Nuts & Bolts: Upcoming events, Visa costs committee members, Know your contract enrollment course caps and winter/summer course rates, September 11th campus incident update and MTA Benefits

10/27/2025

FSU Calendar Oct 27th to 31st

Wednesday, October 29th UDC Pizza and Cookies 11:30AM to 1:00PM

Stop by UDC for some pizza, relax, chat with colleagues and meet new colleagues. Pick up some FSU swag – stickers, buttons and t-shirts.

Thursday, October 30th Solidarity with PSU, 12PM outside Quinn Building

Stand in solidarity with the Professional Staff Union (PSU) as they raise awareness of their stalled contract negotiations. They are the only UMB union without a new contract and as such, have not received their 2025 cost of living increases. 

Dear Faculty and Librarians,

“Spring forward, Fall behind”.   This time next week we will be back to standard time. For those who commute early in the morning, you will be driving in daylight as sunrise is around 6:20AM (currently 7:15ish).  The tradeoff is sunsets are earlier with November 3rd being at 4:34PM.   

Committee Members: Costs Related to Visa Reimbursements

Thank you to Maria Carvajal-Regidor, Wei Zhang (CM), and Miguel Montalva Barba for volunteering to represent the FSU in a labor management committee. The committee (article 26.6.3) will research costs related to visa reimbursements for bargaining unit members.

Know Your Contract: Course Enrollment Caps

Spring 2026 registration begins on Tuesday November 4th.  Our contract lays out the only situations where the course enrollment cap may be changed once the course capacity is announced.

Article 15.4: Once course capacities are announced for a given semester schedule, individual course capacities may be increased:

a) At the discretion of the instructor of the course

b) Upon request to the instructor by the department chair (or dean in units where there are no department chairs), at the discretion of the instructor

c) In cases where the chair/dean seeks to raise the capacity of all sections of a multi(5+)-sectioned course, the chair/dean may increase the capacity of the course by no more than 5% of the original cap, rounded upward to the nearest whole number, with a minimum of one, in order to accommodate a surge in enrollment for the relevant semester occurring between the week before classes start and the end of the Add/Drop Period.  Any such increase in course capacity will apply only to the relevant semester.

Know Your Contract: Summer and Winter Course Rate Change

The per course rate for teaching Summer and Winter classes (Article 36.4) has increased in our new contract.

Update: September 11th campus incident

We, along with CSU and PSU met with Joe Berger and Marie Bowen on October 3rd where we raised concerns related to the campus security incident.  On November 4th we are meeting with Justin Comeau, Director of Emergency Management.   

MTA Benefits: Heating Season has arrived

MTA benefits include discounts for both propane and oil. The propane discount is through TankFarm.  HeatUSA provides heating oil discounts. For details, log into your account and go to utilities.

Have a great week and enjoy Halloween.  The American Red Cross has important safety tips for both children and adults.

Sincerely,

Caroline Coscia                                 

FSU President                                   

Senior Lecturer II                               

Political Science Department