COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT
BETWEEN
THE CENTRAL OREGON COMMUNITY COLLEGE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
AND
THE CENTRAL OREGON COMMUNITY COLLEGE FACULTY FORUM
ARTICLE 1 – RECOGNITION
1.1. Parties to the Agreement
This agreement is between the Central Oregon Community College Board of Directors (hereinafter called the “Board” or the “College”) and the Central Oregon Community College Faculty Forum, (hereinafter called the “Forum”), as the exclusive bargaining agent for members of the bargaining unit (hereinafter called “employee(s)” or “member(s)”) for the purposes of collective bargaining representation, as provided for in ORS 243.650 to ORS 243.782.
1.2. Members of the Bargaining Unit
The faculty bargaining unit shall consist of all full-time faculty and adjunct instructors employed on faculty or adjunct appointments approved by the Board.
1.3 Exclusions from the Bargaining Unit
Vice-President/Deans, all persons on a notice of appointment (other than Adjunct Instructors), Classified Employees, ABE Instructors, Confidential and Supervisory employees, and all individuals on the administrative salary schedule shall not be included in the bargaining unit and no provision of the Agreement shall apply to them unless specifically so stated.
1.4 Academic Freedom
The College and the Forum agree that academic freedom is essential to the fulfillment of the purposes of education, and they acknowledge the fundamental need to protect employees from censorship or restraint which might interfere with their obligations to pursue truth in the performance of their teaching and research functions. Thus, (1) a member is entitled to full freedom in research and in the publication of the results, subject to the adequate performance of his/her other academic duties, and (2) a member is entitled to freedom in the classroom in discussing the subject(s) he/she is assigned, but he/she will be careful not to introduce into his/her teaching controversial matter which has no relation to the subject of the course.
ARTICLE 2 – FORUM SECURITY
2.1 Dues Deduction
Upon written request, members of the bargaining unit may have monthly dues deducted from their paychecks. Such deduction will continue until the College has been notified, in writing, by the member that the deduction is to be changed or terminated. Such dues shall be paid in the aggregate to the Treasurer of the Forum, the total amount so deducted accompanied by a listing identifying the members for whom the deductions are being paid.
2.2 Payment in Lieu of Dues
(a) Any member of the bargaining unit who has not requested voluntary deductions of Faculty Forum Dues under 2.1 above or who has not certified in writing to the College that he/she has paid such Forum dues directly to the Forum shall be subject to a representation fee as defined in ORS 243.650 (10) and (16) and ORS 243.666 (1) and shall be subject to the provisions of this section.
(b) Such requests for payroll deductions or certification of direct payment of Forum dues shall be made by the fifteenth (15) day of the month following ratification of this Agreement.
(c) The College shall deduct such representation fee, which shall be equal to the total dues paid by Forum Members.
(d) The Forum and members of the bargaining unit agree to indemnify, defend, and hold the College harmless of all actions it takes in connection with the provisions of Sections 2.1 and 2.2 of this Article.
2.3 Non-jeopardy
The College and the Forum recognize the right of each member of the faculty to join or refrain from joining the Forum, and neither the College nor the Forum will discriminate against any employee because of his/her membership or non-membership in the Forum.
2.4 Forum Communications and Use of College Facilities
(a) The Forum will be allowed the use of the facilities of the College.
(b) The Forum shall notify the College when services should be charged to the Forum.
(c) The Forum President may submit items for a Board meeting agenda provided that a written request, along with any background materials, is filed with the College President in accordance with current Board deadlines.
(d) Copies of the agendas and the minutes of Board meetings will be furnished to the Forum at the same time as to the Board of Directors.
(e) The College will provide the Forum with copies of the College policy changes which are being considered and which substantively affect faculty positions or significantly affect instruction prior to the Board of Directors meeting where the change is being proposed.
ARTICLE 3 – MANAGEMENT RIGHTS
3.1 Reservation of Management Rights
The parties of this Agreement recognize that the College retains and reserves to itself all rights, powers, duties, authority and responsibilities conferred on and invested in it by the laws of the State of Oregon and the Administrative Rules of the Oregon State Board of Education. The parties further recognize that the expressed terms of this Agreement shall be controlling over any College policy, administrative rule and regulation, and individual contract with any member of the bargaining unit that may be, in whole or in part, in conflict with the expressed terms of this Agreement. All management rights and those rights not modified or abridged by the expressed terms of this Agreement are reserved to the College.
ARTICLE 4 – NO STRIKES AND LOCKOUTS
4.1 Prohibited Activities
Inasmuch as there are other means, both by law and through this Agreement, for the resolution of disagreements that may from time to time arise during the term of this Agreement, the College and the Forum agree as follows:
(a) During the term of this Agreement, the College shall not, as a result of a dispute with the Forum, deny employment to any member of the Forum or any employee covered by the terms of this Agreement. The foregoing shall not be construed to place any limitations or restrictions on the College’s right to lay off employees, consistent with the terms of this Agreement.
(b) During the term of this Agreement, the Forum and/or individual employees covered by the terms of this Agreement will not initiate, cause, permit, or participate or join in any strike, work stoppage, slowdown, refusal to report to work, mass absenteeism, or other interruptions or prevention of work or picketing. In the event of a violation of the above by the Forum or by the members of the bargaining unit, the Forum will immediately, upon notification by the College, secure an immediate and orderly return to work.
(c) Notwithstanding the above, the College may also discipline, including discharge, any individual employee involved in any of the above defined activities.
ARTICLE 5 – GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE
5.1 Objective
It is the declared objective of Central Oregon Community College and the Forum to strive for a prompt and orderly resolution of all grievances and to provide an orderly and expeditious procedure for such resolution.
5.2 Grievance Definition
A grievance is hereby defined as a written allegation by a member of the Forum, or the bargaining unit, that there has been a violation or inequitable application of a specific provision(s) of this Agreement by the College.
5.3 Time Limits
(a) For purposes of this grievance procedure only, the term business days shall mean days when the College is open for business.
(b) The time limits herein specified shall be binding on all parties.
(c) Time limits may be waived or extended only by written mutual agreement of the grievant and the College and may not be waived or extended by an arbitrator. However, the parties agree to expedite the procedure whenever possible.
5.4 Informal Process/Administrative Channels
(a) The College and the Forum agree that every attempt should be made to resolve grievances through informal meetings and discussions within the established administrative channels.
(b) A faculty member or the Forum must initiate a grievance by written report to the immediate supervisor and to the Vice-President of Instruction. This must be done within fifteen (15) business days of the occurrence of the event or condition that gave rise to the alleged grievance or within fifteen (15) business days from when the grievant or the Forum knew or reasonably should have known of the same.
(c) The faculty member, his/her immediate supervisor (if appropriate), the Vice-President of Instruction and a Forum representative will have fifteen (15) business days after the grievance request is filed for the purpose of resolving the grievance. Upon mutual agreement of the faculty member, the immediate supervisor, and the Vice-President of Instruction, other persons may be invited to participate in this meeting.
5.5 Formal Procedure - Contract Step One
(a) If the grievance is not resolved informally according to 5.4, then within five (5) business days, the grievant, or the Forum as grievant, shall reduce the grievance to writing, date and sign it, and include the following: (1) the specific factual basis of the grievance; (2) the specific individuals involved; (3) the provision or provisions of this Agreement allegedly violated or applied inequitably to him/her; and (4) the specific remedy sought which will resolve the grievance. This first written document shall contain the full and complete statement of the grievance. After filing, no new allegations may be added. The document may be amended for clarification only.
(b) The Vice-President of Instruction shall be given the written grievance and will note receipt of the same by countersigning and dating the original. The Vice-President of Instruction shall give a copy of the signed grievance to the grievant and the Forum.
(c) The Vice-President of Instruction shall respond to the grievance to the grievant, in writing, within five (5) business days after receipt of the signed and dated grievance.
5.6 Formal Procedure - Contract Step Two
(a) If the grievance is not resolved to the satisfaction of the grievant or the Forum after receipt of the Vice-President of Instruction’s response in 5.5(c) above, the grievant or the Forum may submit the written grievance to the President of the College; provided, however, the written grievance must be filed with the President’s Office within five (5) business days after the receipt of the Vice-President of Instruction’s response.
