Ad Hoc Collegewide Taskforce on Student Conduct and Campus Safety

President Kress has called for the creation of an Ad Hoc Collegewide Taskforce on Student Conduct and Campus Safety.  

Over a year ago, the College Senate passed a resolution on this issue (which you can see here). The Instructional and Student Services Committee (ISSC) and the Personnel Services Committee (PSC) are currently completing a report based on responses from employees about safety concerns, which has taken more time than was anticipated at the time the resolution was passed.

Meanwhile, Dr. Kress is launching this effort to address the issues of student conduct and safety for all members of the College community. Many voices will be included in this effort: students, experts in these matters from the College Administration and five appointees from the College Senate.  

If this has been an issue you have been concerned about, and you would like to commit yourself to helping address it, please complete the Google form to apply to be one of the five senate appointees to this committee. (You do not need to be a member of the College Senate to be appointed by the College Senate.)  

Here is a summary of the important points: 

1. The College Senate will appoint five people;
2. Work will begin immediately and continue through the summer, with Dr. Kress committing to paying a summer stipend equivalent to three credit hours at the adjunct rate to any teaching faculty appointed to the taskforce.
3. Dr. Kress also indicated that meeting every other week, at least initially, would be productive to make and report out tangible progress. She has proposed Mondays from 12 p.m. until 1 p.m. to start, but there may be flexibility in the meeting day/time. It is just important to get something on the calendar.

From Dr. Kress’ Note to College Senate Chair Jack Lechelt:

With respect for the Senate’s continued due diligence on this matter, as NOVA’s President, I have a responsibility to address these concerns, and I am asking that in your role as College Senate Chair, you join me in this important effort. My request is that we serve as co-chairs of an ad hoc Collegewide Taskforce on Student Conduct and Campus Safety that will begin work this month (April 2024). 

In researching the institutional history on this topic, I found recommendations from fall 2019 created by then-VP for Student Services Frances Villagran-Glover and Alexandria faculty, including yourself:

1. Establish a college-wide student conduct campaign that emphasizes mutual respect, care, civility and accountability;
2. Implement student expectations/conduct resources throughout the student experience; 
3. In collaboration with CETL (now CATE and Organizational Development) and campus police, develop faculty/staff training on de-escalating stressors;
4. Reevaluate the NOVA Cares (now the Office of Wellness and Mental Health)/Threat Assessment Team reporting and follow-up process.

As its first charge, the ad hoc Collegewide Taskforce on Student Conduct and Campus Safety should act on these existing recommendations and develop an evaluation plan to identify the impact of the resulting changes. Then, it should turn its attention to any other recommendations that surface in its work and implement these in a timely manner. After what appears to have been more than a decade of discussions on concerns related to NOVA’s response to student conduct, the taskforce should have a bias toward action, and our college community should expect nothing less. To this end, the taskforce should report monthly on its work through the Daily Flyer and should provide regular updates at Administrative Council and College Senate meetings.

I propose that the College Senate appoint five members to the taskforce, and the collegewide Student Government Council appoint three members. In addition, I will request the following serve on the taskforce based on their subject matter expertise, roles and responsibilities: the Alexandria Provost, AVP for Human Resources, Director of Student Rights and Responsibilities, Police Chief, Director of Wellness and Mental Health, an LASS Dean, an MSTB Dean, a Dean of Student Success and the Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer. 

Given the significance of this work, I ask that it begin immediately and continue through the summer, so I commit to paying a summer stipend equivalent to three credit hours at the adjunct rate to any Teaching Faculty you appoint to the taskforce. SGA leaders who serve will be compensated at the same rate as members of the NOVA Mentor Corps.

I hope you will join me in this important effort and look forward to discussing this request with you when we meet next week.

• Read Dr. Kress’s entire call HERE.
• Here again is the Google Form.  PLEASE nominate yourself for this. 
• See more on this issue from this NOVAnet document.

Questions or concerns?  Please contact Jack Lechelt, JLechelt@nvcc.edu.

Submitted by:
Jack Lechelt, College Senate Chair, JLechelt@nvcc.edu