College of Liberal Arts NTTF Advisory Committee

Meeting Minutes
October 17, 2023

Agenda:

Item Type of Action Decision Required
A. Approval from Minutes of Meeting on 10/3/2023 Vote Yes
B. CoNTFF Updates Announcements No
C. Updates from Dean’s Office Announcements No
D. Finalize Equity Week Table plans Discussion N/A
E. Begin discussion of department equity checklist Discussion N/A
F. Wrap up meeting and adjourn N/A N/A

 

Members present: Eli Alberts, Ashlee Allen, Niroj Bhattarai, Keri Canada, Thomas Conway, Dan Goble, Sadie Kinney-McGrath, Megan Lanz, Ellie Light, Gregory Luft, Gina Robinson, Frankie Wilcox, Emily Wilson, Amanda Wright


Meeting notes:

Meeting Began – 3:31 PM

A. Approval of Minutes from 10/3/2023 Meeting

Motion: Amanda
Second: Eli
Minutes approved unanimously.

B. CoNTTF Updates – Tom Conway

  1. Chair of Faculty Council came to CoNTTF and mentioned that now is the time to speak up about budget input. There is a new budget model and questions can be submitted online before 10/18.
    • There will be three committees related to the new budget, and members are TBD. We need to get CCAF on these committees for representation. Let Tom know if you are interested, and he can pass that info along.
  2. CoNTTF did not reply to Tom’s email invitation to join our table during Equity Week. They are planning some sort of presentation on Thursday 10/26 at 12pm in LSC 300. Subject TBD.
  3. CoNTTF is working on onboarding for CCAF by inquiring with individual departments. There are inconsistencies from department to department, and they are hoping to streamline the processes and provide the proper resources.
  4. CoNTTF has a workload document to attempt to quantify and measure CCAF workloads, in the interest of workload equity. Tom can share this document with anyone who is interested.
  5. We can nominate one another for Distinguished Professor/Teaching awards, so we are all encouraged to nominate and get visibility for CCAF this way. Ellie and Sadie have compiled information. Here is the SharePoint folder with details (must be signed into the CSU system).

C. Updates from the Dean’s Office – Ellie Light

  1. Nomination letters for awards can come from this committee, so it might be a good idea to use our committee to advocate for an individual.
  2. Budget input meeting is tomorrow.
  3. There is an ongoing project to grant permission for PD funding to get CCAF technology they need to teach.
  4. The August Professional Development Conference was a success, and the amount of faculty who attended provided a great deal of information for student contact hours, courses taught, and number of undergraduates (notably, first-year students) taught by CCAF each semester.
  5. Pursuing conversations around campus for the Delphi Award, awarded to units on campuses that have made CCAF progress.

D. Equity Week plans – Frankie Wilcox

  1. Our table will be at space #4 in the LSC Plaza. The table and chairs will already be in the Plaza, and items to outfit the table will be in Clark C138 (the dean’s office) for anyone assigned to set up or tear down the table. (Please allow time for setup and tear-down before or after shifts, as needed.) Leave table and chairs set up – only remove the visual aids, brochures, tablecloth, etc.
  2. Bring your own laptops to open the slides for shifts. People from each shift can coordinate via email beforehand to work out who will bring a laptop for that shift.
  3. Schedule was emailed out, and we confirmed shifts.
  4. We discussed talking points for people staffing the table.
    • Much of this information is on the infographics (slides, posters, brochure).
    • What is the lasting takeaway we want people to have when they lead the table? The data suggests:
        • We are teaching a LOT of classes across various disciplines. Teaching is our job’s focus – the reason we were hired. Most of us do not know whether we will be teaching full time next semester. The experience varies department by department. Many of us have to advocate for our employment to keep our income as steady as possible.
        • We are under-supported and undervalued. The financial data shows this, but there are also other places where this is evident.
        • Student success data from the summer symposium shows that we should promote the August event to make sure we can hold it again in 2024. Get the word out to CCAF so we can advocate for that.
        • The National Equity Week seems to have disappeared. The shift in focus is concerning. The data clearly says our value to the university is exploitive (the amount of revenue we create is not reflected in how we are compensated). AAUP isn’t very active right now, but joining is still an option.
          1. Being vocal, attending as many AAUP meetings as possible (often at Avogadro’s).
          2. The Department Equity Checklist is something we are working on as a tangible action.
          3. If CCA could be funded around positions instead of enrollment, we could guarantee higher FTE. We are working on building a culture of expertise and more equitable employment practices.
      • Flyers for the Interdisciplinary Mentorship Program would be good to distribute.
      • Sadie will investigate easels or some other way to hold the foam posters steady at the table.

E. Department Equity Checklist discussion

  1. To be picked up after Equity Week has concluded.
  2. The goal: a checklist we can deliver to department chairs that they can bring to their faculty. Things to consider when forming this document: service equity, naming of faculty (ex: “the adjuncts”) and other cultural concerns, policy concerns, etc. This document will hopefully standardize goals/hopes/expectations for departments and set the groundwork for a CCAF to advocate for themselves should they need.
  3. Goal is to present this document in the spring. We have time to plan and brainstorm.

F. Wrap-Up Meeting & Adjourn – 4:31 PM
Next meeting is November 14.

Minutes respectfully submitted by Megan Lanz