Category: ACE News

ACE Members,

President’s Message
We’re constantly paying attention to the volume of executive orders, actions, and legal counters, rapidly coming out of the federal government. We’re in an evolving landscape (to put it very mildly) which is making understanding how we’ll be affected difficult. Again, nothing is changing at the district right now – we have no budget shortfall, no change in our services, and no positions are changing.

The chart (LINK) below from Labor Notes’s “Secret of a Successful Organizer” is something I often recall. We are holding the “interpretation box” to understand what’s going to happen when the dust settles. Threats to funding also put us in the “righteous anger box”, but what’s important as a plan to win is to channel that message toward decision makers who have leverage over the funds which are at risk or stress that creating alternative funding sources may be necessary. We can all agree (common ground) that losing federal funding for any reason is not going to help us serve our community while we are already under the student centered formula funding (SCFF) floor(F). Clearly communicating that message to state and federal representatives is important, so I hope you are taking the time to send a message to your representatives – https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials/ .

(Reach out if you’d like a copy of the book – I have 10 copies remaining and we have the budget to purchase more.)

ACE Vice President for De Anza Appointed
Welcome @Marybell Arebalo to the ACE Executive Board! Marybell was appointed unanimously. On behalf of all members, thank you for serving in this important position for the remainder of the term Vins Chacko was originally elected for ending Dec 31^st, 2025. Everyone has the right to participate and serve in the union and we’re grateful to those who step forward into these leadership roles.

We’re working on granting access to the ace_da email list, so look forward to receiving about union hiring committee appointments from Marybell. Special Note; ACE reps play an important role in advocating for internal applicants to determine equivalency for meeting minimum qualifications for an interview. If you are on a committee and feel as though a member is improperly denied an interview, contact @Scott Olsen immediately.

Staff Development Leave (SDL) Update
The committee is going to meet on Monday to review applications. If you’ve submitted yours, you may want to “bump” it to the top of the human resources inbox. I’ll email the applicants who cc’d me on their submissions. Expect to see approvals on the April Board of Trustees agenda in the HR Report. This is normally on their March agenda, but this is the first time for our current (new) HR Vice Chancellor and (new) HR Associate Vice Chancellor are working through this contract section. Welcome Karen White to a permanent role in HR as AVC.

Dues Forgiveness April & May
The ACE line item for union dues will not appear on member paystubs for April and May per the approved ACE budget. It does not affect your membership, so always contact a steward or our attorney directly if you have a question about conditions of employment. As always, we can do this because we control our own money as an independent labor organization, Treasurer @Kathy Nguyen provides excellent financial management, and we’ve earned interest upon our strike fund + money set aside for potential legal/operational expenses.

Whenever ACE does not need to charge for services, we don’t.

Overtime – Call Back Time, Stand-By, and post-Clocked Out Compensation
Have you worked overtime but had a gap between your regular schedule and that overtime? You may be due a minimum of 4 hours of overtime per the Agreement (LINK):

• Occasionally a worker may be called back for work in the evening or on a weekend to accommodate a special need. In such cases, travel time to and from home will be counted as time worked. In order to make the disturbance of normal time off worthwhile, the pay for combined work and travel time shall be for a minimum of four hours. (13.2.4)

Article 13 goes on to state:

• Carrying a district-provided cell phone after normal working hours shall be entirely voluntary. Workers will not be disciplined for failure to respond to a call, email, or text message after they have clocked out for the day. (13.2.6)
• No worker shall be required or requested to be available for handling potential emergency situations or available to answer questions by phone, text, or email after they have clocked out for the day, unless the supervisor has contacted the worker to authorize call-back time to accommodate a special need. (13.2.6.1)
• Workers who are contacted by phone, or computer after they have clocked out for the day, but prior to 11:00 p.m., to answer questions or handle emergencies from home, shall be paid a minimum of fifteen (15) minutes overtime and shall be paid in quarter hour (15 minute) increments after the first fifteen (15) minutes. (13.2.6.2)
  • Workers who are contacted by phone or computer after 11:00 p.m. to answer questions or handle emergency situations from home shall be paid a minimum of two hours overtime.
  • Workers who are contacted by phone or computer for emergencies which begin prior to 11:00 p.m., but continue past 11:00 p.m., will be paid the two-hour minimum.

