Lane Community College Education Association

Photos by Russell H. Shitabata

KEZI 9 news reported on the proposed budget cut vote which is scheduled for tonight, Wednesday, September 27 at Lane Community College.

Watch here.

LCCEA’s attorney, Luke Kazava, identifies serious contractual and legal issues related to the Board of Education vote on budget reductions. Kazava writes,

“The College’s proposed retrenchments include layoffs that would violate the seniority clause (Article 10, Section 10.3) of the parties’ contract. Several faculty have been unlawfully targeted by the College for layoff… “

“Alarmingly, the proposed layoffs target Association officers and other faculty who recently participated in grievances or filed complaints against the College, including three faculty of color who filed racial discrimination complaints against the College. The proposed

layoffs appear to be acts of retaliation against employees for engaging in legally protected activity, in violation of ORS 243.672(1)(a). The College’s targeted layoffs may also violate state and federal laws prohibiting racial discrimination and whistleblower retaliation.”

Read the full letter below.

LCC Faculty Colleagues,

If you have not yet read LCCEA President Adrienne Mitchell’s emails from September 24 and 25 regarding proposed budget cuts, please read these highly important emails for context.

The time to act is now! The Board of Education needs to hear from us. The Board is being pressured to vote on program & service cuts amounting to 3.8 million dollars. Rushing to vote this week is unnecessary and doesn’t make sense. Can you take a few minutes to send a letter to the Board? You can add your own text or send as is:

• Send a letter to the Board and President Bulger.

Let’s stand together in solidarity! Please sign up here to let us know what other actions you can take:

• Come to the LCC Board of Education meeting this Wednesday at 6pm.  The meeting is in the Boardroom, Building 3, Room 216.  Wear red!
• Join us at our rally at 5:00 p.m. before the meeting on the 1st floor of the Center Building. We’ll have some red shirts available, and pizza will be provided by the LCCEA. We’ll then walk to the Board meeting together. Our Classified Professions will join us too.
• Speak during the public comment at the Board meeting. (Up to 3 minutes, we can help you write your statement. Be prepared to provide comments in 2 minutes if the Board reduces the time available.)

Pressuring the board to vote now on program and service cuts amounting to 3.8 million dollars is premature and unnecessary. 

1. In early October we will have two key pieces of information that will clarify our financial picture. LCC’s percentage of the Community College Support Fund will be recalculated, and will likely increase, according to the Higher Education Coordinating Commission and Interim VPFO Sue Fahey. We will also know the tuition revenue by Oct. 3 – that’s just next week! Why vote on cuts now when this information will change the budget picture?
2. Our contract states that for cuts to take place in January, the college needs to have 30 days of good faith discussions with alternatives first. Then the Board could vote 60 days before winter term, by November 8, provided the 30 day discussion happens. If cuts are to happen, the president & board need to follow the contract process. 
3. The Administration’s proposed cuts target faculty who have made complaints of managers’ acts of discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation. 
4. The Administration’s proposed cuts also disproportionately impact faculty from historically oppressed groups and target your LCCEA elected officers.

These cuts make no sense, are rushed and needless. Let’s stand together for our students, classified colleagues and our entire community!

In Solidarity,

Paula Thonney and Wendy Simmons, Your LCCEA Action Team Co-Chairs

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

9/25/23

LCC FACULTY AND CLASSIFIED RESPOND TO PROPOSED SUDDEN BUDGET CUTS

LCC Administration is pushing for a Board of Education vote on $3.8 Million in budget cuts at a Special Meeting on September 27, 2023 at 6:00 p.m. Proposed cuts have not been announced publicly, but administrators provided faculty and classified union officers with lists of planned reductions to take effect in January.

Proposed cuts include: elimination of the French program, elimination of three faculty counselor positions, elimination of the majority of Health classes, four full-time classified positions as well as many part-time classified positions across campus, part-time librarian budget reductions, and reduction of faculty staffing in skills development courses for students. 

Cuts would impact three BIPOC faculty members, the only bilingual/bicultural counselor, and three faculty union officers. Half of the full-time classified positions being cut are filled by workers who were deemed “essential front line” during COVID-19 shutdowns, and worked on campus at Lane throughout the pandemic.

“The cuts strike at the very heart of our institution and our instructional and student services mission. We need more support for our students and more faculty from historically oppressed groups, not fewer.” LCCEA Faculty Union President Adrienne Mitchell stated. “We are also deeply concerned about faculty who filed complaints about racial discrimination or retaliation who are now on “the list” for layoffs.”

“Is this union-busting?” asked Physical Therapy Program Coordinator and LCCEA Vice President for Career Technical Faculty, Christina Howard, in response to news that cuts would impact three faculty union officers. 

To classified professionals, who are currently in contract negotiations with the college, it certainly feels so. “The administration gave themselves a raise this year, and now they’re looking to lay us off, cut our benefits, and give us raises that in many cases won’t even cover the loss in benefits they’re proposing,” says LCCEF President Frankie Cocanour, “it feels like a scare tactic.”

Budget cuts may be unnecessary. Enrollment is up more than 10% for Fall according to LCC’s Institutional Research department, and state funding for community colleges increased 12.3% this biennium. Details about tuition revenue will be available October 3, and updated state funding allocations will be available in early October. 

The LCC Board and Budget Committee approved a $3.8M “reserve for revenue shortfall” in this year’s budget, but revenue information is not finalized, so it is unclear what the amount of a revenue shortfall will be, if any. 

Cutting programs and services LCC students and the community rely on is premature.

LCC Faculty, Classified Professionals, and concerned community members plan a rally at 5:00 p.m. at the LCC Cafeteria on Main Campus before the 6:00 Board meeting this Wednesday, September 27.