(b) The President shall give his/her written response to the grievance to the grievant or the Forum within five (5) business days after his/her receipt of the timely filed Contract Step Two written grievance.
(c) Voluntary Mediation: By mutual agreement of the President of the College and the
President of the Forum, the parties may attempt to resolve the grievance through mediation.
Selection of the mediator shall be by mutual agreement. Costs of the mediator shall be borne
equally by the parties. Settlement offers made during the mediation process may not be used as
evidence during the arbitration.
5.7 Formal Procedure - Contract Step Three
(a) If the grievance remains unresolved to the satisfaction of the grievant or the Forum after receipt of the President’s written response in 5.6(b) above, the grievant or the Forum may, within fifteen (15) business days of the receipt of the President’s response, submit a written notice to the President requesting that the grievance be arbitrated. The written concurrence of the Forum President is required to process any grievance to arbitration.
(b) Upon receipt of such written request for arbitration, the President and the Forum President, or his/her designee, shall jointly request the participation of the Oregon Employment Relations Board list of Arbitrators.
(c) The arbitrator shall set a time and place for a hearing on the written grievance mutually satisfactory to the College and the Forum.
(d) The arbitrator shall hold a hearing on the grievance and, after hearing such evidence as the parties’ desire to present, and consistent with the terms of this Agreement, the arbitrator shall render a written decision to the parties within thirty (30) calendar days of the hearing. A decision of the arbitrator shall, within the scope of his/her authority as provided below in 5.7(e) and elsewhere in this Agreement, be binding upon all parties.
(e) The arbitrator shall neither add to, subtract from, nor modify the terms and provisions of this Agreement. The arbitrator shall confine his/her decision solely to the application and/or interpretation of this Agreement and to whether or not it has been violated as alleged in the written grievance.
5.8 Miscellaneous
(a) The names of any witnesses who will be used in arbitration must be made known to the other party at least forty-eight (48) hours prior to the first arbitration hearing. Issues not presented in the first two Contract Steps above (5.5 through 5.6) may not be presented at Contract Step Three (5.7).
(b) All costs and expenses (other than the arbitrator’s fees and expenses) including, but not limited to, producing witnesses and evidence, shall be borne by the party incurring such costs, requiring such witnesses, or producing such evidence. The fees and other expenses of the arbitrator shall be shared equally by the College and the Forum.
(c) A grievant may be represented at any step of this procedure by him/her, or, at his/her option, by a representative of the Forum or a representative of the grievant’s choice.
(d) Meetings and hearings called for in this grievance procedure shall be held and conducted in private in order to ensure confidentiality; provided, however, the hearing under 5.7 (d) above, may be opened to the public by mutual agreement of the parties
(e) All meetings and hearings held under this grievance procedure shall occur after the regular work day or at other times which do not interfere with assigned duties of faculty; provided, however, the parties may mutually agree to hold the arbitration hearing at a time other than specified herein.
ARTICLE 6 – FACULTY APPOINTMENTS
The individuals who teach at and for Central Oregon Community College are classified as full-time tenured faculty members, full-time probationary faculty members, full-time temporary faculty members, adjunct instructors, and part-time instructors.
6.1 Adjunct Instructors
The College employs, under a teaching notice of appointment, selected individuals for limited instructional services. Persons employed in this category shall be provided benefits under the agreement solely as prescribed in this contract for adjunct instructors. Part-time faculty members who are assigned at the start of the fall term at least 24.5 load units for the succeeding academic year or at least 30 load units for the succeeding calendar year shall be recognized as members of the bargaining unit and given a yearly Notice of Appointment as adjunct instructors. Appointment does not, in any way, propose, indicate, or promise a continuation of appointment or a new appointment. Notice of non-renewal is not required for an adjunct instructor.
(a) The qualifying load units shall include both teaching and other assignments, as determined mutually by the Faculty Forum and the administration.
(b) In the event actual load units fall below the projection, the adjunct faculty members will maintain both benefits and unit membership for the duration of the period specified in the Notice of Appointment. If the adjunct instructor declines load units, benefits and unit membership may be reduced or terminated.
(c) The renewal of an adjunct member’s employment is entirely at the discretion of the College. Except for the applicable provisions of Article 10, adjunct faculty shall have no property interest in their employment with the College.
6.2 Fulltime Faculty Members
(a) This category of personnel of the College refers to and is limited to those members whose principal role is providing instructional services on a full-time basis over the full academic year. This category also includes librarians and department chairs whose services are provided on a full-time basis over the full academic year, unless they are specifically contracted in another category of personnel. This category of faculty member is further subdivided into the following:
(b) Temporary. The individual in this category is appointed for a limited period of time, often a single academic year. Appointment does not, in any way, propose, indicate, or promise a continuation of appointment or a new appointment. Notice of non-renewal is not required for a temporary faculty member. During this appointment, temporary faculty members are expected to participate in all the departmental and professional responsibilities assumed by tenured and probationary tenure track faculty members except when excused by the Vice-President for Instruction.
(c) Probationary (Tenure Track). Appointments to probationary status are for one (1) academic year and are subject to annual renewal solely at the discretion of the College. The probationary period at Central Oregon Community College will normally be five (5) consecutive years in duration, with the understanding that each annual appointment is subject to renewal by the College. Further, in cases where the College finds that a probationary faculty member needs an additional year in which to extend or complete his/her professional competence beyond the completed five (5) academic years, the faculty member’s probationary period may then be extended to include a sixth (6th) academic year. Completion of a probationary period does not automatically confer, promise, or guarantee that the member shall be elevated to tenured status, nor does completion of the probationary period imply, confer, promise, or guarantee future employment.
(d) Tenured. Faculty members who have been awarded tenure by the College Board of Directors are in this category. Appointments with tenure shall be thus specified until the retirement or resignation of a faculty member and, subject to the provisions and procedures specified in Articles 10 and 11 are dismissible only for adequate cause or reduction in force.
6.3 Policies
The parties to this Agreement agree that the College reserves unto itself the exclusive right to implement or make changes in the applicable policies and regulation dealing with the acquisition of tenure in all of their aspects as the College deems appropriate; provided, however, that such changes:
(a) Shall not affect the provisions of 6.2 (d), above, during the term of this Agreement;
(b) Shall not affect the provisions of article 10 during the term of this Agreement; and
(c) Shall become effective after prior consultation with the Forum through the established formal committee processes of the College or through any other mutually agreed upon process.
ARTICLE 7 - SALARY COMPENSATION
7.1 Salary Schedules (See Addendum A)
The full-time salary schedule for 2006-07 is listed in Addendum A of this agreement. During academic year 2006-07, the Forum and the College shall negotiate the salary schedules for the 2007-08 year of the contract.
(a) Evaluations. Faculty members who receive satisfactory evaluations in any year of this Agreement will be moved one step on the scale, unless the faculty member is at the end of the scale. If a faculty member receives an unsatisfactory evaluation, no step will be awarded the following year. However, if, in the subsequent year the faculty member receives a satisfactory evaluation, the faculty member will be replaced at the level he/she would have attained if the previous year had been satisfactory.
(b) Sufficient funds will be budgeted to allow promotions as approved by the College.
(c) Other adjustments shall be allowed as approved by the Board.
(d) The College shall pay its employee members’ six percent (6%) employee contribution to the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS). Such payment of employee members’ monthly contribution to the System shall continue for the life of this Agreement.
The full amount of required employee contributions paid by the College on behalf of employees shall be considered as “salary” within the meaning of ORS 238.005 for the purpose of computing an employee’s “final average salary” within the meaning of ORS 238.410 but shall not be considered as “salary” for the purposes of determining the amount of employee contributions required to be contributed pursuant to ORS 238.200. Such paid employee contributions shall be credited to employee accounts pursuant to ORS 238.200 and shall be considered to be employee contributions for the purposes of ORS 238.005 to 238.215.
(e) Full-time faculty members newly contracted for work shall be placed on the schedule in effect as determined by the College. A record of such placement shall be maintained in the Office of the Vice President for Instruction. Should the College decide to advertise a position at a salary higher than the standard hiring range established by the College for that year, the President of the Faculty Forum will be notified prior to posting the position. All new placements shall be reviewed each fall with the President of the Faculty Forum.