You should not feel stress to respond to district business after hours and you cannot be disciplined for not responding. It is understood that we have regular work schedules and overtime should not become a burden:

• Overtime shall be distributed among qualified workers in order that opportunities to earn extra pay will be equitably shared and in order that overtime work will not become the burden of a small percentage of qualified workers. Consideration when possible will be given to the personal obligations of workers which may conflict with overtime hours. (13.2.5)

If you are regularly being assigned more work than is possible to complete during your regular work schedule, we can meet with your supervisor/manager to prioritize tasks. Short staffing is a college/district choice – we can work with you to document that there is too much work and not enough people to do it. Creating an agreement surrounding duty/task priorities also shields you from discipline from work that is determined to be low priority. Reach out to any steward to start this conversation. Problems rarely if ever resolve themselves without a member coming forward.

This is also a common occurrence while working out of class. If you’re assuming the duties of another full-time position, you should not be expected to complete the duties of the position you were originally hired for. Again, schedule a meeting with a steward for more information.

More to come…

In Service,

Scott Olsen (he/him) | ACE President
https://acefhda.org | scott.olsen@acefhda.org  
650-949-7789 | M-F 8:00am-5:00pm

ACE Members,

President’s Message
“We are entering dark times,” was stated by an administrator at the start of the most recent Chancellor’s Advisory Council meeting. On February 14^th the US Department of Education Office for Civil Rights issued a letter (attached) which provides the department’s interpretation of current legal standards. According to District counsel, this is not law, this is a statement of priorities. At this time there are no budgetary changes, no changes in reporting structure, and no changes in positions. Today the Chancellor will be holding an in-person townhall meeting on the De Anza campus. I hope to hear your questions/concerns at 1pm, Campus Center conference rooms A & B. FHDA CCD is going to continue to provide the same services and instruction, but there will be updates to how we continue forward under federal management.  

At this time I would highly recommend each of us reach out to our elected representatives – https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials/

• How do you feel about added scrutiny/penalties being placed upon public education?
• How do you feel about federal workers being laid off indiscriminately?
• How do you feel about the cost of living?
• How do you feel about the opportunity for current and future generations to succeed?

Sending an email or leaving a voicemail is free. These are the decision makers who need to hear the impact of what’s going on in our community. Help them develop an informed response by regularly contributing your perspective.

Future Townhalls are scheduled to be held at Foothill and virtually:
Monday, March 17, 9:00-10:00 a.m.
Foothill College, Room 8338

Friday, March 21, 1:00-2:00 p.m.
Virtual meeting – Zoom link to follow

Please join. Our questions and concerns will help contribute to developing a response here at the district.

Congratulations to Vins! We are all grateful for your years of service and leadership in the ACE Vice President for De Anza position.

Seeking Members for De Anza VP Appointment
Vins is available if you have any questions about stepping into this union leadership position. Please send a statement of interest to @Scott Olsen by Tuesday, March 11^th :

D. Duties of the Vice Presidents
1) Upon approval of the Board, the vice presidents may be authorized to approve expenditures withdrawn on ACE funds in place of either the president or treasurer, and shall perform such other duties as assigned by the president or the executive board.
2) The vice presidents shall serve on the College Council, PARC, College Budget committees and other District committees as assigned.
3) The vice presidents shall hold and facilitate site meetings each month at their respective sites.
4) The vice presidents shall assign ACE representatives to hiring committees for classified workers in Unit 1 for their respective areas.

A. Responsibilities of Executive Board Members
The Executive Board Member is directly responsible for:
1) The operation of ACE.
2) Assuring appropriate expenditure of funds.
3) Proper and legal administration and implementation of the constitution.
4) Any representation of ACE that has been authorized by the Board in order to bind ACE or agree to any issues subject to collective bargaining and EERA.

Serving as an Executive Board Member requires subordination of personal interests to those that represent the highest good of the members. Board Members shall have no greater rights than any other member of ACE.

