Call to Order:  F. van Hartesveldt called the meeting to order at 6:32 a.m., 234 SCC.

Present:  W. Acevedo-Ferrer, N. Alexander, R. Barnhart, J. Batten, J. Berlin, M. Burns, L. Burris, J. Chesla, F. Conner, L. Crossman, K. Danko, M. Devivo (for C. Grin), J. Doane, B. Foster, F. Garbowitz, D. Godfrey, J. Hayes, H. Hoare, T. Hoving, B. Keelean, D. Kooistra (for M. Campo), R. Long, B. Manker, R. Monaldo, R. Montes-Sutton, J. Neumann, M. Parsons, R. Ralya, J. Russell, J. Spoelman, D. Terhune, D. Wabeke, F. van Hartesveldt, G. Zeeff, F. Zomer (for K. Owens).

Absent:  B. Morris, J. Swets.

Approval of Agenda:  Approved as written.

Approval of Minutes from April 5, 2007:  Approved as written.

Faculty Presentations: 

• J. Godisak and B. Bookwalter retirement party is on Tuesday, April 24, 2007.
• A. Saldivar will be replacing J. Chesla as the Faculty Council representative for the Mathematics department.
• F. van Hartesveldt is collecting donations for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. 
• KARSP sponsored Glenn Steil at GRCC on April 20, 2007. 

Secretary’s Report:

• Thank you from S. Rhoden for flowers sent during her illness.
• Thank you from R. Schlosser for the fruit basket after recent surgery.

Negotiations Report:  N. Alexander reported on the following:

• Next JCC meeting is scheduled for April 20, 2007, with accretion on the agenda.
• Recent adjunct faculty survey had a response rate of 65% and reported the following information:  68% responded that the process for selecting adjunct is fair and equitable; 87% said they would select a year long contract with a set number of credits if the option were available; and 63 pages of comments. 

President’s Report: 

• Adjunct advisory team meeting has been rescheduled April 23, 2007. 
• Board of Trustees meeting on April 16, 2007, included the following:
• BOT thanked and commended faculty for their $25,000 donation to the millage campaign. 
• Other discussion included an update on the millage, the shooting at VT Tech, and commencement matters.
• R. Ralya, Disability Support Services, suggested the following syllabus language:
• Students with disabilities who require accommodations for this course must register with the Disability Support Services Office.  Please contact Disability Support Services in room 368 of the Student Community Center or call 234-4140 for more information.  Verification of disability is required in the Disability Support Services Office to receive reasonable academic accommodations.   
• Concern Citizens for GRCC, the Faculty Association’s political action committee, has a bank account balance of $721.85.
• F. van Hartesveldt is currently working with Administration to define a normal commute for adjunct in regards to mileage reimbursement for off campus classes.  He has asked that the reimbursement request deadline be extended until the issue can be resolved. 
• Meeting to discuss the position of Infection Control Officer is scheduled for May 3, 2007. 

Discussion and action items:

• Dues and budget 2007-2008
• Dues are currently .005%.  Motion by R. Long that dues remain the same at .005%.  J. Hayes seconds.  Motion passed. 
• Budget report distributed at last Faculty Council meeting. Motion to approve the 2007-08 budget by D. Wabeke, F. Conner seconded.  Motion passed.
• A recent internal accounting audit revealed no problems.  An internal audit is performed every year and an external audit every five years.  The external audit should be done next year. 
• Board of Trustees candidate election forum
• Overall, the candidate forum went well.  D. Sutton moderated and it lasted about 1 hour and 15 minutes.  Attendance was poor, but the forum was recorded and can be viewed at http://real.grcc.edu/ramgen/GRCCTV3/boardoftrusteesforum2007.rm or http://real.grcc.edu/asxgen/GRCCTV3/boardoftrusteesforum2007.wmv.  It will also run on Cable channel 28 on Thursdays at 1 p.m., Fridays at 9 p.m., and Sundays at 10 p.m.
• An Association meeting was held after the forum, but no quorum was available to make recommendations.  Consensus of meeting was that support for candidates was distributed such that there was insufficient support for endorsing any particular candidate. 
• M. Devivo made a motion that Faculty Council go into a committee of the whole to discuss the candidates; N. Alexander seconded.  Motion passed. 
• The Faculty Council meeting was recalled to order.  The Faculty Council wishes to thank candidates M. Anderson, T. Handlin, C. Lopucki, and F. Pepper for their interest, dedication and commitment to our College, and we are sure the Faculty Association will be able to work with any of the four candidates. 
• Millage update:
• Phone banks have been well staffed.  Reported numbers are that 10% of calls are responding negatively, 60% are positive, and 30% are undecided.  Phone banks have been supported by staff, students, and faculty members.  A few departments have volunteered to go as a group to staff the phone banks. 
• Calls to the east and north are generally pro millage, and the campaign will start focusing contact with yes voters in the southeast area. 
• J. Hesse, who has been very involved in the millage campaign, has written two letters asking for support.  He is sharing with friends, family, neighbors, and colleagues in order to help get positive votes.
• Faculty members are encouraged to talk with individuals in order to gain more yes voters.  J. Hesse stated in his letter that if each faculty member brings in 10 positive votes, that will result in almost ¼ of the votes needed for a successful millage.
• Faculty members are encouraged to write a Letter to the Public Pulse of the Grand Rapids Press in support of the millage.

Grievance Report:  F. Garbowitz reported on the following:

·         Grievance #169 regarding overload caps:  Arbitration meeting will be held over the summer.

·         Faculty members are reminded to handle sensitive issues such at the recent occurrences at Virginia Tech with caution and seriousness.    

·         Faculty council representatives discussed the possibility of creating a history of where the majority of grievances have originated and how they were resolved.  The hope is that this will determine the sources of faculty issues. 

·         Overall, grievances have been resolved amicably this year. 

RCC Report:  B. Foster reported on the following from the April 16, 2007, RCC meeting:

• State budget problems continue.  Recent 6%  tax on utilities and services solution includes a proposal for active state and school employees to pay 2% of their salary in order to keep their retiree health care benefits. 
• House Bill (HB) updates include the following:  HBs 4512 and 4530 will allow for a one time interest only payment to be made into the SERS and MPSERS; New HB 4571, an early retirement bill, could permanently change retirement options, and HB 4593 would extend the ability for public school retirees to continue to work in emergency situations from six years to ten years.
• A review of the RCC by-laws determined that there will be no changes to the existing document. 
• Budget raffle tickets are available from B. Foster for $1.00.

New Business: 

• Items for the next Faculty Council meeting should be submitted to F. van Hartesveldt.

Next Meeting:  

·         Association meeting, Friday, May 4, 2007 at 10:30 a.m. at Ford Fieldhouse.

Adjournment: 

• Motion to adjourn D. Kooistra, R. Barnhart seconded.  Adjournment at 8:04 a.m.

Submitted by K. Danko, Secretary.