Lobby Day is this Monday and other information
2/28/2020
Dear FSU Member,
► Higher Ed Advocacy Day, this Monday, March 2 at the State House.
Tell our state legislators to pass the Cherish Act, which will give an additional $43 million to UMB per year (https://massteacher.org/current-initiatives/fund-our-future/higher-education). K-12 won 4 billion in additional funding for their schools in only one year of advocacy. We are advocating for higher education for the same. See the attached for more information.
Can’t make it the entire day? Hop on the bus at UMB to the State House at 11:30 pm and hop back on at 1:30 pm to return to UMB. Everyone, including this accelerated portion, will receive a lunch.
To more information and to register for the event and/or for the bus, see https://web.cvent.com/event/e35a9c93-a029-49aa-a996-5979b83f94e1/summary
Never lobbied your state legislature? Do not worry, there will be training available.
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Increased Funding for Public Higher Education An independent report on higher education has found that, accounting for inflation and changes in student enrollment, allocations to public higher education in Massachusetts have been cut by 31 percent since FY01.The same report found that the share of higher education costs borne by students and their families shifted dramatically over this same period, from approximately 30 percent in FY01 ... massteacher.org |
►Mt Ida: Write to Senator Anne Gobi and Representative Roy to hold hearings on Mt. Ida. Senator Gobi recalls the promises of no competition from that campus with UMB: anne.gobi@masenate.gov and Jeffrey.Roy@mahouse.gov. A sample letter is attached.
If you have yet to sign the petition, please do so as well here and share on your social media. UMass Amherst is now offering a Business and Analytics program that directly competes with offerings at UMass Boston, and it wants to offer 35 other programs, including a master’s degree in Accounting and one in Computer Science (for a list of course offerings, see the attached), and will offer Geographical Information Science courses. Stop this competition among UMass campuses and let’s have the UMass system operate as a system, not as competing campuses.
► DPC/CPC training is on Tuesday, March 10th, 2:30-4:30 pm in the Alumni Lounge (2nd floor, Campus Center). Co-sponsored by the Office for Faculty Development and the FSU, this is designed to inform DPC and CPC chairs or their representatives the responsibilities of the DPC’s and CPC’s in the promotional and personnel processes. Knowledge of the promotional procedures outlined in the contract and university policies is essential to ensure that the best practices for personnel procedures are utilized and to avoid taking actions for violations of the contract. Therefore, we strongly encourage all Departments to send DPC and CPC chairs to attend this training.
For FSU/MTA Members in Good Standing
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Academic Technology Committee: we are looking for an FSU member who is willing to be a representative to the university’s Academic Technology Committee for the spring 2020 semester. You will be advising the committee on technology used for teaching. Interested? Contact the FSU. Developing department level courses for distance learning: Are you interested in this issue and the stipends that should be received for giving up intellectual property and royalty rights, as well as the broader issue of how these should occur to protect faculty (see Article 35 of the contract for more information)? Volunteer to be on this FSU committee. Contact the FSU. MTA Annual Meeting: The Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA) Annual Meeting will be held at the Mass Mutual Center in Springfield, MA on Friday and Saturday, May 1-2. Let us know if you want to be a delegate to this meeting (more information to come). We can reimburse you for your hotel and travel expenses. This in an election year for MTA President and Vice President, so we are seeking to fill our slate of delegates. FSU Annual Meeting: SAVE THE DATE! Thursday, April 30th, 9-11. More information to com |
Sincerely,
Marlene Kim
FSU President
Professor, Economics
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