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Trustees examine costly vacation policy By Chris Reynolds In a report issued by the consulting firm of Wallace Cohen and Associates to the Board of Trustees it was noted, "We believe that the Board should review with the administration the current practice of allowing 12-rnonth employees to accrue an unlimited number of deferred vacation days. The resultant financial and administrative impact on the institution when such an employee retires or leaves the college was reported to us by an umber of staff members as a serious problem and one that needs early resolution." In a report the Board of Trustees received at their Feb. 12 meeting, presented by board member Leon Baradat, he wrote, "The $496,000 encumbered by the vacation policy exceeds our present reserve by about $27,000, to say nothing about the $522,000 of real cost. In other words, if every employee took his/her accumulated vacation time in the same year, the district would be bankrupt." Baradat also said he knew of one employee who had accrued $8,400 worth ofvacation time in about a year
Recommend county counsel revision and a half. His report stated, "Only eight district employees account for more than $213,000 of the $496,000... " At their Feb. 12 meeting, the board voted 4-1 to have the county counsel draw up a proposal to limit the amount of deferred vacation days that can be accrued. Both Trotta and Baradat voiced a concern about the urgency of taking action on the issue. "If we don't adopt a policy by March 15, we are locked into it (the current dilemma) for another year. We have to do something by our next meeting,"
said Baradat. 8aradat outlined in his report what the county counsel's drafting of a policy should encompass: Certificated staff with 11 month contracts would work a full 11 calendar months less board holidays and normal school vacations. Certificated staff with 12 month contracts would work a full 12 calendar months less board holidays and 22 days of vacation. No certificated staff may accrue more than 30 unused vacation days.
Those employees who have already accrued more than 30 unused vacation days will have six years in which to use those days. The time at which the days are taken must meet with the approval of Palomar's president/ superintendent and no more than one-sixth of the excess days can be taken in any given year. Any excess vacation days not taken as prescribed will be forfeited. The district will not buy out more than 30 vacation days upon termination of a certificated employee's 12 month assignment.
GiD TilE TELEscopE Palomar College
Volume 38 No. 11
A Publication for the Aaaociated Student•
Friday, February 22, 1985
San Marcoa. CA
The announcement from the Faculty Senate, the Classified Staff and the administration that they have selected their respective represenatives to serve on the search committee carne at the Feb. 12 Board of Trustees' meeting. The committee will consist of: Six faculty members- Judy Cater, Brenda Montiel, Candice Francis, Dana Hawkes, Mark Edelstein and Tony Lynds. Three administrators - Dr. Kenneth Burns, Dr. Theodore Kilman and, as a middle management represenative John Erickson. Two classified staff members - Tilly Cheyney and Lee Hoffman. One student and one board member will also serve on the committee as non-voting members. As yet, no one has been chosen to serve as the student represenative. Dr. Burns will be conducting a search to find a candidate. The board member who will serve on the committee is also undecided at this time, but it has been indicated that either board president Mary Trotta or board member Dr. Robert Dougherty will fill the position. The decision to stipulate if the student should serve ex-officio (without a vote) initiated some discussion at the board's Jan. 22 meeting, when the proposal regarding the committee's structure was made. Board vice-president Barbara Hughes said she thought that appointing a student to the committee and not giving them a vote was oatronizing. Dougherty, who proposed the amendment, and Trotta called the decision to make the student a nonvoting member, "one of our hardest decisions."
The board, at a special board meeting held on Jan. 30, unanimously selected Dr. Keith Broman, former vice-president of instruction at MiraCosta college, from a field of four applicants to serve as interim president. Although Broman noted, "In a short time there's not a lot anyone can do," he said his number one goal was to establish a feeling of collegiality. "Dr. Broman is local, he's known by a lot of the staff and he enjoys an excellent reputation," Trotta said.
Seven applicants were given ten minutes apiece for their interviews.
-rhe consensus of the board was that we preferred to have someone come in from outside the campus (to serve as interim president). We thought it would be less disruptive," she added, pointing out that if the board had chosen Dr. Kilman, who was also an applicant, the board would also have had to fill his position temporarily also. And after the interim period, more readjustments would be necessary when Dr. Kilman resumed his former position.
At the end of the closed session the board announced its unanimous decision to appoint Jim Bowen to the position. Bowen had also been
According to Trotta, the board expects to select a new president by July 1.
Regardless of that fact, the vote was 4-1 in favor of the amendment. Hughes cast the dissenting vote. The board also went into closed session to conduct interviews for the position of coordinator/chairperson to serve on the search committee.
