In This Issue:

Campus Campaign Rolls On

During the MTA's launch of its Access and Excellence Campaign Saturday, January 23rd in Natick, Higher Education Leadership Committee Chair Jay McHale spoke of the role of his organization in coordinating the assembled elements of higher education in policy formulation and political action. "We want this message to drown out the misleading rhetoric of certain so-called educational leaders." McHale continued. "We want this message to make it unthinkable for the Board of Higher Education to continue its vicious attacks on our hard earned contractual rights at the bargaining table."

In order to maintain the momentum built at January 23 rd I s event, a marathon working weekend task force was designated to hammer out position statements on several front burner issues in higher education in an intensive weekend forum meeting on March 26 and 27, 1999. Committees will craft Higher Ed. positions in each area. Location will either be at the Crown Plaza, Natick, or the Best Western in Marlboro. Finalization of the committees will be accomplished at a HELC meeting on March 12. There are, as of this writing, eight MCCC volunteers for various of the focus groups listed below. No MCCC volunteers specified an interest in the Tenure/Post Tenure Review group or the New Teacher Testing group. Persons interested in those foci are especially welcome to volunteer. Unit members interested in any group could contact Sue Dole.

The project calls for the establishment of working groups from a cross-segmental representation of the membership. Each group would develop statements on various issues, including, with group facilitator, tentatively:

• Tenure/post-tenure review; (Beth Boyer)
• Appropriate admission standards, remedial education and exit exams; (Priscilla Lyons, Donna Sirutis, Michelle Gallagher)
• Privatization and contracting out; (Steve Day)
• New teacher testing; (Priscilla Lyons)
• Obstacles to opportunity: Elimination of comprehensive missions, abolition of majors, add-one/drop-one program policy; (Donna Sirutis)
• Shared governance; (Arthur Pippo)
• Distance education; (Michelle Gallagher)
• Part-time faculty. (Dan Donahue)

Working group sessions will be scheduled as "marathons" i.e., Friday afternoon through Saturday, March 26 & 27, to draft language. There may be a brief follow up to fine tune language.

Input in writing may be sent, promptly, to the attention of the facilitator specified above and mailed to the MTA Boston/ Higher Education Division, 20 Ashburton Place, Boston MA 02108

The final document will be approved by a reconvened meeting of MTA higher education leaders, then ratified by each local chapter and the MTA Annual Meeting of Delegates in May.

MCCC President Susan Dole Addresses Higher Ed leadership at MTA Campus Campaign for Access and Excellence, Natick Jan 23, 1999

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Delegate Assembly

The MCCC Annual Delegate Assembly is planned this year for Saturday, May 1, 1999. The meeting will be held in the Opera Room at the Ramada Inn, Auburn. This represents a change in venue, based on the successful draw of the Ramada Inn last year, and a shift toward a later date. Both alterations are intended to maximize attendance and to make for a satisfying and memorable event. Directions to the Ramada and a map may be found on the MCCC Web page. (http://www.tiac.net/users/mccc). Registration will be held from 9- 10:00 a.m.

Last year's annual meeting ran into trouble when, scheduled on a three day Patriots' Day weekend in April, it did not find a quorum in attendance, and official business of the organization could not be conducted. When rescheduled for September 1998, and situated at the Ramada, a quorum was assembled and the business expediently conducted. In a surprising outcome delegates to that assembly approved a motion from the floor to double the dues increase recommended by the finance committee.

Needless to say, the leadership of the MCCC is leaving no stone unturned in this year in efforts to insure a quorum at this year's annual Delegate Assembly. Local leadership is being prompted well in advance to rally strong local delegations strategically in excess of minimum target numbers (see elsewhere in this newsletter for compiled delegate target and entitlement figures).

The annual delegate assembly is a great opportunity to refresh old friendships and contacts statewide for veterans, and a quick study in the organization for newer members.

Strategy and momentum for the political push on the Classification effort is likely to be a central theme at this year's gathering. Local political strategists are invited to share their techniques and experiences with the assembly.

A continental breakfast of coffee, tea, bagels, danish and muffins will be served at 8:30 a.m. The luncheon menu will feature baked stuffed chicken, with oven roasted red bliss potatoes, tossed green salad, and a dessert of hot apple dumpling and ice cream.

