For older announcements, please see the prior semester sub-menus under Announcements.
Last updated: Th 31 December 2020 at 5:00 PM
Th 24 Dec ~ Intersession 2021 COVID MOA
Margaret Wong, MCCC President
Here is the COVID-19 MOA between the BHE and MCCC for Intersession.
W 16 Dec ~ Urgent: Governor’s Vetoes
Coleen Fitzpatrick, MTA Field Representative
Below is an important update on our campaign to achieve level funding for public Higher Ed. The good news is that the pressure we put on the legislature worked and the Senate and House passed more than level funding for Bristol and other Community Colleges. However, Governor Baker just vetoed several line items of funding for public colleges and universities, including $448,770 in funding for Bristol Community College. We are urging members to call and write their legislators today (there is a link to an Action Network petition below) and ask them to override these vetoes. Could you all take a moment to make a call today, and distribute the below update to your members?
Line item 7503-0100: Bristol Community College reduced by nearly $448,770.
Speak Out to Override Governor’s Veto! We worked hard to advocate for a level-funded budget for public higher ed, and our work is not done. Governor Baker has vetoed higher ed line items. Please call or write your state rep and senator and ask them to urge the Speaker and Senate President to override the veto. Action on veto overrides begins 12/16.
Activist Zoom Monday Dec 21: Join Higher Ed activists 12/21 at 5 pm for an hour-long zoom to celebrate progress we’ve made in the Higher Ed fightback campaign,and take a look forward to 2021 legislative and contract campaigns. Register for Higher Ed 2020 Progress & 2021 Priorities zoom here!
Tu 1 Dec ~ MCCC Title IX Training on Dec 3, 4:00-6:00pm
Margaret Wong, MCCC President
MCCC has bargained a new Title IX policy with the Board of Higher Ed because of new national regulations. That policy has procedures which are substantially different than they have been and so MTA Field Representative Organizers Colleen Fitzpatrick and Bret Seferian (who were involved in the bargaining) will be hosting a training via Zoom on Thursday December 3 from 4:00-6:00pm. Chapter leaders are strongly encouraged to attend and all chapter members are welcome. The training will cover the new Title IX policy, recommendations for how to operate under it, options for members who have been sexually harassed, and some basics on discipline & Weingarten rights.
ZOOM MEETING INFORMATION
Topic: Title IX Training
Time: Dec 3, 2020 4:00 PM
Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89571190651?pwd=cDV6amREVWkzdjhiWmdxSVloUTZSUT09
Meeting ID: 895 7119 0651
Passcode: 123456
Sa 7 Nov ~ MTA Applauds Biden-Harris Victory
Merrie Najimy, MTA President, and Max Page, MTA Vice President
The election of Joe Biden and the defeat of Donald Trump represent a triumph of compassion over narcissism, racial justice over white supremacy, and democracy over kleptocracy. Although the margin of victory was smaller than we had hoped for, the historic turnout — despite attempts at voter intimidation and suppression — showed the will of the American people to protect their right to vote and make sure their votes are counted. About two-thirds of Massachusetts voters supported Biden over Trump, approximately the same ratio as favored Hillary Clinton over Trump in 2016.
The election of Kamala Harris as vice president will feed the dreams of girls and young women across the country, particularly girls and women of color, just as the election of Barack Obama as president gave new hope to people of color everywhere. We congratulate the vice president-elect wholeheartedly.
M 26 Oct ~ Course Evaluations
Will Duffy, Distance Ed Committee Chair
For the union meeting, the only information that is “new” goes as follows:
- New online classes have to be done by October 28th in order to get your course development credit. You also have to complete the dynamic form you were sent.
- Please be patient with your reviewers. There are few of them and a lot of new classes.
Tu 21 Oct ~ Course Evaluations
Emily Brown, BrCCC President
Reminder to all faculty — if all of your courses are in the first or second offering of an online or hybrid course, then per the Distance Ed Agreement, you are NOT to be evaluated.
If you are approached by your dean for a classroom evaluation, do not agree – it would be a violation of Article 2.04 of the Contract to evaluate you.
If you think that not having an evaluation this semester will be problematic (tenure, seniority list, promotion, rank change, etc.), please get in touch with us ASAP.
