Budget cuts and hearing on higher ed bill
Dear Colleague,
Below is the latest news around the budget cuts and an important bill hearing on Thursday.
►Budget Cuts: There are many rumors about the budget cuts. This is what we verified with the administration:
- All units (such as departments) have been instructed to show what their budgets would be with 10% cuts on discretionary (non-payroll) funds from the Fiscal Year 2016 budget. Note this may be better for some departments compared to the cuts they received during the last (FY2017) budget.
- Colleges have been instructed to show what would happen with a 10% cut to their payroll budget from the fiscal year 2017 (last year’s) budget.
- The university has not decided what will occur yet as a result of this exercise, but we have been told that, for faculty, the burden of the cuts is expected to fall most heavily on non-continuing NTTs.
- If you have not yet signed our petition on faculty and course cancellations, please do so here. If you have not yet told us how these budget cuts have affected your department, please do so.
►This Wednesday, June 28, at noon in the Ryan Lounge (3rd floor McCormack), our sister unions, the Professional Staff Union and the Classified Staff Union, will hold a brown bag lunch (bring your own) meeting to discuss their bargaining, their budget analysis of UMB’s finances, the budget cuts and actions around the budget crisis. FSU members are welcome to attend.
► This Thursday, June 29th from 10 -1 in Room A-1 at the State house is a hearing before the Joint Committee on Higher Education on an “Act to Invest in Public Higher Education” , House 639.
- Written testimony supporting this bill is encouraged. Please send this to SWall@massteacher.org. Please include your home address and personal (not public employer) email and cell or home phone.
- Please come to support the bill! Meet in Room 437 between 9 and 9:30. Please leave time to go through the metal detector. Closest T stop is Park Street on the Red/Green Line.
Please RSVP, if you will attend this hearing with your home address, home email and cell to: amoreschi@massteacher.org, so we can look up your legislative district.
- See here for an an outline “Quick 6.29 hearing plan” of the plan for the hearing on the two adjunct bills.
- Please post on social media your support of adjunct faculty (signs here and here if you’d like to use them). Please use hashtag #EqualPay4EqualWork &/or #RespectAdjuncts #AdjunctsAreEssential
- The Joint Committee is meeting again on Thursday, July 13, to hear the portion of the bill on the Finish Line Grant, so we’ll update you on that once we know the details.
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For FSU members in good standing:
The MTA Summer Conference will be at UMass Amherst from July 30-August 3. Take MTA-sponsored workshops on everything from grievance and member advocacy training to time management strategies, and meet fellow MTA members from across the state. For details see here (the deadline to register is July 14th). The FSU can reimburse a portion of your costs of the conference. Contact the FSU office if you are interested.
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Marlene Kim
FSU President
Professor, Economics