Delta Dental Difficulties?

The new dental plan took effect February 1, and some locales around the state are reporting problems in finding providers who accept the plan. Some success has been had enlisting providers when the terms of the package are known. If your current dentist is not a Delta provider, or you are having difficulty locating a Delta approved provider, please contact Abe Sherf, MCCC representative to the MTA's Health and Welfare Trust, and he will forward the information to Delta who has pledged to make an effort to provide adequate coverage statewide.

Disaggregation

editorial by Peter Flynn

Peter Reid's Well Made in America: Lessons from Harley Davidson on Being the Best' credits employee involvement programs with restoring quality, reworking production processes, and ultimately resurrecting HD during the 80's. Labor management synergies are celebrated in manufacturing (Saturn), and retailing throughout corporate America. Paradoxically, colleges are unapologetically regressing to top down management models historically typical of industrial organization with predictable results. College is defined as a self-governing society of scholars for study or instruction'. Displacement of faculty not only from governance, but all extracurricular functioning is imminent as community college bureaucracies expand.

Dissolution of faculty senates, and replacement with advisory All College Councils during the last decade has facilitated a management-centered culture in many community colleges, and the process will be progressively apparent in others. Proliferation of part-timers challenges our ability to know those teaching in our departments already.

The widening salary gap between up per management and faculty has ripples. Middle managers proliferate. Filling salary steps in the gulf, they lend the appearance "uppers" have more responsibility, increasing work if not productivity. The resultant whirl of activity pro motes press, brings benefactors, distracts from anemic FTEs, creating sinecures for hacks.

Managers co-opt faculty function to justify employment. Non-teaching, but traditional faculty roles, including clubs, mentoring, advising, co-op education, faculty development, are co-opted. Breakup of the faculty role constellation, limiting faculty to teaching constitutes a de-professionalization of the professoriate termed disaggregation by political scientist David Birdsell of Baruch College, CUNY.3 The term has currency in academe in statistics, linguistics, and in describing the impact of digitalized information on meaning. In Birdsell's use, professorial role components are disaggregated and redistributed to part-timers, managers, and non-unit employees.

Result: Faculty teach, but are stripped of enhancing roles in governance, curriculum, and extracurriculars.

The new millennium heralds the anticollege: Collegiality diminished by the dearth of extra classroom roles. While we struggle for decent wages and equity, professional identity is eroded by disaggregation.

1 Reid, Peter C. Well made in America: lessons from Harley Davidson on being the best. McGraw Hill 1990 ISBN 0-07-026500-3
2 The American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition Houghton Mifflin 1985
3 http://www.baruch.cuny.edu/spa/faculty/birdsell/

MTA Leadership Academy Opportunity1 This spring 1999, the MTA is sponsoring an extended leadership training program, six training modules over 18 months, in eight clusters around the state. The Leadership academy is aimed to strengthen and deepen leadership in locals of K- 12, Higher Education and ESP, bringing together a cross section to engage in leadership training activities. "The Leadership Journey... Back to the Future training program emphasizes increased knowledge and skill enhancement to effect positive attitudes toward collective determination. The program will compliment existing and future MTA training programs". Participants must receive the recommendation of the president of an MTA local. The Academy recommends three to five participants from small to mid size locals and five to seven from larger locals. Team participation from locals is required. Locals are strongly encouraged to send at least one member with less than seven years' unit membership status. Participation is limited to 20 members per training cluster. The first training session is titled: Its About Knowing Self and Building Teams. The schedule for the first session for each of the eight clusters is listed below. Future sessions will be scheduled in consult with participants. The MCCC is regarded as a single local by the MTA, entitling it to 7 participants. Call Sue Dole if you wish to be considered to participate.

