President's message
Watching eight amazing people receive recommendations for tenure at the Board meeting last week, I felt proud. Congratulations, and thanks for all you bring to Gavilan--it's a lot: Blanca Arteaga, Nicole Cisneros, Nikki Dequin, Shelley Giacalone, Kevin Kramer, Dr. Robin Kreider, Gilbert Ramirez, and Scott Sandler. Watching the shining smiles and hearing friends and family whoop and cheer, I thought about how much we all-part-time, full-time, everyone--give.

That we all work hard is why I want to ensure that the GCFA is here for us. I appreciate how well the GCFA has always looked after its full-time members-we enjoy good salaries and benefits, and job security. If something goes wrong, we have an excellent Grievance Officer in Leslie Tenney and a thoughtful Executive Board. I appreciate that we now extend membership to all part-time members who teach over 3 units, and I am excited to help steer the union in this new era. My goals as the new president: to offer all the services and benefits that a great union offers; to democratize the union by helping get the new Representative Council off to a great start; to welcome in new part-time members and integrate them; to support our hard-working negotiations team.

One new initiative is a Member Care Committee. So many members this semester are coping with illness or difficulty. And GCFA should also be part of celebrations such as tenure achievement, and Dr. John Lawton-Haehl's Employee of the Month Award. Sooner or later, all of us will need support or have something to whoop about. So you may hear from the new committee.

It was great to taste chocolate with everyone who came on Valentine's Day!   --Leah Halper, GCFA President

Benefits
Are you taking full advantage of all benefits that Gavilan College makes available to full-time faculty? Benefits should benefit you!
Come find out: Understanding Your Benefits workshop with HR Director Jim Bowers and GCFA representative Ken Wagman offered twic (same material): Thursday, Feb. 24 at 2:30 & Weds. March 2, 2:30--both at Mayock House. For full-time faculty, new or veteran, who wants to make sure they are taking full advantage of all college-sponsored benefits! If you're a benefits beginner, bring a copy of a recent pay stub listing your benefits. (Programs for part-time faculty to come.)

Calendar this!
GCFA Fun*:
oWed, March 16, 3:30-5:30: St Paddy's Day small bites and drinks -off campus

oDate TBA - Movie Night on campus with Grant Richards

oThursday, April 28, 2:30-4:30: Spring BBQ at Mayock House

oTuesday, May 17 Retirees' goodbye party, 3-5 p.m., place TBA
*Let Sabrina Lawrence know if you can help out or have other ideas for fun.

STRS Retirement Planning Basics for Everyone workshop-coming up! Check www.gavfaculty.org for updates on events.

Faculty Weingarten rights: know before you go!
Established by a 1975 US Supreme Court ruling, Weingarten Rights entitle employees to have union representation at any investigatory meeting where there a reasonable belief that information obtained from the employee can lead to disciplinary action. As an employer/supervisor is under no obligation to inform you of these rights, it is important to ask your employer/supervisor ahead of time if responses to questions asked in the meeting could lead to being disciplined. If the answer is yes, contact a union representative to accompany you to the meeting. If you find yourself already in a meeting where you believe the questions may lead to disciplinary action, you may immediately make your request for union representation. The employer/supervisor then has the option to stop the questioning until a representative arrives, end the meeting, or continue the meeting without your input. For more information regarding your Weingarten Rights, check out the Info You Need link at www.gavfaculty.org and/or contact Leslie Tenney, GCFA Grievance Officer.

Rep Council
Did you know that GCFA has a brand new deliberative and decision-making body in our new Representative Council? We'll meet third Thursdays at Mayock House, and the meetings are always public. On our first agenda: feedback on negotiations items, the GCFA Faculty Scholarship, and election of officers.

Mayock House is for your use! Schedule through amacedo@gavilan.edu, and please leave it clean and tidy! Check out the new recycling bins in the kitchen.

Making connections
If you'd like to meet other faculty from all over California's community colleges, and learn some great leadership skills, CCA might have just the program for you. Our parent union has run an Academy for Building Strong Locals for the past five years, and several Gavilan graduates can tell you what a useful and interesting experience it is. All costs are covered by the union, and those involved attend three CCA conferences, starting with the Spring Conference April 15-17 in Newport Beach, and continuing in fall and winter. (One conference is usually in northern California. Child care, including spouse's care, is reimbursed on an hourly basis for a participant's entire absence, for parents who might be interested.) If you think you might like this valuable training, contact GCFA President Leah Halper, lhalper@gavilan.edu, asap, for application information.

Scholarship information:
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Scholarships are designed to assist all ethnic minority CTA members, their dependent children, and ethnic minority Student CTA members pursue degrees or credentials for teaching-related careers in public education.
In 2009, CTA awarded four (4) $5,000 scholarships, four (4) $3,000 scholarships, and three (3) $2,500 scholarships to CTA dependent children; two (2) $5,000 scholarships and one (1) $2,500 scholarship to CTA members; and three (3) $5,000 scholarships to Student CTA members. Information and the application is now available online at:
www.cta.org/mycta/profession/scholarships/mlk. The deadline for applications is Friday, March 5, 2010.