Subject:
Tell your lawmakers to give community college faculty and staff a seat at the table
Message:
Dear Legislator,
I am a constituent who cares deeply about our community colleges around the state. I also feel strongly that faculty and staff should have a seat at the table for the boards of trustees at our community colleges, the same way that they do at SUNY Board of Trustees for our four-year SUNY colleges and universities. Therefore, I urge you to strongly support S.9861 (Stavisky)/A.11170 (Bronson) to expand community college boards of trustees from 10 to 11 members by adding a faculty or staff representative as a non-voting, ex-officio member.
Community college boards of trustees are currently governed by 10 members: five appointed by local governing bodies, four by the governor, and one elected by and from the student body. However, faculty and staff are shut out from these governing bodies, relegated to a few minutes during public comment periods at trustee meetings. This is unfair to the faculty and staff who interact with students every day and understand firsthand what is, and is not, working at their institutions.
We have done this before – and it has worked. The SUNY Board of Trustees was expanded to include the President of the University Faculty Senate as a non-voting, ex-officio member, and the results were immediate. There was a measurable improvement in collaboration between trustees, administrators and faculty.
Adding the voice of faculty and staff at the community college level will strengthen governance and ensure that the people closest to students have a meaningful role in institutional decision-making. A seat at the table – even a non-voting one – ensures that trustees can make informed decisions that reflect the realities of campus life.
Sincerely,
×
