FSU Nuts & Bolts: Last of the semester.......
5/8/2023
Dear FSU Members,
This is the final Nuts & Bolts of the academic year. This issue provides information on a variety of items- including annual meeting updates, deadlines, and fun activities.
International Faculty Breakfast Social
The FSU welcomes all international faculty to gather on May 9th, 9:00-10:30AM to meet, share advice and forge solidarity. Stop by ISC 1 – 1400 or on zoom at (contact FSU or Caroline Coscia for Zoom information).
NTT Promotion – May 15th is the deadline to file intent.
This is a reminder to those seeking promotion to Senior Lecturer, Senior Lecturer II, or Senior Lecturer III. Monday, May 15th is the deadline to email your chair stating your intent to apply for promotion (see here fore more information).
Note: This deadline is only informing your chair that you plan to submit promotion materials in January 2024. Failure to state your intent by May 15th means you cannot submit promotion materials in January 2024.
Period of non-responsibility communications
Post commencement begins faculty’s period of non-responsibility. The FSU will still be working (albeit with some days off) to respond to your inquiries, needs and deal with any issues related to policies, procedures, and our contract.
We may send emails during this time that require you to be informed of something as soon as possible.
Collective Bargaining- 8% Raise Proposal
The Core Bargaining Team (CBT) is waiting for the one-year, 8% raise contract language from UMB administration. As of this morning, the Governor’s office has not yet sent the contract proposal language to any bargaining units in the Commonwealth.
Watch for emails from the CBT related to this proposal and member ratification.
MTA Annual Meeting – Budget Update
The Annual Meeting of Delegates was held April 28th and 29th. One responsibility of delegates is to adopt the MTA annual budget. After much debate, next year’s budget was adopted. The dues amount is being raised by $20. $7 of the increase is for MTA operations and $13 is earmarked for activities related to items such as the Higher Ed for All Campaign, passing the Cherish Act, and bargaining support to locals.
NEA is expected to increase dues by $4 at its annual meeting. How does impact you? MTA and NEA’s dues increase by $24. FSU must transmit to MTA and NEA the new rates beginning September.
FSU Annual Meeting – Budget Update
Thank you to the members who attended our annual meeting on April 25th. Like MTA’s annual meeting, FSU members need to adopt a budget. The Executive Committee recommended a budget with $12 dues increase. The increase was to cover a portion of the $24 MTA/NEA increase. The recommendation was made knowing 1. that FSU would be paying MTA/NEA more than we collected from members and 2. that this would result in a budget deficit.
The annual meeting budget debate was robust. A motion was made and passed to raise the FSU dues $25 to cover the $24 MTA/NEA dues increase and add $1 to the FSU dues portion (this stays with FSU)
Reminder: Payroll dues deduction takes place September to June. The FSU receives electronic payment from the UMass system into our account. Our bookkeeper (she works for us and UMass Amherst’s Mass. Society of Professors) then transmits monthly funds to MTA to cover the MTA and NEA dues portion. The MTA/NEA dues rise from $700 to $724. The FSU portion goes up $1 to $309. Only $309 is what stays in our FSU account and used to operate the FSU.
Member Benefits
FSU members are also members of MTA and NEA. Each has benefits for members.
MTA benefits: https://www.mtabenefits.com/ NEA benefits: https://www.neamb.com/
Hello and Goodbye
The end of the academic year is also the time when we say goodbye to some Executive Committee members and welcome to others.
Welcome Jared Poole as a new pre-tenure representative.
Sana Haroon moves from a tenured representative to your vice president.
We say goodbye and thank you to Meghan Kallman, Jose Martinez-Reyes, and Vice President Jeff Melnick. It has been a pleasure to work with you all the past few years. Thank you for your service to FSU and to our members.
Good luck grading exams and papers. Have an enjoyable break. See you in September.
Sincerely,
Caroline Coscia
FSU President
Senior Lecturer II
Political Science Department