Teachers to take roll for entire semester

District-mandated attendance tracking to start in summer

VICTOR RODRIGUEZ Roundup Reporter @vrodriguez2100

Instructors will be required to record attendance and submit reports for the entire length of the term beginning in the upcoming summer session, according to an administrative regulation by the Los Angeles Community College District.

The policy was proposed in March and has its roots in financial aid fraud, wherein students could enroll in classes and be present until the census date, as that is when the majority of instructors stop taking attendance. Once the federallyloaned funds are received, the student can stop attending class, leaving the college liable for reimbursement.

“We have a serious problem with having to return federal loans the college was socked with over $100,000 because students reneged on their loans and because of this, the college is responsible for returning the money,” said Lyn Clark, vice president of the Academic Senate.

The regulation was enacted to protect the college from any liability. However, this will affect instructors, as they will have to monitor the hours students attend class and submit those numbers at the end of the semester along with final grades.

Having the responsibility of taking roll every class meeting will change the current classroom dynamic, according to psychology and statistics professor Angela Belden.

“I think it’s important to acknowledge that our students are adults, that they have other activities that they’re doing. They have a life outside of school and sometimes that life gets in the way,” Belden said. “Now we’re going to have to take attendance every single day… and it’s a burden on class time. It’s a burden on the students, and it’s really not sharing the load.”

Earlier in the meeting, Pamela Brown, an instructor of political science, announced the Online Education Initiative (OEI) has plans to create a statewide interactive exchange of online courses.

“If a course at Pierce is full, you can go online and take that course at any college in the state. So the good news is they get the classes they need if classes are full,” Brown said.

The OEI course exchange is said to have a relationship with Canvas, a Moodle-like service, according to a handout Brown presented to the Academic Senate.

Additionally, the commencement speaker for the 2015 spring graduation was announced to be Rick Najera, author of the awardwinning book “Almost White.” Najera is also an accomplished TV writer and a California native.

The next Academic Senate meeting will take place on June 1 at 2:45 p.m. in the Great Hall.

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Campus closed Monday for Memorial Day

The Pierce College campus will be closed Monday, May 25, in observance of Memorial Day.

Classes will resume on Tuesday, May 26. #PierceDayOff

Student awards to pay out $750 each

This semester’s President’s Award and Outstanding Student Award will net its winners $750 each.

The President’s Award is open to students with a 3.0 GPA who are currently enrolled in at least nine units and are graduating or transferring at the end of this semester.

The Outstanding Student Awards requires a 3.5 GPA and a declared major and earns the winner a trophy as well as the cash prize.

Faculty and staff can nominate students for the President’s Award, while only faculty can nominate for the Outstanding Student Award.

The deadline for nominations for both awards is Friday, May 22.

moved to the U.S. from Mexico. Gonzalez is the closer for the Pierce College Bulls. Monday, May 18. Woodland Hills, Calif.