College Senate
The College Senate represents the faculty, staff, students, and alumni of LaGuardia Community College in shared governance. It formulates policy on all matters pertaining to the operation of the college, except those specifically reserved by the laws of the State of New York, the Bylaws of the Board of Trustees of the City University of New York, or the collective bargaining agreements in force.
The Senate also serves as a forum for diverse constituency voices to discuss issues and problems of general college concern, it consults with the President both in response to his request for counsel and upon its own initiative, and it seeks to foster transparency in communication across the college. Senate business is conducted according to the Governance Plan and Robert’s Rules of Order. Meetings of the College Senate are open to the college community and the public.
Executive Committee
| Name | Senate Role | College Role |
|---|---|---|
| Cristy Bruns | Chair | Faculty |
| Leslie Scamacca | Vice Chair | Faculty |
| Jill Kehoe | Secretary | Faculty |
| Jean Buckley-Lockhart | At-large Faculty/Staff/Alumni Representative | Faculty |
| Luke Cardaio | At-large Faculty/Staff/Alumni Representative | Staff Member |
| Erika Correa | Parliamentarian | Staff Member |
| Jiale Lin | At-large Student Representative | Student |
| Aowshaful Jafin | At-large Student Representative | Student |
Standing Committees
The Committee of Committees shall be elected from among the members of the College Senate. The Committee shall be comprised of seven members, including a minimum of two students, elected after nomination from the floor. Tie votes shall be resolved by the Chairperson of the College Senate. The Committee shall meet immediately after the Senate meeting in which the members were elected to elect a Chairperson. Each year the Committee shall recommend to the College Senate individuals to fill vacancies on the Committees in accordance with the guidelines specified in this document or the bylaws. The Committee shall have responsibility for nominating members of Ad Hoc or Special Committees as they may be created by the Senate.
In accordance with the rules and regulations of the New York State Education Department and the City University of New York, the Curriculum Committee sets policies for LaGuardia with regard to curriculum formation and implementation. The committee is a subcommittee of the College Senate. Its constituency represents each academic department as well as Adult & Continuing Education (ACE) and Enrollment Management & Student Development (EMSD). Learn more: College Senate Curriculum Committee
The Academic Standing Committee of the LaGuardia Community College Senate recommends regulations and policies to the Senate concerning academic standing, matriculation processes, degree requirements and grading systems. The Academic Standing Committee serves as the coordinating committee for all academic appeals. In addition, the committee assumes responsibility for reviewing and making recommendations to the Senate on the College’s Academic Calendar. Academic Standing Committee membership consists of elected representatives and alternates from each of the academic departments. Membership additionally includes a representative of the Division of Adult and Continuing Education, the President of the Student Government Association or his/her designee as well as the Registrar, Director of Admissions and a designee of the Vice President for Academic Affairs as ex-officio committee members. Learn more: Academic Standing Committee.
- Academic Appeals (Sub-Committee of The Academic Standing Committee)
Vera Albrecht, Chair
The Committee on Professional Development is responsible for developing programs which promote the professional growth and development of all faculty and staff members at the College. The Committee, in consultation with The Committee on Evaluation of Program Effectiveness, develops and periodically reviews instrument and procedures to provide evaluative data on instructional effectiveness and on performance of non-instructional and administrative services. Learn more: Professional Development.
- In-Service Training (Sub-Committee of The Committee on Professional Development)
Nicole Maguire, Chair - Opening Sessions (Sub-Committee of The Committee on Professional Development)
Darren Barany and Steven Cosares, Co-Chairs - Faculty Research Colloquium (Sub-Committee of The Committee on Professional Development)
Ruhma Choudhury and Andrea Francis, Co-Chairs - Educational Development Initiative Team (Sub-Committee of The Committee on Professional Development)
Jaqueline Jones and Bede McCormack, Co-Chairs
The College Senate hereby creates a Budget and Finance Committee with the responsibilities and membership as specified below.
- The Budget and Finance Committee shall:
- Develop expertise in the analysis of the various budgets of the College and the pertinent budgets of CUNY;
- Review the processes by which College budgets are developed;
- Regularly report to the Senate on the state of the College budget;
- Review the extent to which College priorities expressed in the Strategic Plan and Periodic Program Reviews are included in the College budget;
- Review how actual expenditures compare to budgets and the rationale and process for significant budget reallocations;
- Review the extent to which the budget anticipates and prepares for fiscal uncertainty and budget modification;
- Review audit reports and the plans for addressing any findings or recommendations that result.
