In 1988, AB 1725 (Vasconcellos) required that minimum qualifications be established for faculty at California’s community colleges.  The process for establishing the minimum qualifications must be jointly agreed upon by the academic senate and the governing board.  As early as the second edition of the Minimum Qualifications for Faculty and Administrators in California Community Colleges handbook (Jan. 1994), and perhaps earlier (I was unable to locate a copy of the first edition), the minimum qualifications for mathematics have included the option of a bachelor’s degree in mathematics or applied mathematics and a master’s degree in math education.  This year, faculty from Bakersfield and Saddleback Colleges requested a revision to the minimum qualifications for mathematics that would require those meeting these qualifications to also complete an additional 18 units of graduate-level mathematics.

Given that the master’s in mathematics education has long been included in the minimum qualifications handbook, and that the discipline itself has not changed significantly at the community college level, it is worth considering what professional organizations have to say on the matter and whether this proposed change is in the best interests of the discipline and our students. 

After over 30 years of attending my students' graduations, I recently had the profound honor of witnessing a commencement ceremony like no other. As my term as FACCC President was coming to an end, I was thrilled when the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office extended an invitation to attend the Rising Scholars graduation at the California Rehabilitation Center, celebrating the achievements of incarcerated students from Norco College and other community colleges across the state.

On the day of the ceremony, we arrived hours early, leaving our phones behind in our cars. As I waited to enter the enclosed yard where the outdoor event would be held, I met dedicated faculty who had made the long drive from colleges like Palo Verde to support their Rising Scholar students.