The first College Planning Council (CPC) meeting of the new year was held on Tuesday, Feb. 7. The CPC serves as an advisory group corresponding to the interim superintendent-president on issues concerning economics, policies, and plans. 

Vice President of the School of Extended Learning Carola Smith presented a proposal including the request of an additional $195,000 annually. Discussions of the reorganization of the School of Extended Learning (SEL) and position reinstatements throughout different programs arose as the council members conferred about the proposed plan. 

According to the website, the School of Extended Learning focuses on offering programs that serve the diverse adult population that City College attracts. The program aims to advance career and life skills, and offer bridges to credit.  

Smith explained that during the COVID-19 pandemic, many positions were taken away and many jobs were lost at City College. In an attempt to fill these spaces and improve the organization of various programs, Smith presented the ‘SEL/International Programs Reorganization/Position Reinstatement Proposal.’

“This will allow us to switch programs around and with this plan we will be able to support our faculty and staff much more easily,” Smith said.

As stated in the proposal, due to positions not being filled, there has been an overload of work for the School of Extended Learning staff and program managers. Smith created a proposed plan to mend these issues and ease the stress of staff and faculty here at City College. 

Before the School of Extended Learning was established it was called the Center of Lifelong Learning. Since that transition, job responsibilities have changed and grown for certain employees and according to Smith, these changes need to be addressed in order to bring City College into compliance with California Education code. 

The California Education code was created in 1977 by California’s legislature with the means of creating laws and guidelines that departments of education must adhere to. 

Along with working to improve the structure of the School of Extended Learning, the plan also mentions a necessity for more thorough oversight for International Programs. Smith specifically hopes that there will be a reinstatement of the director position for International Programs to “accommodate international student enrollment growth and to provide adequate program support,” as stated in the SEL/International Programs Reorganization/Position Reinstatement Proposal. 

As Smith mentioned, many positions were left vacant after the pandemic. This included the student program advisor position originally held by Chantel Marcus which Smith hopes to turn into an educational program specialist position. 

Smith explained that this transition will help with human resources and non-credit payroll as both programs have lost designated support over the past few years, causing disorderly payroll loading and slower processes for stipends. 

Faculty Association Representative Jamie Campbell supported this plan and expressed his admiration for Smith’s “great presentation” along with other council members throughout the meeting. 

The CPC will reconvene on Tuesday, Jan. 17.