Location Date Braintree March 27-28 Wakefield April 9/16 Taunton March 26/27 Hyannis April 30/May 1 Worcester April 9/10 Leominster April 9/10 Holyoke March 26/27 Pittsfield April 2,3 1 Leadership Academy Announces Training Opportunity, a memo by academy chair Anne Wass and Michelle Gallagher, MTA staff consultant. 3/l/99

Editorials Return

At the February Board of Directors Meeting a publications policy was passed by the MCCC board which establishes an editorial board composed of the president, secretary, and one local. Nancy Teel of Roxbury CC has been appointed to serve as the local. The existence of the board permits the return of editorials (of about 300 words) according to a publications policy passed at the same meeting. These editorials may be written by any unit member, as long as they are approved by the committee. Contributions of guest editorials are invited. Guest editorials will be selected as they are appropriate, timely and in the best interests of the MCCC membership. The editorials, and accompanying encouragement of letters to the editor, are intended to stimulated exchange of ideas among members, increase readership, and to foster more organizational identification. We have a literate membership, with no shortage of opinions and energy.

Publications Policy Approved submitteders, increase readership, and foster Letters to the editor and guest editorials (of around 300 words) are invited. Authorship and college must be attached. Submissions may be edited. Electronic format will be favored.

E-mail to: Pflynn@seacoast.com or Pflynn@necc.mass.edu.

NECC Powerpoints Classification

Local State representatives and senators have been booked for Spring 1999 information sessions with members of the MCCC unit at Northern Essex Community College. In exemplary implementation of local political action, NECCFA President Joseph LeBlanc and political action coordinator Arthur Barlas have Put together a program including a Powerpoint presentation, topical speakers, and a turnout of unit members well prepared with on-point questions. The emphasis is on Classification with brief explanations of the Lane Bill proposal and the Fair Share Bill. Coffee and cookies lend civility to the succinct, businesslike presentation rounding out at one hour with question and answer period.

State Senator Susan Tucker (D) Andover was the first guest of the chapter on Friday, February 27 at 3 p.m. Despite the time slot, 32 unit members crowded the faculty lounge of the classroom building. On Wednesday March 3rd NECCFA hosted Rep. Jose Santiago of Lawrence, and on March 4, Rep. Brian Dempsey of Haverhill were hosted. Each of these presentations had progressively larger turnouts. The legislators were duly impressed with the large turnouts, the organization of the presentation and the knowledge of the legislative and administrative functions displayed by attendees. Legislators were largely in the dark, however, about the Classification study, and the history of legislation funding faculty pay that lead to the gross inequities and stagnation in career advancement evident in the wage history of community college faculty.

Anticipated visits from Senator James Jajuga of Methuen on Friday March 5, Rep. Harriet Stanley of W. Newbury on March 12, and Rep David Torrisi on Monday, March 22 are scheduled. Political action agents of NECCFA are dogging other area legislators who have not committed.

The PowerPoint presentation being used by NECCFA will be briefly presented at the MCCC Executive meeting on Friday, March 12, and copies for PC and Mac on 3.5 disk made available to local directors or officers to modify and use on their campus as they see fit. Contact Joe LeBlanc at jleblanc@necc.mass.edu, or 978-556-3391 with a request and your return address.

Research Coord. Posting (tentative pending formal description by personnel committee) The MCCC Board approved a Research Coordinator position with duties like developing a- database of members, studies like equity studies, compiling economic comparison data and research for negotiations, benefits, and policies. Written and oral expression skills, computer applications and ability to work with MCCC leaders desirable. Knowledge of Collective Bargaining Agreement and similar agreements preferred. Knowledge of labor economics and basic statistics including regression analyses, multivariate statistics and models for education/ labor desired. Compensation undetermined salary plus expenses. For details contact Sue Dole.

Communication Coordinator Posting The MCCC is inviting applications for the position of Communication Coordinator to begin July 1, 1999 for one year. Scope of Responsibilities: The Communications Coordinator oversees and coordinates internal and external communications of the Council, reports on events and activities related to the council and its members and publicizes activities of the Council. Core Competencies: The Communication Coordinator must possess strong writing skills. This coordinator must be articulate verbally and in writing, must be a team player; and must be proficient in common media-related computer applications. Terms of Employment: Two year initial appointment, stipend (currently stipulated at $6700), two course release time, office and travel expenses. For details contact Sue Dole.

Looking for a Job? Vacancies within the community college system are easily accessible on the MCCC Web Site at http:// www.tiac.net/users/mccc. Click on Job Vacancies in Massachusetts community Colleges. Any unit members who would like a copy of the vacancies faxed to them can send a request, mentioning the college at which they teach to the Communications Coordinator. Pflynn@seacoast.com or fax 978-462-7410.