By Gil Perez, LPCC, CST, NCC, CCMHC, BC-TMH, Personal Counselor & AFT Chapter Chair, College of San Mateo

Active Minds is the mental health student organization at Cañada College, College of San Mateo, and Skyline College. Active Minds is not just a student organization. For more than a decade it has supported our prevention and early intervention efforts at each college by offering a safe space for students to openly talk about their struggles, helping students see that they are not alone in their struggle, and connecting them to mental health resources. Our District was first among our nation’s community colleges to establish Active Minds chapters.

As a district, we have a duty to take reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harm, including student suicides. Suicide is a leading cause of death for college students. Every semester, SMCCCD students attempt or die by suicide. If any of our colleges are aware of a student’s distress we are responsible to provide, or assist in finding, adequate mental health services. 

Active Minds has successfully expanded mental health care outside of 1:1 counseling services. 1:1 counseling services can’t sustain an entire student body. Active Minds helps us reach more students outside of the Personal Counseling Center and close equity gaps among students who are reluctant to seek therapy. The program also connects marginalized students including BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and neurodivergent students to mental health support, in other words, students who wouldn’t otherwise access 1:1 services due to stigma and other access barriers. 

 

Peer support such as Active Minds is increasingly recognized as a vital part of the standard of care to provide accessible mental health support and is crucial to sustain at our colleges to reduce risk.

Unfortunately, advising student organizations is a voluntary activity for faculty. This contradicts the job description for Personal Counselors which include advising Active Minds as part of their job description. I have been volunteering my time to advise Active Minds since 2016. However, voluntary duties can’t sustain these life saving efforts. If advising Active Minds is voluntary and not allowed to be considered part of Personal Counselors’ workload, we risk losing a vital resource on campus. 

In January of this year, more than 30 Active Minds student club members and two advisors including myself (College of San Mateo) and Perry Chen (Skyline College) spoke at the  Board of Trustees meeting to urge the District to agree to include “advising mental health student organizations” as a duty of Personal Counselors in the next faculty contract in order to more accurately reflect the job description of Personal Counselors across the district. The students emphasized that, if we don’t, we fail to meet the “duty of care” owed to our students; they made it very clear that Active Minds matters to our students. 

At the January 28th  Board meeting, our district praised the CSM football team for securing their third 3C2A state championship and held a reception in their honor.  However, when it was Active Minds’ turn to speak there was an overt disregard for students’ mental health. The Board of Trustees appeared disinterested and distracted, looking at  their phones and laptops, and even having side conversations while one by one, students courageously voiced their struggles and support for the program.

This show of rude behavior left the students feeling frustrated, upset, and with a sense that the Board of Trustees was not student-centered. Their message was clear: the mental health of our students does not matter, nor does ensuring that our students experience livable lives. 

By Jessica Silver-Sharp

In early Fall 2025, after hearing from so many faculty, AFT gathered detailed faculty input around a key concern: our monthly paystubs are far too hard to read. These paystubs, you said, try our patience and take up too much of our valuable time just trying to determine whether we’ve been paid correctly or not. Your feedback filled eight double spaced pages and highlighted unclear categories, inconsistent language, and just how difficult it can be to understand exactly what we’re being paid for. Those working at more than one college also pointed to the added challenge of determining which pay came from which assignment. Some of you shared clearer paystubs from other colleges to show what’s possible.

Since then, AFT has shared your feedback in detail with the colleges and the District,  meeting twice with payroll staff and administrators to press for improvements. We presented a sample “ideal” paystub and urged the District to develop and share a clear explanatory guide—similar to what West Valley/Mission provides their employees—so faculty can better understand their pay. We also emphasized the need for clearer breakdowns for those working across multiple campuses.

There has been some progress. The District has agreed to work toward more consistent language across colleges and is exploring additional earnings codes so different types of work or roles are no longer lumped together. The District has agreed to consider an explanatory guide as well. Challenges remain, including Banner limitations that, according to the District, restrict customization. Still, discussions are ongoing, and this issue remains active. Stay tuned for updates!

