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Greetings!

Welcome to this edition of the Bulletin, the e-newsletter dedicated to the AFT's Faculty and College Excellence (FACE) campaign and other issues related to academic staffing in higher education.

This edition includes:

Tell Central Michigan University To Leave No Lecturers Behind
Lecturers' Employee Organization Reaches Out to President Obama
More Organizing and Bargaining Activities in Michigan Changes in NLRB May Spur Grad Organizing at Private Universities Bates Technical College Faculty Votes 'No Confidence' in Interim President Have You Gotten the FACE Widget?

Tell Central Michigan University To Leave No Lecturers Behind
On Feb. 23, a majority of full- and part-time nontenure-track instructors at Central Michigan University petitioned the state labor commission for an election to recognize their union, the Union of Teaching Faculty. Now, however, the Central Michigan administration is attempting to impose a teaching credit threshold on the UTF bargaining unit that would unjustly exclude a large number of part-time faculty from being represented by their union-a move that has become disturbingly common in other nontenure-track faculty organizing drives in Michigan. This move on the part of the administration's bargaining team seems aimed at directly undermining respect for the role part-time nontenure-track faculty play in the lives of CMU's students and the university community at large.
UTF members are not taking this lying down, and neither should you. The UTF is seeking support from fellow unionists as it fights to determine the composition of its bargaining unit. It is asking supporters to encourage CMU president George E. Ross and the CMU administration to do the right thing: allow all nontenure-track faculty the right to union representation. You can add your name to those calling for justice for the members of UTF by clicking here. If you have a few extra minutes, please take the time to personalize the letter with your own comments.

Lecturers' Employee Organization Reaches Out to President Obama
The University of Michigan held its graduation ceremonies on May 1, with President Obama delivering the commencement address and receiving an honorary law degree. Members of the Lecturers' Employee Organization, still mired in contract negotiations, took the time to reach out to the president and other recipients of honorary degrees to ask them to recognize the contributions made by all members of UM's academic community:
We have one simple request. When you speak to the graduates at the University of Michigan, please ask the students to thank all those at the University who have helped bring them to their day of graduation, especially the faculty and the many Lecturers, who helped them to become the pride of Michigan, developing them into "the leaders and best."
You can read the whole letter, which was also sent to Undersecretary of Education Martha Kanter, at the LEO website.
In other LEO news, in our last Bulletin we told you about the dismissal of longtime instructor and LEO vice president Kirsten Herold for what appears to be her union activism. LEO is asking its supporters to sign on to a letter to the University of Michigan's leadership protesting her dismissal and calling for her reinstatement. You can sign on to the letter here.

More Organizing and Bargaining Activities in Michigan
In addition to the bargaining unit dispute going on at Central Michigan University and the continuing LEO negotiations at the University of Michigan, there's a number of other organizing and bargaining activities going on in the Great Lakes State. Organizing committees at both Eastern Michigan University (Adjunct Lecturers Organizing Committee) and Ferris State University (Nontenure-Track Faculty Organization) are experiencing efforts by their respective administrations-similar to the efforts at CMU-to limit the sizes of their bargaining units.
On the bargaining front, there's great news from the Professional Instructors Organization at Western Michigan University, who announced a tentative agreement on its first contract (still contingent on ratification), which will significantly improve the working conditions for their members. Meanwhile, the Union of Nontenure-Track Faculty at Michigan State University staged a rally at the university's board of trustees meeting in the hopes of getting a first contract before the end of the school year. Finally, LEO, at the University of Michigan, in addition to its activities around commencement, has been staging rallies and teach-ins, and bringing members' concerns before the board of regents in order to reach a settlement on its contract.

Changes in NLRB May Spur Grad Organizing at Private Universities
With President Obama's recent new appointments to the National Labor Relations Board, new hope has been given to graduate employees at private universities, who saw their right to organize eviscerated by the Bush-era NLRB in 2004's Brown decision. Now, members of the Graduate Student Organizing Committee, the UAW affiliate at New York University-whose union was busted in 2005 after the NYU administration refused to bargain a second contract, despite a lengthy strike-have received certification from the American Arbitration Association that a majority of grad employees there have signed union recognition cards. They are petitioning the NYU administration for voluntary recognition and, in the likely event that that recognition is refused, are prepared to petition the NLRB for a recognition election. This could potentially pave the way for new graduate employee organizing at private universities around the country.

Bates Technical College Faculty Votes 'No Confidence' in Interim President
After Bates Technical College in Tacoma, Wash., declared a financial emergency over spring break and delivered 45 pink slips to faculty members on April 16, more than 60 percent of the faculty at Bates voted on a motion of no confidence with respect to that institution's interim president. More than 95 percent of those who voted supported the motion, which has been taken before the college's board of trustees. Meanwhile, the union representing the faculty, AFT Local 4184, is taking legal action in response to how the reduction in force is being handled. The reduction comes at a time when classes are overenrolled and paying students are on waiting lists to get the courses they need, points out Karen Patjens, president of Local 4184. "The proposed layoffs are especially devastating because of the bad economy-a time most of our students need retraining," she said.

Have You Gotten the FACE Widget?
Want to be able to keep up with all the happenings from the FACE Talk on your local website? Well, now you can-with our new FACE widget! Get the widget here, and follow the simple instructions to add it to your website, blog or Facebook page!

To share your stories, ideas and suggestions, send us an e-mail at highered@aft.org.