(f) The President of the College shall have the authority to recommend an increase to the salary of any faculty member.
7.2 Overloads and Summer Session Pay
(a) Payment per load unit for overloads for full-time faculty members shall be according to the schedule below:
Instructor/Assistant Professor 1..................................... $500/LU
Assistant Professor 2................................................... $520/LU
Associate Professor..................................................... $540/LU
Professor..................................................................... $560/LU
(b) Payment for summer session, or the off quarter, for faculty with an alternate contract year [see Article 8.6 (c)] for tenured or tenure track faculty shall be $700 per load unit, effective the first teaching day of the summer quarter. During the Summer term, or the off quarter, tenured or tenure track faculty may receive additional compensation for teaching instructional events designed to generate income beyond the usual tuition and fees, at the discretion of the Vice President of Instruction or his/her designee.
7.3 Adjunct Compensation (See Addendum B)
(a) All salary increases are merit plus time based. The adjunct instructor must have met the minimum time and be recommended by the department chair(s) for an increase.
(b) Salary increases occur at the beginning of the academic year, if department evaluations are on file, and if the deans approve such increases. The adjunct salary schedule for 2006-07 is contained in Appendix B of this Agreement.
ARTICLE 8 – TEACHING ASSIGNMENT, COMPENSATION, AND AGREEMENTS
8.1 Assignment for Loads
As defined here, a full load will be forty-five (45) load units per academic year. Loads are analyzed on a quarterly basis by the College for planning and scheduling procedures but shall be computed for obligation purposes at the end of each academic year, or in accordance with Article 8.6 (b) for faculty on an alternate contract year.
8.2 Full-Time Faculty Teaching Load
A full-time load is forty-five (45) load units per academic year. The College will determine the instructional mode and assign load units as follows:
8.3 For Credit Classes
(a) Lecture Mode: One (1) hour per week for a term equals one (1) load unit; OR, where the class does not fall into the Fall, Winter, or Spring Terms, twelve (12) classroom hours equal one (1) load unit.
(b) Laboratory: One (1) hour per week for a term equals two-thirds (2/3) load units; OR, where the class does not fall into the Fall, Winter, or Spring Terms, twelve (12) classroom hours equals two-thirds (2/3) load units.
(c) Nursing Clinical Instruction: One (1) hour per week for a term equals .80 load unit. The courses that this load unit rate applies to are only the following courses:
Nursing 106, 107 and 108
Nursing 206, 207 and 208
(d) Physical Education Activity Mode: One (1) hour per week for a term equals one-half (1/2) load unit.
(e) English Composition: Teaching Assignments in English Composition (WR 20, 40, 95, 121, 122, 123, 214, and 227) shall be multiplied by a factor of 1.25.
(f) Music Loads:
· Lecture/discussion classes & major ensembles at 1 – 1 rate
· Laboratory classes at 0.67 to 1 rate
· Small ensembles at 0.67 to 1 rate
· Private lessons: This load will be computed as number of students x .4 LY for the first five students, number of students x .2 LY for the next five students and no additional load over ten students. Adjunct instructors will be compensated by .2 load units per private lesson student.
(g) Upper Division: Upper division courses of 3 credits or more carry one (1) additional load unit over the load otherwise calculated in 8.3. Normally, no more than fifteen (15) load units of upper division courses per year may be taught by a full time faculty member per contract year.
(h) Class Size: faculty members of non-lab courses in science, and of courses in all other disciplines receive additional load according to the following schedule (based on fourth week enrollment):
41-50 students .5 lu added to base load for course
Over 51 students: 1 lu added to base load for course.
Faculty members of science classes with labs attached to the lecture sections receive additional load according to the following schedule (based on fourth week enrollment):
51-60 students .5 lu added to base load for course
61-70 students 1 lu added to base load for course
71-80 students 1.5 lu added to base load for course
81-90 students 2 lu added to base load for course
Over 91 students 2.5 lu added to base load for course
(i) Presidential Assignments: Other assignments approved by the President may be given a load unit equivalent and counted in a load. No faculty member shall be assigned released time, non-teaching duties, administrative, or planning duties, or the like without approval of the President.
(j) The President of the Faculty Forum shall be awarded three (3) load units of released time (or overload at the discretion of the Forum President) during each quarter that the office is held, subject to payment for the released time by the Faculty Forum. Payment shall be at the relevant overload rate.
8.4 Online Instruction
Online Instruction Definition: “Online” describes a pedagogical mode of instructional delivery for courses in which 90% or more of the scheduled instruction is other than face-to-face and is typically accessible via technology mediation. Courses taught in the online mode involve Web-based technology, DVD, CD-ROM, the Internet and email, Internet bulletin boards and Internet chat-rooms, and required student-to-student and student-to-faculty interaction. Science course labs, field based labs, and field trips shall be excluded in the computation of the percentage of instruction which is other than face to face. The instructor shall endeavor to make available alternatives to in person activities up to 10% of the class that is scheduled to be face to face. Such alternative procedures may include, but are not limited to telephone conference calls and off-site test proctoring.
(a) Support for Online: The College is committed to providing adequate support of instructional technology for faculty teaching courses in the online mode. No member of the faculty shall be required to participate in online courses or programs without adequate preparation and training. Adequate support is access to qualified assistance such as design teams, trainings, and individualized assistance during course development and during the term in which the course is taught.
In order to provide sufficient time to prepare and utilize resources in developing an online course, faculty shall be given a minimum of nine months notice of the assignment of an online course. Upon mutual consent of the faculty member and the College, the nine month notice period may be waived. In the case of the waiver, the Faculty Forum Executive Committee will be notified at the time the faculty member is offered the course.
(b) Resolution for disputes in using online formats for specific courses: Assignment to teach a class in an online mode may be declined without prejudice by the faculty member only for reasonable pedagogical concerns. In the case where there is a pedagogical disagreement between faculty and the Vice President for Instruction in the matter of whether the course(s) is appropriate for an online format, the situation shall be referred to Academic Affairs for further consideration. Academic Affairs may consider the matter and make a recommendation to the Vice President for Instruction as to whether a course should be taught as an online course. The Vice President for Instruction shall deliberate upon the recommendation of Academic Affairs and provide an explanation in writing to the affected parties, and the Faculty Forum Executive Committee. The final decision as to whether a course will be taught online rests with the Vice President for Instruction.
(c) Compensation for Online Courses: The first time an instructor teaches a particular online course they shall receive 1.5 times normal load for the course. All subsequent times that particular online course is taught, the premium shall be 1.2. The online premium for load shall only apply to base load for the course and shall not be applied against other factors such as load premiums for large class size, writing classes, etc. The online premium shall not apply to the amount of load dedicated to science labs, field based labs, and field trips. The Vice President of Instruction shall determine how much load is assigned to the part of the course which is online and how much load is assigned to the science lab, field based labs and/or field trips. Any allegation of unfair assignment of load under this provision shall be grievable pursuant to Article 5 of this contract. Upon request, the results of these load assignments shall be shared with the Faculty Forum Executive Committee.
(d) Article 8.4 shall be effective for four years (July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2010) with the sole exception that the load premiums (1.5 times base load for the first time an online course is taught by an instructor and 1.2 times base load for subsequent times the course is taught by the same instructor) shall re-open in two years (June 30, 2008). The College and the Faculty Forum shall enter into timely negotiations regarding the load premium prior to the expiration of this part of Article 8.4.
8.5 For Noncredit Classes
Load units assigned full-time faculty to teach non-credit courses not specifically addressed in the Contracted Training Section (Article 8.7) will be determined by the College as above. A range between 75 percent (75%) and one hundred percent (100%) of normal load will be paid for those load units.
8.6 Overloads
(a) A load of greater than forty-five (45) load units is an overload by the number and fraction of load units in excess of forty-five (45).
(b) Overloads will be computed at the end of each academic year. Under exceptional circumstances, up to two-thirds (2/3) of the anticipated overload may be paid at the end of the quarter in which it is earned.
(c) Normally, no more than 12 LUs of overload in a contract year will be assigned or compensated.
