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Legal Assistance: The Truth of the Matter

Legal Assistance: The Truth of the Matter. Academic Senate Spring Plenary Session April 2009. Standards and Practices Committee 2008-09. Beth Smith, Grossmont College, Chair Julie Adams, Academic Senate, Executive Director Dianna Chiabotti, Napa Valley College

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Legal Assistance: The Truth of the Matter

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  1. Legal Assistance: The Truth of the Matter Academic Senate Spring Plenary Session April 2009

  2. Standards and Practices Committee 2008-09 Beth Smith, Grossmont College, Chair Julie Adams, Academic Senate, Executive Director Dianna Chiabotti, Napa Valley College Joseph Bielanski, Berkeley City College Yolanda Bellisimo, College of Marin

  3. Respondents to Survey • 71 colleges participated • 46 colleges participated in the questions pertaining to senate/union relations • 48 colleges participated in the questions about general legal assistance needs

  4. What We Learned • Senate and Bargaining Unit MOUs are infrequently used • Only 15 respondents use MOUs • Used most frequently for Faculty Evaluation • Consultation between Senates and Bargaining Units with nothing in writing is the most frequently used method • 34 respondents favor this method • Used for Tenure, Class Size Limit, Faculty Evaluation

  5. What We Learned • 34 respondents reported Senates satisfied with arrangement between Senate and Union in at least one area: • Tenure • Full Time Hiring Policies • 16 respondents reported they were not satisfied with at least one Senate/Union arrangement: • Full Time Hiring Policies • Administrative Retreat Rights • Professional Development • Grants

  6. Some responses • “Our Senate and [union] have a liaison group that meets regularly to discuss all of these issues and others that arise on an as needed basis. We do have informal written documentation delineating areas of responsibility for most of the topics listed in this question…”

  7. “We have a very close union and senate and we tend to informally consult on everything …” • “I have no clue what the bargaining unit does. It has all these ‘interpretations’ that are not available until after the issue is raised. The contract is effectively opaque.”

  8. Legal Assistance • 17% of respondents have retained legal assistance. • Primary issues motivating the need for legal assistance: • Brown Act • Evaluations and Employment Issues • Hiring and Job Descriptions • Governance

  9. What Groups Prompted the Need for Legal Assistance? • Board of Trustees • Administrators • Union

  10. Issues Where the Senate Wished It Had Legal Assistance • Role and Authority of Administrators, Senate and Union • Brown Act • Academic Freedom • Tenure • Governance

  11. Current Resources • Current Paper: Developing a Model for Effective Senate/Union Relations • Executive Committee Members • Council of Faculty Organizations (CoFO) • Requests for Assistance from the ASCCC • Support from AAUP • Other Statewide Legal Sources (i.e. California Attorney General, CCCCO Legal Council, etc.)

  12. Some Next Steps • Develop Updated Paper together with colleagues from the unions, and • Create Technical Assistance for Senate/Union Issues – See new resolution • Keeping a lawyer on retainer? Need ideas for who, what, when, how to access the attorney!

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