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Administrators attempted to allay the fears of 700 classes being cut for the Spring semester at an open meeting on Tuesday.President Mark Rocha facilitated the meeting, which was proposed by student protestors. There were over 20 students in attendance in the president’s conference room alongside key members of the management staff of the college.

The meeting focused on addressing the concerns voiced at a rally held earlier in the day where protestors demanded 100 sections be added to the schedule of classes for the Winter intersession and raised the claim of the widespread cuts.

Associate Dean of Enrollment Management Sabah Alquaddoomi assured students that the claim was false, but it could be a possible situation depending on state funding.

“We are bringing the issue to the surface,” said Alquaddoomi. A rally participant, Vlad Viski-Mestas asked if using the reserves could fund the requested 100 new sections. Rocha then described the allocation of reserve funds.

According to Rocha, a part of the reserve money covers the expense of enrolling 5,700 additional students that the state does not fund. The cost of serving additional students totaled $26 million, which had to be taken from the reserves.

“It will be a hard sale to Board to say we aren’t serving students,” said Rocha.

Amongst other allocations, Rocha also cited the projected $50 million deficit for U Building project after funding from the reserves. The plan to address the seismically unsound building is top priority for the college.

Much of the meeting focused on Rocha’s proposal for the Student Access and Success Initiative that was passed alongside the budget at the Board of Trustee meeting in October. The SASI allocated $1 million for three access goals and four success goals. The first access goal proposed increased sections and enrollment management.

“We have this $1 million, let’s sit down and figure out the process. We need some time to plan it,” said Rocha.

The details of the SASI distribution would be addressed as the next Enrollment Management Committee is formed which is scheduled for Thursday’s College Coordinating Council meeting. The input of the protestors was invited as Rocha emphasized a compromise to examine adding sections during spring semester instead of winter.

Citing the tight schedule between the end of fall semester’s finals, the holidays, and the start of Winter Intersession, Associate Dean of Counseling and Student Services Cynthia Olivo encouraged this compromise. “Winter will not happen. Spring is a good goal,” said Olivo.

Tensions ran high at the meeting where within the first minute of Rocha’s remarks a student interrupted him.

“I am sworn to uphold the Board of Trustees’ policy of shared governance,” said Rocha. “The president does not have the ability to snap his fingers and have something done.”

Under this system, decisions are made through the Associated Students, Academic Senate, Classified Senate, College Coordinating Council, and finally Board of Trustees.

Associated Students President Jamie Hammond said that the demand for 100 sections was the first concrete demand the group had presented. “As your president, that is the first time I have heard of the request,” said Hammond.

Hammond cited the vagueness within the proposal the protestors brought to her.

The protestors believed that the burden of specific requests was placed on the AS board.

“That is not our responsibility,” said Mayra Jaimes, a History major and a principal member of the protest group.

Rocha proposed that the group of students present be brought into shared governance by creating what he termed a “task force.”

“Sections have not been cut, period. If the college has to cut, the Enrollment Management Committee would evaluate,” said Rocha citing the unreliability of state funding.

Rocha does not believe a mid-year state budget cut would impact the sections drastically.

“My opinion is that if the mid-year budget cut in January is not steep that we can make savings in many areas and this will greatly reduce the impact on sections. The committees have time to deliberate on this next semester,” said Rocha in an email.

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