Th 15 Oct ~ Sad News
With a deep sense of sadness and sorrow, we regret to inform you of the passing of Professor Richard Horton on October 10th.
Richard taught CAD courses in our Engineering Department for many years as an adjunct faculty member and as a lab support. Richard generously volunteered many hours in the CAD lab assisting students over the years. We are grateful for his contributions to our students and the college community. Richard will be very much missed.
Please see the following link for service details: https://www.legacy.com/amp/obituaries/heraldnews/196947883
Tu 13 Oct ~ Union Response to NUPs Teaching Policy
Emily Brown, BrCCC President
The results of our recent poll indicate that the overwhelming majority of our members do not support non-unit professionals (NUPs) teaching DCE courses. We would like to take a few minutes to update you on the nuances of this issue.
The BrCCC Executive Committee agrees with the intent of the policy that the college is currently implementing to phase out the practice of NUPs teaching as adjuncts by the end of this fiscal year, 6/30/21 (please see attached). This policy, which was approved by the President’s Leadership Team (PLT) in March 2019, is consistent with the interests of the majority of our members who count on DCE course assignments for their livelihood. The PLT policy was developed in response to the unions concerns about declining DCE sections. However, this was not a Memorandum of Agreement made between management and with the BrCCC leadership. This is not the union’s policy, and we have declined to endorse it.
To be clear, while we agree with the overall intent of the PLT policy, we cannot offer our endorsement because it opens us to a potential lawsuit for failure to represent members who have reappointment rights under the contract. Specifically, these members are NUPs who are not in supervisory roles, who pay union dues, and who have made the current seniority list. This would apply to only a small group of NUPs, and does not include Academic Deans or Campus Deans.
Because of this, the MCCC State Grievance Coordinator Joseph Rizzo has advised us against endorsing the policy as written. We have reached out to Human Resources Director Gary Convertino to offer to work with management regarding language changes for the policy. Please note that management has the ability to create and enforce policies without the approval or consent of the union.
If any member feels this policy violates their rights or has any questions, you can reach us at BRCCCLeadership@bristolcc.edu or contact any member of the leadership team directly.
Additionally, the most recent posted DCE seniority list is attached to this email. We advise members to verify their information and check with human resources if there are any questions.
NUPs Teaching Policy final.pdf
Seniority By Instructor.pdf
Tu 13 Oct ~ Call for Nominations – Chapter Secretary
Dan Avedikian, Nominations & Elections Committee Chair
There is currently a vacancy for the position of Secretary for our local union. There will be a special election to fill this vacancy. Nominations are now open. This is the description of the position from the BrCCC bylaws:
The Secretary shall:
- keep minutes of the meetings of the Executive Committee and the membership;
- maintain official records and assist the President with the Association’s communications;
- represent the chapter as a delegate to the MCCC Delegate Assembly.
Please send your nomination to dan.avedikian@bristolcc.edu by Friday, October 16th at 5pm.
M 5 Oct ~ Defend Public Higher Ed Campaign
Colleen Fitzpatrick, MTA Field Representative
I am emailing about the continuing MTA-wide campaign to #DefendPublicHigherEd that is ramping up this week and over the course of the month. As you all probably know the legislature has level funded our colleges and universities through October, but there is real uncertainty after that. Now is the time to speak up and out about the importance of investing in public higher education and avoiding any further cuts or layoffs.
Two asks for this group—could you all circulate the below and attached update to the broader membership? There are three different ways for members to get involved this week. Second, I hope some of you can join the Southeast region planning call that is happening shortly.
ZOOM MEETING INFO
Topic: Southeast Massachusetts Higher Ed Campaign Planning Meeting
Time: Oct 5, 2020 05:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89835399629?pwd=ZEVzQ2tsalZEbGYvM2pZOEJMeXlkUT09
M 5 Oct ~ Please Attend Board of Trustees Meeting Today
Emily Brown, BrCCC President
Chair Medieros has stated there is not room enough on the agenda to meet with the Union. Please attend the meeting this afternoon at 4 pm.
