APSCUF stands in solidarity with AAUP-Wright State University faculty, who, in response to a unilaterally imposed contract, have set a strike date of Jan. 22. Below is APSCUF President Dr. Kenneth M. Mash’s letter to the Wright State University president.
What can APSCUF members do? Click here to read AAUP-WSU President Marty Kich’s message to APSCUF members. You can express your support on social media, tagging and posting to AAUP-WSU accounts on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can take a photo that includes a sign expressing support and send it to . You also can sign and share AAUP-WSU’s petition by clicking here.
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Jan. 16, 2018
Dear Dr. Schrader:
On behalf of the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF), which represents the more than 5,500 faculty and coaches employed at the 14 universities comprising Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education, I write to express our full support for the faculty at Wright State University and to request that you honor the AAUP chapter’s demand for the university administration to bargain in good faith.
APSCUF understands that the budget situation at Wright State is largely the result of poor management. Regardless, your faculty still provided a menu of concessions that demonstrates their commitment to the university and their students. Ignoring those concessions and imposing a contract that punishes the faculty does not serve your students well. The conditions under which faculty work are the conditions under which students learn, and the imposition of a contract does nothing but weaken those conditions.
Please do not underestimate the will of the faculty and their unity. In 2016, the State System of Higher Education doubted our solidarity, and the result was a successful strike. We are certain that the students at Wright State will support their faculty the same way our students supported us. But your faculty do not want to go on strike. They want your administration to rescind your administration’s unilateral action and to bargain fairly. As Marty Kich (AAUP-WSU president) has said, your faculty “have a deep interest in the long-term viability” of Wright State University.
For the sake of the university reputation, current and future students, and your future relations with your faculty, we strongly urge you to rethink your decision and to bargain fairly with your faculty.
Sincerely,
Dr. Kenneth M. Mash
APSCUF president