The Word from CSEA
Columbus State Education Association Newsletter of October 3, 2011
CSEA MEMBERS MEETING
There will be a CSEA members meeting on Monday, October 17, from 3:00 - 4:30 in a room to be determined. The agenda will include a review of the 2011-2014 contract (which is currently being printed, and which will be distributed on or before the day of the meeting. It is currently available in pdf format at the CSEA website, https://www.cseafaculty.org ), a proposed amendment to the CSEA Constitution (see later item in this issue of The Word), and information about CSEA elections.
This meeting is open to any full-time faculty member (tenure-track faculty or Annually Contracted Faculty) who has joined CSEA. We especially welcome Annually Contracted Faculty (ACF) to this meeting, so that we can share additional information about the ACF positions, expectations for the important roles that ACF will play at the college, and some thoughts about how these positions might evolve over time.
CSEA ELECTIONS
Elections for the offices of Vice-President, Parliamentarian, and half of the Association Representatives will be held in the coming weeks. If you are interested in running for any of these positions, contact CSEA Secretary T.J. Duda at tduda@cscc.edu or at x5309. We strongly encourage your participation in CSEA - the organization is only as strong as its members enable it to be. Serving your Association also provides an excellent opportunity for College Service for purposes of tenure and promotion.
Faculty in each division will be voting for representatives from their respective division. We are also hoping to allow for some at-large representatives this year, should faculty approve of the proposed amendment to the CSEA Constitution.
AMENDMENT TO CSEA CONSTITUTION
With the addition of nearly 50 full-time faculty this academic year as ACF, as well as the likely restructuring of the Academic Divisions at the College, the CSEA Executive Committee is recommending a change in the language of the CSEA Constitution concerning the number and distribution of Association Representatives. Current language specifies that there should be one Association Representative for every 10 faculty in the Arts and Sciences Division, and one Association Representative for every 10 faculty in the Career and Technical Division. The proposed change would not specify the academic divisions by name (which are subject to change with each college reorganization), and is intended to maintain a minimum number of representatives from each academic division but allow for greater flexibility in the number of Association Representatives required and by allowing for "at-large" representatives.
The proposed change would amend Article IV, Section 2.1 to read:
"The Executive Committee shall determine an appropriate number of Association Representatives, but it shall not be less than one (1) Association Representative elected in each Academic Division for every twenty-five (25) members or fraction thereof. An additional number of Association Representatives may be elected as at-large representatives."
This amendment will be discussed at the October 17 members' meeting, and voted on at a subsequent members' meeting.
WORK TO REPEAL SB5
Each weekend organizers from We Are Ohio, the group devoted to repealing SB5, are canvassing in neighborhoods to get out the word that a NO vote ON ISSUE 2 will repeal SB5. They are only going to homes of people who signed the petition to put Issue 2 on the ballot, and the purpose is to let those people know to vote No on Issue 2 to repeal SB5.
This is critical work to assure the future of CSEA. SB5 re-classifies college faculty as “managers,” which will make us ineligible to be members of a union. (What state employees do we “manage,” exactly?) ANO vote ON ISSUE 2 will maintain the right of all public employees to negotiate for fair wages, benefits, working conditions and—for firefighters, police, and nurses—staffing levels.
It wasn’t enough to just get the referendum on the ballot. Now we have to get the votes. There is overwhelming support for repealing the scorched-earth action of the General Assembly, so we have to make sure that everyone who signed the referendum proposal turns out next month.
If you are available for a few hours on any upcoming Saturday or Sunday, contact Kevin James atkjames1@cscc.edu or x5008 about canvass muster points throughout the region. You can also find out how to get yard signs, rally signs, t-shirts, and other No ON ISSUE 2 campaign materials at the We Are Ohio website, http://www.weareohio.com. Go with a few colleagues. Be sure to let the We Are Ohio folks know that you are an OEA member.
Spread the word to your family, friends, neighbors, and colleagues about these events and the importance of a NO vote ON ISSUE 2.
CINCINNATI STATE FACULTY GO ON STRIKE
Full-time faculty at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College recently rejected a fact-finder's report, and voted to hold a one-week strike commencing on September 23, the day that the college was inaugurating its new president. The faculty returned to classes on September 30, but are still without a contract. The sticking point is teaching load once the college converts to semesters next year: the faculty proposed a two-semester teaching load of 30 hours, while the college was proposing a two-semester teaching load of 41 hours (which it eventually reduced to 37 hours for fact-finding). Two-semester teaching loads at Ohio's other community colleges range from 27 hours to 32 hours, with 30 hours being the norm.
There is no doubt that the Cincinnati State Board of Trustees is attempting to use these negotiations for the purpose of gaining support for Senate Bill 5. By proposing a ridiculously high teaching load, and refusing to discuss numbers that come reasonably close to any other community college in Ohio, they are forcing the faculty at Cincinnati State to take job actions in the weeks leading up to the November vote on State Issue 2. The chairman of the Cincinnati State Board of Trustees, Michael Oestreicher, last year donated $1,000 to the campaign of tea-party favorite Josh Mandel. Cincinnati State faculty have also reported that Mr. Oestreicher has met with and/or been communicating with Governor Kasich during the negotiations, leading many to believe that this is being orchestrated at the state level. It may be just a matter of time until you see video of Cincinnati State faculty holding picket signs on a pro-Issue 2 commercial. Faculty at Cincinnati State are represented by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP).