8.7 Contract Year
(a) Members of the Faculty Forum contracted with the College serve a total of 179 days each academic year. These 179 days include administrative or preparation days, instructional days, commencement, and five (5) regularly observed holidays: Veteran’s Day, Thanksgiving (two [2] days), Martin Luther King’s birthday, and Memorial Day.
(b) The 179-day faculty contract year, unless otherwise specified, will be from September to June. If during the duration of this contract the College desires to change the fall quarter class schedule from current practice, then Articles 8.7 (a) and 8.7 (b) will be subject to revision by timely negotiations between the College and the Faculty Forum.
(c) The College will consider requests from full-time faculty members to enter into agreement to employ a full-time faculty member for some other period of time. Examples would be a contract covering the Winter, Spring, and Summer quarters; one covering the Fall, Spring, and Summer quarters; or one covering a full load distributed over all four quarters, so long as the 179-day contract equivalence is maintained. The College is supportive of such contracts when they meet the instructional goals of the institution, but the renewal of any individual alternative contract depends on the College’s assessment of staffing and operating requirements for the following academic year. Notice of intent to renew the special contract will be given by the beginning of Spring quarter, for the following academic year.
8.8 Contracted Training and Short-Term Training
The designation “contracted training’ applies only when the College contracts with an outside client or clients to provide a particular instructional event or series of events.
(a) For contracted training events, ten (10) classroom hours equal one (1) load unit.
(b) The department chair may include in the budget for a contracted training event up to $300 to be paid to the faculty member for development of instructional materials, following guidelines issued by the Vice President for Instruction. For events, which require an exceptional amount of materials preparation, the department chair may designate a load unit equivalent to be counted in the faculty member’s load report, with the approval of the appropriate Vice President or his/her designee.
(c) For short-term training events with differential pricing and a curriculum specialized for a particular audience, whether credit or non-credit, additional load for curriculum development or other work associated with the event may be assigned at the discretion of the department chair, with the approval of the appropriate Vice President or his/her designee. The Vice President for Instruction will ensure that guidelines for assigning this additional load are available to all department chairs. Load assigned under this provision will be included in the event budget.
(d) Full-time faculty teaching contracted training events shall receive a portion of the amount paid to the College by the contracted training client, in addition to the load units and compensation outlined in sections 8.8 (a), (b), and (c). This portion shall be determined by subtracting all faculty compensation and benefits for load units and materials preparation from the total price being charged to the outside client(s), and calculating ten percent (10%) of the difference. If more than one full-time faculty member is teaching the contracted training event(s), this portion shall be divided among them in proportion to the number of contact hours taught by each participating full-time faculty member.
ARTICLE 9 – FRINGE BENEFITS
9.1 Sick Leave
(a) An annual amount of twelve (12) days of paid sick leave shall accrue to full-time members of the bargaining unit at the start of each academic year for use for absence due to personal illness, illness of an immediate family member, or any other designated uses of sick leave as defined in this agreement. Sick leave not used during the current year shall accrue without limit as per ORS 238.355 (1) as amended by Oregon Laws 1977, except as noted in 9.16.
(b) Adjunct instructors will be granted six (6) days of sick leave per year pro-rated at .5 or .75 respectively based on the number of load units assigned in accordance section 9.4 of this article. Unused sick leave for adjunct instructors shall not accrue from year to year.
(c) Pursuant to appropriate Oregon Revised Statutes, the College has requested that members of the bargaining unit be compensated for accumulated unused sick leave with pay in the form of increased retirement benefits upon service or disability retirement, as per ORS 238.355(1), as amended by Oregon Laws 1977.
(d) FMLA/OFLA.
The parties acknowledge applicability of the federal Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA) to employees represented by the Forum. The parties further agree to the following provision in the administration of the FMLA/OFLA:
1. Employees must use sick leave under the collective bargaining agreement concurrent with the FMLA/OFLA.
2. The "FMLA year" is considered to be a twelve (12) month period rolling backward for each employee.
(e) Emergency Leave
A bargaining unit member shall have available two (2) days of non-accumulative emergency leave per year, (pro-rated for adjunct faculty) which shall be charged against sick leave. Except in cases where emergency leave is used to supplement bereavement leave in section (e) below, such emergency leave must have written approval of the Vice President of Instruction.
(f) Bereavement Leave
Sick leave shall also cover absences, not to exceed three (3) days per academic year, due to the death of a member of the immediate family of a faculty member. Faculty can combine bereavement leave with emergency leave if it has not already been used (described in (e) above) for a total of five days. In addition, the Human Resources Director in collaboration with the Vice President for Instruction may grant extra leave, charged to sick leave, at his/her discretion for unusual or critical circumstances. The Human Resources Director and the Vice President for Instruction shall not be compelled to grant additional leave beyond that which is outlined above. The immediate family shall be defined as blood relatives and in-laws, to include spouse, domestic partner, children, step-children grandchildren, parents (including step-parents), grandparents, brother and sister (including step-brother and step-sister). Immediate family also includes relationships to the employee through the domestic partner.
(g).. Sick Leave use for Family
A faculty member may use up to five (5) days of sick leave per year for illness of an immediate family member.
9.2 Sabbatical Leave
(a) A sabbatical leave is granted to a full-time tenured or tenure-track member of the unit only when such leave contributes to the goals of the College and enhances the professional competence of the individual granted the leave. A sabbatical leave is not considered to be a right which automatically accrues because of prior service. Rather, it is considered to be a privilege granted to a faculty member.
(b) In order to be considered for a sabbatical leave, a tenured or tenure-track member must make formal application through the accepted channels within the College. The person who applies for a sabbatical leave shall provide a summary of the activities to be undertaken during the leave and shall indicate the potential that these activities have for benefiting the students of Central Oregon Community College, the College as a whole, and himself/herself. Within a reasonable time after returning from a sabbatical (normally within thirty (30) working days of such return), the person shall provide the President of the College with a written report of sabbatical activities.
(c) Requests for sabbaticals shall be considered in relation to prior as well as potential future contributions of the applicant. Alternatives for providing service not to be provided by the instructor on leave shall also be considered.
(d The terms and conditions of sabbatical leave will be combined in a contractual form and will become a contract upon signature of the individual being granted the sabbatical and the College.
(e) Sabbatical salary eligibility will be based only on full-time service at Central Oregon Community College and will be in accord with the following tables.
(f) Sabbatical Eligibility:
· 1 to 4 years of consecutive service: not eligible for sabbatical.
· 5 years of consecutive service: eligible for a 1 term sabbatical with a one year of required return of service to the College.
· 6 years of consecutive service: eligible for up to 2 terms sabbatical with a two years of required return of service to the College.
· 7 years of consecutive service: eligible for an academic year sabbatical with a three years required return of service to the College.
· Faculty on sabbatical will be compensated up to 85% of their annual salary. For sabbaticals shorter than three terms, the sabbatical salary will be divided by 3 and multiplied by the number of terms of sabbatical.
· Notwithstanding the above, faculty members are eligible for subsequent sabbaticals only when they have repaid all of the required academic years of service.
(g) Academic year sabbaticals are only granted to faculty members who are tenured.
(h) If a faculty member does not return for the prescribed years of obligatory service, that faculty member will be obligated to repay the amount of funds granted according to the following schedule:
For Those Granted an Academic Year or Three Term Sabbatical
Required Service Return For Repayment to College
3 academic years Less than one Full amount
academic year
3 academic years Less than two Two-thirds
academic years
but at least one
3 academic years Less than three One-third
academic years
but at least two
For Those Granted a Two Term Sabbatical
Required Service Return For Repayment to College
2 academic years Less than one Full amount
academic year
2 academic years Less than two One-half
academic years
but at least one
For Those Granted One Term Sabbaticals
Required Service Return For Repayment to College
1 academic year Less than one Full amount
academic year
(i) The terms of the required service and repayment schedule shall be a part of the contract. The contract shall contain a provision that the amount of the contract (or an appropriate share, thereof, based on time served) shall be repaid to the College if the individual does not complete the required term of service. Interest on the amount to be repaid will be charged at the then prime interest rate, as charged by the Bank of the Cascades. Interest will be computed as of the date the contract is violated. Death or disability of faculty member removes repayment obligations from the faculty member or his/her estate.
