SB 5538 - DIGEST
(SEE ALSO PROPOSED 1ST SUB)

Declares an intent to: (1) Provide faculty and college excellence for Washington citizens by increasing the number of full-time, tenured academic employee positions at community and technical colleges and by enabling academic employees who hold part-time positions to have greater assurance of continuing employment; and

(2) Develop a planning process through which the community and technical colleges and the state board for community and technical colleges suggest a long-term strategic plan and timeline for faculty conversions.

Directs each community and technical college, in close collaboration with the exclusive bargaining representative for faculty, to create a conversion plan to increase the number of full-time tenured faculty positions.

Requires each community and technical college, subject to collective bargaining, to establish a process: (1) Under which part-time and full-time nontenured faculty members, after successful completion of an evaluation period, receive timely notice of and priority consideration, consistent with other institutional and state policies, for academic employment assignments for which they are qualified in their discipline in coming academic terms; and

(2) For ensuring that qualified internal applicants receive priority consideration for attaining a tenure-track position when one becomes available such as prior notification of job openings before they are posted outside of the institution or a job interview for positions where minimum requirements have been met.