- The Committee shall be comprised of nine members of the College community recommended by the Committee on Committees, with the exception of specific members designated in this provision. There shall be at least two student members,, two faculty members, and two members representing other constituencies on this Committee. The Executive Director of Finance & Business, or the Director’s designee, shall be a member of the Committee. The Chair of the College Senate, in consultation with the Executive Committee, shall designate one member. The Vice President of Administration shall serve as an ex officio member of the Committee.
The College Senate hereby creates a The Committee of Staff with the responsibilities and membership as specified below.
- The Committee of Staff shall focus its attention on issues and campus policies that impact the constituencies represented by the Committee. The Committee may recommend that the Senate discuss and act on concerns important to the Committee.
- The Committee of Staff shall be comprised of all Senators who function on campus as HEOs, members of the civil service staff, or as the representative of the Alumni Association. Alternate Senators from these constituencies may serve ex officio without vote, except when serving in place of an absent Senator, at which time the Alternate will have voting rights. The voting members of the Committee shall elect its Chairperson.
The Committee shall formulate policy proposals, continually review existing policies, and make recommendations with respect to master and long-range planning of the physical facilities and ongoing operation of the physical facilities. The Committee shall also recommend and review policy pertaining to student recruitment, admissions procedures, health and public safety, standards of behavior, ceremonies, athletics, and other related auxiliary services and activities not under the charge of other Senate Committees. The Committee should be composed of members recommended by the Committee on Committees. There should be at least one student member on this Committee. The Vice Presidents of Administration, Academic Affairs, and Enrollment Management and Student Development, or their designers, shall also serve on this Committee.
The Committee on Elections shall recommend to the Senate procedures for all Senate-related elections held in the College and shall supervise those elections. Should the need arise, the Committee shall receive and hear grievances relating to elections, and shall make appropriate recommendations to the Executive Committee. The Committee should be composed of members recommended by the Committee on Committees. There shall be at least one student member of this Committee who is not a candidate for membership on the Senate.
The Committee of Faculty shall be comprised of all Faculty Senators. Alternate Faculty Senators may serve ex officio without vote, except when serving in place of an absent or non-faculty Senator representing an academic department, at which time the alternate will have voting rights. The voting members of the Committee shall elect its Chair. As need arises, the Committee of Faculty shall consider, discuss and propose action on matters within the purview of the faculty, including but not limited to those indicated in the bylaws of the Board of Trustees of the City University of New York, and shall bring such matters and proposals to the Senate for appropriate action.
- The Committee of Faculty shall carry out the traditional and accepted prerogatives of college and university faculty to ensure that degree requirements are met by candidates and to confer degrees upon those found to be eligible.
- The Committee of Faculty shall act on behalf of the College faculty in certifying that degree candidates have met all requirements for the degree.
- The Chairperson of the Committee of Faculty shall, after consultation with the Registrar, convene the Committee as needed to certify degree candidates.
- The Committee shall keep minutes of its meetings and shall send copies of those minutes that refer to the conferral of degrees to the Chairperson of the Senate, the Vice President for Academic Affairs, the Registrar, and the Chairpersons of the academic departments.
The Committee shall designate a standing Sub-Committee on Academic Freedom, comprised of no fewer than four of its members.
- The Sub-Committee on Academic Freedom will monitor, examine, and report to the Senate on the status of academic freedom at the College.
- The Sub-Committee will investigate possible violations of academic freedom brought to its attention by members of the college community, and will report the results of its investigations to the full Committee of Faculty and to the Senate.
- The Sub-Committee will make appropriate recommendations regarding academic freedom policies and practices to the Senate and, when appropriate, to the University Faculty Senate of CUNY.
- The Sub-Committee shall keep minutes of its meetings and send copies of such minutes to the Chairpersons of the Committee of Faculty.
The Committee of Students shall act as a liaison between the Senate and all other student organizations including, but not limited to, the Student Advisory Council and the Student Government Association, and address and make recommendations to the Senate on all issues of student life and welfare brought to its attention, including but not limited to the following:
- Academic policies, programs, curriculum, and degree requirements.
- Campus-wide cultural and educational events.
- Job Fairs, recruitment and transfer events.
- The Committee shall formulate policy proposals, continually review existing policies, and make recommendations with respect to master and long-range planning of the physical facilities and ongoing operation of the physical facilities.
- The Committee shall also recommend and review policy pertaining to student recruitment, admissions procedures, health and public safety, standards of behavior, ceremonies, athletics, and other related auxiliary services and activities not under the charge of other Senate Committees.
