Dr. Toni Pirtle, Ed.D.

Faculty & Staff Advocacy

As a Professor, I advocate in the following way:

Current Service on Committees:

• Community College Association Elections Committee
• MCFA, Faculty Association Representative (3 years)

Past Service on Committees:

• MCFA Vice President (2 years)
• Faculty Senate (2 years)
• Chair and Co-Chair Instructional Master Planning Committee (2 years)
• Education Master Planning Committee (6 years)
• Instructional Master Planning Committee (6 years)
• Administrative Services Master Planning Committee (2 years)
• Chair Learning Management System Task Force (1 year)
• Instructional Council Committee (6 years)
• Instructional Program Review Student Learning Outcomes (6 years)
• Curriculum Assessment Trainer (6 years)
• Curriculum Committee (2 years)
• Distance Education Committee (2 years)
• Technology Master Planning Committee (2 years)
• Social Media Policy Task Force (1 year)
• Hiring Committees – Several Full-Time and Part-Time Faculty Committees
• Merced College Foundation Director (2 years)

As former Faculty Lead (6 years):

• Scheduled six cohort meetings a year, serving as chair, developed meeting gendas and distributed the respective Minutes of Meetings
• Coordinated and participated in evaluations of faculty in consultation with the Dean
• Facilitated the resource allocation process
• Attended monthly Instructional Council meetings
• Liaised with off campus faculty of the department as necessary regarding their roles and their specific instructional support needs
• Liaised with the relevant off campus Deans regarding all general college issues, such as curriculum, faculty hiring, evaluations, and other faculty issues pertinent to the respective discipline cohort

As former CTE Dean

• Faculty Recruitment to best serve the needs of the programs – recruited 3 full-time faculty, 1 Director, 6 classified staff, and several part-time faculty in year 1
• Monitored 200+ courses and program outcomes, discussed these with faculty
• Secured funding for Instructional Areas and Programs to facilitate the best service for students
• Secured funding of $1.5 million annually, facilitating equipment and program improvements for thirteen CTE Programs
• Developed new Welding facility as a team with Faculty & Staff
• Held regular office hours, and offered after hours telephone support
• Held regular meetings with program faculty and support staff, as groups and independently, and as needed
• Fostered a team environment
• Adopted a visible, transformative, and amenable leadership approach
• Promoted all programs equally within the community
• Facilitated the curriculum development process, advising campus-wide on opportunities for improvement, and statewide initiatives
• Maintained budgets and actively adhered to fiscal responsibilities
• Maintained and developed community relationships
• Regularly communicated with Workforce Investment Board, County Economic and Workforce Development personnel, and Chambers of Commerce
• Developed CTE Marketing materials
• Served on the CTE Advisory Board and developed CTE Advisory Board Handbook

Student Advocacy

As a Professor, I advocate for students in the following way:

• Empower underserved populations (example: gathered clothing, rented a storage unit and provided professional gender-inclusive career clothing, advertised to the community, and invited community members to utilize the career closet).

• Provide student success coaching when needed

• Fostered assistance through Student Services to furnish students with disabilities (examples: acquired vision-impaired software, acquired equipment to facilitate students with missing limbs, utilized signers in the classroom when necessary)

• Covid-19 Response: Converted all courses to fully online utilizing Canvas

• Program Coordinator for two AA degrees (13 years) and for 4 certificate programs (10 years)

• Developed 4 Fast Track Certificates (Programs have since quadrupled in size in two years under this new design).

• Developed 14 courses – taught face-to-face, hybrid and online

• Developed Student Social Media Club and “MCPod” Podcast

During My tenure As Dean:

I advocated for students in the following way:

• Promoted student services programs

• Advised students on academic success, conduct, and discipline

• Maintained a visible and approachable demeanor to all students

• Developed Dual Enrollment process with local high school districts

• Practiced enrollment management strategies with a student focus

• Mentored & evaluated staff and faculty to best meet the needs of the diverse student population

• Conducted faculty evaluations to best serve the needs of the students

• Worked extensively with Student Services Equity Dean in developing Support Coaches and secured funding to support new initiatives

• Extended embedded counseling services within the department