Dear colleagues: Finals Week is just the beginning. So your Part-time Faculty Association of Maine (PATFA) offers this update on issues affecting all of us in May 2020 – as well as the months ahead.
First, the University of Maine System is still calculating its Fiscal Year 2020 costs, and the vice chancellor for finance told university union leaders April 23 that the July state revenue forecasts for the Legislature should be watched closely for clues to how the System’s funding will be affected in the new fiscal year. Until then, lots of questions remain unanswered.
Second, PATFA has raised several issues with System officials since the pandemic hit. Our March 13 email to System officials asked for ready access to campus space for online teaching, payment for technology training, and inclusion in digital communication shared with full-time faculty.
Hours after our email, the System vice chancellor for academic affairs emailed all provosts and shared our concern about communication. In at least one case, University of Maine at Augusta knocked down its digital walls and opened up full- and part-time faculty communication. We have not achieved payment for training for the course venue Blackboard or its successor Brightspace, but we continue to pursue it. And access to buildings has appeared stable, with doors locked but part-time faculty with IDs able to card-key their way in as needed.
Third, PATFA urges any part-time faculty members scheduled to teach in summer or fall to check Maine Street enrollments for their courses frequently in the weeks ahead. Our PATFA contract says we should receive information about teaching assignments at least 60 days before the start of semester, and an official assignment at least 30 days before start. Yet many departments list part-time faculty course sections in Maine Street from the start of registration, and those listings show numbers of students enrolled.
“This is a time for communication,” said PATFA President Michele Cheung (USM). “Just waiting for the phone to ring is not wise. If the person who assigns you course sections is mindful of your interest, you will be able to adjust more readily.”
Likewise, a part-time faculty member eligible for an Academic Year Appointment should ask for one as soon as possible. AYAs are options for people who have taught at a System university for at least 16 semesters and at least two courses in each of the six semesters preceding Fall 2020. “An AYA increases the chances you will be assigned two course sections,” Cheung said.
“In this time of daily adjustments to the university system's ways of coping with the pandemic, it is important to reduce your stress as much as possible.” Cheung said. “While the university plans to open face-to-face classes this fall semester, it would be wise to adjust your course plans for easy adaptation to remote or online learning. The move to Brightspace is an opportunity to reconsider your syllabus for how you can build in this flexibility. Furthermore, if you feel you need information related to the fall's coursework, you should not feel shy about asking your chair or director for advice. This can include questions about changes to the teaching space and student access to libraries, etc., that may change your instruction methods.”
Unemployment Benefits: A part-time faculty member earlier this month was told in writing that his course would not be offered in the fall because of the pandemic. The faculty member then asked PATFA whether that would be grounds for unemployment benefits. PATFA cannot answer authoritatively but we believe the significant loosening of state and federal labor protocols for unemployment benefits could help make that happen.
Class size: Some departments may be creating larger individual course sections for Fall 2020. Neither the full-time faculty contract (AFUM) nor PATFA’s address class size, and some part-time faculty have taught large numbers per section for years. We suspect some departments will try this more often in 2020-21.
But keep in mind this language from the PATFA contract: “Without providing any guarantee of one or more courses by the University, [part-time faculty] with established employment patterns or who have developed a course offering at the request of an academic administrator with the understanding [the part-time faculty member] would teach the course shall not be arbitrarily or capriciously denied assignment of one or more of those courses for which they are qualified, have indicated they are available for and have preference to teach. (Article 11, PATFA contract).
Incompletes: While you have received plenty of instruction on the University of Maine System’s adoption of a Pass-Fail option for students, PATFA reminds you that whether you grant a student’s request for an Incomplete is entirely your call. Our PATFA contract does not mandate pay for work beyond a semester.
Hiring process: Our March 27 email on a carelessly worded System hiring directive drew quick response. After meeting March 30 via Zoom with PATFA officers, the vice chancellor for academic affairs said academic departments “will still select the faculty per the PATFA contract and submit them through their University Governance structure for approval.” He added: “This hiring approval does not impact any current full-time or adjunct instructor and does not affect adjuncts on the University service list.”
PATFA reminds you that the PATFA contract mandates three Service Lists: List 1 contains people with 5 or fewer service units (Fall or Spring semesters); List 2 contains people with 6 to 12 service units; and List 3 contains people with 13 or more service units. The contract spells out how course sections are to be offered, based on this seniority. We suspect some hiring administrators are unaware of this structure, so it could be beneficial to know your options. Here is a link to the contract and the service lists (which are supposed to be updated each May).
Title IX: Amid the pandemic, the U.S. Department of Education on May 6 issued the final wording of its updated Title IX rule – an issue that has been controversial in both the Obama and Trump administrations. The language guides how universities are supposed to investigate and deal with allegations of sexual harassment. The final version lets both accused and accuser offer evidence and participate in cross-examinations. It is supposed to be implemented by August.
Unified Accreditation: Also amid the pandemic, the System is plunging ahead with plans for a new accreditation structure, essentially seeking to structure accreditation around the University of Maine System instead of seven individual universities. Some full-time faculty members are wary of the proposals, especially in light of the fact that full-time faculty work for just one of the seven universities. PATFA can point out that our contract allows us to teach at any of the seven universities in the same semester – so long as our employment does not constitute a full-time load.
Board of Trustees: Academic Integrity Policy: The next University of Maine System Board of Trustees meeting will be via Zoom on May 18. On its lengthy agenda is text of a new academic integrity policy recommended for adoption by Sept. 1. (It still has a few steps to go.) It covers a whopping eight pages single spaced, but essentially it says a faculty member would inform a student in private of a violation and provide the student with a chance to explain the circumstances. “The allegation may be dropped by the faculty member if an explanation by the student is accepted as being adequate.” But if the faculty member decides to pursue the complaint, that teacher would complete an academic integrity violation form within 10 business days – and that also would involve notifying the student conduct officer and “the appropriate academic administrator” at the teacher’s university. And the process would go on from there.
Board of Trustees: Among the reports prepared for the board session is the 2019 Workforce Profile. It counts 875 part-time faculty members who taught in 2019. In Fall 2019, part-time faculty taught 666 course sections at USM, 388 at UM, 262 at UMA, 110 at UMFK, 85 at UMF, 81 at UMPI, and 60 at UMM. Part-time faculty taught 4,699.5 credit hours in Fall 2019.
The profile says the System employed 4,635 people in 2019: 2.2 percent as administrators (average pay $143,376); 40.8 percent as salaried staff (average pay $54,846); 25.5 percent “faculty” (presumably full time with average pay $80,370); and 29.5 percent as hourly staff (average pay $33,303).
PATFA is Local 4593 of the American Federation of Teachers: Michele Cheung (USM), president; James Seymour (UMA), vice president; Pamela Mitchel (UMF), treasurer; Tom McCord (UMA), secretary.
Contact: patfa@maine.edu