Legislature proposes $12.5 million in additional funding for CSU

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1 From the California Faculty Association CFA HEADLINES June 15, 2016 Weekly news digest from CFA *Note to Readers: CFA Headlines is going on summer break. There may be Special Editions as warranted. CFA Headlines will resume August 17. Have a wonderful, safe summer! Legislature proposes $12.5 million in additional funding for CSU CFA-sponsored legislation: AB 2294 moves through state house Memorial for CFA leader John Hess to be held July 23 SEIU California endorses Safety for All Initiative Stay connected to CFA this summer Faculty Rights Tip of the Week: The Work Year Links of the Week Legislature proposes $12.5 million in additional funding for CSU Legislative leaders have recommended adding $12.5 million in additional ongoing state funding to the CSU s budget, along with one-time funding this fiscal year, but the move falls short of what is needed to fulfill the system s core mission. The Assembly Budget Subcommittee had originally recommended $101 million in additional funding which CFA and CSU administration has advocated for but the Conference Committee decided late last week to suggest just $12.5 million more per year for the CSU. The committee also is recommending $25-$50 million in one-time funding, with requirements that the system improve graduation rates by system and campus and set improvement targets for underrepresented and first-generation students. While the additional $12.5 million will allow 5,194 more students to enroll, that really amounts to only about 200 more students per campus falling far short of meeting the state s 21 st century needs for a million more college graduates, said CFA President Jennifer Eagan in a written statement. Moreover, the budget s reliance on one-time funding between $25 and $50 million ignores the reality that students are not a one-time investment but rather each year s cohort of students must be supported through to graduation. Unless we invest in hiring more faculty and staff to provide students with the courses they need to graduate and support our students so that they do not have to work more

2 than 10 hours a week, we will not see the improvements in four-year graduation rates that we all (including our students) seek. Using one-time money to study or initiate four-year graduation programs is a colossal waste of resources. The factors delaying graduation are well known a shortage of classes, lack of hiring and support for the faculty and advisors who mentor students, and students having to work too many hours; eliminating or ameliorating these issues requires ongoing investment in providing greater opportunities for students to take classes and spend fewer hours working to support themselves and their families. Click here to read Dr. Eagan s statement in its entirety. The Legislature is scheduled to vote on the budget today, June 15. It will then go on to Gov. Jerry Brown. CFA-sponsored legislation: AB 2294 moves through state house Legislation backed by CFA is continuing to move through the legislative process. Assembly Bill 2294, which would grant release time to an employee who is a union member and has been elected to serve as an officer in an affiliated union, was passed 7-2 by the Senate Education Committee on June 8. The bill was sent to the Appropriations Committee. Susan Green, CFA Treasurer and an Associate Professor of Chicano Studies and History at CSU Chico, said the bill is a necessary solution to a problem that did not exist until June 2015, in light of CFA s impasse with CSU management over faculty salaries. It was only CSU administration s desire to change past practice that made us aware the CSU did not enjoy in statute what K-12 and Community College educators did, she told senators. The right solution is to create statutory parity and equity for CSU faculty with our educator sisters and brothers

3 Memorial for CFA leader John Hess to be held July 23 A memorial service for our CFA colleague and dear friend John Hess will be held on Saturday, July 23 in Oakland. Hess taught at San Francisco State and was instrumental in CFA, having worked on many phases of building the faculty union, from the first election in 1983 to advocating for contingent faculty rights and establishing the initial Lecturers Council. Hess eventually joined the CFA staff and served as a field representative until his retirement. The memorial service, which will be held at ILWU Local 6, 99 Hegenberger Rd., Oakland (near the airport), will include a catered lunch from 11:30 am to 1 pm and a program from 1 to 3 pm. Please RSVP to Jonathan Karpf via at jkarpf@calfac.org. Anyone interested in helping with the memorial service may contact Joe Berry at joeberry@igc.org. SEIU California endorses Safety for All Initiative SEIU California on Tuesday announced its endorsement of the Safety for All Initiative in the wake of the Orlando mass shooting that killed 49 people and injured dozens. The initiative, which was circulated by Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and will be on the November ballot, is a collection of gun reforms, including background checks for ammunition purchasers, prohibiting possession or manufacturing of large, detachable military-style magazines, and requiring immediate surrender of firearms for people convicted of serious and violent crimes. SEIU members have felt the devastation of senseless gun violence up close. Ten of our members lost their lives in the San Bernardino tragedy just six months ago. On a daily basis, our health care workers treat the people whose bodies shattered by bullets and comfort their families. Our brown and black neighborhoods in particular bear the scars left because of the gun lobby s stranglehold on sensible policy, said SEIU

