I have had the opportunity to review the summary of the evaluations prepared by participants and I wanted to share that information with you. I thought you might be interested in learning what's on the minds of many of our faculty at this time.

First, Dr. Anna Solley, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Student Development, addressed the Convocation participants and her remarks were well received. It was eye-opening for many to realize that over the past 10 years our student demographics have indeed changed. Our students have gotten younger and more diverse. The greatest growth in ethnicity occurred with Hispanic students Ð rising 6.7%, and the percentage of Anglo students dropped by 14.4%. Off campus enrollment nearly doubled. Her point was change is the name of the game. Be ready to change quickly and enjoy changing again and again. Copies of Dr. Solley's PowerPoint presentation are available if you wish to review it.

I appreciated the opportunity to follow Dr. Solley to talk with faculty about the issues I believe concern all of us. I prepared my Convocation remarks after participating in the faculty's fall retreat with governing board members and administrators, and after conducting a number of listening sessions with faculty members in December. I was very impressed with the unselfishness of our faculty. I was pleased to learn that the issues faculty feel are most important are the issues that the governing board and administrators and staff also feel are most important. Our sharing these common concerns will allow us to tackle the issues together and ensure our success in resolving them.

After our presentations were concluded Convocation participants broke into small groups for "dynamic discussions" of issues of importance so we could hear more from faculty. These were issues identified at the faculty retreat and at the faculty listening sessions.

Without going into a great deal of detail, the questions / responses were the following:

1. WHAT NEW STRATEGIES DO YOU PROPOSE TO USE TO "CREATE" AND RECRUIT COLLEGE STUDENTS? "Creating" college students is a new role I believe faculty members are assuming. Faculty members responded that they could increase their activities to recruit more high school students Ð especially those high school students who have never seen themselves as college students. Faculty members suggested increasing their presence on high school campuses and providing transitional courses. They also supported targeted marketing strategies.

2. HOW CAN WE ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF DIVERSE STUDENTS? Faculty responded that we must show respect for diverse students, meet their educational needs, and develop a more diverse faculty and staff.

3. HOW CAN WE SUPPORT THE CHANGING ROLE OF FACULTY? This question was the favorite question of the various groups Ð more groups answered this question than any other Ð and I believe that is very appropriate. Resoundingly faculty said we should provide more faculty development opportunities, provide more technical and other kinds of support for faculty, and increase incentives and rewards. They said we need to restructure professional growth as we now know it. It was exciting to hear faculty eager to take advantage of learning opportunities in order to better serve our students.

4. HOW CAN FULL-TIME FACULTY AND ADMINISTRATORS CONTRIBUTE TO COLLEGIAL SUPPORT OF ADJUNCT FACULTY? The desire of residential faculty to support adjunct faculty was expressed to me at every listening session. To me this demonstrated the unselfishness of residential faculty and their collaborative nature. They know the importance of adjunct faculty in providing the best education possible to our students. They suggested that adjunct faculty should be given fundamental support and enjoy an environment of belonging. In addition, communication should be improved. Pay should be increased, and Maricopa should provide specialized professional growth opportunities for adjuncts.

5. HOW CAN WE ADDRESS SYSTEM-WIDE ISSUES? WHAT IS WORKING WELL WITHIN OUR SYSTEM TO SUPPORT TEACHING AND LEARNING? WHAT ARE SYSTEM BARRIERS TO TEACHING AND LEARNING? We heard faculty say they believe we can begin to address these issues by open communication and by acting on the input we are getting from faculty. In addition, Maricopa should continue training and initiatives such as Ocotillo, dialogue days, and the listening sessions with faculty. We should encourage more collaboration among and between colleges and departments and the district support services center. And again, we should reform professional growth policies.

6. WHAT ARE SOME WAYS WE CAN BUILD COMMUNITIES? Faculty encouraged us to use technology to connect people. And to encourage more learning communities.

7. HOW CAN COLLEGES AND INDIVIDUALS PROMOTE INTERCOLLEGIATE COLLABORATION? ARE THERE SPECIFIC TYPES OF COLLABORATION THAT YOU BELIEVE WOULD BE ESPECIALLY SATISFYING? Faculty suggested that we reduce barriers to collaboration such as being "FTSE-driven" and promoting collaboration among top leadership and all faculty and staff. They urged all faculty who teach the same courses to communicate with each other. Finally, they suggested that efforts to market the district be increased.

8. WHAT IS THE LEGACY YOU WILL LEAVE WHEN YOU FINISH YOUR WORK AT MARICOPA? Faculty wanted to leave a legacy that indicated they had "inspired students to enjoy learning, be successful, value themselves, and be better, more productive citizens." They also wanted to provide a variety of options for students to meet their goals, and they wanted to be able to say that they had broadened the horizons of students and the acceptance of others.

We are very good at asking for feedback and input. We are good at listening to that feedback and input. Now let's begin to act on that feedback and input. I want you to be able to say that we acted on your good ideas or we told you why we couldn't make some changes. One activity I intend to continue is the scheduling of listening sessions with faculty and I hope many of you will plan to participate.

What was left as questions in the minds of some faculty after the Convocation concluded? Some faculty wanted to know more about my approach to diversity and my vision for the Maricopa Community Colleges and more about the Bond Issue we intend to pursue to an election in 2004. These are important subjects and I will talk more about them as time goes on. I hope to answer these and any remaining questions. I appreciated receiving the feedback from faculty participants. This is just a small piece of the open communication so necessary for us to be successful.