Topic: Board of Trustees Meeting
Time: Oct 5, 2020 04:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Zoom: https://bristolcc-edu.zoom.us/j/93069887856?pwd=SkpkU0xyMVhWaSt5TTBobHFuVllqdz09
Meeting ID: 930 6988 7856
Passcode: 549860
The notice and agenda for the meeting is postedon the Board of Trustee’s Meeting webpage at http://www.bristolcc.edu/about/boardoftrustees/boardmeetings/.
Th 1 Oct ~ Rally for Higher Ed Funding
Emily Brown, BrCCC President
We are joining with our union sisters and brothers from the Massachusetts Teachers Association, American Federation of Teachers, AFSCME, and UMass Unions United for a Week of Action as part of the Southeast Mass Higher Ed Funding Campaign October 19-23.
The timing of this week of action is important as Massachusetts legislators will be acting on a Continuation Budget in late October/Early November. We need them to level fund our public colleges through the rest of the fiscal year to prevent more cuts/layoffs/furloughs.
BrCCC’s Strategic Action Committee is organizing an outdoor, socially distanced rally at our Fall River campus on Thursday, October 22nd at 4pm. This rally will be held simultaneously with other events at Bridgewater, Massasoit, Cape Cod CC, and UMass Dartmouth. Details to follow. Please save the date!
Th 1 Oct ~ Call for Nominations – Chapter Secretary
Dan Avedikian, Nominations & Elections Committee Chair
There is currently a vacancy for the position of Secretary for our local union. There will be a special election to fill this vacancy. Nominations are now open. This is the description of the position from the BrCCC bylaws:
The Secretary shall:
- keep minutes of the meetings of the Executive Committee and the membership;
- maintain official records and assist the President with the Association’s communications;
- represent the chapter as a delegate to the MCCC Delegate Assembly.
Please send your nomination to dan.avedikian@bristolcc.edu by Friday, October 16th at 5pm.
Tu 22 Sep ~ Update for BrCCC Members
Emily Brown, BrCCC President
As we enter our third week of Fall 2020, we hope things are settling down after the usual rush just prior to and at the beginning of the semester. Your union leadership team has been working on many fronts to uphold our contract and protect all of our members’ rights so you can focus on your work in support of Bristol students.
As things seem to move at two speeds these days — turtle and hare — we’d like to provide an update on three areas that have generated a lot of chatter, some confusion and even some misinformation. Remember, if at any time you have concerns or questions about what the union leadership is doing or why, please email any of us at our personal email addresses (see your Executive Committee list at end of this email) to discuss it directly. We represent you and want to hear from you.
There are three areas we’d like to update you on:
- Syllabi and Dynamic Forms
- NUPs Teaching
- Course Modalities
Tu 15 Sep ~ DCE Bargaining Survey Relaunch
Emily Brown, BrCCC President
The DCE Negotiations Team is relaunching the DCE Bargaining Survey in order to gather a second round of responses. We have downloaded responses from the first round last semester and, given the drastic changes that have occurred since the middle of the spring, we believe it is worthwhile to offer another opportunity for unit members to complete the survey.
This will give DCE faculty a chance to take the survey if they did not the first time, and also it provides an opportunity for DCE faculty to retake it to update their answers in light of how Covid-19 has affected our working conditions overall.
Please complete this survey by Friday, October 2. You also may contact the team at dceteam@mccc-union.org.
SURVEY LINK: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/FB8VZZN
Thank you in advance, and we wish you a successful fall semester. In Solidarity, The DCE Negotiations Team DeAnna Putnam (Chair – BHCC and MiCC), Linda Grochowalski (Vice Chair – QCC), Laura Schlegel (Co-Secretary – HCC), Swan Gates (Co-Secretary – CCCC), George Medelinskas (CAT LIASON – NECC), with President Margaret Wong and Rosemarie Freeland, ex-officio.
Su 6 Sep ~ Union Teams Lists
Emily Brown, BrCCC President
The Team List that we discussed at our meeting last week can be found here: https://bristolcommunitycollege.mtasites.org/committees/
We welcome everyone who wants to be involved and join one of our teams. Together as a team we will strengthen our union. You can also find this list here:
F 4 Sep ~ Survey of Membership – Should NUPS teach?
