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| Changing of the Guard |
Background Information
AB86 is the law governing the new Regional Consortia System.
The term "AB86" has come to be used to describe the whole enchilada - the planning process, the people in charge of the planning, etc.
Here is the official AB86 website which has lots of good and helpful and constantly updated information.
AB86 Has Two Groups
The AB86 Cabinet is the boss group. The buck stops with them. The Cabinet has 6 members - 3 from the CDE side (K12 Adult Schools) and 3 from the CCCO side (Community Colleges.)
The AB86 Workgroup is under the Cabinet. The Workgroup is in charge of the nitty gritty stuff - the applications, the reports, and so on. It has 12 members - again half and half with the CDE/CCCO bit.
AB86 Workgroup Changing
About a week ago, the Cabinet told the Work Group that the Work Group will be changed-up for this next stage which will include reviewing consortia plans and producing the March report for the Legislature.
I do not have full details on this process or the new members. I wanted to share what I have in the interest of keeping everyone in the loop. In other words, this the information is the best I have at the moment. At some point, an official announcement will appear on the AB86 Website. Until then, here is what I have. Please read it knowing it is tentative.
Groups Invited to Join the New Workgroup (which I suppose doesn't mean they will say yes):
Association of California School Administrators ACSA includes administrators from all branches of public ed. Rocky Bettar will be the ACSA Representative on the new Workgroup.
Association of California School Administrators ACSA includes administrators from all branches of public ed. Rocky Bettar will be the ACSA Representative on the new Workgroup.
Association of Community and Continuing Education From their website, "An Organization of California Community Colleges." New Representative: Unknown to me.
California Adult Education Administrators Association CAEAA is just what it sounds like. CAEAA's Representative will be Cyndi Parulan-Colfer.
California Association of School Business Officials I'm still trying to understand this one.
California Council for Adult Education CCAE is all about K12 Adult Schools. Bob Harper and Joanne Durkee, current members of the AB86 Workgroup, are also active in CCAE. CCAE is made up of Admin, Teachers, Staff, Students, & Community Members. CCAE Representative: Unknown to me.
California Federation of Teachers CFT is the smaller of the two big teachers unions. They represent many sorts of teachers - K12, Community College, K12 Adult School, Pre-School, as well as Classified Staff, School Nurses, etc. Jack Carroll will be the CFT Representative on the new Workgroup. (Note: I am a member of CFT.)
California School Boards Association From their website, "CSBA is the nonprofit education association representing the elected officials who govern public school districts and county offices of education. With a membership of nearly 1,000 educational agencies statewide, CSBA brings together school governing boards, and administrators from districts and county offices of education to advocate for effective policies that advance the education and well-being of the state’s more than 6 million school-age children. A membership-driven association, CSBA provides policy resources and training to members, and represents the statewide interests of public education through legal, political legislative, community and media advocacy." CSBA Representative: Unknown to me.
California Teachers Association CTA is the bigger of the two big teachers unions. Unlike CFT, they are teachers only, no classified staff, no school nurses, etc. UTLA, the Los Angeles Teachers Union, is associated with both CTA and CFT. The CTA Representative will be Wendy Dillingham-Plew.
Community College Academic Senate This is a group representing Community College faculty.
The Community College Academic Senate seemed to know about this change before others did. Look to the bit at the end of this post for more info about that. Also, note: K12 Adult School Teachers do not have any sort of equivalent body. There is no Adult School Academic House of Representatives. Both CFT and CTA - the big teachers unions - represent both Community College and Adult School teachers, as well as K-12 teachers. UTLA represents teachers in Los Angeles - not the whole state. UTLA does have a branch that is Adult Ed specific. In sum, there is no equivalent to the Academic Senate for Adult Schools. ASCCC Rep: Unknown to me.
Community College League From their website, "The Community College League of California ("The League") is a nonprofit public benefit corporation whose voluntary membership consists of the 72 local community college districts in California. Within The League are two major organizations which share a common mission, staff and fiscal resources: the California Community College Trustees (CCCT) and the Chief Executive Officers of the California Community Colleges (CEOCCC). In addition, two other organizations are affiliated with The League: the Association of California Community College Administrators (ACCCA); and the California Community College Classified Senate (CCCCS). The League affiliated organizations have many goals and objectives similar to CCCT and CEOCCC and recognize that the sharing of facilities and some resources helps strengthen those common purposes. Yet it also is recognized that The League affiliate maintains total independence to pursue the objectives of its members which on occasion may be at variance with the positions taken by CCCT and CEOCCC." Community College League Rep: Unknown to me.