COPE, AFT 1493’s political education committee, supports local political candidates and Board of Trustees candidates

By Jessica Silver-Sharp and Rika Yonemura Fabian

Two elected officials, David Canepa for San Mateo County Clerk/Recorder/Assessor/ Chief Elections Officer and Noelia Corzo, San Mateo County Supervisor, have requested AFT 1493’s endorsement for their upcoming elections on June 2.  On May 1 at 4pm, members of AFT1493 COPE (Committee for Political Education) are invited to a voting meeting on those endorsements. (The COPE constitution specifies that only COPE members present at a meeting called for this purpose may vote on endorsements).

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WANTED: Pro-faculty Trustee for Area 2

We are also looking for a candidate for a new Trustee in Area 2 (Brisbane, Colma, Daly City, South San Francisco) replacing Trustee Mike Guingona as he concludes his term. This gives our union a golden opportunity to bring in a pro-labor, pro-education board member who will listen carefully to faculty and take our working conditions seriously, and think for themselves rather than being manipulated by the District administration.

Given the year we’ve spent in bargaining, it’s pretty clear we need to make some improvements to our Board. The Board of Trustees is the highest governing body of SMCCCD. They give direction to the District bargaining team and approve recommendations from the Chancellor including Board Policies and Procedures. Having a pro-labor trustee will make a big difference.

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Please join COPE to elect pro-faculty Trustees

To back up a little for those of you who are not familiar with COPE, here’s how it works: AFT1493 members join at any level of contribution they choose –from $2/month up to $25 or more/month, currently. COPE dues are collected separately from regular union dues. The money is deducted from our paychecks monthly and deposited into a credit union account that belongs to AFT 1493 COPE. The COPE fund may only be used for the specific purpose of supporting political campaigns. Our union can only access funds from this account if COPE members vote to contribute a specific sum to support an electoral candidate, a measure, or a proposition.

The endorsement process works like this. Taking an endorsement of a SMCCCD Board of Trustees candidate as an example, once we’ve identified the candidate(s) we may want to elect to our board, we invite them to the COPE committee where members of COPE vet the candidate(s), and then recommend endorsement (or non-endorsement) to the AFT Executive Committee (EC). If the AFT EC endorses the candidate(s) based on the recommendation by COPE, the endorsement becomes official. If the COPE committee wants to contribute funds to a political campaign, this will require a separate vote.

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Why should faculty support COPE financially?

Having a COPE fund gives our union the legal ability to support board candidates, measures, and propositions. If we vote to contribute funds to a candidate running for an electoral position, our COPE fund can help a candidate who does not have personal wealth to run their campaigns. It’s important to know that our union can’t legally spend any of our members’ dues on elections. Thus, AFT 1493 COPE was established as a separate organization with the express purpose of funding political activities, primarily candidates for the SMCCD Board of Trustees.

Over the past few years, our COPE membership has dwindled somewhat as we’ve been without a COPE Chair. We’re grateful to CSM Political Science faculty member Lee Miller who recently helped to jump start COPE.

So if you haven’t joined COPE, it’s easy, quick and you can pick any level of contribution that suits your budget.  Simply fill out our union membership form again and elect an amount to contribute under  “Support the Union’s Committee on Political Education.”

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Looking for candidates for November’s Board Election

If you live in the county or have friends or family or colleagues who do, you can help us identify the right candidates for the open seat for Area 2 (Brisbane, Colma, Daly City, South San Francisco). The filing dates for candidates run from mid-July to the first week of August. That gives us a few short months to find the right person for the job. Improving our board strengthens our ability to help our faculty, so this is really about all of us.

 

And think about who you might know who would make a good member of the SMCCD board. A good board can make the difference between a protracted and ugly contract battle and a peaceful and collaborative process that ends up benefiting all faculty members. Email Chet Lexvold at lexvold@aft1493.org or Lee Miller at lee@LeeRyanMiller.com with your suggestions!

