Nassau Community College fall classes to start Tuesday under new department consolidation plan

Classes for more than 11,000 Nassau Community College students start Tuesday under a consolidated leadership plan that has been legally challenged by the school’s faculty.

This past year, college officials merged 21 departments during a reorganization, eliminating 15 academic chairs during the process. The school starts the fall term with six areas of study that each have a chair.

College officials say the structure provides for a better management system and efficiencies. There were no layoffs of tenured staff, according to Jerry Kornbluth, the college’s vice president for community and governmental relations.

"This is a management efficiency model that a lot of colleges actually use," he said.

The Nassau Community College Federation of Teachers, its leadership and four faculty members filed legal action in Nassau State Supreme Court in June against the college, the county and the school’s board of trustees, seeking to block the plan, which they have argued will hurt students and wasn’t properly approved.

That case continues to make its way through the courts, with the next court date set for Sept. 16. John Gross, who represents the county and the college, said the case should be dismissed, saying in court papers that the matter had been resolved in a prior labor agreement that stipulated the "NCCFT will withdraw, with prejudice, all pending grievances and arbitrations regarding department mergers."

"We have asserted to the court that the claim they are making is blocked by the fact this was completely resolved in negotiations," Gross said in an interview. "This is a desperate attempt by the union to avoid necessary reorganization of the college's instructional administration, causing several chairpersons to lose large cash stipends."

Stipends varied for department chairs from about $4,800 to $39,000, college officials said.

Faren Siminoff, NCCFT president, said the plan goes beyond a department merger and had not been resolved under a prior agreement.

"What the lawsuit explains is that the college has created schools or divisions, rather than department mergers," she said.

The union has raised concerns that the new structure will put the college’s accreditation at risk and harm students with fewer class offerings and insufficient full-time faculty.

"The College has barreled ahead with what the NCCFT believes is an ill-conceived reorganization plan, which has done little to promote the college or serve the community," Siminoff said in an email. "The reorganization prioritizes hiring pricey administrators over maintaining chairs to run the departments effectively and/or full-time instructional and support faculty to provide the services and guidance our students need and deserve."

NCC officials say the plan went into effect Aug. 1. Each of the new areas will have a chair, an assistant chair and a chair's liaison, Kornbluth said, representing a better model to manage. For example, the administrative business technology, criminal justice, hospitality business and marketing/retailing/fashion/interior design departments will be merged into the Accounting and Business Administration Department.

Objection to the plan was part of an overwhelming vote of no confidence of 232-36 taken by the faculty in March that also was critical of the administrative leadership, including chief administrative officer Maria Conzatti, and how the school handles its finances. Nassau has not had a permanent president since 2022, when Jermaine Williams, who was appointed in 2019, left the job.

The latest enrollment figures as of Friday show 11,200 students registered in the fall term — a 6.4% increase from the prior year. But enrollment has declined for years. In 2011, about 24,000 students attended. The college is funded by tuition, the county and state. The county legislature approved the school's $184 million operating budget in June. Tuition was held at $2,900 per semester, or $5,800 a year.

"The biggest challenge for the college continues to be enrolling and retaining students," according to a June report from the Nassau County Office of Legislative Budget Review.

Community colleges have been struggling across the state and nationwide. Layoffs have been proposed at SUNY Rockland Community College and other two-year New York schools have had to raise tuition. Many public and private colleges in New York face dwindling enrollment and budget shortfalls. SUNY Fredonia and Potsdam recently announced program reductions in hopes of closing millions in budget deficits.

NCC has a deficit of about $4.9 million.

Kornbluth said the college has received about $47 million in grant money and last year brought in about $500,000 in rental income and hopes to do more of that this year. Officials are looking to add workforce development instruction and are planning to add courses in welding, electric, heating, ventilation and air conditioning.

"Our plan is to have something in place for students in January," he said.

By Joie Tyrrell

joie.tyrrell@newsday.com@JoieTyrrell

Joie Tyrrell is a Long Island native and covers education for Newsday, where she has worked since 1998.