Report of the Semester Conversion Task Force - California State ...

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Semester Conversion Task Force ReportOPER-23OPER-24OPER-25OPER-26The hiring of adequate personnel to support the transition process so that staff are notoverworked during the semester conversion process. To that end, we recommend thehiring of additional staff to backfill offices during the semester conversion. Some officeswill have to transfer records, which the new hires could achieve.Compensating existing staff for working overtime to complete semester conversionrelatedtasks.Providing frequent, high quality training to allow staff to perform at a high level. Such trainingwill be critical given the upgrades required to complete semester conversion. Moregenerally we recommend establishing a campus wide semester conversion trainingcenter that offers regular workshops during the year—similar to a one-stop training center.The incorporation of links to semester conversion information on students’ GET profilesand on College web pages.Detailed infrastructure tasks are listed in the extended Timeline.Policies and proceduresRecommendations regarding procedures for the review and revision of converted curricula arecontained in the section on Curriculum Conversion. This section discusses review and possible revisionfor the Administrative Manual and the Faculty Handbook.Administrative ManualOur investigation indicates that few revisions will be required to the Administrative Manual.OPER-27We recommend that each division be responsible for identifying and initiating revisionof its Policies and Procedures as necessary. Where possible, this review processought to include both staff and management. Ultimately, Vice Presidents ought to beresponsible for ensuring revision of Policies and Procedures as necessary.Faculty HandbookOur investigation indicates that many changes will be required to the Faculty Handbook. These revisionsfall into three categories: easy, moderate, and complex.Easy policy changes are those where the policy is sound but is stated in quarter terms or in quarterunits. For these policies, the necessary modifications entail minor editorial changes. For example, inChapter Five of the Faculty Handbook “the University Year is defined as four consecutive quarters,each approximately the same length and commencing with the fall quarter.” Conversion to a semestercalendar would require redefinition of the “University Year,” but creating a new definition is not likely tobe difficult or controversial.Moderate policy changes require more than editorial changes to the language, where some discussionis required but where extensive debate and research are not required. For example, Chapter 2 of theFaculty Handbook specifies that “governance occur year-round.” If summers under a semester calendarare self-support, will governance continue during summers? If so, what form will that governance take?27
Semester Conversion Task Force ReportComplex policy changes arise in at least two instances. First, when the essence of the policy eitherreferences other laws, regulations, or external policies, such as Title V, the NCAA regulations, theCollective Bargaining Agreement, or CSU Executive Orders, or second, where converting from quartersto semesters is not obvious, as in the case of “normal progress” for athletes.OPER-28We recommend the creation of a Senate ad hoc Steering Committee (SC) to overseethe modifications of the Faculty Handbook. The SC would be comprised of four facultymembers with Academic Senate experience, preferably prior members of the Senate’sExecutive Committee (EC), and one administrator. The SC would review the Handbook,identify the policies in need of modification, and triage these into the previouslyidentified easy, moderate and complex categories.(a) Easy changes. The SC itself will suggest modifications for policies where modificationsare identified as easy. These recommendations will go directly to the EC of theCSULA Academic Senate. Once delivered, if the EC accepts the proposedlanguage, the typical EC process is to have the policy modifications announcedas an Executive Action. If objections are not raised by the Senate these policymodifications would then be forwarded to the President for his approval.(b) Moderate changes. The SC itself will also be address policy modifications identifiedas moderately challenging. The SC will propose draft language that could be sentto the EC. The EC could either (i) send the proposed language to a standingcommittee of the Academic Senate or (ii) announce its acceptance of theproposed language by Executive Action. If objections are not raised by theSenate these policy modifications would then be forwarded to the President forhis approval.(c) Complex changes. Policy modifications identified by the SC as complex will beassigned to an Ad Hoc Working Group (AHWG) jointly created by the Provostand the EC. The charge to such AHWGs would be to examine current policyand the changes identified by the SC. The AHWG would consider any externalorders, laws, or regulations and would propose appropriate draft language.Resultant policy modification language would be submitted to the SC, who wouldforward it in turn to the EC. The EC could send it to a standing committee of theAcademic Senate or accept the proposed changes as an Executive Action.If assigned to a standing committee, the draft language would be a starting pointfor the committee’s discussion and deliberation.28
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