https://academeblog.org/2018/03/01/aaup-urges-csu-chancellor-to-suspend-executive-orders/
The national American Association of University Professors joins its California state conference in urging the suspension of two executive orders, EO 1100 (revised) and EO 1110, that make extensive changes to the general education requirements, placement testing, and remedial education policies applying to all of the California State University (CSU) campuses. The policies mandate significant changes to the graduation requirements, curricula, and course offerings at CSU.

The widespread concern stems from apparent violations of academic governance norms. According to the Statement on Government of Colleges and Universities, “The faculty has the primary responsibility for such fundamental areas as curriculum, subject matter and methods of instruction, research, faculty status, and those aspects of student life which relate to the educational process.”

The CSU system Academic Senate (ASCSU), the California conference of the AAUP, and the California Faculty Association (CFA) contend that the process that led to the adoption of the executive orders did not provide for adequate faculty consultation.

The ASCSU adopted a resolution at its September 14-15 meeting objecting to the flawed governance process and consultation, stating, “CSU faculty are experts and researchers in their fields who must be relied on when the system contemplates major changes in curriculum design. We contend that the revision to EO 1100 and the newly released EO 1110 did not arise from the fulsome shared governance process needed to reflect faculty expertise, and therefore the Senate and the faculty it represents are compelled to reject changes in curricula that do not originate through such a fulsome process. Changes to basic curriculum policy need thoughtful consideration informed by a nuanced understanding of the rationale and impacts of proposed changes on the quality of education that CSU campuses provide and that our students deserve.”

The AAUP joins the ASCSU resolution urging Chancellor White to place the executive orders “into abeyance and defer their implementation date to, at earliest, Fall 2019,” to engage in “genuine consultation with faculty.”

Read the full letter from the AAUP to Chancellor White here.

This kind of unilateral action is occurring more and more at campuses across the country. That's why it's so important that faculty stand together and follow the lead that faculty in California like you frequently set in fighting back. Thank you!

Hans-Joerg Tiede,
Senior Program Officer, AAUP

Yesterday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Janus v. AFSCME, an attack by wealthy, anti-union organizations on the voice of working people and their ability to negotiate collectively.

People from around the country rallied at the Court to let the world know that, regardless of the outcome of the Janus case, we will continue to organize for the public good and for our rights. This followed the Working People’s Day of Action over the weekend, which called attention to our rigged economy and the need to defend our rights at work. It marked the fifty-year anniversary of protests by Memphis sanitation workers and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. against discrimination, low pay, and inhumane conditions that led to worker deaths. Share the graphic above  on Facebook and spread the word.

The AAUP supports the right of working people, including faculty, to join together in unions as well as in traditional nonunionized AAUP chapters. Our collective voice is a powerful force to set standards and create better workplaces. Together, we fight for higher education and the critical role it plays in this country. Together, we defend academic freedom, shared governance, and due process protections. Standing together also makes it possible for us to negotiate affordable healthcare, a fair return on our work, and the ability to retire with dignity.

At issue in Janus is whether non-union members, who share in the wages, benefits and protections that have been negotiated into a collectively bargained contract, may be required to pay their fair share for the cost of those negotiations. Learn more about the Janus case and the amicus brief we filed.

Yesterday's oral argument went largely as expected. Many of the justices sharply questioned the attorneys. Justices Sotomayor, Breyer, Ginsburg, and Kagan generally asked questions and advanced arguments that were supportive of the constitutionality of fair-share fees, pointing to their benefits and to the fact that unions and others had relied on the prior decisions of the Court. Justices Kennedy, Alito, and Roberts took the opposite approach. Justice Kennedy seemed particularly hostile, asserting that unions compel nonmembers to subsidize their political speech.

Because none of the justices appeared to depart from their expected position, today’s oral argument reinforced the view that the Court will rule against us.

AAUP members are sticking together as One Faculty, One Resistance to fight for our collective voice, to promote safe and challenging learning environments, and to defend the important role our universities play in advancing the public good.

Thanks for standing with us.

In unity,
Rudy Fichtenbaum, President, AAUP
Paul Davis, Chair, AAUP Collective Bargaining Congress

Resolution of the California Conference of the American
Association of University Professors regarding California State University Executive Orders 1100 (Revised) and 1110

The California Conference of the American Association of University Professors (CA-AAUP) met with members of the California State University (CSU) Academic Senate and California Faculty Association at the CA-AAUP’s February 10, 2018, Annual Meeting in Los Angeles, California. Following that meeting, the undersigned members of the CA-AAUP issue this condemnation of the process by which CSU Chancellor Timothy White produced Executive Orders 1100  (Revised) and 1110.