Emily Brown, BrCCC President
We have been asked by Human Resources to make a recommendation on a written policy regarding whether non-unit Professionals(NUPS) should be allowed to teach DCE courses at Bristol Community College. We are surveying our m embers for their opinions on this important issue. Please take a moment to respond to this very brief survey by Wednesday, September 9th at 11:59pm: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/W2VQVJ9
For your consideration, please also read the below email sent out to MCCC Chapter Presidents and Chapter Directors from Joe Rizzo on the history of Academic Deans teaching DCE classes here.
F 4 Sep ~ Feedback requested
Margaret Wong, MCCC President
Feedback can be sent to me at presmwong@mccc-union.org for compiling or directly to Maria at hegbloommaria@hotmail.com. Please submit your feedback by September 11, 2020.
From: Maria Hegbloom <hegbloommaria@hotmail.com>
Date: September 4, 2020 at 10:24:39 AM EDT
I am attaching to this email a draft of a document/proposal that has been created by the higher ed blueprint working group. It identifies higher ed goals and recommendations for MTA staff/resources for higher ed to help meet these goals. The working group is asking that HELC members share this document with their chapter presidents/members and bring any feedback on this draft to the next HELC meeting.
F 4 Sep ~ Sad News
We would like to notify you of another difficult loss faced by one of our colleagues and friends this summer. Dorris Perryman’s mother, Willie Mitchell, passed away on August 12th, 2020.
Dorris writes “Willie Mitchell loved to help others. Willie would help anyone in need. She spoke to everyone walked down her street. Many people would just stop by to sit and talk with her. She was an avid cook and a lot of people have dined at her table being a southern girl from Mississippi. She enjoyed playing cards with her friends and family. Most of all, Willie loved children. She also loved music and like to dance.”
Dorris, our thoughts are with you and please know that your friends and colleagues will support you in any way that we can.
Please send condolences to: The Perryman Family, 126 Mate Drive, New Bedford, MA 02745
Th 3 Sep ~ Sad News
In June of this year, our colleague Susan Souza-Mort experienced the terrible loss of her husband of almost 22 years. Susan, who has been an employee of Bristol Community College for more than 15 years, writes “Dave had a passion for life and enjoyed being outdoors. He especially loved the summer and spending time at the beach with his friends swimming and kayaking.”
Dave was the beloved father of three children, Nicholas Weckesser, Lauryn Mort, and Ethan Mort. Ethan, Bristol’s 2020 Salutatorian, wrote “he was nothing short of a great man whose life was about to get a whole lot easier as he coasted into his golden years. I don’t feel as robbed of a father as he was robbed out of a full life.”
Susan, our colleague and our friend, has been supported by her family and her friends. We know our community of Bristol Community College will hold her close as well.
Please read David’s loving obituary here. The GoFundMe can be found here. Please send condolences to: The Mort Family, 110 Acushnet Road, Mattapoisett, MA 02739.
W 2 Sep ~ Please join us!
Emily Brown, BrCCC President
We are hoping that you will be able to join us for our first Chapter Meeting of the Semester this afternoon, September 2nd, at 2pm.
Here is a brief agenda:
- Meet Your New Union Leadership
- What we’ve been doing this summer (meetings, trainings, retreat)
- Grievance Update – stipend paid, online modalities (step 1), termination of faculty member (mediation)
- Teams
- MACER meetings – we need agenda items
Zoom Link for the meeting: https://bristolcc-edu.zoom.us/j/94590544618?pwd=RkZIOGZzcnlFQnNnSXNEWlRkcVRmZz09
M 31 August ~ Contract Tip: Office Hours
Emily Brown, BrCCC President
We recently reached out to Dennis Fitzgerald, who is the MCCC statewide Grievance Coordinator for the Day Contract for guidance regarding office hours for Fall on-line classes taught by full time faculty. Reminder: Faculty teaching under the DCE contract are not required to hold office hours for DCE courses.
Dennis’ recommendation: Since the contract requires 4 office hours…, I recommend that faculty include the 4 specific times for remote office hours in their course materials and also submit those remote office hour times to their immediate supervisor at the beginning of the semester as required in the contract. Don’t forget that advising is done during office hours.