United Teachers of Los Angeles The teachers union for Los Angeles which has the biggest Adult School in the state and a branch that is Adult School specific. UTLA is associated with both CFT and CTA. UTLA members can join CFT or CTA or both. UTLA Rep: Unknown to me.
I believe the current members of the Workgroup can stay on if they so choose.
The ASCCC - Community College Academic Senate - Knew This Change Was Coming
Note: It seems the Community College Academic Senate - and maybe only the Community Academic Senate - had any idea this change was coming.
In their October 7 President's Update, it says:
After overcoming considerable resistance, the Academic Senate, in conjunction with other state-level faculty organizations, secured permission for ASCCC Noncredit Committee Chair Debbie Klein to attend the AB 86 Summit in Sacramento on October 6 and 7 and to observe this event from a Senate perspective in order to help inform our efforts. We have also received a promise of adding a faculty representative to the state level AB 86 Workgroup, an oversight body whose lack of faculty representation has been a glaring deficiency. Other efforts are also underway to allow the ASCCC and other faculty groups to take a more prominent role in AB 86 planning oversight in order to provide assistance to local districts whose faculty voice is not being sufficiently included.
Why the ASCCC and maybe only the ASCCC seemed to know about this change, I don't know.
When I learned of the October 7 President's Update bit, I followed up on it by contacting folks who contacted members of the Workgroup. At that time, the Workgroup said the Academic Senate was not being invited. And yet... clearly, the Academic Senate has been... and at the time, the Academic Senate publically said they had a promise of being invited. So... What happened? I don't know.
Note: You can contact the Workgroup with questions and concerns and I highly recommend that you do. Often they will answer you back. Always they will read your email. In any case, it is good and helpful to keep them in the loop and to ask them to keep us in the loop, as well.
As much as I can, I try to share what I know here. I believe it is important that we all share information with each other, keeping in mind the common goal of saving, maintaining, and creating the best Adult Education system possible, part of the best Public Education possible in California.
As I have written many times on this blog, none of this is happening in isolation. All these changes are happening in a larger context of Public Education Reform and Cultural Change. To really understand things, we need to see the big picture. We can do that only when we share information each other - because everyone has a special close-up view on one thing and a blind spot on something else.
I believe the current members of the Workgroup can stay on if they so choose.
The ASCCC - Community College Academic Senate - Knew This Change Was Coming
Note: It seems the Community College Academic Senate - and maybe only the Community Academic Senate - had any idea this change was coming.
In their October 7 President's Update, it says:
After overcoming considerable resistance, the Academic Senate, in conjunction with other state-level faculty organizations, secured permission for ASCCC Noncredit Committee Chair Debbie Klein to attend the AB 86 Summit in Sacramento on October 6 and 7 and to observe this event from a Senate perspective in order to help inform our efforts. We have also received a promise of adding a faculty representative to the state level AB 86 Workgroup, an oversight body whose lack of faculty representation has been a glaring deficiency. Other efforts are also underway to allow the ASCCC and other faculty groups to take a more prominent role in AB 86 planning oversight in order to provide assistance to local districts whose faculty voice is not being sufficiently included.
Why the ASCCC and maybe only the ASCCC seemed to know about this change, I don't know.
When I learned of the October 7 President's Update bit, I followed up on it by contacting folks who contacted members of the Workgroup. At that time, the Workgroup said the Academic Senate was not being invited. And yet... clearly, the Academic Senate has been... and at the time, the Academic Senate publically said they had a promise of being invited. So... What happened? I don't know.
Note: You can contact the Workgroup with questions and concerns and I highly recommend that you do. Often they will answer you back. Always they will read your email. In any case, it is good and helpful to keep them in the loop and to ask them to keep us in the loop, as well.
As much as I can, I try to share what I know here. I believe it is important that we all share information with each other, keeping in mind the common goal of saving, maintaining, and creating the best Adult Education system possible, part of the best Public Education possible in California.
As I have written many times on this blog, none of this is happening in isolation. All these changes are happening in a larger context of Public Education Reform and Cultural Change. To really understand things, we need to see the big picture. We can do that only when we share information each other - because everyone has a special close-up view on one thing and a blind spot on something else.
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