By Jessica Silver-Sharp

Our union’s strength comes from the dedication of members who step up to lead. This year, we’re proud to introduce a mix of newly elected, re-elected, and returning leaders to the AFT 1493 Executive Committee—each bringing valuable experience and a shared commitment to advancing the needs of our faculty community. Congratulations to our AFT 1493 Executive Committee (EC) members who will take office at our final membership meeting of this year on May 13, 2026. Below we share excerpts of candidates’ statements. 

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Officers

AFT 1493 President Ben Feldman, Assistant Professor of History at Skyline College. 

Prior to Skyline I spent 5 years as a Lecturer at Cal State East Bay, where I was involved in union organizing for our system-wide strike in January 2024. While pursuing my doctorate at Georgetown, I was a co-founder and the first vice president of the Georgetown Alliance of Graduate Employees (GAGE). Over the course of two years, GAGE built a union from the ground-up; organizing hundreds of graduate workers in over two-dozen departments to vote decisively to affiliate with AFT in 2018. In May 2020 we won our first contract, with over 99% of the vote. [As] President…I want to draw on this experience to organize our membership to win the contract that we’ve been fighting for over the last year, and to win the next one after that.

 

 

 

AFT 1493 Vice-President  Luis Zuniga is a music faculty at Skyline College, where he specializes in instrumental music. He brings valuable experience as a union member, having held memberships in musicians’ unions in both Colorado and California. As an active member of AFT 1493, Luis serves on the contract negotiations team, works as a grievance officer at Skyline College, and contributes to the union’s executive committee. 

 

 

 

 

AFT 1493 Secretary Keira Travis. “I have been teaching English at CSM since 2015. Before serving as Secretary for AFT 1493 (2024-present), I served a two-year term as AFT Executive Committee Representative for CSM (2022-24). As Secretary…I want to continue to serve in this capacity as our union local heads into a pivotal year. As Secretary, I play a key role in developing and preserving our institutional memory. I take the responsibility seriously and strive for accuracy, consistency, and reliability. That said, I’m not just a notetaker. When it comes to our contract actions, you’ll find me talking to members and in many ways being involved in organizing…

 

 

 

AFT 1493 Treasurer Steve Lehigh. Economics Faculty at CSM. “I have been a member of the union Executive Committee since 2018 and am running again for Treasurer, a role I have held since 2020. I actively serve on both the district and CSM budget committees, where I focus on financial analysis to help faculty better understand resource allocation decisions. My goal is to support informed advocacy that supports teaching, fair compensation and benefits for our membership.” 

 

 

 

 

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Cañada College

AFT 1493 Cañada Chapter Chairperson Nadia Biglari. “I am a chemistry faculty member at Cañada College and an active member of AFT 1493 since Fall 2024. In addition to my teaching, I serve as the Science and Technology Representative on the Curriculum Committee and regularly participate in Academic Senate and equity-focused initiatives across our campus. My work as an educator is deeply rooted in supporting student success, equity, and access—values that directly align with the mission of our union…I believe in the power of collective action to improve working conditions, protect faculty voices, and ultimately strengthen the learning environments we create for our students. As someone who is newer to the district but highly engaged, I bring both a fresh perspective and a strong commitment to collaboration, advocacy, and accountability. I am especially interested in expanding member engagement, supporting equitable policies, and ensuring that all faculty—especially those who may feel underrepresented—have a voice in our union. I would be honored to serve and contribute to the continued strength and solidarity of AFT 1493. 

 

AFT 1493 Cañada Executive Committee Member Co-Reps Camille Kaslan & Salumeh Eslamieh. 

Salumeh Eslamieh, English faculty, Cañada College “Being active in our union is non-negotiable for me– our union and our greater involvement in it improves our teaching and our students’ learning. I’ve been active in our union for over a decade, advocating for students, faculty, and working conditions that we deserve. I hope to continue supporting us in this role.” 

