College of the Canyons employees are permitted to wear campaign materials, such as buttons or T-shirts, while teaching or performing other duties while on campus, according to Eric Harnish, spokesman for the college.
After the college sent an email to employees regarding what is and is not permissible during election season, a question was raised about limiting what can be worn. The original FAQ sent on Aug. 5 stated that employees can wear campaign materials while on campus, “but not in instructional or support service spaces.”
That was revised on Tuesday when Harnish sent another email that states that the college, through the Santa Clarita Community College District board of trustees, which oversees COC, does not have that limitation as part of its policy regarding political activity.
“Accordingly, employees may wear campaign buttons and T-shirts in instructional or support service spaces, and when teaching,” Harnish wrote in the email.
In a phone interview on Thursday, Harnish said the idea is that individual employees are free to express themselves.
“The college is charged with maintaining neutrality in elections, but also must balance its employees’ rights to free speech,” Harnish said.
Harnish cited Board Policy and Administrative Regulation 7370, which states that “no restriction shall be placed on the political activities of any employee of the district except as provided in board policy and these procedures.”
The regulation does not include language regarding what can or cannot be worn, but does state that “no district funds, services, supplies or equipment may be used to urge the support or defeat of any ballot measure or candidate,” including those involving the local governing board.
However, Harnish said if an employee is asked by a student about a specific political campaign, that employee should say that it is a “personal stance and is not representing the college.”
Matt Funicello, a safety officer at the college, said he is against the policy. He said he’s seen the same email regarding political activity for multiple previous election cycles that states that employees cannot wear political material in instructional spaces, only to see that change this year.
“The classroom is the last place politics should be,” Funicello said in a phone interview. “It doesn’t matter if you’re Democrat or Republican.”
He added that he would be saying the same thing at any educational institution, regardless of the political leanings of the community.
“Everyone looks at teachers as authority figures,” Funicello said. “They have undue influence on students … When you start putting politics in front of students, that’s a problem. We sent them there to get an education, not to indoctrinate them.”
A policy restricting political activity at community colleges and other school districts has previously come before the court system, most recently through California Teachers Association v. Governing Board in 2001. The court ruled that under Education Code section 7055, employers could prohibit employees from wearing political buttons during instructional time.
Harnish said that because COC does not have that language specifically in its policy, the court ruling does not apply.
If such a policy were to be adopted by the board of trustees, then that policy would likely be upheld in court, Harnish said. He added that policies are typically reviewed every six years, but the COC policy regarding political activity has not been reviewed since 2008.
The COC Faculty Association, which represents full-time faculty, and Classified Employees Association Chapter 725 have both endorsed the incumbents, Edel Alonso and Jerry Danielsen in the upcoming board of trustees elections on Nov. 5. Alonso, running for Trustee Area No. 2, is the current board president while Danielsen, running for Trustee Area No. 4, is the vice president.
Both unions have also endorsed Michelle Kampbell, running for Trustee Area No. 1, and Andrew Taban, running for Trustee Area No. 3.
