Around the District

Bill Vega

Welcome to the Spring 2004 semester! Even as we are engaged in our core activity of serving students this spring, we will also be dealing with some important challenges over the next few months. First, it is time once again to turn our attention to the next budget year and to do all that we can to ensure stable and predictable funding from Sacramento. With the passage of Propositions 57 and 58 on March 2, the voters of this state have provided the fiscal resources for us to take a major step in that direction. If those two measures had failed, educational institutions throughout the state would most certainly have

However, we will not know what the revised 2004-05 budget will look like in May until after state taxes have been collected and the amount of revenue for the year is known. The Governor's proposed budget released in January essentially holds the line on community college funding. The real work is ahead of us as legislators and the Governor's office craft a final budget package. We must continue to communicate the urgency and importance of providing adequate funding to community colleges. Many of our students, faculty and staff will be doing just that on March 15 when they gather at the state capitol with colleagues from throughout California for the second annual "March in March." This event will be an important reminder to legislators and to the Governor about the importance of community colleges to the state. This march will also provide the opportunity for us to thank lawmakers for their support in the proposed budget.

Another measure on the March 2 ballot will provide funding for two important capital improvement projects in the District. The successful passage of Proposition 55 - the second installment in statewide school facilities bonds - will provide nearly $25 million to the Coast Community College District. Specifically, Proposition 55 bond funds will be used to construct the new Learning Resource Center at Orange Coast College, as well as fund campus-wide safety repairs at Golden West College. The infusion of statewide bond funds complements the District's Measure C funds and is critical to our ability to meet our colleges' facilities and infrastructure needs over the next 10 to 15 years. All of these projects will be critical to maintaining our ability to meet future student and instructional needs.

KOCE Update

Another challenge the District is facing this spring is a legal challenge related to efforts to sell KOCE, the District's public television station. In December, the Board of Trustees voted to sell the KOCE broadcasting license to the KOCE Foundation for $32 million. Since that time, the District and the Foundation have been meeting to negotiate the terms of a final sale agreement that will require Board approval. Meanwhile, the District has been sued by an organization that submitted an unsuccessful bid for the license. Daystar Television Network filed suit against the District and the KOCE Foundation in February asking the Orange County Superior Court to halt the sale of the license to the KOCE Foundation and award the sale to Daystar for $25.1 million.

In response, the CCCD Board of Trustees have filed a cross-complaint asking a judge to decide if the District followed proper procedures and made the right decision in voting to sell the license to the Foundation.

Specifically, the District is asking the court to determine the following (among other things):

If the court determines that the KOCE Foundation was not the highest responsible bidder and that the District cannot sell the station to the KOCE Foundation, the District is also asking the court to provide proper guidelines for a re-bidding process.

Meanwhile, negotiations on a final sale agreement with the KOCE Foundation continue, and the Board is expected to consider a final agreement at their March 17 meeting.

HR News - District Human Resources Implements New PNI Personnel Action Form (PAF)

By Babette Kelly

AND….you can print it from your desktop!

The PNI employee electronic personnel file is a reality. Employee records and assignments have been integrated into the new system with links to Applicant Tracking, Benefits, Budget and Payroll.

Teamwork, flexibility, and hard work among staff from these departments, District Information Services, and the Protocol Staff has been the key to successful implementation.

The campus personnel departments are now undergoing training on employee assignment input into the system and are printing the new PAFs to process to HR and Payroll. Drop by District HR or your campus personnel office for a demonstration!

EHS - Pesticide Training

EHS's Jerry Marchbank (left) and Michael Collins (right)

By Jerry Marchbank and Michael Collins The EHS office got both OCC and GWC together for a training that was taught by Sean Rivell, who is the Facilities Coordinator at OCC and is from the "new school" of agriculture and grounds maintenance. He studied at Rutgers University in New Jersey and grew up on the family farm in Jersey. "Sean does a great job of passing on realistic safety techniques that can be readily used on campus”

Subjects discussed include Personal Protection Equipment, storage of pesticides, labeling of pesticides, Material Safety Data Sheets, first aid, emergency procedures, and laws and regulations, among other exciting topics.

Did you know?

The state of California requires the entrances/exits of public buildings to be smoke-free. You may have noticed that smoking areas have been moved to at least 20 feet from any door or operable window. Please be aware that the buildings at the District and at each campus are public facilities and require compliance with this code. Any questions? Contact Jerry Marchbank at x84731.

FOR FURTHER GUIDANCE CONTACT THE EHS OFFICE AT x84728 OR SEND AN EMAIL TO JMARCHBANK@MAIL.CCCD.EDU

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Coast Survey Responses

January’s Winner

January's Question: "How did you spend New Year's Eve?"

"Watching Dick Clark with my wife's family. Her brother is married to a lady newly arrived from Russia who was wondering why President Bush wasn't on TV giving a speech. It seems the Russian President gives a speech every year at the stroke of mid-night."