Resolutions and Policy

Whereas, in 2020 Wall Street began trading water futures, specifically in California, as a commodity.  The country’s first water market launched on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange on December 7, 2020, with $1.1 billion in contracts tied to water prices in California, according to Bloomberg News; and

Whereas, the United States is the second biggest consumer of water in the world, with California accounting for 9% of the nation’s daily consumption. The size of California’s water market is four times larger than any other state; and

Whereas, the climate crisis has already manifested into dangerous, chaotic, and widespread destabilization of natural systems, affecting the lives of billions of people around the world despite global efforts to minimize the risks; and

Whereas, we are outraged and sickened by the relentless acts of violence, brutality, and murder by police; and

Whereas, no one should be murdered at the hands of the officers sworn to protect and serve our communities; and

Whereas, fatal police shootings of unarmed Black people in the U.S. are more than three times as high as of white people; and

Whereas, the largest impediment to retired California educational professionals returning to the classroom is the 180-day separation-from-service requirement; and

Whereas, while there is a process in place to allow a district to waive the 180-day rule to allow a recent retiree to return as a substitute teacher or part-time instructor, that waiver process is difficult; and

Whereas, Governor Newsom issued an executive order to ease and streamline the waiver process during the COVID-19 public health emergency; and

Whereas, temporary or part-time community college faculty have historically faced more challenges to a stable retirement and benefits due to inequities in salary as well as re-assignment rights; and

Whereas, California PreK-14 school districts are required to offer the CalSTRS Defined Benefit (DB) pension as an option for all educators, including part-time community college faculty; and

Whereas, California Senate Bill 1552 (Campbell, 1986) established Classified School Employee Week in order to recognize the vital contributions of classified employees; and

Whereas, Classified School Employee Week is celebrated in the third full week of May each year from Sunday to Saturday; and

Whereas, classified school employees represent workers from early childhood through higher education in public and private education; and

Whereas, the California Education Code sections 51210 and 51220 provide that California schools must provide a course of study for students in grades 1 through 12 with courses or instruction in visual and performing arts, including dance, music, theater, and visual arts, aimed at the development of aesthetic appreciation and the skills of creative expression; and

Whereas, AB 928 (Berman, 2021) seeks to streamline transfers for community college students through the creation of one primary transfer pattern, the California General Education Transfer Curriculum (CalGETC); and 

Whereas, California community colleges (CCCs) serve a specific and important role in the California Educational Master Plan, serving millions of students throughout California as the most accessible institutions of higher learning; and 

Whereas, adjunct/contingent faculty comprise 73% of all higher education faculty (AAUP), which is the majority of U.S. higher education faculty, and a critical and essential force for learning; and

Whereas, adjunct/contingent faculty possess the same teaching credentials and teach alongside tenure-track faculty without the benefits tenure-track faculty are given, including: job security, paid livable wages, access to employer healthcare, and a robust retirement plan; and