We quote from CFA’s October 29, 2017, Resolution in Support of Rescinding California State University Executive Order 1100 (Revised). With the CFA, we conclude that the orders were, in fact, “issued without appropriate and statutorily required consultation or consideration of faculty governance protocols,” thereby

committing an egregious violation of faculty governance and academic freedom and undermining faculty control over academic preparation and standards as well as faculty purview over the curriculum.

 
Referring to the November 2, 2017, Open Letter to Chancellor White from the Chairs of the CSU Campus Senates, we conclude that Executive Orders 1100 (Revised) and 1110

were developed and presented to faculty without adequate consultation or true shared governance. All curricular decisions affect students directly, and therefore all curricular decisions must, by nature, lie with the teaching faculty and students; General Education criteria are not exempted from [Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act] principles.

 
The CA-AAUP views Chancellor White’s procedures in issuing Executive Orders 1100 (Re- vised) and 1110 as a direct assault on the principles of shared governance, principles that form the very core of AAUP values. We call upon Chancellor White to read the AAUP’s Statement on  Government of Colleges and Universities. We also call upon the Chancellor to refrain from tak- ing further actions that undermine the principles of academic freedom and shared governance enshrined in that document, which values are reified in California statute and in case law.

Passing from process to substance, CA-AAUP supports CFA's October 29, 2017, Resolution in Support of Rescinding ... Executive Order 1100 (Revised). We agree that the order

eviscerates Section F “Comparative Cultural Studies / Gender Race, Class and Ethnicity Studies,” as well as foreign languages, denying our students a culturally responsive education and failing to demonstrate an understanding of or respect for California's increasing diversity

Further quoting CFA’s October 29, 2017, Resolution, CA-AAUP notes that Chancellor White is out-of-step with “other systems of public education in California” which are, in fact,

adopting "diversity requirements" [AB 2016 Ethnic Studies, FAIR Education Act], and requiring that students take courses in race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, deaf and disability studies as criteria for graduation.

 
CA-AAUP joins with the Academic Senate of the California State University and eighteen of the CSU campus senates in calling for immediate rescission or, barring that, delay in implementing Executive Order 1100 (Revised), so that our colleges “may continue to provide the breadth and quality of education that our students deserve.”

 
Turning to Executive Order 1110, CA-AAUP supports CFA’s October 29, 2017, Resolution in Support of Rescinding California State University Executive Order 1110. CA-AAUP condemns that order’s attempt to eliminate the English Placement Test and the Entry Level Mathematics Test. Elimination of these examinations will dramatically disadvantage poor students, students of color, students for whom English is a second language, and students entering college with educational deficits. We agree that these examinations are “the baseline for providing our students the academically responsible quality education our faculty seek to provide and our students deserve.”

Quoting CFA’s October 29, 2017, Resolution in Support of Rescinding California State University Executive Order 1110, we ask that

Chancellor White immediately rescind Executive Order 1110, which will allow develop- mental, first year, and General Education courses to continue improving the skills and competencies of our students.

Quoting that same document, CA-AAUP also calls upon Chancellor White to

refrain from reissuing Executive Order 1110 until such time as appropriate and meaningful consultation has taken place and campus faculty have had sufficient time to ensure that the curriculum we require our students to complete continues to provide the quality education our students expect and deserve.

 
The California Conference of the American Association of University Professors

Alex Zukas, National University (2016- 2018), President
Claudio Fogu, University of California, Santa Barbara (2017-2018), Acting Vice President for University of California
Mary Ann Irwin, Diablo Valley College (2016-2018), Secretary/Treasurer
Rosalinda Quintanar, San Jose State University (2016-2018), Vice President for California State University
Katie Graham, Diablo Valley College (2016-2018), Vice President for California Community Colleges
Antonio Gallo, Representing California Faculty Association (South)
George Beckwith, National University (2016-2018), Vice President for Private Colleges and Universities
Steven Filling, Representing California Faculty Association (North)

The AAUP joined this week with other groups, including members of the California Community College System, in filing an amicus brief in support of a permanent injunction against a Trump administration executive order that sought to strip federal funding from “sanctuary jurisdictions.” The lawsuit resulting in the injunction was filed by the city of San Francisco. The AAUP’s interest in the case stems from the potential application of the executive order to colleges and universities. Such an extension would negatively impact colleges’ and universities’ ability to carry out their public mission and their interests in developing a diverse student body. Allowing the executive order  to stand would also set a dangerous precedent for the proposition that the president may unilaterally use the threat of withholding federal funding in a broad and punitive manner as part of an effort to coerce colleges and universities to participate in federal immigration enforcement. Joining this amicus brief enables the AAUP to participate in a precedent-setting case on issues of great national significance that affect the ability of universities to develop and support a diverse student body, regardless of students’ immigration status.