(j) In each fiscal year of this agreement, the College will add $125,000 annually to the sabbatical account. However, if the projected carry-over into the next fiscal year is projected to be in excess of $75,000, the College may move up to $35,000 to targeted funds to support faculty innovation projects such as the Program for Excellence in Assessment or course redesign activities.
(k) Time spent on sabbatical will be considered equivalent as full-time employment for the purposes of promotions, longevity, and salary increments.
(l) Sabbatical funds will be awarded solely at the discretion of the College. If a faculty member is to receive a salary or other reimbursement from a source outside of the College for an activity which is presented for sabbatical funding, a budget for the sabbatical should be submitted which includes that salary or reimbursement. In no case should the total of the outside salary and/or reimbursement, and the college sabbatical funds exceed 110% of the faculty member’s regular salary for the sabbatical period.
9.3 Unpaid Leave
(a) A full-time tenure track faculty member may request an unpaid leave for a reasonable length of time. Such leave shall not normally exceed three (3) consecutive academic quarters. Such requests shall be subject to the approval of the President. All understandings regarding the unpaid leave shall be written into a contract, signed by the College and the individual.
(b) Upon return from unpaid leave, the faculty member will be assigned to the same or substantially equivalent position, which was held before the leave began unless otherwise required by law.
(c) The faculty member shall be entitled the same library and bookstore privileges as faculty members on regular contract during the period of leave.
(d) Upon the faculty member’s return to the College, unused accrued sick leave and years accumulated toward tenure and promotion shall be restored to an equivalent level that the member had before the leave began.
(e) Unpaid leaves normally do not count toward promotion or tenure. For an unpaid leave to count toward promotion or tenure, the faculty member would make a written request in writing to the VPI explaining how the length of time and the nature of activities of the leave relates directly to the faculty member’s primary assignment at COCC and/or the PIP goals outlined in the recent cycle. The VPI will then determine the eligibility of this request for promotion and tenure. The member will submit a final report to the VPI which verifies the completion of the activities and assignments as initially requested.
(f) The period of time on unpaid leave will be determined and specified in writing prior to the leave.
(g) To the extent allowed by the insurance carrier, the College shall allow the faculty member to remain under the College insurance program if the faculty member pays the College for the cost of the insurance.
(h) A faculty member on unpaid leave shall not be considered for promotion or tenure while on such leave.
(i) The faculty member who does not return from unpaid leave at the time scheduled shall, upon that date, cease to be a member of the College and shall have no call upon the College of any sort. A faculty member who desires to extend the period of an unpaid leave shall prepare a written request to the President no later than one month prior to the end of the leave period. Granting or not granting such an extension is solely at the discretion of the College.
(j) Any of the foregoing in 9.3 may be modified by mutual agreement of the faculty member and the College. The VPI will consult with the Faculty Forum President when such modified agreements are being considered.
9.4 Insurance
(a) The College will contribute toward the cost of college-purchased health insurance for full-time faculty members a maximum of 90% of the cost of such insurance. The employee will pay the balance. However, in no event shall the College pay more than $835.55 per month during the 2006-07 health insurance year. All forum members will pay a minimum of 10% of the health insurance premium.
(b) Faculty members who have adjunct status shall receive a contribution towards the College provided medical insurance program according to the schedule below, however; all adjunct instructors who purchase medical insurance will be required to pay a minimum of 10% of the applicable premium.
Three Term (Academic year) Benefit Contribution
Adjunct Faculty Workload
24.5 to 37.9 Load Units One half (1/2) of the current
Contribution for full-time benefited faculty
38 + Load Units Three quarters (3/4) of the current contribution for full time benefited faculty
Four Term Appointments Benefit Contribution
Workload
30 to 46.5 Load Units One half (1/2) of the current
Contribution for full-time benefited faculty
46.6 or more Load Units Three quarters (3/4) of the current contribution for full-time benefited faculty
(c) In the event actual load units fall below the projection, the adjunct faculty members will maintain both benefits and unit membership for the duration of the period specified in the Notice of Appointment. If the adjunct instructor declines load units, benefits and unit membership may be terminated or reduced.
(d) The College will pay the entire cost of long-term disability insurance premiums for full-time employees. Only temporary, probationary, and tenured employees shall be eligible for long-term disability insurance.
(e) The College will provide life insurance coverage equal to the amount of the faculty member’s academic year salary for full-time, probationary, and tenured employees. However, in no case shall the amount of insurance exceed $50,000. Additional voluntary life insurance will be made available to Faculty Forum members.
ARTICLE 10 – DISCIPLINE AND DISMISSAL
10.1 Applicability
Faculty members within the bargaining unit and covered under this Agreement may be disciplined only for cause.
10.2 Progressive Discipline
(a) For the purposes of this Agreement, discipline shall be progressive in application and based upon the severity of the member’s action or inaction warranting discipline. Discipline, subject to 10.1, shall mean only the following: Written warning, written reprimand, suspension with or without pay, not awarding salary increment, or demotion. It is agreed that discipline does not include dismissal, discharge, or non-renewal for any faculty member.
(b) Faculty Appeals of Discipline. Appeals by any bargaining unit member of discipline imposed on him/her shall be processed first through the grievance procedure of this Agreement at Article 5.
10.3 Dismissal for Adequate Cause for Adjunct, Probationary and Temporary Faculty
Adjunct Instructors, temporary, and probationary faculty members shall, during the term of their individual appointment, be dismissed only for cause with no right of appeal beyond the College Concerns Procedure. In the case of non-renewal at the conclusion of their appointment, Adjunct instructors, temporary, and probationary faculty members shall have no rights under 10.1.
10.4 Notice of Dismissal or Termination for Adequate Cause - Tenured Faculty
(a) The President shall give at least six months written notice to a tenured faculty member of intention to dismiss or terminate for adequate cause.
(b) In the case where a tenured faculty member has been given notice of intention to dismiss for adequate cause and is subsequently not dismissed because his/her actions of rehabilitation make dismissal inappropriate, then future notice for similar reasons need be accompanied by only three months notice of intention to dismiss.
10.5 Dismissal Procedure –Tenured Faculty
(a) Preliminary Proceedings – Tenured Faculty only
1. When the College has reason to question the fitness of a faculty member who has tenure, the appropriate administrative officers shall discuss the matter with the member in a personal conference. The matter may be terminated by mutual consent after such a conference.
2. If an adjustment does not result from 10.5.a (1). within fifteen business days, a Review Committee of three (3) tenured faculty members will be selected by the Vice President of Instruction from a list of seven (7) provided by the Faculty Forum (without representation from the faculty member’s discipline). The Review Committee shall informally inquire into the situation to effect an adjustment, if possible, and, if none is affected, to determine whether in its view formal proceedings to consider the member’s dismissal should be instituted.
3. If the Review Committee recommends that formal proceedings should begin, or, if the President of the College, even after considering a recommendation of the Review Committee favorable to the faculty member, expresses his/her conviction that a proceeding should be undertaken, action shall be commenced under the procedures which follow within fifteen (15) business days.
4. Except where there is disagreement, a statement with reasonable specificity of the grounds proposed for the dismissal should then be jointly formulated by the President and the Review Committee prior to commencement of the formal proceedings.
5. If there is disagreement between the Review Committee and the President, the President and his/her designee should formulate the statement called for above.
(b) Commencement of Formal Proceedings – Tenured Faculty only
1. The formal proceedings should be commenced by a communication addressed to the faculty member by the President of the College informing the member of the statement formulated and informing him/her that, if he/she so requests, a hearing to determine whether he/she should be removed from his/her faculty position on the basis of the grounds stated will be conducted by a faculty committee at a specified time and place.
2. In setting the date of the hearing, the College shall allow thirty (30) business days for the member to prepare his/her defense.
3. The College shall inform the member in writing of the procedural rights that will be accorded him/her at the hearing.
4. The member shall reply in writing to the President as to whether or not he/she desires a hearing on his/her pending dismissal. If the member requests such a hearing, he/she must, no later than five (5) business days after receipt, provide the President a written response to the allegations in the statement of the grounds for his/her dismissal.
