Howard Community College faculty and staff urge delegation to back HOCO 1-25 for transparency, board training and restored anonymous staff survey

Dozens of Howard Community College faculty, staff and union representatives asked the Howard County delegation to support HOCO 1-25 and its amendments to increase transparency and accountability at the college, restore anonymous employee feedback, require periodic trustee training and ensure regular public comment at board meetings.

"Faculty voices, along with those of students and staff, are largely absent from these discussions," said Mari Weprecht, an associate professor at Howard Community College, asking that the board adopt a public comment process similar to other local public bodies.

Speakers described multiple, recurring concerns: the suspension or termination of the college's entire HR department this year; an approximately $7.7 million contract approved by the board to outsource human-resources functions; the discontinuation in 2022 of the anonymous QUEST employee survey in favor of an internal, nonanonymous tool; and what several witnesses called inconsistent application of college policies.

"At many board of trustees meetings, it seems that expenditures are presented and rubber stamped with very little or no discussion," said Beth Deutschman, an associate professor of physical science, citing the recent HR contract as an example. Philip Vilardo testified that the outsourcing contract was approved after the board removed the HR staff and that the substitution of a third-party provider raises reaccreditation risks.

Multiple faculty members described difficulty reaching trustees, alleged that the college president has functioned as a gatekeeper for who is allowed to speak at board meetings, and asked that trustees receive ongoing training to strengthen oversight of data, budgets and institutional decisions. Witnesses also emphasized that without an anonymous employee survey, staff fear retaliation and are less likely to report problems.

Some faculty reported what they described as targeted enforcement of a sign/poster policy after unionization activity, including an incident where campus security removed union-related signs from inside offices; faculty said other nonunion signs remained. Several witnesses said they planned to pursue administrative and legal remedies.

Union representatives and AFT organizers urged the delegation to support the bill as a set of corrective steps that would return transparency and improve governance at HCC. The delegation did not take formal action on the bill during the portion of the hearing in the transcript.