June 2022 Review: Email Policy, SIP, Compensation, Benefits Enrollment, Council Retreat

June 2022 Review: Email Policy, SIP, Compensation, Benefits Enrollment, Council Retreat 

Greetings, faculty! We hope that you are all having a good summer. 

The new DCFA Council took office on June 1, 2022 and was welcomed by the Board of Trustees at their June 7, 2022 meeting. Although we have touched base with you all since then (about the District 1 results, the Conflict of Commitment form rescission, and a heads-up about the SIP discussed in more detail below), we still have quite a few June updates to provide you here on the last day of the month. 

Email Policy 

On June 28, 2022, the Board of Trustees voted to approve an “Amendment to Policies Concerning Technology Resources” pertaining to the use of Dallas College email. Please make sure to read the policy so that you are aware of what it contains. You are probably already complying with most of the policy, but one section “require[s] all email sent in the performance of College business or from College personnel to be sent to a College employee or student’s official College email address, as assigned by the College.” As many of you know, the beginning of the semester sometimes requires professors to adapt to student needs while students gain access to their accounts. The DCFA Council brought this concern to the attention of the administration, which has assured us that such practicalities involved in serving students would not be considered violations of policy. 

The policy as amended on June 28, 2022 is vastly different than the original language proposed as a first reading on April 5, 2022, which included extensive technology use policies involving both personal and college resources. The DCFA Council advocated strongly for changes to the proposed language, and to our relief, administrators removed a substantial amount of the concerning language when it resubmitted to the Board. Because those parts were removed with the intention of “further review,” the Council will continue to advocate for faculty as that review unfolds. 

Separation Incentive Plan 

The other item approved on June 28, 2022 was a resolution to authorize the Separation Incentive Plan (SIP) that your campus FA president emailed you about last week. Now that it has received approval from the Board, we can provide more details. The resolution states that: 

Faculty who take advantage of this plan do not have to retire and can choose to work for another organization, including those with TRS; however, they will be ineligible to work for the College for the first five years after separation. 

The plan will be available to approximately 374 full-time faculty with 15 or more continuous years of service with the College as of August 31, 2022. 

Participants receive a payout equal to 75% of their base salary, up to a maximum of $100,000. 

Participants can choose a monthly payout over 5-15 years, lifetime, joint and survivor, or lifetime with a 10-year guarantee. 

To implement the SIP, the College will partner with PARS (Public Agency Retirement Services), which specializes in governmental separation plan consulting and administration. 

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There will be a PARS Representative at District Conference Day to help you find out more about your options. We have not yet received a PARS contact name for SIP questions, but we will share it as soon as we do. If you have questions about your eligibility for the plan, please contact AskHR@dcccd.edu until we find out whom HR assigns this to. 

Compensation Updates 

During the Board Work Session on June 28, 2022, the administrated proposed its 2022-2023 budget. In their salary recommendations, administration proposed a $3,650 increase to all faculty base salaries, which is five percent (5%) of the average of all faculty salaries. If approved by the Board in August, this salary increase would take effect on September 1, 2022. The presentation also mentioned the previously announced one-time stipend of $1,500, which is not pending Board approval; it will be on the paycheck you’ll receive at the end of July 2022. 

The Council continues to advocate about the structural issues of compression, range advancement inequities, and uncompetitive salary schedules. The good news is that faculty have been prioritized in the Segal Compensation Practices Review timeline over staff and administration. The bad news is that it will still be approximately 4-6 more weeks before that review is finished. And unfortunately, no substantive changes to these more structural problems will be proposed to the Board for faculty compensation until Segal completes its review. 

Summer 2022 Benefits Enrollment Period 

The ERS Summer 2022 Benefits Enrollment Period for Dallas College begins June 25, 2022 and ends July 9, 2022. Visit the Summer Enrollment landing page on SharePoint for more information. ERS will host online webinars and in-person fairs throughout the Summer Enrollment period, which you can find more information about from HR’s Summer Enrollment Event page on SharePoint. 

DCFA Council Retreat 

The DCFA Council will have its first retreat since COVID-19 on July 15, 2022. Much of this retreat will involve the council setting strategic priorities for the upcoming term. In addition, new council members will have an opportunity to become more familiar with their roles and responsibilities, and to collaborate on how best to respond to data compiled by diligent committee work in 2021-2022. 

If you would like to contribute ideas to the strategic priorities, please share them with your campus FA president so that they can bring them to the retreat for the Council to discuss. We enjoy serving you and look forward to hearing from you!