Attending: John M. Crisp, Mike Gadell, Homer Garza, Noe Guerra, Dolores Huerta, Mattie Marcum, William Mareth, Vickie Natale, Mary Peña, Jim Pierce (Chair), Lisa Welch.

Not Attending: None

Other Attending: Antonio David, Carol Larue, Mary Ann Williams.

Self-Study Plan: Chair Jim Pierce distributed a draft of the Self-Study Plan and said the document was essentially finished, except for further proofing and formatting. He asked the members of the Steering Committee to review the Plan, particularly the "Calendar," "Data Collection and Evaluation," and "Writing the Self-Study Report." He asked the committee to have their responses to him by Tuesday, July 7. He said that the document would then be reviewed by the administration and submitted to DMC's SACS liaison.

Self-Study Office/Secretarial Position: Pierce announced that the Self-Study Office will be in the library, Room 533, and that it should be ready between the middle and end of August. He said that the secretarial position should be filled by late August. The Office will contain DMC documents and other resources, as well room for conferences and working space for the secretary and the Self-Study Director.

Trip to Laredo Community College: Pierce said that a SACS evaluation team will be visiting Laredo Community College in spring of 1999 and that members of the Steering Committee might benefit from observing a self-study that is one year ahead of DMC's. He said that the Committee should begin to consider a trip to Laredo later this summer.

Convocation: Pierce reported that V.P.I.S.D. Armenta wants to have a report at convocation on the progress of DMC's self-study. He suggested that the Committee needs to consider the nature and method of the report and that if "break-out" sessions are held, members of the Steering Committee will need to staff them. Furthermore, he said that all those involved in the self-study may be asked to stand at convocation.

Reports from Steering Committee Liaisons: Pierce asked the liaisons to each of the principal committees to report on each committee's progress.

Institutional Purpose: Liaison Jim Pierce reported that the Institutional Purpose Committee has met three times, has turned in questions for the survey, and will be meeting again later this month.

Institutional Effectiveness: Liaison Mattie Marcum said that the committee has met a number of times and has turned in its survey questions. She reported that the committee is considering bringing in a consultant on institutional effectiveness. When Pierce asked if the committee is facing any particular problems, she said that it is continuing to refine its focus and trying to resolve questions regarding how research in this area should be conducted. Vickie Natale said that during DMC's last self-study, "institutional research" generally comprised more than solely the data generated in her office. She suggested that the committee review the unit plans for research from outside her office. She pointed out, also, that the discussion raised an important question: "How are the results of unit plan evaluations actually being used?"

Pierce asked all of the liaisons to make it absolutely clear to their committees that the committee reports should include the results of a thorough, objective, and fair investigation into the College's compliance with the standards in the Criteria for Accreditation. Dolores Huerta suggested that the idea that the self-study will be more than "busy work" be conveyed repeatedly to faculty and staff, perhaps beginning at convocation, in order to defuse the notion that nothing will result from the study. Noe Guerra reminded the Steering Committee that the Library, ten years ago, was able to make long-needed changes as a direct result of problems in its operation that were pointed out in the 1989 Self-Study Report

Student Development Services: Liaison Mary Peña reported that no meetings had been held and that survey questions had not been developed. Pierce said that he had spoken with Linda Ard and that a meeting had been scheduled.

Educational Support Services: Liaison Noe Guerra reported that the committee has met once and that survey questions have not been submitted. Pierce said that liaisons will need to urge their committees to meet deadlines and other requirements.

Educational Programs: Liaison Lisa Welch said that the committee has met a number of times and has submitted its survey questions. She said that the committee is trying to resolve questions regarding how much data is needed to support "must" and "should" statements. Finally, she reported that the committee has divided its "must" statements among its members (approximately eight per person) and has begun to draft responses.

Special Educational Activities: Liaison Mike Gadell said that the committee met twice before the end of the spring semester and is working on the survey questions.

Faculty: Liaison John M. Crisp reported that the committee's chair called a meeting on May 7, but that a quorum did not attend. Survey questions have not been submitted.

Computer Resources: Liaison William Mareth reported that the committee has met several times and made progress on the survey questions. He said that the committee has discussed how specific survey questions should be and whether they can be used to gather information about specific labs, for example. Huerta pointed out that specific information about labs and other facilities should be gathered by departments and units periodically, outside the processes of a self-study. Pierce said that the Steering Committee should be concerned not so much with whether specific labs work well, but with whether DMC is monitoring how well they work. Natale said that the student survey, for example, could be fashioned to query students about the adequacy of specific labs and that the survey could support both general and specific questions.

Organization and Administration: Liaison Noe Guerra reported that the committee had met several times and that all the members attended. The committee's "must" statements have been divided among the members and the survey questions have been developed and submitted.

Institutional Advancement: Liaison Jim Pierce said that the committee met for the second time on June 30 to draft survey questions and that it will be meeting next week to discuss interviews.

Financial Resources: Liaison Dolores Huerta reported that the committee has met three times and that the "must" statements have been divided among the committee members. She said that committee chair Don Craig, having lost some members, is concerned about having enough to complete the committee's tasks. Pierce said that the committee may add members. Huerta said that committee members report regularly to Craig regarding documents that they have collected in order to prevent duplication. Pierce pointed out that as many members of the committees as possible should listen to interviews so that conclusions drawn will represent the views of the whole committee, rather than merely those of the ones conducting the interviews. Huerta said that the committee will meet again on July 15. The committee's survey questions were submitted to the Self-Study Director by the June 30 deadline.

Physical Resources: Liaison Homer Garza said that the committee has met twice, developing its survey questions during the second meeting. He said that the committee would meet next week when it will begin to work on the "must" statements.

Pierce encouraged all of the liaisons to bring problems to the Steering Committee.

Pierce reported that only a few committees had turned in their survey questions by the June 30 deadline. He said that the Steering Committee will need to meet to develop the survey questionnaire.

Minutes: Crisp reported that Laura Montemayor had just completed the final touches on a program that will allow principal committee secretaries to submit meeting minutes directly to the self-study homepages. He said that within a few days directions and a template would be distributed to the principal committee chairs and secretaries. Huerta asked whether committees should maintain files of hardcopies of their minutes. Crisp said that they should and added that once minutes are posted on the server, hardcopy versions can be produced easily.

Next Steering Committee Meeting: July 13 at 1:00 p.m. The place of the meeting will be announced. Pierce asked the committee members to review the survey questions and compare them with the questions used during DMC's last self-study.

Minutes prepared by John M. Crisp.