RES Funds – New Agreement
3/8/2021
Dear Members,
The FSU and Administration reached a Memorandum of Agreement on the allocation of RES Funds. This agreement only applies to the current fiscal year. Our rationale for signing a separate MOA for the current fiscal year is simple: while the current fiscal year ends on June 30, 2021, bargaining for the current contract may not be finished by that point. Since RES Funds need to be expended in the fiscal year in which they are allocated, a separate agreement would have to be reached if members are going to have access to the funds this year.
As you may know, the pool of RES Funds is $200,000 per year which is normally dispersed in relatively small sums to faculty to support professional development (after you submit receipts). Much of this money -- often close to half of it -- is not accessed directly by faculty in any given year through this process (though leftover funds are then spent on important things like the library, computer replacement, etc.).
For this year only:
- $150,000 will be dispersed in the normal fashion/amounts. Faculty will soon be notified by Admin about their specific level of financial support. In short, support will continue as it has in the past – the same amount per individual.
- $50,000 will be allocated to anti-racism activities for faculty and librarians.
- Any remaining money will be dedicated to the Healey Library.
Again, this agreement is only for this year. Negotiations around RES Funds for years two and three of the next contract are ongoing (please share your comments regarding RES Funds going forward).
This agreement reflects our commitment as faculty and librarians – and as a union -- to racial justice by infusing resources into anti-racism initiatives on campus. It’s not a perfect agreement, or exactly what we wanted, but it does commit resources to a vitally important effort (we’ll send the final agreement as soon as it is drafted and signed). We will push the university to amplify the resources it commits to anti-racism in the future.
Sincerely,
Core Bargaining Team
Caroline Coscia, Senior Lecturer II, Political Science, FSU Vice President
Katie D’Urso, MTA Field Representative
Jessica Holden, Librarian III, Healey Library
Maria Mellone, Non-Reappointed (i.e., laid off) Associate Lecturer, Math
Alex Mueller, Associate Professor, English
Lorenzo Nencioli, FSU Membership Coordinator
Jason Rodriquez, Associate Professor, Sociology
Heike Schotten, Associate Professor, Political Science
Steve Striffler, Director of the Labor Resource Center and Professor, Anthropology, FSU President
Tony Vandermeer, Senior Lecturer II, Africana Studies
For information on the FSU, links to our contract and bargaining updates, and a calendar of events, see the FSU webpage