At our last meeting on November 2, the Administration and Adjunct Faculty Bargaining Teams signed two more tentative agreements: Adjunct Faculty Union Orientation, which allows us to make a presentation of Union materials at New Faculty Orientation, and SEIU Communication and Access Rights, which will dedicate campus bulletin boards to news about Union activities and other topics of interest to our members.
These proposals, while not as exciting as negotiating over compensation and benefits, will help us keep members informed and make sure that the information that we seek to make public cannot be destroyed, defaced or removed as has happened with various kinds of postings on campus.
A lengthy discussion ensued about two major proposals: the Tier System and Faculty Stability. As reported last week, we seem to be close to agreement on some factors that will determine an adjunct’s placement in the Tier System: cumulative teaching experience and a terminal degree. There is no question that the professional expertise from outside academia that many adjuncts bring to their teaching is of tremendous value, and we are arguing strongly for its inclusion in determining Tier standing.
Faculty Stability has to do with how classes are assigned. Many adjuncts know how unpredictable and capricious this process can be. We seek a fairer, more transparent method, one that will provide predictability and prevent the horror stories that all of us have heard and some have had to live through. The teams have made important progress, agreeing in principle to the establishment of internal hiring pools and longer-term contracts, especially for more experienced teachers. Needless to say, significant changes like these require much deliberation over details before being settled.
While these negotiations were collegial and productive, the meeting concluded on a down note, as Nicola Pitchford made a short presentation on the current budget shortfall of $1.8 million for 2015-16. We were told that this shortfall is largely the result of budgeting for enrollment of 280 freshmen and having only 255 actually enroll. We asked lots of questions, but the ramifications remain unclear, especially since Administration has yet to counter our proposal for compensation that was presented in mid-August.
We all know that in the past, Dominican, like so many other institutions of higher education, has sought to balance its budget on the backs of its adjunct faculty. Yet research by USC’s Adrianna Kezar shows that “higher education’s capacity to innovate in important areas for student success is becoming increasingly hampered by the longstanding and escalating shift to a contingent workforce that is obliged to work with no support.”
Is this finally the time to examine priorities, ask difficult questions, and think differently about what really matters in higher education?
Robin McCloskey
Bargaining Team Member
These proposals, while not as exciting as negotiating over compensation and benefits, will help us keep members informed and make sure that the information that we seek to make public cannot be destroyed, defaced or removed as has happened with various kinds of postings on campus.
A lengthy discussion ensued about two major proposals: the Tier System and Faculty Stability. As reported last week, we seem to be close to agreement on some factors that will determine an adjunct’s placement in the Tier System: cumulative teaching experience and a terminal degree. There is no question that the professional expertise from outside academia that many adjuncts bring to their teaching is of tremendous value, and we are arguing strongly for its inclusion in determining Tier standing.
Faculty Stability has to do with how classes are assigned. Many adjuncts know how unpredictable and capricious this process can be. We seek a fairer, more transparent method, one that will provide predictability and prevent the horror stories that all of us have heard and some have had to live through. The teams have made important progress, agreeing in principle to the establishment of internal hiring pools and longer-term contracts, especially for more experienced teachers. Needless to say, significant changes like these require much deliberation over details before being settled.
While these negotiations were collegial and productive, the meeting concluded on a down note, as Nicola Pitchford made a short presentation on the current budget shortfall of $1.8 million for 2015-16. We were told that this shortfall is largely the result of budgeting for enrollment of 280 freshmen and having only 255 actually enroll. We asked lots of questions, but the ramifications remain unclear, especially since Administration has yet to counter our proposal for compensation that was presented in mid-August.
We all know that in the past, Dominican, like so many other institutions of higher education, has sought to balance its budget on the backs of its adjunct faculty. Yet research by USC’s Adrianna Kezar shows that “higher education’s capacity to innovate in important areas for student success is becoming increasingly hampered by the longstanding and escalating shift to a contingent workforce that is obliged to work with no support.”
Is this finally the time to examine priorities, ask difficult questions, and think differently about what really matters in higher education?
Robin McCloskey
Bargaining Team Member