The case, now in front of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, is the City and County of San Francisco v. Trump. The brief was primarily authored by Robin Johansen and Kathleen Purcell, attorneys with Remcho Johansen & Purcell LLP.

Risa Lieberwitz
AAUP General Counsel

Threats of violence. Vicious attacks from right-wing propaganda sites. Firings and forced leaves. The silencing of faculty.

In addition to harming individual faculty members, campaigns of targeted harassment pose a profound and ominous challenge to higher education’s most fundamental values. The right of faculty members to speak or write as citizens, free from institutional censorship or disciplinary action, is a core principle of academic freedom.

The AAUP is at the forefront of fighting targeted harassment. We work directly with affected faculty, campus administrations, and our chapters and state conferences to ensure that faculty members’ academic freedom and due process rights are protected. And our sister organization, the AAUP Foundation, provides direct support to faculty members whose careers are impacted by targeted harassment.

This month, we’re doubling down: starting January 22 we’ll devote a week to the topic of the insidious problem of targeted harassment.

We’ll kick off with an overview of the work we’re doing and let you know how you can raise your voice in the fight. We’ll share some guidelines about targeted harassment and social media and get you the most up-to-date resources on the subject.

You’ll hear from a faculty member who was the target of an attack that led to his suspension, and learn how the work of his AAUP chapter led the administration to step back and acknowledge the fundamental importance of academic freedom for the common good and the advancement of truth.

On Friday, January 26, we’ll hold a Facebook Live chat with Joan Wallach Scott and Henry Reichman, members of AAUP’s Committee A and  two leading voices in the fight for academic freedom. You can RSVP here; we’ll send a reminder in advance.

We want to hear your voices! Tweet or post using the hashtag #FacultyUnderAttack and we’ll share your stories on our social media feeds.

The fight against the targeted harassment of faculty comes at a time when harassment has been increasing significantly. In these uncertain times, the more we stand together, the more we can accomplish.

Stay tuned.

Julie Schmid
Executive Director, AAUP

It’s been a busy fall semester! Next year looks to be no different, and we’re going to start off strong.

In January, an investigating team will visit the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to look into the case of a lecturer who was dismissed at the behest of Nebraska legislators after she protested a recruitment table for Turning Point USA, a radical right-wing organization that maintains the Professor Watchlist website. Her protest, which included the use of anti-fascist slogans, expletives, and and obscene gestures, was filmed by the undergraduate student staffing the table and was subsequently posted on websites such as Campus Reform. This case is one of many troubling recent incidents in which right-wing organizations have fomented outrage against higher education, and actions taken by university administrations or legislators in response have had particularly negative consequences for contingent faculty members and faculty of color. We’ll keep you posted as the case develops.

Starting January 22, we’ll devote a full week to sharing resources and information on the issue of targeted harassment of faculty. We’ll share stories from those who have been targeted, provide information on what you can do before and after an incident occurs on your campus, and hold a Facebook live event with a Q&A. Sign up to become part of our action team to help spread the word to as many faculty as possible. We all need to join in this important fight.

Our work fighting political interference on campus continues with a strong showing in the courts. We scored a victory for science this fall when a court rejected harassing public records requests against two University of Arizona faculty members. The case started with a lawsuit filed by a “free market” legal foundation that targets climate scientists in an effort to “put false science on trial.” In an amicus brief in support of the scientists, we argued that public records laws should not be not misused in order to chill academic freedom. The court agreed, but the foundation has vowed to “keep peppering universities around the country with similar requests under state open records laws.”

We’re working to ensure that the free flow of information and international academic exchange is not hindered by dangerous governmental interference like the Trump administration’s travel ban. In September the AAUP joined with the American Council on Education (ACE) and other higher education groups in an amicus brief before the US Supreme Court opposing the travel ban. As the case around the revised ban continues to move through the courts we will likely join ACE again in filing a brief. We’re also heartened by your support on this matter--our petition against the ban earlier this year was widely shared and signed.

In November, we filed an amicus brief supporting a challenge to a Texas mandate compelling faculty to permit concealed handguns in college classrooms. Citing decades of social science research, we argued that the presence of weapons has a chilling effect on the rigorous academic exchange of ideas. Our work on this case is ongoing, and we’ll keep you apprised of developments. Want to continue to support our legal work? Donate to the Legal Defense Fund now.

One case that could have a profound impact on the collective voice of those who teach and research in higher education is Janus v. AFSCME Council 31, set to be heard by the Supreme Court in the spring term. This legal threat to union rights is part of a broad and well-funded attack on working people, including faculty members and other academic professionals. We anticipate submitting an amicus brief in the case.