SPEAKING OF PRO-ISSUE 2 ADVERTISEMENTS...
As the political blog plunderbund.com recently reported, pro-Issue 2 organizations like For a Better Ohioand the Virginia-based Alliance for America's Future seem to be having trouble finding real teachers, police officers, fire fighters, nurses, etc., to feature in any of their advertisements. While We Are Ohio (the organization fighting Senate Bill 5 and coordinating the "Vote NO on Issue 2" campaign) has routinely used real public employees to discuss the negative impact that Senate Bill 5 would have on Ohio, For a Better Ohio has had to resort to purchasing stock photos from istockphoto.com to include in their advertisements.
Go to http://www.plunderbund.com/2011/09/14/fake-police-officer-endorses-issue-2/http://www.plunderbund.com/2011/09/14/fake-police-officer-endorses-issue-2/ to read the rather humorous blog article about For a Better Ohio's difficulty in trying to find real public employees who support SB 5.
HIRING PROCESS FOR ANNUALLY CONTRACTED FACULTY (ACF)
Our new collective bargaining Agreement provides for the hiring of non-tenure track Annually Contracted Faculty (who will also be Association members) on annual contracts. This hiring will be done by faculty and chairs using a modified process that will be a shortened version of the normal HR process. The faculty Agreement requires that “[t]he process for selecting the faculty committee members will be established and implemented by the department’s full-time tenure-track faculty.”
CSEA has filed a grievance based on one department’s hiring on several ACFs without adopting such a process. This issue is important because our Negotiating Team made a number of compromises during bargaining to ensure faculty input into the ACF hiring process. Please contact your Association representative if your department is hiring ACF without having a faculty-established process for creating the selection committee.
CSEA FACULTY EXCELLENCE AWARD
The CSEA Faculty Excellence Award was created to recognize CSEA members who demonstrate distinction in an area of service, teaching or leadership. Each year, two faculty will be selected to receive a $500.00 cash award, as well as a plaque. A recipient of the award will not be eligible to win the award in two consecutive years.
Attached is a copy of the nomination form, which includes additional information. This form will also be put on the CSEA website later this week: https://www.cseafaculty.org.
Please consider nominating a colleague for this recognition!
ACFs AND NEW TENURE-TRACK FACULTY: FAIR SHARE FEES
Article 2 of our Agreement provides for the collection of a fair-share fee from those bargaining unit members who have chosen not to become or remain members of the Association. While faculty who join CSEA have their dues taken out over 18 pays beginning October 15, faculty who do not join CSEA will have their fair share fees taken out over 12 pays, beginning January 15.
Please make sure that you have completed the necessary forms that you have received and return them to Ingrid Emch, Membership Chair, prior to October 15. Contact her at x5824 if you have questions about your membership form, Association dues, or the fair share fee.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Consider serving CSEA as an Association Representative. You’ll build collegial relationships across the college and strengthen CSEA’s service to its members. In the coming weeks, the Nominating Committee will be seeking candidates. This role is valuable College Service for annual appraisal and promotion.
CSEA needs a member to act as a local political action liaison With OEA and Central OEA/NEA. Civic action is an essential part of our lives as teachers and citizens. You can be an important link in CSEA’s efforts to represent our collective interests on a range of issues while earning College Service at the same time.
CENTRAL SCHEDULING
CSEA is continuing to monitor the change to a more centralized scheduling process, which includes classes being offered only on the half-hour, classes being offered in rooms and buildings that they'd not been offered in before, and possibly in rooms that accommodate more students than in the past. If you are having any issues due to the new centralized scheduling process, please make your Association Representative aware of them.
The Word is produced by the Communications Committee of the Columbus State Education Association. We welcome your comments, news, and insights.
Darrell Minor, President/ x5310
Kevin James, Vice-President / x5008
Judy Anderson, Secretary / x5453
Phil MacLean, Treasurer / x5308
Ingrid Emch, Parliamentarian-elect / x5824
Gil Feiertag, Senior Association Representative, Career & Technical / x5861
Health, Dental and Veterinary Technology
Allied Health
Steve Abbott, Senior Association Representative, Arts & Sciences / x5096
Business
T.J. Duda / x5309
Construction Science
Automotive
Engineering Technology
Gilberto Serrano / x3863
Mathematics
Beth Barnett / x2593
Hospitality, Massage Therapy and Sports & Exercise Studies
Bill Cook / x5364
Communications
Mort Javadi / x5635
Physical Sciences
Jackie Miller / x2601
Nursing & Related Services
Mark Mitchell / x3612
Justice & Safety
Keith Sanders/ x5288
Humanities
Mike Schumacher / 5482
Social Sciences
Psychology
Cindy Evans / x2435
Human Services
Dr. Antoinette Perkins / x5754
Marketing & Graphic Communication
Computer Information Technology
Eric Neubauer / x5698
English
Amy Brubaker / x5068
Developmental Education
Modern Languages
Dr. Sue Longenbaker / x2430
Biological Sciences