ASCCC Coach: Long-term Support for Local Academic Senates

Approved at the January 12-13, 2023 Executive Committee Meeting

The Academic senate for California Community Colleges (ASCCC) has long provided support to local academic senates in governance through resolutions, papers and publications, presentations at ASCCC events, and other professional development opportunities at local colleges. One major support the ASCCC provides to local academic senates takes the form of the local visits. Executive Committee members and members of the ASCCC standing committees visit local academic senates to listen and advise on a variety of issues including governance, curriculum, guided pathways, or other areas pertaining to curriculum and academic standards in education code and academic and professional matters in title 5 regulations.

The ASCCC also engages with other stakeholder groups to do more focused sessions, such as with the Community College League of California with Collegiality in Action visits. Generally, one or two stand-alone visits provides the information and support local academic senate leaders need, often in partnership with their local governing board and administrative team to move forward in resolving issues and effecting change in their academic senates, colleges, and districts. However, there may be situations when one or two visits are insufficient to make the lasting changes required or reach an identified goal. In those cases, an ASCCC coach may be more effective to achieve desired results and provide the support local academic senates need to work through areas of growth at the college and reduce conflict.

ASCCC Coaching Model Plan

The ASCCC Coaching Model Plan provides local academic senates and possibly their governing boards and administrative teams sustained expertise and support from the ASCCC to assist in resolving ongoing local issues. In order for colleges to request assistance from an ASCCC Coach, they must have already participated in a Collegiality in Action (CIA) visit.

To request an ASCCC Coach: The local academic senate president, or another local academic senate leader in collaboration with the academic senate president, requests assistance from the ASCCC by emailing info [at] asccc.org (info[at]asccc[dot]org) or completing the online Request Services Form. Areas of assistance could include but are not limited to: governance, equity, curriculum, accreditation, guided pathways, faculty diversification, pre-transfer reforms, noncredit, OER, academic freedom, and union/academic senate relations.

Once the request has been received, the ASCCC President and ASCCC Executive Director will review the request and determine whether additional information is needed from the college to move forward with the request. The ASCCC President and ASCCC Executive Director will contact the academic senate president or designee to confirm the request and gather any needed additional information to help inform the type of coaching for the college, as well as to determine who, if anyone, would be an appropriate ASCCC representative to serve as an ASCCC Coach.

The ASCCC reserves the right to turn down a coaching request if resources and time allotted would not allow for a service to be fulfilled within the requested timeframe.

Identification of a Possible ASCCC Coach. The ASCCC President and ASCCC Executive Director will confer and determine who to appoint as the ASCCC Coach to proceed with the coaching request. In identifying an ASCCC Coach, the ASCCC President and ASCCC Executive Director may consider content expertise, equity and cultural competencies, dialogue facilitation, conflict facilitation and resolution experience, as well as other factors that would make the assigned ASCCC Coach successful in coaching the college given the ongoing challenges identified. The ASCCC President will use discretion to determine the pool of appropriate representatives, using either current or past ASCCC Executive Committee members, past ASCCC presidents, or other faculty members that have served the ASCCC.

In addition, factors for determining the ASCCC Coach such as the length of time for the coaching and the amount of contact needed with the college (whether weekly, monthly, or otherwise), are also considered. Once a potential coach is identified, the ASCCC President and ASCCC Executive Director will communicate the request to the potential coach to determine if that person is willing and able to participate in the coaching request.

Appointment of ASCCC Coach and Next Steps. The ASCCC President will appoint the ASCCC Coach to the college. Once an appointment has been confirmed, the ASCCC Coach will work with the college to determine the approach and service, that will best meet the needs of the college. This may include, but is not limited to:

  1. Providing a deeper analysis into the issue by holding separate meetings with faculty who may have different perspectives.
  2. Providing a presentation overview on the role of the local academic senate and academic senate leaders, and faculty roles as they pertain to the issue at hand.
  3. Facilitating dialogue with faculty, local academic senates, the local academic senate executive team, or others to discuss findings, analyses, and possible actions to address issues.
  4. Following up with a written report to the local academic senate on key issues, recommendations on addressing the issues, and suggestions on who might be responsible for implementing solutions.

Once the ASCCC Coach and college have agreed to the types of services that will be included in the coaching service, then a contract will be formalized by the ASCCC Coach detailing the services to be included and will submit the contract to the ASCCC President and ASCCC Executive Director. The contract must also include the length of time of the coaching activities to the college (e.g. 3 months, 6 months, 1-year, etc) with a start and end date, as well as an estimate of the number of hours the ASCCC Coach anticipates it will take to complete the agreed upon coaching service.

The ASCCC Coach will provide reports to the ASCCC President and ASCCC Executive Director, at least monthly or as needed.

Compensation of Coaches. To the extent possible, the ASCCC would like to keep the costs of the coaching service to the college to be as reasonable as possible and as equitable as possible for the college and the ASCCC Coach.

The college will pay the ASCCC for the services rendered by the ASCCC Coach. In determining compensation for the coaches, the ASCCC Coach and any assigned partner organization will jointly determine the compensation for the coaches. The college will pay the ASCCC upfront and the ASCCC will distribute payment to the ASCCC Coach monthly.

Travel and accommodations for the ASCCC Coach will be covered by the college. The ASCCC will reimburse the ASCCC Coach for travel and travel related costs and will bill the college in whole, no later than 30 days after the end of the contract.

Other considerations. In some cases, it may be beneficial for the ASCCC to partner with another organization such as the California Community Colleges chief instructional officers (CCCCIO), chief student service officers Association (CSSOA), the Community College League of California (CCLC), or collective bargaining colleagues, as well as the Student Senate for California Community Colleges (SSCCC) to address issues that impact more than just the local academic senate, such as processes or relationship with local college administration, classified professionals, union, or students. These issues may fall within the 10+1, subject to participatory governance, or are shared with bargaining units.

In those cases, the ASCCC President or ASCCC Executive Director would reach out to their counterpart at the appropriate organization to determine if they would be willing to assist. In doing so, the partner organization would contact the appropriate representative at the local college to ensure that the support is welcome. If the partner organization agrees, then the above process would be followed with the partner organization as well as the ASCCC, and be advised of all progress with the college with the following adaptations:

  1. Coaching appointments will include the appointed ASCCC Coach and partner organization coach
  2. Facilitated dialogue would occur separately with faculty, classified professionals, administrators, students, or trustees to identify issues and obtain various perspectives and interests.
  3. Coaches would write a report including an outline of the issues and various interests and perspectives, an analysis of the issues, and recommendations on possible actions to address the issues.
  4. Leaders of both organizations will be apprised of all the information, plans, activities, and results from the coaching team.
  5. Compensation for both ASCCC Coach and partner organization coach will be negotiated together to jointly determine compensation.

Compensation for the partner organization will be handled by the partner organization and not the ASCCC.