http://www.grccfaculty.com
May 4, 2007

Call to Order:  F. van Hartesveldt called the meeting to order at 10:29 a.m., Ford Fieldhouse.

Approval of Agenda:  Approved as written.

Approval of Minutes from April 19, 2007:  Approved as written.

Approval of Minutes from April 20, 2007:  Approved as written with the following change:

• Dues are currently at .5%, not .005%. 

Faculty Presentations: 

• Faculty members are reminded that the Employee Recognition event is scheduled for today, May 4, 2007, at 11:30 a.m. in the ATC. 
• J. Spoelman reminded faculty members that pay is available for those who complete the Online Training Course.  This option will likely expire this year.  Contact Ann Alexander for registration. 

Secretary’s Report:

• Thank you card was received from St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church for the recent contribution in memory of Wes Perrin.
• Thank you card was received from Mary and Tom Bayer for flowers sent during his illness. 
• Thank you letter was received from the Finance Committee of the Friends of GRCC in appreciation for the $25,000 donation to the millage campaign. 

President’s Report: 

• Faculty contract expires on August, 31, 2007.  The Negotiating Team will be working during the summer on a new contract, including the following issues:
  - Defining and clarifying accretion issues and the Recognition clause.
  - The adjunct advisory group, which includes faculty members and administration members, has worked throughout the year to address fairness and equity in adjunct hiring, recognition of adjuncts, and the possibility of one year contracts for adjuncts.  The Adjunct Advisory group’s recent survey netted 63 pages of comments.
• Full-time faculty members are reminded to spend their C-3 funds by the end of June.  Completed paperwork needs to be submitted by July 15, 2007.  Since this is the end of the contract, funds will not roll over to next year. 
• Faculty members are reminded to check their paychecks for under- and over-payments.
• Overall, the number of grievances this past year has been down from previous years.  F. Garbowitz and L. Burris are the Grievance Officers.  Faculty members should encourage their students to bring their complaints to them rather than the allowing the complaint to escalate to their Deans or Human Resources. 
• Faculty hiring included 15 job searches for full time faculty and 14 other searches for a variety of positions.  Since 1997, about 1/3 of all current full time faculty have been hired. 
• Recent Department Head elections included D. Wabeke for Wellness, N. Alexander for Math, J. Drain for Biological Sciences, and S. Abid for Social Sciences. 
• Faculty Council representatives are reminded to hold elections if their term is expired. 
• Eight faculty members have retired or will retire during 2006-2007:   T. Van Dam, A. Cook, J. Godisak, D. Fearnow, B. Bookwalter, J. Townsend, M. Scanlan, and B. McMillan.

Negotiations Report: J. Spoelman and N. Alexander reported on the following:

• With millage election, decision making has been put off until summer. 
• Fall faculty survey generated some ideas on what issues should be on the bargaining table.  Please forward any issues or concerns to J. Spoelman. 
• Department Heads are reminded to ask that unused C-3 funds should be returned to the department and expended at their faculty’s discretion.    
• Adjunct faculty should verify their pay against the appropriate pay schedule.  Contact N. Alexander at 234-4272 if help is needed. 
• Question/answers from faculty include the following:
  - C-3 funds can be used to pay for home internet access.
  - Regarding projected health care contribution changes, faculty members pay a portion of health care if they have MESSA.  Continued MESSA coverage depends on the ESP group.  The College has joined an insurance pool, and it is expected that this will an option for coverage.  In the next contract vision and dental may be rolled together into one fund.
  - Clarification is coming regarding adjunct faculty receiving mileage pay for off campus teaching.  The issue is how to define a faculty member’s normal commute.
  - The English department will explore the possibility of spreading the base workload over three semesters to include summer.  If any other department is interested in this, they should contact F. van Hartesveldt.
  -Negotiations team is aware of the discrepancy between MPSERS and ORP contribution rates.  Currently the ORP fixed contribution rate is less than the MPSERS variable rate. 
• KARSP is hosting State Senator Wayne Kuipers on May 18, 2007 at the Science Building Auditorium.
• The sooner in their careers that faculty members buy retirement years of service, the less expensive the cost. 
• Faculty members are reminded to check email for contract negotiation updates. 

Discussion and action items:

a.       Dues proposal:  Faculty Council recommended the dues for 2007-2008 continue at the same rate (0.5%) as 2006-2007.  Motion made by M. Campo to enact this recommendation; seconded by J. Spoelman.  Motion passes. 

b.      Budget proposal:  Faculty Council approved the proposed 2007-2008 budget.  Motion made by B. Bookwalter to enact this recommendation; seconded by D. Dye.  Motion passes. 

c.       Board of Trustees election May 8, 2007:  The Faculty Association thanks Dennis Sutton for moderating the BOT candidate election forum. Faculty Council issued a statement thanking candidates for their participation in the forum and their interest in the College. 

d.      Millage May 8, 2007 update:  F. van Hartesveldt serves on the millage committee and reported the following:

a.       Latest update includes 16,000 yes voters identified by phone bank calls.

b.      Faculty members are reminded to continue to encourage people to vote.   

c.       Campaign is focusing on areas such as Kentwood, Bryon Center, Caledonia, Grandville, Wyoming, and Godwin Heights. 

d.      Campaign funding will be $3,000 to $10,000 short.  D. Kooistra made a motion to contribute an additional $5,000 to the millage campaign; J. Hesse seconded.  Motion passes with 104 for and 12 opposed. 

New Business: 

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

Next Meeting: 

· To be announced or September, 2007. 

Adjournment: 

• Motion to adjourn R. Stein, F. Conner seconded.  Adjournment at 11:34 a.m.

Submitted by K. Danko, Secretary.