Members of the Part­-time Faculty Association of Maine (PATFA) voted overwhelmingly to change the way the PATFA constitution can be amended. Using secret ballot, members voted 72­-14 in favor of the proposed change.

Essentially, the change allows a majority vote of those members present at the Annual Meeting to adopt changes to the PATFA constitution. Under existing language, such changes had to be made via secret ballot and snail mail.

The PATFA constitution now reads:

“Article XV, Section 1. This constitution may be amended as follows:

a) Proposed amendment is submitted to the Executive Council

Here is a recent New York Times piece on adjuncts in the classroom:

'Crowded Out of Ivory Tower, Adjuncts See a Life Less Lofty'

The University of Maine at Augusta, which has campuses in Augusta and Bangor and controls the nine University College sites around the state, has clarified its reimbursement policies for courses taught via videoconferencing.

UMA uses a brand of videoconferencing called Polycom. In such courses, a teacher in, say, Augusta can see and hear students in various other classrooms around the state. Under UMA’s revised policy, all courses offered through videoconference must include a minimum of four sites.

UMA adjuncts are eligible for reimbursement when they travel to the various sites where students

AUGUSTA – The union that represents nearly 1,900 part-time faculty members in the University of Maine System is marking its 25th anniversary this May.

The Part-time Faculty Association (PATFA) was founded on May 1, 1988. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, wrote in a congratulatory letter to the association that “Your strength and perseverance over the past 25 years are a source of great pride and inspiration to all of us.”

Efforts by part-time faculty to achieve recognition as a bargaining unit by the University of Maine System began 30 years ago. By late 1986

Members of the Part­-time Faculty Association of Maine (PATFA) voted overwhelmingly to change the way the PATFA constitution can be amended. Using secret ballot, members voted 72­-14 in favor of the proposed change.

Essentially, the change allows a majority vote of those members present at the Annual Meeting to adopt changes to the PATFA constitution. Under existing language, such changes had to be made via secret ballot and snail mail.

The PATFA constitution now reads:

“Article XV, Section 1. This constitution may be amended as follows:

a) Proposed amendment is submitted to the Executive Council

Here is a recent New York Times piece on adjuncts in the classroom:

'Crowded Out of Ivory Tower, Adjuncts See a Life Less Lofty'

The University of Maine at Augusta, which has campuses in Augusta and Bangor and controls the nine University College sites around the state, has clarified its reimbursement policies for courses taught via videoconferencing.

UMA uses a brand of videoconferencing called Polycom. In such courses, a teacher in, say, Augusta can see and hear students in various other classrooms around the state. Under UMA’s revised policy, all courses offered through videoconference must include a minimum of four sites.

UMA adjuncts are eligible for reimbursement when they travel to the various sites where students

AUGUSTA – The union that represents nearly 1,900 part-time faculty members in the University of Maine System is marking its 25th anniversary this May.

The Part-time Faculty Association (PATFA) was founded on May 1, 1988. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, wrote in a congratulatory letter to the association that “Your strength and perseverance over the past 25 years are a source of great pride and inspiration to all of us.”

Efforts by part-time faculty to achieve recognition as a bargaining unit by the University of Maine System began 30 years ago. By late 1986