President Kavalhuna's March 17 update to employees

Dear Colleagues,

You have been working hard in difficult circumstances. I see your dedication to our students and to supporting each other. I was heartened to be at the Welcome Center today to see several of you. I heard some of your concerns and suggestions to improve your work areas and our service to students in this unique time.

I am also hearing from some of you that you are frustrated that it has taken me several days to create a plan for how we will work in this new environment. I want you to know that cabinet, collective bargaining units, and other leaders have been working constantly on how to radically change our College operations. In every meeting and every conversation, we talk about your concerns, as well as student and community concerns. We have already made some changes, and more will likely come. I know the process still feels slow to some of you.

Please know that the Cabinet and I care deeply for your well-being and for our goal of serving students. This is why we have carefully evaluated all potential options to keep you safe while serving students. We have also done this while honoring government-recommended precautions.

I am now ready to act on some of the changes you have proposed.

I know that some of you need to be off campus due to personal issues, family health concerns, childcare, or elder care issues. Some have reported not wanting to use your personal leave banks while meeting these important obligations.

Beginning immediately, we will offer an additional bank of 80 hours of emergency leave time for full-time, benefits-eligible employees. Part-time employees will receive 40 hours of emergency leave time. This emergency leave time is to give you paid time to attend to the following issues that are caused by the COVID-19 virus (coronavirus):

1. Your own illness (confirmed COVID-19 or not),

2. Caring for a family member’s illness,

3. Caring for children who are not able to attend P-12 schools,

4. Your individual increased vulnerability to the virus, or

5. The increased vulnerability of a family member who you are in regular contact with.

Please work with your supervisor to use this leave time as you would for your normal leave time. I have instructed supervisors to work with all employees in finding a solution to keep you safe, while trying to serve students. As noted in an earlier message, do not fear discipline for using this time to take care of yourself or your obligations that COVID-19 has caused.

Your supervisor will be in touch with you about how to report this time on your timesheet.

I have met with the Presidents of all five Collective-Bargaining Units (CBU) to gain their feedback on this new benefit. I recognize that there are many outstanding questions about this emergency-leave plan. I must admit that I do not have answers for all the questions, but I do hope you can make use of this leave to help you through the effects of the COVID-19 virus. In the meantime, please allow your CBU President to collect your questions. The Presidents will work with me to find answers.

Changes to our work environment for safety and work flexibility

We are working to prioritize your safety and needs, while also providing the services our students need.

We want to provide maximum flexibility for how we do our work, while reducing the number of staff who need to be on campus.

Three new processes will help with this:

1. Welcome Center: I have directed the Kevin Culler, Holly Diamond, and Reginald Best to implement a plan that will keep the Welcome Center open to serve students, but that will reduce the number of employees reporting to that facility and reduce the number of students and citizens who are congregating in the building. Several of you who work at the Welcome Center have recommended ways to accomplish these goals. I ask you to bring these ideas to the three leaders I mentioned above. I know they will take all ideas seriously and work with you to implement the best ideas.

 

2. I am asking all managers across both campuses to work with your teams to determine which employees can perform their work from home. Please provide flexibility for these employees to work from home, while managing the need to provide services to students and to balance the work of your teams. Please also ask your team members today to make sure they have the computer and technology access they need to work effectively from home.

    

   Those of you who work from home will not need to use leave time during the hours you are working from home. Supervisors and teammates should work together to find an arrangement that reduces your time on campus, while serving students and the College. I trust your abilities to find these solutions.

 

3. For all teams, we ask you to follow social distancing procedures as much as possible in your conversations, meetings, and work. We want you to continue having your meetings and conversations with minimal disruption. Please use distance technology wherever possible for your meetings and shared work.

    

   All employees have access to Microsoft Teams and Office 365, which include a robust set of online tools. The IT department will provide additional documentation and personalized online training to support you in using these technologies in your work.

I have one final note about our campus work. I know that some of you will elect to remain on campus during your work. I have spoken to several of you over the last few days. Please work with your supervisors to voice any accommodations that might help you feel more safe and more effective in serving students and the College. As long as I am well (I currently feel energized and healthy), I will be here with you on campus. This is a challenging time to be on campus. I am with you. I support you. And I am thankful for your effort and presence.

Upcoming terms at HFC

Class registration for upcoming semesters will not begin next Monday as originally scheduled.

We plan to announce a substantial change to our spring and summer semesters. Rather than having separate spring and summer semesters, we are working to offer a single summer semester that will begin in June and end in August. This is a complex change, and we need time to create the class schedule for the new summer term.

We will announce the new registration dates for Summer and Fall terms soon.

We are accepting applications for new students for future terms, and will continue to do so.

As you have noticed, things are changing every day. I will keep you updated as these changes take place. Your vice presidents, collective bargaining unit leaders, and I will keep listening to your suggestions and concerns. Please do your best to support your colleagues, and to work with me and your leaders to take the time to get this right.

Thank you.

Russ