4 California President Laphonza Butler in a written statement on the union s website. CFA is an affiliate local of SEIU. Stay connected to CFA this summer CFA Headlines may be going on summer break until August 17, but you can stay connected to union and higher education news from CFA via social media. If you haven t already done so, like us on Facebook and you ll get updates in your news feed. We re also on active on Twitter as news happens, and can be found Last but not least, save a spot on your smartphone or tablet for our app. To get the CFA app, just open calfac.org on the web browser of your phone. To add the CFA app button to your home screen: With the app open, tap the export box on the bottom of the screen. Then tap Add to home screen. Faculty Rights Tip of the Week: The Work Year As summer nears, we are reminded that there is a yearly rhythm and cycle to our work. There are three types of Work Years in our Collective Bargaining Agreement: Academic Year (AY) Ten (10)-Month Work Year Twelve (12)-Month Work Year While the individual campuses have their own particular academic calendars, they must conform to the parameters set out in Articles 20.4, 20.5, and 20.6 of our Collective Bargaining Agreement. Most of our members are employed for AYs not to exceed 180 days. If you have questions about faculty rights under the faculty contract, you can contact your campus CFA Faculty Rights representative See previous Faculty Rights Tips on a range of topics in our contract. If you have questions about a faculty rights tip or would like to suggest a tip

5 please write us with the subject line Faculty Rights Tip. Links of the Week More students among Orlando victims Inside Higher Ed At least five college students have now been identified among the victims of Sunday's attack on a gay club in Orlando. Orlando s colleges offer solace in the wake of tragedy Chronicle of Higher Education Colleges in and near Orlando, Fla., have spent the past two days responding to the mass shooting that left 49 people dead and 53 wounded there over the weekend. Presidents released statements of condolence, while their campuses provided counseling services, organized blood drives, and planned memorials. New rule aims to streamline debt forgiveness for victims of rogue for-profit schools Associated Press The Obama administration is trying to make it easier for students who have been misled or defrauded by their colleges to have their loans forgiven. The Education Department says a rule proposed Monday would lay out a clear relief process for borrowers who believe they were lied to about job prospects after college or otherwise deceived in order to enroll in the school. It also aims to hold schools accused of fraud or at financial risk more accountable by requiring them to notify prospective and enrolled students, as well as set aside money that could help cover future claims against the school. Some Adjunct Professors Earn Just $20,000 a Year The Nation The manicured campus of Northwestern University has been an unlikely incubator of labor activism in recent months. The most notable labor battle has involved a groundbreaking campaign for union rights led by campus football players. But in the background, other labor stirrings were at work this spring. After the football players plight ended in a sad defeat at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), others were talking union off the field and in the lecture halls, feeding a labor buzz among several Chicago-area campuses. CalPERS returns 'likely to be flat' in current fiscal year Reuters California Public Employees' Retirement System Chief Investment Officer Ted Eliopoulos on Monday described the pension fund's current fiscal year performance as "likely to be flat, which is a nice way of saying zero." CalPERS, the biggest U.S. public pension fund, plans to announce its annual returns for the 12 months ending June 30 in mid-july. On Monday, Eliopoulos warned CalPERS Investment Committee that the coming three to five years will be "a challenging market environment for us." Controversial Stanford sexual assault case has a political twist The Sacramento Bee Former Stanford University swimmer Brock Turner surely deserves six years in prison the prosecutor s recommendation for the sexual assault he committed, not the six months in jail he received. * * * Join CFA s Facebook page For the latest news, follow CFA on Twitter Check out CFA YouTube