The urgency that our members and supporters feel in fighting such attacks is evident in the overwhelming response to provisions in the GOP tax bill that would devastate graduate education by reclassifying tuition waivers as taxable income and repeal the current student loan interest deduction, a change that would result in an increased cost of roughly $24 billion to student borrowers over the next decade. Thousands of you signed a petition to key members of the House, and many followed up with calls to the Senate and public activism both online and on the ground.

As we head toward January and prepare to shine a spotlight on the targeted harassment of faculty, it’s nice to be able to report a victory for academic freedom. Earlier this year, Professor Johnny Williams of Trinity College in Connecticut was subjected to threats of violence after the radical right-wing organization Campus Reform inaccurately reported on statements he had made on social media. Rather than receiving immediate support from his administration, he was suspended. When the AAUP came out strongly in his defense, the administration acknowledged that the social media posts were protected by academic freedom. We thank our Trinity College AAUP chapter and all those who worked hard to ensure that Williams’s academic freedom was protected.

We look forward to your active participation in our work as we head toward what promises to be an exciting year!

Thank you.

Rudy Fichtenbaum
President, AAUP

The AAUP’s Assembly of State Conferences (ASC) is seeking nominations for the following positions on the ASC Executive Committee: Chair, Vice Chair, and Secretary.
For the positions of Vice Chair and Secretary, the Nominating Committee shall consider nominations from any member resident in a state with an active state conference. For all positions, including Chair, any eligible candidate whose name is recommended to the ASC Nominating Committee by members from three or more state conferences shall be included among the nominees.
According to the ASC Constitution and bylaws, voting for the position of Chair must be done by secret ballot and must be completed by April 15, 2018. Therefore, all nominations for the position of ASC Chair must be received by end of business on Friday, December 15. As stated above, nominations for the position of Chair must be recommended by members from three or more state conferences.
The ASC elections for Vice Chair and Secretary will take place at the June 2018 ASC Business Meeting in Arlington, VA, by conference delegates to that meeting. More information about the nominations and election of candidates can be found in the ASC Constitution and bylaws.
Completed nominations for the position of Chair are due by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, December 15, 2017. Completed nominations for the positions of Vice Chair and Secretary are due by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, January 19, 2018. Nominations may be e-mailed to the committee at ascnominations@aaup.org or sent via US mail to ASC Nominating Committee, c/o Catherine Everitt, 1133 Nineteenth Street NW, Suite 200, Washington, DC 20036.
There is no nominations form; the nomination e-mail should state the name, affiliation, and e-mail address of the nominee. All nominators and nominees must be AAUP members.  
The ASC Nominating Committee members, appointed in accordance with the ASC Constitution and Bylaws, are John Hinshaw (Lebanon Valley College), chair; Kathryn Kuhn (Saint Louis University); and Alex Zukas (National University).

Will you join us in telling Congress not to make higher education unaffordable by taxing tuition waivers and eliminating the Student Loan Interest Deduction?

H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, if enacted as written, will have a severe negative impact on students and higher education in the US.

Tell 15 key members of Congress to protect students and vote no on the tax bill.

The legislation would repeal provisions exempting from taxation tuition waivers for campus employees and graduate students, causing a devastating tax increase for thousands and making it impossible for some to continue their studies.

The legislation would also repeal the current Student Loan Interest Deduction, causing an increased cost of roughly $24 billion to student borrowers over the next decade.

Sign the petition now. We'll deliver it to the 15 members of Congress before the vote.

The AAUP

National Center for the Study of Collective Bargaining in Higher Education and the Professions Event

Register Now for Long Beach Regional Conference on December 1-2, 2017
Online registration has commenced for the National Center’s labor-management conference at California State University, Long Beach on December 1-2, 2017.  The conference will include panels on important issues facing faculty, staff, and administrators in higher education.  Click here for the prelimnary conference schedule/program.

Currently confirmed conference co-sponsors are: California State University, California Faculty Association, Community College League of California, SEIU and the University of Oregon with additional support from the Community College Association.

For more information about the regional conference email the National Center or call us at (212) 481-7662.
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Conference on Collective Bargaining and
Labor Relations in Higher Education
 
California State University, Long Beach
December 1-2, 2017
 
Register Now
 
The National Center for the Study of Collective Bargaining in Higher Education and the Professions encourages you to register for an exciting conference scheduled for December 1-2, 2017 at CSU, Long Beach. 
 
The preliminary schedule includes a complete list of panels and presenters.
 
Featured Presentations:
 
●   Plenary: The Impact of Immigration Enforcement
 
●   Adjunct Faculty Unionization and Negotiations
 
●   Higher Ed Funding: Strategies and Challenges
 
●   Agency Fees: Janus v. AFSCME
 
●   Discipline: How to Investigate, Present, and Defend
 
●   Closing Plenary: Where Do We Go From Here?