ACC Chancellor Dr. Russell Lowery-Hart hosted the October Virtual Employee Town Hall on Friday, October 4. About 772 people attended the discussion on Zoom.
In this month’s town hall, employees learned about the ACC Foundation’s new mission, a civil rights audit, and the new campus purpose framework. They also received updates on the Compensation and Reclassification Study, the Theory of Change process, the Chancellor’s Leadership Institute, and campus safety.
Below are highlights from the discussion.
ACC Foundation’s New Mission
The Chancellor discussed changes to the ACC Foundation that emerged as a result of the audit conducted by Gonser Gerber LLP, a consultant hired by the College.
The Foundation’s mission is shifting from a focus on scholarships to becoming a fundraising apparatus for the College and community.
“With the amount of resources in this community — the University of Texas has a $45 billion, Texas State University has a $700 million foundation, and we have a $17 million foundation — we should have a $100 million to $150 million foundation that could get us close to making tuition free for all students,” said Dr. Lowery-Hart. “We think the resources exist in the community to raise some significant funds.”
New leadership is necessary to help reimagine the Foundation. At the advice of the consultants, the College will hire a new vice chancellor of advancement/executive director of the Foundation The position is not a new expense for the College; it is being repurposed from the facilities management reorganization process audit.
The hiring process will be an open one. All finalists will be expected to give a public presentation, allowing employees to provide input and ask questions.
Theory of Change Design Teams
The Chancellor turned the town hall over to Dr. Samantha Croft to provide an update on the College’s Theory of Change (ToC) process. She said that the work of the Design Teams kicked off Friday, September 6, with six teams, who are currently in the Gathering phase.
The ToC web page will continue to be updated. A Document Repository that will contain meeting agendas, minutes, and other relevant documents has been added to the teams that have started their work. A Community Input page where people can leave comments for specific design teams is in the works.
Dr. Croft also shared that the job posting for students who want to be involved on the Design Teams has closed. The College received 180 applications and will start the interview process immediately.
Finally, she said that the Theory of Change Institute will launch on October 21.
Chancellor’s Leadership Institute
Russell referred to the first cohort of the Chancellor’s Leadership Institute (CLI) as an incredible collection of leaders who challenged him to be better and think bigger.
“I’m really proud of the first cohort of CLI participants. They were courageous, they were compassionate, and they were joyful trying to figure out how to get to a yes. I left the experience with more hope than I have had in my year as a part of this college,” said Russell.
The Chancellor introduced Missi Patterson, CLI facilitator, to provide an overview of the purpose of the Institute, where you can find resources, and an update. She walked employees through the CLI website.
Learn more about the CLI HERE.
Compensation and Reclassification Study
The Chancellor shared a timeline for the compensation and reclassification study. It has launched, and we are currently in the Discover phase. Consultants are assessing the differences in what our jobs are versus what our job descriptions say. This phase should run through the end of 2024.
Over the next few months, some employees can expect to receive a survey or meeting invite from Guidehouse, the consultant conducting the study.
The goal is to have an assessment and recommendation by March or April 2025.
Civil Rights Audit
Russell shared that the College recently underwent a civil rights audit as part of a federal requirement. In Texas, these audits should be conducted by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board every 25-35 years but there was no record that ACC has ever gone through one.
ACC found out before Labor Day and had to activate quickly to pull together a lot of information in a short amount of time. A draft has been submitted, and the College doesn’t anticipate any problems. Russell will share the results, which the College should receive within the next 30 days.
The Chancellor informed employees that the audit will identify things that we can improve with how our space aligns with different legal requirements. He also said to expect a lot of conversations about the civil rights audit over the next year.
Campus Purpose
Russell said that during his campus visits, there were always questions about why and how certain services were offered at certain campuses. He reminded employees that he said we needed a rubric that could guide how and when the College invested resources, services, and programs by campus.
To that end, he said that the cabinet leadership team has been working on a framework that will serve as the start of the conversation with employees. He wants employees to help co-create that rubric. To share the work that has been done so far, Drs. Monique Umphrey, Shasta Buchanan, and Gaye Lynn Scott will tour the campuses to host initial conversations over the next few months and discuss the findings in a January town hall. More information coming soon.
Campus Safety
ACC Executive Director of Regulatory Affairs Dr. Michael Garcia shared the new safety protocols adopted by the College this fall. Learn more about the new five-step Standard Response Protocols HERE.
General Assembly
The Chancellor reminded employees that General Assembly is Friday, November 8, at the Travis County Exposition Center and that the College will be closed that day so that everyone has the opportunity to attend. We will talk about the ToC, look at the college report card, and listen to people who can help us contemplate how we’re doing our work. He said it will include special guests, awards and acknowledgments, and opportunities to connect with each other.
Russell said that a lot of the event program will be built around the book “Class.” He encouraged employees to read it and contemplate questions or reflections on how you see our students or colleagues in the story.
First Year Reflections
Russell ended by sharing reflections from his first year, which starts around minute 59:00 in the Town Hall recording. He followed up with an email to all employees. You can read Russell’s message HERE.
The Chancellor concluded the town hall promptly to attend the Student Virtual Town Hall starting at 10 a.m.
View the recording and the entire Q&A transcript on the Virtual Employee Town Hall web page.