After nearly 20 months of legal struggle, on July 30, 2015 the Public Employee Relations Board (PERB) substantiated the PCCFA’s assertion that the college had illegally and unilaterally cancelled the Winter Intersession back in 2012. There were three factors that led to this momentous victory:

1) We researched the issue with a number of legal advisers whose specialties are community college governance and contractual legalities. We consulted extensively with our colleagues from the California Community Colleges Independents (CCCI) who were helpful and supportive in numerous ways. Our faculty also participated in the Faculty Association of California Community Colleges (FACCC), the primary lobby organization for California’s community colleges. Thus, we had extraordinary expertise and experience behind us. Finally our attorney, Larry Rozenzweig, prepared excellent legal briefs both in the first PERB hearing and in the appeals process. With our initial victory in December 2013, we had hoped the college administration would abide by the ruling. We were disappointed when the Board of Trustees extended the legal fight for another 15 months. In this election year, questions should asked as to why the college wasted so much money on a futile and, frankly, mean-spirited endeavor.

2) We received enormous campus support throughout the whole process. Students and faculty in suvey after survey overwhelmingly supported the Winter session. The Academic Senate leadership proved positively heroic in its challenges to then President Mark Rocha and the Board of Trustees. The Associated Students demonstrated great courage in their Vote of No Confidence (the first in the history of PCC). The College Calendar Committee was consistent and steadfast in their votes for Winter. Thus, our pursuit of the PERB case to reinstate Winter was a moral obligation and a responsibility to our colleagues, to staff, and to the students. The FA’s PERB filing was not only to defend and preserve contractual obligations but also to maintain and strengthen shared governance.

3) The PCCFA team maintained total unity and commitment on the Winter issue. Without an experienced leadership team, there might have been a capitulation to the bullying tactics of the administration. In that regard, PCC’s Accreditation failures accurately reflect the current campus climate. There have been repeated denials of faculty input, repeated mistreatment that reveals a fundamental disregard for faculty expertise, and sadly, a terrible lack of basic respect.

Now, where do we go from here? Upon learning of our PERB victory, we informed the college that we wanted to reinstate Winter in 2016. We filed the appropriate petition through our attorney, Larry Rozenzweig, to implement Winter for 2016. The college could easily manage the logistics, and students desperately need our calendar to be corrected. Not only is Winter critical for students’ progress, but the June start of 2016 summer sessions would also accommodate local high school students as they begin their college careers. Unfortunately, the college has refused. However, by law the college must implement Winter in 2017. Thank you all for your enormous support! We could not have brought Winter back without you!

– Roger Marheine
PCCFA Past-President