A final decision on how to rectify the problem awaits the drafting of a policy by the county counsel, so that, in Baradat's words the proposal is "legally tight."
aid offered by Sean Grady Scholarships ranging from $50 to $100 are being offered through the 1985 Scholarship Campaign. Judi Fisher, Financial Aids technician and Campaign coordinator, said that the scholarship offers are being extended to students "who have performed well academically and/ or have financial need." Fisher said that the Campaign, which runs from March 4 to March 29, has "scholarships available for entering, returning, and transferring students." While a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or above is preferred, students with lower averages may apply for some of the awards.
In a letter that Bradley sent to the board, he implied that the board's decision not to renew Dr. Scheidt's contract resulted from pressure exerted by discontented faculty members.
The board was presented with another dilemma when Dr. Scheidt announced he would be taking accrued vacation time in mid-March. His contract does not expire until June 30.
Any changes in the current system would create a situation in which academic faculty on 10 month contracts would be paid more per hour than the same faculty member, midmanager or administrator on a 12 month contract."
in financial
selected by the faculty as a represenative, but his position was refilled by the second largest vote-getter in the faculty's at large category, when he was named as the coordinator I chairperson. The need for a search committee carne about as a result of the board's decision not to renew the contract of current president, Dr. Ornar Scheidt. The decision not to renew the contract was made at a special board meeting on Nov. 20, 1984. That decision carne under some criticism from State Assemblyman Bill Bradley, who serves on the Assembly's Education Committee.
"I was offended by it (the letter) because this is not a capricious board," said Trotta. "He implied that a few disgruntled employees were the cause of the four board members decision. Certainly, there was more that went into our decision than that."
Using some computations as an illustration, Stepis contends, "...each employee, 10 or 12 month, is paid the same on a per hour and per day basis.
$50 to $100
Presidential search committee formed By Chris Reynolds Selection of committee members to serve on the presidential search team have been completed and the process of finding a new president for the college seems to be underway.
Baradat stated that he was surprised to find out that there was no board policy on vacation time and that the present policy had been instituted by "administrative fiat." The proposal met with some controversy, particularly from Joan Stepis, the Director of Occupational Assesrnent and Training and Special Programs in Vocational Education and Applied Arts.
The scholarships are both general (not requiring a specific major to qualify) and specific (available only to students majoring in certain fields). A full list of scholarships will be made available along with application forms for the Campaign in the Financial Aids office on March 4.
NEW PRESIDENT -Dr. Keith Broman has been named by the Board of Trustees to serve as interim president from March 10 until June 30. A permanent selection is expected to be made by July 1.
Students needing information before March 4 may contact Fisher at Ext. 2213 or in ST 4-68.
Fees generate $80,000 By Cyndie Claypool Money from the $7 parking fees, paid in past years, have exceeded the necessary costs required for rnaintanance and employee salaries, according to the new Busines Manager Edward M. Paterson. Because of the abundance of income, $80,000 has been accumulated. This money is set aside for parking lot improvements and expansion, according to Paterson. The budget, which begins with summer school and ends at the conclusion of the spring semester, is estimated at a higher amount than what the actual cost is hoped to be, he reasoned. The money left over after all the bills and salaries have been paid for that school year, go into a budget explicitly set aside for parking lot improvements. This year the proceeds reached $80,000. $32,183.85 was allocated for sealing and re-striping a portion of the lots over Christmas vacation. "Only some parking lots were done because there is too much space," Paterson explained.
Although he has only been working Allocated under Other Expenses is at Palomar since December, 1984, he $5,000, $3,831.07 of which was spent has 30 years of experience, 14 of which for the parking stickers for cars. were at Mira Costa Community Other Expenses - Parking, for College. things such as signs and repainting, After five years of being retired, he was set at $80,465, using only was asked to fill the open position $13,022.36. David Scott had left. The last expenditure was the "It's a big campus," he said compar- $80,000, discussed earlier, which was ing Palomar with Mira Costa, "but the not funded by the immediate problems are the same." proceeds. As Paterson familiarized himself Paterson anticipates $90,000 with the budget dated February 12, $100,000 next year in this category. 1985, he explained how the money is tlecause the campus IS on a slant, allocated and how much money is set when it rains, the water settles on the aside for each category. lower parking lots. Water destroys the Originally, $142,998 was estimated pavement: if not catched early, it can as the income for the $7 fees; however, be very expensive to mend, he said. only $116,576 has been collected to If anyone notices a problem with the date. parking lot pavements (i.e. pot holes) Three categories are included under it should be reported to the campus salary. Adult Classified Hourly was patrol. budgeted at $3,200, but used only Paterson is contemplating for next $177.40. year using the "extra" money directly Student Hourly was originally set at after it is collected instead of waiting $6,100, using only $2,560.25. For staff for it to add up. Under law to use the funds only for things pertaining to on the payroll, $28,100 was allowed parking. using only $1,815. Paterson speculates that because of The Electricity bill generally consumes $18,000 although the exact the $80,000 saved, the $7 fee may amount was not accessible. decrease.