April 27, 2022

The Academic Senate Committee on Committee on the Environment, Quality of Life, and Disability Issues met on Wednesday, April 27, 2022 Via Zoom, 12:30 pm-1:00 pm

Committee Members in Attendance:

Chantale Damas (Chair)

Noelia Diaz (Secretary)

Janet Franzese

Kelly Ford

Daniel Armstrong

Changiz Alizadeh

Stephanie Rost

Mohammad Javdan

 

 

Liaisons in Attendance:

William Faulkner

Anthony Monahan

Andrew Muller

John Triolo

Clara Wajngurt

Angela Dotterman-Ridinger

Business:

The meeting was called to order at 12:30 PM

1. The minutes from the previous meeting (February 23, 2022) were reviewed and approved.
2. The present new members, Daniel Armstrong and Changiz Alizadeh, were welcomed and approved.
3. Elections were conducted and Stephanie Roost and Noelia Diaz were elected to Chair and Secretary respectively.
4. William Faulkner provided a campus update.

• Thanks to the new approved budget the proposed child care center for students, while probably still a year away, is back on track.
• The Science building needs to have its ventilation system addressed since when the first phase of the work for the cafeteria was conducted the wrong AC equipment was installed. The windows need to remain sealed as mandated by fire code regulations and temporary AC units will continue to be used. The ventilation issues will be resolved once the second phase of the cafeteria work resumes, probably next year.
• QCC was able to obtain a 1.7 million emergency contract to replace the steam line pipe servicing the Administration building. It has been broken resulting in inadequate heating to the building.
• There is no official confirmation from CUNY on remote agreements but it seems that a 70/30 ratio will hold for the Fall semester. Students need to be vaccinated and boosted to attend in person classes. The school has a large supply of masks, including KN95 masks, if the mask mandate is reinstated. Masks have been provided to all departments, and they are also available at the school’s entrances.

5. Angela Dotterman-Ridinger provided updates on the Subcommittee on Accessibility.

• Subcommittee members have attended the Zoom meetings led by Connieann DePaola thanks to a Perkins Grant IDT for students identifying as having disabilities. The students shared their experiences, and identified what helped them succeed as well as the barriers that hindered their progress. The Subcommittee members attended.
• On May 6, 2022 the Subcommittee on Accessibility will hold the following panel in conjunction with CETL: “What Do Accessibility, Inclusion, and Acceptance Mean to Us? What it means to create an accessible and inclusive learning environment for students with disabilities? Queensborough student disability advocates will share their learning experiences, focusing on the supports--formal and informal--that facilitate inclusion and access, both in their classes and on campus in partner with the students where they will share their experiences.”
• Andrew Muller the liaison for the SSD office clarified the protocols followed by his office, as well as reiterated that any faculty in need of guidance to support students with disabilities should get in touch with his office.

6. John Triollo provided an update.

• Due to the COVID pandemic most of the resources have been allocated to enforcing COVID-19 protocols, but as a result of the strict entrance regulations to campus there has a been a drastic reduction of petty crimes and violations.
• There are three entrance points to campus: the underpass by the Medical Building, the bus stop, and trough the main gate. Some members of the community have not complied with the randomized testing. As a result, their IDs are disabled until they are tested on any of the CUNY campuses.
• Public Safety has also been upgrading the radio system and replacing the blue lights for emergencies.

7. Clara Wajngurt provided an update from PSC Health & Safety:

• The PSC’s Committee on Safety is working on a short report of the temperature fluctuations taking place on the Physics, Math and Biology departments, as well as ventilation concerns.
• The PSC has also created an advocacy support team focusing on bullying incidents. While the committee can’t enforce any sanctions, it can direct the person/s towards the appropriate channels to formalize a complaint. The PSC is also working on trying to have bullying prevention incorporated into the next contract.

8. EQLD Guide needs to completed this semester. Stephanie Rost’s shared her draft with the committee for feedback and will continue to work on finalizing the guide before Fall 2022.
9. Other Business. Some members of the committee are having difficulty accessing the Dropbox for the EQLD committee and switching to google drive was discussed and rejected as an option. The committee thanked Chantale Damas for her tireless work for the committee, particularly since her tenure coincided with the onset of the pandemic.

 

Respectfully Submitted,

Noelia Diaz, Committee Secretary

Respectfully submitted,

Noelia Diaz
Committee on Committee on the Environment, Quality of Life, and Disability Issues, Secretary

Minutes typed on April 27, 2022