A dean calls to offer you the three-year tenure-track appointment
for which you interviewed. You accept, and move 3,000 miles to
your new job. Two weeks into the semester a letter from the Trustees
confirms your position - as a non-tenure-track "special appointment."
Your department unanimously recommends a two-year reappointment for
yourself and two colleagues. Your teaching and service records are
comparable, but you, a woman, have published a book while the others,
men, have published three articles apiece. They are renewed; you
are not.
You are being sued for "failure to teach" by a former student
who received an F in your course.
At age 65 you decide to continue teaching until 70. You learn, however,
that the college will cease contributing to your medical and pension
plans.
The dean calls you into her office to tell you that a student is
charging you with sexual harassment.
The provost denies you a merit raise on the grounds that your outstanding
student evaluations are merely the result of your awarding 90% A's
and B's.
Your department has just been "retrenched" and your tenured
appointment terminated.
| .... What rights do you have as a faculty member
in these situations? |
| .... What recourse can you take? |
Protecting Your Faculty Rights: A Guide Prepared & Distributed
by
The New York State Conference AAUP 1996
Most academics don't think about protecting their
rights as faculty and as employees until they encounter situations
like those just described. By following the basic steps outlined
in PROTECTING YOUR FACULTY RIGHTS: A GUIDE, you can effectively
meet such challenges when they do occur, or even avoid them entirely.
Know Your Rights
Identify Your Responsibilities
Listed below are the types of documents that define the general
policies and procedures of your institution regarding matters
such as appointments, reappointments, promotion, and tenure;
curriculum; faculty governance; academic freedom; workloads;
salaries; and benefits. You should also have all documents
that detail the specific terms and conditions of your individual
appointment. Read and retain:
1. Institutional charter and by-laws
2. School and department handbook or
governance rules
3. Faculty manual or handbook*
4. Faculty union contract, if any*
5. List and description of all fringe benefits*
6. Student handbook
7. Any other document that establishes procedures
8. Your letter of appointment (and all subsequent reappointments)
9. Any other document that defines or modifies your specific
job
Ideally, your faculty manual should contain copies of all documents
from 1 through 5. Because faculty manuals are usually written
by the administration, be alert to changes that may have been
made, unannounced and without faculty consultation, even when
faculty normally participate in recommending the provisions
of the manual.
*Senior faculty can help new faculty by routinely providing
copies of these documents during the job interview itself.
If such materials aren't offered, candidates should ask for
them. |
Keep
Records
At a time of increasing litigation by parents and students
as well as the increasing tendency on the part of administrators
to view themselves as managers, it is important to keep thorough
records of all your job-related activities. In addition to
the basic documents just listed, retain the following items
in your files:
1. Grade books
2. Photocopies of final grade reports
3. Sign-up sheets or other records of student conferences
4. Minutes of department/school meetings
5. Minutes of committees on which you have served
6. Syllabi, handouts, reading lists, lecture notes
7. Grant applications and responses
8. All job-related correspondence you have sent or received
9. Appointment books
10. Curriculum vitae (all revisions) and annual activities
reports
11. Student and other teaching evaluations
12. Any other item you or another has placed in your personnel
files.
Additionally, you should review and update your departmental,
school, and central personnel files annually. |
Create
Records
Even minor incidents such as an incorrect paycheck or
a student complaining to your chair that you missed an
appointment can often lead to major problems. Create a "paper
trail" as soon as you find yourself in any potentially
troublesome situation:
- Keep written records of telephone conversations, noting
the date, names of persons with whom you spoke, and a
summary of the conversation.
- Follow up telephone calls with written requests for information
or action to resolve the problem. Include a summary of
the conversation.
