Write to the Board of Governors demanding they help our college weather the storm
Dear AFT 2121 Members,
With our college reeling from recent cuts and layoffs, and the state predicting a budget deficit of $18- $54 billion, we need to act now to demand full funding for our Community Colleges.
Please take five minutes now to write to the California Community College system’s Board of Governors and urge that they temporarily lift the mandate that college districts maintain a 5% reserve, and allow colleges to use their reserves to soften the impact of this crisis:
1) copy and paste the letter below into a new email
2) add a brief personal statement about the impact of the cuts on your students where indicated
Example: As an instructor of English as a Second Language, I have educated hundreds of immigrant students who have gone on to transfer and graduate from colleges and universities, to get and retain jobs, and to contribute to our state’s economy and neighborhoods as members of our civic community. But my students are now facing a 20% cut in the classes they need to work, many in the health professions or as essential workers in various sectors.
3) if willing, add a selfie for a more personal touch,
4) sign your own name at the end, and
5) email it to Cristina Castro: ccastro@cccco.edu, by Monday, May 18th at 9:00 AM.
In unity,
Jenny Worley
President, AFT 2121
Dear Board of Governors,
Ahead of your upcoming meeting, I am writing to ask that you temporarily lift the mandate that college districts maintain a 5% reserve. Doing so will help our community colleges weather the fiscal damage of the COVID crisis and the upcoming budget shortfall.
Reserves are meant to help on a rainy day, and for many colleges, it is about to pour. For example, students at City College of San Francisco are facing massive cuts to classes and programs, and these are impacting some of our most economically vulnerable students during this terrible crisis.
(Personal Story Here)
Lifting the 5% reserve mandate during this crisis will allow colleges to cut fewer classes and services, thus softening the blow of the crisis on our students. Please help us continue to serve our students when they need us most!
Sincerely,
(Your name here)
(Reminder) Skill share today- Unemployment & Medical Insurance for Faculty Who Work Part-Time
Many part time faculty face unemployment and loss of benefits because of the severe class cuts. A few things to take into account:
- If you currently have medical insurance through CCSF, that insurance automatically continues through August 31.
- Apply for unemployment benefits as soon as you can. Faculty who have full-term assignments are considered employed through May 20.
- Faculty who work part-time are eligible for unemployment when our assignments end whether or not we expect to have an assignment the following semester.
- If your CCSF assignment ends but you still have some work (either from another employer, or a reduced CCSF assignment) you may still be eligible for unemployment. If you’re not sure they’ll consider you unemployed, the best way to find out is to apply.
For more details, see our AFT 2121 unemployment page.
To alleviate some of the stress and to connect with colleagues who have done this in the past, we’re setting up a series of Skill Share sessions. Here’s the first one:
Friday, May 15th, 12-1 p.m.
This session is for you if:
- You want to learn more about applying for unemployment and insurance.
- You have successfully applied for unemployment insurance and can share your expertise.
- You are distressed by the impact of these cuts and want to help fellow faculty who have been affected. This is a great way to show support and get involved. Come spend some time with other part-timers who are going through this stressful experience, possibly for the first time.
To join go to https://tinyurl.com/y7r43wxn OR call 1-669-900-6833 and follow the prompts to enter the Meeting ID: 815 6065 3033 and Password: 562492
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