Turning a New Page: FA Welcomes Dr. Johnson at Board of Trustees Meeting

10 minutes ago

3 min read

By Billy Gunn, FA President

On August 20, the Faculty Assembly spoke at a Board of Trustees meeting for the first time in a long time. The goal was simple: welcome our new College President, Dr. Lennor Johnson, and signal that the FA intends to be more of a presence at Board meetings going forward. In the past, the FA and the Board kept each other at arm's length. We want to turn that page by showing up and being present as partners.

Ahead of the meeting, we coordinated with the president of the MiraCosta College Academic Associate Faculty, Krista Warren, and with Sarah Thompson, the president of FACCC. This gesture showed the power of both full-time and associate faculty standing together, with a voice that reaches from this campus to the state level. The statement also opened a door with the Academic Senate. In the days since, FA and Senate leadership have begun discussing plans to collaborate more closely on the areas that affect us both — another step toward a more unified faculty, on both the governance side of our work and the working-conditions side.

Below is the statement as delivered.

Good evening, President Merchat, members of the Board of Trustees, Dr. Johnson, colleagues, students, and members of our community. My name is Billy Gunn, and I have the honor of serving as president of the Faculty Assembly, the union that represents full time faculty.

Some of you may be wondering what the Faculty Assembly is. That's fair. Although most of you are well acquainted with my predecessor, Mary Gross, the FA hasn't given you many opportunities to find out directly who we are and what we stand for here at Board of Trustee meetings. We're here to fix that. Tonight, we turn a new page. You can expect to see us at this podium, not as spectators, but as engaged partners in the work of this District. We believe the decisions made in this room deserve the voices of both the Academic Senate and the Faculty Assembly as we represent the folks who stand in front of our students every day, and we intend to bring that voice constructively, consistently, and in good faith.

And we do not come alone. I am proud to be joined tonight by Krista Warren, president of the MiraCosta College Academic Associate Faculty, and Sarah Thompson, president of the Faculty Association of California Community Colleges. Their presence says something we want this board to hear: the faculty of this college are united – full-time and associate, Faculty Assembly and Academic Senate, standing with our classified professionals and administrators – and our engagement reaches beyond this campus to the state level, where we advocate for faculty rights and for what is best for our students. As Dr. Johnson reminded us this week in his welcome message, none of us serves students in isolation.

Dr. Johnson, welcome! You also wrote that "MiraCosta College is its people." The faculty could not agree more, and we felt it in the gym on Friday's All College Day. I love what you said about welcoming our students with "a helpful answer, a word of encouragement, an extra moment of connection." We believe the way we welcome a new president matters, too. The faculty are energized by your message of unity, excited about your leadership, and ready to build an even better future with you. Since this is your first semester, you'll be glad to know that faculty grade generously in week one. So far – high marks.

Because unity is built on trust, let me name what partnership means to faculty. It means shared governance that is real, not ceremonial – faculty at the table while decisions are being shaped, not after they are made. It means keeping our resources where our students are, that a college's investment should follow its students into the classroom.

Dr. Johnson, we share your gratitude for the work we do "for our students and for one another," and we offer you this in return: when faculty thrive, students thrive. The Faculty Assembly stands ready to partner with you to make MiraCosta a place where both do. Welcome to MiraCosta. We are glad you are here, and we are all in. Thank you.