 

 

 

Camille Kaslan. “My name is Camille Kaslan, and I teach chemistry full-time here at Cañada College. For the past two years, I’ve served our campus as the chair of our union’s Cañada campus chapter. In this role, I have learned a broad range of skills and developed deeper ties to our community – both on and off campus. From working with faculty to resolve contract issues, developing new union structures like Article Committees, organizing campus rallies, attending 

negotiation sessions, speaking out at Board meetings, and facilitating our first ever Strike Authorization vote, I have witnessed first-hand the immense power and solidarity our colleagues have built in our union. I hope to continue our communal work by representing Cañada faculty as a member of the Executive Committee.” 

 

 

AFT 1493 Cañada Part-Time Representative Jessica Silver-Sharp. “I am Jessica Silver-Sharp, part-time faculty librarian at Cañada and Skyline Colleges and AFT leader for the past ten years, having served in a number of roles including Secretary, Vice President, Skyline College Part-Time Representative, and editor of The Advocate. My work has focused on helping part-time colleagues – the majority of faculty in our District – understand and access the resources, rights, and benefits they are entitled to; as Part-Time Representative at Cañada College I hope to build an even stronger and more inclusive union that advocates impactfully for all part-time faculty.”

 

 

 

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College of San Mateo

 

AFT 1493 College of San Mateo Chapter Chairperson Gil Perez (he/him). “I am currently CSM Chapter Chair and Negotiator, and have served on the AFT 1493 leadership team since Fall 2024. I’m a tenured Faculty Personal Counselor at CSM. Through my roles, I have integrated myself into the campus community and collaborated both campus and district-wide with student support programs and instructional programs serving as visible representation for the union and care deeply about the inequities faculty experience and the issues that matter to them. Our members have needs and aspirations that deserve to be realized so that we can sustain ourselves and give our students the best of us, not what is left of us…I have the enthusiasm, energy, and motivation to engage members, inspire action, and involvement in union activities to build a powerful local union and proactively serve as a resource and support to faculty on union issues…”

 

 

AFT 1493 College of San Mateo Executive Committee Member Elinor Westfold, Professor of ESL, AFT1493 member since Fall, 2016. I started at CSM as an adjunct and freeway flyer, except that I took SamTrans, CalTrain, and BART (all in one trip!) instead of driving. In addition to my normal gig teaching English to multilingual students, I’ve also coordinated our ESL Center, participated in the REAL Fellowship, and taught English and College 1, work which has allowed me to collaborate with not only instructional faculty across disciplines but also with our extraordinary librarians, personal and academic counselors, instructional designers, and professional development coordinators. I’ve been involved with AFT1493 as an engaged rank and file member for years – going to board meetings, organizing with the CAT (Contract Action Team), serving as my department’s Union Steward, presenting at FLEX days, co-authoring the proposed contract article on academic freedom, and, currently, serving on our AI Task Force. As an EC Representative, I will continue to listen to all faculty and advocate for fair working conditions, sustainable workloads, and respect for our autonomy and expertise as educators. 

 

AFT 1493 College of San Mateo Part-Time Representative Geoff Balton. I have been a Part-Time Faculty in the Fire Technology program here at CSM for over two decades. I have also been a Fire Department Battalion Chief for 24 years. I have been a member of both AFT and the Chief Officers Association as its President and Chief Negotiator…I want to represent AFT because I believe the District needs to trust its faculty and behave appropriately. 

 

 

 

 

 

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Skyline College 

AFT 1493 Skyline Chapter Chairperson Rika Yonemura-Fabian. My name is Rika and I am excited to serve as Skyline Chapter chairperson again. I have been teaching at Skyline for 9 years as a tenured Sociology faculty. Since my second year of tenure track, I have been serving as Skyline chapter chair of AFT and District-wide organizer for eight years. In the past term, I served as AFT1493 President, leading the contract negotiations and contract organizing including the union’s first strike authorization vote with the union leadership team. In returning as Skyline College chapter chairperson, I can again work more closely with my beloved Skyline colleagues. I enjoyed my union presidency but the position made me feel detached from my Skyline colleagues and students that I deeply care about. Particularly at this moment when we are anticipating a potential strike in Fall26, I want to play a role in leading the picket lines, and defend our faculty in my home campus. With the District-wide/State-wide knowledge on higher education labor that I accumulated as a past President, I would like to continue advocating for faculty in disputes, complaints, and grievances as a Skyline AFT team member. 

