FA News: 1/23/2018

[Catching up on older newsletters, and trying to post all. This one was mainly annoucements that have since been overtaken by events.  3/9/2018.]

Dear colleagues,

Some offers, updates, and requests.

1. FA leaders would be happy to attend meetings of departments, proposed schools, and constituency bodies. One possible venue for such meetings would be the “faculty only” meetings required by Article 9, but we would be happy to join you for any meeting convenient for your group. There remains considerable confusion about the technicalities of the A9 process, what the CBA allows and doesn’t allow regarding the retention of departments, and other issues. FA representatives would be happy to answer any questions you have. Requests may be sent directly to me at dmj2@me.com.

2. We are receiving reports of various Article 9 votes or straw polls on campus. Note that the 90 day period for Article 9 review under section 9.03 of the contract ends on February 11, 2018 (assuming faculty were given proposals on November 13, which was generally the case). If faculty have not voted by 60% in each affected unit to seek a thirty day extension, the Article 9 process will move forward toward final unit votes shortly thereafter. So if you need more plan to debate the proposals, do consider voting for an extension sooner rather than later.

It is important that the process be transparent, and that faculty know what other faculty are thinking and doing regarding the chancellor’s proposals. We would be happy to share any results faculty report to us, whether they are votes in favor of or in opposition to the chancellor’s plan. To that end, please send us:

We will post a running tally of all results we receive, pro and con. Results (and corrections) can be sent directly to me at dmj2@me.com. A few initial results are posted here:

3. Our grievances remain in process at the campus level. Faculty wishing to join a grievance are welcome to do so by contacting Randy Hughes at hrhughes57@frontier.com.

4. The next meetings of the BOT, on February 7 and 8, will no doubt include further discussion of the chancellor’s plans to restructure the university. Faculty interested in carpooling to the meeting(s) are encouraged to contact Bret Seferian at bret.seferian@ieanea.org.

5. Finally, I thought this an apt time to pitch our Facebook site  We’re trying to link to press coverage, events, and to generally keep people informed about items of relevance to SIUC. If you see or have something you think we should share on that site, feel free to drop me a line at dmj2@me.com.

In solidarity,

Dave Johnson