September 9, 2009

New chair emphasizes importance of CSSAC's voice at Purdue

Maintaining the Clerical and Service Staff Advisory Committee's voice at Purdue is the goal of the group's new chair, Matt Marks.

Marks, who became chair of CSSAC for the 2009-2010 year at Tuesday's meeting, says the group fills a need on campus.

"The fact that CSSAC is asked to be involved in search committees for the hiring of administrative positions and has been given a permanent seat on the University Senate speaks volumes to the role CSSAC is being asked to play," says Marks, a sign machine operator in the Sign Center for Operations and Maintenance.

"If CSSAC was not in place there would be a communications gap between administrators and clerical and service workers. The respect that past CSSAC members have helped garner has helped bridge that gap, and I believe that is a very important role."

As for specific issues, Marks would like to see the group examine grants and a possible adoption policy.

"I would like CSSAC to take a look at our employee and dependent grants policy and see if we can make that grant do a better job of directly benefiting the employee and dependent," he says.

"I would like to get behind a push for Purdue to have a defined policy that would assist employees in the adoption process. Mostly, I would like to continue to make CSSAC a part of the decision-making process across campus, making sure clerical and service staff always have a voice."

CSSAC's employee and dependent grants help recipients attend classes at Purdue. The grant fund is supported by a portion of revenues from vending machines on the West Lafayette campus, contributions, and sales of designated football and basketball tickets.

Marks says patience will be one of the keys to CSSAC's success.

"Sometimes we want to see things change immediately and we forget that change takes time," he says. "CSSAC played an important role in getting a staff memorial in place on the Purdue campus and the individuals who put the hard work and time into the process saw that work pay off. I think we just need to stay committed to the process."

Marks is beginning his third year in CSSAC and says he joined to learn more about other areas of the campus.

"I am a service worker who works out of the Physical Facilities building, and I don't think most service workers get an opportunity to see how the academic side works," he says.

"I was interested in seeing how the entire Purdue 'machine' works. It has been a real learning experience."

Marks encourages all clerical and service staff to learn about the issues that concern them and to follow CSSAC's activities.

CSSAC minutes and contact information for CSSAC representatives are published on the group's Web site, www.purdue.edu/cssac. In addition, news about CSSAC appears regularly in Inside Purdue and Purdue Today.