COMMUNITY OF INTEREST
The Commonwealth has fifteen community colleges that comprise the community college system.The colleges employ full-time as well as part-time employees.Part-time faculty and part-time athletic coaches are seeking to become a part of the full-time teachers bargaining unit.
Part-time faculty fulfill 4 basic needs: 1) teach courses funded by short term grants, 2) teach special disciplines, 3) teach in sections that have student overflow and 4) replace full-timers when they are temporarily unavailable.
The hiring process for part-time faculty is less formal and less protracted than full-time faculty but conducted by the same college administrators.Part-time faculty teach one or two courses a term and receive a lump sum payment for each class.Full-time faculty teach more courses and receive substantially more money per course.Part-time faculty do not receive benefits, do not hold academic rank and are not eligible for tenure or sabbaticals.Part-time faculty do not play role in the governance committees nor are they required to hold office hours with students although they will informally.Part-time faculty teach in the same buildings and when filling in for full-time faculty, they teach the same course to the same students.Part-time faculty have filled full-time position openings when they have become available.
Part-time coaches coach teams in various sports on a seasonal basis.During the season they will work at least two hours a day and work longer on game days.They preside over practice sessions, help improve student performance, attend all games, perform some administrative tasks, recruit athletes for the college and track academic performance of athletes by interacting with faculty.They are paid a lump sum for each sport depending on the length of the season and they receive no benefits.The primary qualifications are knowledge of sport and coaching experience.Students are not required to participate in sports and receive no credit for participating.
QUESTION 1: SHOULD THE PART-TIME FACULTY BE INCLUDED IN THE FULL-TIME FACULTY BARGAINING UNIT?
QUESTION 2: SHOULD THE PART-TIME COACHES BE INCLUDED IN THE FULL-TIME FACULTY BARGAINING UNIT?
