19 May 2020

Staff Advisory Council Meeting 

Tuesday, May 19, 2020 

Listening to and lifting staff voices to build an informed community 

Calendar: 

Tuesday, May 19 SAC meeting, Zoom Call, 9-10:30 am

Wednesday, May 20 Town Hall, Zoom Call, 12:30 pm-1:20 pm

Thursday, June 25 SAC meeting, Zoom Call, 9-10:00 am 

• New calling information will be sent out.

Attendees:  Susan Eagar, Paula MacDonald, Felicite Gibson, Lynn Grady, Ashley Turner, George Darbes, Luis Alvarez, Mel Leeds, Nabil Kashyap, Pam Harris, Roderick Wolfson, Christie Ashton, Molly Lawrence, Pam Borkowski-Valentin, Susan Romero

• Suggestion:
  We have a suggestion that may be best placed on the COVID website: “Just thinking about antibody testing and our community.  Would this be something SAC could share with the community.  Maybe pull together information on how to go about obtaining a test kit, how our insurance covers the costs and so on…”
  
  Answer:
  • Antibody testing in PA is limited to first responders, healthcare workers and their families.  Widespread testing has not been approved yet as it is not an FDA approved.
  • Guidelines with the state department are still being developed.  Information will be shared once available.

• Question:
  Val Smith has written that full time, 12-month staff can be assured of having jobs through June 30th, still not reassuring to staff.  We need better information and planning.  Will there be furloughs or not, and if so, who/how will decide on which staff would be furloughed, for how long, etc.?  Why are there no staff members on the committee making these decisions?
  
  Answer:
  • Will be addressed in Town Hall on Wed 5/20 at 12:30pm

• Question:
  Specifically to McCabe Library - we work in a building which is more than 50 years old, with a bad air system that circulates air through all parts of the building, no opening windows, new walls added since construction, and pockets where air does not circulate at all ("dead" zones).  When will we get a proper survey of this system, and what short and long term adjustments will be made to make the building safe for staff and any returning students, faculty, and other patrons?
  
  Answer:
  • Will be addressed in Town Hall on how we will return to work and stay safe

• Question:
  In the recent email from Lynne Schofield, she mentions three groups working on contingency plans for the college: Financial Study Group, the Workforce Planning Group, and the Academic Continuity Working Group [see below]. Why have we not heard of the Workforce Planning Group before? Who is on this committee?
  
  Answer:
  • Will be addressed in Town Hall
  • Information about the Workforce Planning Group will get added to the COVID - 19 site.  
  • Members of the Workforce Planning Group 
    • Pamela Prescod-Caesar - Chair
    • Anthony Coschignano
    • Alice Turbiville
    • Ed Rowe
    • John Cline
    • Kim Fremont
    • Robin Shores
    • Sharmaine Lamar
    • Georgina Texeira 

• Question: Concern over number of visitors on Campus [not wearing masks or social distancing].
  Answer:
  • Increase in visitors to campus. They are not wearing masks. Access to campus is porous. Is there anything extra to discourage large numbers of visitors [e.g., close arboretum parking lot].
  • Philosophically we want to be open to the community but we want to encourage social distancing and wearing masks.
  • Concern for safety of staff being compromised by visitors not wearing masks. 9 hour days ‘mulching’ or in a ‘hot kitchen’ yet staff respect wearing masks, how do we encourage visitors to wear a mask? 
  • Do not approach un-masked visitors as there are cases of conflict nationwide surrounding this issue.
  • Paula to lift this issue with Pamela PC.
  • Public Safety is staffing campus 24/7
    
     
• Annual Reviews

HR will recommend an abbreviated review process: TBD