Question of the Month Archives

To view previously submitted answers, please click on the question date.

2004

• December/January 2004/05 —How are you tackling the issues of faculty health benefits? How are they being handled at your district? E-mail your answers, suggestions, solutions, frustrations and more today.
  
• October/November 2004—As the next presidential election quickly approaches (only 11 days and counting), FACCC wants to know how you get your students involved. Share your most successful strategies, either implemented or observed, in motivating your students to vote. Feel free to share successes as well as failures.
  
• August/September 2004—Under the guise of increasing efficiency, the California Performance Review (CPR) proposes to eliminate the Community College Board of Governors (CCBOG). The report does not recommend elimination of the system governing boards for either UC or CSU. What are the strongest arguments to counter this proposal?
  
  
• April 2004—Which of the following is the single, most challenging issue for faculty on your campus? a) Insufficient resources, b) Interference with academic freedomc) Disputes with management

• March 2004—What issues do you anticipate will arise in the classroom as UC- and CSU-eligible students are redirected to community colleges?

2003

• December 2003—How would you rate Gov. Schwarzenegger's performance so far? Why?

• November 2003—Is your district offering the Golden Handshake provided by AB 1207? If so, how has it been implemented?

• October 2003—If you could pose one question on community colleges to Governor-elect Schwarzenegger, what would it be?

• May 2003—Question: How would you improve shared governance at the district and/or state levels?

• April 2003—What feedback have you heard from students and/or colleagues regarding the March in March?

• March 2003—Are layoff notices expected in your department this month? If so, what is the magnitude of expected layoffs?

• February  2003—What are you doing at the local level to lobby against the budget cuts affecting community colleges?

• January  2003—Is it a good idea for faculty to mobilize students for political action?

2002

• December  2002—What issues on your campus or in your district could be resolved without additional finances?

• November  2002 —If you became Gray Davis' secretary for education, what three priorities would you advise him to set
  for community colleges in his second term?

• October 2002 —Should minors be allowed to enroll in community colleges?

• September 2002—How have the events of 9/11 changed your college and/or the way you teach over the past year?

• May 2002—What's the most successul example of faculty political power that you have witnessed or participated in during the last decade?

• March 2002—Do corporate sponsorships help or hurt community colleges?

• February 2002—Proposed cuts to staff development money

• December 2002

2001

• November 2001—Predict the political landscape after the November 2002 election.

• October 2001—An Oct. 8 commentary in the Chronicle of Higher Education ("When Is It OK to Invite a Student to Dinner?") discussed the different ways faculty members socialize with their students. Do you socialize with your students outside of the classroom? Why or why not?

• September 2001—Are you incorporating discussions of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in your courses? How? What has been the reaction on campus? How has campus life been impacted?

• June 2001—Do administrators on your campus listen to faculty in the shared governance process? Have you participated in shared governance?

• May 2001—What's the most important thing teachers can do for their students?

• April 2001—The dog ate my homework. "What are your favorite student excuses?"

• March 2001—"Do computers belong in the classroom?"

• February 2001—"What is the first reaction or response you receive when you mention that you're a community college faculty member?"

• January 2001—"How do you work with students who have psychological disabilities?" Share an anecdote or tip.

2000

• October 2000—FACCC is coordinating a Nov. 10 workshop on Academic Integrity. "Have your academic standards changed over the last 10 years? For better or worse?" (grading on a curve, pressure to inflate grades, pressure to provide a more rigorous curriculum, etc.)

• September 2000—An upcoming issue of the journal FACCCTS will feature a FACCC retrospective. Why do you value your FACCC membership? What is your fondest FACCC memory?

• June 2000—What were your successes this past academic year? What challenges did you overcome?

• May 2000—What does it mean to be a good teacher? What are three things necessary to be a good teacher?
  
  

• April 2000—Do your students read their textbooks? If not, how do you encourage them to do so?

• March 2000 - Some analysts have said that the defeat of Proposition 26 underscores the
  lack of voter support for public education. What does the education community and specifically community colleges need to take to secure more voter support?
  

• February 2000 -- If Gov. Gray Davis offered you $50 million for part-time faculty, what percentage would you apportion to (1) job conversion (converting part-time positions into full-time jobs) and to (2) pro-rata pay (equal pay for equal work)?
  

• January 2000—The new "Master Plan for Kindergarten—University" is expected to last 25 years. What would be your single highest recommendation to the Master Plan committee for California Community Colleges reform?