(c) Paid Administrative Leave. Placement on paid administrative leave, and/or reassignment of a faculty member during proceedings involving his/her dismissal shall be at the discretion of the College.
10.6 Hearing Committee
(a) The committee of faculty members to conduct the hearing and to reach a decision should either be an elected standing committee not previously concerned with the instant case or a committee established within fifteen business days. The committee will consist of five (5) tenured faculty members selected by the Vice President of Instruction from a list of nine (9) provided by the Faculty Forum (without representation from the faculty member’s discipline).
(b) The choice of members of the hearing committee should be made on the basis of their individual objectivity, competence, and the regard in which they are held in the academic community. The committee shall elect its own chairperson who, with the consent of his/her fellow committee members, shall rule on all questions of procedure during the hearing consistent with the provisions herein.
(c) Hearing Committee Proceedings
1. The committee shall conduct proceedings as described below within thirty (30) business days. They shall begin by considering the statement of the grounds for dismissal already formulated and the faculty member's written response.
2. If on the record before the committee any facts as put forth in the statement for the grounds for dismissal and the member’s written response thereto are in dispute, the testimony of witnesses and other evidence concerning the matter may be received by the committee during the course of the hearing.
3. The President has the option of attendance during the hearing. He/she may also designate an appropriate representative to assist or represent the College in developing and presenting the case against the faculty member.
4. The College has the burden of proof and shall proceed first with its case and the faculty shall have the opportunity to respond to that evidence and present their own evidence. The committee is free to ask questions of either party as desired.
5. The faculty member shall be entitled to representation by the Forum at the hearing. A representative of the Forum shall have the right to attend all the proceedings covered in this article.
6. The faculty member shall also have the additional procedural right of presenting evidence or testimony from teachers and other scholars, either from Central Oregon Community College or from other institutions, if one (1) or the only charge against him/her is professional incompetence.
7. The faculty member and the College shall have the assistance of the committee when needed in securing the attendance of witnesses at the hearing, consistent with this article. Further, the faculty member, the Forum, and the representative of the College shall have the right, within reasonable limits as provided in this article, to question all witnesses who testify at the hearing.
8. The faculty member shall have the opportunity to be confronted by all witnesses adverse to him/her. However, whenever a witness used by either the faculty member or the College will be unable for good and sufficient reason to be present at the hearing, his/her testimony may be taken by deposition. If either the College or the faculty member exercises its right to secure such testimony through a deposition, then the party who seeks the deposition shall be obligated to afford the other party the opportunity to be present and participate in the taking of the deposition.
9. All expenses of bringing a witness to the hearing shall be borne by the party bringing the witness to the hearing. All expenses of the taking of witness’ depositions, as provided in this article, shall be borne by the party who initiated the taking of the deposition, except that the cost of the written deposition itself shall be shared equally by the College and the faculty member if both parties participate in the taking of the deposition. If either party declines to participate with the other in the deposition process, a copy of the deposition used at the hearing shall be given freely to the other party in advance of the hearing. The expenses of the parties participating in the taking of the deposition shall be borne by each side individually and shall not be shared.
10. All evidence used during the hearing should be duly recorded, but not transcribed. Unless special circumstances warrant, the committee shall conduct the hearing informally without formal rules of court procedure and submission of evidence.
11. The committee shall give opportunity to the faculty member or Forum representative and to the representative of the College to argue orally before it.
12. If written, post-hearing briefs would be helpful to the committee, the committee may request such briefs from both sides and set appropriate time limits for their submission.
13. The committee will render a decision within ten (10) business days from the conclusion of the hearing.
(d) Consideration by the Hearing Committee
1. The committee shall reach its decision in conference on the basis of evidence and testimony presented at the hearing and, if applicable, on the basis of post-hearing briefs.
2. The committee shall reduce its decision to writing, which shall contain explicit findings with respect to each of the grounds of removal presented and a reasoned opinion may be desirable.
3. The President and the faculty member shall each be supplied with a copy of the record and transcript of the hearing, if such were made.
(e) Consideration by the Board of Directors of the College
1. The President shall transmit to the Board of Directors the full report of the hearing committee.
2. The Board of Directors may accept the committee’s report or the Board may review the case.
3. If the Board of Directors chooses to review the case, its review shall be in executive session unless the faculty member involved requests in writing that it be held in public session. The Board of Directors’ review shall be based on the record and transcript, if any exists, of the hearing, accompanied by opportunity for argument, oral or written or both, by the faculty member or his/her counsel and the representative of the College.
4. The Board of Directors shall either sustain the decision of the hearing committee or it shall return the committee’s decision back to the committee along with the Board of Directors’ specific written objections attached thereto.
5. If the committee’s decision is returned to it, as above, the committee must reconsider its earlier decision, taking into account the Board of Directors’ specific objections and taking new evidence, if deemed necessary. The committee shall decide to what extent it needs to take new evidence; if the hearing is reopened thereby, it shall be held within fifteen (15) business days and the provisions relating to submission of evidence, witnesses and recording and transcribing of the hearing, shall be in accordance with the applicable provisions above.
6. Within ten (10) business days after the provisions of 10.6.e.5 are completed, the committee must frame its final decision and communicate it in accordance with the provisions above.
7. Only after a study of the committee’s reconsideration of its original decision may the Board of Directors render a final and binding decision to either sustain the final committee decision or to overrule the final committee decision.
(f) Further Appeals
1. Action taken by the College with regard to the dismissal of a tenured faculty member and the dismissal prior to the expiration of the term of appointment of a probationary or temporary faculty member shall be consistent with the applicable provisions of this article.
2. For the purposes of this Agreement, appeal by any affected faculty member from such action(s), as referred to above, shall be solely processed in accordance with the provisions of this article, herein, and no tenured, probationary, or temporary faculty member may appeal his/her dismissal through the grievance procedure of this Agreement at Article 5.
(g) Reduction in Force Removals Notwithstanding the provisions of this Article and of any other provisions of this Agreement, oral understandings, or prior agreements, the provisions of Article 11 – Reduction in Force, herein, shall be applicable to all members of the bargaining unit without exception and the provisions of Article 11 shall supersede the provisions of this Article in the event of a reduction in force.
ARTICLE 11 – REDUCTION IN FORCE
11.1 Need for Reduction in Force
(a) It is the intention of the College, to the extent possible given confidentiality requirements, to conduct any reduction in force (RIF) activities in as open and transparent of manner as possible; all the while providing the opportunity for constructive input and suggestions.
(b) In the event of reduction due to impending financial crisis or immediate financial crisis, the Board of Directors of the College shall determine the reduction in force in accordance with the process outlined in this Article and shall not implement such reductions in staff unless and until the process contained herein has been accomplished.
(c) The Board of Directors of the College shall take final action on recommendations of the President regarding layoffs due to reduction in force. Such actions by the Board shall begin the period of timely notice.
11.2 Preliminary Considerations
(a) Before instituting a reduction in force due to an impending or immediate financial crisis, the College will make a reasonable effort to reduce non-salary expenditures; but such effort must seek balance between fiscal realities, and must maintain, to the extent possible, the instructional mission of the College.
(b) Before a reduction in force due to an impending or immediate financial crisis involving the faculty bargaining unit shall occur, the President and/or his/her representatives shall meet at least twice with the Faculty Forum Executive Committee or its representatives and 1) present the College’s current general fund revenue and expenditure projection and any anticipated short fall in the current and future year(s), and 2) give reasonable consideration to other means of reducing the budget and increasing revenues. These may include, but are not limited to, retirement incentives, leave without pay, shared or reduced positions, salary freeze or reduction and delayed capital expenditures. Prior to implementing any reduction in force, the President shall: 1) provide the Faculty Forum Executive Committee with advance notice of the tentative reduction in force plan along with the factors the President considered in reaching that decision; 2) give the Faculty Forum Executive Committee a reasonable period of time within which to provide input regarding the plan; and 3) give reasonable consideration to the Faculty Forum’s input.