 

AFT 1493 Skyline Part-Time Representative Dianne Jones. I have served as the Skyline Part-time Faculty Representative for the past two years. I teach in the Art Department, focusing on Art Appreciation and Digital Photography. One of my roles with AFT is creating and sharing photographs on social media to highlight and support our members. I’m running for re-election to continue in this position because I truly value being part of a strong union and a supportive community. I’m committed to advocating for fairness and equity for all faculty, staff, and employees within the San Mateo District. 

 

 

 

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Delegates to the San Mateo County Central Labor Council 

Monica Malamud. I am in my 25th year teaching Spanish at Cañada College and have been an active member of our local union for 20 years. During this time, I have served in several elected roles, including campus chair (3 years), secretary (4 years), and president (8 years). Since 2013, I have been part of AFT 1493’s negotiating team, and I currently serve as chief negotiator. 

At the state level, I have worked extensively with the California Federation of Teachers (CFT). I served for eight years on the English Language Learners Committee, including two years as chair. I currently serve on the Higher Education Issues Committee (10 years, eight as chair) and on the One Faculty Taskforce, which is developing a strategic plan for the California Community Colleges that guarantees equal pay for equal work for faculty within each district, as well as the same evaluations, due process, job security and benefits. 

As a delegate to the CFT Convention, the AFT Convention, and the San Mateo Central Labor Council, I will continue advocating for faculty and all workers beyond our district. By participating in the broader labor movement, we can build collective power to win legislative protections for workers, so we don’t have to fight the same battles in every round of contract negotiations. 

Teeka James. I teach English at CSM (full-time) and have worked in our union for over 20 years. I have served as an AFT 1493 representative to SMCCLC and CFT in the past and am eager to continue to do so. Our union’s participation in the larger labor movement is more important now than ever. In particular, both SMCCLC and CFT have been and will be important allies of ours as we continue our struggle to win a fair contract now and to break the District’s cycle of delayed contract negotiations in the future. Thank you all for your participation in our union’s work; we are stronger together.

 

Ben Feldman. See bio above under “AFT 1493 President.” 

Rika Yonemura-Fabian. See bio above under “Skyline Chapter Chairperson.”  

Maggie deVera

Lucia Lachmayr 

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Delegates to the 2027 Convention of the California Federation of Teachers 

Nadia Biglari

Ben Feldman

Teeka James

Monica Malamud

Gil Perez

Keira Travis

Rika Yonemura-Fabian

Luis Zuniga

 

Doniella Maher. I have been involved in the union since 2009 across a variety of roles…As a delegate, I believe that my past union experience will allow me to knowledgeably talk about our local and bring back ideas and issues to raise in our local. I also hope that engagement with CFT will support my current and potential future role as a grievance officer. 

 

 

 

John Perez. I am a full-time Professor of Communication Studies at Cañada College committed to strengthening higher education and advancing faculty rights. As an AFT and CFT union delegate, I aim to advocate for equitable working conditions, academic freedom, and meaningful faculty voice in decision-making. I believe strong unions are essential to protecting our profession and ensuring quality education for our students. With a collaborative and solutions-oriented approach, I will represent our faculty with integrity, transparency, and dedication while supporting policies that promote fairness, professional growth, and the long-term sustainability of our colleges and the communities we serve. 

 

 

 

 

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Delegates to the 2026 Convention of the American Federation of Teachers 

Nadia Biglari

Monica Malamud

Gil Perez

John Perez