The union world has been on the move since my election to MCCC President a little over a year ago. Despite the Janus v. AFSCME Decision, support for unions has been steadily climbing. Far from the short-sighted anti-union perspective of Janus and his ilk prevailing, people are re-discovering that it is not good enough to just have a job. After all, what good is the creation of 1,000,000 more jobs, if those jobs demean employees and pay wages they can’t live on. Working conditions matter. Livable … [Read more...]
President’s Column March 2019
Community College As A Pathway to Lower Student Loan Debt Student loan debt was on the mind of nearly everyone I chatted with the morning of March 21, 2019 (Higher Education Advocacy Day) at the Statehouse as I headed to the offices of my State Representatives to speak about the need for increased funding to public higher education. One student in her second year at UMass Amherst told me she was already carrying $20K in loans, and had just signed on to $15K more. Another student at … [Read more...]
President’s Column Feb. 2019
More Funding, Not More Miracles The community that makes up the Commonwealth’s community colleges – staff, faculty, administrators, trustees, parents, family, friends, etc.– are a dedicated, resilient group of individuals who, under some of the most challenging of circumstances in the world of higher education, pull off miracles to help move students along the pathway of academic achievement and lifelong success. From the financial advisor, who spends hours assisting each student to navigate a … [Read more...]
President’s Column Oct.- Nov. 2018
Enrollment vs Funding Declining enrollment. This is what is driving most of the administration’s decisions these days. I have been in the system long enough to have seen this movie before. When money is tight, what is available tends to be spent on three things: 1) hiring more administrators, 2) hiring expert consultants, and 3) adopting new technology. Interestingly, when enrollment is up, and revenue is flowing in hand over fist from all those student fees and tuition from DCE courses, the … [Read more...]
President’s Column Sept. 2018
Recognizing A Con Game As the newly elected MCCC President, I would like to welcome you all to the 2018-19 academic year and to wish everyone a productive semester. As a matter of history, we are living in interesting times. In terms of the MCCC and public sector unions in general, these are uncertain times. Nevertheless, I believe we will persist and prevail. 27 days after I assumed the reins of this office, while I was in the air on my way to Minneapolis for the NEA Representative … [Read more...]