NVCFA News
Latest Updates from your association
Hello Faculty! Doesn't our union meeting week before last feel like a long, long time ago? I wanted to make sure that I kept everyone up on union news. First and foremost, I wanted to make sure that none of our faculty, full or part-time, worries about not being paid for the semester. Governor Newsom signed an executive order to fully fund public schools for the remainder of the academic year - including community colleges - regardless of closure, so everyone will be paid their full salary/hours to conduct their classes online. Secondly, negotiations between the district and faculty association have been suspended until the week of April 13th. Both sides agreed to hold off on any open contract items during this time so we can fully focus on this transition to online/distance learning. Once we return from spring break, we will resume and assess whether we need to meet remotely or can meet face to face again. My hope is that we will still have a great contract for everyone to vote on by the end of the semester. Also, our officer elections! While they have been delayed slightly, they should have arrived in your personal email accounts yesterday (Subject line: "NVCFA Officers Election 2020"). HERE is a link to the balloting website, but you will need a password from that email to access your individual ballot. Please reach out if you have any trouble. Please do not hesitate to email me if you have any questions. I already miss everyone and our little community so much. I miss normalcy and not smelling like hand sanitizer. I very much look forward to the day that we can again all sit next to each other in a room, have pizza and laugh together. I am optimistic that we will come out of the other side of this stronger and more united than ever. Kristie A. Iwamoto NVCFA President McCoy Elizabeth Dodsworth is a sociologist, educator, mother and volunteer.
On faculty at Napa Valley College for 2 years now, McCoy loves her work with our awesome NVC students. She employs active learning to engage rookie social scientists, communicate warmth, and set high expectations. This work includes adept adaptation (ahem) of course material to various formats including online, in-person, and accelerated courses. She teaches Introduction to Sociology, Sex & Gender, and Social Problems. Previously, McCoy worked on an NIH funded follow-up study that investigated how women living long term with HIV/AIDS made reproductive choices. In addition to NVC, McCoy consults as a design researcher seeking to understand how employees navigate complex power dynamics. This research informs trainings that integrate the social science on presence with scene work on the performance of power. Native to Arizona, McCoy was raised by quasi-Marxist, eco-Christian vegetarians. She resides in Marin County with her husband and two sons. There, she trains for trail marathons, rides bikes, drinks wine, orders things on the internet (but tries not to), and reads the news. She is currently obsessed with Stardew Valley, Eula Biss, Ibram Kendi, baby Yoda, and podcasts. Her Bachelor's from the University of Colorado at Boulder is a double major in English & Latin American Studies with a minor in Atmospheric Science. Her Master’s Degree in Sociology was completed at California State University East Bay. |