculty should be preparing curriculum packets. Additionally, she mentioned division chairs will notify new faculty members of their peer review teams.

 

TCFCBC Bargain Updates

A). 1.02% COLA and Retro Pay:

President Jones reported the board approved the second reading of the COLA, retroactive to July 1st. As a result, FAS members should expect the following: the September 30th paycheck and stipends should reflect COLA; retro payments for monthly salary, stipends and summer school will be issued on October 31st.

 

B). Club Advisor Stipend:

President Jones reported a subcommittee (Darcy Bogle, Myisha Cutrona, Sharyn Eveland, and Diane Jones) met to discuss these issues: some faculty applied for two advisor positions, although the contract restricts one club advisorship per faculty. Additionally, the club had to be in the ASB approval process, which accepts applications until October 1st. Six club advisor stipends will be awarded with one club splitting the stipend between two co-advisors. Although two club advisor positions have been left unfilled, faculty can apply in the fall, not in the spring. Other aspects will be resolved, such as whether faculty will need to re-apply annually. Advisorships will be notified shortly. Faculty were encouraged to contact Myisha Cutrona, who is developing a new website with hyperlinks to the list of clubs, for more information.

 

C). Sabbatical:

President Jones announced that Dr. Maloney approved the possibility of one sabbatical. A one-semester sabbatical will be compensated at 100%, two semesters, at 50%. Faculty were encouraged to review the Faculty Resources page for more information.

 

D). Retiree Health Benefits for New Hires:

President Jones reported that the bargaining team is still reviewing data and options. However, more information must be analyzed, chiefly what the current faculty contribution is in reference to the current three-tiered retiree health benefits packages that factors in date of hire, years of service, and age. Other alternatives to the defined contribution option are the following:

  1. A fourth tier where faculty would only be able to earn benefits until 65 option raises the issue of grandfathering tier three faculty into the plan.
  2. If no benefits are offered, then an option might be to raise the starting salary for new faculty contrasted to new faculty salaries peaking at step 7. Another aspect would be that all faculty would benefit from this raise to avoid two salary schedules.

 

 

 

 

Discussion ensued summarized in these points:

Discussion Points TCFCBC Responses
 

 

1.     Is there really a cost savings to the District, if the salary schedule is raised?

2.     Adding money to the salary schedule to compensate for the lack of a retiree health benefit would require faculty to save.

3.     Concern for an increased salary schedule that would result in an increase in taxes, whereas faculty are not required to pay taxes on health benefits.

4.     The increase in salary would affect The Frey Report on the median salary and thus cause new faculty to lose the benefit.

5.     Is there an option of covering the two-year gap?

6.     If a change occurs in the years of service, can others be grandfathered in?

7.     Is there a medical trust to benefit the fourth tier?

8.     Is there a choice, such as an “opt-out” option, if one’s partner has a benefit?

 

  

 

1.     The District is interested in reducing its liability, so the District may be interested in offsetting the cost.

2.     It’s a good budget year. Now, might be the opportune time to bargain for more money.

3.     The more money one receives is more money to put away in STRS and a supplemental account. President Jones recommended members to review the recent CALSTRS email.

4.     Taxes must be paid regardless of salary amount.

5.     Maintaining the status quo would be preferable since faculty comprise only 56 of 173 full-time employees and are not adding a lot to the liability

6.     One of the District’s options was the Defined Contribution Plan calculated at $600, $800, and $1,000/year for each new employee versus the current Defined Benefit. In bargaining, Mike Mayfield asked about the option of opting if a catastrophe occurred and necessitated the Defined Benefit.

7.     That was one of the options, but it assumes longevity and the absence of catastrophe(s).

8.     One option is incentivizing retiring early and offering that faculty pay 2.5% of the benefit; however, this option opens the door of paying for their benefits.

E). Independent Study

President Jones reported that the bargaining team is working on developing an option based on past cases where student(s) needed a class to graduate but were unable to due to low enrollment enrollment/class cancellation. Currently, there is no policy. A subcommittee of Mark Williams, Diane Jones, Darcy Bogle, and Jessica Grimes will convene to discuss policy, procedures, and criteria. Vicki Jacobi asked that the issue be raised in Academic Senate. Additionally, a question was raised on whether independent study was similar to Credit by Exam. Jacobi responded that the policy for Credit by Exam is established by Title V Regulations.

 

Retirement Investment Websites

Faculty were encouraged to review the websites on the September 23rd agenda to compare retirement plans.

 

Other

Kelly Kulzer asked that equal pay for noncredit/credit compensation be put on the agenda, an item that has already been placed on the agenda, according to President Jones.

 

Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 12:58 p.m..

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