11.3 Definitions
(a) Definition of Seated Discipline: A faculty member’s seated discipline is determined by the primary subject area which the faculty member teaches at COCC. In the event that more than one subject area meets this criterion the seated discipline will be the subject area which reflects the majority of the faculty member’s teaching load over the last three (3) academic years or since they were hired to teach at COCC, whichever is shorter. It is the responsibility of the VPI to create a list of adjunct, temporary, probationary, and tenured faculty members by seated discipline in consultation with department chairs and the Forum. This list will be updated and reviewed annually prior to the start of fall term. The initial list of seated disciplines will be completed by January 15, 2007.
(b) Definition of Seniority: For adjunct instructors, seniority will be determined by the cumulative number of terms as an adjunct at COCC. For probationary and tenured faculty seniority shall be determined by the total number of terms served as a full-time temporary, probationary and tenured faculty member.
11.4 Order of Reduction in Force
(a) In the event the College determines a reduction in force is necessary as provided in this article, part-time faculty will be laid off before adjuncts in that same seated discipline. Adjunct faculty will be laid off in inverse order of their seniority as an adjunct in the seated discipline. Laid off adjunct and part-time faculty shall have no re-employment rights or property interest in re-employment.
(b) In the event the College determines a reduction in force of a full-time faculty member is necessary as provided in this article, temporary faculty will be laid off before probationary faculty, and probationary faculty will be laid off before tenured faculty in that same seated discipline. Temporary faculty, probationary faculty and tenured faculty will be laid off in inverse order of seniority in their seated discipline. In the event that the College eliminates a full-time probationary or tenured faculty position through reduction in force, loads equivalent to 45 load units will be reduced in that same discipline for the following two academic years (F-W-Sp terms).
11.5 Impact of Reduction in Force upon Tenured Faculty
The College recognizes the value of the tenured faculty to our educational mission. As such, the College will make every reasonable attempt to retain tenured faculty members by observing the following process:
(a) In the event a tenured faculty member’s position is recommended for reduction in force, and upon request of that faculty member, the Vice President for Instruction shall place the member in a vacant position within the bargaining unit which the faculty member is fully qualified to occupy, or, under the same foregoing conditions, the Vice President for Instruction shall place the requesting member in another occupied position within the bargaining unit which the requesting member is better qualified to occupy than is the incumbent member. The Vice President for Instruction’s determination of qualifications will be based on the faculty member’s education, training, experience, professional development and evaluations. Prior to the final determination of qualifications, the Vice President of Instruction shall meet with the affected faculty member(s) to review credentials and all other pertinent information regarding placement or lack thereof.
Any placement of a furloughed faculty member in a vacant position in their seated discipline or in another vacant position for which they qualify shall be at no less than their salary at the time of the RIF.
(b) In the event that a vacant administrative position exists at the College which the faculty member is fully qualified to occupy, if the faculty member does apply, he/she will be granted an interview and if hired, will be hired at the posted rate for the administrative position. Acceptance of another faculty position or an administrative position by a tenured faculty member ends the furlough period.
(c) If placement of the tenured faculty member results in displacement of a tenured or probationary faculty member, then the displaced faculty member shall be treated by the College as if he/she was the subject of the reduction in force.
(d) To the extent practicable, the College will consider whether a tenured faculty member can through additional coursework and/or professional experience be retrained to hold another needed bargaining unit position at the College. Such retraining experiences shall generally not exceed one academic year in length. Any such retraining opportunities shall be at the discretion of the College and be put to writing in a contract between the tenured faculty member and the College. In cases where such retraining occurs, the College shall have access to all faculty sabbatical funds not awarded by the Board to pay for such retraining.
11.6 Timeline for Layoffs Due to Impending Financial Crisis
(a) Definition of Impending Financial Crisis: For purposes of this agreement, an impending financial crisis exists when the President notifies the Board of Directors in writing of the following conditions: that the institution faces a revenue shortfall beyond the current fiscal year; that there is a projected absence of sufficient funds for the campus as a whole to maintain current programs and activities at existing levels to fulfill its educational mission and goals; and that the budget can only be balanced by significant cost-reduction measure, which includes the termination of continuing academic and non-academic appointments. A copy of the letter will simultaneously be sent to the President of the Faculty Forum.
(b) The College shall give at least three academic terms, including summer term for faculty whose contract includes summer, if applicable, written notice to tenured faculty members of intention to dismiss or terminate under the provisions of reduction in force. The notice period will begin with the term subsequent to the one in which written notice is provided.
(c) The notification period for adjunct and temporary faculty members shall be 180 days or until the end of the contract period, whichever shall occur first. Probationary faculty shall have until the end of their annual contract period.
11.7 Timelines for Layoffs Due to Immediate Financial Crisis (Financial Exigency)
(a) Definition of financial exigency: For purposes of this agreement, financial exigency exists when the Board of Directors formally declares a financial exigency and that the following conditions exist: that the institution faces an imminent financial crisis; that there is a current or projected absence of sufficient funds for the campus as a whole to maintain current programs and activities at a level sufficient to fulfill its educational mission and goals; and that the budget can only be balanced by extraordinary means, which includes the termination of existing and continuing academic and nonacademic appointments.
(b) During a period of financial exigency, the notice period for tenured faculty is reduced from three academic terms to 180 calendar days; the notice period for adjunct, temporary and probationary (tenure track) faculty is 90 calendar days.
11.8 Furlough Status
(a) At the end of the notice period, tenured faculty shall be placed on furlough status. At the option of the College, a probationary faculty member may be placed on furlough status.
(b) A faculty member on furlough status shall have reemployment rights as specifically defined by the terms of this Article.
(c) A faculty member on furlough status who has not been reemployed by the College after twenty-six (26) consecutive calendar months on such status shall no longer be on furlough status and shall have no recall rights.
(d) During the twenty-six (26) calendar month furlough period, if a position becomes permanently vacant (excluding such temporary vacancies as those created by leaves of absence, sabbaticals, transfers to grant accounts, etc.), in either the seated discipline or another position for which they qualify, or could qualify under 11.5(d), then the furloughed faculty member shall be reemployed at a salary rate not less than that which he/she was receiving at the time he/she was furloughed.
(e) Before a faculty member is furloughed, the implications of such status shall be fully explained orally and in writing to the faculty member by the President or his/her designee and the member shall make written acknowledgement of the explanation.
11.9 Appeals
(a) The requirements of this article are subject to the grievance procedure only by the Faculty Forum Executive Committee and not by individual bargaining unit members.
(b) The need for a reduction in force, the disciplines that would face reductions or elimination and the determination of qualifications for placement in positions outside a seated discipline are at the sole discretion of the College and the Board of Directors and not subject to the grievance procedure.
(c) Any such grievance shall be initiated in Section 5.a of Article 5 and conform to all the requirements therein except as modified here. In order for such grievances to be filed in a timely manner, the Faculty Forum may not initiate their grievance until the affected faculty member(s) has personally been given written notice of the President’s recommendation affecting the member’s position. The Forum may not file a grievance any later than fifteen (15) calendar days after the provisions of 11.1c have been followed by the College.
ARTICLE 12 – EVALUTION AND PERSONNEL FILES
12.1 Evaluation
(a) Each member shall undergo annual evaluation(s) pursuant to procedures and criteria promulgated by the College.
(b) After the initial evaluation is completed by the college designated evaluator and discussed with the faculty member, the faculty member shall have the right to have a review team review any specific objection(s) to the designated evaluator’s evaluation. A written request containing the specific objection(s) for such a review of his/her evaluation must be given to the faculty member’s department chairperson within five (5) working days of the meeting between the designated evaluator and the faculty member held to discuss the member’s evaluation.
(c) The evaluation review team shall be composed of one (1) faculty member chosen by the Faculty Forum and one (1) administrator chosen by the Vice-President for Instruction. The team’s review will be limited to investigating the specific objections, but it may replicate any part of the prior evaluation. The team shall discuss its written findings and recommendations as soon as is possible with the affected faculty member, the designated evaluator, and the faculty member’s department chairperson. The review team’s written findings and recommendations shall be attached to the faculty member’s evaluation record and may not be substituted for the original evaluation.
(d) This review process shall not delay any action that the College would normally take in acting on the designated evaluator’s evaluation.
(e) No grievances shall be allowed over any portion of this subject or this section.
