Counselors and professors openly sparred with Bakersfield College President William Andrews on Oct. 19 during an open forum in the Collins Conference Room designed to address urgent and pertinent issues irking many faculty members.
For the most part, Andrews shared the same sentiments that the faculty had. A few of the many issues discussed were how to market BC and the lateness of the class schedule.
“The schedule always comes out too late to use,” said Kathy Aiello-Wise, who represents adjunct faculty in Academic Senate.
The tardy printing of BC’s class schedule does not promote a positive image of BC, many faculty members said during the forum.
“We (BC) have a lot of marketing to do, and we’re not making progress,” remarked Aiello-Wise.
Andrews agreed with Aiello-Wise.
“We can never market too heavily,” Andrews said.
Many counselors reminded those present that the printed schedule is used when BC representatives tour the local high schools.
Those present unanimously agreed that the culprit responsible for the lateness of the schedule needs to be identified and held accountable. Stringent datelines need to be set, many conceded.
Greg Chamberlain, who oversees media services in BC’s Computer Commons, said that, “We should gather information. We should do a survey of student opinions. My daughter and her friends never use the printed schedule.”
Ash West, SGA president, concurred with Chamberlain about the use of surveys saying, “There are not enough surveys done of students.” However, Bethany Johnson, SGA’s legislative liaison, differed with Chamberlain on the importance of the printed schedule, saying in its defense that “even though it comes in late, and it has a lot of mistakes, it’s still used, and it’s a good recruitment tool.”
On the needfulness of using the printed schedule as a marketing tool, Andrews remarked that “there are 1,700 new families in Bakersfield, and they don’t know that we (BC) exist.”
Erica Grall, SGA’s student trustee, said, “We (SGA) often give presentations with the printed class schedule.” Many present concurred that the printed schedule is a good marketing tool. She added that if the printed schedule cost was raised to a dollar, it would be worth it. Kathy Rosellini, BC counselor said that when she actually uses the printed schedule, it is “in tandem with Banner on the computer screen.”
Many counselors affirmed that the routine lateness of the printed schedule presents problems for the average student who is not a President’s Scholar, and that the majority of classes are often not available to the average student who must make do perusing the schedule. Often these students cannot get classes at proper times that are conducive to their schedules. This is not encouraging to many students, the faculty at the forum said. Nor did Andrews find this situation acceptable. Such a situation is conducive to the student drop out rate, many faculty members feel.
“We as a college cannot afford to lose any more students,” he said.
However, Rosselini said that most people know that incoming freshmen usually do not get the classes they want.
“It’s a fact of life, you’ll never get the best classes when you’re a freshman,” she said, insinuating the time component of the printed schedule’s availability makes no difference.
Some counselors complained that they have to “beg” to get copies of the schedule.
Some counselors stated that the current printed class schedule’s format in and of itself is not easy for them to work with, and others expressed distaste over the available matriculation manual, and Andrews expressed a concern many faculty members have that there must be someone on hand who can “truly advise students still in high school on the general education pattern.”
BC counselor Sue Granger-Dickson said that young incoming students are “feeling their oats, and they’re goofy. You have to really tie them down for a one-on-one counseling situation.”
Speaking of the matriculation manual, Granger-Dickson said bluntly, “I’d like to get rid of it, frankly.”
Some of the counselors pointed out that many BC students and potential BC students are “turned off (from attending BC) because they have to take general education classes such as English and math, and these students go to technical colleges and pay $25,000 a year.”
However, Andrews emphasized that technical students “need to go to us (BC) and through us to make more money.” A few counselors noted that at least two-thirds of California’s community college students are taking vocational training.
During the course of the forum, Andrews also pointed out that BC has enough money to offer additional classes students need, and that he is interested in encouraging graduate students to teach general education classes at the community college level as a part of their training program.