Part-time faculty commons, where good is a full-time commonality

By Chanel Stitt
Staff Writer

In LA 178, one will find the Part-Time Faculty Commons, along with the word processing team of WCC. This is a place for part-time faculty to meet with their students and work on their lesson plans in the computer lab designated for them.

These offices have been located here since October 1999, except for during renovations in 2016.

Diana Sepac is the director of the evening & extension services in the commons. She believes in standing back and letting the staff of the offices work together to make things happen for the school.

“We service over 600 part-time faculty on campus, so it’s a planning space for faculty, it’s a home for them,” said Sepac.

The commons are open during the week and also on weekends during in the fall and winter semesters of the school year.

The commons hosts numerous things, including hosting new staff orientation, computers and meeting areas for faculty. The word processing team creates course packs, prepares state accreditations for several departments, works with blackboard and runs the extension sites in Hartland, Brighton and Dexter.

Faculty can grade their tests using the scantron machine and print large masses of copies that they need for their students. There is free coffee for faculty to help to get them ready to start their day.

The faculty has a compliment board to show the positive feedback that they receive from faculty and students. The board was covered with nothing but good things to say about the staff and the commons.

Christina Do is the part time faculty commons’ assistant and a part of word processing team for the college. In word processing, employees create and help with many of the programs and papers that students come across on a daily basis. They work with writing syllabi, course packs, reference letters, tests and quizzes. They work with nursing materials as well.

The admin support specialist is Debra Shillington, who started as a student at the school and has worked at WCC for 28 years. She is the lead of word processing.

Heather Sanford is the liaison and technician for the evening and extension services, keeping track of enrollment and mail at the extension sites of WCC.

Theresa Hunt, the commons secretary, works at the welcome desk and is the first to greet everyone when they walk in the door. Faculty can receive supplies that they may need to teach their classes and borrow things such as calculators, glasses and phone chargers.

“We try to make their experience the best possible, so we have everything that they need. We try to make them as happy as can be,” said Hunt.

There is a drop box outside of the offices for students after hours. Students are able to place papers in there to be given to their teachers when the office opens in the morning.

Items inside the drop box are placed in one of the 300 mailboxes after being logged with a timestamp of when it was received.

Part-time faculty Emily Peterson, who teaches ethics, law and health care, mentioned that the commons is a great
facility that the college has. It has been known that other colleges don’t necessarily have a facility as good as the one at WCC, if any commons at all.

“[They are a] very supportive staff, a great
environment to meet with other teachers, good hours [and] good facilities,” said Peterson.

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