Lisa Klein, President of Rutgers Council of AAUP Chapters, AAUP-AFT, Professor in Ceramic and Materials Engineering
Welcome back to the start of the academic year. Let's jump right into the important issue of the moment, and that is to respond to the Transforming Undergraduate Education Report. Here are some of my thoughts to begin the discussion. Additionally we are forming a committee to make sure that AAUP has appropriate input, and we welcome your thoughts.
As the academic year begins, it is important for everyone to consider the Undergraduate Report and its impact in our community.Always eager to reconnect with students I read the Undergraduate Report looking for how to connect.I saw the word connect everywhere, but what I didn’t see was how.
As I read each section, the question that comes to my mind is how? How will a single admissions program, or single honors program, or a single ethics code help me to connect to students? I’m all for having uniform policies and opportunities for all students to participate in all programs, but what does this have to do with connecting?
As the years go by, I have less time to connect to students due to mounting administrative responsibilities. I assemble all my own course materials. I enter my own purchase orders. I print my own rosters. I’ve become an expert at multitasking. As a result my face time with students has suffered. So, how does this new undergraduate plan help me to reconnect? With professors taking on the responsibilities that assistant deans did in the colleges, the multitasking accelerates.
Approximately 50% of the introductory classes are taught by non-tenure-track faculty. This includes part-time lecturers, adjunct faculty, and teaching assistants. These are the faculty members that students are face to face with every day. How does the report plan to connect the students with these members of our campus community?
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Rutgers AAUP-AFT will be conducting brief monthly surveys of the bargaining units with an eye toward monitoring implementation of the collective agreements. This first month's survey focuses on members' titles and status within the unit. Completing it will take only a few minutes. The results will help us determine if titles and unit membership are being correctly assigned. Individual responses will be kept confidential. Please take a moment now to complete the survey by clicking on this link.
The newsletter will be distributed monthly via email, if you have comments, input, or concerns feel free to contact the AAUP-AFT at AAUP@rutgersaaup.com
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