Skip to main content

Board of Trustees Approve Faculty Contract

November 14 2024 Strategic Goals General

The Kansas City Kansas Community College Board of Trustees approved the FY2025 Master Faculty Contract during its meeting Oct. 15. The biggest highlight of this year’s contract negotiations, the congenial atmosphere during the process.

“Negotiations, by its nature, can be intense,” said Jerry Pope, vice president for academic affairs and interim dean of arts, humanities and social sciences. “But as long as both the administration and faculty leadership keep student success in the forefront of their considerations, agreements can be reached. I believe that both teams kept student success in the forefront throughout these discussions.”

Among the changes in this year’s contract include clarified language in the grievance process, better defined faculty office hours as well as service to both students and the college and changed compensation for applied music lessons to align with common practice. A 4% raise was also included for every faculty member just as it was for staff members earlier this year.

No benefits were added or removed from the contract and no additional tasks were added or removed. The contract was unanimously approved by faculty before going to the board in October.

“I feel this was one of the best negotiation years we've had since I've been at the college. We've been working hard to abide by the tenets of interest-based bargaining which has, in my opinion, allowed us to keep student needs at the forefront of our considerations,” Pope said. “Since the master contract is the agreement between KCKCC faculty and the board of trustees, having a well-defined process for negotiations is one key to a smooth operating institution. I'm proud of the things we continue to accomplish at KCKCC and for its future, and the terms in this agreement are very important to the college's success.”

Darren Elliott, KCKCC KNEA Faculty Association President, said he is pleased with the college’s commitment to Interest Based Bargaining.

“The contract process we currently work through is a great model for approaching any problems that arise in a workplace, and this contract is proof of that,” he said. “This process of bargaining, instead of positional bargaining, is a collaborative process where representatives from both teams identify interests and work from there, by brainstorming ways to solve problems together.”     

The Faculty Negotiation Team met for its initial meeting in May and identified several issues that needed to be addressed during the negotiation process. These included:

  • Update language regarding adjunct coordinator (replace discipline with division to reflect original intent and current practice).
  • Clarify language in grievance procedure steps.
  • Clarify types and number of service activities for two weekly scheduled hours (service to students and/or college).
  • Prorating under-enrolled courses (previously included in the contract).
  • Update language regarding student metric data and financial cost data related to increasing the enrollment cap from 15 to 16 for developmental education courses.
  • Compensation and placement on salary schedule for those holding terminal degrees in their field.
  • Adjusting load calculations for disciplines in college.
  • Article 16: Quality Assurance in Distance Education (clarify ongoing training requirements for teaching in online courses).
  • Clarification of 212 teaching faculty duties, language.

Meetings were held throughout the summer with the negotiation team, which includes both administration and faculty members.