- If you attend meetings on the issue, take detailed notes
of the date, who was present, and what was said. Sign and
date these notes for your own records. Then send a memo
to the appropriate person(s) with a detailed objective
summary of what was said and by whom. End your memo with
this request: "If your understanding of our meeting
(conversation) differs from mine, would you please let
me know in writing."
|
Keep Your Temper
Keep Your Wits
If you find yourself in an adversarial situation, you
may well find too that all your actions will be cast in
the worst possible light. Whatever the provocation, it
is in your best interest to remain level-headed:
- Let the facts speak for themselves.
- State your case effectively but keep your emotions in
check.
- Never put in writing anything potentially insulting,
libelous, provocative, or offensive.
- Never refuse a work-related assignment on the spot. Consult
first with your faculty union, where there is one. Otherwise,
call The New York State Conference, which will contact
the national AAUP.
|
What You Should Do If Your Rights Are Being Violated
- Immediately review the documents that spell out your
rights and responsibilities in order to determine whether
you have grounds for a complaint.
- Immediately read the section in your faculty manual
or union contract that describes the proper channels
for pursuing a remedy to your situation, including grievance
or appeal procedures.
- Seek a solution first through direct consultation.
- If an informal approach to solving the problem fails,
then use the formal grievance or appeal procedure provided
in your faculty manual or union contract.
- DO NOT MISS THE DEADLINE FOR FILING A COMPLAINT. Internal
grievance procedures are designed to save you the time
and cost of taking your claim to a civil court. If you
miss a deadline you may still be able to resolve the
problem internally, but the administration is obliged
to do only what is mandated in the bylaws, faculty manual,
or union contract on matters not covered by law.
- Complaints of discrimination as defined by state or
federal laws may be filed with the New York State Equal
Opportunity Commission or at the federal level with the
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. File as soon
as possible because counting the days to filing deadlines
can be tricky and the deadlines are strictly enforced.
You do not need an attorney to file.
- If you are represented by a union, contact the union
grievance officer first. Otherwise, contact your faculty
grievance committee. Additionally, if your campus has
an AAUP Chapter, consult with its officers.
- If you have no resources on your campus to help you
with your problem, or if your faculty advisors need advice
or assistance, call The New York State Conference AAUP.
Experienced AAUP members can review the issues with you
and advise you further on what steps to take.
- Retain an attorney only when you are sure you need
one. .
|
What You Should Do To Avoid Litigation
- Find out to what extent the policies of your institution
protect you for decisions made or actions taken while
you are engaged in professional activities such as classroom
teaching, laboratory supervision, or committee deliberations.
- Find out if you have liability coverage while traveling
on institution business or while using an institution-owned
vehicle.
- At the beginning of each term, provide all your students
with a written definition of plagiarism and other violations
of academic honesty. Use statements from the student
handbook, where they exist. Also inform them in writing
of the consequences incurred for violating these policies.
- Familiarize yourself with your institution's student
disciplinary procedures.
- Find out whether your institution has an ombudsperson
or similar officer to whom student vs. faculty disputes
may be referred.
- Follow correct institutional procedures when you discipline
a student for cheating or plagiarism, and be able to
sustain your claim with documentation.
AAUP members are eligible to enroll in the Association's
professional liability insurance program. For more information,
call 1-800-583-2849.
The creation and protection of faculty tights is a collective
process. The AAUP has worked since 1915 on just this activity
and the policy statements produced, often with the collaboration
of administrative or other professional groups in higher education,
are collected in AAUP Policy Documents and Reports (the volume
commonly referred to as "The Redbook"). Becoming
familiar with this work may prove invaluable for you and your
colleagues.
|
The New York State Conference AAUP stands ready to serve your
professional interests. A specially designed NYSC Legal Service
Plan is available. For further information or assistance call:
Tom Policano, Executive Director
NYS Conference AAUP
PO Box 20047
Rochester, NY 14602
888.690.2287
585.719.7137
585.427.8526 Fax
tpolicano@nysaaup.org |
Irwin Yellowitz, Chair, Committee
A
201-767-3620
iyellowitz@aol.com |
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