12.2 Personnel Files
(a) Each faculty member shall have the right to review the contents of his/her own personnel file, which shall be exclusive of materials received prior to the date of employment by the College. One official personnel file for each faculty member shall be maintained by the College.
(b) All material placed in a faculty member’s personnel file upon the effective date of this contract must have the signature of the appropriate Vice President and must be dated. The faculty member may request a copy of any materials in his/her personnel file with the exception noted in 12.2 (a) above at his/her own expense. The faculty member may also include in his/her personnel file a written response to any material in the file.
(c) At any time, a faculty member shall have the right to indicate those materials in his/her own personnel file, which he/she believes to be obsolete. Such identified materials may be sealed within the personnel file upon mutual agreement of the faculty member and the President of the College; provided, however, the seal may be removed by the faculty member whose file it is or by the College President.
(d) Access to a faculty member’s personnel file shall be limited to only the faculty member involved, such administrators of the College who are assigned to review or place materials therein, such clerical personnel whose duty it is to maintain personnel files, the Board of Directors acting as a body, and such College committees as are charged by the College to consider personnel matters. All faculty member personnel files shall be stored in secure surroundings when not in use by those officially designated herein.
ARTICLE 13 – PROMOTIONS
13.1 Board Prerogatives
The Board of Directors of the College reserves unto itself the exclusive right to promote and does not delegate away from itself that management right by this article.
13.2 College Obligations
The college agrees not to change the promotion criteria during the life of this Agreement without notice to and consultation with the Forum.
ARTICLE 14 – TUITION AND PROFESSIONAL IMPROVEMENT
14.1 Tuition
A bargaining unit member or his/her spouse, documented domestic partner, or dependent to the age of 25 (STUDENT) shall be allowed to enroll as either a part-time or full-time student free of tuition cost but subject to the following limitations:
(a) The College reserves the right to limit or bar STUDENTS from free enrollment in specific classes when limited enrollment might work a hardship on regular college students.
(b) Enrolling tuition-free in a course shall be permitted only when the number of tuition-paying students justifies the continuation of the class.
(c) The STUDENT pays whatever laboratory fees or other fees which are paid by tuition-paying students in the course.
(d) The employee does not take a course(s) during his/her working hours unless arrangements are approved by the College to make up the time.
14.2 Professional Improvement
(a) Professional improvement is a responsibility of probationary and tenured faculty. Each probationary and tenured faculty member is required to submit and/or revise a four-year professional improvement plan according to a schedule and approved process provided by the College and complete the appropriate plan within the appropriate cycle. The plan shall be reviewed by the designated evaluator prior to being submitted to the appropriate Vice President/Dean.
The plan shall also contain a description of planned professional development activities of the faculty member over the next four years which the faculty member proposes to accomplish.
Each probationary and tenured faculty member is assigned to a four-year cycle of professional improvement. Early in a cycle (no later than May 1 of the first year of a cycle, but October 15 of the second year for first year probationary faculty), each faculty member shall submit the aforementioned four-year professional improvement plan. If, during the course of the cycle, the faculty member proposes substantive changes to an approved professional improvement plan, he/she should file an amended plan.
(b) Adjunct instructors who have taught a minimum of forty-five (45) load units for the college (part-time/adjunct/full-time) are eligible to apply for up to $250 in professional improvement funds per academic year. Once eligibility is established, and with consecutive adjunct appointments, unused amounts will accrue from one year to the next to a maximum accrual of $1,000 per adjunct instructor. Because funds for all adjunct PIP activities are limited, it is not guaranteed that all approved adjunct professional improvement requests will be funded.
In the event that an adjunct instructor’s contract is not renewed, any unused accrual amount for that individual will revert to the Adjunct PIP account.
Adjunct instructors who intend to apply for PIP funds will prepare a Professional Improvement Plan for submission to FPIRC following the approved FPRIC guidelines.
14.3 Professional Improvement Accounts
(a) Funds will be put into the respective Professional Improvement Accounts according to the rates which follow:
$600 per year, per full-time, probationary and tenured faculty member.
$250 per year, per adjunct instructor up to a maximum contribution of $6000 in any given year
(b) If the balance in the adjunct instructor professional improvement account on July 1 of any year exceeds $15000, up to $5000 of this balance may be used by the Vice President of Instruction for professional development activities for the adjunct instructors including, but not limited to, workshops, speakers and funds for assessment and curriculum development. Probationary and tenured faculty members may submit a request to the Faculty Professional Improvement Review Committee to draw on the account for assistance in completing professional improvement activities. Adjunct instructors with an approved professional improvement plan may submit a request to the Faculty Professional Improvement Review Committee for PIP funds (in accordance with PIP guidelines for Adjunct Instructors) to draw on this account for assistance in completing the professional improvement activities, subject to the limitations of Article 14.2 (b) and 14.3 (a).
(c) Although the funds are generated on a per faculty member basis, the funds are not considered to be a part of the salary of a faculty member, nor does any faculty member or the Forum have any claims on the funds except through an approved professional improvement plan.
(d) If a faculty member is to receive a salary or reimbursement for an activity which is presented for professional improvement funding, a budget for the professional improvement should be submitted which includes the salary or reimbursement. In no case should the total of the outside salary and/or reimbursement, and the College funds exceed 110% of the faculty member’s pro-rated regular salary for the period.
(e) In order to expedite requests presented at different times and in different formats, the Vice President for Instruction or designee may approve a professional improvement program and grant funds, but normally the Faculty Professional Improvement Review Committee will be consulted. A probationary and tenured faculty member’s professional improvement obligation must be carried out whether or not funding from the College is provided.
ARTICLE 15 – SAVINGS
Except as otherwise provided for in this Agreement, should any article, section, or clause of this Agreement be declared illegal by a court or agency of competent jurisdiction, said article, section, or clause, as the case may be, shall be automatically deleted from this Agreement to the extent that it violates the law or administrative rules; but the remaining articles, sections, or clauses shall remain in full force and effect for the duration of this Agreement. The parties shall, upon written request of either party, meet to renegotiate a substitute for the removed article, section, or clause. Failure to renegotiate a substitute provision shall not be subject to the grievance procedure of this Agreement.
ARTICLE 16 – FUNDING
16.1 Recognition
The parties to this Agreement recognize that revenue necessary to operate the College’s educational and service programs and its facilities and operations must be approved by established budget procedures and, in certain circumstances, by vote of the citizens of the College district.
16.2 Renegotiation Provision
Therefore, pursuant to ORS 243.702, the parties agree that, when the Board determines that economic conditions prevent the college from opening or seriously affect the operation of its facilities or programs, then, on written request of either party, the economic provisions of this Agreement shall be reopened and renegotiated. As used herein, “economic provisions” mean only the salary schedule, the health insurance benefit, and the sabbatical/professional improvement leave benefits. No other provision of this Agreement shall be affected by renegotiation of economic provisions. The impasse resolution procedures set forth in ORS 243.712 to ORS 243.726 shall not apply to such renegotiation.
ARTICLE 17 – WAIVER
The Forum and the College both acknowledge that, during the negotiations which resulted in this Agreement, each had the unlimited right and opportunity to make demands and proposals with respect to any subject or matter appropriate for collective bargaining and the understandings and agreements arrived at by the parties after the exercise of that right and opportunity are set forth in this Agreement. Therefore, the College and the Forum, for the term of this Agreement each voluntarily and unqualifiedly waive the right, and each agrees that the other shall not be obligated to bargain collectively with respect to any subject or matter, even though such subjects or matters may not have been within the knowledge or contemplation of either or both of the parties at the time that they were negotiated or signed this Agreement. All terms and conditions of employment not covered or abridged by this Agreement shall continue to be subject of the direction and control of the College and its Board of Directors.
ARTICLE 18 – INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
18.1 Intellectual Property Rights
Unless otherwise provided for in a separate agreement between individual faculty member(s) and the College, the conditions laid out in this Article shall apply.
18.2 Definition of Intellectual Property
Intellectual property includes instructional materials, and may extend to patents and copyrights. Separate agreements are required when projects undertaken with College support may lead to patents. Instructional materials include materials originally developed by the faculty member for use in teaching in any form (including digital, print, video, physical objects and textbook