Reach out to any current VP or Board Member for more information.

ACE T-Shirt & Sweater Survey (Reminder)
Our swag “stuff we all get” survey is (still) live via a Google Forms. ACE has a $3,000 annual budget for marketing and increasing union visibility. Stickers are a small step, but we’re also looking to offer T-shirts to those who are interested. We will need to advocate for workplace improvements at board meetings, city meetings, county meetings, state meetings, etc. and shirts help to show we are united as a group with a request. Often, we are mistaken for faculty members or outside community members, but something as simple as a shirt shows that we’re organized together and willing to show up in numbers to speak to a need/concern.

I purchased my shirt from the Labor Notes store (LINK) and would love to see similar shirts with ACE logos around campus showing union pride and solidarity. ACE has a massive effect on our workplace, but our visibility does not reflect that. Let us know your thoughts and T-shirt size so that we can create an estimate.

Thank you to @Janie Garcia Cordova, @Lindsay West, and @Sharon Garcia-Vega for advancing this.

The items in this message are ongoing conversations. Please attend union site meetings and respond to future surveys to voice how we move forward collectively as a group.

In Service,

Scott Olsen (he/him) | ACE President
https://acefhda.org | scott.olsen@acefhda.org  
650-949-7789 | M-F 8:00am-5:00pm

ACE Members,

President’s Message
It’s 2025, I’m feeling well rested after taking two weeks off. The renewed energy is being directed at responding to member emails, calls, and texts. At the same time, I’ve been hearing we’re all a little caught off guard that we’re back, so I’m not going to address anything too technical as a part of the first message of the year. Together we’ll make 2025 as good as we can.

ACE Board Position Updates
@Lindsay West has been appointed as Vice President of Central Services by the ACE Executive Board to serve the remainder of the elected term which @William Baldwin vacated due to retirement from the District. Bill was ever-present and a thoughtful contributor. We’re going to miss him but also wish him the best in retirement.

Lindsay’s appointment leaves a vacancy at the Central Services Board Member position, so we need you.

In addition, @Sharon Garcia-Vega has begun her elected term as Recorder, which has left a vacancy at the Foothill Board Member position, so we need more of you.

What’s required of a Board Member?

• Attend ACE Executive Board Meetings, Site Meetings, and General Membership Meetings (2-3 hours per month).
• Attend assigned committee (CS Classified Senate & HRAC | FH Classified Senate) (1-2 hours per month).
• Be responsible for the operation of ACE, assuring appropriate expenditure of funds, proper and legal administrator and implementation of the constitution, and a representation of ACE.
• Serving as an Executive Board Member requires subordination of personal interests to those that represent the highest good of the members. Board Members shall have no greater rights than any other member of ACE.

More questions?
Reach out directly to any current or former ACE Board Member.

I’m ready! How do I apply?
Respond to this message by January 16^th with a statement of interest.

ACE Executive Board Meeting Rescheduled to January 29^th
The upcoming Board Meeting has been rescheduled to 1/29. This will provide time to find two (2) new board members and we’ll have an executive board training that day provided by the Booth Law Group.

Grant Ave Affordable Housing Project
In December details on this project were provided during an onsite meeting with Kelly Hollywood from Mercy Housing. If you have an interest, I would highly suggest visiting – https://www.231grant.org/ where you can scroll to the bottom to be included on direct email notifications.

12 units have been allocated to Foothill-De Anza. They are a mix of studio, one bedroom and two bedroom units. The current distribution (which is subject to change) is 3 studios, 7 one bedrooms, and 2 two bedrooms. Units will be offered on a lottery system.

• Water & garbage services are covered as a part of the rent.
• Electricity is paid for by the occupant.

How long can I live there?
There is no time limit, but you must maintain your eligibility:

• Your income must not exceed the specified limits.
• Your employment must be with Foothill-De Anza.

More questions? Visit the project website and/or attend an upcoming meeting.

In Service,
Scott Olsen (he/him) | ACE President
https://acefhda.org | scott.olsen@acefhda.org  
650-949-7789 | M-F 8:00am-5:00pm