- The Committee should be composed of members recommended by the Committee on Committees. There should be at least one student member on this Committee. The Vice Presidents of Administration, Academic Affairs, and Enrollment Management and Student Development, or their designers, shall also serve on this Committee.
- The Committee of Students shall keep minutes of its meetings and shall send copies of such minutes to the members of the Senate Executive Committee and the members of the Student Government Association.
- The Committee of Students shall recommend to the Committee on Committees student representatives for the various Standing Committees of the Senate. These student representatives will be responsible for reporting back to the Committee of Students on the activities of the Committees to which they were assigned.
The Transfer Committee is a faculty-facing group that facilitates awareness of the transfer experience and process from LaGuardia and two-year colleges generally. Historically, the committee has presented information to faculty so that they better understand transfer terminology, policy, articulation agreements, curriculum development, and mentorship. We continue to pursue this work alongside:
- Gathering and assessing information about procedures, challenges, trends, and resources related to transfer from two-year to four-institutions within and beyond LaGuardia.
- Collaborating with CUNY’s University Faculty Senate, LaGuardia’s Transfer Council, the Center for Teaching and Learning, the Academic Momentum Team, Office of Institutional Research and Assessment, Academic Affairs, and student services offices.
- Presenting transfer information to faculty and staff.
The Committee’s work and vision represent an intention to establish the Transfer Committee as a foundational resource for faculty-facing conversations about transfer.
The Transfer Committee’s membership for 2023-present is:
Co-chair Alexa Duque (ASAP)
Co-chair Misun Dokko (English)
Arthur O’Keeffe (Humanities)
Bukurie Gjoci (Mathematics, Engineering, and Computer Science)
Daniel Gertner (Natural Sciences)
Natalia Biani (Natural Sciences)
The LaGuardia Committee on Food Insecurity, Justice, and Community Need is dedicated to the principles and actions of food justice. Its goals are to contribute to the reduction of food insecurity and other unmet needs—such as housing, toiletries, household cleaning products, clothing, and baby care items—among LaGuardia’s wide community of students, staff, faculty, and neighborhoods, and to form partnerships that sustain community members so that they may learn, work, and serve with resilience and self-pride.
We commit to practices that raise awareness of the diverse manifestations of food inequity, in particular the ways food insecurity deprives individuals and communities of the human right to healthy food, stigmatizes food pantry recipients, and disproportionately affects the well-being of lives endangered by racial, ethnic, and economic injustice.
To realize its goals, the Committee seeks to collaborate with:
- LaGuardia CARES, the Nutrition and Culinary Management Program and Club, the LaGuardia Community College Foundation, the Student Government Association (SGA), the Sustainable Urban Agriculture Program and other relevant college organizations to:
- Reduce student hunger on campus by providing free or reduced-cost meals.
- Encourage anyone facing financial challenges to contact college and community services and resources for immediate help;
- Hold fundraising campaigns and collection drives; and,
- Host and support events that explore and build awareness of food insecurity and other unmet needs among students, staff, faculty, and community members.
- Continuing Education program directors, faculty groups such as inter-departmental cohorts, and the Center for Teaching and Learning to encourage the incorporation of food justice, food equity, food activism, food sovereignty, and related topics into class curricula and pedagogy.
- Businesses and community-based groups, such as community gardens, supermarkets, farmers’ markets, business improvement districts, and other relevant businesses and organizations to raise funds and solicit donations of food, toiletries, clothing, household cleaning products, baby care needs, and other essential items.
To support the above efforts, the committee will make available data on food and other assistance sought by LaGuardia students, staff, faculty, and community members.
Food Insecurity, Justice, and Community Need Committee Members (Fall 2020-Spring 2021):
Nicolle Fernandes (HS),
Rebekah Johnson (ELA), Co-Chair
Alexandra Rojas (Library)
Alice Baldwin-Jones (Social Science)
Andrew McFarland (Humanities)
Elizabeth Streich (Marketing & Communications)
Maritza Pritsos (Adult Basic Skills)
Michele Piso Manoukian (CTL)
Nancy Santangelo (Student Information Center)
Rhonda Mouton (LaGuardia CARES)
Seurette Bazelais (Humanities)
Carlos Freire (Marketing & Communications)
Madelyn Nieves (ASAP)
Liana Brower (ASAP)
Ryan Mann-Hamilton (Social Science)
Ad-hoc Committees
Coming Soon