Academic Senate gets tech centric in third meeting

Joseph Espiritu

During its third meeting for the fall semester, the Saddleback College Academic Senate began by introducing three new senators: Norm Weston, Scott Farthing and Steven Robinson.

The board also covered issues regarding the approval of the Library Resource Center’s name change, the proposed enrollment limit starting fall 2014, the district’s hiring of a consultant to overlook its curriculum system for both Irvine Valley and Saddleback Colleges, the introduction of the Student Success Committee, which will overlook standards pertaining to student preparation and success, along with combining course numbers for instructors teaching online and hybrid classes.

The senate also had a lengthy discussion about the Memorandum of Understanding between boundaries set-forth for IVC and Saddleback in which a motion to further discuss the issue was passed.

Other complaints brought up during the meeting’s public comment portion was that of Rebecca Knapp’s from the Business/Science Department who notified the senate of the lack of re-imaged computer’s in the college’s Computer Information Management Department whose classroom computers need to be re-imaged three times a year for software and platforms to run properly.

“Our department went through the proper process early in the summer, far before the deadlines were due on what they needed on their computers,” Knapp said. “It’s now four weeks in the school and most the computer’s in the CIM classrooms are not imaged – We have had classes of computer science teachers teaching their courses with no content to teach.”

Knapp added that not only is it an accreditation issue, but also a concern for student success, adding that one student has dropped a class due to lack of instructional tools available.

Furthermore, Knapp commented on the problem stemming from the Library, which was recently renovated being prioritized by an understaffed IT department.

The senate responded that student’s are customers and that resources should be allocated to benefit them first and foremost.

In an ironic turn of events, librarian Ana Maria Cobos also had complains regarding the lack of staff manning the LRC’s two computer labs on the second and third floors of the library.

“We librarians all feel bad for the student’s that there is nobody there assigned to help them,” Cobos said about the second floor lab, adding that she and her staff of librarian’s are left to answer student’s questions regarding the computer equipment, which are under the supervision of the Liberal Arts Department.

The dean of the department, which responded to the problem by moving the full-time lab technician on what was a smooth-going third floor lab operation to the second floor is a great disservice to students according to Cobos, who believes the only solution is to hire more man power to staff the emasculated lab.

For more information regarding Academic Senate meetings, visit: http://www.saddleback.edu/asenate/
 

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