Welcome to the summer semester! I am excited to see our unduplicated enrollment is comparable to last summer, even as we remain in our remote learning mode. In fact, our FTE is up almost 10 percent as more of our enrolled students are taking on full-time course loads this summer. That speaks not only to our robust online course offerings, but also to our students’ desire to graduate, complete, transfer and prosper.
As you know, instruction will remain mostly remote until July 1, when we begin to phase in labs and CTE courses, which we will do with safety as our topmost consideration.
In addition to the summer semester kickoff this week, registration for the fall semester opens to new students this Friday. I look forward to welcoming them to campus in August — but please know that our campus will look and feel different than you remember it. Cleaning protocols and social distancing guidelines will be in full effect. This will include mandatory face coverings while in classrooms and lab areas, as well as while near other people on campus. It will also include plexiglass in certain areas such as library desks and computer labs, limited capacities in classrooms, spaced-apart seating and staggered schedules.
We have developed a robust academic plan for our fall semester that will include a mix of in-person, hybrid and online courses. Approximately 45 percent of our classes this fall will be fully online and 55 percent will be in-person or hybrid. Some of you may notice that there are two categories of online classes listed. Web-Online classes are our traditional online offerings, while Web-Remote are those courses that were originally scheduled to be in-person classes but will now be online. We will share more details with faculty, staff and students this week.
Finally, while NSHE has not yet received further input from the governor’s office on potential budget reductions, the Board of Regents is moving ahead in preparation for the upcoming fiscal year. You will recall that the governor asked system institutions to prepare for scenarios of 6 percent, 10 percent or 14 percent cuts in fiscal year 2021, which starts July 1. Under the two higher levels of potential cuts, furloughs for faculty and professional staff may be required. Last week, the board approved adjustments to the system’s furlough policy to prepare for this possibility. You can see the details online, but a summary is that these policy adjustments will allow the board to implement furloughs if and when they are declared necessary by state officials.
The governor has indicated that he will call a special session of the Legislature this year. Please know that our internal Budget Reduction Task Force is ready to take on the challenge by looking carefully at both cost-saving and revenue-generating measures. At all times the task force will follow the guiding principles of ensuring student success, maintaining institutional accreditation, honoring shared governance and institutional values, and maintaining business operations.
Federico
In This Issue:
- HR Forums for Supervisors
- Graduation
- Student Emergency Fund
- CSN Emmy Nominations
- CSN Leadership Academy
- Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory Grading Policy
- Interim AVP for Academic Affairs
- Enrollment and Institutional Data
HR Forums for Supervisors
In preparation for returning to campus, Human Resources is hosting forums for supervisors. This training is designed to prepare supervisors to return to campus and manage the various situations and questions from employees. This is an opportunity to ask HR questions about returning to campus and COVID-19 concerns. This forum is required for all supervisors, so please enroll in one of the remaining sessions if you have not already done so.
Graduation
As I mentioned last month, we were all disappointed about being unable to hold a traditional Commencement Ceremony this year. Because our students have asked us to wait until we can hold a safe, in-person ceremony, we decided to honor the Class of 2020 now by creating a website with videos, the graduation program, profiles of graduates and a message board where anyone can leave congratulatory notes.
I encourage you to visit the site and learn about this amazing class — once again a record-sized graduating class from CSN with 3,753 students earning 3,825 degrees and certificates.
Student Emergency Fund
The CSN Student Emergency Fund has been a critical resource for many of our students who are struggling financially during this crisis. The fund has distributed more than $137,000 in immediate financial assistance to our students since March 1. Along with donors such as ASCSN, the Wells Fargo Foundation, Charles Schwab Bank and the United Way of Southern Nevada, it has been people in the community and CSN family who have risen to the challenge and supported this important endeavor. More than $185,000 has been raised so far. I cannot thank you all enough for the generous support you’ve given to our students.
CSN Emmy Nominations
Our Videography & Film program students have once again outdone their peers with 15 Student Production Emmy Award nominations this year. This was the most nominations of any college in the region, adding to the incredible success of the program. With 88 nominations since 2015, the program has risen to become one of the best in the country.
Congratulations to Program Director John Aliano and all the nominated students. Winners will be announced at a ceremony this month.
CSN Leadership Academy
I want to offer my sincere congratulations to the first graduates of the CSN Leadership Academy! A full 100 percent of the academy’s inaugural class met all requirements and completed the program. The class included employees from classified, administrative faculty, adjunct faculty, tenured faculty, tenure-track faculty and emergency-hire faculty:
| Karen Ahern | Robert Bonora | Paula Bourne |
| Alicia Briancon | Kayla Buscher | Taylor Cayro |
| Michelle Chan | Shawn Claxton | Angel Clemens |
| Sabrina Cruz | Sherida Devine | Phillip Dixon |
| Tamara Flores-Sahagun | Jeff Fulmer | Eileen Hamilton |
| Emily King | David Leavell | Annette Lord |
| Angela Nelson-Swearingen | Roberta Palomo | Dana Phillips |
| Theresa Pugh | Dora Reyes | John Rios |
| Marissa Robledo | Kenneth Roman | Ashley Snipes |
| Nancy Swanson | Carla Wright | Carolyn Wright |
Graduates reported that they appreciated the inclusive and diverse composition of the class, the ability to network beyond traditional work and social circles, the immediate applicability of the academy experience, the rich curriculum and content that expanded on the 7 Habits principle-centered leadership base, and an emphasis on both professional development and personal enrichment. The CSN Leadership Academy was launched in fall 2019 and developed and facilitated by Dr. Gillian Silver. Annette Lord provided logistical guidance, and Nancy Webb served as the program’s assistant director. Placements for the summer and fall 2020 academy cohorts are being confirmed. The activities will include a variety of live meetings and technology-based activities. For more information, contact Gillian.Silver-Rodis@csn.edu.
Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory Grading Policy
As you know, the Board of Regents amended NSHE grading policy so students will now be permitted to request a satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade rather than a traditional letter grade. Instructors still assign letter grades at the end of the semester, but students have the option to ask for that to be changed to an S/U grade.
The deadline to submit the interest form has passed for students who are graduating in the spring 2020 term, receiving financial aid, or on academic warning or academic probation. It is 5 p.m. Tuesday, June 15 for all other students.
We have prepared Frequently Asked Questions guidelines to help students, faculty and staff understand the process, and I encourage you to make yourself familiar with the details.
Interim AVP for Academic Affairs
I want to thank Caprice Roberson for stepping into the role of interim associate vice president for academic affairs while James McCoy is on temporary assignment at NSHE. Caprice’s broad background at CSN and in the community includes serving on the Faculty Senate, representing AFA while in her role as director of libraries, and leading and coordinating initiatives that focus on diversity and inclusion. In this interim role, Caprice will oversee the following areas, in addition to facilitating the daily tasks that are managed by the AVP of Academic Affairs:
- Prison Education
- e-Learning
- Libraries
- Curriculum and Scheduling
- Assessment
- Guided Pathways/Complete College America/Lumina Foundation work
Please join me in thanking Caprice for taking on this vital position during this critical time.
Enrollment and Institutional Data
To review the latest enrollment data, visit the Institutional Research Data Dashboard. The site houses publicly available interactive reports created to support institutional decision making.