Vol. 168, Issue 4 | October 9 – October 23, 2019 | City College of San Francisco | Since 1935 | FREE
Funeral Held for Cancelled Courses By Diana Guzman dianaanaid.gf@gmail.com
Chancellor Mark W. Rocha sits in his City College office, located at Conlan Hall, during an interview with the Guardsman on Sept. 23, 2019. This would be the second interview granted by the chancellor for the Guardsman. Photo by Jennifer Yin / The Guardsman
HEAT Organizers Threaten a Vote of No-Confidence If Demands Not Met By Jennifer Yin jyin4@mail.ccsf.edu
Chancellor Mark Rocha has received ample criticism from students, faculty, and labor organizations since his hiring in 2017. As reported in several Guardsman issues from this semester, the college’s administration has reduced the number of educational counselors, full-time faculty, course listings, and library hours since Rocha’s establishment as chancellor. Critics of Rocha include a newly formed coalition of students, faculty, and community members known as the Higher Education Action Team (HEAT). HEAT member, Julieta Kusnir, stated the main focus of the organization is to seek the restoration of classes, encourage growth in student access to services, and the implement longer library hours. “We are doing all we can to engage everyone possible. It is important to recognize the final decision making is with the administration. They decide what is valued at the school, and HEAT wants to make sure students success is valued,” Kusnir said. The organization also demands the college have a printed class schedule for Spring 2020 no later than Nov. 15, that class cancellations are only permitted after the second week of term, and that administrators allow departments themselves to decide which classes to add and remove without interference. HEAT will call on the college’s community to organize a vote of
no-confidence towards Chancellor The following day, Pasadena students Rocha if he fails to comply with their disrupted a Board of Trustees meeting. demands. A vote of no-confidence is a “For years we followed the process, statement, or vote to whether a person in we wrote to you, we attended your a position of power is no longer deemed meetings, we tried to tell you, you said fit to hold their position. that would work, and it did not. You However, a vote of no-confidence for cut our classes, our education, and our Chancellor Rocha at City College would future,” Pasadena protesters shouted. not be the first Rocha has received. Rocha ended his four-year term The chancellor’s prior position as at Pasadena City College in August president of Pasadena City College of 2014. ended with two votes of no-confidence. The college nullified a nearly According to the Los Angeles Times, $400 thousand dollar severance deal as the former president, Rocha with their former president, after the received criticism from Pasadena’s Board of Trustees violated the Ralph faculty and student body for approving M. Brown Act by not discussing Rocha’s the cancellation of the college’s retirement and severance package in an winter session. open meeting. On Aug. 29, 2012, Pasadena’s Board The Ralph M. Brown Act guarantees of Trustees cancelled the college’s winter the public's right to attend and participate intersession without the approval of any in meetings of local legislative bodies. shared governance body, including the The Los Angeles Times noted how it is calendar committee, the college council, unclear if Rocha was required to return and the academic senate. the $400 thousand dollars. According to a coalition of students Pasadena City College’s current and faculty for student achievement at president, Erika Endrijonas, was unable Pasadena City College, the cancellation to speak on behalf of Chancellor of Pasadena’s winter session was Rocha’s tenure and accomplishments supposedly to save the college an when contacted. estimated $1 million in savings. However, Similarly to Pasadena City College, documents later released by the City College of San Francisco, under Pasadena City College CSFSA, revealed Rocha, experienced a reduction in the college saved only $589,000 from course and class offerings as well and a cancelling its winter session. reduction in faculty. On Feb. 21, 2012, students at Additionally, both college’s Pasadena City College staged a 300 administrations suggested salary person walkout, in response to the increases for administrators and an cancellation of more than 50 classes and expansion of class sizes to meet the the firing of 45 professors. These cuts college’s budget. occurred one week prior to the start of the college’s Spring Semester. No-Confidence continued on page 2
Students and faculty gathered outside of Smith Hall last week to raise their voices about how class cuts have negatively affected City College students. On September 25th, everyone gathered at RAM Plaza where a mock funeral, advertised as “A Celebration of the Life of City College of San Francisco: Death By a Thousand Cuts”, was held to point out the failing educational hopes and dreams of students. The protest was hosted by City College’s Higher Education Action Team (HEAT). Included in the memorial was live music from the CCSF Labor Chorus and the words and artwork that was brought out were from the students and faculty here on campus. As the protest began, four men dressed in all black arrived at RAM Plaza and ventured in carrying a cardboard casket with “RIP” written on top. Sizable paper flowers and gravestones were set up across the courtyard with phrases like “Part-time healthcare” written on them to express what students have lost since class cuts began last year. City College student, Marcos Cruz, gave a speech about how the college should be trying to obtain more funding from the state to increase the amount of classes offered, instead of using funds that could procure more classes for administrator raises. He pointed out the hypocrisy of California being the most wealthy state, but not having enough money to fund its own community colleges. Several community members walked around handing out flyers with event programs and lyrics to the live music that was played so that attendees could sing along. Protesters held posters that said “My tuition is for college not for admin pockets” and “stop killing our college.” Engineering professor, Wynd Kaufmyn, left the crowd with a speech that had a more hopeful essence to it. She believes that it is possible for City College’s administrators to unite with students to solve the budgetary crisis without hurting students in the process with cuts to resources like libraries and resource centers. The protest concluded by attendees marching towards Conlan Hall where the protestor’s demands were read. These included no classes being cut until the second week of the term, no class with 15 or more students enrolled being cut at all, and that administrators include student input in their decision making process.
AFT2121, students, and faculty attend a funeralthemed protest titled “A Celebration of the Life of City College of San Francisco,” hosted by the Higher Education Action Team (HEAT) in front of Conlan Hall, on Sept. 28, 2019. Students hold handmade posters reading “R.I.P., part time teacher jobs,” and “CCSF death by 1,000 cuts.” Photo by Jennifer Yin / The Guardsman