Background of Senate Caucuses and Upcoming CS Meeting, Dec. 17
Greetings NOVA Classified Staff: Dr. Felicia D. Blakeney, a 20-year Classified Staff member currently serving on the College Senate, invites you to attend the forthcoming Classified Staff Caucus Organizational Meeting.
To provide some background on the purpose and structure of the Senate Constituent Caucuses, the senate approved the creation of constituent caucuses at its September 2021 meeting. In proposing the addition of these caucuses, Senate Chair Aldous McCrory (MA-Prof. of Business Administration and Management) said, “In my time with the senate, I have seen several issues come to the chair that would not have gotten my attention as a senator.” This experience led the chair to question whether the senate has been as inclusive as it could be. “I am concerned that our existing structure, while sound and effective, may not be as open to every corner of the College as we think,” McCrory said. Specifically, the chair cited the frequent concern of staff about its proportional underrepresentation and the absence of any voice of the adjunct faculty in the governance process within the senate.
As a result of this discussion, the senate appointed the following constituent caucuses and organizers for each classification:
- Classified Staff – Dr. Felicia D. Blakeney, FDBlakeney@nvcc.edu
- Adjunct Faculty – Alicia Edwards, AEdwards@nvcc.edu
- Professional Faculty – Kristen Balbuena, KBalbuena@nvcc.edu
- Teaching Faculty – Mike Polcen, MPolcen@nvcc.edu
- Administrative Faculty – Barbara Hopkins, BHopkins@nvcc.edu
Every person employed by NOVA in these respective classifications is automatically a member of the caucus. The organizers have been asked to schedule a meeting of their caucus membership by the end of the fall semester for the purpose of electing officers (chair, vice chair and secretary) and determining a process for identifying priorities for the caucus. The goal is for the caucuses to identify concerns that may not have surfaced through the existing channels of communication within the College Forum (forum councils, standing committees and the senate). These issues should be presented to the senate for careful consideration and appropriate action. If you have any questions about your caucus, please contact your organizer.
The Classified Staff Caucus Organizational Meeting will be held Dec. 17, at 1 p.m.
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 839 3242 1789
Passcode: 5587961
For questions about the constituent caucuses or the classified staff caucus meeting, contact Dr. Aldus McCrory, Faculty Senate Chair, AMcCrory@nvcc.edu or Dr. Felicia Blakeney, FDBlakeney@nvcc.edu.
Submitted by:
Dr. Felicia Blakeney, Academic Advisor and Asst. Professor, FDBlakeney@nvcc.edu