What's Really Happening

Columbus State Education Association Newsletter of September 5, 2002

MEDIATION BEGINS

Our Negotiating Team entered mediation last Friday. The mediator will work with both negotiating teams to reach agreements on outstanding issues when mediation continues this Thursday and Friday, September 5-6. Discussions are at a delicate stage, and our proposal for a salary schedule is a sticking point. We are encouraged by the College's willingness to continue talking and remain hopeful that an agreement can be reached.

If the Association and the College are unable to agree on all issues, the remaining issues will be submitted to a fact-finder agreed to by both CSEA and the College. Each side will present to this fact-finder documentation supporting its position on the issues (probably at the end of September). Within two weeks the fact-finder will issue a report to settle the issues.

The fact-finder's report will be considered acceptable unless a majority of the College's Board of Trustees or a majority of Association members votes to reject it. And only members of the Association will vote to accept or reject the report. So it makes sense to renew your CSEA membership (or file your initial application) today. Please contact CSEA Vice-President Karl Rieppel (x2500) if you have not yet received a form by mail.

MEETING OF ALL FULL-TIME FACULTY

There will be general meetings of all full-time faculty (union members or not) on Tuesday and Wednesday, September 10 and 11, from 3-5 p.m. in the Media Room on the second floor of the Ohio Education Association building. It's less than a five-minute drive from campus, at 225 East Broad Street (corner of 5th Street). We have scheduled two days in hope that your schedule can accommodate one of these days (the same material will be available at both meetings).

Several reasons you should plan to attend:

1. You'll have the opportunity to ask negotiators and union officers pointed questions and voice your concerns.
2. The Negotiating Team will report on whether mediation has produced a tentative agreement or whether our proposals will go to a fact-finder.
3. You'll want a break from grading.
4. There will be OEA representatives present to provide helpful information about Member Benefits including professional liability insurance that comes as part of your CSEA membership.
5. Depending on what's happened in mediation, you'll want to know what to expect Autumn Quarter besides the largest enrollment in the College's history.

We hope all faculty will gather to discuss the negotiations, the implications of our workload and salary proposals, the long-term goals of the Association, and the interests we share with the College as well as the specialized interests we have as teachers in a community college. We anticipate that you have many questions and that we will have important information to share with you.

Remember that only union members will have a voice in acceptance or rejection of a fact-finder's report and the ratification vote on the contract.

There's meter parking (6 quarters) on the street and a parking garage immediately behind the OEA building, but it makes sense to carpool with a friend, especially if it's someone you've shared your questions and concerns with.

STUDENT EVALUATIONS

We have raised concerns about implementing a new process for administering student evaluations of faculty. The proposal would have all quarterly class evaluations (both distance learning and traditional classroom courses) done on Blackboard. Although a limited pilot test of this process has been conducted, CSEA believes that there has been insufficient preparation to implement this new process Autumn Quarter. We have many questions: have faculty been sufficiently informed of the new process? Will conducting evaluations by computer provide a reliable sample of responses? Is there time to work the instructions for the new process into next quarter's syllabi? Since student evaluations are part of promotion requirements,we have asked the College to postpone implementation until faculty receive enough information to adequately prepare for a fundamental shift in how course evaluations are conducted.

Things are changing rapidly. Please plan to attend one or the other of the ALL-FACULTY MEETINGS September 10 and 11 at OEA. If you have questions, contact Steve Abbott at x5096.

What's Really Happening is produced by the Communications Committee of the Columbus State Education Association. We welcome your comments, news, and insights.

Steve Abbott, President / x5096
Karl Rieppel, Vice President / x2500
Amy Brubaker, Secretary and Association Representative / x5068
Greg Goodhart, Treasurer / x5431
Darrell Minor, Parliamentarian / x5310
Bill Mundy, Association Representative / x5176
Dr. Jane McDowell, Association Representative / x2656 
Dave Busch, Association Representative / x5079
Dr. Charlie Gallucci, Association Representative / x5499
Leslie Smith, Association Representative / x5302
Dr. Wendy McCullen-Vermillion, Association Representative / x2693
Lisa Schneider, Association Representative / x5124